introductory mingle: FEAST OF THE DYING

[riverviewmod]

who: everyone in Riverview!
what: Introductory Log and Feast of the Dying
when: Feast of the Dying from October 1st-8th; various other prompts over the whole month of October.
where: Anywhere around the city.
warnings: please put any necessary warnings in the subject lines

feast of the dying

In the days leading up to October 1st, residents new and old will notice preparations beginning, a flurry of activity getting the city ready for the upcoming celebration: the Feast of the Dying. There is an old, widely-known, and widely-believed superstition or proverb in Riverview Quarantine: 'The greater your fear of death, the easier it is for death to find you.' This is a cornerstone belief of a lot of the residents of the Quarantine, most of whom have survived intensely difficult and violent pasts on their own worlds and who are still willing and eager to throw themselves into exploring and settling new worlds, starting their lives fresh. To honor this spirit, the Feast of the Dying is a celebration of the transition between life and death, an opportunity to face death both figuratively and literally, and come out on top.

celebrating the transition from life to death

During the month of October, a particular natural phenomenon on the moon weakens the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead, allowing for the crossover of those dead into the world of the living, with ghosts from the pasts of both the residents and the Quarantine itself to take corporeal form. The festivities during this time feature tests of courage in highly haunted places, escape rooms both virtual and physical with varying levels of danger, and the week-long Feast of the Dying itself, between October 1st and 8th this year.

i. ghosts from the past

During the 10th month of every year on the moon, due to a complex series of chemical, electromagnetic, and magical forces that no one has ever exactly distinguished or completely understands, the boundaries between the worlds of the living and the dead are weakened almost to the point of nonexistence. During this time, residents of the moon are able to see and interact with the dead - ghosts, manifesting in ways that run the gamut from being a strange sense of being watched or being visible or audible all the way to more corporeal spirits that can affect the world around them. The barriers are weaker in some parts of the city than they are in others, with some areas experiencing little to no ghost activity, while others are so populated with these ghosts that residents can barely go a few feet without running into one. The ghosts are generally the unsettled dead, people who died violently, or who were lost, seeking a place to call home, and their behavior is as varied as it was while they were alive. Some ghosts are angry and vengeful, some are simply lonely and lost.

While some people tend to interact with the ghosts only a little and as necessary, others avoid them as completely as possible, and yet others actively seek out souls who are suffering and try to ease that so they can stop coming back year after year. There are other people who have found that ghosts from their home worlds have come through with them, following them through the portal when they arrived, even if they did not die on the moon...

Whether facing death or making peace with those who have died, this is a time to reflect.

A Few OOC Guidelines:
● Characters may see or interact with ghosts from the Quarantine's past. These people will be as varied as the NPCs, from a multitude of different worlds, and characters are welcome to either engage or avoid, as players wish.
● Most Quarantine-based ghosts will have died in either the Great War with the neighboring reality or in the Pandemic that wiped out the population of the Abandoned City years ago.
● Characters may also see or interact with ghosts from their own or other characters' canons, providing the character in question is dead in canon and is not currently being played in the game.
● Canon-based ghosts should not be simply transplanted into the game as they were in canon - they are ghosts, and therefore 'not quite right,' and should not be used as an excuse to NPC a canonmate for a month. These ghosts are there to be used as plot devices to open up new avenues of CR, to create angst, to help a character make peace with their past, or other similar reasons.
● Ghosts should not be complete corporeal physical presences indistinguishable from living people, but barring this, how strongly the ghosts manifest and how much they can interact with the world around them is up to player discretion. Ghosts shouldn't be present the whole month straight, but can disappear and reappear at random times.

● Mod questions and plotting regarding this prompt can be found here.

ii. the feast of the dying

The month's holiday is named after a long-standing tradition in the Quarantine - the Feast of the Dying - that starts at sundown on the first day of the month and continues until sunrise on the ninth day. The Feast of the Dying is a costumed masquerade-style party that is continuously available for the entire week. Set up by volunteers specializing in both magic and science, the Feast of the Dying is hosted in a large conference center that has been decorated and magically altered to provide a very formal, intensely creepy atmosphere. The decor can run the gamut from fancy and classy decorations featuring iconic skeletons or ghosts to incredibly realistic catacombs or any other frightening settings that you can think of. Rooms often become more and more foggy the more people enter them to mingle, and in many rooms the air pressure will be slightly played with to make the atmosphere seem more oppressive and spooky. Costumes and masks are required, and anything from a Halloween-style costume to a formal outfit with mask is acceptable.

Players can feel free to go wild with ideas for decor at the Feast, including linking to inspiration images in their posts - it is, essentially, like having a Masquerade ball inside a disturbingly realistic haunted house.

The venue the Feast is held in includes several large rooms intended for dancing with different themes and decorations that can change off and on throughout the week, two large dining rooms where feasts will be held at mealtimes and snacks or drinks (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) will be promptly served to anyone who sits at one of the tables, and a plethora of rooms meant for mingling and relaxing. Additionally, there are a large number of smaller lockable rooms set up for sleeping or private encounters.

iii. escape rooms

One of the fun and more commercialized aspects of the season are the many Escape Rooms that pop up throughout the Quarantine. Residents are encouraged to test their survival skills by grouping up with friends or strangers to escape difficult and scary situations together by solving a series of puzzles.

Escape Rooms can be either physical, set up inside buildings with realistic decorations, or they can be Virtual Reality, where the players don VR masks and cooperate in a virtual world. While the former can be more challenging and realistic, the latter provides for higher stakes. Physical Escape Rooms are generally set up to avoid any kind of physical harm to participants, but the Virtual Reality Escape Rooms can simulate pain and injury quite handily, and therefore can put participants in more dangerous situations.

While players can make up an Escape Room that uses whatever theme they like, some prompts are below:

● Zombie Attack
● Torture Machines or Traps
● Cannibal Warlock
● Wrongly Convicted: Escape from Prison
● Escape from Sewer Monsters
● Mad Scientist Experiments

iv. tests of courage

As mentioned before, there are certain parts of the city where the ghost activity is much stronger than elsewhere. These are places where terrible things have happened - hospitals that treated the ill during the Pandemic, insane asylums or prisons where inmates were mistreated, homes where terrible murders happened, places exposed to dark magic, and other similar places. Every year during October, these places are shut down or vacated (unless they were already sitting empty) and entrance is allowed to people wishing to partake in a traditional Test of Courage - to enter these deeply haunted and dangerous places, and stay there as long as possible, sometimes even overnight.

In these particularly vulnerable and terrifying places, ghost activity is intense and almost constant. Characters will encounter strange sounds, smells, and visions; will encounter ghosts that are capable of throwing items or people; and most of all, they will experience powerful and realistic hallucinations due to the sheer lack of boundary between the worlds of the living and dead in these areas. Whether the hallucinations are manifestations of their own worst fears, the ghosts retelling their own tortured stories, or any other kind of terrifying vision, they feel very real. While characters will not be injured by the hallucinations, the sensations of pain, pleasure, hunger, thirst, or other sensations will be almost impossible to tell from the real thing until the hallucination subsides at daylight.

While the haunted locations are highly unlikely to kill characters, whether or not they experience serious injury due to physical actions they do while under the influence of a hallucination (eg. falling down a flight of stairs) or attacks from ghosts (eg. an angry ghost throws books at a character) is up to player discretion.

v. roommates or wildcard

Feel free to use this prompt to meet new roommates, for the purpose of getting to know each other, or hit up the mod-posted prompt to create a Communal Housing floor mingle. Or, if you have an idea for a prompt that isn't in this list, set during the Feast of the Dying, feel free to write it up!

visual inspiration

click on thumbnails for larger view; images may contain disturbing themes


Credit: image i: Olivier Le Gall; image ii: John Watkiss; image iii: unknown (wallpapersfan); image iv: signed (pinterest); images v and vi: unknown (pinterest)

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Comments

Jonathan Samuel Kent / Superboy | OTA

[supersweet]

[ i. journeyed across an ocean of stars to reach you ]

[ Jon was (unfortunately) very familiar with ghosts. He's familiar with many things that people would find odd or simply downright impossible. Alternate realities. Portals. Divergent timelines. And yes, a dimension with dinosaurs and world war two veterans. His memories of such things tend to fluctuate and he does not remember it as clearly as he would like to. Even now, the memories of the Eradicator grow dim.

But he remembers Krypton. He remembers their howls, their overwhelming need to be heard. So when the ghosts start appearing, Jon tries. He tries to listen, tries to help. But it exhausts him because Jon doesn't have any answers. He doesn't even have a Kryptonian name. He knows nothing of Jor-El or his cousin's life. Finally giving up, Jon takes out the noise-cancelling headphones and tries to go about his day while a veritable army of tall aliens trail after him. He might accidentally bump into you, knocking his glasses askew, which he adjusts immediately with a sheepish, strained grin. ]

Sorry. They . . . don't really take no for an answer.

[ iv. leave it to superboy. or not ]

[ Despite being used to weirdness in his life, Jon did have one weakness. He wasn't very good when it came to ghosts, monsters, vampires . . . well maybe not vampires. Jon is pretty sure he could defeat a vampire, no problem. He still gets a little jumpy though, especially when all his senses are more heightened compared to normal people and he still gets twitchy when he catches a late night horror movie (not endorsed by his parents, but since they weren't around, it's not like they could stop him.).

So when he hears the echo of laughter with no heartbeat to go with it, Jon starts and accidentally uses his heat vision to knock down a couple of lamp posts into each other. They crash to the ground with a loud groan, sparking before they died. Jon sighs, muttering. ]

Great. Just great. I do not have the allowance to cover that . . .

[ v. wildcard it up! pm or poke me on captainkink if you want a custom prompt. ]

iv

[chumpelstiltskin]

[Dave is not the kind of guy to judge a fear of what he essentially feels is death. He's been kind of on edge too, but luckily you can't just time travel on a panicked whim or everyone would be in the pre-historic ages with him.

Rather, when Dave sees a ray of some weird-ass heat shit, his first instinct is flight and not fight. Literally. He jumps into the air to hover as soon as he hears the clatter, just about ready to fly the hell out of there.

He takes a moment to assess the scene and realises someone just got spooked. He floats closer, leveling a flat look on Jon.]

Woah. You really showed those lamp posts, kid. [He's acting like he didn't freak out too.]

[supersweet]

[ Jon sighs, rubbing the back of his neck. He really needed to get better control, but with his father gone, that leaves no one to train with. Carefully, he reaches out to pick up the lamp post casually. ]

Do you think if I fix it, no one will notice?

[chumpelstiltskin]

[Dave raises a brow when Jon lifts the post like it's nothing, letting himself drop to the ground so he can walk closer and inspect the damage.]

Maybe if you have a masters in welding. [Dave shrugs.] If they didn't want people to destroy the scenery, they wouldn't let ghosts pull fast ones on us twenty-four seven.

[supersweet]

I don't think it was their fault.

[ Another unearthly wail was hard and Jon jumps in the air, accidentally swinging the lamp post before he straightens it. Whoops. ]

Besides, no one can do the stuff I can do.

[chumpelstiltskin]

Yeah, well- I think that- [Dave is cut off by the wail, and he rears away from the lamp post so he's a veeerrry safe distance from a concussion.]

No one can weld? [He asks, blandly.] Nobody can do the stuff I do either, doesn't mean I go around breaking government property.

[supersweet]

[ Jon flinches, a shade of guilt and fear entering his eyes. Quietly, he lines the lamp post up and lets his eyes heat up. His vision goes red, welding the lamppost back to its spot. ]

Sorry. I'm sorry.

i

[livingsymbol]

[ Steve has been doing his best to be patient with the various spirits that are walking Quarantine. This is their festival, after all, and he's trying to respect that. For the most part, the ghosts that appear aren't intrusive and he can get away with brief interactions. But when he comes across Jon, there is a whole squad of spirits following him, like a moving grove at his back. Steve frowns and steps up standing next to the boy and putting his hand on his shoulder while he faces the ghosts. ]

Are you okay?

[ His words are to Jon, but his eyes don't leave the spirits. ]

[supersweet]

[ Jon brightens. ]

Mr. Rogers! Yeah, I'm fine. They're just kind of needy.

[ He glances at them, trying to look nonchalant about it, but there's only so much nonchalance a ten year old can muster about his dead planet stalking him. ]

[livingsymbol]

You can call me Steve.

[ Because it does sound a little weird to be called Mr. Rogers. That makes him feel too formal somehow, like Jon is addressing him as someone else. Maybe his father once upon a time. He stays at the boy's side, standing slightly in front of him so he can be a barrier between the ghosts of Krypton and their link to the world. ]

They are. You know this many people?

[ It definitely raises some questions. Steve decides to address the ghosts himself. ]

Why don't you give him a break for now? He's got his own business to think about.

[supersweet]

[ The ghosts don't answer. They look a little vacantly at Steve, as if they can't understand the question. Some try to speak but it comes out as garbled gibberish. Jon winces slightly at that. ]

I don't really know them. They're kind of from my dad's side of the family.

[livingsymbol]

Your- These are your family? There are a lot of them.

[ It doesn't seem right somehow, even though Steve knows that Jon can't be lying. The strange number of people just staring, pleading for attention from the boy makes him uneasy. He wants to reach for his shield. ]

How do they know you?

[supersweet]

Not really my family . . . more like my people.

[ He pushes his glasses further up the bridge of his nose with a squint. ]

They don't know me, they know of me. Being the last one around 'n stuff.

iv.

[anotheroldsoldier]

[Bucky is on his way back to the warehouse apartment he shares with Steve and Ava, dressed in the camo pants and fitted black shirt of the Perimeter Guard, a gym bag slung over his shoulder. He'd had a late night session at his favorite gym, which is a longer walk these days, since it was located closer to communal housing. The ghosts have been a nuisance, setting him on edge with presences spotted out of the corner of his eyes and nothing that can be done about them, but he's... managing.

That doesn't mean he doesn't tense up immediately when a couple of lamp posts crash into each other, sparking, at the end of the street. Frowning, he turns in that direction.]

Everything okay here? Besides the obvious.

[supersweet]

[ Jon turns around with a bright false smile. ]

Everything's fiii — [ Jon stops midway with a faint frown. That heartbeat was slightly different but . . . Jon squints harder. The clothes and haircut doesn't. Jon isn't entirely sure Bucky even knows how to dress himself (yes, it's some paranoia thing and yes, Jon gets that, he knows Batman but still) ]

— . . . Bucky?

[anotheroldsoldier]

[There are a couple of other small differences, but the biggest are that this Bucky Barnes has brown eyes, and is a good few inches shorter than his counterpart. He tilts his head slightly, looking over the kid with an expression that shifts from appraising to confused.]

Have we met?

[supersweet]

[ Jon grins sheepishly. ]

Kind of? I'm Superboy. I guess I'm friends with the other Bucky? Sort of? It's hard to tell.

[anotheroldsoldier]

[Superboy doesn't really ring a bell, so it must be a case of mistaken identity. It doesn't happen often, but it doesn't really surprise Bucky much either.]

Right, I guess it would be with him. For what it's worth, we ain't even remotely the same guy.

[supersweet]

[ For Jon, recognition does not come from his eyesight as much as it comes from the heartbeat. That was one of the first skills his father passed onto him. ]

How come? I mean, usually there are . . . similarities?

iv

[umbrastaff]

Holy smokes, kiddo!

[Lup is so glad she's intangible right now, because that shit looked amazing - and dangerous.

...and then she realizes this is Jon - and fuck, hadn't she scared enough people her brother liked today?]

So... uh... you like my costume?

[supersweet]

That's a costume?

[ Jon doesn't look perturbed, mostly eyeing it with the usual bright curiosity he holds. ]

It looks cool. I know a few heroes who can do the whole flamey thing.

[umbrastaff]

Well. Kinda.

[There's no sign of her being alive, after all. Not a single heartbeat.]

You do? Are they as cool as I am?

[supersweet]

No way. You're still the coolest.

[ Jon grins, even as he sheepishly picks up the lamp post. ]

So how come you're all glowy? Is everything okay?

[ For Jon, heartbeats are everything. The fact that she doesn't have one is more disconcerting than being on fire. But he's good at hiding that. ]

[umbrastaff]

I knew I liked you!

[She smiles at him and looks at the lamp post.]

You don't have to feel bad about that, by the way. I'm pretty sure they're counting on some collateral damage with all the powers people have around here.

[Is she stalling? Maybe?]

I... uh... kinda became a ghost back home and after I got a canister it happened here too? It's okay, though, we're gonna fix it!

[supersweet]

[ Jon nods sagely. Canisters were weird and they did weird things. The ghost thing seems troubling, but Taako was here so Taako would handle it. Jon attempts to straighten the lamp post, frowning at the structure. ]

If you're okay with it, then I'm okay with it. Are you okay with it?