welcome to the horologium.

[acatamods]

I ▫ main IV ▫ premise       XI ▫ applications XIV ▫ activity II ▫ logs V ▫ rules VII ▫ bestiary   IX ▫ canon updates XII ▫ taken XV ▫ drop/hiatus III ▫ ooc VI ▫ faq VIII ▫ setting   X ▫ mods XIII ▫ reserves XVI ▫ players welcome to the horologium. Some of you know it is coming. The World Jump, the chaotic thrust into a new universe. But some of you are new, and though you know what the mission is, it is a bit . . . troubling, sitting around and waiting for something to happen. But eventually, you get a message on your watch. It shows Astoria . . . dark hair framing her features, her voice light and musical. She sounds like herself, for the first time in some time . . . that spark of determination back in her eyes. A MESSAGE FROM YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD WITCH. "It is time, my beloved Travelers, to go to our new destination . . . and I want you to know that I have the utmost faith in you. Akvos' loss has hurt us all, and I know that many of you doubt our mission. But please believe me when I say that you have done the best job anyone could ask of you. Akvos' destruction was not your fault . . . and to our newest members of our Circle, welcome to our journey. I can only hope that your journey here will work out to the benefit of us all." That being said, you are journeying to the Horologium . . . it is a ship that has sent out a distress beacon. I am not sure when, or where, but I can feel great darkness, emanating from that place. I believe you all can combat what is done there, without interacting with the Void . . . so please, be safe, and I will see you all when you return." And, just like that, there is a pull in your stomach . . . your vision blacks out and you feel the sudden sense of vertigo, a sensation of falling, and then . . . nothingness. You open your eyes, and you are suddenly waking up in the midst of . . . fog? THE AWAKENING. When you wake, you are greeted by metal — there’s an expanse of silver all around you. The cot you’re laying on is somewhat rigid, like a flattened wedge of cotton more than anything, encased in a capsule-like structure. Should you inspect your surroundings, you’ll find that there are three more cots in your room..or more notably, another person in the room in of itself. Depending on where you’ve been roused from your slumber, however, you’ll find that your circumstances differ. ➜ If you’ve woken up in the northeast wing of the ship, there seems to be a pool of saturated pink goo at your feet. It sticks to the bottom of your heel and collects at the very center of the room, oozing from the cracks and crevices within the metal lining of the walls. And even more notably, the goo has a particularly saccharine scent, as though it’s meant to be...consumed. Looks like you had the misfortune of waking up in the wing adjacent to the kitchen. ➜ In the northwest wing, the ship is functioning at an all time low. When you wake, the room is illuminated for a brief moment...before flickering out, only to leave you in pitch darkness. Power returns to the room intermittently and only for a few seconds at most, but it appears as though you and your newfound roommates will have to navigate the darkness if you want to leave. ➜ In the southwest wing, the fire alarm in your room has been activated for some inexplicable reason. It’s an obnoxiously loud siren that slices right through the whirring of the machinery around you — and it goes as far as to trigger the sprinklers hanging from the ceiling. Water sprays from above you, hopefully ensuring that you’ve woken up if nothing else has. It doesn’t seem to be draining either, so it may be for the best that you escape with some haste. ➜ In the southeast wing, your circumstances are for the most part rather unremarkable. An untouched room, mostly intact...until you try to open the door. It won’t budge — unless you have some form of super strength, your muscle power is rendered useless on its own. You might just have to commission someone else to help you... Beyond your room, the word “Horologium.” stretches across the wall. Welcome to your new home. WHISPERS IN THE DARK. In a way, it feels as though you’re suspended in time. The ship is always humming, always whirring as it makes a haphazard attempt to function. The noise comes to a halt every so often, leaving you with nothing but silence and the idle creaking of the floor beneath you. There are remarkably large, bright white doors that divide each and every wing. A circular window is positioned at the center of all 4 of these doors: but nothing can be seen through it. It’s likeness is that of a black hole’s, like someone had gone as far as to paint over it. On every door, the same word is emblazoned in black lettering: EXIT. Except the word itself appears to be scratched out to some degree — as though it were scrubbed out in a fit of desperation but remained no less. When you see the door, you might be overcome with excitement. Or perhaps not. Regardless of what your reaction is like, the lights around you will dim and flicker at an alarming frequency. For a moment, it’s almost as though the gravity around you has slowed, and the hallways are becoming narrower by the second.. Voices and faces from the past emerge in your mind. You see someone you shouldn’t; they’re calling for you. They’re here with you right now, beckoning you to come closer... If you reach the door and attempt to open it, it won’t budge. And the further you walk away from it, the more the effects will subside. But there’s no telling if you’ll sleep well tonight. INVESTIGATIONS The ship is fitted to house approximately 500 people — it’s a bit of a ghost town, however, lived in but abandoned no less. The chairs are in the mess hall aren’t aligned perfectly. The tables are a bit crooked. The lounge is lofty, but not pristine. The rooms may be barren, but it’s hard to shake the feeling that they were somehow someone else’s before they became yours. There’s an array of locked doors, varying in sizes and shapes, all of which withhold something potentially useful to you. You may be inclined to visit the lounge, the mess hall, rifle through the bedrooms . . . the ship is yours to explore. However, how you interact with the ship is….entirely up to you. There is something to be found everywhere. Regardless of what you do, where you investigate and how, you might be tempted to look behind your shoulder. After all, every decision you make matters...right? (Every Player’s investigation prompt has the potential to differ greatly as your investigation will require mod input. We encourage you to ask as many questions as you would like, we are here to help and provide you with the information necessary.) Additionally, please feel free to write up and work with your own prompts! These areas of the world are presented as jumping off points for your characters, not limitations. The idea of this world- as with all the others- is to explore -- you may use as much leeway as you want in order to come up with what your character will do. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask them back on the various threads back in the OOC post from before!

Comments

[foundafamily]

[Despite being more than willing to ask questions, Firo blanches when asked for answers of his own. His answer is quick, brisk, and very nonspecific.]

Nothing important. Just nothing that should be here.

[Belatedly, he realizes that his own reticence might seem sort of hypocritical, so he shrugs one shoulder and offers a sort of half-assed apology.]

Sorry. I thought you might know something. The sooner we can figure out what's going on here, the better shot we have of not getting our asses kicked.

[broadaxes]

[Johanna ain't impressed. She watches the kid backpedal and folds her arms over her chest.]

I'll tell you what I saw if you tell me what you saw. And I don't know shit, I just got here not too long ago.

[foundafamily]

[Huh. So is she familiar with that kind of thing from back home? Or, if she's like Takeru and that other kid, some other strange world-hopping adventure? His curiosity remains, but he reluctantly files it under "probably not my business" for now. He shrugs.]

It was just somebody from home. You don't have to tell me anything.

[That's also her business. If they both saw something, he has to think that the "what" of the illusion doesn't matter as much as the "how" or "why." Which also doubles as a convenient excuse to not think too hard on it in favor of zooming to a safer topic.

With enough sarcasm that you could choke on it, he adds:]

Welcome to the team, by the way. [And more genuinely:] I've been here for a while, so go ahead and ask if there's something you wanna know.

[To return the favor for her door explanation, as it were. He'd feel better having the debt repaid in his mental ledger.]

[broadaxes]

[Johanna still has her arms folded and is giving him the stink eye. She isn't from a place where you see strange things-- not unless you're drugged or stung by a trackerjacker. The only thing she knows now is that this kid has been here awhile and can explain a few things.]

So, magic is real and it brought us here? Is that he jist of it? People were saying you all have been other places before? How often do we switch?

[foundafamily]

[Just a few months ago, he would've hated to agree with "magic is real"--honestly, he still sort of hates it. But it's one of the truths they've had to accept, so he nods albeit reluctantly.]

Pretty often. I haven't exactly been keeping good track of time but usually about every couple of months, I'd say. We've been to-- [He ticks them off on his fingers. El Minha, Struxta, Akvos...] --this'll be the fourth.

[broadaxes]

Fourth?? Crap.

[Johanna motions for the kid to follow her. She goes back to sitting at one of the tables set up, drawing on scraps of paper.]

[foundafamily]

[He nods as he follows her to her table. Crap indeed, lady.]

Yeah, sorry. Apparently we're in it for the long haul. Hopefully you didn't have plans.

[He says it wryly, bitterly because who doesn't have plans? He cranes his neck to take a peek at whichever drawing is nearest.]