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

[fairysong]

[Sheryl bends a little bit closer, looking at the pin in the other girl's hand. She reaches out, fingers closing around the pin and waiting for the other set of fingers to let go to pull it close and inspect it.] This should actually do the trick, I think. It just needs to be able to be bent and hold a shape.

It probably won't be much good as a hairpin afterwards, if you're okay with that.

[adelphoi]

[ she shakes her head. ]

'Tis only an average pin, I won't be missing it.

[ alisaie leans forward, a bright curiosity in her eyes as she watches the pin in sheryl's hand. ]

Can you show me?

[fairysong]

Show you how to use it to pick a lock? [Sheryl thinks for a moment. She learned by trying, after all; can she actually teach this to someone else?

But she is nothing if not confident.]

Sure~

Wanna go back to that hallway?

[adelphoi]

By all means.

[ her mouth slants into an easy grin, and alisaie gestures to the hallway. she's definitely not excited to learn something illegal!! ]

After you.

[fairysong]

Okeydoke~ [Sheryl smiles, a little mischief behind her eyes. This should be fun.] Let's go, then! It shouldn't take too long. Maybe.

But if this breaks, then I guess we gotta stop, unless we can find someone else to give us a hair pin.

[Time to head back that way! Nobody's gonna care, right? It's not like they can get caught or anything.]

[adelphoi]

[ i mean, pretty much everyone is trying to bust down these doors, so alisaie has no qualms. normally she's not so keen on what seems like illicit activity, but a new skill is a new skill, and they have to get through these doors, one way or another.

so she follows along without argument! ]

Well, it is certainly worth a try.

[fairysong]

[Sheryl finds a door that hasn't been broken into yet in the hallway, tries the handle to make sure that it's indeed locked, and then, satisfied, turns back to Alisaie.] Okay. So, how much do you know about how a lock works? Just a normal tumble lock, nothing fancy.

[adelphoi]

[ here they are, at their first target!! ]

Only the basics. It is a cylinder lock with several tumblers inside that must align properly to release the lock. The correct key will lift the tumblers into the proper places to create the correct configuration.

[fairysong]

Yep! That's it exactly. [She kneels in front of the door, tapping the keyhole set into the metal.] What you have to keep in mind is that a lot of the pins are under pressure when you turn the handle just slightly. So if you do keep the handle turned, you can push each pin up in turn, and the tumbler will turn just enough to keep it trapped up there. Get them all stuck, and presto-- door opened!

Now, there's two parts to this. You need a lever to create pressure in the keyhole, and you need the pick itself. You can make both out of hairpins, thankfully. They're useful things~

[adelphoi]

I see..

[ she's soaking all of this up like a sponge.. even if it is very illegal. but hey, you never know when you'll need to use an untoward method to achieve something good or necessary! alisaie drops down to kneel beside her, watching the lock closely. ]

On your ready.

[ she is ready to provide moral support. ]

[fairysong]

All right... this shouldn't be too hard. [Sheryl bites her lip as she inserts first the level and then the pick.

She focuses. Alisaie will see her listening very carefully as she fiddles inside, testing the pins one by one.

Basically, this video. But then, before too long-- the lock opens.] Aha! See?

[adelphoi]

[ it's difficult to discern exactly what is happening simply by watching her work, especially when she cannot see into the lock, but alisaie pays close attention nevertheless. with her sharp ears at least she can hear the gentle, quiet clicks of the tumblers as they slip into place, her head tilted as she observes.

then comes the definitive click, and the lock springs open. amazing!! ]

That is quite a skill.

[fairysong]

[Success! Sheryl pulls the lever and pick out, inspecting them to make sure they're not in danger of breaking anytime soon, and pushes herself to her feet, dusting off her knees.] It's served me well in my life a few times, I won't lie~

Want to see what's inside?