Third TDM: Don't Turn Around

[upcyclingmod]

Welcome to the Test Drive Meme.
| Premise | FAQ | Full Navigation | Rules | Reserves |

Arrival


Not all characters (known as Wickie, singular or Wickies, plural) arrive at the same time, surprisingly enough! That’s life for you. Some Wickies find their way to the island at a pivotal (or very mundane) point in their life, or even after or during their death.

Wickies who were standing or walking often find themselves entering the town South Sister, located on Lighthouse Isle, through an open doorway. Those that were laying down, or sleeping, tend to be found lying prone in beds, bathtubs, showers, couches, and similar places within the cottages on Cottage Row. There’s no rhyme or reason to it all! To Wickies familiar with the era, they will realize that everything looks as if it’s come from the ‘90s.

The house which a Wickie finds themselves within could already be occupied. This includes walking into a fellow Wicke, waking up in the same location, or accidentally scaring a room full of people with their sudden appearance.

Oops.


Braving the Trail

A new trail has opened up in the woods today! Funny, that there’s never been a real path before, but this one promises a spectacular view for all Wickies who brave it.

However, the view has to be earned with one stipulation: until the Wickie reaches the trail’s end, they are forbidden to turn around. At all. There’s no mention of what may happen if the Wickie does glance back, but the scripted text on the sign marking the trail hints that the consequences just might be dire.

The hike itself is fairly easy. It even feels peaceful with the sounds of bird calls echoing in the distance. But for Wickies who are known for past procrastination, the walk will prove to be difficult. These individuals will experience an itching urge to turn around and leave the trail, and the itch worsens with every pause of their footsteps.

If a Wickie does turn around, they will find themselves staring up at a blank masked figure, slightly taller than themselves. And as wisps of fog cover the packed-dirt path, the figure hisses out a sigh, their voice barely audible as they issue their reprimand:

“I’m disappointed.”

Why, it’s not clear at all.

But with those words, the Wickie will find their body locked into place, unable to scream as their limbs become paralyzed, their eyes remaining fixed upon the masked figure. Somehow, the figure moves without walking, inching closer and closer until their mask and the Wickie’s face are close enough to touch.

The only way to become unlocked from this position is to have someone come and cover the Wickie’s eyes before leading them back to the trail’s start, somehow breaking their vision of the masked figure, or by speaking of a past regret outloud.

Otherwise, the Wickie has a good chance of dying from exposure.


Currently residing

It’s been nearly three months since the first arrivals started off on the island. It’s had its ups and downs, but with the previous quiet month, it’s been easy to relax in the cottages and houses, and even feel safe.

But not everything stays as it should. Whether a Wickie is just scoping the houses out, or returning to sleep in one of those comfy beds during the night, they will find that things are just a little..off. It’s as if someone has moved everything just a little, by no more than an inch or two. Sometimes, it even looks as if someone hurried away from the middle of a task. For example, mugs left in the sink will be washed; unslept in beds have been stripped, and their sheets are found in the laundry.

It’s only after sitting down with a fellow Wickie, that what’s going on will slowly become apparent.

People, looking more like blue tinted holographic designs, appear within the house. Slowly they become more visible, going through the motions of daily life. People with their significant others, children playing, even pets can be seen, playing with their owners or doing things that pets do.

These residentials don’t seem to notice the newcomers in their surroundings. But they do notice objects are moved, particularly if it’s furnishings. They frown, confused, before talking to one another and seeing the items returned to where they believe it should be. And curious too, that while the residentials appear to speak to one another, there’s not a sound that’s uttered when their mouths move.

It’s not possible to interact with them, unless the Wickie has the spiritual power to speak with spirits. Even then they’re quite confused, and do not believe themselves dead- it’s as if they think the Wickie is the ghost instead.

It is possible to deter the residentials manifesting by lighting a candlek. Upon the candle being lit, they recoil, some of them violently, and with great upset, before fading.

But they weren’t causing any harm.

Are they?


It Arrives

The pumpkins have vanished (finally!) there’s no more costumes in the various drawers in town; the apple bobbing is done, and there’s no more bonfires. Pity that means the food is gone too.

But something else has arrived. Something...small, white, and with webbed feet.

You’ll know it by its sound. It’s unknown what has brought this particular goose to the island; it might have been a laden desire, or it had flown here over miles. Or who knows, maybe the Admin has set this goose out as some kind of petty revenge.

All that is known as that this goose likes to wreak havoc. It likes going into the flower and vegetable gardens, looking for seeds, vegetables, and flowers to pull up; it likes to grab keys and toss them just out of reach.

It’s also clever enough that it figured out how to get into Fruits Basket, into homes, and even...sometimes...onto roofs.

Thankfully, while the goose likes to startle people, its mischief is rather harmless, and even, at times, enjoyable to watch. Just be sure not to leave anything electrical it can throw into a body of water by accident- or any bells it can keep in its temporary home by the woods.

For those who are curious, yes it will accept all sorts of snacks, and it is a wild, ordinary goose. (So yes, it is as harmless as a normal goose and yes it is edible).


Confession network

Yet again, the phone goes off. Doesn’t look like it’s anybody in town, but it’s that weird, cheesy app called The Heart Game. And it’s persistent, too: it doesn’t want to be ignored, making a series of beeps and chirps, much like a pet that wants attention.

The message that pops up is as follows:

We’re back! It’s the time for everyone's favorite game- Confession! So beloved users, our question is:

If you could go anywhere in the world, where would it be? Why? Tell us everything!

Comments

[bindsthedead]

It's for the best. [And Sabriel doesn't think her father would let Dead spirits roam free. In such a strange situation, his example is what she falls back on- at least when dealing with Death and the Dead.

She unbuckles Saraneth, the second largest bell, from her bandolier. Judar might notice that there are two different kinds of magic in it, orderly power acting as a skin over something much more chaotic- and that some of the straps restrain the clapper, to keep the bell from sounding while not in use.

Saraneth's song is deep and powerful- too deep to naturally come from a handbell, and every spirit in the vicinity falls still at its sound, waiting for another order as Sabriel puts Saraneth away and starts undoing the straps on the third bell- Kibeth.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Perhaps if he'd focused on that branch of his capabilities, or went around trying to see things in a different way, he'd notice the nature of the bells better. As it were, he figured they were magic tools, or a specialized focus, that came from this girl's world. As he's learned, every world has its own system, so it was easier to just figure it out in a casual time instead of demanding understanding from it all.

Instead, the guy observes, choosing and remembering that he could just sit in the air while this happens. It lets him watch the growing horrified expressions on the spirits' faces. Either that or it was a realization of what could be happening. ]

... So you say.

[ He certainly couldn't say otherwise. It's not as if he'd be able to know. ]

[bindsthedead]

[Sabriel shows no sign of pleasure at the spirits distress- instead she frowns. This is something unpleasant, but necessary- she doesn't want this place to end up like Belisaere, with the living cowering behind aqueducts while the Dead roam most of the decaying city.

The second bell she draws is Kibeth, and its sound is an incongrously merry jig- and all the spirits caught in its sound move to its rhythm, almost skipping along- and then vanish, as though each has skipped right through an invisible door, and Sabriel immediately puts her hand over the clapper, silencing it before she starts putting it away.]

Travel without regret. [She's not speaking to Judar- rather, she's looking at where the nearest spirit was.] Do not look back.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ Knowing those expressions on the blue holograms' faces, it's an odd thing to watch as they're forced to dance off until they disappear. Odd, maybe it should be disconcerting, but Judar doesn't really judge. Then again, the only time he really cared about people doing whatever they want was when it involved him, or people he knew.

Didn't have to care or judge to jokingly give someone a hard time, though. ]

I think you scared them enough to not think about either of those things.

[bindsthedead]

Scaring them wasn't the point. [Sabriel watches him float carefully, trying to puzzle out how he's doing it- he seems to be solid flesh and blood, not some sort of spirit, so how...?

Well, at least he doesn't seem hostile, or reek of Death or Free magic.]

The point was to make sure they pass on before they stop being people.

[kuroi_taiyo]

So, that's just how it ends up going?

[ As someone without any idea on how any of this was supposed to go, or how one is meant to deal with 'spirits,' he couldn't really say otherwise. This was something that the girl would have a better idea on than him.

As he grew increasingly aware of her watching, and the sending being finished, Judar does return to standing on his feet. Actually on the ground, as he stopped using that magic. ]

You'd be the expert here.

[bindsthedead]

In my experience, yes. And I am a trained necromancer.

[Although if he wasn't from the Old Kingdom, and didn't recognize the bells... would he know what a necromancer was?]

The Dead cannot live again. And when they try to cling to Life... In the end, they try to steal it from the living.

[kuroi_taiyo]

Sure.

[ He wasn't going to argue against any of it, and given the mannerisms and lack of response to 'necromancer', all of that was out of his pay grade. He'll even say as much. ]

The rules of my universe didn't come with dead trying to cling to life, or whatever. So I'll just take your word on all of that.

[bindsthedead]

Really? [That has Sabriel's attention, and she steps forward, curious.] They just- stay dead? You don't need to worry about the final rites or necromancers enslaving them or anything like that?

[kuroi_taiyo]

Yeah, really.

[ No necromancers, or anything like that. Though the truth of how it worked in Judar's world probably wasn't much better. Not that he was about to go into the whole spiel about depravity and what it does to a person, even after they die. ]

People die, the energy or essence, or whatever you want to consider it, leaves the body and returns to the world's flow. That's just how it goes; It all flows and cycles through together, as if it weren't separated into people and all that.

[bindsthedead]

I see. With their individual self gone, there's nothing that would want to cling to life? [Which seems.. odd, to Sabriel. It's not really possible to destroy a Dead spirit- only force it to pass on, either by compulsion or weakening it so much it can no longer resist the pull of the river.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

Mm...

[ Give him a bit, he's trying to figure out how to phrase it. To someone like Judar, it was just a way of life, so explaining it to someone from another world is something... Different. ]

I guess it depends on if you see the world as alive or not as to whether it has to cling to life. The energy doesn't die or disappear, so much as change and return to the original form, to... However the flow goes. It doesn't change how humans and creatures try to survive and keep living, but they can't avoid what happens when the physical form dies.

[bindsthedead]

I see. I can't- quite imagine how it's possible, but it sounds... peaceful, in its own way. Like rivers flowing to join the ocean.

Although I wonder what happens to these spirits? If it's more like your world, or mine?

[kuroi_taiyo]

It's something like that.

[ Well, as long as the energy isn't corrupted, but he's omitting that. That would make it more complicated, and they were changing the way those rules worked anyway. ]

If it was more like my world, they wouldn't have enough sense of individual self to fade into reality and move stuff around. It could be like neither of our worlds, and the bleed over can be something natural.

[bindsthedead]

Perhaps- but I wonder what killed them. These buildings are too intact for the village to have gradually declined and died off.

[There are no signs of violence, no bloodstains... but those can be washed out, and in Sabriel's mind, the Book of the Dead opens to pages describing how a human might be killed by Free magic that stopped the heart, or sealed nose and mouth shut.]

And they didn't seem aware of their own deaths.

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ It's true, the town was in too good of a shape for anything like that to have happened. ]

If we wanted to go for weirdest ideas, they might not be dead spirits. It could just be that some people phase in and out of this world, instead of everyone appearing like we did.

[ Though that would certainly mean that the ones Sabriel sent were dead now. ]

[bindsthedead]

[Sabriel shakes her head decisively. Part of being a necromancer is knowing, instinctively, what's alive and what isn't, and she's felt what these things are before she even saw them.]

No, they're definitely Dead, I can sense it. Living spirits trapped in Death don't feel like they do.

[kuroi_taiyo]

Well, there's that, I guess...

[ Nah, he's still got not clue what was going on with them. All he had, as he'd admitted from the beginning, were guesses and ideas. ]

[bindsthedead]

I'll need to investigate further. [Possibly with Belgaer, to see if she can restore the spirit's memory of their deaths.]

But forgive me for not introducing myself. My name is Sabriel, and I have not been here very long. What can you tell me about this place?

[kuroi_taiyo]

I can tell you... That I showed up in one of these places in a tub full of water. Probably around the same time you showed up.

[ Not what you were hoping to hear, right? ]

The last time I got pulled to some other world, it led into a house that had people explaining everything. This one kinda leaves you hanging and scrounging for information.

[bindsthedead]

I see. Do you know where I could get answers? [She hadn't found many answers in the Old Kingdom- there had been things Mogget was unable or unwilling to tell her, and some things Touchstone had only been able to tell her at sea, where the bindings that held his and Mogget's tongues held less sway.

She's sure her father will have answers, she just needs to find a way out of this place to get to him.]

Such as where we are, and how to leave? There aren't any roads out of town, so I assume this village gets its supplies by boat. We can leave that way. [Unless there's some way to do whatever brought her here in reverse, and get back to Belisaere that way.]

[kuroi_taiyo]

[ That is quite a bit that she was thinking he'd know, when they were here for about the same length of time. Judar takes a moment before fishing around the front of his shirt, or the wrap around there, before pulling the smartphone out. ]

These things are probably your best way on figuring things out, but I've got no clue how they work. Just that one should've shown up by you when you arrived. I also didn't see boats around, but trying to fly out didn't work.

[ He's got not clue how to explain it. Just the things he tried... Didn't work, in weird ways. ]

[bindsthedead]

The weather doesn't seem that bad. Was there some sort of barrier, or entity stopping you?

[Sabriel pulls out her own phone, looking at it with evident confusion at its black, glassy surface.]

There's no magic in it- is it some sort of mirror?

[kuroi_taiyo]

Could be some entity's ability... Or advanced magic. I went out and suddenly ended up at the coast. I imagine taking a boat out will have something similar happen.

[ With a shrug, he puts the phone away again. ]

We'd have to find out how these work from someone else. All the ones I came across use magic, so it was easier to figure out.

[bindsthedead]

So some force is keeping us here- but to what end? Still, if we arrived here, then there must be a way out. I-

[Sabriel's voice wavers for a moment, but she takes a deep breath and composes herself.]

Before I was taken, I was on the verge of completing and urgent task- one that cannot wait. [If she's delayed much longer, Abhorsen will- no, that won't happen. She'll find a way back soon, and if it means they've lost a day, she and Touchstone can go down the the reservoir tomorrow. Or in a few days, if it takes that long to leave this place.]