W3 🛸 MOD CYOA : PORTRAIT OF SNOW 🚀 NODD, ROSAMUND, YURI

[dropoffs]

something will be here eventually

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PROLOGUE

[dropoffs]

[ Hello everyone, as a debrief. This icly happens W3 WEDNESDAY NIGHT to W3 THURSDAY RETURN. The week effect is not available and everyone is provided one blaster (like star wars). They are on a small little ship, heading towards what they can see as a dark fog nearby Hyros. ]

Hello, everyone. I am Amalthea and I will be the senior officer foreseeing this mission. As some of you may already know, we normally disperse galactic storms caused by cosmoelectromagnetic waves so that the Eudora can safely travel to the next destination... If we leave them be, what happens in those storms can swallow the ship. I know that things have been rough, but Hyros does not have teleportation technology and we must press on. ... While this storm's grade is 2 out of 5, I cannot guarantee it to be harmless, so I have supplied you weapons to protect yourselves.

[ And as their ship is engulfed by the fog, they will find themselves in a very dark manor, already inside. If they look around where they think would be corners or passageways out of this living room, it is an eerie darkness. Their only source of light... Is a fireplace. The embers crackle softly, taking in the timber.

It's quiet in here, dead silent.

Everyone can ask Amalthea more questions for today, etc. ]

CHAT WITH AMALTHEA

[dropoffs]

[ you ask her questions, you talk to her. ]

[applebough]

Hello, Amalthea...

[ pretty person. Yuri cannot look at them in the eyes. Help. ]

Do we have any flashlights in case the one from our I.R.I.S. doesn't work?

[dropoffs]

I do have a couple of light sources we can use. [ TAKES OUT CANDLE LIKE THIS IS THE MIDDLE AGES. You all get candles now. ]

[rosebleed]

Miss Amalthea!

[immediately runs up and takes her hands.]

It's so lovely to see you again! I was worried after we woke and didn't see you...

[dropoffs]

My apologies, Miss du Prix. I should have at least left a message since I very could be a victim some day. We just had a lot of work to do, as you already know. [ She may take her hands. They're deathly cold. ]

[murdergate]

I can't follow any of what you said about storm waves--not your fault. But is it normal that they turn into a house?

[dropoffs]

If the CEM waves are strong enough, they can change our surroundings into anything. In this case, it is a manor.

CHAT AMONGST YOURSELVES

[dropoffs]

[ you guys talk to each other. ]

[applebough]

[ A gun! That's pretty much what this blaster is, so Yuri is not having much trouble wielding it and checking over the equipment.

But she stares at Amalthea... and then whispers over to Rosamund and Nodd. (no tag order. go wild) ]

Are all the senior members so good looking...?

[murdergate]

[ a gun! nodd has no idea how to properly wield one of these, he will take it, however. waste not, want not, and so on.

looking at yuri, looking at amalthea. ]

Her and Io, anyway. Ganymede gives hot guy energy but I could be misreading.

DOOR 1

[dropoffs]

Let's stick close... Or better yet, hold hands to not get lost.

[ You are all wrangled to hold hands in a single file line, little ducklings.

... So as they wander around, they don't notice anything dangerous at first. It's empty, dark, and the furniture is quite nice despite being old and covered in dust. The candle lights you all receive illuminate with its natural glow, but you can use your I.R.I.S. if that's more comfortable. Amalthea hums, filling in the eerie silence of this place.

There's no white noise. No anything, like they're stuck in a space in between. It's hard to know if there's anything outside this manor. Looking around, there are doors that can click open but Amalthea doesn't open them wide, then doors that are just locked shut. ]

... It seems that there are four doors we may enter and my guess is that once we experience all four doors will this storm release. [ She offers them a smile... It isn't quite reassuring, it lacks warmth, and there's something eerie to it much like this manor. ] Are we ready to open the first together?

[applebough]

[ Yuri nods. She wonders if Amalthea is always like this. ]

I'm ready.

[ She is holding hands. Enjoy the warmth. ]

[rosebleed]

[hold hands! Rosamund will have elected to hold one of Amalthea's at the front of the line, because she is already forewarned about their frigidity.]

Same here!

[She shoots a smile and a wink to both Nodd and Yuri. Maybe this will go pear-shaped before long, but she's very pleased with the choice in company. Small blessings!]

[murdergate]

[ every other mission, people come back with weird(er) hair and less limbs. he hangs on the end, holding yuri's hand and a now lit candelabra. sucks to have his darkvision still turned off. boooo.

... is rosie winking bc she's gonna go for the npc? damn. so brave. ]

Ready.

DOOR 2

[dropoffs]

[ ... They don't have much time in between watching how that door resolved, but you all get the sense it was resolved. Somehow, in a blink, Yuri, Rosamund, and Nodd are in front of the next unlockable door. Amalthea... You have to trust she's somewhere here and you can find her later. Maybe she needs time.

It takes a turn and push by the knob—they are in Branch D-02, Lobotomy Corporation. Through this door, there are staff working and passing by, all familiar to Yuri. In the distance, she even sees Alex hard at work, talking to some supervisors about Abnormalities that were recently encountered in other sectors.

... This is her memory, she knows and believes it to be true. She doesn't think this is strange at all. Why doesn't she take a lead and tour Rosamund and Nodd around? ]

[applebough]

[ Ah. Yuri takes the lead here. They're fine with not holding hands now, right? Right. ]

It's Lobotomy Corporation...

[ She waves over at Alex. ]

Would you two like to meet her? She's really nice.

[rosebleed]

Wha—

[Sorry, quick second. She needs to shake her head at the sudden lurch in reality.]

"Lobotomy?" [Forgive her flinching. That sounds deeply ominous. She looks back at Nodd, feeling queasy about all this.]

Certainly we would. But, Yuri, this might be...

DOOR 3

[dropoffs]

[ After your short reprieve to uplift one of their own, Yuri, Rosamund, and Nodd see another door they know is unlocked during their other tour... It is down the steps, to what gives off wafts of wine. Perhaps a wine cellar? It's time for this door to open.

And here we are in the middle of all these youths, hanging out in a partially underground space below a bar/hookah lounge. Each one has earned this place to belong with their assistance to the establishment above. At the front alcohol barrels are stored and shelves, but the back is tailored to be comfortable and homely. There are large cushions across the floor for seating, then a couple of low tables and other furniture for easy perching.

This is a familiar space for Nodd... But in this door, it becomes a familiar place for Yuri and Rosamund as well. They're sucked into the memory—they have history with here now, though newer than the other rascals hanging around. Despite that, they've grown accustomed and fond to this haven.

With Yuri and Rosamund being fresh, Nodd thinks it would be best to introduce them to some of his friends that they haven't met. ]

[murdergate]

[ ah, to be like twenty-two but a half-elf so it knocks out to like seventeen for the (non-anise) humans amongst us. which is most of us as everyone else in the room happens to be a round-ear.

this is where he feels most at home, though, amongst the crew. they don't often give him new members, what with his habit of leering, but these two are girls. should be fine.

he has shorter hair and an aversion to sleeves. ]

And here's the den.

[ one of the milling about kids tries to howl, tries to make it a thing, but gets cuffed upside the head by their friend. nodd cackles, slings an arm around yuri's shoulders, and leads her and Rosamund past the barrels, into the heart of their operation. ]

You'll end up spending a lot of time here unless you end up running--but if you run, you run with me.

[ this is clearly something to aim. ]

[rosebleed]

[Okay, after the cacaphony of the last door Rosamund is prepared for the other shoe to drop at any moment. And yet when the door opens to cavorting, gaggles of kids and teens, all making a ruckus for the ages, she falls for it. A smile creeps onto her face and she feels a distant fondness for a little wooden boy with more energy than sense.]

Run what? [She skips a little to keep up, eyeing the youths and shooting a glance to Yuri over Nodd's shoulder. It's up to them to stay vigilant now, but she knows seeing that massacre may be difficult to shake, even with the smoothing effects of the party and the manor's will painting over their minds.] Is this some secret underground operation?

[Forgive her, but this sounds fun.]

DOOR 4

[dropoffs]

[ It seems that you all have an idea what to expect next after going through three doors. This one is a door out to the yard where they can see the remains of what could have been a rose garden. The windows may be bolted, making it difficult to view the outdoors, but they can gain a peek through the small cracks. Monotonous like this mansion, garden overran by weeds... It's empty. Maybe that's a sign of safety. Perhaps this can be escape.

But a door is a door.

With a click and a turn, they are taken into a memory. Here, they are in a familiar kingdom—for Rosamund it's home. In Reverie, in her castle. For the rest of them, well, they're visitors. This is her bachelorette party with all of her friends and they're invited to attend a long-awaited wedding. There's no pall of sorrow and loneliness, but celebration as they see abigails and butlers decorate the halls in kingdom's trademark colors. Tapestries, rugs, flowers. Her mother is directing them with the fairies by her side while her father is talking to the groom-to-be.

Rosamund's fiancé is handsome with a prominent jaw, kind eyes, and a gentle smile. He doesn't look this way yet because he has to continue to make good impressions on her parents despite the multiple rounds of courtship.

What would Rosamund like to show Nodd and Yuri? Both who are now holding weddings gifts for the sweet princess? ]

[rosebleed]

[The effect is immediate. Rosamund alights with joy the second her eyes lay on him.]

Jonathan!

[She almost rushes forward, then spins back hurriedly as she brushes her hair into place, all nerves and frantic delight.]

Do I look all right? [Indeed, she does. Not a scar or scratch on her, briars banished, clad in royal finery of the highest calibre and flowers woven into her hair. The girl is positively glowing. She looks like she stepped out of the sweetest daydream.] Nevermind. Is he looking over this way? Oh! Oh — hello Pinocchio! Hello Ylfa!

[She's spotted the ringbearer and the flower girl plotting some mischief in giggling whispers. The pair wave back, a gangling boy with an impish smile and a rambunctious girl clad in red.]

Everyone's here, oh my goodness. You have to meet them. Come, come! [She grabs them both and ushers them towards the two children and a small gathering of unlikely fellows. An elderly man who oozes warmth and keeps a book under his arm, a thirty-something and equally handsome prince with his lovely wife, and a cat on two legs in boots and a cape, who gives a sassy wave to the princess as she traipses over.]

[murdergate]

[ good for rosamund, honestly. while this would have been nightmarish for himself at her age, there are plenty of people who marry young. and marry for reasons rather than purely adoration--yet, even so, she seems to like Jonathan? dearly, judging by her demeanor and how she went out of her way to invite him to the celebration. how could he do anything but tell her: ]

You look beautiful, Rosie.

[ he holds a long gift... tube under his arm. when she's ready for it, he offers a set of highly detailed, filigree-ridden maps of the kingdom and beyond. so she won't miss if she can't see it all.

he is nice enough to everyone. nicest, most, to the cat.

wait, weren't they doing something else? ]

[murdergate]

[ nodd steps out next, wearing a fashionable suit of slate blue and white. the latter color may be hard to make out, much of it splashed red or faded to pink from blood. while there are tears on his sleeves, the fine white gloves ruined, nodd himself doesn't look terribly injured. he has new bruises along his jaw and what's visible of his throat from last he was seen, but they don't appear fresh, as if they'd been given a half-life to heal before the team returned. the vast majority of the new blood must not be his, since his scratches (and tears in the nice clothes) are few and surely shallow.

he hesitates, looking over his shoulder. truly, there is nothing to worry about here. all of his limbs are accounted for. but it's not as if he went on an adventure all alone. ]