Day 3: Morning

Morning: 6:00am - 12:00noon

[ IRL Timeframe: April 22nd - ~~April 29th~~ May 8th, 2019 ]

It's the third day and, in striking comparison to day two, it is not a bright and sunny morning. The day begins for every hero with an unfamiliar room in an unfamiliar place in an unfamiliar time.

When your characters check their phones, clocks, calendars, or any other timekeeping implement they'll find that the year is 00 AW, forty years before the present day. The year before the Wizard's first game was held, the year before it came down to only two knights and the Princess facing off against the Wizard. It was before all of it.

Everywhere your characters go, there are no people. Their devices will not connect to the internet outside of the island, their companions will not appear, the Protector will not answer, but they can text each other without difficulty. If groups in the same city try to find each other, they will find that some kind of mystical plot barrier is keeping them from finding each other. A wrong turn, a locked door, a lost connection. Somehow, they're kept apart. All the support they have is who they woke up with. Oddly, everyone wakes up in their normal day-to-day clothing rather than pajamas.

There have to be answers somewhere, but where?

Third Morning Event: All Cities: The Past.

The Weather
Eerily still.
64°F / 18°C
The trees are unmoving, there is no wind.

Prompts:

6:30am Spa Hotel, Bamborough: Two sets of heroes wake up in the Spa Hotel in Bamborough. Garrot wakes up in the same room as Olivia. On the far side of the Spa hotel, in one of the waterfront cabins, Haizea and Joanna wake up in the same room. The hotel is empty, but every room is unlocked. Food's still in the dining areas, too. Oddly, things look like they were in use around the Hotel. Carts in the middle of hallways, half-eaten meals on tables, bags halfway up staircases. Odd.

6:30am Lodge Cots, Craydon: The Craydon lodge isn't much, but it's a spanning complex of cabins that maximize occupancy by filling them with cots for that "outdoor camping" experience. Rory and Gail will wake up in one of the cabins near the base of the mountain. On the furthest edge of the lodge, Gyre and Seth will wake up in their top-level cots higher up the mountain. There are a few campfires going with meat roasting over them, piles of raw meat to the side ready to cook, and various festivities left laying around. It's almost like everyone up and left all at once, but where did they go?

6:30am Cozy Inn, Far Haven: Far Haven's 'Cozy Inn' promises the 'small town feeling' in the middle of the big city. The inside is exactly that, a very cozy little hotel with three floors of rooms and a covered walkway with a glass floor over a garden into another section of the hotel. Zafika and Web will wake up in a room on the first floor nearest the train station exit of the cozy inn. No doors are locked here and it looks as if things were left strewn about like the people just teleported out of here. Terrence, Matilda, and Luka wake up in the glass walkway above, in sleeping bags. They'll find that the only way out goes to the cozy inn's far building, they'll have to go through a spanning cafeteria space with tons of empty tables that, strangely, look like they were just in use. Plates with half-full, or even untouched plates sit around on every table and there are even jackets draped over some chairs, purses on the ground. The city outside is much the same, vehicles just stopped in the middle of the street with no drivers, things dropped on the ground. What happened...?

9:30am, Exploration, Bamborough, Craydon, Far Haven: The scene is much the same in all three cities. When the heroes make their way outside, they'll notice that the sky above Harsen Island is a massive vortex centered over the mountain in the middle of the island. Heroes in Craydon will get to see it a little closer, the massive clouds occasionally crackling with blue lightning. All three cities have glowing cracks in the ground in various places, the cracks lead all around, some larger, some smaller, maybe there's something to be found? There are large glowing obelisks that are floating over each city and outside of them, they occasionally float down near the ground enough to touch or look closer at. Once the heroes make their way out into the streets, they might start seeing glimpses of a Wizard hat in the distance but each time it passes behind a wall or into shadow and is gone. Maybe they can catch up? Maybe your hero takes a moment to search through local news, the paper, letters, a television station. What's going on in the city right now?

Procedure:

Reply to the appropriate toplevel comments for events below. Indicate if a post is a private conversation with "Private" in the subject otherwise all threads should be open to interaction with others. Plan OOCly how you'd like to toss everyone around.

Important: 'Exploration' toplevels will unlock additional information as items in their descriptions are explored. If your character explores a feature, write [Character explores ____] at the end of your tag and send a ping on Discord to get a reply with further details regarding that item.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Mmm... five more minutes... [ Garrot's protests are groggy, and it's not until his leg twitches that he realizes his bed is all of a sudden too short for him. His feet are dangling, which he's not a fan of, and- he's not in his bed? He goes to look at his phone, to see ]

What... the fuck?! [ The words are whispered, because he sees the year, and he sees that someone else is in the other bed. The cute girl from the bar?! But this isn't good- none of this is good. They barely know each other and they're somewhere they shouldn't be so uh

he gets up from the bed carefully and whispers her name. Loudly. He's not trying to be subtle, just less gentle than shouting. ] Psssst, Olivia. Heeeeeey, Olivia! [ And then he gives the blankets on the bed a little tug. He really doesn't want to scare her, since he's a huge, muscular, hairy, clawed beast with jeggings, a black sleeveless hoodie, and contacts instead of glasses. He looks like he was about to spend the morning on a long jog or training or something. At least the hood is down! ]

It's Garrot, are you awake? [ He wants to flop down onto the rest of the bed, but resists the urge. Instead, he gets a little frantic sounding. ] Please wake up...

[Olivia, apparently, was sleeping in a black poncho and ripped jeans. She stirred when he whispered and tugged at her blanket, thinking for a moment it was just her hangover fucking with her, but when he raised his voice her eyes immediately shot open and she jumped out of the bed in a matter of seconds, a dagger in hand. Her pupils are fully dilated as she scans the room, panicking as she doesn't recognize it. Her eyes set on Garrot as she backs away from him, ready to defend herself if she has to.]

What is this? Where are we? [She hisses. She's disoriented and terrified, but she makes an effort to remember last night's events.] We - didn't leave the bar together, I-I remember talking to Gyre and then... took the train, found a place... [She then mumbles something about the Protector and lowers her weapon; pretty sure that it wasn't Garrot who put her in this situation, at least. Were they fucking kidnapped? She breathes heavily during this pause, trying to suppress a full blown panic attack. When she repeats her question, it isn't in an accusatory tone anymore - she's just scared.] Where are we?

[ Garrot's hands go up, palms open with gentle, calm down motions. He does pick up on the word Protector in that mumbling, but he's more concerned with that knife. Not that it's a knife, but more what could happen to Olivia if she decides to use it. She's asking some good questions, though! ]

I woke up just a minute ago, saw you, and wanted to see if you were okay. [ His head gestures towards the knife, but at this point he's got a little smile. ] Are you? I- I'm glad you found a place, too. [ Garrot takes a chance to hold up his phone, which displays the year as forty years prior. He looks grim. ]

You know about as much as I do. [ Admittedly, he doesn't really know what the inside of Bamborough hotels look like. So he's kind of winging it a lot. And he might be thinking his phone is bricked. ]

[She nods as he explains, she believes him. She tentatively takes a few steps closer to look at his phone's screen. Her brow furrows as she sees the date, taking out her own phone and discovering the same.] I don't - get it. Magic fucking up the antennas?

[She's still trying to calm herself down; taking deep breaths. She rubs at her face as she tries to focus, and the stains on her fingers show her that she's wearing her make-up. That's good, that's a good thing. Okay, okay, okay. Deep breaths.] I can't - think. We're not safe anywhere. I need to move. I need fresh air. I need - Iv.

Iv? [She calls out to her companion, expecting a reassuring hand to fall on her shoulder - but she's met with silence. She calls out again, but when the minotaur still doesn't come, Olivia looks at Garrot with wide eyes.] She's never not answered. Something's fucked, this is all wrong, I - let's go? Outside, stay with me?

[ Garrot looks perturbed at the idea of fucky magic, but that gives way to concern because Olivia is starting to freak out. A lot. No matter what's going on in his head, he needs to keep his shit together for her. ]

Xaljim. [ The name comes out stern like a parent reprimanding a child. No response. He looks around the room for something, anything to use as a weapon, while trying to focus his mind to summon a double. Still nothing. ] Tch.

Hold on, this might be loud. [ And then he walks into the bathroom, and with a loud and violent grunt and a few dull thuds, Garrot returns with a steel shower rod in hand. It's no quarterstaff, but it'll do for now. ]

You'll be safe with me. Ladies first. [ Garrot gestures to the door, so she can bug out as soon as she's ready. But he does give her a nice little smile as he does it, because he wants her to be Okay. ]

[When Garrot calls for his companion, Olivia visibly recoils at his tone; it's one she hasn't heard in a long time, but once the surprise has passed she seems to be a little more determined.

She waits nervously for him to come back, but looks genuinely impressed when he comes back wielding a shower rod. She nods, genuinely grateful that he wants to keep her safe, and that he's calm, and that he's here. After a few more deep breaths, she's as ready as she'll ever be.

She opens the door and carefully peeks out, half-expecting to see someone coming to investigate the loud noise Garrot had caused. When she's sure they're alone, she quickly but quietly moves out of the room and through the hallway, towards where she thinks the exit will be. As they walk, she's very much aware of the silence in this place. If it weren't for her own breathing and her fellow Knight's footsteps she'd worry that she's losing her hearing.]

I... think we might be alone. [She whispers, just in case she's wrong. The Wizard had poofed civilians away before, so she didn't find the idea strange, but she was worried - the last time that had happened, a monster had come.]

[ For someone so huge, Garrot is able to move a lot more gently than one would expect. Maybe it's bugbear genes, or maybe his martial arts training, but his steps sound like they're from someone a lot lighter. Scary. ]

We'll see about that. [ His free hand takes out his phone, and after a few awkward buttons, he's whispering into it. ] Olivia and I woke up in some hotel. Alone. Is everyone okay? At symbol Luka, does the Protector know anything? [ If the phones adjusted to time travel, they should still work! But then he pockets the phone, and turns his attention to Olivia. His ears are perky and alert for danger. ]

If there's a monster, run. [ He nods. ] I'll hold it off.

[She wasn't sure their phones would work, but she waits for him to send the message regardless. She bites her lip, thinking that if Luka doesn't reply she'll definitely have to try calling him. As Garrot pockets his phone, she turns to keep walking - and then he says that nonsense.

She glances at him over her shoulder, her surprised expression soon turning into a frown as she smacks him in the chest with her tail.] Fuck you, no way I'd leave you.

Let's keep moving. Jeez. [She rolls her eyes and continues the stealthy hotel mission. Men, she huffs.]

[ Garrot just starts laughing as the tail whomps him in the chest, pretty much the first time his super-serious demeanor has slipped since Olivia woke up. ] Fiiiine, we'll both run. Without our weapons and powers, it's not like we could-

[ He stops mid-sentence, because there's the sound of a phone vibrating in the pocket of his jeggings. They're so tight the vibrating might even be visible, oops. So Garrot pulls the phone out, his eyes scanning the screen for a moment before they go wide with... happiness? ] Luka's with Terrence and Matilda. [ He's glad they're all okay, even if none of them are probably great in a fight. They better not find a Monster. ] They don't know where they are.

[ And then he gestures further down the hall with his head. ] Wanna find the stairs and give 'em a hand? [ The fact that they're not completely alone seems to have done wonders for his mood. ]

[She hears the vibrating and turns, watching him expectantly. She notices his outfit for the first time and for a split second she looks very perplexed before composing herself; letting out a sigh of relief when she hears Luka's okay. She hasn't talked to Terrence or Matilda yet so even if he's okay she's not sure he's safe, but at least he's... around.]

Yeah, let's find them. [She nods, moving a bit faster. Now that she actually has a goal in mind and she's not stuck in an unknown room, her breathing seems to have gone back to normal. She's still on edge for sure, but at least the panic seems to have been suppressed.

When the two of them reach the stairs and elevator, she glances between the two options before looking back at Garrot. She barely notices the fact that the elevator is basically an antique, thinking this might be a themed hotel for all she knows - but she is mindful about her buddy's size.] Stairs, right?

[ Garrot follows, easily able to keep pace because his legs are long. But he's glad Olivia's feeling better, because he'll need all the help he can get here. As they reach the stairs, he just snorts at the question. ]

Absolutely. Back in the day, elevators were so slow that we may as well get the cardio. [ And then he twists the handle just a bit and slams his shoulder into the door, shoving it open more than enough for Olivia to follow as he starts descending the stairs. May as well get the blood pumping now! ]

So I'm thinking, when we get to the lobby... [ He's not trying to be quiet anymore, and it's not like they'd be able to keep a low profile with all the echoing. He has big feet and they have places to be. ] ...I wanna make a phone call. If we are in the past, I mean.

[She has a disapproving look on her face as she follows him down the stairs. She's way more comfortable doing things quietly, but she guesses she'll do things his way for now since... there really doesn't seem to be anyone around, anyway.]

Hmm, you think the dates on our phones are right, then? That we actually traveled back in time or some shit? [She doesn't like the idea at all - more likely they might've been teleported to some abandoned part of the island or, hell, it could even be illusion work.] It seems a little far fetched to me.

Who would you call? If you don't mind me asking.

My parents. [ He stops for a moment on the stairs. ] My father. [ And then he keeps going, just a little faster. Garrot isn't interested in Olivia's faces or reactions- if they aren't alone this is a good way to find out. ] If we're in the past, there's a seven-year-old me out there, and...

[ The footfalls get a bit heavier, as if Garrot really wants to see this through. His tone has shifted closer to... childish whimsy. ] That means I get to figure out who he was before the Wizard showed up, what he was like... [ There's a sigh. ] ...before he died.

[ And then he takes a little leap and sticks the landing at the bottom of another flight of stairs. Looks like someone's getting impatient. ]

[She follows him easily enough, skipping steps without having to worry about losing balance and tripping, thanks to her tail.

She stays quiet for a moment after he speaks; Olivia has never lost anybody, never really cared enough about anyone for that thought to even cross her mind, so she's not quite sure about what to say.] I'm uh, sorry for your loss...

If we're really in the past I'd say try it, I guess? But like, don't say anything weird thing about the future or say who you are because then you'd mess with the timeline and somehow end up being your own grandpa. [She says, completely deadpan.] Like in movies, you know?

[ The condolences barely get more than a shrug out of the doctor. But as Olivia continues, Garrot just snorts, barely stifling a laugh at those words of caution. ] I think it'll be fine.

[ He takes a few more heavy steps down the stairs, and then his voice picks up a bit, almost like he's trying to tell a joke. ] I mean, he's more bugbear than I am, so I don't have to worry... at least genetically.

[ And as he laughs, finally reaching the bottom of the stairs, Garrot realizes he knows absolutely fucking nothing about time travel, that nobody does. That this could be a stupid and harmful idea. So now he's just standing there near the door. Awkwardly. And in deep thought. ]

[Olivia hesitates for a moment. She can't really pretend she doesn't notice him having some sort of existential crisis because he's in her way, but she's really out of her depth here.

Taking advantage of the stairs shortening their height difference, she gives him a few awkward pats on the shoulder.] Uh, it'll be okay, big guy. We'll figure this out, no problem.

[She kind of moves past him afterwards; opening the door to the hotel's lobby and finding it empty. She immediately beelines towards the main counter, trying to find anything useful; the first thing she notices is how outdated the cash register is. So easy to steal from! Then, she starts skimming through whatever documents were left there, biting her lip as she sees the records all read the same year their phones had shown them. She lets out a nervous little laugh, setting the papers on the counter as she keeps investigating.] Guess you better try and make that call.

[ It's not until she pats him on the shoulder that Garrot snaps back to reality- or at least whatever askew reality this was. They couldn't be in the past, right?! ] Y-yeah, I guess so. Gimme a, uh, s-shout if you f-find anything.

[ And then he slips off while Olivia rummages through paperwork. Garrot finds a side room, one with continental breakfast, and he's already dialing a number while eyeing the foodstuffs. ] Come on, come on...!

[ The phone rings, a canned response, before there's an empty dial tone. So he redials the number and shoves a handful of bacon into his mouth while he waits for- nope. Another dial tone. So he switches from his family's home phone number to his father's work phone, and then his mother's, and then the generic MurtaCorp line. In that time he eats most of the bacon and chases it with a few glasses of orange juice.

He's definitely stress eating, because it's there and he skipped breakfast (is that possible with time travel?) and he has no idea if he actually wants anyone to pick up the phone or not, because what would he even say? After about the tenth or eleventh call, Garrot takes a few minutes to just breathe, to keep his cool, before heading out to find Olivia. ]

Phones are a no-go, Oliv- [ He blinks for a moment, noticing that she's entirely gone from the lobby. ] Where'd she go? [ She is, of course, outside and after a few minutes Garrot spies her out a window and follows. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Day 3: Morning

Morning: 6:00am - 12:00noon

The Weather

Prompts:

Procedure:

Garrot + Olivia

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject