Carcosa, pt. 2

[polymods]

✖ Carcosa

Ⅰ. CARCOSA
You Are Still Here.

Another month, and you’re still in the city of Carcosa! Isn’t that just wonderful?

You still have access to the city’s temple and the High Temple.

The side effects you may have suffered from throughout the month of May are now at an end - if you had a pesky mask glued to your face the whole time it will now fall off. You might need a little moisturizer, but otherwise you’ll be just fine.

You could sit around inside the relative safety of the temples, of course, but why not get out there and explore the city some more? Come on, grumpypants!

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Ⅱ. SPEAK EASY
CW: Optional alcohol consumption.
What kind of pet shop is filled with rambunctious yahoos and hot jazz music at 1 AM? That's right - the best damn pet shop in town! Sidle up to the back door of Curly's Pet Shop and a panel will open enough to reveal a pair of eyes. "What's the password?" you'll be asked. Whatever word first comes to your mind, well, that apparently is correct because you're let in at once.

The front of the building definitely does indeed house fish and birds and kittens, but the back room is definitely not a good place to find a new animal companion; you find yourself in a crowded little room with low lighting and a small bar crammed into one corner. There's seats and some tables, and most importantly there's a band playing jazz music across from the bar.

Why not take a seat and have a drink? It's probably not paint thinner. Probably. Maybe you'll spot some of your fellow Travelers and you can sit and have a chat. Make a new friend who can hold your hair back if you party too hard.

And you better hope that the place doesn’t get raided!

Notes:
1. The drinks are all era-appropriate - you’re not getting Redbull with vodka here - and even if your character has non-human physiology they will work the same as they would on a baseline human. That’s right, your magic or your healing-factor or your vampire blood is no match for these Gin Rickeys!

2. If Curly’s does get raided while you’re there, you can run and hide or choose to engage with the police, who are armed and not too shy about opening fire if you go on the offensive. As with the rest of the regular residents of Carcosa, the officers are human and can be killed. Killing them may affect the colour grading of your Scrywatch depending on the situation. (Is it beneficial to personal growth to kill in order to save someone else, for example? You tell me!)

3. Did you want a pet from the front of the building? Well, just remember that baby turtles and alligators might SEEM like a good idea, but they grow up! Also any animal you take will not travel with you to the next island. So sorry.

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Ⅲ. EXPRESSIONISM YOURSELF
CW: Optional paranoia, hallucinations.
If you wander the streets at night, you may find yourself getting turned around. You'll find that the streets have lost their many lights, and the beautiful and delicate art deco architecture has given way to something much more stark and heavy. The buildings are block-like, but they curve in exaggerated ways that hurt the eye if looked at too long. All are in blacks and whites and greys. Nothing looks quite real, but you can walk along just fine. Probably better not to go off alone, though.


Periodically you will encounter that pesky sign of some sort painted on the walls. If you follow the sigils, you will eventually be led to a long staircase that winds down and down until it finally terminates in a large white room lit by a few electric lanterns. There's black paint there, with brushes. Maybe you're feeling creative?

Notes:
1. You’re pretty sick of this stupid sigil, aren’t you? In fact, you consider yourself QUITE the detective and have been searching after its meaning! Or maybe you played Call of Cthulhu a lot in college, you nerd!

Painting the sigil on the wall will cause you to feel disoriented and paranoid until you leave the white room. From that point on you can discover a copy of a play entitled The King In Yellow anywhere in the city you choose. Reading the first act of the play has no effect on you, however if you choose to read beyond the first line of the second act you will spend the rest of the month suffering from periodic hallucinations, often of a tall man in a pallid mask.

2. While there is no compulsion to paint, choosing to work out any of your character’s issues through art therapy can be reflected in your Scrywatch colour if it is significant enough.

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Ⅳ. AS FAR BACK AS I CAN REMEMBER, I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE A GANGSTER
CW: Optional gun violence, injury.
Art? Theatre? Music? BAH! Boring!

Maybe your tastes are a little more on the dangerous side? Whatever this island may be, it seems to offer plenty of opportunities to get into the seedy underbelly. Maybe you feel the need to steal a car, rob a bank, transport some illegal hooch for a smiling fellow in a yellow fedora. Grab your tommy guns, kids, it's time to outrun the Feds!

Naturally, you could wind up injured having all of this fun, but surely you could get some help from your fellow Travelers, either directly or by having them haul you to some sort of underground doctor. These doctors do exist, although it might take a while to get referred to one by a local.

You might also find yourself under arrest and stuck in an old-timey jail cell for a month. What fun!

Notes:
1. As was stated in the first prompt, the regular residents of Carcosa are normal humans. Killing them is possible and may affect the colour grading of your Scrywatch depending on the situation. Any weapons you find are era-appropriate.

2. You can break out of jail if you’re resourceful enough.

3. The underground doctors aren’t working in a real hospital for a reason. In fact, some of them might be less doctors and more, well. Vets.

You still jamming to that Carcosa playlist?

Network · Logs · OOC · Memes · Plurk

Comments

[queenking]

Ohhh, a man of expensive tastes, I see. [Saxsice raises her drink as well, tilting it towards the man with a bemused smirk, before taking a sip. It burns bad going down, like drinking paint thinner, but at least it isn't the watered-down shit from the ball.] I'll take your word for it. Never had eggs that weren't from a bird, myself.

[Then she sighs, sitting back in her seat, one leg crossing over the other, foot bobbing up and down in unspoken annoyance.] You're tellin' me. I don't even care anymore if somethin' awful happens, cause at least that's somethin'. I hate waitin' around and not knowin' what's gonna happen.

[shapeshistory]

[ Her posture, her way about things--it might as well be a glass of river water amidst a vast ocean of salt. Refreshing. Relaxing, too--his shoulders drop just a bit before he realizes it, shaking his head, commiserating. ]

The absence of trouble serves only to stir up the masses in places like this. [ It's definite agreement, and Jack watches a card game unfold idly as they talk, fingers drumming idly on the table, nearly matching her bouncing leg without realizing it. He squints. ]

But, for now, I don't suppose living in blissful ignorance is necessarily a bad thing, hmmm? If there's more of whatever this alcohol is. Gin. [ He knocks back his drink. ]

[queenking]

Real cryin' shame, that. [Saxsice murmurs this into her glass, taking another long, languid sip. It mellows her, helps her tense shoulders relax for the first time in a real long while. She tilts her head to one side, watches him for a moment, then thrusts a hand out.]

Saxsice King. And I prefer whiskey, if I get a choice. [She rolls her eyes, flicks her hair out of her face.] And clearly I don't, 'bout anythin'.

[shapeshistory]

Jack Rackham. [ Oh, manners, manners, manners. Jack even extends a hand to make up for it, itching for another drink. He knows Anne is somewhere, lurking comfortably in the shadows, probably in a corner. He leans back to give a quick glance around to confirm it.

Yeah, Anne's fine. ]

Wish it was rum. [ Wish it was a lot more things, but he finds his smile genuine as he looks at the girl. She's got balls, she's confident. It's good. She's great. ]

To be underestimated is truly an incredible gift. [ He'd said that before, proud, to someone he once looked up to. His smile softens, fondness in his gaze before he snaps back. ] The one on the left, playing cards. He's cheating. It's almost admirable, given how bad he is at it. Watch his left wrist.

[ Sure enough, the man Jack's described slips what looks to be a fake card from his sleeve and into his hand. ]

[queenking]

[Saxsice takes the offered hand to shake, her own surprisingly coarse for someone who looks as young as she does. She's also got a grip for her, tipsy or no. She follows his gaze, but doesn't catch who it's directed at -- nor does she much mind. There's a hell of a lot of interesting people to watch, after all.

The comment gets a chuckle, and she swirls the woefully pale gin-and-something she holds.] I'd kill one'a those ocean zombies for a decent rum right about now. Specially mixed with something fruity n' unsuspectin'. The kinda thing that knocks you right on your ass.

[To her credit, Saxsice doesn't quite stare at the cheater, but her eyes are wide and impressed once she sees his trick performed. She turns back to Jack, giving him a much more appreciative once-over.] Remind me never to play cards with you. I dunno how to play without cheatin' and I'm way less subtle than that. How'd you know he was playin' dirty?