🤡🤡🤡

[polymods]

✖ THE CARNIVAL

Ⅰ. ARRIVAL & THE TEMPLE
You can read all about your character's arrival in the game lore.
You can see the lights of the Ferris wheel from the water, and by the time you pull into port you can smell popcorn, cotton candy, grease, sawdust. Music drifts on the air, interspersed with screams from the rides.

The carnival is in town.

Not just any carnival, either - the carnival. The one to end all others. Every circus you ever read about or saw in a movie, with striped tents filled with acrobats and sideshows, midway games complete with carnival barkers in straw boater hats. But it's also every shitty fair that ever rolled through your hometown, with unreliable looking men with greasy mullets smoking as they jockey the Wild Mouse, the Gravitron, the Zipper, the Corkscrew. There's a constant stream of 80s hair metal playing underneath the roar of the rollercoaster tracks, blending somehow with the traditional piping organ of the carousel.

Experienced Travelers will know by now that every island has its own temple, and this one is no exception. It’s not in the carnival proper, though; if you step away from the lights of the midway and tents, you’ll notice dozens of old wooden circus trailers, arranged in a circle, growing tighter together the closer to the center you walk. The trailers are functional living places, with built in beds - sometimes one, sometimes two - and a small table and an old wood burning stove with a cooking top just big enough to boil a kettle on. There’s a toilet, but if you want a shower you’ll have to go outside and find a tent set up at the outskirts of the makeshift trailer park where there are tent showers set up, locker room style.

The clearing in the middle of the parked caravan is completely empty except for a solitary midway game: a towering high striker. It must be at least twenty feet tall, surmounted by a round, red bell. A wooden mallet is leaned against a sign next to the game that reads, predictably, TEST YOUR STRENGTH.

Step right up.

Notes:
1. Please remember to mark threads appropriately with Content Warnings when necessary.

2. These prompts are a jumping off point - how they affect your character and their development is up to you.

3. The island temple is accessible to all. The High Temple is only accessible to new characters this month - it will re-open to all others next month.

4. The Test your Strength game can be played by anyone. How well your character does is entirely up to you, but the game does not necessarily measure physical strength.

5. These residents of the island are normal humans. Killing them is possible and will affect the colour grading of your Scrywatch depending on the situation.

6. Any food found on the midway is safe to eat, and is consumable by non-human entities.

7. Have fun!

---

Ⅱ. HALL OF MIRRORS
When it comes to amusements, the Hall of Mirrors has always been second-fiddle to the Haunted House. But the line for the former was shorter, so here you are. The guy working the door has weasel eyes and is smoking. He gestures for you and whoever is behind you to enter together; "No singles. For safety."

The lights are a dull neon, cycling from deep blue to cyan to purple and back again. You find that your outstretched fingers will bump against smooth, clear glass as often as not. The mirrors reflect the maze back into itself over and over, disorienting and strange.

Some of the mirrors are convex, some concave, and as you pass them your reflection warps and bends alongside that of whoever you're stuck inside the maze with.

At some point you will realise that the reflection looking back at you isn't quite right. It's still you, sure, but it's not how you really look, not on the outside.

Looking back at you from the cold glass is how you perceive yourself. Perhaps that's stronger, perhaps uglier, perhaps as a sniveling child or an ancient hag. And this reflection is going to follow you from mirror to mirror as you desperately try to find your way out.

One of you spots an exit sign, bleeding red light. Only catch is that it's behind a pane of glass. And another. And another. You could break your way through all of them, certainly, but it's not as if there's anything laying around for you to use to do so. Just yourself, which might work in action movies but tends to cause a lot of physical damage in the real world.

Above the glass someone has placed a sticker that reads, “who are you really?” in black sharpie. Answer it, and the glass will swing open. Don't, and well...

Guess you'll have several years worth of bad luck.

Notes:
1. Yes, characters can bash their way out of the maze, but it is real glass and will cut anyone who isn’t invulnerable. There is a first aid station run by extremely unreliable carneys on the premises, so hopefully they can patch themselves up enough there.

---

Ⅲ. THE CAROUSEL
CW: childhood trauma
Old fashioned organ music and a million flashing lights draws you to the carousel. It's a vintage delight: huge, with ornate animals carved out of wood and lovingly hand painted. There are horses, of course, but also lions and leopards and birds and rabbits and wolves... any animal you could want! In fact, you'll see an animal that looks perfectly YOU. You just have to climb up on it for a ride.


Settled on your mount, the ride begins to move. To your surprise, it begins to move backwards. You can't seem to ungrip the pole you're hanging on to, so you're helpless to escape as the ride spins again and again.

When it stops and you step off, you will be younger. You will in fact be the same age you were when a formative event happened to you.

You're a kid at a carnival! How fun! Well, maybe you're not that young, and it's probably not very fun at all considering that now your trauma is fresh.

The only way to become your proper age again is to get on the carousel and get it to run forward. Depending on your age, you might not be able to figure any of that out, but surely one of the other Travelers can help you. You'll definitely need someone to man the carousel controls. Oh, and be careful not to knock it into overdrive...

Notes:
1. If your character does not get back on the carousel and ride it in reverse, they will revert to their actual ages at the end of the month.

2. Please be especially mindful of content warnings with underage characters. A reminder that the game does not allow explicit sexual content with minors.

3. You do not have to regress your character to childhood - if a very formative event happened at age 20 for example, you can choose that route instead.

4. Speeding up the carousel while it is moving forward will result in, you guessed it, aging your character UP. Obviously you can ride it backwards again to fix this, or again the aging will be reversed at the end of the month.

---

Ⅳ. COULROPHOBIA
CW: clowns, suffocation
Who can possibly resist the big top? Not you! You're ushered into the tent and you take a seat in the stands, where you have an excellent view of the huge ring before you. The excitement in the air is palpable, and even if you're the grouchy type you'll find yourself a little bit thrilled.

It's a little surprising when the lights go up to the sound of screaming guitars. Mist belches from hidden foggers, and flames shoot from near the center of the ring. The lights stutter red, blue, green. The whole thing is a lot more rock show than it is Ringling Brother's.

At any rate, even if the ringmaster looks like a reject from a trailer park metal band and the music is liable to burst some eardrums, it's still a circus. There are trained horses and riders, contortionists, and a score of talented trapeze artists. It's all sparkling and impressive and terrific fun.

The trapeze artists take their bows, clearly ready for a break. And if a break is needed at the circus? You know what happens next, don't you?

SEND IN THE CLOWNS!

The clowns spill into the ring, all sorts of them! There's Harlequin and Pierrot, Auguste and Tramp. There's Bozos and Ronalds and Clarabelles and Krustys. Hopefully no Gacys, but there's so many of them that it's hard to know for sure.

One of these clowns - the one you hate the most, of course - approaches you in the stands. With comically exaggerated movements, it leans close to you and whispers...

Well. It whispers horrible things to you, really. It recounts to you some instance in your life where you delighted in the suffering of another, a moment where you really and truly were happy that somebody else was hurt. It's not a moment to be proud of, for sure, but as the clown tells your own secret shameful joy to you, you start to laugh. Really laugh - soon you're bent over double, tears running down your face, absolutely howling with laughter.

Your stomach hurts, and you're running out of breath. Very soon you won't be able to breathe at all.

Eventually, one of your fellow travelers won't be able to resist asking you, "What's so funny?"

The only way to stop laughing is to tell them. Otherwise you're going to pass out right where you sit, a creepy clown leering over you the whole time. Maybe your fellow traveler will be nice enough to drag you out of there if that happens, because if you're left alone? Everybody knows clowns get so much scarier alone in the dark.

Notes:
1. What happens if you really do get ditched with the clowns? Great question. Maybe they make you one of them. Maybe they eat you. Maybe you just wake up in the Big Top dressing room and see all the clowns smoking cigars and taking their floppy shoes off to film Clown Foot Erotica.

It wouldn't be a party without some jams.

Network · Logs · OOC · Memes · Plurk

Comments

Sephiroth | OTA

[unkindled_madness]

I. Arrival / Carnival Games

[This is worse. This is so much worse than the flowers.

Sephiroth has never been to a carnival, a fact which should surprise no one who's met him. The clamor, the garish colors, the people... He's already balking at getting off the damn ferry, and his distaste for it all is palpable.

He really, really hopes there is somewhere beyond it, but to search that out he's going to have to walk past the games, and the rides, and the cotton candy stands... Commiserate or try to force him to enjoy it, it's up to you.]


II. What Even Are Horses

[In attempting to locate some kind of respite from the... everything, Sephiroth finds his way to a small enclosure where some horses are being kept between performances. Although, he isn't entirely sure. Thor did say some of them only had four legs, but he's never seen them depicted that way. He stops at the fence to watch them. At least it is quieter here.

If someone approaches, he'll actually speak up to ask:]

Are these... horses?


III. The Carousel
((CW: potential references to child abuse))

[Horses again. While Sephiroth has no intention of riding a carousel, the depiction is enough to earn the ride more than a passing glance. And that's when he notices that one of those animals is unexpectedly familiar: a sleek, black chocobo. He doesn't see the operator, and the ride isn't moving, so he approaches for a closer look. Something compels him to climb on--is he that desperate for some reminder of home? But before he can climb back down, the ride begins moving, and he finds that he can't...

When the ride comes to a stop again, he slides off all of 15-years-old, in mind and body. The physical changes are noticeable, but not drastic--he's a little shorter but still over six feet tall, silver hair reaching only to his mid-back. He's not so broad-shouldered, his features are softer. A beanpole of a kid.

But the way he carries himself... The confidence is gone. It would be disorienting enough for anyone not to remember this place, but for someone who's known little but the sterility of the Shinra Building, it's overwhelming. His eyes dart over his surroundings in hopes of identifying anyone or anything familiar, but he's coming up with nothing.

Is this some sort of test? He's never been tested in the outside before, but he can master this, too.]

((As always, feel free to hit me up at yinza for plotting!))

The Carousel

[neverwither]

( The carousel is one of the quainter rides and although Chloe isn't convinced she wants to take a spin on it, it has a prettiness that draws her to it. She can admire the craftsmanship - it would make for a fine subject for her sketchbook.

Given the rarity of the long silver hair, she feels she can safely assume who the dismounting rider is. Which makes her smile a little to herself. The islands may have many mystical powers but Sephiroth riding a carousel isn't one that would immediately spring to mind. Good for him. She hopes he enjoyed it.

That aside, it's apparent that said hair isn't its usual length. That could be explained by a cut but there's also the other physical changes, and a different air about him. Hmmm. What might this island be playing at?

Moving so she's able to catch a glimpse of his face, the plot thickens. His features are one of a teenager. )

...Sephiroth?

( She's tentative as there could be a mental regression as well as a physical one. He might not have any idea who she is. )

[unkindled_madness]

[He turns to her at the sound of his name, but his face shows no recognition. Still, the fact that she knows who he is doesn't surprise or alarm him. She must be with Shinra, and so, she must be someone who knows what he's doing here.

He tries very hard to look like none of this is bothering him.]

...yes.

Are you with the Science Department? [Surely it's all right for him to ask that much.]

[neverwither]

( Ah. That answers one question. Chloe gives him a warm smile and a small shake of her head. ) No, I’m not with the Science Department. My name’s Chloe. I’m not sure what mean you mean by the Science Department, quite honestly.

( Part of her wants to explain how she’s here just like he is. That they know each other. It might be overwhelming for a young man and she doesn’t want to spook him any more than he might be already. What she can try to do is get a sense of where he thinks he is and what he thinks is going on by playing up her ignorance. )

[unkindled_madness]

[She doesn't know what he means? That visibly throws him for a loop. She can't be with the military either, then... But how would someone outside the Company know his name?

Maybe she's just playing a part? Part of the test? Usually there's at least some direction involved. This is so... unclear.]

Well then... What.. is the situation here? [That's what a SOLDIER would ask, right? It doesn't occur to him that she might have been hoping for an explanation on what Science Department he means.]

carousel, duh

[queenking]

[Saxsice has been through her own trip on the carousel, and had a private panic attack as soon as she got off, firmly in the mind and body of her 11-year-old self. Now the girl -- Cassie, who's never been away from home before -- is wandering around trying to find her family and desperately hoping it's not a full moon.

Still, she's only a kid and an easily distracted one at that. So when she sees the older boy with longish silvery hair, she makes a beeline for him, absolutely entranced.]

How'd you get your hair that color?

[unkindled_madness]

[There are a lot of things Sephiroth has never seen before, and among those? Other children. Not that he considers himself a child anymore, but... he's never seen anyone younger than himself, not in real life. She's so... little.

She is also, without a doubt, not a Shinra employee. That's new, too.]

...it's always been this color. [He knows that's unusual, but he's not sure if she'll think that's good or bad.]

[queenking]

[Cassie creeps closer, still cautious to stay far enough away that he can't grab her. She's gotten caught and tickled or hung upside by her older cousins enough times to be wary. But her curiosity prompts her to inch closer, bit by bit.]

Wowww. It's really pretty. It looks like the moon. [She wants to touch it. She wants to touch it so badly.]

[unkindled_madness]

[He has absolutely no intention of grabbing her, or touching her in any way. If she moves within reach he'll actually step back.]

Oh.

[He's never seen the moon, and he doesn't know how you respond to compliments like that. But she does seem interested and he's sort of proud of it.]

I've... been growing it out, a while.

II Horses!

[helpdesk_hero]

They are.

[Sorry Sephiroth, looks like you've run into a troublesome young mutant again. The man had come over here to get away from the carnival noises, and partially because he liked horses. Most of that came from the love one of his teachers in high school had for them, her own affection lingering in his mind. David? David had never been on or near a horse in his damn life. But he was still smiling at them and happy to talk about them.]

Does your world not have Horses?

[unkindled_madness]

[Just don't insinuate that he's also a mutant and it's fine. Probably. Sephiroth glances at him, then back to the horses.]

They're mythical. The creature that Odin rides.

[helpdesk_hero]

[Yeah, he's not walking that line again. Didn't go well before.]

Sleipnir. Your world doesn't have Loki referenced in it, but it does have his son? Weird.

[Oh no, he might have to explain that one, won't he?]

[unkindled_madness]

[He actually did hear part of this story from Thor, but...]

I thought that was just a story, about Loki and the horse.

( the carousel )

[dothelokimotion]

[ loki knew of faires of a sort, having wandered through many realms and experienced their cultures. this one was slightly . . . odder than what he was used to, but earth was just Like That to be honest. he surveyed everything with muted interest, keeping a wary distance. he didn't want to get cursed unknowingly.

yet he stops short at a familiar sight . . . who seems to have lost most of his inches. ]

. . . Sephiroth?

[unkindled_madness]

[Sephiroth turns sharply at the sound of his name, in the manner of someone who's been caught doing something they aren't supposed to be doing--but he doesn't recognize the man, and he doesn't obviously look like he works for Shinra either. Is he like Chloe?

He relaxes, slightly, still wary.]

...who are you?

[dothelokimotion]

[ ah. loki pauses as he assesses the situation quickly. clearly sephiroth, but much younger. and with his memories missing, of course. ]

I am . . . an acquaintance.

[unkindled_madness]

["Acquaintance." That's what Chloe said, too.]

You know me when I'm older?

Horses!

[detectivemiracle]

Yeah, those are horses.

[ She says that a little uncertainly, and then - ]

Why, are they doing something weird?

[ She's not, like, super familiar with horses, being a lifelong city girl, so as far as she can tell, they look normal enough. ]

[unkindled_madness]

Not that I can tell.

[He has no idea how horses are meant to behave but they don't seem to be doing anything remarkable. He glances at her, and adds by way of explanation:]

We don't have horses on my world.

[detectivemiracle]

Ah. Right. Different worlds.

[ She says that, not in a sarcastic or disbelieving way, but in a way that says this is simply a new thing that she's still getting used to, the whole "different worlds" concept. ]

So, if you don't have them in your world, how do you know what these are?

[unkindled_madness]

[He wouldn't care if she was skeptical; it's the rational thing to be at the start.]

I've seen drawings, from mythology.

They had more legs, though.

I: All Fun and Games

[speed_of_snark]

[Sephiroth may be having a miserable time, but Jean-Paul looks surprisingly at home in spite of the fact that he generally gives off an air of I'm Too Rich For This. He turns away from some terrible midway game and smirks with barely suppressed mirth at the sour expression on Sephiroth's face.

Is it possible Jean-Paul enjoys bothering him because Sephiroth is the one person on these islands grumpier than Jean-Paul himself? Yes. Yes, definitely possible.]

Well, well, well. You look constipated.

[unkindled_madness]

[Sephiroth gives him a flat look.]

Thank you. I wasn't aware of my present mood.

[He's not surprised if Jean-Paul is at ease here. He expects most people would enjoy it to some extent. That's the point of carnivals, isn't it?]

[speed_of_snark]

Mm, you do seem the type not to be terribly self aware.

Let me guess: it's too noisy, too bright, and you hate people?

[unkindled_madness]

You forgot to mention the odors.

[But that about sums it up, yes.]