polymods: (Default)
polymods ([personal profile] polymods) wrote in [community profile] polylogs2021-11-01 03:04 pm

Time for a Cinnabon!

POLYMYTHOS: THE MALL

THE MALL


Ⅰ. ARRIVAL
You can read all about your character's arrival in the game lore.
You step off the ferry and find there is no beach. No, the concrete wharf opens up to a vast, flat plain of pavement. It goes on, and on, and on. Sodium lights on tall poles are spaced at regular intervals, and as you move forward you notice white lines painted in neat rows.Those of you from a typical earth world might recognise almost immediately that you are, in fact, in a giant parking lot.

Up ahead you can see a vast building, a long rectangle flanked on either end by an even larger square. In the very center there is a large, triangular glass awning hanging over an entranceway composed of several automatic doors. There is neon tubing running along the inside of the awning, lighting up the glass so it is a beacon shining across the expanse of pavement you’re crossing.

That’s right, Travellers. We’re going to The Mall.

The building is huge - it takes a good hour to walk from one anchor store to the other at the opposite end. There are stores selling damn near everything - clothes, housewares, books, kitchen supplies, movies and music, electronics - as well as hair salons, nail salons, and a ton of kiosks. The merchandise being sold seems to be from different decades - anywhere from the 1970s to the late 2000s. You can find almost anything you could want!

The flooring is faux marble, the pillars decorated with brass detailing halfway up their length. Potted palms are set at regular intervals. The mall’s concourse is huge and open, with a glass ceiling criss-crossed with metal supports. A fountain jets water coloured by lights into the air over and over in the center of the concourse.

Escalators and an elevator run up and down to the second floor, where the food court is, which is a heaven, provided you’re too worried about MSG. Food from across every conceivable world exists here - no matter where you’re from, you can find a fast-food version of something you’re familiar with. And there’s an Orange Julius!

Truly, a paradise. Kind of weird that the automatic doors won’t let you out the way you came in, but you have everything you need right here! Just be really careful on those escalators - wouldn’t want to get sucked under. And by the way, what’s that noise…?

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. Any food is safe to eat, and is consumable by non-human entities.

4. The people inside the mall are normal humans unless otherwise indicated. Killing them is possible and will affect the colour grading of your Scrywatch depending on the situation.

5. Have fun!



Ⅱ. BLACK FRIDAY
CW: violence, mob mentality
One of the mall anchors is a huge department store that sells everything under the sun. As you walk through the empty aisles, you’ll notice that there are signs hung everywhere that read “SALE!” Indeed, prices seem to have been drastically reduced. The place seems eerily calm, however; you can’t see any shoppers anywhere.

But if you walk close to the exterior entrance on the far side of the store, you will see them if you look outside.

Hundreds upon hundreds of people pressed up against the glass doors. With a start you see that all of them, from children to the elderly, are missing their eyes. Black, empty sockets stare sightlessly ahead. Store employees, recognisable by their red smocks, stand at the ready.

“Alright, let’s open her up!” one of them shouts, and the employees move to unlock the doors. Immediately the crowd surges forward. The employees pull each other out of the way moments before they can be trampled. The mob rushes through the entranceways, stampeding towards… towards…

Oh. You.

The mob lacks any empathy; people push and climb over one another, uncaring if anyone falls to the ground. You’re pretty sure several of them are actually being crushed beneath people’s feet. Oddly, they aren’t screaming in pain. People’s mouths are moving, but only to form certain words:

“FLATSCREEN!”

“INTELLIVISION!”

“TICKLE-ME-ELMO!”

They are only screaming what it is that they want. They are single minded in their purpose, and don’t care who they hurt in their pursuit.

Make your way to the entrance that opens into the mall and you’ll be greeted with a nasty sight: the gates are closed. No matter what you do to them, they won’t budge an inch, impervious to brute strength, magic, superpowers. That means you’ll have to find another way out if you don’t want to join in the bloodshed. Maybe there’s a ventilation system or a loading bay...

There’s a chance you could just hide out until the sale ends - a store this vast has more than enough food and drink to sustain you, and you could probably get a good night’s sleep in a camping display if it isn’t torn apart by rabid consumers. Just be careful, because the longer you spend trapped in the department store the more likely you are to turn into one of them: mindlessly screaming what it is you want as you tear the store apart.

Notes:
1. There may be a few Black Friday shoppers loose in the mall, but primarily they stick to the department store.

2. Your character might find a way into the mall again, or the parking lot outside. However they manage that is up to you!

3. If your character does turn into a consumer drone, they can be changed back by being taken out of the department store. Maybe go chill out by the fountain in the concourse or get some chilli fries in the food court.



Ⅲ. UNDERGROUND PARKING
CW: potential starvation, dehydration
If the two floors of the mall are for eating and shopping, where do the down escalators go? Unsurprisingly they lead to an underground parking lot. More surprisingly, if you choose to enter the lot you’ll find yourself suddenly transported to the inside of a car. What car? Any car! It sure isn’t yours! It’s locked and you can’t get the doors or windows to open. Even trying to break your way out is futile.

Thank goodness you have a way to call for help: your ScryWatch! Although you can still access the public network, your ScryWatch will also now function as a private one-to-one device like a phone or a walkie talkie. You can ask a friend to come and help you!

The second person entering the lot won’t be magicked away, but a friendly mall employee will stop you and hand you a set of keys. Clearly they go to a car… but which one? Better start pressing that alarm button, huh?

The parking lot is massive. The party in the car would be wise to describe what they can see to their seeker. After all, teamwork makes the dream work! You sure don’t want to be stuck in a warm car for a couple of days!

Notes:
1. Your character can post/call the network or text/call an individual - in the latter case nobody else can read or hear the conversation.

2. The car might have some goldfish crackers or something in the glove box, or maybe an old gatorade bottle on the floor, but there’s not going to be enough to survive on for any length of time.



Ⅳ. MANNEQUIN
CW: automatonophobia
As you walk through the mall, you’ll see plenty of window displays. Gleaming cookware turning on pedestals under mellow lights, toys going round and round in fake wonderlands, personalised miniature license plates - although they’re all out of Borts - and of course plenty of stylish clothes draped over countless mannequins.

It’s always fun to window shop, isn’t it? Which is how you will come to notice that some of the mannequins look awfully familiar.

Everyone has, at some point in their life, treated someone like they weren’t real outside of what you wanted them to be. The romantic interest you put on a pedestal, the friend you only called when you needed them, or the poor bastard in the office who never did anything to you but who you hated on because it made you feel better. The mannequins greatly resemble that person or persons.

No matter which window you pass, they’re there. It looks like they’re watching you. But that’s silly, isn’t it?

With every mannequin you pass, the more your unease grows. Eventually the feeling of being watched is so great that it’s overwhelming. A sense of guilt grows alongside your paranoia, gnawing at your guts until you feel physically ill. Maybe if you apologise to the dummies for treating them like objects?

Or maybe if you just break all of them into pieces.

Notes:
1. Stating how you have wronged the person the mannequin resembles and apologising will cause the guilt and paranoia to vanish. But then, so will breaking them.

2. Could the mannequins sneak up on you? Move when you’re not looking? Sure! the floor, but there’s not going to be enough to survive on for any length of time.

Come on Jessica, come on Tori! Let's go to the mall, you won't be sorry!


Network · Logs · OOC · Memes · Plurk

quire: (pout)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-14 11:50 pm (UTC)(link)
He rolls his eyes at that Chihuahua remark. "It's not jealousy, it's paranoia. There's a difference," he mutters.
kyley_b: (sappy)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 12:03 am (UTC)(link)
"Awwww, c'mere." Kyle stops walking just to haul Quentin into his arms and nuzzle him. He's probably grossing Roxy out but how can he resist that pout?
gravity_grrl: (widdle faaaace)

sorry for disappearing! I was at my boyfriends place

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 01:25 am (UTC)(link)
The nuzzling doesn't gross Roxy out at all, she's a die hard romantic and thinks it's the cutest thing ever.
What does gross her out is the thought of being into Kyle because, uh....yeah no.

"Yeah you don't have to worry about biting my ankles like a jealous chihuahua. I'm SO not into Kyle that way."

She blows Kyle a kiss, "No offence to you sweets, but you're not my type at all, plus I've already got my eye on someone else on the island...."

She motions towards a lingerie store. "Which is another reason for me to go in there, I want some sexy strappy things."
kyley_b: https://mcnuggyy.tumblr.com/ (hey)

unforgiveable

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 01:47 am (UTC)(link)
Kyle's eyebrows lift up.

"Who? You can't not tell us WHO."
quire: (uh ok)

rubbing those social skills in our faces like WOW.

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 02:22 am (UTC)(link)
"I get it! I get it! I believe you! I could tell if you were lying anyway," he grumps like a stubborn kindergartener when Kyle kisses him and Roxy reminds him again how much she's not appreciative of his boyfriend's distinctive look.

One of the quickest ways to arrest Quentin's attention though is to offer information he doesn't already know. His eyebrows damn near leap off his face. "Really? Who?"
gravity_grrl: (huff)

I know, I suck.

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 03:40 am (UTC)(link)
Roxy's cheeks go pink and she tries to look anywhere but at either of them.

"I don't know if I should say. It....might make things...awkward."
kyley_b: https://mcnuggyy.tumblr.com/ (gah!)

Re: I know, I suck.

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
Kyle's eyes go huge. "Is it David?!"
gravity_grrl: (yeaaah)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 04:36 am (UTC)(link)
Part of her is tempted to just lie and say that yes, it was totally David, but she knows that David won't support that lie. He doesn't feel like that towards Roxy, hell sometimes she doesn't even know if he even likes her very much....

"Noooo."
quire: (tch)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 05:43 am (UTC)(link)
"Is it Loki? Is it Batman? It is that doe eyed android Chloe?" he's full of guesses but soon he's narrowing his eyes suspiciously and stops dead outside the lingerie store.

"Ok but you have to tell us because there's literally some people it's not allowed to be, understand?"
gravity_grrl: (angry)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 05:55 am (UTC)(link)
Roxy looks at Quentin definatly, hands on her hips.

"Excuuuuuuse me? Since when do you get to dictate who I like?"
kyley_b: https://mcnuggyy.tumblr.com/ (gah!)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 06:06 am (UTC)(link)
"I'm sure he didn't mean it THAT way," Kyle says quickly. "I think he's just petrified that it's Wolverine."

He looks at Roxy curiously. "...it CAN'T be Carter, he'd have told me. So. We won't make fun, I swear."
quire: (akshully)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 06:19 am (UTC)(link)
"OR Northstar," he adds, generally ignoring the threatening tact Roxy takes when Kyle plays interpreter. "They're both insufferable relics. One just has slightly more fashion sense."

"Oh. Yeah Carter. It can be Carter. Sure. Wait. He was shopping for sappy presents back in Tulip Town. Was that for you?"
gravity_grrl: (so_annoyed)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 06:27 am (UTC)(link)
"Oh my god both of you shut up!! It's not Carter, or David or either of those other people who I've never met! It's Wade okay?! Wade fucking Wilson!!" She yells at both of them, her cheeks turning a full scarlet.
kyley_b: https://mcnuggyy.tumblr.com/ (gah!)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 06:30 am (UTC)(link)
The silence is deafening. Only George Michael can be heard, ghostly over the PA.

"...Deadpool?!"
quire: (awkward)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 06:33 am (UTC)(link)
"Deadpool?" The expression on Quentin's face aims for disappointed but lands somewhere closer to sympathetic. "Listen, speaking from some kind of experience, I don't know if you really want that..."
gravity_grrl: (shy)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 06:45 am (UTC)(link)
"Yes Deadpool! He and I....we..." Her anger starts to slip away and she looks nervously at Kyle.

"We....had sex."
kyley_b: https://skiesandrainforest.tumblr.com/ (lunch)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 06:48 am (UTC)(link)
Kyle's brow furrows. "...why would that be drama? I've never had sex with him, and Q... wait a second. Some experience?" Pointed stare.
gravity_grrl: (huff)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 06:53 am (UTC)(link)
"I didn't say drama, I said it might be awkward because you and him are friends." She explains to Kyle, her brows knitted together in concern.
quire: (who me?)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 06:55 am (UTC)(link)
"Hey I didn't fuck him!" he says. There's a note of offence taken in there. "I dated a Pool is all. For a while. It was a couple years ago now. Not HIM. Gwenpool. There's like.. others. Like him. With a similar sort of... chaotic Adult Swim personality and a particularly meta power-set," he start rolling his hand as if to babble through his own explanation.

"Can we not make this about me!?" he turns his gaze back to Roxy— the one who really should be scrutinized here. "So... what was that like? Dare I ask. Does his dick look like hamburger like the rest of him?"
kyley_b: https://skiesandrainforest.tumblr.com/ (lunch)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 06:59 am (UTC)(link)
"So THAT'S Gwen," Kyle says, scowling... although not at either Quentin or Roxy.

Speaking of, he turns to look at her for her reaction because it IS a fair question, if completely crude.
gravity_grrl: (sweet)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 07:06 am (UTC)(link)
Roxy smacks Quentin hard on the arm, but there is a small smile at the corners of her mouth. "He doesn't look like hamburger and neither does his dick, he's just covered in scar tissue."

There's a pause and her smile fully blooms. "But if you really want to know ...his dick is the most amazing one I've ever had inside me. It's.... incredible! He's incredible."
quire: (tch)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-15 07:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Ok! Fine!" he rolls his eyes to be subjected to such unnecessary pedantry. "Does his dick look like scar tissue like the rest of him?" But before he can stomach an answer to that question Quentin looks like he's lost his appetite.

"Oh God, ok I didn't want to know that. I mean. I'm happy for you or whatever but there are apparently as many things I want to know about Wade Wilson's dick as things I don't," he decides then and there.
kyley_b: https://fmdinisio.tumblr.com/ (yup)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2021-11-15 07:47 am (UTC)(link)
"YOU'RE the one who asked," Kyle points out. He looks at Roxy. "I won't ask about the age gap, because as long as he treats you right then I'm totally supportive. I actually LIKE Wade, we're bros."

He gives Quentin a speculative glance. "David told me you dated a Gwen and implied that that fact meant either you or I were basically a chaotic garbage fire. Knowing it was basically lady Deadpool explains what he meant, although now I'm not sure if I'm annoyed about it."
gravity_grrl: (cutie)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2021-11-15 06:08 pm (UTC)(link)
Roxy laughs at the face that Quentin makes and to further tease him she mouths the words 'it's huuuuge' at him before turning her attention to Kyle.

"I mean, I don't know his actual age, I just assumed he was older than me but that's fine." She tells Kyle and then smiles. "And so far yes, he is treating me right, like...and not just the sex stuff, he's been very sweet to me."

When Kyle mentions what David said she wrinkles her nose, "David called you a chaotic garbage fire? What the fuck? He said something similar to me when I told him about me and Wade. He called me a train wreck waiting to happen."
quire: (dafuq)

[personal profile] quire 2021-11-16 07:20 am (UTC)(link)
Quentin makes an exaggerated expression like he might throw up.

"Yeah, he's old! Not buck-toothed-old-mummy-old but like at least Gen x. Maybe even a boomer. Worst still is he's another miserably failed experiment Weapon X released upon the world. I think he might even have Wolverine DNA in him. And you have his DNA in you! So you basically have some Wolverine in you!! HURK!" he leans emphatically over the nearest garbage bin and pretends to wretch, but like with most of his dramatics it only lasts a moment.

"Heh. That's his mutant power. A lot of judgey opinions," he says glibly.

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