polymods: (Default)
polymods ([personal profile] polymods) wrote in [community profile] polylogs2022-02-01 12:51 pm

Bang Up To The Elephant

POLYMYTHOS: VICTORIA'S SECRET

VICTORIA'S SECRET


Ⅰ. ARRIVAL
You can read all about your character's arrival in the game lore.
The fog that has blanketed the city for a month finally lifts a little - there are days with actual sunshine now! Not many, and the sky is still frequently thick with smog, but every so often light pours through the holes in the clouds. The river that flows from the sea into the city still smells foul, but maybe you’re starting to get used to it.

Walk the cobbled streets and you will find that the city is crowded and filthy, but full of merchants, pubs, and theatres. Vast wealth and extreme poverty exist side by side.

In the center of the sprawling city is a temple with towering gothic spires and huge stained glass windows depicting all manner of beings that might be gods or angels or monsters. You could look for hours and still be finding new figures plucked straight from books of myth and religion. Inside, the main chamber has a grand vaulted ceiling, and dozens of pews line the aisle up to the altar, which is oddly anticlimactic compared to the lavish surroundings: just a plain stone table with a lit oil lamp in the centre. Two hallways branch off on either side of the room: one leads to private baths and a communal kitchen, the other to monastic style chambers with thin beds. Not the most comfortable place to stay, but it’ll do in a pinch!

The High Temple has also reappeared at the edge of the city, with its considerably more comfortable lodgings.

Alternatively you can venture into the city and find yourself some other lodging - every Traveler has been supplied with some pocket money. Just be careful that it isn’t stolen by some street urchin. Travelers can also find an era-appropriate outfit that will fit them perfectly laid in the first sleeping chamber they visit.

Notes:
1. The High Temple and anything you may have stored there is available to all characters this month.

2. Please remember to mark threads appropriately with Content Warnings when necessary.

3. The city greatly resembles Victorian London, and the technology and general way of life is all of that era. Feel free to explore the city! These prompts are a jumping off point - how they affect your character and their development is up to you.

4. Most food is safe to eat, and is consumable by non-human entities. Most. Some of it’s going to be pretty gross or cooked improperly, so be careful.

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

6. Have fun!



Ⅱ. COME UNDONE
CW: dead bodies, archeological graverobbing.
Somehow, some way, you find yourself with an invitation card:

Lord Trewlaney at Home: the Unwrapping of
THE JEWEL OF THE SEVEN STARS!
Half-past Eight

Unwrapping? How saucy! Or perhaps you have an inkling of exactly what that means.

The invitation gets you entry to a well kept home on the more well-to-do side of the city. There are plenty of servants circulating with food and drink of which you are welcome to partake. Society’s elite chatter and mingle all around you; maybe you fit in, and maybe you don’t.

Regardless, you don’t have to wait very long for the main event. The host of this little soiree - presumably Lord Trewlaney himself, a little man with a weak chin and an impressive mustache - stands at the front of the room and holds his hands aloft.

“Ladies and gentleman,” he says in a clear voice. “BEHOLD! We shall now commence with the unwrapping of this, a fine example of Egyptian mummification, who was once called the Jewel of the Seven Stars!”

A wheeled table is brought forward, covered in a purple velvet cloth. Dramatically, Lord Trewlaney flings it back to reveal a body wrapped in ancient linen bandages. The crowd sighs, and Trewlaney’s eyes scan the crowd.

“Ah, you there!” he cries, pointing at you. Or maybe the person beside you.

“You folk there! Here, come up, my friends! You may have the honour of being a part of history!”

The crowd pushes you and your companion forward with excited murmurs. Soon enough the two of you are beside the mummy, and Trewlaney is handing you a pair of scissors. Up close the body smells of cinnamon and something else, something familiar.

“Reveal its face!” he urges you. And so, you cut.

Much to your surprise what is revealed is not a desiccated corpse, but your own likeness. Before you have time to react the mummy sits up and turns to face the audience, who oohs and ahhs.

The mummy’s lips part and it speaks. What does it say? Something extremely revealing; in plain terms, the mummy reveals something an aspect of yourself that you would rather have kept hidden.

Oh dear! You can shut yourself up, of course, but before you do maybe you ought to consider that interfering with a mummy was considered a surefire way to fall under a curse…

Notes:
1. What is revealed can of course be of any degree of seriousness. Murder? Or do you just secretly enjoy RomComs?

2. Shut the mummy up before it has its say and you will suffer the Mummy’s Curse: bad luck that will plague you for the rest of the month!



Ⅲ. IMAGINARIUM
The sign above the door simply reads Cabinet of Curiosities. How intriguing! And at the very least you can get out of the chill.

Inside there are dozens of wooden cases with glass fronts, each filled with shelves of all manner of objects. Some look expensive and exotic, while others are almost painfully mundane. There are taxidermied animals, wet specimens, fossils, glass eyes, rocks and crystals, pottery, statuettes… There’s a little of everything.

As you peer amongst the stuffed ducks and fossilized plants, you’ll spot something familiar. It’s an object that you recognise as personally significant whether because it’s from your life back home, or because it’s symbolic. It represents a dream or a hope you have for the future.

If you take the object out of the cabinet for a closer look, you and whoever happens to be standing nearby will instantly be transported to a hazy vision of what that lovely dream is. It won’t last forever - indeed, maybe only a moment. Depending on what that hoped for future is, you might have some explaining to do.

Notes:
1. All futures are something hoped for. They may be completely unrealistic and bittersweet, but they are something wanted and not feared.



Ⅳ. GARDENS
CW: mind altering substances.
If there’s one spot within the city where you might be able to find some refuge from the dank scent of ocean rot and the sour smell of body odour, then it’s going to be the Gardens. A jewel toward the west side of the city, you will find a greenhouse containing all manner of tropical plants, and a rose garden with over a 100 different types available for you to enjoy.

But why stop there? There are also areas where you can stop and have tea with a friend. They even have those little sandwiches with the crust cut off! They have cucumber, egg, and cream cheese. Each of these has a different effect: cucumber sandwiches will provide a mild sense of euphoria, while the egg will give you a lot of energy (and maybe some gas). Cream cheese will make you very relaxed and prone to oversharing. There are also perfectly regular cakes and biscuits available, as well.

Maybe you’re feeling a bit more somber. In the northeast end of the park there is a secret pet cemetery with over 300 tiny tombstones paying tribute to the tragic losses of many much-loved pets. The area is disused, overgrown with ivy and ferns. Sitting there evokes a sense of peace.

Prefer to see some living wildlife? Fear not, the park seems to attract several different types of songbirds which makes it a hotspot for birdwatching. There are binoculars available to use for that purpose. Or you could use them to peer into the city’s seamy underbelly. Just don’t get isolated and weird about it.

Sometimes I can still hear his voice...


Network · Logs · OOC · Memes · Plurk

gravity_grrl: (laugh)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-16 05:45 am (UTC)(link)
"OMIGAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWD!" Roxy nearly screams, grabbing Kyle by the shoulders and shaking him.

"TellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeTellmeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
kyley_b: https://lafiska.tumblr.com/ (laugh)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-16 05:50 am (UTC)(link)
"Okay, okay, jeez. Mine was just like, having a house and kids." No way is he telling her they saw their future selves boning.

"And in his it was this big wedding ceremony 'cause we were kings of that mutant island he lives on."
gravity_grrl: (excited)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-16 06:16 am (UTC)(link)
Roxy hugs Kyle happily, "Omg! You were daddies?! And married!! That's so fucking sweet!!! Tell me more details! What did your kids look like, what were their names? What were your wedding colors?!??"
kyley_b: (RL sweet boi)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-17 02:44 am (UTC)(link)
"Uhm, redheads. No idea about names, but Q was like..." Kyle grins stupidly. "Just so good with them. Like, joking around and stuff. But the best part was that the REAL him didn't freak out and run away, you know?"
gravity_grrl: (bw laugh)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-17 05:16 am (UTC)(link)
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!" She shakes him again. "That's SO COOL! OMAAGAAWD YOU TWO ARE SO IN LOVE!!!"
kyley_b: https://lafiska.tumblr.com/ (laugh)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-17 05:20 am (UTC)(link)
Kyle tries to hush Roxy, but not that hard. "I know. I know. We're disgusting."
gravity_grrl: (ohgoodie)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-17 06:42 am (UTC)(link)
"It's not disgusting, it's adorable! And wonderful and I'm so happy for you both!" She says and hugs him again.

"Tell me about the wedding! What did you wear? What did Pinkie pie wear? Did you see the honeymoon suite??"
kyley_b: (RL sweet boi)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-17 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
"Thanks." He's bright red. "Uhm, his suit was black on black and mine was cream on cream. And no, but it was all like, on Krakoa which is tropical so I'm guessing lots of windows and flowers."
gravity_grrl: (sweet)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-18 03:55 am (UTC)(link)
"Awwwww that sounds so beautiful." She says softly, and then pokes the tip of his nose. "When you two get married I better get a fucking invite or I'll beat the crap out of you."
kyley_b: (RL sweet boi)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-18 04:57 am (UTC)(link)
He blushes deeper somehow.

"Promise," he mumbles. "If we all wind up the same place after all of... this."
gravity_grrl: (wine_smile)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-18 07:49 am (UTC)(link)
She leans forward and kisses his temple. "Good. So were there any other fun future fantasies that you guys shared?"
kyley_b: (RL serene)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-18 05:45 pm (UTC)(link)
He shakes his head. "No, apparently we were both just super into the idea of being together." He hums thoughtfully.

"I know he worries we won't stay together if this whole magical mystery tour ends."
gravity_grrl: (cutie)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-19 07:38 am (UTC)(link)
"Yeah I know, we talked about that during our bubble bath." She says and then raises an eyebrow.

"Are you worried about that too?"
kyley_b: (RL comfy sweater)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-19 06:58 pm (UTC)(link)
"He talked about me?" Trying not to sound excited.

"A little. But then I think like... you and him and Carter and David could probably keep us all together somehow. You guys are super-powered."
gravity_grrl: (sweet)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-19 09:16 pm (UTC)(link)
"Duh of course he did." She says and then smiles, poking the tip of his nose.

"I told him the same thing! I was like, dude, we've got a group of superpower kick-ass friends. Ain't no way we aren't gonna be able to find a way to stay together."
kyley_b: (RL sweet boi)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-19 11:37 pm (UTC)(link)
Kyle smiles, relieved.

"Good," he says softly. "I gotta keep you guys."
gravity_grrl: (excited)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-21 03:59 am (UTC)(link)
Roxy giggles and bats her eyelashes at Kyle, "OMG I'm a kept woman am I now?? Ooooh baby, don't tell Wade or he'll get jealous and fight you."
kyley_b: (RL grass is great)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-21 04:34 am (UTC)(link)
Kyle snorts. "Shut up," he says fondly. "But seriously. You're like, one of my best friends."
gravity_grrl: (kiss_cheek)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-21 05:40 am (UTC)(link)
She leans in and gives him a big noisy kiss on the cheek. "You're one of my best friends too babe. You know I love you right?"
kyley_b: (RL sweet boi)

[personal profile] kyley_b 2022-02-21 06:08 am (UTC)(link)
"I do, yeah." It's a strange, wonderful thing to say out loud.

"You know I love you too, obviously."
gravity_grrl: (sunglasses)

[personal profile] gravity_grrl 2022-02-21 06:18 pm (UTC)(link)
"Well DUH, of course." She says and hugs his head to her boobs. "It's nice to hear though, so thank you."