Priority Log - Part 1

[locomodo]

Log 02 Priority (Part I)
The Mine Car

As characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new message…

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> OVERRIDE: TUTORIAL MODE DEACTIVATED.
> OBJECTIVE:

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NAME: The Mine Car
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT: Gothic era
DANGER LEVEL: High
GENERAL STINKINESS: High
COMMON DENIZENS: Humans, ornithrops, bearkin
CUISINE: Peasant gruel, bird seed

There is no sender. Or objective?

But that's fine, probably! The car itself is completely functional, and features a fully developed society.

Passengers will arrive in this car and be immediately greeted by a fog that chills them to their core. The car around them is vast, and yet deathly silent. They'll find themselves starting off in a forest of petrified wood, the ground hard and unyielding underneath their feet, with flora and fauna in various stages of decay around them. While the fog around them is thick, the lights of a nearby village can still be seen from a distance, and as they travel, the dirt road will give way to cobblestone.

Eventually they'll be greeted with a signpost, welcoming them to the town of MINECRAFTIA.




While Minecraftia's denizens are harrowed and distressed, they're quick to warn the passengers traveling through of the ailment, a mysterious illness that is plaguing their town. It's been leaving even healthy youths bedridden, and while the town mayor has passionately declared that he will find a solution, it appears that there's no cure in sight.

Locations

Minecraftia is a foreboding little town, even in the daylight, with murky skies above and fog blanketing the roads. Still, the denizens persist through their daily routines, and won't stop the passengers from exploring.

Clinic: The town's only clinic with the town's only doctor. It's a small, rickety building that operates all hours of the day. Between the rapid spread of sickness and the steady depletion of supplies, it's a grim place to be nowadays. Anyone healthy who visits might be roped in to help, and those who look ill will be quarantined with an uncomfortable bedroll and thin blanket.

Cemetery: Located on the outskirts of town, the cemetery is home to dead bodies, even deader earth, and a deadpan gravekeeper. The exit door is here in a flower-covered plot, but cannot be opened.

Chicken House: A barnyard building home to the town's chickens. Lately they've been more worked up than usual, and taken to flying the coop and finding refuge by digging their claws into the scalps of bystanders. Agitating one chicken may cause a whole flock to descend on you!

The Dark Woods: The village is surrounded by what was once lush woods, but the trees now stand dark and eerie, an unusually thick fog rolling between them. While there are some of the usual, woodland creatures chirruping in the dense silence, they're hard to find. Monsters, meanwhile, are much more common.

The Mines: In the heart of the woods are entrances to the town's expansive system of mines. Stepping inside shows that the dirt and stone is laced with beautiful gems and minerals, but passengers will be shooed away by miners if they try to explore any deeper. It seems there's several dangerous mine shafts underfoot, as well as past attacks by what seems to be mole monsters.

Mayor's Mansion: The largest building in Minecraftia, situated on a hill. While Mayor Chadsef's staff welcomes guests, they will be cautioned not to explore past the lobby, which just smells a little like cleaning chemicals thanks to a diligent maid crew.

Denizens

Players may use denizens as convenient in threads, as well as these NPCs, except for the Mayor. He's a very busy man!

Madam Vermeer: The Madam is a human extremely afraid that she'll die before seeing her son marry. Which means that she is hunting the streets for eligible men and women, and whisking them in droves away into her mansion to be made over, trained in the art of serving, etc. before presenting them to her son.

Cassy Cassatt: Cassy is an ornithrop and the owner of the chicken house. She's shorthanded nowadays, but business-savvy enough to prey on considerate bystanders. She'll rope anyone she sees into helping out, whether it's collecting eggs, feeding or breeding.

Turner: Turner is a bearkin, and one of the nurses at the clinic. He's taken to drinking his weight in mead whenever he's off the clock, and it's not uncommon for his body to be seen unconscious on the road. He'll try to flee or swat blindly if anyone tries to help him, but he really does need help getting home.

Chadsef: The mayor of Minecraftia, who is notably wealthier than the rest of the citizens. He's young and inexperienced, but carries a Birds of Economics degree, and is determined to bring jobs to the town. He'll just need to make sure people are alive to do them first!

Other

The longer that passengers remain in the car, the more they'll learn, and soon they'll realize the following:

1. They are not immune to the illness. They can't determine what it is that triggers it. At first it's a sense of fatigue, then hunger and irritability. Then, the numbness will begin, starting in their extremities and spreading up their limbs, until that numbness turns into pain. Eventually that pain will lead to madness, a state of delirium where they begin to behave erratically, endangering themselves and those around them.
   
   
2. There is something in the woods. Though the passengers saw nothing when they arrived in the woods, at night they can hear growling. Venturing outside will reveal grotesque creatures emerging from the fog, rampaging into the town and tearing flesh and stone with their massive claws. These creatures appear rabid, familiar but warped, and they swarm the town with no regard for their own safety or benefit. Examples: (1) (2) (3) (4)
   
   
3. Corpses are disappearing. Despite deaths, the cemetery isn't seeing any more business. Rumour has it that a certain wealthy denizen has been paying to have the corpses taken away. But to where, and why, remains unknown…

Numbers

Numbers! Everyone starts with one that glows on their bodies — as a fun thread mechanic, we suggest they're somewhere visible, but it's up to you!



Because while this is not IC knowledge yet, numbers are determined by how troubled your character is. This may be based on their past actions and crimes, but also alienating habits, regrets, personality flaws, trauma, etc — a higher number does not necessarily mean they're a bad person, but it may signify a difficult time in their life, or substantial personal issues.

As passengers enter this car, they'll notice that their numbers may begin to change in response to certain actions and decisions. The general rule is that numbers change as characters work through their issues. If they make a decision that serves to better themselves, their number will decrease. But if they make a decision that is ill-intentioned, their number will increase. Players can change their number as they see fit going forward.

OOC Notes

Exploration: Players may submit on-going threads here to get a short mod tag with further discoveries in any given location. Characters can potentially earn items or clues as to the car's objective this way. Please limit your explorations to one per player; we will let you all know if we have the capacity to do more!

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Comments

[locomodo]

[ If Anakin is sticking around the clinic, he won't have trouble finding the worst cases. These people are irritable, but lacking energy, fading away to nothing. And because none of you looked into the plague and the next log is this week, conveniently the dude next to him eventually mcdies; he coughs up what looks like glowing spores that give off a cool light with his last breath, falling limp.

The clinic staff are quick to notice, and will certainly shoo Anakin away as they prepare to move the body out of the clinic. He can try to follow, but because of the body disappearances lately, they will be distrustful and send him away.

However, they've accounted for this! As the deceased is moved outside, they are left with one of the bearkin staff to make funeral arrangements, and there is a young woman there to receive the body. Jinwoo a la shadow soldier will see that this woman at a glance could be mistaken for an undertaker, wearing a dark cloak, but strangely... she has a maid uniform on underneath? She slips the bearkin a coin before taking stock of the body.

Then, the woman seems to notice something, squinting at the body's shadow before whispering something under her breath and waving her hand with a flick. At this point, Jinwoo will feel his shadow soldier being dispelled, and will see nothing else.

If they should regroup where this happened, there is no trace of the woman, or the body. However, there is a small glass flask that's been dropped that Anakin is welcome to happen upon. It contains a potion that when consumed, will grant him the ability to turn into an animal of his choosing for one log. It comes with the side effect of making him incredibly clingy, which is not IC knowledge. ]

[reanimate]

[ Jinwoo is immediately notified when the body starts to move, and he's equally as quick to tap into the eyes of his soldier. The entire thing doesn't last very long, the most he gets is that glimpse of her maid uniform before his soldier is dismissed, and then he's shifting gears to head to where that exchange had taken place.

A maid... He's got ideas, having seen maids at the mansion where he'd had his dancing lesson with Felix, but this is no ordinary maid. She'd been able to both notice the body's shadowy occupant and dispel his soldier with a flick of her hand. His mind is piecing together the puzzle as he rounds the corner toward his destination and comes upon... nothing. Shit.

Meanwhile, the shadow soldier he'd left behind will appear before Anakin and gesture with his hand to follow after him in order to lead the other man to where Jinwoo is waiting with a frown on his face. ]

[unrepentant]

[It isn't the first person he's watched die, and there's a grim knowledge in the experience that can't be learned any other way. Their breathing changes, takes on a new rhythm in the hours before, and in the Force he can feel their fear. Their anger, frustration. Confusion. Until that too starts to wane- and even when there is no acceptance, eventually the effort is just too much.

Anakin quietly sits vigil. He doesn't know this person and now never will, so he holds the man's hand instead of searching for words. And as his breathing changes, in those last moments- there's a strange light. Little particles that seem to come... come out of him at the very end.

There isn't much time left to him after that. He carefully withdraws his hand, looking at the dead man one last time before he's- summoned. The sight visibly startles him in its newness, but instinct urges him into motion. Anakin follows the shadow soldier as quickly as it can go, reaching outward into the living force to search for danger as he rounds a corner. And is relieved to find Jinwoo there, unharmed. The line of his shoulders softens as he jogs forward, closes the distance.] What happened? Are you alright?

[reanimate]

[ Jinwoo's left with nothing to do but to wait. His soldier had been dispelled before he could see which direction the woman had taken off in. And for her to be able to transport a dead body on her own... Surely someone in the town must take notice of that sight? Unless she had more tricks up her sleeve. The fact that she'd been able to dismiss his soldier so casually meant she was no ordinary human being.

He's broken out of his thoughts at Anakin's arrival and he nods a greeting. ]

I'm fine. Frustrated, but fine.

[ The soldier that had led Anakin here returns to Jinwoo's shadow. ]

I saw her. A woman dressed in dark clothing, but I caught a glimpse of a maid outfit underneath her cloak. She handed one of the clinic staff a coin in exchange for the corpse.

[ He runs a hand through his hair in agitation, gaze shifting to the spot where the exchange had taken place. ]

She took notice of my soldier somehow and got rid of it so I didn't see much else.

[unrepentant]

[It's still concern that rides highest in him, because the mantle of responsibility is familiar for a Jedi but more than that- he's the one who asked this of Jinwoo. Who suggested that they split up. If the man is hurt then it's Anakin's decisions that put him in that position.

But he isn't harmed, not visibly anyway. He nods at Anakin's arrival and runs a hand through his hair and Anakin listens attentively, frowning at the empty space as if it might bring the woman in question back. Replay everything. A woman in dark clothing, a maid outfit underneath- disgust mars his features.] So the clinic's getting paid off. [Does it include Turner? Is that why that bear is able to afford to go drinking every night?

Something glints at him in the dirt and Anakin approaches the place where the corpse had once been before he crouches down. The gold tips of his fingers land on... a little glass bottle? Anakin frowns at it, brings it with him as he climbs back to his feet.]

You saw more than I did.

[His head nods once, in the direction of the clinic, where he'd just come.] Someone coughed up little glowing particles, spores maybe, before they died. But the staff was pretty quick to get me out of there.

Guess now we know why.

-Has that ever happened before? Someone getting rid of your soldier?

[reanimate]

[ Jinwoo's silent, returning deep into his own thoughts, as he begins pacing back and forth. The clinic being paid off makes a lot of sense. No one else had made much of a fuss about the disappearing bodies, and while there had been some puzzlement from the townsfolk, it had ultimately come down to him and Anakin to try and discover where they were going.

And now they've landed here, with not much to go off of despite their troubles.

He shakes his head at Anakin's question, gaze flitting back over to where the exchange had just recently taken place. If only he had been a bit quicker... ]

Not that easily. Not without a fight.

[ His frustration isn't easy to hide. He hates the not knowing. ]

She's powerful, whatever she is.

[unrepentant]

And on the mayor's payroll.

[Because who else would be able to afford cleaning staff? Where else have they seen maids? He's never going to hear the end of it from Obi-Wan. Obi-Wan and that terrible plan with the terrible disguise.

But more worrying and far more to the point, is the way Jinwoo elaborates. Even without his expression, frustration leaks into the Force like a slow bleed and gives an answer long before the words do. Not easily. Not without a fight. Is this the reason so many combatants have been brought aboard? That this is their first taste of the enemies they'll face?

Still... to have taken a corpse and just... vanished? Vanished where? How?]

Was it just the one?

[reanimate]

[ All sorts of corruption run rampant in this small town, huh. Jinwoo's usually not one to get himself tangled up with politics, but it's not as if he can simply ignore what he'd witnessed. Anakin's right, there's a higher power at play here, and with the mayor now on the board, they have no idea who to trust. ]

Just the one.

[ He's really regretting that he hadn't been able to catch up with her. While they'd been able to gleam some information from this, the same was done for the other side by spotting Jinwoo's shadow. ]

They're going to know that we know.

[unrepentant]

[Maybe no town is too small for corruption. Tatooine had been a ball of dirt in the middle of nowhere, about as backwater as a planet can get- but there'd been no shortage of clawing and kicking and climbing to get to the top of the food chain. This isn't to say he sees this kind of ugliness everywhere he goes, but Anakin knows he shouldn't be surprised. He should know better.

Is it possible for there to be only one? How were the medics contacting her to let her know they had a corpse? Why the rush to get rid of it so quickly? The thoughts sit uneasily inside him, and in response, Anakin bears into what they can confirm. Jinwoo is right; they're going to know that we know. At his side Anakin nods, arms coming up to fold across his chest.]

So will they make the first move, or are they going to try and keep up the facade.

[reanimate]

[ This became a lot more complicated than Jinwoo had initially imagined it. While he doesn't know what the maid or the mayor want with dead bodies, the fact that they've gone to great lengths to keep it a secret doesn't bode well. Doesn't sit right.

And he assumes the rest of the town's occupants will feel the same. ]

Let's not give them the chance to decide.

[ There's still so much left in the dark, but Jinwoo has always been more on the hasty side of things. He's also a one-man army, so the answer on what to do next comes easily to him. ]

We let the others know, and we move first.