TDM #5 - Paradesium

[pumpkinhollow]

Pumpkin Hollow Gazette March Issue

[Find our plain text version here!]

Pumpkin Hollow Gazette

3/8/24 | TDM #5 - Paradesium
Content Warnings: individual CWs found per prompt in "Further Details"
Forecast: Partly cloudy with a chance of rain

WELCOME TO PUMPKIN HOLLOW!

By Yorick Aberdeen

Apparently the ferryman needed a bigger boat!

ACROSS TOWN - Since June of 16:53, a steady stream of new arrivals to our sleepy little town has flowed in by ferry, emerging from the fog. And it seems this trend is due to continue, as this March is due to be on record the highest number of new residents in a single month!

We are incredibly grateful for all of you coming to our home and filling it with life once more, even though the dangers of our local curse have significantly increased since all of you began arriving. This reporter isn’t complaining--- additional harm to my own person notwithstanding!

If you are a new arrival, please report to Town Hall at your leisure so that we can help you find work and permanent lodging. Or don’t! The Oak & Iron is happy to rent you a room for as long as you need. Best of luck to all of you, and as we say in Pumpkin Hollow, may your lanterns always be lit!

CHARITY DRIVE ENCOURAGES CULTURAL EXCHANGE

By Cecil Gershwin Palmer

One of the charming toys created during last year's Doll Picnic.

FESTIVAL GREEN - Preparations are underway for the upcoming annual Doll Picnic. A charity event sponsored by the Artisan’s Guild, this picnic is an Anwyllic tradition that was brought to the island and continued with love. The first Doll Picnic was organized by Dame Meredith Idlewild of the town of Glyn Rhuthun on Kora’s Haven, with the toys being donated to the local children’s hospital after a massive landslide engulfed a local school.

The Artisan’s Guild has baskets of material available for making dolls, including fabric, yarn, stuffing, buttons, and the like. However, tradition states that sourcing materials from the natural world (for example, acorn husks to use as buttons or deadwood to carve for doll arms and legs) results in the toys being blessed by Serrenai, who will watch over the children who play with them. The toys will be donated to local children after the picnic, including those who are ill or whose families can only afford necessities.

Newcomers are explicitly invited to join in the making of toys, and the resulting picnic. As a personal note: the locals have never heard of a teddy bear before. This reporter expects to see several, as we introduce our traditions to their traditions.

PLANTING SEASON BEGINS!

By Yorick Aberdeen

After a difficult winter, the appearance of spring's sprouts lifts our spirits.

NORTHWEST HOLLOW - The spring thaw is in full swing! That means it’s time for our local farmers to begin planting. Town Hall is offering a small reward to any of our newest arrivals who would be interested in assisting with planting season for farms less than a year old.

Anyone fresh off the boat interested in making 100 Brass should seek out Eddie and Angel Kasbrak, Arthur Morgan, Cèsar Salazar, Mairi Miann, Ylva Wolfsdottir, or Muriel and offer assistance with tilling and planting. We look forward to rewarding you for your contributions!

HOT SPRINGS OPEN FOR RELAXATION

By Yorick Aberdeen

Photograph provided by the Safety Board!

CRANE'S RIDGE - After a recent earthquake opened up a hot spring on the lower portion of Crane’s Ridge, a small portion of the Pumpkin Hollow Damage Claims Assessment Corps has been working to get the area cleaned up and safe for use by the general public.

Following its recent approval for compliance by the Safety Board, we are pleased to announce that Porter’s Spring is now available for public enjoyment! It can be accessed by taking the train to the North Station or by following the central trail out of Northwest Hollow, though the Safety Board does not recommend making this journey on foot due to its proximity to Lake Sal-Co-Penn. Enjoy!

STRANGE CAVERNS DISCOVERED BENEATH CRANE’S RIDGE

By Yorick Aberdeen

A small glimpse into this world beneath our own.

CRANE RIDGE - In addition to the hot springs, the earthquake can also be credited for a major cave-in in our Crane’s Ridge mines. A large tunnel was completely buried in rubble by the inexplicable natural occurrence. For the past several months, our mining team has been chipping away at the cave-in to try and regain access to the blocked tunnels in the lower area of the mountain.

In one of these tunnels, however, the team discovered a shocking surprise as the rubble was removed! Apparently, just beyond the mine walls, there has been an entrance to Hepogaia--- a subterranean nation running below our own fair country and many others. It seems that this particular portion of Hepogaian territory is also trapped within the barrier. Brief attempts at scouting by the Safety Board have noted a plethora of subterranean wildlife, both familiar and unfamiliar. This incredible new environment, hiding just out of sight beneath our island, is so full of wonder and splendor that it has earned a fitting name--- “Paradesium.”

A recent ecology study and expedition run by Pumpkin Hollow’s own Dr. Elias Coldwood has redirected their efforts to this new location, but those interested in exploring and scouting out this fantastical new discovery independently are encouraged to pack thoughtfully and travel in groups of two or more! Any information obtained during excursions into Paradesium would be appreciated by the Pumpkin Hollow Board of Safety.

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Further Details...

Charity Drive

The Doll Picnic Charity Drive will run throughout the next two months during our TDM, and there will be an event later on involving posing the dolls for a picnic. Once a photo is taken, the children will be allowed to come picnic with their new toys and take them home after!

There is absolutely no way this could possibly go wrong. Absolutely no dollmakers will be jumpscared or attacked by possessed dolls. None at all. (Okay, maybe some of them. But it’s fine. It’s for a good cause.)

[Mod Note: you can just make a doll without it coming to life and trying to kick your ass, that part is optional. Also the dolls will be blessed at the picnic and rendered unable to attack children.]

Planting Season

Any brand-new characters will get 100B extra on their stipend if they submit an AC-length thread with one of the existing farmers on their first Activity Check! This will be available regardless of whether the character qualifies for normal bonuses, but can only be redeemed by those who app in.

For reference for new players, threads are considered AC-length if they are ten tags in length (meaning 5 of your own tags and 5 from your partner.)

Hot Springs

Porter’s Spring is a perfectly normal and safe hot spring! However, you can encounter any number of perils on your way there if you decide to travel on foot, allowing new players to revisit some of our earlier events.

Check out our bestiary (pending update to new format) for more information on creatures such as Brutoks, the River Walker, and the Pine Devil, or stumble on Lake Sal-Co-Penn for a nasty surprise! Brutoks may also steal personal items from spring-goers on occasion. Don’t chase after them alone unless you want to be turned into a tree!

The Tristitia

In addition to the creatures in the wild, in town after dark characters may also encounter the Tristitia, Pumpkin Hollow’s newest cryptid.

She is a wraith-like spirit which haunts the island. Wearing tattered black clothes and colored all in shades of gray, she appears as a woman who walks around weeping with a caved-in chest, covering her face with her hands. Harmless if given a wide berth, but if she is set off, she will take out her desire for empathy for her grief on her target. She does this by embracing them and drawing out their own grief and trauma, leaving the target catatonic before she fades away, temporarily assuaged.

Into Paradesium

Crystals, golden with light and raw magical energy, cast what looks like sunlight down into the cascading cave. For every foot lower that the ground curls down from the entrance, the trees stretch ever-higher, carrying the raucous cries of animals unlike the surface of Marrow Isle had ever heard.

A jungle, so lush with life, sprawls ahead of any brave enough to venture into it. But what is there to see?

For Paradesium specifically, the bestiary has received a significant update. Creatures featured in prompts have their links to the accounts by Dr. Coldwood and his team marked with stars for easy location.

Below are multiple prompts for some encounters to be had in the jungle, but feel free to create any of your own encounters with any of the creatures listed! If the descriptions are short, feel free to write the creatures' behaviors however makes sense.

Welcome to the Jungle

Swallowed by dense canopies and noise, the jungle is quick to swallow any who travel within it whole.

Eyes are quick to find you, however. Perching in the treetops are a variety of small wyverns in vibrant colors, heads tilting as they try to comprehend what you could be. They squawk, chatter, and some of the bolder ones draw closer - if you sit anything aside and leave it unattended for too long, some even bolder than that will pilfer it, taking the object into the trees to admire with its companions.

Reptilian hunters with bright, keen eyes, the Plommon, consider you with much of the same interest. This interest increases tenfold if you happen to feed them.

If the prying eyes are no bother, then the forest's bounty is ripe for tending and taking. Bananas hang off trees, colorful citrus fruits catch light on their waxy peels, and bulky cocoa beans are jostled by movement in the branches above them. Even the broad leaves of the plants prove extraordinarily useful, whether you're looking to come in and quickly leave, or intend to push further within.

Wherever you go, those curious eyes follow you. Perhaps even out of the cave, should your attempts to shoo an adventurous creature away. What an odd way to gain a new team member.

Down a Few Notches on the Food Chain

(CWs: Potential for death, gore, or animal death)

Unfortunately, not all can be pure bounty and new friends in a place like this.

With the cavern sprawling widely and massively, there are many significantly larger creatures in this space, and some seem to be keen to take up opportunity for new prey. As you explore, there's a new feeling of eyes upon you, and the silence that overtakes the surrounding trees spells nothing good to come.

Any one of the massive predators in the wood has you in it's sights.

Escape is difficult, but manageable, as is fighting back. Creatures can be challenged, and hides, bones, and other spoils can be claimed from them, should there be success! If not, this is a good opportunity for familiarization with the Death page.

The silkhide chimera specializes in persistence. The longer and further you go, the more exhausted you'll get. A break is an opportunity that it will be keen to take.

The greenstalker excels at ambushing and high-speed pursuit. At top speeds of 30MPH, your party will need strategy and skill on their side to keep this beast at bay. (Or, alternatively, a source of fire.)

The elephant raptor does neither of these - the beast's sheer length of reach does all it needs to. Water and mud soften the sounds of the gargantuan creature's approach. Stay alert, and be sure that you hear it before it's upon you.

Safe travels become more difficult to manage, the further in you go. Deep, rumbling snores tell you that there's a chance you're just getting to the greater threats this paradise has to offer...

Fragments of the Past

Through great distances traveled, this "uninhabited" cavern begins to show signs that may speak to that not having always been the case.

Ruins of homes, crumbled bricks and tiles, can be found at the deepest reaches of the cavern. These dilapidated buildings, though worn with time, tell a story: the people who left his place, one that could be identified as a stenholm to any familiar with dwarvish culture, did not leave it on good terms.

Essentials were clearly taken with them, as the ruins of this place lack tools or clothing. Valuables are still scattered throughout, however. Large objects with too much history to have been left behind by indifference dot the collapsing homes. Ritual circles still waft radiant energy from them.

In the remains of a temple, an altar stands, cracking with age and covered in plants as the cavern reclaims it. Old candle-stands have rusted with age, but still stand, undisturbed.

Just before the altar, folded onto its side (as best as one can be, when only pieces remain), lies a skeleton. The clothes are tattered remains of stained whites and dulled blues, and the wildlife have cleaned flesh from bones, but it's remained undisturbed by time.

There's a quiet sadness to this place that lingers, even with the people who inhabited it so long since lost.

Should you linger too long, however, there comes the distinct feeling of not being alone.

Clair de Lune

(CWs: Long-term isolation, extinction)

Golden eyes of a human face follow your every moment, and the moment you lock your gaze onto them, the face emerges from the darkness, partially covered by spilling dark hair.

What follows this face, however, is not a human face - but, rather, a feline body with sprawling, grey-flecked wings.

There's a long, tense silence, as it emerges fully. Standing easily at eight feet tall while on all fours, the size of this creature becomes more and more apparent as it emerges from the dark of the collapsed wind.

Unlike the other animals of the cavern, though, there seems to be an anxiousness to its look. The lion's chest rises and falls with short, nervous breaths.

And then, in a hushed, woman's voice, hoarse from disuse, it speaks.

"Who are you? Why have you come here?"

-------------------

The Sphinx is a new NPC available for characters to interact with, should they delve deep enough into the caverns to find the stenholm. She's wary of all the new faces, and tends to be somewhat flighty, but seems cautiously interested in what new humans being in Hepogaia have to offer. For the sort looking to understand this place, it's people, or intend to trade, she can be communed with.

To interact with her, comment on the TL provided from beastsofthehollow with her icon, and if the initial introduction isn't your speed, feel free to encounter her however you like!

Comments

[abhorrently]

"I'm just grateful he's open to taking on this project. It'll be nice to have a proper staff and not just a sturdy branch."

It's good to see Ava settling, too. Even if the way her form looks is cause for consideration, she won't bring it up unless Ava does. There's no easy digression into it.

"But you two have a nice place set up. Think I heard something in passing about an orchard?"

Word travels through people, after all.

[decohere]

"An apple orchard, yes. That was always our silly little dream. But apple season isn't until fall... It's good for him, being productive in the meantime," Ava is fairly grateful too. Feeling as if there's something he can contribute, it's a nice change of pace for him since escaping the ship.

Ava on the other hand is just happier to be able to relax, not feeling as if the weight of everyone's fate is hanging over her.

Just her own. But keeping busy helps keep her mind off that too. She doesn't want to lay in bed all day and be miserable from pain.

"I'm setting up for a little fire. I don't know, maybe the freedom of knowing it won't just be doused out," Ava shrugs. "Want to hang around awhile? I can show you the place."

[abhorrently]

"If you're inviting me, I'd be a fool to turn down the honor."

It feels like the right thing to say. Except, except, if it feels like a home -

No. She can't live like this, letting her own internal quagmire dictate how she interacts with her friends. This is going to happen, so she might as well get over it now.

There's not a hint of this internal debate to ruffle her features externally.

[decohere]

Ava walks through the closed front door, which then opens momentarily after with her beckoning Fever in. "It isn't much, yet. But it's home."

The place is sparse with some basic furnishings, but it's not overly spacious to demand much more either. The entryway reveals the open floor plan of a simple kitchen and dining space, and a sitting area. The only real decoration comes in the form of a impressionistic waterfall painting signed with a star, and some wildflowers arranged on the countertop.

[abhorrently]

She carries the wood in, eyes taking it all in. It feels...peaceful here. Nothing could be farther from the place they escaped from, this kind of serenity. Actual nature outside the windows, the weather still a little cool in the early spring. It still sits oddly on Fever, but she'll chalk it up to it just being different right now. Strange to be in a place where they might actually relax.

"It's a good place already. Got any big plans for the future?"

If allowed, she'll drift over to look at the painting to admire it.

[decohere]

Ava's happy to drift towards the painting with Fever, to proudly show it off. "Birthday present, it's where he proposed to me. In one of my memories... I think that was before you arrived." Though with so many comings and goings, it had gotten difficult to keep track. Each month had started to blur into the next... marked only by different trauma before she could properly process or recover from the last round.

Her expression turns somewhat sad at the question, a furtive glance toward the closed door of the second bedroom. "I... well. I think right now we're. Focusing on finding some stability." Ava swallows roughly.

[abhorrently]

"Yeah, I think we all are. After everything..."

She sees the sorrow in Ava's expression, but can't place where it might come from. Who she might be waiting for, to fill that second bedroom.

"I've heard that people do things for each other when their friends move to a new place - housewarming, they called it? I don't really know what you're supposed to do for the occasion, but if there's something the two of you need or want help with, all you need to do is say the word.

[decohere]

"Ah, that sounds like a nice tradition," Ava agrees. She wouldn't know much about it, if it's one that's shared in her own world.

"I guess we were just... lamenting we lost all of our gifts and mementos, from the ship. Little things from friends and loved ones." Especially from the ones she's afraid she'll never see again. "That the place doesn't quite feel like home yet. But building new memories come in time. I think that's what we'd like."

[abhorrently]

"Yeah. There are things I wish I hadn't lost." For a brief second, her expression darkens, and she feels unarmored. "When it all went to the worst, I had made sure anything I couldn't bear to give up was on my body, assuming we might lose the ship. More fool me."

But she has her memories. That's at least a minor improvement.

"Though I can't replace anything, offer's always open. All the new memories...they've got the best shot at being happier ones now."

[decohere]

"It feels silly. Because I didn't use to care much about... stuff. Things can be replaced, right? And of everything that survived, I'm glad it's the people." Even if not all of them. She has to hope that maybe they just landed in other worlds, and are fine. Instead of locked up in some human zoo.

"But there's little sentimental things I miss. Like the shells that Fio brought me back from the beach, one was the colors of the sunset. Or... Catduggy, the plush that Maximilien gave me for my birthday. Or the little pearl my friend Helena could use to track me down, and now she can't," if she's out there, somewhere, searching... "I put it on a friendship bracelet from Undine." She had sworn to herself to never take it off, even after the girl was long gone.

Ava fidgets with her hands a bit. "Or our wedding rings. I think that one is the hardest." Not just because while wearing it, it took away so much of the pain, and now it's even worse.

"But I'm happy to start over here, somewhere that... everyone can be happier, I hope."

[abhorrently]

Compared to something like wedding rings, what she misses feels almost unimportant. Less so than something like that - and even if they could be made again, even if they had each other, it's still an important symbol. She nods in sympathy to what Ava says about it all, though, and looks back at her specifically.

"That's what I think too. I ended up going to the Temple, leaving an offering for Mortanne since she's the one who brought us here - didn't know what else to say but thank you if she swept us out of the aftermath."

Which is still foggy to her, but it's supposed to clear up in time.

"How many more are you looking for? Fio, obviously - I haven't seen or heard of her - and Maximilien would be hard to mistake. But others?"

She can keep an eye out, if nothing else.

[decohere]

She does look confused about the Temple, of leaving offerings. "No idea who Mortanne is. I don't... Know much, about this place. I figured it's better if I stay out of things, out of the way." Because her involvement before had been bad for everyone. She had done everything wrong, worsened the conditions for everyone with her reckless actions. So it feels best that she keeps her head down, like she had planned all along.

A nod in confirmation at those names. "Helena... and Phil." She figures wherever Skulduggery is, it's with the Captain, and that they're happy enough to be away from the rest of them. "Okie. And Siffleur."

She pauses. "You...?" She doesn't know Fever well enough to presume who she was closest to.

[abhorrently]

It's a conversation they'll need to have one day, Fever thinks. She doesn't know Ava enough to press on it, not at her own home. But one day, perhaps, they can discuss it - why she feels it's better if she stays out of the way. Hells, Fever's probably worse for everyone than Ava is, but she's still here.

The names get a nod, though Ava's keen perceptions will note the tiny twitch in Fever's expression when Phil's name is said. All ones she'll look for, then, and if they arrive, they'll be made welcome.

"Arthur, Rita, Crichton. Phil as well." A half smile, mostly to herself. "And Sheogorath. Those ones I'm all still hoping for."

[decohere]

Ava thinks it's particularly obvious, to anyone who was on the ship. Her associations had been quite controversial, her actions often detrimental. Out here on her own farm, she can't bother anyone. She figures the lack of response is just simple polite agreement.

"Aw, Arthur," Ava nods sadly. "We were only just... trying to reconnect. I'm afraid I hadn't been a very good friend." Though she's sure Rita and Crichton would be plenty happy to never see her again, she doesn't comment so. Doesn't want to undermine Fever's missing of them. She'll still keep an eye out.

"Phil has been through so much already. I just... want him to be safe."

[abhorrently]

She nods, and her eyes glance out one of the windows.

"It's why I hope he'll appear here - it's safer here than where we were. It...would be better for him. Maybe he'd smile without sorrow in a place like this."

Which is tipping her hand too much, maybe, but she has the sense Ava won't spread it around. Don't make the man sound like an invalid.

[decohere]

She and her husband had provided him a safe place to break down and cry, after the Village. She's aware enough of how painful it's been for him. She feels guilty, for continuing to advocate for volunteering for such excursions. Sacrificing herself and her loved ones' physical and mental wellbeing for a doomed ship that nobody wanted to be on.

That last excursion had been particularly traumatizing. Even morseo when learning it hadn't even been enough. Not that it would have made any difference. It all would have ended all the same.

She closes her eyes for a moment, trying to picture Phil's face. His smile. Wishing she could imagine it happier than the tired worn edges. "Didn't know you two were friends," she comments softly. "Glad he had more people, looking out for his wellbeing."

[abhorrently]

"He has people he cares about, here. Darcy's around. There's you. Erin, too. And the others that no doubt will become dear."

A brief, quiet pause. She can't let the hope grow too large in her chest. Can't let it become a fully fledged thing, or else it'll become unmanageable. And if things become unmanageable, then she needs to leave. There's no tiny chicken to keep her forcibly steady. Quiet, quiet. The sort of calm from standing in the woods, head resting against a tree trunk. From lying on stone, cool and smooth. From watching water boil slowly.

"...We'll figure it out, won't we? How to do...all of this. It's all solvable."

Living not under siege.

[decohere]

"We will," Ava agrees. She's determined to do so, because they already had sacrificed so much to get here. It has to be worth it now, it has-

Ava suddenly jolts, her entire form flickering erratically as she gasps out in pain. She staggers backwards, through the kitchen table, and yet doesn't appear to have moved at all from Fever's side either, doubling over with a strained whimper.

[abhorrently]

While she doesn't understand what's happening, one thing is clear - Ava's in pain, and Fever draws near to her, eyes wide but hands hovering, not wanting to touch for fear she'll just makes it worse.

"Ava. Tell me what I can do."

She's worried, it's clear through the tone, but panicking will solve nothing. Let her help, somehow, some way. Tell her what needs doing, and she'll do it immediately, without a single question asked. Even if it's call Peter, or something that doesn't seem like it makes any sense.

[decohere]

"There's... there's nothing..." Ava closes her eyes tightly, tries bracing her hand against the wall, but can't make contact. She gives up after a few tries, and instead collapses to sit in a tangle of disoriented limbs. Flickering back and forth between different positions.

She feels bad, that she can't quite articulate to the clearly worried Fever what's happening. "Please don't leave..." she doesn't want to be alone. If she vanishes, she wants somebody to know what became of her.

But she doesn't vanish. It settles, after a few more agonizing seconds. She's left trembling, but solid enough, trying to reach out to Fever to confirm it.

[abhorrently]

She won't be alone. Fever drops to her knees to kneel beside her, waiting for this to be over. And when it's passed, Fever reaches for her back, steady and solid. Worried she is, it's written across her face, but she's going to let Ava catch her breath first. That looked not just unsettling, but viciously painful, and first things first, the woman needs reassurance.

On reflex, she looks her over, trying to gauge if she needs anything like water or to lie down.

[decohere]

She's still clearly pained, and her skin clammy to the touch as fingers latch onto Fever's tightly with relief. And then weakly leans against Fever, trying to calm down. She's okay, for right now. She's still here.

"Sorry. That's... been happening. More lately."

[abhorrently]

"Nothing you have to apologize for."

It's said softly, gently, and Fever's not budging an inch. She'll stay here, as long as Ava requires her presence.

"You know I'm going to ask you what's going on. But only tell me when you feel up to telling. No pushing yourself, okay?"

Fussing, she knows, but it's better than sounding as freaked out as she feels.

[decohere]

She's quiet for awhile, still trembling, waiting for her thoughts to feel less fuzzy and scattered. Waiting for her energy to return, but she feels so drained.

"My. Phasing. Was caused by an accident, when I was young. It's been slowly killing me. Spent decades... trying to find a cure. On the ship, it... it. Couldn't." Ava winces, burying her face against Fever's shoulder. Like this, there's no pretense in trying to appear stronger than she is. "Couldn't kill me there. But now I... it's been two years. Since Janet. Stabilized me." Two years of molecular decay catching up all at once, and she has no idea how much longer she even has. Without Bill here to run tests and monitor it.

[abhorrently]

For a while, there's only the quiet in the house, Fever waiting for Ava to collect herself. And then then answer comes, and it's worse than expected. On a reflex, her free arm comes up to touch Ava, hold her a little closer. If death doesn't hold in this realm, the fate before her is horrifying. Dying until death, and then going back there. A truly bloodchilling loop.

It can be stabilized. It can maybe be stopped, if the right magic was found - but still, decades before, who's to say there's an answer? No, there has to be. Has to be. If they could show up here, if the goddesses could draw them in, there has to be some great power capable of altering someone's life.

"How often has this been happening?"