undyingcourt | january tdm/event post

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january tdm/event post

JANUARY TDM - WINTER DREAMS

Welcome to the Undying Court's January Test Drive Meme! This post also functions as the January Event for existing characters, and continues the Winter Season, led by the Blue Court.

New characters may handwave or backdate the previous season's arrival prompt should they wish to, but you may otherwise assume they've been here the whole time! Additionally, all TDM threads can be taken as in-game canon if desired. And remember that apps open February 3-7, with invites opening on January 28, and reserves not long after!

Note that this post will contain: violence, enthrallment, torture, slavery, horror and potentially sexual content. Dreams come in many forms, after all.

This event also features another chance for characters to submit Regains, so make sure to submit after you've posted your top-level or reply to someone else's dream. For characters both new and old, feel free to brush up on the Premise, Vampire Powers, and head over to the FAQ/Game Info page if you have any questions!

Note that this event will be occurring throughout the month of January and into February, so characters are free to forward-date as desired!
For new characters please format your Top-level in this format: Character Name | Canon | Court | Youngblood/Novice | TDM
For existing characters please format your Top-level in this format: Character Name | Court | Youngblood/Novice
If you have any questions specific to the event, ask them in the Plotting Post Q&A section!

Top-Level Directory:

ONCE UPON A DREAM

A quiet falls over the Castle as a new day begins to break. As with every morning, this is a time when vampires must retreat to avoid the rays of the sun, pulling heavy curtains around their beds and windows to block out any light. However, this particular morning is abnormally quiet as the whole of the Castle seems to fall asleep all at once, and all together. After this enchanted sleep, and for the the next thirty days, the Castle's residents will start to experience strange phenomena within their dreams.

During this period, dreams become more vivid, so realistic it feels like the dreamer is awake. Dreamers can pass into each other's dreams without meaning to. Some of these dreams are in fact memories--either those from the lives the characters have lived in the Castle and the outlying lands, or the strange memories they've begun to gain back.

But be careful! For what starts as a regular memory might start to warp into something new. If you're lucky, it'll be something positive, like a dream of a home you've always wanted. But if you're unlucky, the memory might twist and turn into a nightmare, catching you in it and turning your worst fears against you.

Each nightfall, everyone will wake and return to normal. Or at least, most people will.

[Note: Any current characters who participate in the dream event by creating a top level or tagging someone else at least once in this prompt may be rewarded with a free impactful memory, which may be used in the dreamscape. Don't forget to submit for your Regains!]

A NIGHTMARISH CURSE

It turns out that not everyone wakes up. Those who stay in nightmares for too long may find themselves cursed, and unable to wake up. At first, the curse appears no different from regular sleep. But a few hours in the victim will start screaming uncontrollably. No touch will wake them, no amount of calling their name will break the spell. After too long, the victim will start to bleed, slowly at first, and then more and more as they remain afflicted. A victim left unattended will bleed out and die.

The Council works quickly to step in. Kashire (who is looking rather frayed this season) delivers the news that there's no need to panic, but everyone will need to do their part in locating and curing victims. In fact, the youngbloods seem to be taking this as the perfect opportunity for a teaching moment, and students are expected to try and find a cure with the skills that match their Court. Novices and youngbloods alike are encouraged to try and help lift the curse from anyone they can. (Get creative! Blood heals many wounds...) Any victims that have progressed too far will need to be seen to by Revar.

The nightmare curse, however, can spread quickly. Anyone who enters the nightmare of a victim will fall victim to the curse. Additionally, any attempt to reach out to the mind of a curse victim will also spread the curse. With the combined efforts of the students and teachers, the curse can be completely put out. But it will take time and care to ensure everyone is found in time, and cured safely.

ANYWAY, WINTER GAMES!

But a few curses aren't going to stop the Blue Court from making sure everyone has a good time. The days might be short, and weighed down by the threats of nightmares, but winter has hit Castle Courtsheart in full force, and the long nights and snow-covered grounds make for an excellent backdrop to the Inter-Court Winter Games!

There isn't really a reward for the winning house besides bragging rights and maybe a trophy that doubles as a chalice, but youngbloods and novices alike are invited to join in the festivities and compete against one another in the spirit of glory and the chance to lord over your Court's superiority. Even Council members and mature vampires of each court seem to enjoy cheering on their respective teams from the stands. Everything is fine! Forget your troubles and go play in the snow.

What kind of sports do vampires play? Feel free to get creative, but here are some examples:

Thrall-Curling: Since vampiric strength proves to be a little too much for this sport otherwise, teams of novices (or youngbloods) of the same Court can team up to gently compel their thralls to play the thrilling sport of curling. Coax that stone across the ice with care, and take out the opposing team! Or, well, the thralls will do that, assuming they're guided well. Try not to break them. (The thralls, that is.)

Figure skating: Practicing your pirouettes? For a vampire, a quadruple-axel is hardly worth breaking a sweat over. Favored for its beauty and almost seductive grace, the figure skating competition will be scored and judged by a multi-court panel. Participants might get extra points for incorporating bladework and masking into their sets, so these performances are sure to wow the judges.

Ice Hockey: Yes, the high-contact sport transcends time and space, but vampires don't need silly things like helmets or padded safety gear. Don your court's colors and hit the ice to toss the puck around and score as many points against the opposing team as you can before the time runs out. Violence is encouraged! Everyone likes to see a bit of blood on the ice this time of year. (Shadowstepping is considered cheating, but only if you get caught.)

And more! Snowball fighting may not be a sport, but there's no better time to enjoy the outdoors and stretch those growing fangs and muscles than the dead of winter. So whether you're cheering on your Court or watching from the sidelines, there's something here for everyone. Just because the castle is full of the the undead doesn't mean they can't have a little winter fun.

CLASS NOTES

Other notable happenings for the early winter season include:

Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and maybe it's time to find or make gifts for that special blood claim in your life. This season blood jewelry is the hot ticket item. These are pieces made from precious metal and glass, which hold the blood of a vampire in them. Carry a lover's blood to show how much you love them, or carry your own to force down the throat of your enemies so you can influence them.

Whispers around school start to say that Black Court lost a novice this month. Not murder this time! He simply unmade himself trying to mistwalk. Eh, these things happen.

As a result of a tie in last month's pumpkin carving contest, members of the Black and Red Courts will find small packages outside their doors. They are gifted silver letter openers, with the handle inlaid with pumpkins and leaves, and a note from Revar with a little drawing of a pumpkin and their signature. How nice!

Lady Whisperfangs is quiet for now, but her time is yet to come... This month's check-in will have a field to submit gossip about your characters! Vampires do so love their drama.

Once again, characters are free to talk to the NPCs as well: Revar & Kashire. For any questions regarding this month's prompts, please comment in the Plotting Post. For general game questions, please check the FAQ/Game Info. In the meantime, remember to submit your Regains for this month's free reward, and keep an eye out for our AC Check-in next week, starting on January 25-31.

The new year has brought us plenty of thirsty vampires, so we're glad you're here to share them with you!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Dream logic... I just-- maybe it's the curse trying to keep me from waking up?

[Part of him doesn't believe that at all, but that's hardly a matter right now. It was the most logical thing because even if this place felt like home and the people around them like family, it wasn't. The nightmare just didn't want him to wake up.

Looking around him again.]

Well... I'm aware now. So, what do we do to wake me up? [He was serious business mode, the dream in slow motion around them. It didn't seem weird, but again, dream logic.]

The best course of action I can see is to either find an end point or disrupt the nightmare.. well, more than we already have.

It's- I was busy cleaning you up and putting a salve down, I didn't have a chance to use any other actual treatments...

[ She was drawn in before having a chance to apply any outside influence. So they really had only dream logic, didn't they? But looking around, it was so alien that she could barely process what could've been going on. ~~She's not exactly the creative type, sadly.~~ ]

I, uh... Fix whatever's happening? We're vampire enough that despite this being a dream, you can help the people around. Technically, we both could. I didn't show up until right before you grabbed my arm earlier, so I'm not exactly sure- Is this a ship? You were also calling for people, so we can get those people.

Thank you, for taking care of me. Hopefully we can get out of this before you get drawn into your own curse.

[Now aware, he looks around himself, brows pinched. Sure it was alien, but it also made sense to him, it felt right... real. How was this not real when it felt so right? But she brings up good point, they are on their way to being vampires, there was a real chance for them. He nods.]

Yeah, my ship, I--.. well, I'm the Captain. [He grins as he reaches out to touch the wall next to himself almost fondly.]

I was calling for my head engineer, he and Chekov, they would know how to fix this, but I can't get a hold of them. They might be down in engineering. Come on, I know the way.

[With that, he grabs her hand and starts to run down the hallway as the dream almost takes on life again, the ship groaning and cracking while people around them scream.]

If we can stop the ship from reentry, then we can save everyone.

I can't imagine anything that would make me scream so much, so we're probably fine.

[ The only kinds of nightmares she used to have were a moot point. Even before coming to the castle, they were things that were effectively overcome. (Joke's on her, but it helps to ease worries.)

It's odd though; Jim did look like he belonged in this kind of place. Like there's been an attachment, which maybe could be the effect a nightmare has on people? It's hard to tell. The breath of laughter is enough to go 'of course you're the Captain.' A metal ship looking like this, though...

There's only a couple stumbling steps before Eden found a good rhythm to run alongside his lead. ]

So we're hoping for this Scotty person as well? But I don't know what you mean by 'reentry,' so I'm not sure if I know how to help. I'm more like a doctor, not some mariner. I've never even been off land. So you better hope they're there.

[He doesn't say it, but if his brain can conjure up this nightmare fuel, who knows what her brain could do to her. It was all so weird how the curse worked. He only wished to get out of here soon so he could make sure Eden was okay.

He nods.]

Yeah, Scotty is my head engineer, no one knows my ship better than him. He makes the girl purr.

[It makes sense when he says it, even if he doesn't have all the context for it. Purr? Engineer? He's not sure he really understands but he accepts it and keeps running.]

I.. honestly I don't know what it means either, I just know it's a bad thing to do with the engines in this state... I.. I don't know what any of that means, but maybe I will understand when we get there.

[He flinches as they run through one area, crowded with people trying to escape into strange vehicles, but there are screams for help as he can't do anything more but continue to run. He knows the only way to save most of this crew is to do this..]

[ Good, because it means she could assume that her attempt to have any concerns or worries dismissed had worked. If something this fantastical could happen with Kirk... Well, Eden knew she wasn't very creative, so it was easy enough to dismiss the idea. ]

'The girl purr?'

[ Well, whatever was going on in this scenario, it's given 'the captain' enough context to speak as if he fit in. So things like that didn't have to make sense- Though in imitating the purr sound she's heard in animals before (which she was oddly good at,) the confusion stayed because it didn't seem like a sound that a ship should make either.

There's a wince in trying to ignore the calls for help and people rushing. People could be panicking, but that was when they were more likely to end up hurt. ]

The best way to help them is to follow whatever your gut says will fix this all.

[ Because it was his dream, so some part of him knew what was meant to be done to fix it. Clearly he knew it as well, with refusing to pause and press on to these 'engine rooms.' All she could do was reassure the man. ]

You know about this Scotty and a lot of what's happening to the ship. Some part of you knows a lot, so we'll have to go off of that, even if it makes little sense to- well, I guess me. It makes sense to some part of you. With me asking if you knew why the engines were like this, does some part of you have an answer to that?

[Did Eden just purr? No, not the time. He ignores it for now to focus on the situation at hand. But he keeps it in mind to ask about later.

Follow his gut, well, he's done that his entire life and it's kept him alive this long, so that won't be a problem because that's all he's got to go on right now. Even as the ship groans and cracks as they run through the engineering, he has nothing to go off of but what he feels is instinctively the right thing to do.

He thinks about it and answers before he can really think too long about it, though his voice sounds a little far away, a little quiet, like he's trying to recall.]

Sp--We used his torpedoes against him, the explosion, it-- [He furrows his brow as if something is missing. Before shaking his head.

They run along metal bridges and walkways, surrounded by hulking metal canisters. Everything was massive and metal. Gravity is swept out from under them like a rug as he grabs Eden's wrist and holds on to her and the railings.]

Hang on!

[ She could only guess that these torpedoes were some kind of weapon. There was a moment that she'd been about to ask who this 'him' was, but there was that feeling like earlier. About at the same time that Jim was grabbing one of her wrists, her own and an ankle wrapped around the railing as well. Last time there was no expectations, but when having some kind of clue of what was about to happen, their reflexes could be quite good. (If they weren't, Vader would just make the next class absolute hell the moment he found out.)

While unsure of what was happening, Eden was smart enough to know better than to get away from the railings of this inside-bridge. Who this 'him' was probably didn't matter with this whole thing happening. ]

Keep focused! I've got myself if this is what's going to keep happening. We can move along the rails to where we need to be.

[ As long as they were ready, if this whole effect stopped happening again. ]

What did it do to the engines?

[He blinks at Eden before nodding and continues to crawl across the railings until gravity rights itself once more and Kirk can get his feet under him again.]

It..

[He struggles as he slows to a walk, the computer next to him saying in a mechanical female voice: Core misaligned.]

It misaligned the core. This is where my dream keeps restarting, over and over again.. It won't let me finish the dream, I just have to listen to my crew dying around me again and again, begging-- screaming for help.

[A shudder courses through him as he runs for a door, sure fingers press buttons rapidly to open it. He turns to Eden, as he steps back into the door - he shakes his head as he presses a button, the door shutting with a hiss and locking between them.]

This is where I go alone, Eden..

[He looks determined but sad.]

Edited 2024-02-09 03:27 (UTC)

[ She had to make sure he stopped grabbing for her- Otherwise his arm was going to rip out of its socket. Even with however much vampire blood he's gotten from Edgin thus far. So when they get back to their feet, she's back to his side. Which, even easier when he's walking, talking about how he's been through the nightmare before.

!! And suddenly running ahead. He only needed a few steps to be further ahead than her- they knew they were able to match each other's speeds pretty easily when started at the same time. ]

Jim!

[ But by the time she's about caught up, the door cuts her path off. Which, in a rare moment, had her giving the door a punch in frustration. She didn't like the look he had on his face right now. ]

Since when do you let anything decide for you? It's your mind doing this, take control, like in Compulsion class. You're going to become a vampire, and- and you're going to take all those advantages from the blood you've been drinking and use it get through this. Just do what you need to and get back through this door.

I have to save my ship and crew.. if I'm to finish this nightmare, I've gotta go in here and realign the warp core. I--

[He talks through the door, his hand coming up for a second like he might put it over where he fist was, like he could touch her, but he lets his hand drop away again. He knows what he needs to do, he knows what needs to happen. Sure what she says might be something, but at this point he needs to complete this dream and hope that wakes him up this time. That it snaps him out of his curse and frees Eden too.

Or that he can go repay the favor.]

I'll be back, I can promise that much. Just wait for me, I.. just stay here.

[He doesn't want to be alone again like he's been so many times in his nightmare. With that, he's opening a second door and pulling himself into the warp core.]

[ Whatever this was, there was something dreadful sitting in her gut, like a number of different other feelings that Eden could put names to. All it did was make her more upset, but she had no clue how this door was supposed to open or how to help. ]

Fine. But you better not break your promise.

[ Because if he did, she wasn't exactly sure how to retaliate to a broken promise, but she'd think of something. It sounded like this was the part that he remembered, or knew for sure what was supposed to be done. Which left her on the outside, waiting and practically staring a hole through the door as if it would make him come back faster. All while muttering to herself- Surely someone on the physical side of this was handling administering the cure, or a cure. Her body was probably dragged off elsewhere. ]

He'll come back, he'll finish this, he'll wake up.

[He's gone for a while, but suddenly something seems to kick back on and the ship stops tossing and turning, it seems to stabilize and even out. Whatever Kirk did was successful as the ship no longer groans like its falling apart, evening out quite quickly.

And then he's crawling back out of the first door, the door between them still fully locked, as Kirk struggles, in extreme pain and breathing labored. He manages to collapse by the door between them as he leans against it.

He looks up at Eden with a pained smile, bravado, not breaking his promise, he was back, but, he doesn't open the door.]

Just like I promised... This is.. where it ends.

[His words are halting, agony lacing them as he gasps for breath.]

But I did it.. I saved the ship, the crew..

[ The longer it took, the worse Eden's anxiety got, worried that the loop would just start before anything further happened. Except the sounds of screams had finally stopped and everything seemed to be... All right, maybe? For a moment she's looking around to confirm, but her head whips back immediately tot he sound of that second door opening.

There was enough information in her head that seeing Jim crawling back in that the symptoms led to a very bad conclusion. He needed a doctor- he couldn't get anything there on the other side of this door, though. ]

Yes, they're all doing great. No one's screaming and it's all fixed. Now come over to this side, okay?

[ It seemed like existing and just breathing was difficult for him. Why did it sound like he breathed in flames and acid together? ]

Open the door, Jim. I don't know how.

I can't...

[He looks up at her through the window, eyes bloodshot, exhausted, struggling to breathe... There was something off about him, like he was poisoned but by what it was hard to tell. He knew it was radiation, but he didn't know how to explain it. How to talk about something he shouldn't know about.]

Decontamination isn't done, I--.. [gasp, shudder] I can't.. This is the sacrifice that has to be made, this is what has to happen..

[He gives her a strained, sad smile.]

This is how it always ends before it starts over again...

[ He didn't know how to explain it, but even without understanding, Eden is able to see the way things were quickly developing. 'Sacrifice' indeed, this would progress too far before anything else was done. ]

Th-There should be a point when your body stops responding to the pain signals. It shouldn't be painful the entire time, okay? I'll be here for you the entire time. You won't be a-

[ The words are cut off as blood and the sharp tip of an arrow hit against the glass. Then, a moment after, Eden falling forward against it with the silvery-blue eyes losing all life in them, as gravity sent her the rest of the way to the ground. Not even a chance for final thoughts or finishing the word was given. Which she'll regret upon waking up; not being there until the very end. ]

Eden!

[He cries out when he sees her get shot with an arrow and now it's him that's trapped in here from helping her. He tries to fight to sit up, but his own world is narrowing and becoming dark. Not only was he dying alone but while watching Eden, his friend, die. ]

Fuck... I failed.. I--

[And as he slumps against the glass himself, his vision dims and his breathing stills, the life leaving him as he repeats the dream once again.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

january tdm/event post

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