out you go, shoo

[groundrules]

READY TO ROLL OUT

That awkward moment when even a brothel won’t have you.

Characters will end their sojourn at the House of Dew early morning, helmed by Haltham (and his murderous goat, chomping on his prosthetic wooden hand for splinter nutrients). Courtesans and attendants will send the group away with parting gifts: a few sacs of grains, handfuls of spice, a small barrel of brew, several of water, thin blankets and four fat chickens.

The decrepit farm stands an hour’s walk east of Sa-Hareth, bordering the forest at the foot of the mountain. ...and it has not wanted for company. Monstrously overgrown wolves prowl the region, with some of the pack settled inside the farm. The wolves are halfway between dead and living, instantly aggressive, sharper, faster, smarter and blue-eyed beyond natural expectation. The wolves are drawn to heat and fire-bearers. They can be slain, or pushed back into the forest. If the brawl drags on, the wolves may receive reinforcements. Distantly, characters can observe silhouettes of pale-eyed, humanoid creatures in the forest, covered in animal skins. They seem to speak to the wolves, though it is unclear if they soothe or set them to attack.

Once an elaborate woodsmen’s station, the 'farm' is a generous, sprawling outpost built, home to now-barren inner garden. The farm spreads across kitchens, bathing rooms, hefty storage barns, a handful of isolated rest halls and broader communal areas. A study room has been crammed with accountancy tomes, papers and other books, many torn alongside glass shards on the floor. A shakily furnished barn was coarsely repurposed for banquets. Set up, inspect, repurpose. There’s enough dust and mildew to go around, and several walls and roof stretches will need reinforcements. “Ah,” characters say innocently, “Surely the cold will keep away vermin —” You have rats. Large, uncuddly, distinctly violent, prone to swarming once the sun’s downed. Enjoy that first night. Haltham will provide some base construction supplies over a few deliveries, along with a personal gift: a herding dog, to watch over two fluffy sheep. Flex those green thumbs: many moons ago, enchantments were set in place to warm the garden to a tolerable level that will allow the expedited harvest of an arctic patch. These spells will need to be activated and periodically recharged every few days by characters donating recoverable amounts of magic or physical stamina, by touching a nearby rune. But, hey: potatoes, turnips, kale, mmmmmmmmm, a balanced diet.

“Never open your doors at night,” Haltham says on parting. Lend him an ear — and, once the moon rises, hear the forest whispers. Some voices will beg rescue from the cold, others will tease and taunt, a few will imitate enemies or kin. Some will even disrupt dreams. The voices will seek to lure characters out of their shelter. Those who heed will find themselves compelled to walk into the forest, entranced and ignorant of the cold that slowly envelops them. They will be vulnerable to the elements, tundra predators and the woodland creatures, growing increasingly feral. Those who survive the night in the forest will wake to find themselves floating in a chilled, but strangely not-yet frozen lake in the morning. They can have faint recollections, as if they themselves lived any of the following events: a friend taking a dark path, the loss of a dear skill, years in a coffin, a close friend parted, a beloved reunion, a lost brother, a tender romance and rare bliss in poverty. At the bottom of the lake, they may spot the still corpse of an undead that feels too heavy for anyone to lift. His arm has a tattooed red sleeve. During the day, characters who visit the forest will find it eerily silent, with some trees showing signs of scratches and lingering rope. The lake can still be found, but entering it during daytime will not allow characters to experience foreign memories.

Karsa will reconfigure everyone’s quartz pieces to translate outside of the House of Dew and communicate in a private channel. Still nothing like individual inboxes at this time! Up to player discretion if Karsa had the time and humour to change their usernames, or stranded them to their House of Dew identities a little longer. Characters will also be able to access a secondary local fishermen’s network and listen in on their schedules, local gossip and daily weather updates. Woodsmen, tradesmen and miners will be surprised to see anyone inhabiting the farm, with some men pulling away, calling the place cursed.

Comments

[corvis]

"No," Gil responds matter-of-factly.

Why yes, that's all he's going to say. Were you expecting it to be that easy just because he went to get groceries for you?

[somebadnews]

He kind of did, after how compliant he's been up to this point. That and he was considerate enough to get a second cup. Five is clearly stretching the limits of his ability to socialize.

So far the man has potential, so he can let him get away with it. Doesn't keep him from the pointed silence that comes before he says anything else.

"Nothing I need to be concerned about, hm?" If it's something he can't control, that's something to be noted.

He taps his finger on the table and gestures to what he prepared. Hot water and grounds. With what he brought, he assumed the method he had in mind, but he decides suddenly that he should get a proper test.

"Well. Are you going to show me how you'd do it?"

[corvis]

Five will be happy to know that Gil absolutely can control it, but not quite so much when the chain wants to check out magically sensitive people because, unlike back in their homeworlds, there is no Abyss for the chain to reside in. Five will figure out eventually what it is, one way or another. It's spooky and intimidating but not dangerous.

Gilbert seems to snap out of his sudden standoffish mode at Five's topic change. Without a word he moves to the counter to take a look before asking: "First, do you happen to have any way to monitor the temperature of the water? There's nothing like that in this world from what I saw in the Citadel."

Meanwhile, he goes to get the cheesecloth out of the bag.

[somebadnews]

He can see how quickly he latches onto the change of subject, but doesn't comment. Everyone here has something about them, and not all of their abilities are as obvious as Five's teleporting. Something to keep an eye on.

It actually sounds like he knows what he's doing with the coffee at least.

"I can check, but if you didn't see it in the market, I doubt we'll find anything in this old farmhouse." He's not expecting to find anything, but he does make a show of looking through cabinets he's already been through without remembering coming across anything of the sort.

To be honest, Five doesn't mind too much about being further back in time as much as the other plethora of problems this place brings. Looking like he does isn't as much of an issue, for instance, and he's survived decades on less than they have here. But he can admit to one vice that was surprisingly hard enough to find even in more modern times. If this experiment with Raven goes well, he's willing to pay his way for the entire trip just to supply him with caffeine along the way.

When he turns up nothing, he sighs and shakes his head. "I'm surprised they even have a functioning stove. Who knows how long this place has been abandoned."

[corvis]

"All right, let's get this water to a rolling boil first. I'll just wing it."

Back on the stove the water goes, Five.

[somebadnews]

If he'd jumped in sooner they could have saved some time, but fine. Five takes a seat, in an actual chair, and lets him take care of it.

He glances over with mild interest, but otherwise takes a break from small talk. Instead he takes for the notebook he brought in with the supplies to examine. Considering his last one was falling apart, this is... convenient. Like everything about this guy.

[corvis]

Gilbert welcomes the silence, keep his attention on other things while waiting for the water to return to a boil. In the meantime, Gilbert works to fold the cheese cloth a few times to strengthen the filtering effect while still keeping it long enough that he can hold it steady.

He returns to water boiling away and takes it off the stove, setting it down and properly setting up the cheesecloth once more over the cup. "Quickly, do you want strong coffee?" It's not an attempt to make conversation. There's only a small time window, and he's putting the coffee grains on the cloth as he asks.

[somebadnews]

By the time he returns Five has already taken a pen out to scribble in the first pages of the notebook, having wasted enough time chitchatting. He stops abruptly and very nearly smiles when he asks him that question. And some people think he's hard to please.

"The stronger the better." No sarcastic quip or anything. Raven has built it up enough that he has moderately high expectations of this not being terrible.

[corvis]

Gilbert simply nods, adding some extra coffee grains before he's pouring the water over them within a minute of the water coming off the stove. He is very mindful of the filtering drip, pouring at just the right speed to not overwhelm the cloth but also not let the flow be interrupted. He fills one cup and then is switching the cheesecloth over to the other cup and doing the same method. Once both cups are filled he moves to set the cloth down in the sink and bring the first cup over to Five.

"Try it."

You're gonna love this damn coffee, Five.

[somebadnews]

He watches the whole production and the care he seems to take in pouring. Whoever he is, and whatever secrets he's keeping, there are certain skills that can make him overlook a hell of a lot. Being aware of that should remind him to be careful, but he can't bring himself to bother when he finishes.

At his prompting, he takes a sip, paying no mind to how hot it is. And wouldn't you know it... it's not half bad. More mellow than he expected and slightly sweet. A bit of a nutty undertone, but definitely not horrible considering they're trapped a frozen shit hole overrun with the undead. Now he regrets not making more of an effort to scour the market. It's not like he (personally) is hurting for coin.

"Hm." The sound of approval. He takes a larger drink and bobs his head. Considers. "I think we found you another job."

[corvis]

Gil can't help but smile at that because it's always good when someone appreciates your efforts in however way possible.

"Yeah, sure," he replies, he doesn't mind. Gives him something to do that isn't aimlessly wandering around.

"It's mostly just about temperature and what beans you are pulling flavor from. Hopefully there are better things on the road ahead. Maybe they'll even roast the beans how you like on request."

[somebadnews]

Unlike most people around here, he's able to compensate him for it. Money hasn't ever mattered to him, but that doesn't mean he doesn't understand the concept. As it is, he's pleased with this general agreement. Maybe he'll actually have made one deal worth his trouble.

And having someone who knows enough about what to look for, with the added bonus of not having to speak to merchants directly, well. That's better luck than he's had in a while. It earns him a wider smile.

"Sounds good. Report back what you find." Were you expecting more conversation? Because immediately after saying that he's going to go back to his notes while he sits back and enjoys his coffee.