EVENT LOG: ENTER MR. SANDMAN (DREAMERS)

[inthenightmods]

EVENT LOG:
ENTER MR. SANDMAN (DREAMERS)

characters: all characters that signed up as a dreamer for the event.
location: dreamland feat. beacon of the past.
date/time: november 16-29.
content: the dreamers investigate beacon as it once was.
warnings: psychological/existential horror. further cws will arise depending on the location; mods will cw tags appropriately, and you will too!

say your prayers, little one.

Hello, dreamers. Welcome to Beacon.




Below, each group has a toplevel ready and waiting for the investigation to begin. Feel free to tag in however to establish a tag order, and mod responses will begin once each character has tagged in. If you need a refresher on how the event will work, give the OOC info another read!

As for those of you in the sin bin opt out area...

The Beacon of the past isn't all too different from the Beacon of the present, frankly, except for a few notable exceptions. For one, it's far better lit: daylight leaves everything feels a lot brighter and more sensible than eternal night does. Several advertisements for community theater in the Invincible are hung up (Tryouts for the Ice Man Cometh! Cometh try your luck!) and minor lost and found posters are tacked to a community bulletin board nearby. Oh, and a merry little tune is playing on loop from a record player set up outside the Invincible.

It's cheerful, if not a little off-putting. But the signs of life are clear, even if the forest still looks darkly oppressive over yonder.

Additionally, since investigation threads 1) rely on mod responses, and 2) will likely move on the slow side given the nature of the event/size of the groups, if you would like to have your characters "mingle" in their assigned location, please feel free to write your own toplevels! We ask that you post them as separate toplevels not in response to the mod toplevels (so our inboxes don't get super flooded/we don't accidentally miss stuff). Remember that groups may only interact with each other during the event, but you're welcome to assume timey-wimey shenanigans to excuse why your characters are mingling instead of searching for clues—they do have two weeks in this dream, technically, and dreams are not always linear. If your investigation thread has not yet progressed to a point in which you've got enough of a handle on the setting to write a separate mingle starter, ask the mod you're working with! We'll fill you in on some OOC details so you can mingle accordingly while still allowing for characters to discover those details ICly in the investigation thread.

If you're still jonesing for more threading action during the event, we encourage you to check out the TDM!

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THE LIGHTHOUSE

[inthenightmods]

[Wanda, Hux, and Buffy have never seen a sunset so beautiful. The sun itself is bound to be quite a sight after the typical darkness of Beacon, but this sunset is particularly brilliant, shining beams of light spreading through the light smattering of clouds and out over the lake and mountains. The sky is filled with golds and pinks and oranges and even a touch of violet here and there, the colors mixing vibrantly before collecting into a deep crimson near the horizon. Somewhere behind them, a single mourning dove croons.

Up ahead, though, is the lighthouse.

It's not quite so close to the water as in the picture—instead, it's nestled atop a steep cliff that looks out over the calm water below—and from where they're standing near the treeline, the group will be able to make out a small outbuilding attached to the far side of the tower.

They're close enough to hear the faint murmurs of a song crackling to life through an open window in the tower.]

[first_summers]

[ One second, she'd been enjoying something delicious at the feast, just casually stuffing her face, and the next— Well, it's not the first time she's had to deal with sudden teleportation shenanigans or whatever the heck this is, and it's about as fun as all those other times had been. As in, not. Except for one little one. ]

Hey, who turned on the sun? And isn't that the lighthouse no one can get to?

[ Can you hear the confusion, people she hasn't met yet? Because she is very confused. ]

[therewillbeorder]

[For a moment the light was overwhelming. Spots danced at the edges of his vision. After so long in the dark, he had become accustomed to it. It took him a few moments to let his eyes adjust to the light, looking in the direction of hearing a woman speak.

He didn't recognize her when he could see clearly, glancing at her before looking at the lighthouse. He could hear something that faintly sounded like music but he couldn't place it either.]

I don't know. How did we even get here?

THE OLD LAB

[inthenightmods]

[Ignis, Scarlett, and Castiel awaken to find themselves shrouded in dense forest, cicada songs buzzing around them as the late afternoon sun streams through the treebranches above. It's a calm day, with a breeze gently drifting through the forest, carrying with it the scent of pine. The nearby mountains cradle this little clearing at their base, much more impressive in size now that they can be seen beyond vague shadows in the distance.

In front of the group is an unfamiliar building that's clearly seen better days. It's concrete, unlike so many of the old, wooden and brick structures they've seen in Beacon thus far, and there's no signage to indicate where they are.

...But there's a strange device placed neatly on the cracked asphalt immediately in front of them.]

[freetobe]

[ Castiel doesn't need to eat, normally. He indulged for Jo's sake, mostly. She's one of the humans in his charge, and he'd found himself reluctant to brush her insistence off. And now... now he starts awake, two strangers by his side and Jo nowhere to be seen.

Worse... the sun is shining. Castiel does the first sensible thing that comes to mind: He tries to summon his angel blade, tries to let its familiar weight drop into his hand to have it ready. He bites down on the instinct to call out for Jo, but looks around - for any movement more so than her specifically, despite the concern flaring up uncomfortably.

For now he doesn't spare his companions a proper glance, but scans the treeline briefly before looking towards the building with a frown. ]

Where are we?

[reigniter]

[Honestly, Ignis should have known better than to eat the food on the table. But, the last time there was a party going on around the Beacon, the spirits were just as friendly, they were dancing and there was non-poisonous food involved. Also Noct may have had his role in getting him to try things out, although he won't put a blame on him at all- if he really didn't want to eat, he wouldn't.

His eyes hurt, even with a little sun coming through the tree branches and Ignis groans, sitting up and taking his glasses off to rub his eyes. He has to blink away the tears from sunlight a few times before putting the glasses back on to look around. What the-]

Sunlight?

[He looks at Castiel next to himself, then follows his gaze. This building doesn't look that familiar to him.]

I do not know... [Ignis says slowly before his eyes catch a glimpse of the metal device in front of them. He picks it up and turns it around in his hands, frowning as he can't puzzle out what it is.] I don't remember seeing such a building in Beacon before... what's this...?

THE RADIO TOWER

[inthenightmods]

[It's the thrum of electricity overhead that wakes them. It's dark, this place, and while waking up in darkness is not a cause for alarm in Beacon, the faint stench of copper and decay certainly is. The floor beneath Sarissa, Kol, and Daylight is cold and littered with debris, and somewhere nearby, flies are buzzing hungrily.

Their eyes will adjust as they collect themselves off the ground, and with the help of their lanterns and a single fluorescent light flickering in the southeast corner, they'll see that they're in a large room. Once, it might've been an office—desk, tables, and chairs have been shoved up against one of the walls in a floor-to-ceiling heap. Files and broken remains of furniture have been scattered haphazardly like the place was ransacked, though it's been some time since the mess was made given the layer of dust covering it all.

The still-intact furniture has been shoved up against the south wall. The east wall seems inconsequential at a glance, while the west wall has a filing cabinet still standing up against it. The north wall, however, has a couple things of note: A closed door, and a nook containing a desk with a single computer monitor.

The group also seems to have collectively misplaced their tablets... Hm.]

[magnitudes]

( Sarissa's expecting to wake up with a hangover, and that hazy few moments of consciousness before she cracks open her eyes are pretty nice, in that she's not. When she stretches, though, she's suddenly aware that she's lying on something cold and hard, paper rasping noisily beneath her, and she jerks to sit up very suddenly as just how wrong the circumstances are.

Quietly, as she becomes aware of the other two with her, she pushes herself up to stand and takes a few steps away from them, suddenly not so different to a caged tiger. )

Hey.

( Rough, urgent - it's the fact that the two of them were bundled in here with her, it seems, and the fact that she recognises Kol, which is keeping her from more volatile introductions. )

Don't 'spose either of you gentlemen have an explanation for what the fuck is goin' on?

( Calmness... was attempted. )

[sunborne]

... No.

[ daylight cradles his helm in his servos as he speaks, a response to the sudden rush of vertigo and nausea he feels. he almost doesn't answer the question while he tries to fully stand up to his full height.

urgh. what happened? that's the million credit answer here so he tries to remember the events but- they don't make sense to him. not with how abrupt (and unsettling) the new scenery is. ]

I- [ he looks around now, his processors finally registering where all three of them are. he can't help but make a scared little sound. ] Where are we? I've never seen this place before during my time here. I don't think.

THE CHURCH

[inthenightmods]

[Nestled in the woods just off the path north of Bonfire Square is the church. It’s a lovely, inviting building that appears to have been freshly painted, and is surrounded by hand-potted flowers. The entryway stands open, and the Heavenly music that plays within seems to be meant to entice all who hear it to come and seek sanctuary. Or maybe it’s the church bells that spur you forward; you wouldn’t want to be late.

Inside smells of fresh pine and roses. The pews are polished and pristine, the walls unmarred. The sunshine streams through the expanse of stained glass that reaches high to touch its tips to the vaults of the ceiling, filling the chapel with an array of stunning color.

Here, you feel protected. Here, you feel welcome. This is warmth.]

[pearlstrings]

[Bruce has never made a habit of going to church in Beacon and that's largely because he didn't make a habit of going to church in Gotham. He has no beliefs about the afterlife or omnipotent beings one way or the other and he's been fortunate thus far not to have 'died' and returned there. He hasn't lost anyone else in his time here. But he does recognize the church from a few sparse visits he's made, to leave supplies behind, to gain an understanding of the building itself.

He pauses outside and one arm comes up immediately, an attempt to shield his eyes from the- he freezes. Sunlight.

How long has it been? Certainly long enough that his eyes sting and that he's left squinting at the church. This doesn't make any sense. He was just there, in Beacon, in the dark. And now he's-? Bruce frowns and looks back over his shoulder, presumably the way he came.]

Do you remember how we got here?

NOW IN THE RIGHT PLACE whoops

[webshoots]

[ the sunlight takes a few moments to adjust to, mentally and physically. he squints and blinks a few times, the sight of the church taking longer to register than it ordinarily would under any other circumstances. there are a whole host of questions, most of which boil down to how — his first thought is illusion, but bruce's voice interrupts the thought and makes him reassess. all else being equal, he's not sure bruce would be a part of something like that.

the last thing he remembers is the feast — he'd eaten something and then—.

this.

the corners of his lips twitch and his eyebrows knit together in a flicker of a frown. it's hard not to think of the party and the lighthouse expedition; it's hard to ignore the slight knot of panic in the pit of his stomach though the church certainly manages to be more inviting in sunlight. ]

—No, so all I'm going to say is that if anyone spots a yellow brick road, I'm game for following it and finding the wizard.

THE TOWN HALL

[inthenightmods]

[Beacon’s town hall is an impressive building made of brightly-colored brick. The attached clock tower chimes every hour, on the hour, and the sound echoes merrily through the sunset sky. In the foyer, a small construction site has been blocked off with tarp and tape. A sign has been placed in front of it, inviting the townsfolk of Beacon to join them for the unveiling at a yet undetermined date.

This place is familiar, yet not as you’ve ever known. There’s an energy of business, of progress, of hope for the future, that permeates the bureaucratic halls.

Although you are alone, you don’t feel as if you are. It’s not the feeling that you’re being watched, or being followed, or the grim, shuddering feeling of a specter looming just out of sight. It’s as if the chairs in the lobby are full. An unseen secretary types away an agenda at the front desk. City workers maneuver between offices, swapping pleasantries as easily as they do paperwork.

A community board bursts at the seams with notices, events, advertisements. Something for everyone, from everyone.

And what you do hear, certainly, without a shred of doubt, is the joyful squeal of a child from deeper within.]

[dadandgone]

[For someone that acquired teleporting a little over a year ago, Maes is getting really tired of one minute minding his own damn business and the next finding himself somewhere completely different. It probably has something to do with control (or in this case the lack thereof).

Besides, during that same year a witch had thought it important to occasionally send him and the rest of the Circle to different worlds so, for a brief moment, Maes doesn't question the soft glow of sunset. But only for a moment, as he's always been a skeptic at heart and he'd already confirmed that Astoria was, for lack of a better term, done with him.

He rubs at his eyes and then takes a step closer to place a hand on the brick. It's warm, soaked in sunlight...real.]

Oh...kay. Well, I don't know what just happened, but it might be a good idea to figure it out sooner rather than later. [He finally looks over to the only other people nearby.] You two interested in checking this place out with me?

[onlyeverdoubted]

[New as he is to this place, Bodhi is too fresh from the shock of landing here instead of just being dead to have a lot of energy left for this much more minor change. Even the sunlight is just faintly surprising. Stupid and ridiculous things happen to him and he should apparently just accept that.

He looks over at the man--everyone here is still more or less in his mental category of stranger--and blinks a little owlishly. Then points to the bulletin board he's been regarding with interest.]

Think, um, we've sort of already started, by dint of... standing here. Or did you have a, um, specific plan?

[Is that a bit snide or just a completely honest deferential mildness? Very hard to say.]

THE HARBOR

[inthenightmods]

[The harbor you come across is far from unassuming. The beach is lined with fishing gear and coolers, the lake filled with small, personal boats. Not far away, a foghorn blares, and turning your head toward the sound you see that the ore dock is fully operational. A barge sits parked in the lake beside it, and train tracks make its way from the end of the dock into Beacon proper.

The train that sits atop it, though still, steams and rumbles as if with an unbridled and anxious energy. As if to say that the day has just begun...and there is oh so much work yet to be done.]

[catholicisms]

( one minute, he remembers the vague discomfort of his body slipping into unconsciousness despite his demented, stubborn refusal to let himself. usually that works, he's really good at refusing to let himself to rest. this time, he feels his eyes close, a little too heavy to stop, and then...

and then, who the hell knows.

Matt doesn't dream in clear, vivid pictures. sometimes he sees things, though he never figures he sees them accurately. usually it's flashes, skewed toward one sense or another, painted in monotones or dulled colors, often blurry, rarely long enough to make sense of. he's more like to dream in sounds and color than a clear and distinct picture.

that's the only reason that blinking at a sunny harbor, hustle and bustle all around him, doesn't seem like a dream. it seems impossible, or a very cruel trick, but not really a dream. ) What... what the hell? ( you know it's Going Down™ if the good catholic boy said a swear.... ) What the hell is happening? ( sorry for the mild uncomfortable panic, but Seeing is incredibly uncomfortable when he hasn't done it in 20 years. )

[scarsolderthanyou]

[Stone had curled up under the table when he started feeling sleepy, mostly to get out of people's way, not even suspecting foul play. No drug he's ever come across has affected a Raksura, after all, except the Fell poison. So it was probably just his stupid old body deciding that now, finally, was the time to sleep.

So waking up curled up on the beach with water lapping at his bare feet and a groundling human having a panic is a surprise.

He growls in Matt's direction... then squints.]

There's light. That's weird.

THE MINES

[inthenightmods]

[Darkness is relative, though not many people know that. But it's true. There's a vast difference between the darkness of a city at night, still lit up by distant buildings, and the darkness of the countryside, where you've only the moon and a flashlight to keep you safe. Or, in a more immediate example: there's the darkness of Beacon, with its bonfire and its torches and its people . . .

And then there's a mine.

You don't need supernatural horror for that. A mine's darkness is complete, utterly so. And what very few ways one might have to light up the night-- those lanterns that you'd better not let go out-- doesn't so much eradicate the darkness as dirty it.

But it at least gives some context for setting.

They're in a mine shaft, which seems to stretch out both before and behind them for miles. There are branching tunnels, places they can turn left or right, but perhaps that isn't the most advisable thing when you're lost underground. The tunnel is wide enough for two abreast, with rough walls that snag at skin and rusted grooves etched deep within the floors.

And behind them, slow but inexorably steady: a noise. A steady thump . . . thump . . . thump . . . that seems to never falter.]

[mollymocked]

Just... Stay in a line. It's easier that way. This isn't my first trip through a mine. [Molly's taken the lead, much as he doesn't want to, but he's the one who has visible weapons. He wishes he had darkvision, but something had to go and take that from him. Without it, he's relying on the lanterns and the torches to see anything at all.

And then there's the thumping. He can't really do anything about that, except be quieter.] Not to alarm anyone, but does that sound like we're being followed?

[lunchbreaks]

Ah, hopefully they're friendly!

[ Aziraphale's voice is very quiet, and he has one hand out at all times to go against the wall. He's never been claustrophobic, and there seems to be enough oxygen down here considering their lanterns are still lit, but he's getting increasingly worried.

And after all, if whatever it is following them isn't a familiar face? It might not be the brightest idea to pull out his halo. ]

THE MUSEUM

[inthenightmods]

[There's a concept called liminal space, which goes something like this: any space that is normally occupied by a multitude of people will, when empty, feel very off-putting. There's no real reason for it: one knows, logically, that schools and offices and yes, even museums, must be empty at some point, and yet the uneasiness remains. It's your more animalistic instincts, see: they look at all that open space and say that if others are gone-- if the herd has fled-- perhaps you ought to as well, just in case . . .

The museum is empty, and your footsteps echo very loudly as you walk through it.

In part, it looks much like it normally does, although given their disorientation, the familiar might take a tinge of the unknown, off-putting and eerie. Shadows loom as the dreamers raise their lanterns, and while they may hear little noises, surely that's all in their own head.]

[maisel]

[ The sound of her heels sound less like shoes hitting polished floor and more like a herd of buffalo, but that noise furthest thing from Midge's mind. She doesn't remember going to sleep and actually waking up here just like she doesn't quite remember the exact moment of her death--the town 2, Midge 0. Time to look for a reception desk, check out any fliers or see if there's any maps of the place. ]

Hello?

[ Voice raised, high but pleasant. Not that she believes in ghosts (or does she?) but she doesn't want any trouble. ]

Am I hallucinating or is this place actually real?

THE LIBRARY

[inthenightmods]

[Buildings have a feeling, as everyone knows. Certain places just exude an atmosphere of oppression the instant you walk in (a DMV being a good example). Creepiness is another common one. It's not any one thing, but rather just a sixth sense feeling, and one that you'd often do well to pay mind. Your unconscious mind knows more than your conscious one, and when you feel as though you shouldn't enter a place, well, maybe you shouldn't.

The library feels loved.

It's overwhelmingly soothing, and yet it's hard to say why. Are the shelves cleaner? The darkness less oppressive? One can see at least one remarkable change: it's brightly lit. Someone clever had set multiple torches around the place and amplified their light through cunning use of glass and mirrors, so the library almost feels as though it's lit up by daylight.

It isn't, of course, but still.

The reason for these changes remains to be seen. But at odds with all this cheer, a note of dissonance: a sobbing, loud and ugly, coming from the distance.]

[isochrone]

[ Elizabeth hasn't been in Beacon for that long, comparatively, but she thought she'd had the general measure of the place by now. Seeing the town in stark daylight, having it feel somehow alive in a way that it hadn't in the dark both intrigues and exhilarates her.

And it's a little frightening, if she's honest. But she's never let that stop her before.

It's not any wonder that she drifts toward the library. Her whole life has been about books, and books have given her nearly everything she knows, they're familiar and comforting. The feeling of the library, when she touches the door handle and steps just onto the threshold, she wants to take that feeling of it being loved and carry it around with her for so long as she is in Beacon, day or night.

But she lingers on the steps of the library building, turning this way and that, brushing her brown hair back in curls behind her ears, trying to locate the exact source of the sobbing. It's so out of place that it can't be ignored. ]

Do you hear that as well?