quietplacelogs | INTRO LOG #1

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INTRO LOG #1

INTRO LOG #1
Muzzle and Mute
Content Warnings: Disorientation, memory loss, confusion
Themes: Arrival, survival, exploration, horror

You wake, standing. A thick, muddy red dust coats your skin and clothes - it sticks to your tongue and blocks your vision. Inhale and it chokes you, exhale and your breath puffs out in front of your face in a transparent maroon cloud. It tastes of copper, tangy and harsh. Movement is difficult, every limb tingles and aches. Look to your left, your right. Evenly spaced in each direction stands another person indistinguishable in every way from the next. You're disoriented and lethargic, unable to grasp onto a single thought. A pinprick of light blooms ahead and grows steadily larger; a door has opened.

Hands grip your wrists, push at the small of your back and guide you out of the darkness into a room with four walls and a thin, sagging ceiling. The plaster is peeling, the air is musty, and the floor is slick. White plastic piping juts up from the center and curves into multiple spouts, clean water flowing in uneven streams. Those hands pull your clothes off and clear the dust from your body, redress you in handsewn jumpsuits. By the time they’re through, you will have begun to come back to yourself.

A finger is pressed to your lips. Kind eyes meet your own and a single word is whispered - hush.

Led out of the room in a line, you’re taken down a short hallway and into another, much larger room. There’s a woman waiting for you there, a child hugging her leg, and a cloth bag in her hands. She reaches in and pulls out a device, passes one to each of you. Once finished, she begins to move both hands in graceful gestures, a language. One of the people who helped you lifts their device and the screen lights up, tracks the woman’s hands. Letters appear on the screen and you understand the device’s purpose. She tells you what she knows and it’s not much.

This world is haunted. Noise attracts them, so it is not allowed. Communication is through body language, soundless writing, and the device. She tells you that your feet must be light and your mouth never used. There is a community outside these doors, where you can survive together, but only if you agree to one thing: complete and total silence. You'll have time to talk it over. You may ask one question and receive one answer.

Acceptance allows you to journey outside. The ground is marked in pathways of sand, lining the paths to each building and everywhere in-between. You notice that the locals hold their devices always, aloft and glance to it often. It will not vibrate or make a sound to signal a message. Notices appear. Rules. Guidelines. Feet on the sand and never anywhere else. To open a door you brush your fingers along the hinges - oiled and you may enter. If not, take the brush from the can sitting nearby and coat the metal with the dark liquid.

Now, you're to settle into your new home.

The Man in the Hat
Content Warnings: Heavy lifting, following the rules, alcoholism
Themes: Moving in, survival, exploration, horror

Once you’ve claimed a room for yourself, it’s time to acclimate to the community. Natives will ask what you need and take you along the sandpaths to different areas in the city to gather supplies - furniture and the like. Heavier items will require assistance and will take longer. Houses are mostly empty so if you and your housemates need something, you’ll have to carry it and put it inside the home. Do not make any noise or the natives will refuse to help you. Getting to know your housemates is key to a smooth transition. They are going through what you are right now; take the time to get to know them. Make house rules.

As the first day gives way to night, the natives can be seen moving at a faster pace outside. They’re hurried, though not frightened. Some even smile at you. When the sun sets behind the ruins of what was once picturesque Reims, your device will signal that it’s time to meet at the center of the community. There, natives will stop each person and give them a small gift - a trinket, a token to show that they are trying their best to make all the new arrivals feel at home. These are all items from the character’s home or from another character's home (they will not be anything that belongs to anyone else). Small, soundless and either something taken during the application process or something brand new. They will have no powers to speak of and are meant to be a momento. If asked, the natives found them the same way they found each of you.

Then the party starts. Sort of. A soundless, stitled kind of celebration. Fun is meant to be had, but it’s not an overly joyous occasion. The natives simply don’t know how to cut loose. There will be extra food in the form of one and two; Phillipa even brought some of her homemade bread. If you stumble across a man wearing a hat, the only man in town who does, and agree to go with him when he offers to show you his house - he’ll gift you with a jar of hooch; it’ll burn on the way down.

Sound Eaters
Content Warnings: Threat, danger
Themes: Survival, exploration, horror, game plot

It’s the second day of your stay, and the natives call for an emergency meeting at the Town Hall. Everyone is paired off (see below) and are asked to walk the perimeter looking for anything out of place and patching any areas that might have been affected by weather. Once finished, the same is done on the inside, and when the community leader is satisfied, the main hall is opened up so that everyone can congregate. Characters, during this time only, are allowed to make sound. This is so that the natives can explain why silence is so necessary...

The Sound Eaters.

In an effort not to frighten everyone, the natives won’t go into the history just yet, but they will warn that when someone makes a sound, it attracts them. They don’t know what they look like because they are so fast. If you’re too loud, then in the blink of an eye, you’ll go through a room reset. This is because either the natives ‘silenced’ you or the Sound Eaters have. They will explain that the room came at the same time the Sound Eaters did and that it doesn’t work for the natives. Sometimes, it doesn’t work on new arrivals. Death, for those born in this world, is permanent. If you attract them, you’ll get someone killed. Hence the need for no noise. During the meeting, the natives will tell each character of their own experiences. Their losses. The families they have left and how they’d do anything to keep them alive. They don’t know if you’ll be reset, but is that a risk you’re willing to take? The meeting will last a few hours and will end on a somber, ominous note - at the end of the month, they are taking everyone to meet them.

OOC
From your mods:

Please be mindful of content - if something triggery comes up or if it goes up a rating to say, something sexy, mark your threads in the subject line. We're very flexible and allow any material; we just want our players to be respectful of each other. If you have questions, pp the mod account, use the faq or comment to the appropriate post below. Have fun!

NAVIGATION

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[It takes Lu Li a moment to regain her composure but, when she does, she's quick to hold up her device. A message is already there, having been tapped out at inhuman speed.]

JAN DOUGLAS.

I AM LU LI.

YOU ARE AWFUL AT BEING TOUGH. PLEASE, DON'T TRY IT AGAIN.

im not trying to be tough IF I WAS TRYING YOUD KNOW
im saying hello
hi btw.

[there's a brief conversational lull. Jan isn't quite sure where to go after that promising beginning. she's not scared of the robot -- or of Lu Li, rather. anyone who'd use emoticons to laugh at someone isn't going to try to kill them right away.

(Lu Li? what country is that name from? this is the kind of thing everyone would expect her to know--)]

ive never met a robot before so honestly this is weird as fuck its not personal or w/e sry
ARE you a robot or am i losing it

[Jan you can't judge people's moral compasses through emoticons that's not how the world works.

Lu Li's eye shrinks in size ever-so-slightly at the label of "robot," though it's only a second's flicker of movement. Barely noticeable and it could be mistaken for a blink, or for her adjusting the resolution of her sensor.

With her gaze trained on Jan's face - intent on drinking in every facial tic to read into her emotions - Lu Li types her answer.]

WHY ARE YOU ASKING ME? DIDN'T YOU DECIDE WHEN YOU SAW ME?

[Jan... rolls her eyes... that's certainly a nuanced expression. there is an element of uncertainty there, underneath the mild exasperation. this has all the hallmarks of a situation where she'd be out of her depth even if she was familiar with whatever this strange person represented.

of course she made assumptions and didn't know what to do when she saw something she didn't understand? that's basically unavoidable -- and now she's asking, in case she was wrong. there's not much other option, if she wants to find out.

she bites her lip faintly as she types and then holds up the reply, not backing down.]

excuse me
let me be RPEFECTLY CLEAR:
i dont know what the fuck is goign on

[Perhaps she could be kinder, but Lu Li has been plucked from a bad situation to a potentially worse one. She's been stripped of her cover, forced into this jumpsuit that doesn't hide her hideous form at all. She can't recall the last time she was among this many people who weren't hired thugs. Shaking off the survival instincts she's picked up will be difficult.

--that little gesture of nervousness, though. She doesn't answer right away. With how her eye glows a bit brighter, it seems as though she's... processing the response... maybe...?]

THEN DON'T BE RUDE. ESPECIALLY NOT TO STRANGERS.

[watch ur profanity]

YES AND NO. I AM A ROBOT. BUT I AM NOT ENTIRELY ONE.

[Jan's stubborn spine regains its steel, her brows knitting together; if she was allowed to make a noise, she might have spat just to prove a point. she already apologized for staring, didn't she? if this person is waiting for her to change her general way of conducting herself when she's trying to get back on balance and make amends, they'll have to keep waiting till hell freezes over.]

pls. i ain't never been polite a day in my life

[that double negative should definitely read as another "fuck": pure stubborn defiance. Jan knows what some people think of her working-class West Coast vocabulary, and if they have a problem with it, they can go fuck themselves... in her humble opinion.]

[and... yet.

she's not trying to start a fight here. she was trying to find out more about this person.

she relaxes slightly again, shoulders slumping with the weight of her reaction versus her uncertainty. she takes her hand off of her hip to run through her hair instead, tense fingers tugging some of the strands loose from her ponytail. it leaves what's left disheveled and askew.]

what should i call u then
besides Lu Li

[It's the slump of the shoulders that finally has Lu Li relent in her stern demeanor. She's always been an introverted and private person at heart - but that didn't mean she enjoyed putting down others.]

ARE YOU TRYING TO ASK WHAT EXACTLY I AM? OR ARE YOU ASKING TO GIVE ME A NICKNAME?

I WILL NOT LET YOU GIVE ME A NICKNAME.

[it occurs to Jan in her moment of defeat that this conversation may be going-- if not badly, at least not well-- because the other participant isn't taking her at face value, as someone doing the best she can to act in good faith. that's... a strange thought. Jan is accustomed to her straightforward demeanor leading people to at least trust her honesty and good intentions, even if she steps in it. her blunt face has been a sort of shorthand for "I'm doing my best" that she's relied on her whole life.

the idea that someone might not read her that way is just weird, honestly. what would have needed to happen to someone that they had that little trust in the people around them? it makes her pick her next typed words with a little more care.]

i want to know what 2 call u if u dont like me saying robot?
the only nickname i can think of is louie and thats stupid

[There certainly is that - and there's the fact that her emotions can't carry through as well as Lu Li intends to. When you're lacking a face and a human voice, you can't convey a softening of your tone because you don't have one. It doesn't help that Lu Li can be easily irritated and awfully blunt at times.

In other words: she's the worst candidate to be in a robot body, thanks!

Her eye shutters at the question. It's not stupid, by any means, but...

Her answer comes quickly.]

I'M LU LI.

[A human. Not a bot. Not an A.I. She's...]

YOU DON'T HAVE TO OVERTHINK IT. YOU CAN CALL ME A "PERSON" WHEN YOU'RE REFERRING TO ME, IF YOU'D LIKE.

[Please.]

[Jan takes a deep breath in, eyes closed. she exhales quietly. this is all a bit overwhelming, but there's a clear path forward here, and by god she is going to take it.]

ok lu li, person
lets try this again
im jan
im a rude asshole but it aint personal i just never saw anything liek u before so dont actually like. feel bad. idk. ur pretty badass
now we r in kidnapping hell together
thats cool

[. . .

Should she say it.]

YOU ARE ALSO TERRIBLE AT CONVERSATION.

[just. this face.]

im not at my BEST right now mr. or ms person
u are also not making any conversation that is not shit talkin me
i challenge u to say something nice

MRS.

[Oho?! A married robot?!]

I DON'T LIKE TO FAKE COMPLIMENTS.

wow youre a piece of work then lady
u could at least compliment my great fashion sense

[they're both in the awful jumpsuits that the natives put on them, of course. Jan had noticed Lu Li's resistance to being dressed in the garment, back when she was staring. maybe if she jokes about it, draws attention to the fact they all look equally bad and are all equally out of their depth, Lu Li will at least feel a little more comfortable.]

[If Lu Li would allow herself to laugh, she would in this moment. That was actually a good olive branch to extend and it relaxes her the slightest bit. She shakes her head, mechanical eye halfway closing. It's her way of "smiling," though Jan might not pick up on it right away.]

I CHANGE MY OPINION OF YOU. YOU ARE A RUDE BUT WELL-MEANING GIRL.

see there u go thats totally true. now we're conversating
r u alright?? it looked a little dicey w/u & the people here for a min there
im pretty susp of them 2 but i think theyre nervous 4 real

[Jan smiles back. she isn't sure if the eye thing was a smile, but she feels like she has the measure of this situation now, and if she's wrong she'd rather err on the side of assuming that they can be kind to each other.]

[To think that someone would pick up on her discomfort, even in her current state. Lu Li has been forced to suspect people, regardless of how kind they may appear at first look. She didn't look human, after all. And towards the alien and foreign, humans will always place greater value on their own kind.

(even if she still is "herself." at least, she likes to believe that.)

Lu Li hesitates for a second.]

NO, IT WASN'T THAT. I KNEW THEY WERE TELLING THE TRUTH.

[Or as much as they could understand in regards to what was out there.]

I DON'T LIKE BEING EXPOSED. THAT'S ALL.

[This jumpsuit is much too revealing for her tastes.]

[Jan hesitates too -- she only has a few minutes of acquaintance to use to judge Lu Li's friendliness, and perhaps going with someone who at least looks like a murderous threat in theaters this summer might not be the best plan. at the same time, the urge to make an offer of help is automatic. she only has limited experience with people who don't look human, but she remembers that even before she'd completely stopped trying to kill or evict Jan, Rosa had seemed to appreciate Jan's little gestures to try to make their forced cohabitation more bearable for her.

the copy of the lease with the word "ghost" added to it, the laptop... they weren't enough to make Rosa happy that Jan was around. but they were enough to at least show that Jan was sincere about not wanting her personal demon to be miserable.]

they todl us we should move into new places and go find stuff to put in them
want 2 go get a blanket or sth??

[... oh. She's being invited. Lu Li glances around her, gauging how many people are left. Then, she leans in a little, device held up.]

OK. AS LONG AS YOU WORK ON YOUR CONVERSATION SKILLS.

[that makes Jan grin, sudden and startlingly bright in her previously tense face. nobody who's giving her this hard of a time can be badly intentioned. this -- not a robot -- this Mrs. Lu Li isn't strange or unfamiliar after all.]

absloutely not.
lets go find a blanket!!!!

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INTRO LOG #1

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