SETTING / PLACES

[theshadows]

SETTING/PLACES。

THE CITY OF DARKNESS。 Once your character has made it through the darkness, they will come to find themselves surrounded by thick fog and shadows that always seem to move. There are no natives and there is no wildlife at this time with the exception of the creatures that appear during the witching hour. Your character will show up with whatever weapons they had on them at the time and with all powers intact. If your character has any form of a sixth sense they will immediately notice a heavy undercurrent of despair, fear, and hidden beneath it all - propelling it all - something deeply sinister, deeply evil. The Fog is an explanation as to why people disappear and reappear or why some disappear and never come back. It is consuming, feasting on your fears, pains, and sorrows. The longer you linger in this city the more you feel yourself falling away from what you once knew. It wants you to stay. It needs you. Currently there are only a few spaces open to explore. It seems that no mater how far you walk, there is nothing but fog and more fog and more fog. However, the longer you stay the more places will seem to appear. THE BONE LABYRINTH。 Upon stepping foot into the city, your character will first see a the rooftops of a large mansion just along the way. The fog and shadows seem to part around it or... are them coming from it? Either way, it is the only thing that can be seen so clearly from such a distance. As your character moves toward it, the broken pavement beneath their feet will slowly give way to dead, dried grass and they will find themselves at a cast iron gate - the mouth of a labyrinth. This maze surrounds the mansion completely and is difficult to navigate. It is impossible to track where you have once been and it never stays the same. If you get to the mansion a certain way one time, you won't be able to use the same pathway the next time. While there are no creatures or creepy-crawlies in sight, there are plenty of bones amidst the bare dead twigs. People have died here. Plenty, by the look of it. THE SHADOW MANSION。 Given that you have navigated your way through the labyrinth you will come to the foot of an old Victorian style mansion. The mansion is complete with vine walls and cast iron gates; statues of gargoyles and saints all cracked and crumbling. Shadows seem to crawl along the walls as if they were moving on their own. For those who are sensitive: the sensation of evil is palpable. It almost has it's own heartbeat, this house; something sinister lays within and even those who are not sensitive can gather a feeling of horror. But you're here, now. Why not open the door? Explore all you want, no one is home. There is no light apart from the candelabras which sparsely line the walls. These cannot be removed or knocked down, they do not burn out, and they cannot be put out. There is a smell of death far beyond the point of rotting. This smell is cold, and empty, and years after all flesh has been gone but every once in awhile various scents of incense crosses the nose. There is art on the wall, portraits and mirrors, but all the people are missing facial features and when you look in the mirror your face is distorted. The mansion itself has three floors, an attic, and a basement. Though many of the doors are still locked and certain staircases lead nowhere, there are still rooms that can easily be explored and used. There is a kitchen that mysteriously replenishes itself with food nightly, a main bathroom that requires you to pump your own water, open rooms, empty bedrooms that characters may claim as their own, among other places. During the night, the house mourns. Some nights are worse than others but even with all of the horror within there is an underlying feeling that you're safe here. The Mansion is a central location to this game, so you can find a more detailed, dedicated post about it here. THE GRAVES。 In the backyard, among the bones of the labyrinth is a clearing for graves. Many tombs are already preset with, strangely, some pre-dug holes. None of the stones are decipherable. THE CHAPEL。 credit for photo goes to FutureIsOurDeath Your feet will find a broken down pathway slightly north of the graves and beyond the labyrinth wall. Continuing down that path with open up the picture of three statues standing around a large black iron bowl. All of these statues are naked and depict both male and female body parts. Each one has an animal head instead of a human head. They are made of indestructible black stone. The first statue whose back is toward the chapel has a lion's head. Their right hand points two fingers in toward their heart and their left hand is left open. Within this hand lays a dagger that your character can pick up. However it will disappear out of your character's hand if it is not used for its purpose. What purpose this is has yet to be revealed. The second statue to the left has a sheep's head. Their right arm lays at their side and bends at a 90 degree angle outward. The wrist bends downward toward the bowl, two fingers to point. It's left hand is also bent at the elbow but with a steeper angle. The hand cups but nothing is within it. It seems like you could place something inside of the hand. The third statue to the right of the first has a horses' head. It's body is bent back in a slight arch and arms open it's chest invitingly as if it welcomes a presence within it. There is nothing in the bowl. The chapel stands in all in black stone. It's design is very beautiful nonetheless. Clearly this building was built with great care. Inside there are rows of black pews to either side of the aisle. The stained glass windows depicts naked men and women with animal heads. They tell a story of sacrifice and ritual. Looking at them gives you this strange feeling as if the deeds shown were done in good faith, done in desire, done in belief, not fear, not horror, not woe. They show no signs of distress or resistance but who would ever want to die like this? Like everything else, the altar bed is black. Depending on the day and how well lit the chapel is you can see the same three statues behind the altar bed. They are in the same formation with the Lion directly behind the altar, the horse to the right and the sheep to the left. There are various artifacts that seem traditional to Roman Catholic practice however they are all colored in silver rather than gold. The only splash of color that remains within the chapel at any given time is the red carpet leading up toward the altar. Stepping within the chapel always affects people the same way: Good May feel nervous, nauseated, or angry as they enter the chapel. Neutral May feel morose, apathetic, or uncertain (or may go either way) as they enter the chapel. Evil May feel elated, uplifted, or self-assured as they enter the chapel. There is a deep sensation of dark magic here. THE SWAMP。 Should your character choose to not follow through toward the mansion and explore the city itself, they are likely to come to the cusp of a swamp. Many weeping trees reach out and over the murky red water. Is that... are those people in there? Yes, mutilated but preserved bodies (or parts of) fill these waters. What a gruesome sight. Many more places will be revealed in time. Have a suggestion? Leave a comment! ( NAVIGATION )