peckenpaugh | MARCH POCKET PARTY!

pocket's galaxy express party!

what's up? Pocket is throwing a party tonight and you’re invited! There’s about an hour after dinner to get ready for the big event, enough time for today’s steady rain to peter out and a thick, dense fog to settle in. It’s a surprisingly warm night, but students attending the party still have to trudge through mud to get to the cave behind the falls.

In groups and pairs, students pass beneath the mist enveloped falls and into the caves behind. Here, the fog is even denser than outside, thick billowing white clouds that swirl as students move through them. A great blaring horn rings out, and a robotic voice calls, “All aboard!”

Emerging from the mists and fog, students find themselves on a gunmetal gray platform, standing before a massive, strange steam engine train. The walls beyond the train are glass, overlooking a starry night sky. A shiny chrome robotic conductor rolls by, “Tickets please! Have your tickets ready, folks! We don’t want to delay departure.”

visuals!

Any regular text goes here.

how this works! ⬥ Welcome to Pocket’s party! Pocket always wants to hang out with the students of Peckenpaugh, and she uses her unusual magic to give them fantastic new places to play with her. This is Pocket’s domain, and she’ll block or (safely) eject anyone who is dangerously disruptive or threatens the safety or secrecy of the party.

⬥ Pocket Parties are pretty much old hat for Peckenpaugh's students, provided you've been here for a year. What's not old hat is the party itself. Pocket's parties are always reliably wild and imaginative, bending the limits of magic and reality!

⬥ The party starts at 8PM and stretches on indistinctly. Tonight, however something strange happens. After several hours of fun, the party ends abruptly, depositing students in the dark Elflock Falls caves, soaking wet. See the End of the Night section for more details.

⬥ The theme of the evening is Galactic Express, combining cowboys with space travel. Fittingly students arrive on the station platform in space cowboy attire. In addition to the slick new duds, you may find you’ve arrived as a robot or alien.

⬥ We didn’t roll matches for stb or 7mih this time but you’re welcome to post opens and scene under the kissing games header.

⬥ We have an RNG minigame where you can fight bandits on the roof of the train! Fill out the form and post it to the "PEW PEW" header to get a roll.

locations! ⬦ ALL ABOARD!: From a misty cave to a transgalactic railway platform! A massive steam engine ⁠— far, far bigger than a normal train ⁠— greets students as they emerge into this strange new world, each of them dressed in duds befitting a space aged wild west. Each of the (number) cars hooked to the engine combines the sleek shine of science fiction with the classic look of an old fashioned train. Faceless folks mill about, and a robot conductor stands ready to usher students aboard. How’re you feeling? What’s your look for tonight? Are you even still human? Hope you’ve got a six shooter handy in case the train is beset by bandits, but maybe leave the assless chaps at home. (This space replaces our typical WHAT’S UP section, filling the same purpose while also providing a space to scene on the train platform.)

⬦ PRIVATE CABINS: Students board onto a long and somewhat narrow hallway lined with sliding doors. Each one opens into a cozy private space that’ll comfortably fit six teenagers, but can certainly squeeze in a few more. Each private cabin has a single large window on the far side of the room for you to watch the Milky Way streak by. Two comfortable sofas sit on either side of the little room and a center table divides them. If you’re up for climbing and cramped spaces, above each couch is a bed tucked away. These spaces are perfect for having your own private party.

⬦ THE BRIDGE: Near to the Private Cabins, the bridge is the most plainly futuristic car on the train. Glowing holographic screens shine from sleek black surfaces, delivering maps and information in an alien language that looks a bit like Appalachian Mushkin. A faceless crew of humans, aliens and androids mills about, speaking in the mumbled language of dreams ⁠— you understand, even if you can’t quite hear. Something always seems to be happening up here, with frequent jumps to warp bringing the train into the orbit of gas giants, or dipping down into the atmosphere of sparkling ocean planets. Occasionally, a comm will open and a strange alien will speak about something or another. Here, every touch surface and screen is interactive, producing lights and sound with each press and swipe. It’s fun to punch out a tune.

⬦ PARTY GAMES: Ordinarily it might be odd to see a bunch of teenagers milling about a starship bridge, but this is Pocket's world, baby! Nothing's stopping you from giving the faceless crew a hard time, and a group of kids have done just that, setting up shop in the middle of the room. They're spinning a bottle, playing kissing games, much to the chagrin of the crew. Pocket, in the captain seat, seems amused, though. If you want to get a round of 7 Minutes in Heaven in, there's an elevator to nowhere that'll carry you up and then back down in a journey that takes exactly seven minutes. Convenient.

⬦ DINING CAR: Exit the far side of the private cabins to arrive in the Dining Car. Spacious and richly decorated, this car is equal parts high class honky tonk saloon and Enterprise mess hall. The warm dark wood is accented in greens, a nod, perhaps, to the upcoming St. Patrick’s Day holiday. The room’s large windows look out into the void and it’s easy to lose yourself in watching stars and comets whir by. From here, it seems the train is traveling through a cluster of rocks, and there’s plenty to look at outside. Pleasant music fills the room, all danceable pop hits from the last thirty years rendered on a player piano. There’s ample places to sit, both at large round tables and the bar. A robot with a handlebar mustache literally made from handlebars is mixing drinks, all of which are served in squat saloon glasses and garnished with a ton of lucky charms marshmallows, because Pocket is pretty sure St. Patrick’s Day is a celebration of the Lucky Charms mascot. All the food is really bizarre, strange shapes and colors, definitely alien.

⬦ WHY DOES IT ALWAYS HAVE TO BE SNAKES?: There’s hay on the floor of this dimly lit car, which contains two large crates, both just brimming with snakes. Looks like someone saw Last Crusade.

⬦ OBSERVATION DECK: Getting past the snakes brings partygoers to their next challenge. The first step into this strange room finds no ground. Here, it’s as though you’re stepping out into space, but upon closer inspection this car is simply a massive orb of glass. There’s no gravity here, and you float freely. A rope extends the length of the room, allowing easier passage from one side to the other. This car may as well be its own miniature galaxy, full of little glowing stars, planets and moons in orbit. There’s a tiny replica of the train rocketing around, as well as comets and little flying saucers. Every once in a while, an asteroid hits a planet with a loud pop, or a star explodes in a bright flash of light and … pop corn? Closer to the edges of the room, there are bars to anchor onto, so you can stare out into the actual void. On these edges, it’s quite romantic. A good place to cozy up and share a quiet moment.

⬦ TOP OF THE TRAIN: Access the roof of the train by climbing up a ladder and through a hatch in the caboose. Somehow, despite being in the void, you can still breathe here. It’s quite the view out here, but there’s not much time to enjoy it. What’s more, it seems the train itself is under siege! Bandits are running across the cars. Grab a laser gun and help fight them off!

⬦ END OF THE NIGHT: It feels like the party has stretched on for hours, but where usually students are able to leave at their own pace, tonight things end with a bang. Wherever you’re standing, whatever you’re doing, everything flickers, blurs and pulls long. A glitch like a brownout that shakes this fake reality Pocket’s built. Things dim and snap back three times total, before everything abruptly melts, transforming into water and soaking everyone. It’s 10:45PM and students are left standing in the Elflock Falls caves with a confused-looking Pocket, who insists this must be a bit of bad luck, given the date. Pocket bids everyone goodnight, and they’re left to head back to their Houses.

⬦ OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS, CONCERNS!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

The slap of water against stone signals the abrupt end of Pocket's party tonight. A whole lot at once dumped on every party goer as their surroundings dissipate. For some, this means more than for others:

Bijou did not bring her cicada, and she's just soaked.

Chanel brought her cicada. When drenched with water, it warms faintly and crusts over with lichen which quickly flakes away from contact.

Eddy did not bring his cicada, and he's just soaked.

Imogen brought her cicada. When drenched with water, wherever it's stored on her person, it grows warm. A thick coating of moss grows over its surface, and when Imogen touches it next, she gets a feeling of deja vu.

Jupiter, Claudia, Lionel or Xenia brought that cicada they're co-parenting. When drenched with water, wherever it's stored on their person(s), it grows warm. A thick coating of moss grows over its surface, and when one of them touches it next, she gets a feeling of deja vu. (I made the executive decision that they haven't gone off on their cicada burying spree yet.)

Lionel brought his cicada. When drenched with water, wherever it's stored on his person, it grows warm. A thick coating of moss grows over its surface, and when Lionel touches it next, she gets a feeling of deja vu.

Ramona brought her cicada. When drenched with water, wherever it's stored on her person, it grows warm. A thick coating of moss grows over its surface, and when Ramona touches it next, she gets a feeling of deja vu.

Wyatt brought his cicada. It is now wet, covered in moss and Dorito dust.

IF YOU HAVE NOT YET CHECKED IN BELOW you can still do so!

Edited 2020-03-15 00:28 (UTC)

Merlin barely has time to process the party’s abrupt end when something in his pocket starts to buzz. He retrieves the offending stone, which starts to flake on contact with the water from the Falls. Its wings flutter, shaking off black stone like old paint, revealing gold beneath. The cicada stone releases a loud, long wail, and Merlin feels pulled once more toward that foggy vision he’d only gotten a glimpse of before. Sound reaches him, muffled, but still nearby.

"YOU! Hey FUCKO! I'm talkin' to YOU!" a voice, strained to the point of breaking, slices through the fog. It's familiar. Merlin knows the voice. Younger, less gravelly, more… well, sober, but it's Mr. Youngblood all the same.

"Wybie, what are you doing?" Another voice, both familiar and not, young and strangely accented.

"You FULL or some shit? Why don't you come back and finish what you—" A flash of pain radiates through Merlin's left leg, so white hot it seems to make the fog grow denser. There’s noise, the smell of smoke, but Merlin can’t make sense of any of it. Too much, too fast, and confused by that strange pain. When Youngblood speaks again, it’s weaker but still full of that same fire from before, “Y’don’t need me! You need HIM⁠—”

The voice cuts abruptly. Merlin jolts, stirring from his reverie with a soft gasp. That searing pain is gone, barely a memory, as if it hadn’t been his pain at all. His cicada stills, but its golden wings are unfurled, and now it stares up at him with unblinking carnelian eyes.

Skip brought his cicada. When drenched with water, wherever it's stored on his person, it grows warm. A thick coating of moss grows over its surface, and when Skip touches it next, he gets a feeling of deja vu.

Suddenly finding himself in the caves instead of the fantastical dreamscape created by Pocket is disorienting enough, but the flashes of distant memory and the phantom ache in his leg and the shrill buzzing are almost enough to bring Merlin to his knees. He's too stubborn for that, though. As reality slowly comes back into focus, he stands rigidly with his eyes shut and waits for his head to clear.

Once the feeling has passed enough for him to open them again, he glares down at the now-gold cicada in his hand and utters a small growl, "Oh, fuck you..."

He doesn't know what's going on with this thing, but he does know that he doesn't like having his head messed with.

"WAIT!" Claudia shouts, breathless, holding the cicada shell in front of her like she's witnessing a birth or a scientific breakthrough. Her eyes are trained on the slightly mossy cicada, she waits for it to move, to squeak, to do anything.

But all it does it sit there, warm and covered in moss, a kind of weird feeling filling her head. What is that feeling? She shoves it at the nearest person. "Touch this," she demands. "Then describe it."

Startled into compliance, Tony runs a finger over the back of Claudia's cicada and informs her, "Uhhhh... sproingy?"

Claudia twists her lips to the side and brings the cicada right up to her face for closer inspection. "Not, like, brain sproingy?"

MARCH POCKET PARTY!

END OF THE NIGHT

END OF THE NIGHT: CICADA HOLDERS

END OF THE NIGHT: MERLIN

END OF THE NIGHT: CICADA HOLDERS PT 2

Merlin + OPEN

END OF THE NIGHT: Claudia + OPEN

END OF THE NIGHT: Claudia + Tony

END OF THE NIGHT: Claudia + Tony