OCTOBER MINGLE

[etrayamods]

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: October 25th - Early November
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, and some holiday fun!
NOTES\WARNINGS: Supernatural elements, temporary physical alterations, mild horror and jump scares, spooky scary skeleton robots, mild suggestion of compulsion or loss of control, mild body horror.

⏵ arrival ⏴ Welcome to Etraya! Everything is fine now. 😊 Arrival goes expected - or it does for the most part. Aurora greets newcomers in the hospital as they awaken, offers a brief explanation and gives them their earpiece so they can communicate with one another. Around the hospital and outside of it, Companion Bots are hard at work decorating the city for Halloween—complete with festive touches like pumpkins, cobwebs, and glowing ghost decorations. The atmosphere is fun, light-hearted, and maybe just a little spooky. 🎃👻 Some carry buckets of candy, and offer those they come across a trick or treat. Except both options are, in fact, treats. 🍬 Tricks are treats specifically wrapped in a green wrapper that very clearly declares that they are tricks. Treats are wrapped in orange, and labeled with treat! Companion bots will recommend that those who do want to take a trick take them when they're beside their friends. There won't be any permanent effects from these, nor will they be terrible tricks - just fun ones! All effects last roughly 24 hours. Giggle Drops cause uncontrollable giggling that bubbles up randomly, even during serious conversations. Beasty Bites cause characters to grow small fangs, and they will begin craving red foods - apples, cherries, etc. Bat Gummies cause small, bat-like shadows to follow characters around wherever they wander. These shadows are harmless, and super cute. Pumpkin Puff is a cotton-candy-like treat, that causes their voices to change dramatically. Either becoming significantly deeper or perhaps very high-pitched, as if they've recently inhaled helium. Floating Fudge gives characters the ability to float in the air! Just a few feet off the ground, but it's still fun. Right? ⏵ getting spooky! ⏴ Etraya is embracing the season - and maybe even going a little overboard. Around the hospital, a few small pop-up shops are manned by festively dressed companion bots. They offer samples to everyone - although sampling isn't really necessary. After all, everything here is free! Candy Shops: Perfect for stocking up on sweets and treats for the upcoming trick-or-treating event. These will not stock the tricks the companion bots offer around Etraya, but instead only carry harmless sweets. They do take custom requests, too, and are happy to create the treats others want! Costume Shops: Find the perfect costume for Halloween! But beware... rumor has it, if you wear a costume, you might become whatever you dressed up as for a few hours. Those who put on vampire costumes may find themselves suddenly craving blood and growing fangs - those with werewolf costumes may find themselves feeling a little wolfish. These effects may last a few hours, up to a few days. ⏵ masquerade ⏴ In the spirit of mystery, Etraya will be hosting a Masquerade Ball outside the hospital through the nights of October 26th and 27th. Dance anonymously with other attendees and make new friends under the cover of your disguise. Everyone receives a single rose they can exchange with someone else throughout the evening. At the stroke of midnight, the roses will reveal the true identities of your masked dance partners. 🌹 ⏵ all hallow's eve ⏴ On October 31st, multiple companion bots set up shop along one of the walkways through the larger island towards the center. With chairs and small booths set up, they offer candies out to trick-or-treaters who wander around through the first part of the night. Some of them will request trick-or-treaters to do a trick for them, to earn a bigger treat! They may ask characters to dance, sing, or show a talent unique to them. Can your character bend themselves into a pretzel? They want to see it, and will offer them a nice bracelet in exchange! Can they whistle super loud? Maybe they'll get a nice piece of kevlar armor after showing off. This can be anything within reason - bike parts, small weaponry, armor pieces, toys, canvases for painting. Please request these items HERE. Not everything is as light-hearted as it seems, however. Aurora issues a warning to the citizens of Etraya: Do not stay outside after midnight. Strange happenings have been reported, and those who disobey may start seeing visions of past loved ones. The visions are compelling—guiding people away from the safety of the buildings and into the mysterious mist surrounding the outskirts. But be careful, these spirits may not be as friendly as they seem. If you come into contact with these ghosts, you’ll feel a chilling cold, leading to hypothermia-like symptoms. The longer you’re exposed, the worse it gets. Treatment? You’ll need to be warmed up quickly. ⏵ skellys! ⏴ The Companion Bots wanted to join in on the fun, so they painted themselves with glow-in-the-dark paint to look like skeletons. But in the dead of night, for those already suffering from the chilling touch of the ghosts, seeing glowing skeletons approach from the darkness might not be the most comforting sight. 🤖💀 Stay safe, warm up, and enjoy the festivities! ⏵ NOTES ⏴ For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ. ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

[messenger]

[ or an anime. ]

The rings aren't of any use to him.

[ they're of use to them, but castiel doesn't know this yet. ]

Lucifer only needs his true vessel, and Michael his Sword, and they'll have defeated us.

[onlychildsyndrome]

Michael is evil too?

[ he's not trying to be callous, this is clearly a big deal, but he's a kid and this sounds like dragon slaying stuff. ]

[messenger]

[ he envies his enthusiasm. castiel is at the end of his tether back home, and now he's come here only to learn that there are even bigger problems on the horizon. it's hard not to feel hopeless, even knowing dean and sam must have, somehow, averted their apocalypse back home.

something in him balks at admitting it, but michael wants him dead. what respects does he have left to pay? ]

You could say that.

Both sides want the war. Humanity is an afterthought.

[onlychildsyndrome]

What'd they want war for? Like, what are they trying to win?

[ the planet? souls? god's throne? ]

[messenger]

Paradise on earth.

[ something changes in his demeanor when he says it.

he picks another candy out of his pocket, fiddling with the wrapper. ]

[onlychildsyndrome]

What does that even mean?

[ isn't there a paradise already? why would they want two? ]

[messenger]

[ castiel shrugs, still fiddling with the paper in his hands. how does it go again? (as though he could forget—)

it's obvious as he's speaking that he's reciting from something memorized. ]

Then I saw a new Heaven and a new earth, for the first earth had passed away. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.

[onlychildsyndrome]

That sounds kinda fucked up.

[ very end-of-days cult-like. he doesn't like it. ]

[messenger]

It's in the Bible. Revelation 21:1-4. Greatly abridged.

[ he tips his head, making a dismissive gesture with both hands, as though to admit to his own shortcomings in recitation. ]

I didn't know we were in on it.

I was going to let it happen, but Dean convinced me to help them.

[ it feels like a confession, though he doesn't know quite why. ]

[onlychildsyndrome]

Good call. I'm pretty sure killing people is a sin.

[ whereas killing angels is probably not covered by the bible. ]

[messenger]

[ it's not. it's worse.

but he doesn't want to think about the brothers he's killed. ]

How did you meet Dean?

[onlychildsyndrome]

There was a stupid "pretend to be a family" mission. We were put in this other bubble and given a house and like, homework, and family activities. I was Dean's assigned kid.

And yours, I guess. Other you.

[messenger]

[ family activities? a house? ]

What kind of "family activities"? Did you like it?

Did Dean?

[onlychildsyndrome]

Barbecue, building a fucking diorama, a ride on one of those four people bikes. It was... fine... I mean, in comparison with other missions.

[ It was fun, he almost wishes it'd lasted longer but he'd never admit to that. ]

[messenger]

[ he would bet... something that dean enjoyed himself. he knows that some part of dean wants a normal life. a family. ]

That sounds, uh, interesting.

[ he really doesn't know what to think of it himself, though. ]

And what did I do?

[onlychildsyndrome]

You were there, kinda quiet. I didn't chat with you a lot, kinda worried you'd smite me or something.

[ not personal. he was just dealing with some stuff and the whole being a murderer bit made him wary of chatting with an angel. ]

[messenger]

I'm the last person who can cast judgement on anyone. Don't worry about it.

[ what a joke he is. ]

And Dean and I were... parents?

[onlychildsyndrome]

Are you freaking out? It was just for the mission. There were evil plushies before, and a creepy maze before that one. You don't have to think about it.

[ maybe he should find Dean. Dean's probably better equipped to deal with whatever Castiel is going through. ]

[messenger]

I'm fine.

[ he just wants to know what dean thought about that experience.

he doesn't even know why. it doesn't matter. ]

I thought you wanted a hot dog?

[onlychildsyndrome]

Yeah, but I'm not that hungry anymore. Wanna go find Dean?

[ he wants to go find Dean, clearly the traumatized angel needs a hug. ]

[messenger]

I— ...Yes?

[ why does this feel like a trick question ]

[onlychildsyndrome]

Cool. Where did you last see him?

[ let's find the angel's emotional support human. ]

[messenger]

We were at the costume store.

[ he turns and points in that direction. ]

He was talking to someone. I wanted to see the other buildings on the block.

[ he wandered away like a small child who isn't being given enough attention. ]

[onlychildsyndrome]

[ he reaches for cas' sleeve to lead him back to the costume shop. ]

[messenger]

[ wordlessly, he lets himself be led. ]