(september catch-all) NOW WITH BIGGER, BETTER WAYS TO DIE

[vestigemods]

SEPTEMBER CATCH-ALL

► THIS SHITHOLE JUST GOT BETTER

The morning of the 10th feels just like any other. It arrives without fanfare, no itch at the back of your mind telling you something is different. If you're a homebody, you might very well go about much of your day without growing any the wiser... At least until you go outside.

The island is the first sign that something's amiss. Stepping out your front door and spotting the brand new tree-covered patch of land smack dab in the middle of your lake may not face some of you, but it's certainly not a thing that has happened before. Those who dealt with the hatch and the tunnel beyond in August might notice that the island very distinctly covers where that very hatch used to be, sealing off that tunnel system once and for all.

Those who live along the northern end of the lake will also hear the distinct sound of rushing water, a sharp contrast to the quiet atmosphere of the still lake you fell asleep to. Sure enough, a river now pours into the lake from the north, a whole ass river coming into existence overnight.

But the island and river aren't the only changes - they're just the most obvious. It may be today, tomorrow, or a week from now, but the next time someone makes their way to the north or east barriers in any shape or form, they'll find that the barrier no longer seems to exist. The trees are marked quite clearly, white spray paint on a trunk one per fifteen or so feet but you find that they're able to walk right through the area it's supposed to be. And walk, and walk, and walk. Is this a mishap with the barrier, or was it on purpose? Have the Technicians... set you free?

Maybe it's time to tell the others.

► LET'S SEE WHAT YOU'VE WON!

Those who make their way across the new and improved containment zone can encounter a fairly wide variety of things. Following the main road like a rational human being puts you on the direct route to town. Should you get curious along the way, you might detour off the asphalt to explore a stretch of farmland, with smooth rolling hills that may once have been idyllic before they fell into disrepair. If you're hungry, a grove of apple trees sit alongside the river, their branches heavy with fruits ripe for the picking. Consider sparing some for the horses fenced in the western field - they're too skittish to let you approach, but if you leave the apples inside their fence, they're certain to grab them as soon as you've backed away.

Conversely, heading due east from your cabin like the impulsive goblin you are will likely lead you smack dab into the swamp. It's dismal. It's disgusting. Use the damn road next time, and you won't be slopping your way through nearly knee-deep muck... And that's before you discover the alligators. (Are discovered by the alligators? Who discovers whom is just a matter of perspective, really.)

Whether you take the smart route or the soggy route, you'll (hopefully) end up in much the same place: the town. It's dirty and run-down and the alleys and back roads host a whole species roulette of strays, and you intermittently feel the distinct sensation of being watched or even followed, but it's not all bad. There's Foodland, which compared to the gas station pickings may as well be a five-star buffet. There's also a rec center with a functional bowling alley, if you know how to play - and across the street from that rec center sits an apartment complex, complete with nine mostly-clean apartments with fully-functional electricity and plumbing. I'm not saying the swamp-waders should hijack an apartment shower, buuuut that's definitely not not an option.

Finally, to the north, there's a bit of a mountain that I'm fairly sure that nobody is going to fuck with just yet, unless they happen to be some sort of overachiever who wants nothing more than to get a bird's-eye view of the landscape below. Mind the mountain goats. They like to shove.

► MOD NOTES

• This log is an introduction to the new expanded containment zone, but it also functions as the September catch-all log for all non-event starters.
  
• Refer to the Locations page for actual information on the various new areas and points of interest - the above flavortext is only meant to supplement the Locations page info.
  
• Also check out the September Infopost (most relevantly, the bottom two drop-downs) for more September-specific info to potentially include in your prompts.
  
• Because this is a catch-all for everywhere + all month, try to remember to label your top-levels with the date and location of each prompt (whether in the subject or in the prompt title within the comment)!
  
• Any questions (on the new setting or anything else) can be directed to this top-level or, for a quicker response, to Trace on discord/plurk. Additionally, if you catch any errors (incorrect links, etc) in the Locations post, please let Trace know!
  

Comments

wei wuxian, in town!

[mannerless]

THE WAREHOUSES

( on this particular trip to town, wei wuxian isn't looking for anything in particular. he came for foodland initially, but upon noticing the conspicuous absence of barking and howling, he decided it might be as good a time as any to get a (careful, subtly vigilant) feel for the place. it's much different from any village or city back home, in a way that is quite a bit more vividly apparent here than anywhere else in this so-called 'containment zone'. with much of what he finds, he can't quite tell if things are supposed to be this way or if they're Wrong in the way this place is wont to be.

his wandering has brought him now to a series of large imposing buildings, adjacent in shape and size but terribly unappealing. though they each may rival a small palace (or at least a large gentry house) in size, they're certainly not meant for living in. so what are they for?

pushing a sliding door loudly aside, he steps inside in search of some sort of clue... but it's empty. just a cavernous building, vacant but for the occasional support beam rising up from the floor, and much too dim and chilly for his liking. )

Well, this is fantastically pointless, ( he muses aloud, already turning to head for the door again - but his voice echoes strangely against the walls and the ceiling, stopping him short with puzzled knit to his brow. but confusion quickly blooms into innovative intrigue, and he draws his black flute from his belt with a thoughtless twirl between his fingers, turning to take a couple of steps back toward the center of the space.

anyone even remotely adjacent to the warehouses this afternoon will hear the melody of a flute, echoing almost hauntingly from an open warehouse door with help from the building's internal acoustics. (feel free to come tell him to shut the fuck up.) )

YOUR CHOICE OF BUILDING, just after the warehouses

( the flute-playing was, as it turns out, a mistake. attracted by what they could only assume was some senseless form of howling, three feral dogs awaited him as he emerged from the warehouse door, heads low with wary intrigue.

long story short, a short couple of minutes later finds wei wuxian flinging himself into whatever building you happen to be in, shoving the door shut behind him (if at all possible) and then leaning his full weight against it with a haunted sort of look in his eye. he doesn't quite notice that anyone else is here just yet. at this point, the entirety of his attention seems to be on catching his racing breath and keeping firmly out the dirty but otherwise innocuous-looking dogs now barking in confusion just outside. )