RESCUERS

[goosemods]

RESCUERS

The last thing you remember is falling asleep. It came to you conspicuously, like a heavy weight pushed into your arms. Exhaustion so sudden and fierce it was almost startling.

Waking up comes much more softly. First, you are aware of the chill of the ground beneath you. You're outside, and you can hear the confused murmuring of dozens of your classmates. There are things piled on top of you, and it's still dark out. Dark and foggy. There's no moon in the sky. You can't make out the mountains in the distance, and the stars as dim and shifting. The Ornery Oak looms above you, familiar and calm. It doesn't swat at the students, not even the ones that are leaning against its trunk.

Why are you here? What's happened to you?

thedeepwoods
YEAR 1 ENDGAME HUB
RULES:

• Everyone who signed up to be a rescuer wakes up lying on the ground around the Ornery Oak.


• Characters were taken directly from their beds, so they'll be dressed on whatever they went to sleep in.
  • However: if they went to bed not properly dressed for an adventure in the cold, cold woods, they'll wake up with extra clothes neatly piled on top of them. Ideally they're all yours.
  
  
  • Brother is courteous... but a little awkward. It's possible that he made a mistake and you have your roommate's jacket/sweater/coat, or even the jacket/sweater/coat of the person you're searching for. For instance, if Essie wanted to say she was given Diego's coat, she could do that.
  
  
  • Your journal is also with you. There's a message that you need to read.
  
  
  • Brother also remembered to make sure everyone's wand was politely placed in their left hand. Always the left hand. Even if you're not left handed.
    • Just like with coats, if you would like (and if the other player is okay with it) you can say your character was given the wand of a missing friend or loved one in place of their own. This will obviously have a negative impact on their ability to cast spells, particularly with old, difficult, or powerful wands.
  • Long story short, everyone will at least have a wand, their journal, shoes that definitely fit and outerwear that hopefully fits.
• There are three old chalkboards on wheels that have been dragged out here, and they have the yearbook photos of every missing student on them. Non-participants and freshmen are not amongst the photos. They all smell of pine needles. You can take the photos with you if you want, but there's no benefit beyond sentimentality.


• The rescue groups have been organized HERE, so connect with your group if you want, but you can use this place to talk to people you're not searching with. Once you leave this area, your characters can only thread in one place at a time, so this might be your only chance to talk to other rescue groups. You can keep backtagging here after leaving, though!

» THE ORNERY OAK: You wake up on the cold dirt under the cover of the Ornery Oak. You're not alone, though. Your classmates are here too.

» THE CHALKBOARDS: On the chalkboards are the yearbook photos of every student who's gone missing. They're smudged with Brother's sooty fingerprints.

» DEPARTURE: You decide that you must do what Brother has asked of you. If all he says is true, time's limited. Your friends and family are out there and in danger. Please read THIS regarding entering the event.

» OOC - SUPPLY REQUESTS: Is there an item you think would reasonably be in your character's coat pocket or the coat they were given? Please ask for mod approval here before assuming your character has access to it. Things may have been magically lost along the way (but will be returned to your character once the event was over). We may gently scold you if you didn't ask permission to have your pocket knife here and then pull it out in a later thread. And no one wants that. :(

» OOC - GROUP ORGANIZATION: If you need to hash out how your rescue group is going to link up, do so here. Please use your very serious team name in the comment title. (If you'd like to change your team name, now's the time to do it. You will be required to use your team name for the rest of the event, so make sure it's something easy to type or copy/paste!)

» OOC - QUESTIONS, COMMENTS & CONCERNS

Comments

SEARCH PARTY!!!! (ง •̀_•́)ง

[magitechnically]

"Good. Come on," are the only words Essie manages to get out in response to Wyatt before she sees the shock of red hair approaching followed by Pippa's voice, confused and anxious. It's exactly the right combination to pierce a hole in Essie's quickly tossed together armor of bravado and bullheadedness.

"Pippa, it's awful," Essie chokes out, her arms wrapping tightly against her best friend. "He took Diego. He took so many people." The comfort that comes from clinging to Pippa is instantaneous and Essie would have been hard-pressed to let go if that wasn't the moment she realized what the heavy object tucked into her hoodie pocket was. She releases Pippa, but still stays close enough to embrace as she digs into her pocket and produces the compass that Mina and Diego had gifted her for her birthday.

There's no time to admire the craftsmanship as Essie pops the lid open and waits for the needles to settle on their targets. The needle pointing to true north is the first to rest. After a few tense seconds, the purple needle settles in the direction of Ebonhide; Mina was in her cabin, just as Brother had said. But the blue needle keeps swinging back and forth. Every time it seems like it might settle, it swings again, just a bit. Essie lets out a sound of frustration, but at least the compass has a clear target. The forest.

"Diego's out there. In the forest. We need to go now." And then Essie steps away from the shelter of the Ornery Oak and into the darkness.

SEARCH PARTY!!!! (ง •̀_•́)ง

[orangepip]

Even as Pippa returns the hug, her blood runs cold at Essie's words. She hasn't thought to check her journal, so she doesn't know whether he refers to Brother or 2, but that doesn't matter. All that matters is that Diego -- and so many of their friends -- are missing. No, not missing. Taken.

She bends over the compass, her head touching Essie's, holding her breath as the blue needle swings back and forth. But it doesn't come to rest, and the frustrated noise Essie makes sends a spike of pain and helplessness through Pippa. She doesn't know what this means, but she does know that she can't sit by and do nothing, even though she's scared and cold and confused.

Pippa doesn't hesitate as she follows Essie into the forest.