MISSION: THE SUN NEVER SETS ON AMARYLLIS GROVE

[ximilian]

● ● ● M I S S I O N   1 7 . 1

UNIT-Y • PLEASANTVILLE • AFTER DARK • FYI

// INTRO. UNIT-Y  

Over the course of the station’s downtime, even the least astute observer will notice the sudden influx of crewmates aboard the station. Before you can further inquire and investigate this anomaly in your usual routine, your earpiece will ping! with the familiar sound of a newly received mission file. Viveca’s voice immediately follows.

// VIVECA

“Hi everyone, you’ll find details for your next mission are ready. This time the orb has been located somewhere in a town called Amaryllis Grove, and based on my research, the best way to start looking for it will involve blending in with the towns-folk who live there. Just like our last mission, those of you who don’t have natural humanoid forms will have Degar’s potion available for you to help with that. See you on the platform tomorrow morning.”

After reviewing your mission file and gathering all of the necessary supplies and clothing options, those who are well prepared might have enough time for a decent night’s sleep. If you aren’t the sort to sleep before a mission, well … carry on.

When morning arrives, you’ll make your way to the teleportation platform to join your fellow crewmates. Viveca and Degar are already standing by, the latter passing around the aforementioned potion to those who will be needing one. Finally, when the entire crew has assembled, Degar starts to speak.

// DEGAR

“You might have noticed by now that there’s a few more of us than usual – there’s a reason for that, and it’s good news! I think. You see, according to our readings of all the orb shards collected so far, we’re actually coming up to the last couple of orbs. That’s pretty amazing, isn’t it? For that, we’ve been getting a few more crew members to provide a little more support as we near the finish line. But we can talk more about that after you guys get this orb back here.”

Viveca nods from her place.

// VIVECA

“Good luck, everyone. I know some of you will have questions, and we’ll be here when you get back to try our best to answer them.”

Degar lifts both hands to give them all a cheesy little thumbs up. Without further ado, the hum of the platform, as it begins to power up, grows louder and louder until it’s impossible to hear anything else but the machinery thrumming in your ears. Soon enough, you’ll feel the familiar tug at the pit of your stomach as you’re whisked away from the station and towards your destination. But for a moment that feels both too short and too long, you hear it: whispers, echoes, voices that speak to you in several tenors at once, all of them providing you with a goal in exchange for their help.

Before you have a chance to answer, your surroundings begin to paint a clearer picture. You’ll be found in your usual place of choosing: whether that’s your own household, the park, or one of the several locations in and around town.

Welcome, Orbers, to Amaryllis Grove.

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// PART I.PLEASANTVILLE  

On the day of the Orbers’ arrival, the weather is crisp and sunny, the trees still lush and green with only the barest hints of the leaves beginning to yellow and redden at their tips. As the summer months slowly transition into cooler autumn temperatures, the entire town feels pleasant, even cozy. The clouds in the sky provide gentle overcast conditions and you might think to grab a light coat, or wear a longer sleeve but it is by no means chilly enough to feel anything but pleasant.

Depending on where you decided to arrive, you’ll want to begin your explorations and familiarize yourself with the Grove, which will be your home for the next little while.

1.0   The town of Amaryllis Grove will feel spacious and sprawling while also being cozy and compact. Cleanly paved streets wind in and around residential pockets and cul-de-sacs, threading through the community’s amenities, goods, and service buildings. The community centre, the library, the government offices, and the Mayor’s office can all be found in the main core of the Grove. The police station and television station (playing news and sitcoms in classic black and white) are situated nearby, and are all within walking distance of each other, and the neighbouring retail streets are located just past the block. This includes clothing boutiques, restaurants, coffee shops, grocery and general stores (which will sell all manner of hardware, cleaning supplies, and simple, household magical items). Having a vehicle will certainly help to get around town if you’re in a hurry running any errands, but a bicycle works just as well, and the walkability is pleasant for those wanting to take a stroll.

Everyone here is well-dressed in crisply ironed slacks and button-downs in neutrals, or colourful A-line skirts and dresses with delicate detailing for their tops. Children and teenagers are likewise found in school uniform consisting of dark blue pleated skirts or slacks, and white shirts. With the weather beginning to cool, a well structured jacket may also be a part of the ensemble.

2.0   Once you’ve explored some of the town, familiarizing yourself with the backstory and family history you and your fellow crewmates have corroborated together, perhaps you’ll want to explore your house. Lined up in rows of pleasant, homogeneous pitched roof structures, each house in the neighbourhood will come equipped with all of the necessary spaces to live a perfectly suburban life, the most ideal environment to raise a family and grow old amongst generations of familiar faces. Each one-storey house, in either brick or ship-lap siding and in various colours, will have 3-4 bedrooms, an attached garage for the family car, a living room, bathroom, spacious kitchen, and enough yard space to require both a lawn-cutter and a green thumb for the garden. Interiors have already been furnished with all of the up-to-date items for the time, resembling Earth’s 1950s era to an almost eerily accurate degree.

Say hello to your neighbour when they greet you or wish you a pleasant day. Many will look perfectly human, while others may seem more alien with vibrant skin, an extra limb, antennae, gills, and the like. Some also possess magical abilities which is not seen as strange or abnormal here; however, the magic used in Amaryllis Grove consists of simple household magic to aid with cooking, cleaning, and keeping the house perfectly pleasant – otherwise known as ‘petty magic’. Whether you’re used to such sights will likely depend on where you’re originally from, but no matter who lives next to or near you, they seem friendly enough. They may even invite you over for dinner, or inquire when you plan on hosting your next party.

You’ll cook, clean, sleep, and host parties and dinners with your neighbours of Amaryllis Grove within the walls of your quaint abode so it’s best to get to know the space that will undoubtedly become second nature to you.

3.0   While the concept of ‘Halloween’ does not exist in Amaryllis Grove, other such Autumn festivities are highly anticipated, namely the annual gathering of the harvest. It is otherwise colloquially named ‘the Harvest’. It won’t come as news to any of the residents, as the season ends and food is plenty, the Harvest has been a long-standing tradition to celebrate the closeness of the community, and to express one’s gratitude for the people that you surround yourself around.

Your neighbours may inquire whether you’ll be bringing the same mash potatoes as last year, or perhaps the spiced meatballs that the Alkherns simply couldn’t get enough of — they were just so delicious! Either way, you may want to start coming up with a special dish to bring to the community gathering or find someone to snag a recipe from, as it’ll gain you admiration or admonition, depending on the popularity of your offering.

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// PART II.AFTER DARK  

Sunsets are beautiful, picturesque moments that conclude the end of a perfectly spent day, and the sunsets in Amaryllis Grove are certainly no different. As the town winds down and residents return to their homes for the night, you and your fellow Orbers will follow suit – as is the way of things. The nights are a little overcast during this time of the year, with cloud-cover masking out the stars and the glow of the moon. It’s quiet. Only the sounds of night-insects chirping can be heard, and the soft, occasional coo of a bird asleep in its nest.

4.0   Perhaps you’re catching up on some late-night reading, or grabbing a late-night snack or a night-cap. The last of the evening hours are usually spent in the comfort of your own home until a new day begins, although there is a town speakeasy that remains open until late, if you can find it. Once you climb into bed, there really doesn’t seem to be a reason for anything other than a soundless, well-deserved rest.

You’ll be tucked up in your own bed, or perhaps the bed you share with your backstory-spouse, when you hear a shrill scream that wakes you up from your sleep. High on the adrenaline, you may want to don a robe and your slippers and step outside past your front door where you’ll be joined by other neighbours on your street. They exchange glances with each other, and then may meet eyes with you, and they look scared, with their wide eyes and clenched fists, some of the husbands and wives holding each other’s hands for comfort. It isn’t outside of the norm for such a startling cry. The house in question will be fully lit, with Mrs Myrsdin sobbing into her hands, mumbling, ‘I told him not to say anything! I told him to keep quiet! It came for him–’ as the AGPD (Amaryllis Grove Police Department) approach her, one of the officers patting her shoulder in consolation. Another officer moves towards a cluster of concerned neighbours, assuring them that this will be taken care of, and when they spot you, they’ll tell you the same.

It might seem difficult now to head back to sleep, but the crowd disperses and the AGPD lead Mrs Myrsdin back into the house. The lights remain on for another hour, maybe two, and then the entire block quiets again, the AGPD preparing to leave for the station once more. It seems there’s nothing else to do but get as much rest as you can before the morning ... but everything about this doesn’t sit quite right. Maybe you'll linger behind for a moment, see if you can ask a few questions, gather a bit of information, as it seems that after the brief moment of shock none of the residents seem to be particularly surprised by any of this.

5.0   The skies are blue and the sun is bright, and as Amaryllis Grove wakes up to a new day, everything feels as though Mrs Myrsdin never screamed into the night, with no signs of the AGPD having visited, and not a whisper to be said of Mrs Myrsdin's husband disappearing. If you try to investigate what happened at the house last night, Mrs Myrsdin will conveniently be absent, and any neighbours around you may either greet you with the most firm, reassuring smiles, or an outright aloofness to ignore anything you say. They’ll interject by telling you about the Harvest festivities, or make a comment about the weather. Some might sound snappish and dismissive. One thing’s for sure: everything feels tense.

But as the skies gradually shift to an overcast, one of your neighbours may gesture to the sky with another plasticky smile, commenting about the brightness of the sun. ‘It sure is bright today,’ they might say, the comment seemingly so off-handed. It’s casual, polite, and a little strained. ‘It’s got a far reach.’

It’s too bright to stare directly into the sun without damaging your eyes, but as you glance up just past it, you might notice that the sun looks a little … too close. And it doesn’t look a whole lot like a sun either, though it is bright but it looks like a large whitish sphere with a piercing, golden iris and it seems to be watching. This certainly wasn’t in the morning’s weather report.

6.0   As you continue to settle in Amaryllis Grove, you may begin to pick up on other strange things that you hadn’t noticed before – not surprising, considering the whirlwind of events that have taken place in such a short period of time and having to grow accustomed to the daily lives of the residents in Amaryllis Grove.

There are figures that resemble people scattered around town in all shapes, sizes, and races, replicated with excruciating detail, all the way down to their expressions and poses. In their everyday wear, they stoically fill in corners and take up empty spaces, and while it can’t possibly be true, their eyes seem to follow you as you move past them – even with the empty gazes of their glassy eyes. They’re made of metal and clad in something soft and pliable to make up their skin. Once you know what you’re looking for, they almost start to make themselves more visible to you. But if you study them for too long, you may begin to feel a little nauseous and queasy, and temporarily experience vertigo. Or you may start to have feelings of paranoia settle in, making you short-tempered and twitchy.

These figures can be found almost everywhere around the town, but they will mostly be populated in and around the residential blocks, looking as though they’re busily living their lives in passive background poses. They’re easy enough to miss if you aren’t sure what you’re looking for, and they’re so life-like you almost feel rude staring for too long, in case they turn their heads towards you.

And on the next night, you might catch the glimpse of a dark, stationary silhouette of a man in the Myrsdin house just before Mrs Myrsdin draws the curtains closed.

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F Y I

• The events in this log take place during the month of October.

• If you have questions about any of the prompts or the mission in general, please direct them HERE.

• To explore a specific location or speak to any of the NPCs, please submit your search request HERE.

• And finally, your soundtrack for this log: ♪ ♪ ♪

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▶ NAV

Comments

[morethan084]

One of us had to work the night shift last night.

[Daisy points out, and two guesses who that was.]

[oiorpata]

That sounds like a personal choice.

[ she finds herself grinning a little bit at this point. ]

But it's not like I'm kicking you up and at 'em.

[morethan084]

One that might help us gather information.

[Daisy points out, her eyes falling closed again.]

Good. Because if you were, you'd have to unwind yourself anyway.

[Not that she seems to mind. At the very least Andy is keeping her warm in the otherwise cold house.]

[oiorpata]

You still made it.

[ sometimes, often times, they really do argue like they're five. ]

I'm comfortable so you're stuck with me. Good night.

[ never mind that it is in fact morning, evidenced by daisy attempting to hide from the sun. to prove her point she simply snuggles in closer. ]

[morethan084]

[Daisy simply rolls her eyes at Andy’s come back.

And while she wanted to go back to sleep, she has a hard time doing so for a little bit. She’s been thinking a lot about how close they are to finding all of the orbs. How close they are to never seeing each other again.

Eventually she does fall back to sleep.]

[oiorpata]

[ luckily for andy she can't see the eyeroll!! ]

[ she dozes easily against daisy, perhaps more easily than if she'd been alone, and she definitely falls asleep first. she doesn't dislodge; if anything, andy winds herself around daisy even more, sleeping pretty soundly and comfortably, even completely encased in the blanket now. ]

[ maybe it's just a little easier to blot out everything else like this, for a little while. she'll still be passed out, whenever daisy wakes up next. ]

[morethan084]

[At some point the blanket is pulled down off their faces, and when Daisy finally wakes up the sun is shining brightly into their room. Groaning, she runs a hand over her face before realizing that Andy is still clinging to her.

And with that she's suddenly reminded again how little time they all have together. Carefully, Daisy tries to free herself from Andy's hold without waking her.]

[oiorpata]

[ as much as she appreciated the blanket cover, andy notoriously can sleep anywhere, so she sleeps right through the sun. ]

[ but she does stir when daisy moves, and despite the other woman's best efforts, andy only tightens her grip and buries her face against her. she is only barely awake, the words muffled and mumbled. ]

We don't need to get up yet. [ they probably should. did noah go to school?? a good suburban parent would probably know, right??? she would much rather just stay right here. ]

[morethan084]

[Daisy doesn’t try to stop her, at least not yet. Huffing out a tired laugh, she stares at the window.]

Says who?

[oiorpata]

[ andy finds herself smiling faintly. ]

Says me. And I know you trust my judgment.

[morethan084]

[Daisy smiles sadly at that before rolling onto her back, turning her head to look at Andy as the smile fades into a frown.]

I’ve been thinking a lot about what Degar said just before we left.

[oiorpata]

[ her arm stays lazily over daisy's waist, but her own expression falters too. ]

I've been trying not to.

[morethan084]

I know.

[Daisy says, eyes falling to the foot of their bed.]

But we probably should.

[oiorpata]

I don't want to. [ she sounds almost petulant, but there's a resistance to it that isn't really just simple stubbornness. ]

I know you're right. It's already in my head. But I still don't want to.

[morethan084]

[Daisy inhales deeply before slowly exhaling through her nose, bringing a hand up to rub the sleep from her eyes.

And to try and keep tears from forming.]

So we just pretend it’s not happening?

[Usually she’s good at keeping these sort of things compartmentalized, but she’s struggling.]

[oiorpata]

No. That's probably not a great idea either.

[ andy's never been one to run much from reality. or at least she tries not to be. ]

I'm just - I don't think I'm ready for this to be over. [ it's a quiet shame to admit it, because the sooner it's over, the sooner she can save quỳnh. but in the same breath there are people here she isn't ready to leave. ]

[ most of all perhaps daisy. ]

[morethan084]

[Staring up at the ceiling, Daisy feels a lump forming in her throat and she wordlessly reaches out to grab Andy’s hand.]

Me neither.

[Daisy says after she manages to swallow the knot in her throat.]

[oiorpata]

[ she takes daisy's hand easily, winding their fingers together with a tight undercurrent. she can hear the wobble in daisy's voice and tries to swallow the lump suddenly growing in her own. ]

[ andy loses people all the time. she outlives them. she should be used to it, but she never is. ]

I know it's meant to feel like success, that we made it, but I'm not much in the mood to celebrate.

[morethan084]

I know.

[Daisy squeezes Andy’s hand, finally looking over at her before her eyes advert to their hands.]

I don’t know what’s worse. Leaving here and not remembering-

[She can’t even finish that sentence, her voice getting caught in her throat.]

[oiorpata]

[ andy instinctively squeezes her hand in tandem, and it's only with great reluctance that she doesn't keep it that way. ]

[ she meets daisy's eyes and can feel her own welling quite suddenly. this is why she hadn't wanted to think about it, even though the reality is she couldn't quite get it out of her head anyway. ]

I don't want to forget any of it. [ and she is no stranger to that kind of loss, as daisy knows all too well. ] And I don't want to forget you.

Sometimes I think it would hurt more to remember, knowing I could never see anyone here again, but there's too much I want to hold on to, as long as I can.

[morethan084]

[Hot tears hit the side of her pillow at Andy’s words, lower lip trembling before she presses them together in a last ditch effort to stop from sobbing.]

I don’t want to forget you either.

[She admits after a moment, her gaze landing on Andy’s face.]

But we don’t really have a say either way.

[oiorpata]

[ she can't seem to bring herself to look away from daisy's face. ]

[ andy squeezes her hand again, feeling her heart drop as daisy cries, her own eyes threatening to spill over in the same fashion. her other hand reaches out to rest against daisy's cheek, wanting to offer a comfort she knows might be impossible. ]

Maybe it doesn't have to end the same. The previous crew forgot it all when they left... but we saw how it ended. It wasn't supposed to go that way.

[morethan084]

[More tears fall down her cheeks when Andy offers her comfort, but she manages to keep from sobbing.

For now.]

I was thinking, what if we write letters to ourselves? Of our time here, of the people we met. They can't stop us from doing that, right?

[oiorpata]

[ andy feels like she's going to burst in kind, but she strives to hold it in like daisy is. she keeps her hand as is, drawing her own comfort from it too. ]

I like that. Maybe it'll be like a mission, where anything on our person just comes back with us.

[morethan084]

I hope so.

[She wishes she could just pretend like this isn’t eating away at her, but she appreciates the fact that she feels safe enough to be vulnerable around Andy too.]

We’re going to need a lot of paper.

[Daisy says after a moment, a sad smile on her face.]