ximilialog | MISSION: THE SUN NEVER SETS ON AMARYLLIS GROVE

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MISSION: THE SUN NEVER SETS ON AMARYLLIS GROVE

● ● ● 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

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It wasn't so bad.

[In that it was nice. But also taking a day off of focusing on the mission was torture.

Maybe a sign she should do it more often.]

In that case, sit on the couch and wait while I grab a couple of beers.

You sure? Not sure I could do that.

[ That gets a genuine laugh out of Bucky, though it's quick. ]

I don't think it works like that. [ So he says, but Bucky can feel his body tense up, his legs want to rise and do exactly the opposite. He fidgets his feet as he forces himself to stay in place. ]

I'm pretty sure it works exactly like that.

[She's speaking from experience here. Spa experience.

A few moments later she appears with two bottles of beer and a large bowl of popcorn.]

You're going to have to share.

[ Seeing as Bucky is more interested in the beer. ] Not a problem. We can share.

[ He reaches for the beer still looking a little puzzled. At least the desire to get up and go against her words is gone, now that Natasha's returned. Most people say thank you, but he's not there, yet. ]

[Natasha tucks her feet under her on the couch, taking a handful of popcorn from the bowl, which she sets comfortably between them.

Her eyes fix forward. If she thinks he's being rude, she doesn't comment on it.]

See? We're getting along just fine.

[ They're both probably used to manners getting tossed out. ]

[ Bucky drinks the beer before he finally dips a hand in to take some. ]

For now. [ He had been right in trusting her with the order mission, though, and that is probably the weirdest realization for him. Well, the first one went okay. He'll see how the the rest of the 24 hours plays out.v]

Naturally.

[Natasha isn't going to declare mission accomplished ten minutes into this.]

That's how it usually works, though, right? You keep on for now-ing until for now turns into back then.

[ He lets out a sigh to that, then gives a crooked smile. ]

That's one way of putting it. [ Bucky's trying to agree, honestly. ]

[ He knocks back the beer again. ] Not terrible.

I wish I could take credit for the taste.

[Unfortunately, she very much can't. Even if she bought them, it was just based on the label and the price point.]

If you like it, you should get another though. There's plenty in the fridge.

[ She still picked wisely. ] Good choice.

I'm going to have to. [ Before he's even touched the popcorn again, Bucky downs the rest of the beer. ]

Want another one?

Please. I'm planning on polishing this one off.

[Natasha takes another big handful of popcorn, watching him out of the corner of her eye as she munches.]

Nothing else going on tonight.

[ He brings back one for her, one for him and this time, as Bucky settles back down, he takes a hand full of popcorn. ]

Same. [ Bucky shrugs. ] Things can't always happen, I guess.

[ He's too used to it, the constant things happening, something right after another. It's almost odd, uncomfortable. ]

If it makes you feel better, you can think of it as part of our cover. It would be suspicious if we claimed to be married and never spent any time on our own.

[It had been a feature of Natasha's time in Ohio. Part of Natasha and Yelena's whole purpose, selling the backstory.]

[ Bucky chews slowly as he considers that. Him not sleeping in the bed might not help a lot with that, huh? He vows to try to at least manage one fill night in there. ]

Right. But married couples do other stuff. [ He feels his face warm. Look, he used to do "other stuff" a lot, but it's been a while. A long while. He can probably fake it, though. ]

[She does look at him then, turning her head, brows rosed pointedly.]

Married couples do a lot of things when they have some privacy. What they do with that privacy isn't really anyone else's business.

[ Tension seems to ease out of him at Natasha's words. ]

Good point. [ That makes this all the easier. ]

[ He lifts his beer and empties yet the second one. ] You want another one?

Maybe after I finish the first.

[She does take a healthy swig after that, not trying to catch up so much as not embarrass herself.]

If I tell you to relax, will it do any good?

[ Bucky rubs his face, before he answers, and gives a morbid chuckle. Was it that obvious this whole thing put him on edge? From day one. ]

Is that an order?

Well, I don't want to tank your changes when you were doing so well.

[Wryly, somewhat self-deprecating almost.]

Let's say, the order is to try.

Was I? [ Even he knows he's not doing that well. Better than he would have done about a year ago, though. ]

[ Bucky gives a light cant of his head and raises his beer. ] Trying, then.

I thought so.

[Natasha shrugs, her attention returning to the movie she's only vaguely watching, a bit of noise in the background.]

How are you getting on with SecUnit?

She [ Bucky still thinks of it as a she, calling Murderbot an it doesn't seem right ] cares in a way I understand.

[ That's one way of putting it. ] Relatable.

You?

Relatable is a word for it.

[Based on Natasha's limited experience. But based on that experience, she can't help but feel protective of it.

That might not be the most reasonable reaction to have to a cyborg that's shown it can outpace her physically with ease, but not everything people need protection from is a physical threat.]

I think I like them.

[ There's a nod from Bucky to agree, but his eyes look away from Natasha, not wanting to expand further on that. ]

Them, not she? [ Bucky likes that so much better than 'it'. 'It' feels rude. Like SecUnit is a thing, or tool, not someone who seems capable of thinking for themselves. ]

If they don't mind she, then she's probably fine. They use it, but...

[Natasha shrugs. Mostly she just tries to roll with things.

She agrees it's a little hard. Dehumanizing.

But SecUnit doesn't seem to like to be thought of as human.]

I'm not here to police anyone.

● ● ● M I S S I O N 1 7 . 1

F Y I

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