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lesmodsalouette) wrote2025-03-16 03:54 am
lesmodsalouette) wrote2025-03-16 03:54 am
Graveyard
Graveyard
The garden is still sprawling and green – despite having entirely lost all its riotous flowers and colors, along with any sign of wildlife or birdsong – though one thing stands out more than anything else: from Monday to Thursday, you can’t see the castle anymore. All that remains where it once stood (or perhaps, usually stands) is an incongruously large tree that towers over everything else and somehow looks larger and more imposing than the castle ever did. The tree’s branches are bare, without any hint of life nor leaf – however, on the weekends (that is to say, Friday through Sunday) a faint projection of the castle appears around it, cradling the only things that the denizens of this alternate garden can see in detail from the other side: the flurry of activity around the investigation, the circus-like dimension that holds the trial, and the mirrors and the grassy dimension that display the execution.
For those curious what the land of the living are up to, a mirage-like and upside-down reflection of the castle garden in its original arrangement can be spotted occasionally overlaying the sky. This strange illusion may sometimes show those in the garden on the other side, flitting in and out of view like stray clouds; but much like the weather, their appearance is mercurial – they cannot be reached and cannot be heard.
Water, Flower, Everywhere
The fountains remain active somehow, though their features seem to have eroded, obscuring the identities of the deities and the wings of the birds, cracking pottery down into nothing but worn shards and handles. At night, only maybe half the lights work (and here they are real candlelight, rather than magical), plunging most of the garden into crepuscular darkness. The trellis walkway looks quite overgrown (mysteriously, bamboo is taking over), entirely covering some statues and other features along its length, and it’s no longer walkable – a miniature canal runs the whole length underneath the arches, feeding into other new waterways around the garden that cut off footpaths seemingly at random. There are small footbridges here and there, but the lack of logic to the whole arrangement makes falling into one of the streams or canals a real hazard.
The waterways do all manage to converge at the pond by the pavilion – neither of which are all that soothing or classical anymore. The pond is only half-full, and entirely lacks water lilies or any dragonflies; its banks sit jagged above the dark waters, and perhaps that’s why the pavilion, too, is half collapsed down into it all. Gone are the curtains and ivies; only dead curling vines and half-collapsed columns are left, but there’s still someplace to sit if you put your mind to it.
Most of the flowerbeds sit fallow or overtaken by weeds – there’s signs here and there that someone might have tried to clear them out, but the bulk of the effort seems to have gone to the orchard by the gardener’s cottage. It might be more accurate to say cottages, given that there are a few of them dotted around that area for some reason. None of them are locked, but all of them have only minimal furnishings apart from the original; they’re also all provided with the full complement of gardener’s tools. Next to them, there are new saplings and half-grown flowering trees: some pear and apple, but also some not. There are new shoots in the kitchen orchard that have just barely taken root, the dirt recently turned.
The waterways do all manage to converge at the pond by the pavilion – neither of which are all that soothing or classical anymore. The pond is only half-full, and entirely lacks water lilies or any dragonflies; its banks sit jagged above the dark waters, and perhaps that’s why the pavilion, too, is half collapsed down into it all. Gone are the curtains and ivies; only dead curling vines and half-collapsed columns are left, but there’s still someplace to sit if you put your mind to it.
Most of the flowerbeds sit fallow or overtaken by weeds – there’s signs here and there that someone might have tried to clear them out, but the bulk of the effort seems to have gone to the orchard by the gardener’s cottage. It might be more accurate to say cottages, given that there are a few of them dotted around that area for some reason. None of them are locked, but all of them have only minimal furnishings apart from the original; they’re also all provided with the full complement of gardener’s tools. Next to them, there are new saplings and half-grown flowering trees: some pear and apple, but also some not. There are new shoots in the kitchen orchard that have just barely taken root, the dirt recently turned.
Hedge Maze(?)
The other most eye-catching feature is what once was an ornamental hedge maze: instead of being a tame height here, it has seemingly grown wild and completely unchecked, towering above the rest of the garden almost like its own overgrown mountain. The hedge walls go up and up and up, making it entirely impossible to see the center or even how far it goes despite the fact that sections of the hedges have also died, reduced to the branches underneath, bristling with interlocked thorns.
Part of it had even spilled over into the garden itself, huge gnarled branches spreading out like burnt-blackened fingers all the way to the edge of the pond – wherever the branches touch, even the greenery is withered, and any statues look more ruined than those in the rest of the area. As of the end of Week 3, however, the branches have retracted entirely and the way into the hedge maze has opened even more. However, there is now a storm brewing over what might be the center or the general area of it. Getting close to the hedge maze or any of the hedge(?) branches is... unpleasant, though it doesn’t usually go beyond a buzz of wrongness and a slight headache.
Part of it had even spilled over into the garden itself, huge gnarled branches spreading out like burnt-blackened fingers all the way to the edge of the pond – wherever the branches touch, even the greenery is withered, and any statues look more ruined than those in the rest of the area. As of the end of Week 3, however, the branches have retracted entirely and the way into the hedge maze has opened even more. However, there is now a storm brewing over what might be the center or the general area of it. Getting close to the hedge maze or any of the hedge(?) branches is... unpleasant, though it doesn’t usually go beyond a buzz of wrongness and a slight headache.
andy and the hickster
[She's only kidding, probably though she lets that linger in the air for a few moments, her smile as sharp as the garden spade she's using in place of her typical thin dagger. She's also smashed a teacup (sorry Manba) and has the sharded handle in case of emergencies.]
... Since I've made my commitment to the living, I'd better make sure nothing gets through into the garden. We don't want a repeat of yesterday, do we?
no subject
Free? Not a chance—though if you manage to get the jump on me, I won't hold it against you. How's that?
[ He twirls the hatchet he's carrying in his hand. He's more of a knife guy, but something more substantial seemed fitting for this little maze adventure. Besides, he's got a paring knife tucked into his belt, should he need to keep his options open. ]
Are you suggesting the three of us play defense while the others confront the maze proper?
no subject
[She's got a fire poker that wasn't present in the first tag because I didn't know such a thing was possible. Fuck yeah! Andrew glances down the two split sides of the hedge row and then then straight down the crackling, miasmatic middle.]
You can go as deep as you want, but anything getting out will only spread its filth around outside the crack.
& Shiv
[Shiv is keeping her garden shears as a closehand weapon for emergencies, but she's also gotten a fire poker since realistically, she does not want to be getting up close and personally with whatever monsters might be lurking in here, spirit or not.]
Don't love our chances holding the line with brute force. Ambush tactics, maybe. Stick to the edges and get the jump on any little toy soldier that try to sneak to the entrance.
no subject
Just softened a little by the still-present garden at their backs.
Eventually, though, a straggler stumbles out of a more destroyed part of the maze, blinking in the sudden no-longer-as-stormy light. It looks like a younger girl, maybe around Andrew's age. For a split second, she almost looks like she's merely gotten lost -- and then she raises the metal bucket at her side, and pulls out a brick.
It doesn't seem like she should be able to attack and carry the bucket at the same time, the way it yanks on her arm when she moves, but they can see the whites of her eyes and the flecks of spittle on her bared teeth as she closes in fast (15). Her attack is almost in the same movement, bringing the brick down on the nearest person with the full force of her hurtling body.]
no subject
Ambush tactics. In that case, we're better suited just inside the maze than out here in plain sight.
[ Plus, he kind of wants to see what's in there...
That might change momentarily, though. The girl staggers out of the maze and Hickey frowns, watching, hatchet at the ready—but he's not expecting her to come at them so quickly. ]
Christ—
[ The stupid flower petals got in his eyes!!!! will be his excuse later if anyone brings up how pathetic he looks getting bricked by a teenage(?) girl. He tries to sidestep her, but the brick connects with his shoulder and he lets out a grunt.
So, no hatchet-swinging for now, but instead he'll try to get behind her and wrap his arms around her middle to stop her advancing on his companions. Don't say he never did nothing for you, ladies. ]
Stab her!
a little violence-related gore here.
[Andrew must be so used to being in a body not operating at full capacity that this new spiritual form and all its power is surprisingly adept for her. She gets out of the way of the brick swing quickly and takes a hard, respectable jab of that trusty fire poker (18) right toward where the monster's jaw meets its throat. If it strikes true and the force of the pierce is enough, it might just narrowly miss Hickey on the exit.
While trying to dislodge the poker from their opponent, she steals a glance toward the cracked hedgerow, looking for any other vermin that are trying to run from the miasma inside.]
no subject
[Shiv instinctively swings the fire poker defensively and collides with the brick, a loud clang ringing out throughout the hedge maze. Given she rolled a 1 to retaliate, though, it falls to the ground with the sharp part horrifically bent.]
What the fuck am I doing here? I'm not a soldier. I went to fucking Yale.
cw: gore
Instead, what they have is an enraged, screaming girl transfixed on a poker at point blank range. Somehow, she still hasn't let go of her bucket.
And she has not run out of bricks.
So instead of going limp or losing strength, the girl convulses in a full body movement to bring the bucket of definitely several more bricks up to try and catch whoever is in reach (17).]
no subject
Gah— Watch it! For Christ's sake—
[ There's your free hit, girlie.
The monster in his arms swings with her bucket, and as her balance shifts with the motion, Hickey wrenches her backward and up, hoping to rip her off of the fire poker (19). The weapon should do more damage on the exit, provided Andrew can hold onto it and evade the bucket. ]
You're a soldier now, Shiv. Buck up.
VIOLENCE!! and some gore desc
Was it intentional? Prrrrrrrrrobably? Not? But there is a grim, dark sharpness to her face that makes it look a little older, more severe. She has seen a little too much cruelty not to have been marred by it in some way.
She steps back (15) as the bricks come down and the Hickey withdraws, keeping her hold on the dislodging poker and its wicked hook the entire time (15)]
Siobhan. [Coldly.] Keep it from doing that again. [GO FOR THE WRIST GIRLIE.}
no subject
Haha...yeah! Fuck off, scraggly little cu--
[Then the girl swings her brick bucket, causing Shiv to fall on her ass in her attempt to dodge (4), just barely evading a more horrific concussion.]
cw: gore
Of course, the poker being yanked out is quite a lot more bloody than it being shoved in -- tearing through muscle and sinew and tendons, veins, splashing everything out onto the flowers. The girl wilts after that, finally spent... but not before her wrist, wrecked by Shiv's quick slice, causes her to let go of the bucket of bricks entirely. Everything goes sailing through the air to clatter and roll to the ground not far away.
??? is dead.]
cw: gore
That's one.
[ And he expects there will be more. He bends to pick up his hatchet that he surely dropped after the bricking earlier, and then inspects the damage to his shoulders. The gouge left by the poker looks more like a gunshot wound than a stab, but despite the blood blooming around the hole, the pain is tolerable. Biting, but tolerable. Huh. Manba wasn't kidding about that enhanced durability.
His other shoulder is surely gonna have a nasty bruise later, but that's a problem for later. He shakes it off, rolling his neck to loosen up. This might actually be fun. ]
I maintain that we're better off moving into the maze. We can't get the jump from out here. Shall we?
[ He nods to the entrance, but sorry team he's already heading inside.
(is this move entirely so mippins can have her dramatic rain aesthetic MAYBE........) ]
no subject
[hm maybe she is more emotionally attached to the alive people than she keeps saying she is. surely that is ok.
Weathering the rain would have been a problem if she were still alive, too, but stepping into the storm now is far less of a problem. She runs her thumb along the bloodied poker and whips some of the excess off. They can proceed straight inward
But as they proceed she will keep vigilantly checking toward the open swath of hedgmaze near the cracked entrance to see if any stragglers are trying to run out into the garden. She will remain attentive throughout.]
no subject
Yeah. One of the sword guys can handle the stragglers. Cut the rot off at the fucking head, right?
[She hates this, but she has her own deal to hold up regardless of what her thoughts on the people outside are.]
no subject
He's easy to spot, with a large colorful pennant on a pole propped against his shoulder, his gait spidery and his posture bent. He really seems like some kind of insect scuttling about with a burden much too large for him.
And yet, when he spots them, his mouth opens with a bizarre, continuous high pitched noise -- he lowers the pennant, sweeping it in a horizontal arc to point it at them.]
no subject
It presents a readily obvious problem, though: it's range. ]
We'll need to disarm him.
[ He says it quietly. How they're going to do that is the real question... He raises his hatchet, takes a moment to aim, and hurls it as hard as he can—right as the man lets out that horrifying screech. It throws Hickey off, and the hatchet goes whizzing past the man's head and into the hedges behind him (4).
He grunts in irritation, but hey maybe it'll distract the guy? ]
no subject
If someone here had more than one in their possession, they could at least temporarily loan him one to assist in the battle.
Anyway, Andrew will bank on that distraction (unfortunately, a tactic she herself might use under different circumstances) to close the distance between the group and Spiders Georg over there. The fire poker comes up to meet the pennant (11), but either due to the short-livedness of the distraction or the unsettling nature of the opponent, she probably won't be able to manage more than a weak clash-and parry, the weapons briefly locked and Andrew not rooted enough to possibly be caught on her back foot a moment later.]
This one's fast. It doesn't even seem human.
no subject
...
The swing of the pennant startles Shiv, and she swings her broken fire poker in defense (2). The blow causes the sharp part to fly off completely, essentially leaving Shiv with a dumb metal stick.]
Fucking hell, what is this thing? Fucking knock it over!
no subject
So a moment later he's back to focusing on them, though it gives Andrew time to get up close and lock her poker against the pennant -- it throws the man off balance slightly (7) so that Shiv doesn't get a follow-up attack to her gaffe. The fire poker part also vanishes into the hedges.
Somewhere there are two weapon/weapon parts just yeeting off.]
no subject
He's not deterred, though. With the pennant locked by Andrew's fire poker, Hickey charges the man—somehow missing his jab with the knife (4) and then just... it's the rain!!! The rain aesthetic has betrayed him!!!
So he loses his balance as he slips in the mud (1), careening headfirst into the bush his hatchet disappeared into.
see you space cowboy. ]
no subject
Andrew is here, "blades" locked with the shambling old man, watching each step of this play out. Though she struggles and the ground is slippery with rain, she manages to maintain the lock (14). The kick she launches at his side, on the other hand, kind of sucks (11). She's still a young and unathletic lady wearing a floor-length dress, regardless of heightened senses and ability.
She's not sure any of them deserve this curse of immortality they've been burdened with (Shiv gets a pass for dealing around it).]
Stab! This! Old! Codger! Until he stops moving!
[Otherwise she has that secret goof 17 in her back pocket, and I'm not afraid to use it narratively!]
no subject
Take that! You crusty-dicked fuck!
cw: mild gore
As Hickey goes sliding away into the bush after his hatchet, the spidery old man half-turns around again, a sharp quizzical noise tumbling from his lips to go with the quizzical movement. Apparently this guy is easily distracted, so it helps Andrew keep her footing and helps give a nice, wide opening for Shiv to come shivving in with her shears.
GYAAAAAHHHHKKK, or some variation of death-rattling noise is punched out of the man when those shears go right into his chest with crunch and a crack; he's thrown backwards, which is probably a good thing because he's thrashing wildly with the pennant now, turning this into the worst color guard rehearsal in the history of the universe.
Hope the girls are doing well ducking in the meantime!
His movements eventually slow, then stop, the pennant slumping over him like a shroud.
??? is dead.]
(no subject)