to lose all my senses —

[happyheartsstaff]

THAT IS JUST SO TYPICALLY ME

It's not clear how many days it's been since you arrived in Wonderland. With it stuck in perpetual twilight, it could have been days, perhaps longer — everything starts to blur together, in this artificially joyful place. Maybe you've started to feel like you you're getting used to it, maybe not...

But eventually, something happens to break the monotony. Your ears begin to ring, and ring, and ring and then — stop. The lights become blinding, forcing you to squeeze your eyes shut and try to rub the afterimage of all that light from them — but when you open your eyes, you still can't see.

The staff don't understand when you ask them what's happened to you. "You've always been like this", they insist. They sign at you, or try to hand you papers written in braille — if you insist you've never signed in your life, or that you can't read braille, they laugh at your funny joke. You begin to wonder — have you always been this way? You were so sure... But everyone around you is equally sure of their truth, and their voices are so much louder.

As if that weren't enough, nothing in the hotel can be found in the same place twice. All the shops keep switching places, once you enter one area it's as though everything shifts in the minutes before you leave again. Getting back to your room is a struggle — where are the elevators? Finding food is nearly impossible — the Pig & Pepper was there, but now it's not. The staff are equally useless here — they have no idea what you mean about moving shops. Where would you want to move to when all your needs are accounted for right here?

What is going on?

SEE NO EVIL, HEAR NO EVIL — 5/11

The day starts like any other has in the Hotel — unsure if a new day has started at all. Perpetual twilight and lack of clocks makes it difficult to tell time here in the Hotel, but on this particular day, something breaks up the monotony. It begins slowly — or else it happens all at once. Over the course of the day, all Oysters find themselves losing a sense. Staff don't understand their complaints — you've always been like this, they say, gentle, as though to a person in the middle of a break with reality.

Losing your temper won't help, either. Oysters who shout and yell will find staff remaining frustrating calm and compassionate, insisting that they cannot fix what has always been and murmuring about Mad March before taking their leave. Physical aggression may result in a spike of fear, but staff will quickly make their exit and may avoid that Oyster for a while.

If that wasn't enough, nothing in the Hotel is staying put.

IT'S LIKE A MAZE IN HERE — 5/11

The interior of the Hotel has ceased to remain stationary. Beginning at the same time as the loss of senses, the establishments of the Hotel begin to jump around, never staying in the same place twice. An Oyster may have entered the Pool of Tears from the lobby, but exit it into the middle of the casino. The Pig & Pepper Buffet is never in the same place twice, and always seems to move right when Oysters desperately need a meal.

Even as the old shops move, new establishments seem to be being added, but they aren't easy to find — Oysters will see a new sign across the building from where they are, only to see it's moved again by the time they get there. If you take your eyes off an establishment as you head toward it, it disappears and reappears elsewhere. Making it to the new establishments will take some time and dedication (or perhaps plain stubbornness), but there are rewards in it for any Oyster that can manage the feat!

Back To Rights — 5/15

A few days after the effects of the event begin, they just as suddenly end. Sight, hearing, speech — they all return in a rush, possibly overwhelmingly so, and when one tries to make their way to a shop, it stays exactly where it was when they first saw it, and they exit the exact same place they entered. Staff will react much the same way as they did when they were questioned after the loss of senses — you've always been like this.

You made it through, Oysters. You've completed your first event in the Hotel.

We hope you enjoy this first event, Oysters! If you have any questions, please leave them on the first comment to this page. Happy playing!

PREMISE RULES FAQ TAKEN RESERVES APPLICATION MOD CONTACT HIATUS & DROPS WORLD INFO NPCS CALENDAR AC REWARDS

© tessisamess

Comments

[stargazed]

[Mikumo already had her hearing dampened in coming here - her senses had been sharpened during her creation, and thus they were brought down to normal by her arrival in the hotel. That was troubling enough, but this is a reality she steadfastly doesn't want to be facing, and she's touching and cupping her ears with a strange, uncomfortable look on her face like she's wondering where to even start.

The movement of someone else nearby catches her attention, and she responds to that, but the words make her squint slightly, like she's trying to read his lips. She does know English and can pitch a guess at what he might've been trying to ask, but she speaks automatically before the oddity of the situation catches up to her.]

I can't-- [Though she says it clearly enough that it might be possible to read her lips, she pauses, then shakes her head as if she's an idiot and pulls out her Empathy, tapping on the screen quickly before turning it towards him.]

I can't. You too?

[Though her expression is overall calm, like she's trying to work through this logically despite how much she clearly dislikes it, there's an almost hopeful air to her expression as she shows the message. Selfish as it is, if it's not just her, then it's something more broadly wrong and they might be able to do something about it.]

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Judging by her reaction, Sam already kind of figures the answer is no even before she confirms it, and damn. He lets out a frustrated breath of air, then pulls it back in and out once again, this time keeping it even and measured. It's not going to help anyone if he gets worked up about this.

He doesn't begrudge her the hint of hopefulness in her expression - there's a bit of relief in his own as he quirks a little smile before taking to tapping out on his own Empathy. ]

I was kind of worried it was just me. Not that knowing this place can do something like this is all that better, but at least it's a start. It just happen for you, too?

[ Maybe the timeline doesn't matter - hell, maybe trying to figure out how in a place that's already been shown to be capable of doing some high tech and/or magic level shit is a pointless endeavor, but he can't help trying to figure it out a little anyway. ]

[stargazed]

[Mikumo's expression relaxes more at his answer - she still looks a bit on-edge, but that's because this is something of a personal issue for her. It'll take her some getting used to, but in the meantime, it's nice to feel more like she's getting some answers together even just by talking to someone.

Her eyes flick over his message quickly, and she nods at the question so it gets a quick answer as she types out a fuller message.]

My hearing hasn't been as good since I arrived, but it was better than average in my world, so that might be why. This complete disappearance only just happened now. Do you think it's all the "oysters"?

[She doesn't really like that term, but it seems like the easiest collective way to refer to the people who came here from other worlds. If things like this are going to happen to them, though, maybe that has something to do with why they'd use that kind of term. Something to be broken open to get at the precious things inside.]

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Better than average.

Normally, that'd only just barely catch his attention - that was true for half his friends back home, after all - but the fact that it's in line with what he saw with Aziraphale and what he and Wei Wuxian talked about makes it register a lot more. ]

I've met others who had that happen to them, too. Leads me to think it might be all of us. Either they like messing with a bunch of us at once, or they were always planning this and brought everyone down to the same level at first.

[ Which is an incredibly unsettling thought, and probably the only ones who can really tell them are the staff. He starts to hold it out for her to read, then hesitates and adds one more thing before showing her. ]

You want to go try and find out some answers?

[stargazed]

[Mikumo hadn't gotten that far in a lot of her initial talks with people, but it's useful to know as a reference that it's not just her. The idea of bringing them down to an equal level does make sense, on a practical level - if it's possible for them to do, why not make them easier to deal with?

With that unpleasant idea in mind, Mikumo taps out an answer to that question.]

I'd prefer that to doing nothing. Assuming the staff will cooperate, but I suppose we'll see. Two should be better than one for holding our own ground.

[It's a few moments after she shows that message that she remembers she should probably add one more thing, which she does once it looks like he's read what's there already.]

My name is Mikumo Guynemer, by the way.

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Sam gives a small chuckle that'd probably be half just a noise of frustration if either of them could hear it, when he reads her comment about the staff. That's exactly what'd been on his mind, too - none of them have been all that helpful so far when it came to their kidnapping here.

He's semi prepared for them to just be stonewalled with the staff insisting that they have no idea why this is happening or how to stop it. ]

Sam Wilson. I'd say it's good to meet you, but...

[ He doesn't finish that statement, instead just giving a little shrug as he shows it to her, gesturing around them to indicate, well. Anything. ]

[stargazed]

[Mikumo gives an understanding sort of smile at that, halfway between amused and dry. She's been in ostensibly worse situations, but the fact that this is ranking at all when the setting itself is pleasant enough speaks for itself, as far as she's concerned.]

I've performed in some terrible places, but this one is threatening to rank depending on how this goes.

[Turning her head to look over the area, quick and pointed like someone scanning for obstacles or enemies, she points out a couple of staff members a fair way down the hall. They seem to be pushing a housekeeping trolley through an intersecting hall, and she wonders how blatantly audible they would have been in other circumstances.]

Should we try them first?

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ That gets a smile from him as well as he tips his head in agreement. Sam has definitely seen worse, but considering they haven't been here all that long and are already having to put up with shit, this is starting to be a contender.

Under different circumstances, Sam'd be curious at the mention of performing. Really, he still is, but now is not the time to ask, so he saves it away for later, when they might hopefully get a chance to talk without all of this going on.

Instead, he nods when she points out the staff members down the hall - he hadn't heard them coming, which should have been obvious, but it's just enough of a reminder to get his defenses up a little. And enough for him to be even more grateful he's not alone as he starts towards them. ]

Hey - weird question, but you guys still hear us?

[stargazed]

[Mikumo can't hear the question herself, but she waits for the reaction of the staff before she does anything further. The staff do respond...but it's in ASL, which might help one of them, but Mikumo was never really expected to need sign language and thus has absolutely no knowledge of it.

The signed response is basically just an affirmative, but the staff look very confused, and it's followed up a moment later by a return question of whether there's something wrong.

Mikumo watches the whole thing somewhat blankly, like she's never actually seen this before - she's seen signs used in a military context, but not actual sign language. Considering she was engineered to know most languages she'd encounter commonly in her work, it's not a familiar experience for her.]

If I'm supposed to know what that meant, then I'm afraid you're very much mistaken.

[sizeofyourbaggage]

[ Not the whole hotel, then, considering the staff can still hear. The fact that the staff immediately start signing instead of responding verbally sets off a couple of alarm bells - he hadn't said they couldn't hear, why sign at them?

Instead of responding to the staff, he immediately types out something to Mikumo - he might have just met her, but he still trusts her more than the staff at this point. ]

They're asking if something's wrong, why we aren't using sign language. They gotta know more than they're letting on, it's like they already expected us not to be able to hear.

Look, can you just write it down, please? What happened to our hearing?

[ The staff look even more confused than before, but one of them obediently pulls out a small notebook and writes that they don't know. ]

[stargazed]

[Mikumo reads over the message quickly - she'd rather not be left out of the loop, even if the loop in this case doesn't provide too much extra information. The expectation that they should know sign language makes her eyes narrow, and she nods visibly as she reads that last line, because that's the conclusion she would've drawn as well.

Writing it down does make it much easier for her, and she leans slightly forward to read the staff's message. With her previously sharper eyesight taken away, she's had a bit of a tendency to overcompensate here while getting used to it.]

How can you not know when we woke up like this? This is your hotel, it's an awfully large oversight to let something like this happen to your guests.

[Almost as soon as she says that, the message is amended by the staff - to read that they don't know because they've always been like this.

Mikumo quickly taps out a message with one hand and shows it to Sam.] They couldn't maintain a lie like that without knowing in advance. This is some kind of setup.