TDM #4 - Aurora Borealis Bust? [REPRINT]

[pumpkinhollow]

Pumpkin Hollow Gazette February Issue

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Pumpkin Hollow Gazette

2/8/24 | TDM #4 - AURORA BOREALIS BLITZ BUST? Content Warnings: "Further Details" section has independent CW labels.
Forecast: SEVERE BLIZZARD WARNING

REBUILDING HELP REQUESTED

By Cecil Gershwin Palmer

A photo taken of the damage.

ACROSS PUMPKIN HOLLOW - City government is requesting aid with repairs to public buildings and local fixtures after the recent earthquakes on Tuesday, January 8th. While there was minimal damage to Town Hall itself, several important buildings sustained damage, including the Magpie National Bank, the South Train Station and the Clock Tower, which is now stuck with hands at 8pm.

Regarding the cause of the earthquake, local biologist Dr. Elias Coldwood was heard to say “There's never been seismic activity here.” And he’s a scientist, so he would know! But clearly this is no longer the case. Perhaps Pumpkin Hollow has a mysterious tiny civilization underground worshiping a destroyer god, planning to attack through the bowling alley, the moment we create a bowling alley. Perhaps not. More on this story as it unfolds, faithful readers.

In the meantime, volunteers to help with the damage to city buildings are invited to meet with Mayor Hellen Poe for assignments.

AURORA TURNS VIOLENT - MYSTERIOUS BLIZZARD INTERRUPTS CHAOS

By Yorick Aberdeen

An artist's rendition of last year's view.

ABOVE MARROW ISLE - Despite our earlier report, it turns out that this year's annual aurora borealis season did not turn out to be a pleasant or romantic viewing experience. Instead, starry monsters based off of classic constellations have been attacking the town each time the aurora is in the sky! However, due to some extreme blizzards that have been occurring most nights each month since late January, the aurora has been interrupted more nights than not and the monsters intercepted. Still, the Pumpkin Hollow Safety Board would like to remind everyone to take appropriate precautions during inclement weather, and to tread carefully on clear nights as monsters may still be attacking until late February!

HOROSCOPES

By Cecil Gershwin Palmer

What do the stars say about you today?

Capricorn: Do you feel as if you’ve lost something? If not, it’s wise to double-check. Perhaps it’s not something like a button or a key, but your sense of wonder or your self-confidence. Remember, things tend to be in the last place you look.

Aquarius: Something about the year ending made you feel lighter, like taking off a heavy wool coat. Ride this burst of energy as far as it will take you, because the shiny of a fresh beginning tends to wear off quickly.

Pisces: Don’t worry, I don’t believe what everyone says behind your back. You’re not too sensitive or too naive. They’re just jealous. Really, most of the time when they’re whispering, it’s not even about you.

Aries: You’re the sort of warm individual that babies and animals are drawn to. Unfortunately, this may include hungry wolves and swarms of insects. But don’t let that bring you down! We need that sort of personality around here.

Taurus: There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be the best, until you work to stop others from also being the best. That’s called cheating and may lead to you being disqualified from competitions. If you get caught, that is.

Gemini: You know those riddles about the two guards, one who always tells the truth and one who always lies? Well, everyone hates those riddles with a passion. You’ll see for yourself, soon.

Cancer: Wouldn’t you like to know?

Leo: Your incandescent personality often makes you the center of attention. However, that’s not the only thing about you that glows. Moths may flock to you in the dark this week, and so might children afraid to sleep with the lights out.

Virgo: Be careful with your words–they aren’t just the precursors to your deeds, but the manifestation of your will. This is not a week for idioms and metaphors, not for you. Even something like bemoaning a lack of spoons may make eating cereal harder.

Libra: You are, inevitably, the first one heard to say a situation isn’t fair. And it’s not, nor will it ever be. Instead of getting upset, have you ever considered getting revenge? That’s usually more satisfying in the long run.

Scorpio: Ugh, Scorpios. The position of Venus means your usually volatile emotions will be in the doldrums instead. Enjoy this while it lasts I guess. Who knows if you’ll ever experience such peace again, given, well. You’re kind of an emotional mess and no one likes you.

Sagittarius: There will never be another day like today. You must strive to make the day everything you want it to be. No mistakes, now! Consider your choices very carefully. Consider your choice to consider, very carefully.

SUNFIRE'S HEARTH

By Yorick Aberdeen

A photo of Mayor Poe's cats, Toffee and Butter, enjoying the view.

ASSORTED LOCATIONS - As the coldest part of the year settles over our fair isle, it is time for Sunfire’s Hearth--- an informal celebration of bonfires and hearth flames, for those unfamiliar! For the months of January and February, a raised platform for bonfires will be lit on weekends, and restaurants and taverns across town will keep their fireplaces lit. Unlike many of our other festivities, there is no structured celebration--- simply make some time during this time to bask in the warmth of a fire! You can even celebrate at home.

An additional benefit of this time of year is that Merrymeet is well on its way. So take this time and get snuggly in front of a fire with your special person to get in the mood for romance! (Or they could be platonic snuggles. Whatever suits you best.)

LOCAL ALCHEMIST REPORTS MISSING POTION

By Yorick Aberdeen

Some of Mx. Sallek's usual stock. Could stand to have better labels./p>

LOCATION UNCERTAIN - Early Monday morning, local alchemist Aeryn Sallek reported that a large container of magical potion has been swapped with another, and it would seem that the mistaken jug has been sent out for delivery. According to Mx. Sallek, they sent a number of jugs out for delivery in a case with our local delivery extraordinaire, Sam Porter Bridges. The jugs were meant to contain a harmless, potable freeze-resistance potion for our town’s various water sources, in the interest of keeping water reserves drinkable in sub-freezing winter weather. However, when they returned to the shop, one of these potions remained on their counter while a love potion they’d been working on went missing.

“‘Love potion’ is kind of a misnomer, honestly,” Mx. Sallek is quoted to have said on the matter. “But ‘emotional acuity’ potion doesn’t quite roll off the tongue. Basically what it actually does is enhance existing romantic desire and embolden the user to be emotionally open. But Yorick should already know all this, since he’s the one who ordered it.” [Editing note: don’t forget to cut the last part of that comment before publishing. Cecil, you don’t need to include personal statements directed at reporters from these interviews!]

It’s unclear which area of town this particular potion ended up being injected into the water source, but according to Mx. Sallek, the potion was not particularly intense to begin with. It should be significantly diluted as to be harmless. Still, if you notice any strange symptoms such as butterflies in your stomach, a desire to burst into song, or inexplicable yearning, please file a report with the Safety Board at your earliest convenience.

FOOD SHORTAGES PUT STRAIN ON ISLAND ECONOMY

By Yorick Aberdeen

MARKET DISTRICT - While there are many things to celebrate this time of year, Marrow Isle is not without its adversity. Over these past months, many new members of our community have arrived by ferry after our numbers remained small and stagnant for many years. And the presence of our newfound neighbors has been a boon to all of us. Many artisans have opened useful businesses, medical professionals have expanded our access to healthcare, and a new fishing vessel has taken to the seas. However, despite a few additions, our farming community remains quite modest and planting was not planned with such incredible new growth in mind.

The unfortunate result of this is that food reserves on the island this year are uncharacteristically low. As such, Town Council has made the difficult decision to allow for the temporary inflation of food prices and the rationing of food staples.

“We understand the hardship this will place on the residents of Pumpkin Hollow,” said Mayor Poe in a statement after this decision was made. “But please know that we are all in this together. We hope to be able to offer a better incentive package for those interested in farming in the coming springtime.”

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Further Details...

Aurora

The dead of winter sheds all colors of the trees and flowers across Marrow Isle, but tonight, there are no stark whites and grays and browns.

Tonight, in the sky sprawling with stars above the dreary town, there are lights.

Sprawling trails of violet and green twist and wave through the sky, brightening the earth below and the sea beyond Jack's Marina in magical colors. The return of the borealis is something many Pumpkin Hollowites look forward to, and their reactions are very clear: people scurry down to the shores to watch with wide eyes, many retrieve telescopes, and some even borrow the decks of ships, abandoned for the night at the docks, to watch the sights.

It doesn't take long for this to change, however; the sea nor land are safe from the curse, and it's made quickly apparent that the sky is no exception.

At first, the sight seems like none more than an illusion, perhaps someone blinking and missing a strange shift of the lights. A glimmering outline forms around a cluster of stars, only slightly harder than any of the lines that define the aurora's rays. Several of these shapes form, each array of stars different from the last, some larger, some smaller.

And then, the stars begin to fall.

Seeming to peel off the painted sky, the ebbing colors surrounding the starlight drop, crashing to the world below. Some fall to the streets and beaches, while others fall into the forest, leaving view, or drop into the sea, leaving splashes and waves in their wake that ensure any watching knows full and well that this is not a trick of the light. At first, these shapes are unmoving, glowing masses of aurora-light with stars shining brightly within them. Most townsfolk are uneasy, but this seems to pale in severity to the other disasters, even if they lack any idea of what it could mean for them.

That is, of course, until the masses begin to move.

Each one is as varied as the constellation it stole from the sky: stars form suggestions of skeletal structures, and their "flesh", only consisting of swimming lights and liquid sky that steals any lights around them. Two identical glowing shapes rise to a face finally taking form, and slowly, moving more like gel than animal as it rises to freshly-formed legs, it settles on the closest living thing it can find.

There is no calculation in it, nor what seems to be a glimmer of thought.

It simply lunges with intent to kill.

Horoscopes
[CW: Altered emotional states ]

Cecil’s disconcerting horoscopes have the following effects for the next few days:

• Capricorn: misplaced things, particularly small objects



• Aquarius: zoomies!



• Pisces: intense paranoia



• Aries: Disney princess-like magnetism to local fauna



• Taurus: insatiable perfectionism



• Gemini: reversed truth values; lies come out honest, being honest sounds like a lie.



• Cancer: Pandora-esque curiosity, to the point of personal detriment



• Leo: radiant glow emanating from your person



• Virgo: figurative speech is manifested into the world with its literal meaning



• Libra: a particularly potent desire for revenge



• Scorpio: numbing of emotions (can be counteracted by love potion, partially)



• Sagittarius: incapacitating indecision

(Don’t know your character’s sign? Feel free to just decide on one!)

Love Potion
[CW: Altered Emotional States ]

Unbeknownst to the townsfolk, the “love” potion ended up in the water supply of the Oak & Iron. As promised by Aeryn, it is thoroughly diluted, as its recipients believed it to be a normal freeze-resistance potion to be mixed with their water.

The effects are not particularly intense. However, anyone who drinks any of the tavern’s housemade ale or cider, drinks the coffee, or eats any food that might require water to cook will experience symptoms of “emotional acuity”. This involves feeling more emotionally open, more receptive to positive feelings about others, a strong desire for physical or verbal affection, and the intensification of romantic or sexual attraction that you might already be experiencing. It will last about half a day. Just in time to help potentially land you a date for Merrymeet, a flower and fertility festival in early spring!

Famine
[CW: Starvation and food scarcity ]

Food rationing and inflation will have the following impact:

Grocery budgets for apped-in characters will be reduced in their efficacy.
Basic groceries will be only the most minimal of staples. You will likely go hungry if you do not find a way to supplement this.
Bountiful groceries will be reduced to the amount of food normally contained in basic.
Lavish groceries will not be available at all.
Your grocery choices from Activity Check are not able to be modified for this month unless otherwise stated.

Bonuses and Discounts associated with the Farmer and Fisherman jobs are also reduced.
Level 1 bonuses will be reduced to standard, which is to say how they would function for a non-Farmer/Fisherman character during a normal, pre-famine month. (ex. Whereas normally a Level 1 Farmer would get free Basic groceries, they will now have to pay the 50 Brass, but do not have the efficacy of Basic groceries reduced as described above.)
Level 2 bonuses will be reduced to that of a Level 1 Farmer/Fisherman. (ex. Whereas a Level 2 Fisherman would normally be able to have Bountiful groceries discounted to 50 Brass, they now must pay full price for Bountiful groceries. However, they can still get Basic groceries for free and don’t suffer from the famine induced efficacy reduction for either budget.)

Oak & Iron Residents will only be able to receive bland, repetitive meals with their food vouchers consisting of simple broth, plain bread, bland potato dishes, and the like. It is enough to be fed and comfortable but it is incredibly unsatisfying. (This includes all new characters that are not apped-in.) Drinks, however, are still plentiful.

Characters who do not eat will find that their respective sources of fuel will be reduced to just barely enough to keep them functional, provided that they ration carefully. (Ex. Transformers may want to be less active. Vampires will find that victims cannot handle excessive blood loss without fainting and generally prefer to stay home.)

Characters who were present to fight the Mother Crab back in late summer and chose to can some of their crab can use it now!

Hunting, foraging, and fishing can help reduce the impact of these reductions, and people can share their food. You can absolutely die of starvation. After Merrymeet in February, food will return to normal.

Comments

[nothingbadeverhappensto]

"Yeah, that makes sense," Leon admits, following Bart out into the hall. "I get weird about people coming in to repair the wiring in my apartment - I don't imagine that's less of a thing for people whose wiring is in themselves."

It doesn't occur to Leon that he notably doesn't get weird about people - like Bart - trying to help him out with his injuries, but something about the idea of being a robot and having someone else get in there just sounds more intimate and risky to him. Maybe that's a fallacy, but he's not really thinking about it that hard.

[theresalwaystheview]

"I think perhaps it would be akin to an invasive surgery. Such things weren't exactly common in my time anymore, it was all done endoscopically by machines rather than by hand. I think perhaps I would be quite horrified, myself to require the same kind of intervention that seems to be required when self-repair protocols aren't adequate or favorable." Because he knows First Aid has mentioned something like that, the last time Bart expressed some worry about him.

I LOST THIS TAG sorry

[nothingbadeverhappensto]

Leon nods along with that, frowning thoughtfully. "Makes sense," he says. "And downgraded or not, that's probably still really complicated machinery keeping them going. Even if it weren't for the weirdness of it, it'd be hard to trust just anyone to try to fix that."

Pretty much like expecting someone who'd never seen a human before to do invasive surgery, like Bart said. Even if they were the best veterinary surgeon or whatever in the world beforehand, it'd be a hard sell for sure.

"Still. Hope they can trust someone around here to help put them back together if they come apart. It's hard trying to do everything by yourself."

it happens!

[theresalwaystheview]

A shadow passes over Bart's expression at that train of thought. "It doesn't seem like either of our local construct people can or want to trust anyone with such care. I can't really blame them, considering that they're both novel among the rest of the decidedly more organic people that populate this place. I've offered to learn for their sakes, but..." He shrugs a shoulder.

"In any case, I'll figure it out one way or another what I can do to help when they need it, just the same as I would anyone else." He gestures toward Leon's bandages as an example. "If you end up hurt again, I've taken up with Doctor Watson, and have been steadily teaching him everything that I know when it comes to biology and medical care. If you can't find me, I'm certain that he would be able to treat you just as well. Better, really, given he's got a lot more experience in the medical profession itself."

[nothingbadeverhappensto]

Leon hums softly, giving Bart a sympathetic look at the explanation of how the local constructs aren't willing to open up on the literal or figurative level.

"Yeah. Not much to do about that but try to be prepared as best you can. Thanks again, by the way. Sometimes it's easy to take having this kind of help for granted until you've had to patch yourself up in the field one too many times."

He huffs a little, expression going somewhere between a wry smile and a mild grimace. There's only so many times you can just slap chewed-up herb poultice on a wound and call it good in a row before you really start to miss going to the doctor.

"I'll be sure to follow up with either Dr. Watson or someone else in a couple of days. Sooner, if it doesn't seem to be getting better. You don't have to worry about me slacking off on wound care."

[theresalwaystheview]

Bart makes a soft sound and nods at the idea of having to take care of one's own wounds. It was something that he had become intimately familiar with, before his time here.

"I at least had the luxury of being taught emergency first aid by someone accustomed to trauma out in the field. You wouldn't believe the stories that came out of the woman that we traveled with before all this..."

At least with the reassurance that Leon would be keeping a decent eye on his wounds as they healed, Bart feels a bit better about leaving him on his own with that. The agreement for a follow-up is likewise comforting.

"Good, thank you for that. I can only hope that nothing else happens before you've managed to fully recover."

He might have just jinxed them...

[nothingbadeverhappensto]

"Yeah. Knock on wood," says Leon, idly tapping his knuckles against one of the wooden beams holding up the rafters above them. This will do absolutely nothing to prevent any of the incoming bullshit of the next two months, but it does make him feel slightly better in that way of indulging small superstitions.

"Anyway, you need any help getting home from here? Or are you still staying in the inn? I'd be happy to keep playing bodyguard if you need one."

All in a day's work, after all.

[theresalwaystheview]

While Bart doesn't necessarily know the superstition, he recognizes the act when he sees it, and the corner of his mouth quirks up in a small smile.

"While I wouldn't say no to an escort back home just in case, I don't want to put you in danger when I've only just gotten you patched back up. Perhaps a rain check for the next time disaster strikes." At the very least he sounds like he's joking...

[nothingbadeverhappensto]

"Yeah, it's probably a better idea if I don't go trying to fight anything else for a bit," Leon admits, glancing at his bandaged shoulder and frowning slightly. It's not that bad an injury, but it's the kind that could get a lot worse if he's not careful about how he moves. Sighing, he nods, before looking back up at Bart.

"Next time, though. I'll keep an eye out for you." He smiles. "For now, I think I'm gonna go lie down, though. It's later than I thought."

Time flies when the sky is falling, he guesses.

"You stay safe out there."

Wrap!

[theresalwaystheview]

"Thank you, please rest well and take care," Bart replies with a small smile, glancing toward the bandages and hoping privately that Leon actually would try and keep out of trouble. As much as he seems like a decent sort of guy, he would rather not meet Leon again just to patch up another wound.

He would be able to make his way home easily enough via the back paths. Leon wouldn't have to worry about him.