forum House of Chaos (RP as your characters, everyone is welcome)

Started September 10, 2020 by @bluebee55

tune

Mashka, having discovered that there had been no damage done to the house, sighed, relieved, and turned to the newcomers, unsure of how to address them.

There were about half a dozen people in the foyer, some joking, others seemed to be arguing. Putting his knife back in its sheath Arwood walked inside and stood off to one side, looking about the room, nothing.
Would this vision ever come to an end? Taking a deep breath Arwood inclined his head in greeting.
“Welcome, to the mansion with no escape.” He smiled thinly but the ice blue eyes held no humor.

Willow's arms fell to her sides and she checked to make sure her sword was still there. It was. Good, she hoped she wouldn't have to use it, especially since there was nowhere to run to if she did. Maybe she could hide? She didn't really know much about houses, did they have hiding places? She halfway smiled, wincing because the bruise on her jaw didn't like that very much.

A curiously unsure Mashka retreated into a corner and decided to watch. She became as still as the stars she'd seen through Mansion's windows every night. The air around her stilled, like the air in an unsure forest. Her skin dimmed slightly, but her cheeks shimmered, curiosity etched into her eyes and hair and fingers.

Austin started backing up, and Em ran over to him as well. There were a lot of new people all of a sudden and he didn't like it. Mel walked over to the pair and started whispering to them what must have been reassurance, because the two relaxed, but only a little.

"Oh, hello- Mansion with No Escape?" Jarrod said.

"Are you the asshole god who brought us here? Not cool man, I was about to win $3k easy!" Felix said, rolling up his already rolled up sleeves. Jarrod grabbed Felix by the shoulder and yanked him back.

"Felix, back off." Jarrod turned to the smiling man. "Do you own this place? What do you mean a mansion with no escape? Listen, I have bills and finances that need to be done by the end of this week, so if I don't get home, this guy," Jarrod shook Felix, "and I are in deep shit."

"Mansions with no escape aren't all that bad," Mashka murmured softly.

“No, I am not the…god who brought you here, I do not have that type of power.” He turned to the man who had spoken last. “As far as I know, we can not get out of this mansion, the doors lead ever on with no end in sight, and maybe the windows as well.” As the man’s last phrase sank in, Arwood felt his throat thicken and his mouth grow dry, his blue eyes slowly dimming as he looked into space. “Every one of us has left something or someone dear to them behind in this situation.” His eyes flicked back to the man planting the slight smile back on his face, “Maskahs right, the mansion is not too bad…I do not think I caught your name?”

"You may call me Jarrod." Jarrod knew enough to be careful giving names out to strangers, but he also knew the decorum necessary for letting fae know your name. If you don't use the right words you could lose your soul or something. "My companions are known as Felix," Jarrod shook Felix again.

"Quit that!" He shouted, wrenching himself away.

"Austin, Emily, and Melissa." Jarrod finished gesturing to the respective people. Mel gave a small wave, but Austin just glowered. Em decided not to do anything.

Mashka watched, curious. This was apparently something to do when you met new people: tell them your name. Interesting.
"I'm Mashka," she said.

“Well met.” He inclined his head respectfully toward each person addressed. “You may address me as…some call me Hemlock.”
“I expect you have no idea why you were called here?”

"I lived in a mansion like this my whole life," Mashka murmured. "Only not like this. And this one doesn't speak."

"Called? More like hit over the head and kidnapped, but no. We don't know why we're here." Jarrod replied.

"Hemlock, has this place or any of the people in it attempted to outright murder anybody?" Felix winked at Mashka. "Jarrod here thinks we ought to stick together and not touch anything since it might be, you know a death trap but I'm dying, pun intended, to go explore where he can't nag at me."

Jarrod rubbed his temples. "Why do you have to be like this Felix."

Mashka, who had absolutely no idea what a wink meant, took it as a friendly gesture and cautiously winked back.

Arwood’s gaze flicked to Felix.“Thus far no one has been murdered by person or by object, but I have yet to explore the entire house.” He turned back to Jarrod, “I imagine it is safe to touch the house’s belongings without fear of being killed.”

Felix handed Jarrod a slip of paper. "If I need you, I'll be there, just keep this paper with you!" He shouted as he dashed through a door and was gone.

"Damn him.." Jarrod muttered, then he tucked the slip of paper into his pocket. "You three stay with me please. You saw how big this place was through that window. You can't just teleport back to me when you get lost-"

"Look, I want to go explore on my own for a while." Austin interrupted. "I'll be here in the foyer in-" He checked his watch. "An hour. My watch is working so I'll be able to tell. See you guys."

And off ran Austin.
Jarrod turned to Mel and Em. "And I supposed you two will go and do your own thing?" He grumbled. They nodded, Mel checking her watch.

"We'll back in an hour too." And off they walked.

Jarrod sighed and rubbed his face. He turned to Hemlock. "Is there an empty room somewhere that I can use?"

"The whole house is empty rooms," Mashka murmured, before going off with vague ideas of finding the one called Felix.

Willow stepped back and kept her mouth shut. She decided she should go back to the kitchen and find her violin, and maybe find a nice place to claim as her own. It seemed like she would be here for a while.

Arwood indicated the empty corridor, “there is an unoccupied room just across the hallway.” He led the way toward a dark oak door, the hair on the back of his neck rising as he turned his back to Jarrod. “If you do not mind my asking, where did you hail from?”

"I'm from Actions, on the Other Side. It's a decently sized city up in the Floating Islands. What about you?" Jarrod replied.

~~

Felix had no idea what he was doing. He kind of wanted to see how deep into this mansion he could get, but also wanted to see what was in all the rooms. Maybe he could find a wine cellar. Alcohol sounded delicious right now.

~~

Austin was checking every door, looking for the kitchen. When he finally found it, he had to sit and stare for a moment. It was a big kitchen. It made sense, since it was a big mansion, but it was easily twice the size of the kitchen back home. He checked the pantry and was stoked to find that it was a walk in pantry. Looking in the back, he found various assortments of candy, which he shoved in his pockets.
He stared as the candy replaced itself and a grin crept across his face. "That's cool. I'll definitely be set for some deeper exploring." He said. He started to hum as he unwrapped a jawbreaker.

~~

Em was exploring every nook and cranny of the rooms, which somehow managed to stay somewhat unique, despite the vast number of them. Mel just sort of tagged along, making sure she didn't get into any trouble.

Mashka wandered back to the kitchen and sat at the counter, eyeing one of the newcomers as he popped something into his mouth.
"What's that?" she asked. She had never seen something in a… what was that? It was shiny and thin, crinkly, like paper but not. The food itself was round and an electric green, a colour she had never seen before, save in books and leaves.

"I'm from Actions, on the Other Side. It's a decently sized city up in the Floating Islands. What about you?" Jarrod replied.

Arwood nodded slightly disappointed there was no connection with any of these people.
“I am from the land of Thirignam, a once decent realm, but thankfully there are certain places the shadow of war has not yet touched, or I would build my own ship and sail to the west.” He smiled slightly and glanced at the paper Felix had deposited in Jarrods hands, he wondered about its importance but decided to wait before he inquired about it.

Willow went back to the kitchen to get the violin, but there was already two people there. She greeted them quietly and tried not to make eye contact.

"Thirignam… haven't heard of it, but I really don't know of many places other than major cities. It's a shame there's war. I have to deal with various crime organizations duking it out in the streets like uncivilized little-" Jarrod cut himself off. "Oh well. Lets take a look at this room then."

Jarrod pushed the door open and looked around. It was decently sized, with a bed and a reading chair. Tucked in the corner was a desk with some stationary. He nodded.

"This will definitely do it. Thanks Hemlock." Jarrod said sticking out his hand for a handshake.

~~

Felix opened a room to find a ballroom. He took a step, spinning to take it all in. Spotting the instruments where the band would play, he grinned and ran over to the piano.

"It has been a hot minute since I've played one of you." He said, stroking the keys. Then he started to play a ragtime tune.

~~

"It's a jaw breaker." Austin replied. "You suck on it until it's gone. Here, try one." He grabbed one off the shelf, grabbed her hand and put the candy in it.

He turned to the girl who walked in and waved. He was in a really good mood now that he had candy, so when she picked up the violin case he asked "What instrument is that?"

~~

Em and Mel heard piano music echoing through the halls. They looked at each other, then started following the sound.

Mashka tentatively took the candy. "Jaw… breaker?" It sounded dangerous. Maybe later. She pocketed it, then perked up when she heard faint music. It was a piano, but much more in tune than the one in Mansion, and the player was more skilled than Mashka had ever been.
Curious, she stood up and began to follow it, her nightgown swirling around her feet, the ends of her curls lifting up slightly as though drawn by invisible strings.
Mashka eventually found the ballroom and stepped inside. It reminded her of the Great Hall in Mansion, and this one had a stage, too, but no long tables and wooden benches and old, faded red tablecloths.
As though drawn by a magnet, Mashka made her way over to the stage and climbed up on it, surveying the ballroom, and did an experimental twirl, her nightgown flying out around her knees. The music made her feel like dancing, and she did so. She was graceful and expressive, chocolate curls swirling around her, her skin glowing brightly.