WORDS: 295 |
- OOC Backstory:
- The House of Death is the name given to an old manor in the village of Daravania. The house has been burned to the ground many times, only to rise from the ashes time and time again -- by its own will or that of a mysterious, dark force. Locals from Daravania give the building a wide berth for fear of antagonizing the evil spirits believed to haunt it.
The wealthy family that build the manor practiced dark arts. Through seduction and indoctrination, they expanded their cult to include a small yet nefarious circle of friends. When word got out, the rest of the village chose to turn a blind eye to the house and the nightly debaucheries happening within it.
The cult tried to summon malevolent, extraplanar entities with no success. The cultists also preyed on visitors, sacrificing them in bizarre rituals and hosting morbid banquets to feast on the remains. When nothing came of the ritualistic murders, the cultists' activities became thinly disguised excuses to indulge their lurid fantasies. The ranks of the cult thinned as members began to lose interest in the debacle.
Then the dark force arrived.
The cultists regarded the dark force as a messiah sent to them by the Dark Powers. Drawn to the dark force like moths to a flame, they pledged their devotion for a promise of immortality, but the dark force turned them away, deeming the cult and its leadership unworthy of its attention. The cultists withdrew to the House of Death in despair.
The cult's habit of trapping and devouring wayward visitors soon proved to be its downfall. On one occasion, the cult snared a band of wizards whom the dark force had manipulated into the Cursed Lands for its own means. The dark force returned to the House of Death and the cultists, seeking redemption, sought to impress their messiah. In response, he slaughtered them for slaying his prey. Centuries later, the cultists' spirits haunt the dungeons under the house. The building itself, it seems, is unwilling to let the cult and its mission be forgotten...
For one reason or another, you find yourself on a long, gravel road. Alone, with only the mists and haunted sounds of the Cursed Lands to accompany you, you march down the road, strangely determined to find the end of the path. The air chills you to the core, like the first dip into a cool spring, despite the fact that it is midsummer and yet you continue. After what seems like hours, something akin to civilization begins to appear on the horizon. So, too, do other roads with other men and women, people drawn to this same place for means beyond comprehension. The roads converge into one, bringing the separated members together as you all stand stand before a lost landmark. The gravel road has led you to a village, its tall houses dark as tombstones. Nestled among these solemn dwellings are a handful of closed-up shops. Even the tavern, a common place of interaction, has been boarded up and shut.
A soft whimpering draws your eye toward a pair of children standing in the middle of an otherwise life-less street. One, a girl in a early teenage years, has short black hair and sullen eyes. An elegant, maroon cape adorns her shoulders and a soft-blue tunic covers her torso, ending wit ha wide and low-hanging skirt. The smaller is a boy, with the hood of his jacket up over his head, shadowing his features. His coat is of the same fine material as the girl's but a bit on the larger side. In his hand is a doll, a flimsy piece of patchwork with misshapen, button eyes. Both children are pale, their skin almost blue-ish in color as the young boy cries and the girl does her best to quiet and calm him...
Here is the intro for the House of the Dead. It's short but that's so as not to overload you all with too many words and giving you plenty to work with, in terms of interaction with one another and/or the children. There will be no official post order so feel free to post when you can, even if it's out of order from the last round of posting. As of this post, you have seven days to get a post up. By July 10th at 9:00 PM, your posting time will be up and I will be posting asap. Have fun!