Silent as the Grave

[Euphoria]

OoC: This is for Andross, Masked Legend, HitokiriChibi and Sakume only. All I really have to say before we begin is to keep your characters separate from each other for as long as possible while still having them connected to the story o.O.

IC:

Nathan let out a sigh of bliss as a calming breeze shook through his clothes. His tanned legs were dangling freely from the cliff, kicking happily at its edges. Nate himself was whistling one of his joyful tunes in serenity; clenching his sacred hat in one hand, hugging the sweet-scented grass with the other. The crevice overlooked the peaceful seas that lazily licked the jagged rocks beneath Nate’s feet.

He unbuttoned another joint of his shirt, allowing the soft wind to billow through him to provide a way of fighting the humidity of the day. The Sun didn’t hang too high in the sky, but blasted out immense waves of heat.

Being only morning, Nate had as yet not decided how to spend the day. He was happy enough to sit in the rural bliss for another few hours anyway, although nearby islands and coves needed exploring. Perhaps he would stay inland and forage food for a day? Or why not get acquainted to the area to allow for thicker trekking? There was no urgency to speak of, although he was beginning to feel a little lonely. With this in his mind, he energetically swung his legs back onto land, breaking the peaceful illusion of silence. He placed his hat back on his head and re-did a few buttons, beginning to feel the wind a bit too strong.

The nearest town lay only a couple of miles away: a picturesque hamlet inhabited by satisfied young men and woman and retiring seniors. The place had an air of friendliness about it; telling everyone they were welcome. His jaunt spanned through an eerily silent meadow and bridge-covered brook, both showed no signs of life. Nathan thought it odd, considering all of the healthy people he had heard about living in the village. He quickened his pace, wishing to know why everything about the countryside was so still.

He got no answer in the village, only a few kind nods and joyful waves. Putting the thoughts behind him, he ordered a glass of water in one of the many scenic cafes. The waiter was like all the rest of them: oddly quiet but constantly smiling. The sight of so many smiling faces together was unusual; didn’t anything bad happen to these people? He stood up to leave; picking up his consumed glass of water and headed over to the counter. Having recently come into money, the boy dropped a few coins next to the waiter and turned away. He was almost out of the bar when the waiter caught up to him with the few jingling coins in his hand. He placed them back on Nate’s palms with a frozen grin and went back to work.

Nathan left once again with thoughts of the eerie townsfolk. He was caught between doing two things: staying and exploring the odd nature of the villagers; and fleeing as fast as he could to escape the nightmarish grins. Suddenly, he heard an almost deafening cry not far off. Or at least, it seemed deafening for a boy living without sound for hours. He rushed towards it, eager to find the source of the heralded noise.

Too late.

The sound had disappeared into countless echoes bouncing easily in the still world. Nathan strutted out of the village, disappointed by missing his chance to find the source of the noise.

Outside the village, sound slowly crept back into reality: the wind bristling through the sharp blades of grass; birds twittering quietly to one another; his own footsteps clunking on the stone bridge. He relished in the noises, glad to hear that the entire world hadn’t given up on creating sound.

Nathan retreated back to his cliff-edge where he spent the rest of the day in utter boredom. By the time evening came, Nate looked forward to a night of fun, exciting dreams. But as he drifted off to sleep, the silent grins came stalking back into reality; preying on his thoughts.

[HitokiriChibi]

Joker strolled down that path, holding up a map of the area in one hand and shielding his eyes from the bright afternoon sunlight that turned his ice blue hair into a white beacon to any who would seek him.

"Now... if Joker reads this correctly.. there should be a village there abouts..." Joker muttered to himself, not looking up but waving his arm in a general direction and then pointing it to where he feels is right. Glancing up, he sighed when he noted he was wrong and all that lay before him was an expanse of fields.

"Perhaps Joker should actually pay attention to the map..."

After much traversing over fields and meadows Joker was able to find himself at the village, noting it was oddly quiet for this time of day. There were no children that he could see running through the streets, instead they were bare of any people or sound.

"Odd... Joker expected.. more?" Joker mused aloud as he poked around buildings, trying to get a sense of where people were. Peering into one house, Joker was confronted with a still scene: A couple sitting side by side, not saying a word but smiling aimlessly at one another. They barely moved and had Joker not noticed them breathing he would have assumed they were statues.

Abruptly, the couple turned to face him and he pulled back thinking they would attack him for peeping into their home. Instead, their smiles remained in place as they stared at Joker.

"Ara... sorry to intrude~" Joker called, backing away and frowning, his mind turning on the strangeness that permeated the entire village.

Entering a bar, Joker paused as all the occupants swiveled to stare at him, their faces frozen with eerie smiles. A waitress silently led Joker to a table, seating him and giving him a menu then standing still, pencil poised over a pad and obviously waiting for Joker's order, all with a smile upon her face and nary a word spoken.

Blinking, feeling oddly supressed by the silence, Joker sent a quick glance at the menu then up at the waitress, "Joker will have a steak sandwhich and a glass of water please."

Nodding, the waitress took the menu and slipped into the kitchen, leaving Joker in a sea of smiling faces. Unused to such silent obeservation, Joker ate his meal as quickly as he could, not even tasting the meat due to his trepidation.

Standing up in haste, he nearly toppled his chair over and righted it, noticing the regard he was recieving was unchanged.

"Um... how much would this be?" Joker asked the waitress, holding a handful of coins in his hand. Her face fixed, she closed his hand over the coins and pushed him gently towards the door.

Confused and wary, Joker left, his senses warning him that something was sinisterly odd about this quiet village. Backtracking, he peered into the house he had early spied upon.

The sight that greeted him was the same as before, the still couple and their silent smiles. Neither had moved in the time Joker had taken to eat his meal and return.

Shaking his head he left the village, surprised at the amount of time that had passed without him noticing.

"This was wrong... Joker will have to investigate..." Frowning, looking back at the village he was leaving behind, he settled himself on a boulder amid a field of wheat, enjoying the sounds that he had taken for granted and waiting for night when people would sleep.

Then he would enter their dreams and see what was influencing them.

[Sakume]

OoC: Seeing as even the creator of this thread is slightly confused, I shall do my best to enlighten the plot to people. Thanks to Star Trek for the plot.

BiC: "Thank God!" He exclaimed, nearly crying from the heat of the sun combined with his easy-going nature. Mark, if anything, was not an outdoor person. He had decided to take a small journey, just to see what all the clamor was about. It was not all it was cracked up to be. People seemed to think more of it than he did.

His footsteps pattered on the cobblestone, as he perked an eyebrow in curiousity. Towns, even his own town, were not this quiet. They normally consisted of bustling people, laughing children, and other activities. Why, then, was this one so quiet? He noticed his stomach growl slightly. He might as well get something to fill it if he were going to hang around. He moved towards the nearby tavern, entering with a smile that quickly turned sullen.

Every person inside seemed frozen, almost in time. They smiled, but it was not a comforting expression. It pervaded his senses, making Mark nervous. He forced a smile on his face, although confused. "Could anyone get me something to eat?"

"Here." A girl working there, smiling just as pleasantly as the others, set a plate down in front of him, containing a small helping of some sort of soup. Mark lifted a spoon down into the broth and tried to eat a bit. The smell made his mouth water in anticipation. However, the spoon refused to come to his lips at all. It felt as if it weighed a ton. Mark eyed it, irritated.

"Nevermind." He grumbled, pushing his chair back. No sooner had he stood up, than a man snatched his shoulder, trying to push him back down.

"I think you need to see the flower."

"The what?" Come to think of it, Mark did realize that every single table, including his own, had a strange violet, azure flower in the middle of it. Further investigation led him to realize that every woman also had one behind her ear.

"The flower. Here." They tried to place one in front of Mark.

By now, the scientist knew something was not right. "Let go of me!" He struggled. He released the Screamer, flashing the whip to cause the people to let him go. They did so very quickly, and Mark dashed out, very unhappy. "What the hell was all that about?" He asked himself. Then he saw her.

A young woman, probably about his age, with short, brunette hair, nearly to her shoulders. Her blue eyes contained a mysterious air about them, but what really caught the scientist's attention was the fact that, unlike the rest of the town, she frowned. True, it was not a hate-the-world sort of frown, but a frown none-the-less.

"Miss? Can you tell me what the hell is going on?" He asked, approaching her and repeating his earlier statement.

"Hm? You... you're not from here, are you?" She asked. "The spores haven't found you, like they haven't found me." She seemed thankful, but most of all, hopeful.

"Spores?" Mark asked, unsure of what she meant. "What spores?"

She let her head hang. "The spores are what makes everyone so blissfully happy. And healthy. What is your name?"

"Mark." He replied, blinking curiously. "What do you mean they keep you happy and healthy? Surely there must be something wrong with the people everyonce in a while. If nothing were wrong, you could make a fortune with these spores."

Quite suddenly, she grabbed his hand and placed it inbetween her breasts. "See? My heartbeat is quite normal." She looked up to see him a beet red. "Sorry." She dropped it quickly. "Mark, please come with me. My name is Hannah. I can lead you to a place where there are no spores." She dragged him throughout the town and several alleys until they reached an abandoned building.

"Hannah... I'm a bit confused. Spores? From flowers? Like the ones I saw around? What's so wrong about this? I mean, they give you happiness, and if what you say is true, no sickness. Do you know how many people crave that?"

"No. You don't want this. Happiness all the time, whether one chooses it or not. You're not your own person. You can't be sad, or angry. You have to be happy, or they, the spores that enter the bloodstream, inflict so much pain... It's not right. A person was meant to have a range of emotions."

"When did it start?" Mark asked, thinking already. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm going to help you. Because it's better that way."

She threw herself on him to hug him tightly for a moment. "Thank you... So much. I've been there, in that spot, every day, hoping for someone like you."

Mark chuckled softly. "I may need help. And one of those plants to study. And I'll need one more thing, Hannah."

"Oh?" She asked, looking up from his chest. "What's that?"

"Could you please let go of me?"

[Andross]

OoC: Sorry, I was waiting for MaskedLegend to post. I like getting the last turn so that I know how the plot will turn out, but now that I know MaskedLegend has dropped out, I'll go ahead and post. Now, I'm not exactly sure what's going on here, but after reading over the Sakume's post a couple of times, I think I got a good idea of what's going on here. If I don't, please correct me.

BiC:

Redrick was rather tired. He was walking through the wilderness the whole day, not seeing any signs of civilization. Dehydrated, he collapsed to the ground. Awaiting the unconsciousness, he began to close his eyes. However, his descent into deathly slumber was halted only by the sight of a few buildings up ahead.

"A town? Here?" Redrick thought to himself. He stumbled to his feet, slowly, taking time to regain his senses. He clambored onward, until he finally mustered up enough strength to jog. Running towards the village, he took notice of the serene and quiet qualities of the area around the village. However, as he drew closer to the village, he noticed something deeper underneath the serene mask of the village- However, he didn't take the time to decide wether it was something ominous or something positive. He just continued towards the town, wishing only to complete the task at hand- obtaining water. Always caring only about the goal, and not deviating from the mission. That was his way.

Redrick had finally entered the town, and he kept his eyes peeled for signs of any inn, shop, or bar- He needed water, and he felt like he was dying of thirst. After a little more searching, he finally caught sight of something that might help him. "Is that... a bar? A restaurant, maybe? Thank god..." he thought to himself, as he approached a small building.

As Redrick entered the building, he paid no mind to the people sitting around, as that was his way. Rude, uncaring, serious, silent. This straight-to-the-point nature of his shielded him from the reality that these villagers were not ordinary people. As he sat down at a table, he briefly noticed a violet flower in the middle of the table, but he quickly gained the attention of the waitress approaching him.

The waitress began to pull out a menu, but Redrick spoke loudly, stopping her. "Water." was all Redrick said, with a cold look on his face. The waiter, smiling, turned around, and retreated to the back of the building to fetch him some water. It was only then that Redrick noticed that these flowers were on all of the tables in the building, and that all of the villagers were smiling, in a seemingly mindless state of bliss.

The waitress returned, and set the glass of water on the table. Redrick, in a state of great thirst, grabbed the water, and brought it to his lips; however, he quickly put it down, as a man approached the table, eyeing him, and the flower in front of him, with the same nightmarish grin that all of the other villagers had.

[Sakume]

OoC: -_- Anyone? ... No one?... Dead?... *sigh*

[HitokiriChibi]

OoC: Well, Honestly? I thought we were going in order of who posted so I assumed it would be Sweet Simplicity to post next. Was I wrong?

[Sakume]

OoC: I assumed that, too. Under his siggy it says no internet, though. : /

[Euphoria]

OoC: I have internet for a few hours so listen up: after this I'm going away for two weeks without internet. During that time you can either continue the RP by going Hitokiri, Sakume, Andross; or wait for me to come back and resume the full order. I'll leave he decision to Hitokiri Chibi, as she is the next in line.

[HitokiriChibi]

Dreams are ethereal things that allow humans to exert their imaginations, to fashion their hopes and wishes and to create a reality that is of their making.

Dreams reflect the inner personalities a person has, digging to the very core of their beings and pulling from it their innermost desires and ideas, fashioning them into something that can be visualised, thought upon and remembered.

Entering the Dream Realms, Joker was shocked at how easy it was to spot the dreams of those he was most interested – the villagers near the cliffs.

Their dream spheres were clouded, not shiny as others were and lagged close to the floor as if the weight were too much to bear. The sight of them, so worn down and heavy made Joker hesitant to even get close to them – grouped as they were made a daunting and worrying sight.

Gathering himself and expecting something unpleasant, Joker swan dived into the closest Sphere, closing his eyes to the brief moment of disorientation as he melded with the Dreamers subconscious.

What he found shocked him.

The dream was as dull and lifeless as the people were; all faded colours and lethargic movements. Gazing around in surprise Joker realised what was happening.

“This dream… it’s a perfect case of suppressed creativity and imagination,” Joker muttered to himself. He had personally never seen one before but he knew the signs – these people were prohibiting any wild or fanciful expressions to the point where even their dreams were held under tight control.

Moving through the dream for any hints, Joker noticed a recurring theme of a particular flower and how whenever it was displayed it had a forced… cheerfulness surrounding it, as though the Dreamer were somehow trying to convince themself that it was a good thing; warning Joker it wasn’t the case.

Leaving the dream Joker conjured a rock and sat atop it, pondering what the dream had shown him:

The person had been suppressing their imagination, a clear indicator that their wants and needs played a part in this whole affair. Denying that they wanted anything would lead to a sense of calm and completion, Joker supposed, but it would still be a boring life with no ambitions or wants.

The other key part of the dream were the flowers, Joker couldn’t remember if he’d seen them in the village but he supposed they might have been; meaning he would have to return to see whether they really had any impact upon the situation.

Having reached his decision he stood, the rock he was using sinking back into the Dream Path and a portal appearing to lead him back to the Real Realm and the mystery that needed solving.

[Sakume]

Mark looked first to Hannah, stuck inside the torn-down building she claimed was safe from those flowers. She brought him one, very carefully and inside a sack for him to examine. He did many tests on the thing, using the supplies he carried in his backpack for further research. "When did you say these things showed up, Hannah?" He asked her as she sat across from him, behind the flower.

"Oh, perhaps a few months ago. I think they came from the woods nearby."

"The woods? Impossible. This flora doesn't look familiar to me, even by it's biological signature." Mark stated, looking through a microscope at one of the spores.

"What is it?"

"The spores. It seems to dislike any other cell near it. It pushes them away, or devours them. Do you know what that means, Hannah?" Mark asked, zooming in and out in the viewer.

"No, what?" Hannah innocently replied.

"If we don't stop this somehow soon, the villagers may lose all ability to have any free will at all. They'll be like slaves of the spores, nearly. Unable to gain any thought." Mark said, pausing to put a large coat on from his backpack.

"Where are you going?" Hannah asked, wanting to come with him.

"You stay here, Hannah. I'm going to get help. We're going to need it. There must be some others that can explain to me more of what's going on. We need everyone we can get. I'm checking, and you wait." With that, he left.

[Sakume]

OoC: : / Sigh. ... Silence... Guess I'll just declare it dead... just let it die. -_- *Pokes thread with stick*

[Euphoria]

Oh! I decided it would be fun to resurrect this. Expect a post within the week.