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You're Invited...
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You're Invited...
You're Invited...
Cold, winter air blasts through the door as you step inside your house after a long day of sledding and hiking through the snow. You're freezing, and all you want is to go sit by the fire with a steaming cup of cocoa.
As you turn to slam the door after you, a particularly violent gust of wind throws you away, sending you stumbling back against the wall. You're prepared for a gust of cold air. But instead, warmth caresses your cheeks. A heavenly scent of flowers and vanilla fills the air. You draw a deep breath, and an image of the sea, its turqoise waves sparkling under the brilliant sun, rises before your eyes. The noise of the snowstorm fades away. All you can hear is the soft splash of waves against rocks. All you can see is the sunlit coast of a forested island. And it seems as if the gust of warm wind carries with it the sound of a guitar and ethereal voices.
A woman's voice, clear and strong, speaks. "You are invited..." it seems to say. Then the illusion fades. Once again you're in a cold house, the snow swirling in through the door.
But there's a sheet of paper lying at your feet. It's pure white, gleaming as if sunlight were still reflecting off it. There are blue patterns across the top of it. It's addressed to you.
Dear CBer,
You're invited to a vacation on the island of Lydarios, the most beautiful spot in the world, or maybe even the universe! Accomodation and travel expenses are all pre-paid. You will be staying at the luxurious Palacio, a one-of-its-kind ancient palace converted into a five-star hotel located on the coast of Lydarios. You'll be residing here for three weeks, experiencing everything our island has to offer - swimming in the warm turqoise waters, exploring, and reading books from our extensive library where characters come to life - and I don't mean that metaphorically! So maybe there's a little bit of risk involved - this is, after all, a ski lodge - but what's the fun in life if you don't live on the edge? Just fill out the form below to sign up for a marvelous once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Sincerely,
The Queen
Your breath comes faster. This sounds like the vacation you've always wanted - too good to be true. Quickly, you grab a pen and start filling out the form.
Name:
Pronouns:
Age:
Appearance:
Personality:
What color embodies you?:
If you could enter a painting, which one would you choose?:
Favorite character(s):
Favorite style of bedroom:
What is your opinion on Oreos:
Are you romantic or practical?:
Luggage:
You're riding through London in the car. As you drive over Waterloo Bridge, you notice a man who has turned bright blue and gone dancing in his bathing trunks on the bridge. What do you do?:
Did that last question make you laugh?:
Last question! Are you glad the form is finally over?:
This is, of course, a ski-lodge; whether non-death or not, we are at present unable to inform you. There are ten spots available, and AEs and CAPTCHAS are allowed. We hope to see you there!
Sincerely,
The Queen
and
Her Attendants
submitted by The Queen, age ruling, Lydarios Island
(January 4, 2024 - 10:25 pm)
(January 4, 2024 - 10:25 pm)
Ooh this is so good! I love the backstory and the way you're setting up the suspense!
(January 17, 2024 - 6:02 pm)
Ooh, this is so good! And I do indeed enjoy Don McLean, how did you know? I also really like the idea of singing "What shall we do with the drunken sailor" at a scary moment - the contrast between a sea shanty and an ominous villain is very refreshing :)
this is also getting really mysterious - only one queen is "The Queen"? Which one?? And what's going to happen next?
(January 18, 2024 - 8:41 pm)
that's really accurate, me standing up on my chair and singing randomly XD
this is awesome so far :D
(January 21, 2024 - 1:36 pm)
or actually @admin please post the first comment and delete the second. I'm so sorry for the confusion :/
Sorry, too late. I already deleted the first one and posted the second.
Admin
(January 16, 2024 - 7:37 pm)
hi! i just realized that in the last part I made you sing Hamilton, but was that correct? are you into Hamilton or am I mixing you up with Tsuki the Skywolf?
(January 17, 2024 - 9:31 pm)
I am indeed into Hamilton :) I would definitely randomly start singing it at any given time. I haven't had time to read the most recent part yet but I will read + comment as soon as I can <3
(January 18, 2024 - 8:49 am)
SO GOOD! and all the music references—so fun. And sorry that I haven't posted so far! I forgot I signed up for this, but I've just read it all and it's awesome!
(January 19, 2024 - 7:29 pm)
I'm really enjoying reading this :) Your dialogue and description flows very well. I don't know who you are yet, so I'll take a few wild guesses that are mostly not based off of logic...could you be pangolin, Silver Crystal, Poinsettia, Amethyst, Celine, Rainbow, Scuttles, or WiLdSoNg?
(January 19, 2024 - 10:05 pm)
(January 21, 2024 - 11:03 pm)
Thank you all for your comments! I'm glad you're enjoying it.
@Darkvine and Silver, glad I was able to portray you accurately :D I realized I misquoted the Hamilton lyrics though...
@parody, I'm afraid I'm not either of those - see below
@Lyric, how?? You guessed me... and I was having so much fun pretending not to be Poinsettia gosh darn it >:) Seriously though, how did you know?
Right, now that all the preliminaries are taken care of, we'll just dive right in with the next part:
Day 1, Part 3
"Is everyone all right?" asked Ariadne. Her voice sounded harsh and strained. For a moment her feelings communicated themselves again, and the guests felt again that fear they had just experienced. But whether it was because Ariadne was experiencing it, or whether because she was what they were afraid of, they didn't know.
"What has happened?" demanded Mina. Unlike her counterpart, she was, as always, rigidly calm, at least outwardly. If you looked closely, you could see her fingers moving restlessly among the folds of her long skirt, but that was all.
"I - I don't know," stammered WiLdSoNg.
"Well, this is a ski lodge..." hinted Lord Entropy.
"Maybe it was just that a storm was coming," Mina concluded.
"But it didn't seem like a storm," protested Tai. "It was like something was coming. A force, or a person, or - I don't know..." She trailed off.
"Nonsense," said Mina briskly.
This is terrible, thought Ariadne. Aloud she said, "Well, it's over now, so I don't think we need to worry. Why don't we all go to bed?"
Her assured tone made everyone feel calmer.
"I'll clear up the table," Lord Entropy volunteered.
"Okay, thanks," replied Moon Wolf, yawning. She suddenly felt very tired. "I'm going to turn in. See you tomorrow, everyone."
They drifted through the warm, carpeted lobby, which was now smelling of lavender and rose. Soft, clear yellow light shone in every room from the glass-shaded lamps that stood on tables and windowsills. The curtains were drawn at every window. The sounds from other rooms were muffled - you could hear voices, but not words; an occasional thump of a suitcase being moved into a corner; the faint running of water in someone's bathroom. The hotel was a shell, quiet and shut off, becoming its own interior world of warmth and drowsiness.
Silver Crystal stopped in at Poinsettia's room to give her the Don McLean CD, which Lord Entropy had given her to take indoors.
"Just wanted to drop this off," she said, stepping in through the open doorway.
"Oh, thanks!" said Poinsettia, taking it and putting it on the desk, which was already cluttered with odds and ends. Silver suspected that the desk was just another storage space. "It was really fun having dinner, wasn't it?"
"Yeah, it was great, until that storm came up," Silver said. "I mean, it felt so weird. I don't know, I guess Lydarios just has weird weather." She turned to go. "See you tomorrow, Setti."
"Good night," replied Poinsettia, getting into bed.
The hotel fell silent. Gradually the lights turned themselves off. Tiredness enveloped the guests, snugly curled up in warm beds. And one by one, they fell asleep.
***
Outside, the night was cold. And silent. Not the kind of silent where you can hear a night owl or the breeze sighing, but the kind where you think your ears must be muffled, it's so hard to hear anything. Even the ever-present wash of waves on the shore seemed to have disappeared.
Lord Entropy stood silently on the patio. Even having cleared up all the leftover plates and cups and even folded up the tablecloth, LE did not want to go in. The hotel windows had all gone dark. In fact, it was impossible to see the hotel at all, even though it had to be right there.
And then Lord Entropy realized it wasn't right there. Because where it should have been, a wall, glowing with white light, was taking form.
The wall was long and high and had a door in the middle of it, with a few words written there. They were in the form of a question. Below were the two possible answers. One was the right answer - another was wrong.
At that moment Hawkstar, awakening suddenly from her dreams, looked out the window next to her bed and saw, far below on the ground, a structure that seemed to be a maze. It was glowing with pale white light. There were twisting turns and paths and dead-ends - it would be impossible to exit once you entered. And in the middle was a small room with a throne and a queen sitting on it.
Someone was standing outside it, though Hawkstar couldn't see who. And that someone pressed something on the door - and entered.
In that moment, the maze vanished.
---
Present: 13
Disappeared: 1
(January 22, 2024 - 9:28 pm)
Oh wow, mysterious!! I like how it says 'disappeared' instead of 'dead', it really adds to the suspense. I wonder where LE's off to, and if we'll get a perspective on that later on. I really love your writing, it's so detailed and descriptive! Got a little nervous that me or Pointsettia would get got but we survived, phew. Although since you are Pointsettia and hosts who are also in the lodge usually get rid of themselves early I'm still a little worried for lodge-Pointsettia. Really great start, can't wait to see where this goes!
(January 22, 2024 - 10:49 pm)
oh no first death! or disappearance
really good so far!
(January 22, 2024 - 11:35 pm)
SUCH a good part! That maze... Hmmm. And I saw that maze thing!! Interesting! I wonder what it is- and if I'll tell anyone! I just hope I'm not disappearing into that soon ;)
(January 23, 2024 - 9:46 am)
Sooo mysterious... I love this so much @Poinsettia! The writing is amazing, and the plot is so exciting. And what a good idea to make it 'dissapeared' instead of 'dead'. Funnn :DDD
(January 23, 2024 - 12:53 pm)
This is so suspenseful! The queens are hiding something for sure and I love the way their personalities balance while counteracting each other at the same time! Poor Lord Entropy! Disappeared in some magical maze. Can't wait to find out more!
(January 23, 2024 - 7:29 pm)