#bhs: plot.

[behindsanityrp]

CHAPTER I: CONCLUSION

YOU HAVE ALL WORN YOUR SKELETONS QUITE ADEQUATELY. LET’S SEE HOW WELL YOU CAN KEEP PLAYING. 

[behindsanityrp]

CHAPTER II: CONCLUSION

Time is growing tired of your inadequacy - we thought you would have known more by now. Careful with your ignorance, darling, for the city will soon start asking you to pay for what you do not have to give. 

[behindsanityrp]

II. FORGIVE US OUR SINS, SAVE US FROM THE FIRES OF HELL

LEAD ALL SOULS TO HEAVEN, ESPECIALLY THOSE IN NEED OF THY MERCY

tw fire

There should be a difference, you may be thinking, between the singing and the screaming. The echoes are about the same and Wonderland is no stranger to both, but at the breath just before sunrise, it is all too evident which one it is that has the church bells ringing through the stillness of the city.

You are too early or too late or come just in time to see the cross that once adorned the tower of the cathedral fall victim to the flames that devour the House of God greedily, black smoke masking what should have been a peaceful dawn.

The Devil is upon us, one nun screams, clutching at heavy gold crosses against singed gowns. The soot-smudged child by her feet says nothing, merely looks at the rising cloud of black looming over us all.

Follow their gaze, and for a moment perhaps you see something flicker in the plumes of smoke. You think maybe the nun might not be quite wrong, though Wonderland’s devil takes on a different form.

-

The authorities make quick work of blocking off the roads surrounding the church, firefighters spending the morning combing through the debris. The city holds its breath as the red-blue sirens spin in silence, reflecting against broken stained glass that crack underfoot as survivors are found throughout the afternoon.

Curious, how those missing are only orphans; nuns kneeling in prayer, begging for salvation or avoiding the watching eyes of those gathered.

Curiouser, how only weeks ago, the church received a rather generous donation from an anonymous figure. There is no name attached to the cheque, but the insignia of the company is unmissable: VELVET HOLDINGS CORP.

Come nightfall, what remains of the orphaned children have begun singing new melodies; gospel turned child’s game.

I LOOK FORWARD TO THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD / DON’T YOU?

-

Hello dear players and welcome to our second event! HOUNDSTITCH CHURCH & HOME FOR WAYWARD YOUTH (previous alignment: NEUTRAL) has been compromised in what the authorities are claiming is a horrible accident. Police investigations of the scene are brief, but what is most odd is that while no corpses are found, there seems to be one too many children missing from the total head count...

For this event, we will need several volunteers - message the main if you are interested in having your character take part in one of these roles! Please note that roles will be filled as first-come-first-serve.

HOUR OF OUR DEATH - Perhaps you see the smoke first, or you sought the church for atonement before you started your day - regardless of the reason, you are one of the first responders on the scene, quick to aid in whatever way you can. Those you have bandaged or pulled out of the fire itself consider you a hero, but there are some who question why you appear at just the right place at such a strange hour… - CLEMENTINE | HENRIK | PAX

MAY GOD HAVE MERCY - You catch a moment of the burning, or arrive just as the police do, watching the firefighters pull bodies out of the rubble. Unfortunately - or fortunately - you are behind the police tapes, merely a spectator to the show. Stay put, for you are a witness to the authorities, and there will be inquiries once the building is done going up in smoke. - IVORY | MINA | THEO | WILLIE | UNLIMITED - OPEN TO ALL.

FORGIVE US OUR TRESPASSES - You are hardly deterred by the caution tape that surrounds the building, or the creak of unsteady debris echoing under broken statues - courageous or an idiot, you venture into the ruins of the church the following night. The shadows are especially restless in unholy places and whispers caution you against finding what fires tried to burn down. - AKARA | ODESSA | RUBY

Please set your threads to the appropriate date & time - otherwise, your character is free to interact with any aspect of the fire, investigation, and gossip that follows it. The timeline of this event is as follows:

9/12 | THE BURNING.

5:00AM - 6:00AM: The church begins to burn & first responder volunteers arrive on the scene.

6:00AM: Police, EMS, and firefighters reach the church & firefighters begin to extinguish the fire.

8:30AM: The fire is successfully extinguished.

9:00AM: Police begin investigations & interviewing any witnesses to the scene while EMS takes victims to The Vale to be treated. Firefighters start to clear debris to look for any survivors.

11:30AM: Police close investigations on the accident on the Houndstitch fire. Officers still remain on scene to keep citizens away from the church.

6:00PM: Firefighters finish their excavation of the church. Survivors have been rescued all afternoon and brought to The Vale for hospitalization.

10:00PM - 5:00AM: Trespassers begin to explore the ruins of the church.

9/15 | THE AFTERMATH.

4:00AM: The church’s financial records have been mysteriously leaked to the public. It becomes evidently clear that VELVET HOLDINGS CORP. has made a large donation a few weeks prior to the burning,

10:00AM: There is a count done, and it is found that some 20 orphans have disappeared; nowhere to be found after the fire.

6:30PM: City Hall releases an official statement in regards to the fire, confirming that the incident was an accident and that no further investigations will be conducted.

Happy event day all! It’s not an RP without a little more drama, and a little mystery to go with it - if you have any questions or require assistance during this event, please feel free to let us know - otherwise, happy writing!

[behindsanityrp]

I.V. FUI QUOD ES, ERIS QUOD SUM 

The route is familiar, easy - one taken often by many of the patrons of the hotel; men with their stiff suits and women with their jewels, words curled around a foreign tongue. Tonight is just another night, chandeliers twinkling and clocks tick-ticking the right way ‘round (thankfully). It is embedded into being now, how he walks with crisp steps over marble floors, leading a small flock of guests through the winding halls of the Silver Veil Hotel towards the reason for their visit: the door.

Wood, mahogany and well-worn sits in waiting - unassuming, unlabeled and hardly special. It is not the door they seek, but what is behind it, you see. Wonderland is not known for its civility, and the most proper of society long to see depravity to feel mighty, to feel as though they are above it while their hearts beat with excitement over exploring the innards of a city as rotting as their own. Like calls to like, after all.

The porter smiles with a secret between his teeth, turns the handle, and -

IT IS CEMENTED CLOSED.

How horribly embarrassing.

Hello, dear players! As a little treat, we have a small subplot drop for you! These will appear every now and then in between events, and all characters will be aware of them in-game. Whether or not you choose to have your character react or interact with these subplots is up to you. Keep in mind that these subplots happen for a reason and can potentially connect to the main story in one way or another.

For this particular subplot, it is discovered that a popular door to Underland, located in one of the backrooms of THE SILVER VEIL HOTEL, used by many foreigners to access the under-city, has been PERMANENTLY CLOSED. No one is sure who did this, or why, but it has made accessibility to businesses in the under-city all the more difficult. The date of this discovery is 08/27. 

We hope you enjoy this little drop, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask the main or seek our NPCs for some answers!

[behindsanityrp]

III. THE CIRCUS ARRIVES WITHOUT WARNING

IT IS SIMPLY THERE, WHEN YESTERDAY IT WAS NOT [ x ]

tw slight eye gore mention

The rain-slicked roads are covered by the dark-red tents that grace city squares in the morning, the whistle of the wind changing tunes into something that echoes throughout the houses. Come out, it seems to sing. Don’t you want to play?

And play you will, won’t you? Peer through a tent and find a girl with wave-scraggled hair whispering your fortune with an echo that’s half-guttural; magicians with too-dark eyes conjuring used hacksaws for acrobats to juggle. Silks will caress an artist’s throat too tenderly when they wrap and unwrap themselves in fluid movements too many feet into the air, and you will clap at every catch, every flourish, every wonder that captivates the city for exactly three nights.

Admission is free, the masked figure at the ticket booth says, one eye brown and another startling blue. We will not take your money.

It is not for another five days after the circus disappears without a trace that the city realizes it took something else with it.

-

THE WISHBONE is in disarray when its prized fighter does not show up for their scheduled match for the third time - unusual, given the giant’s proclivity for violence in the ring and love for the money it gives them outside of it. The ring is deathly empty on a Saturday evening, and by dawn the following Sunday, the city begins to whisper.

I saw him with the moondusted trapeze boy at the edge of the circus, the docks tell you. Enraptured or terrified.

He followed the magician backstage after the show after he volunteered, the remaining orphan children sing-song in between their nursery rhymes. Do you think he conjures only hacksaws or bone-knives too?

THE WHITE QUEEN’s henchmen scour the city, unforgiving in their questioning. Watch what you answer, for the shadows are surely listening, silently laughing.

-

One week after the circus’ departure from Wonderland, a drunkard bets the last of his life savings on the number 4 on the roulette table. It is after he sees his bet be the jackpot for the round does he realize that the ball landing on his choice number was not a ball, but rather, a single brown eye cleanly scooped from the socket it belonged to.

The dealer of that particular game vanished shortly after the discovery. It was found that the individual was not a worker of THE HEART’S PALACE, but nothing else is known of them other than eyewitness accounts of the person wearing an eyepatch over their left eye, their exposed gaze a brilliant bright blue.

-

Hello dear players and welcome to our third event! The circus is in town and any strange, wondrous, and weird act can be found in the three days that they stay - but stranger still is what happens when they leave. Amidst all the lights and magic of the circus, one of the White Queen’s prized fighters go missing, and the city is left with questions as to whether the big-top flourishes were merely a ruse - after all, there are no coincidences in Wonderland.

For this event, we will need several volunteers - message the main if you are interested in having your character take part in one of these roles! Please note that there will be priority to those who have not been event volunteers before, but otherwise roles will be based on a first-come-first-serve basis.

SEE NO EVIL - Perhaps you wander into a tent you shouldn’t have during the circus’ stay at Wonderland, or maybe you see the flash of the telltale red flags out of the corner of your eye days after the circus leaves - regardless, you catch sight of something odd, even for Wonderland. To you, the minute detail may be trivial, but others in the city may not think so. - GUS | INEZ | RUBY

HEAR NO EVIL - You know better than the rest - overheard a hushed conversation at the circus between the owner and a too-familiar figure, or perhaps the shadows told you otherwise - but how does not matter. What you know makes you both a target and prize for the city run on gossip and asking for answers, and time will only tell what Wonderland will uncover. - AKARA.

SPEAK NO EVIL - There might have been something in the cider, or maybe the private show with the snake charmer did more to you than the reptile - whatever it is, your account of what you saw spreads fast, wildfire gossip upon passing lips. Whether it is intentional, or even if what you saw is true - though you may believe otherwise - can hardly be verified. The only fact: Wonderland listens when you speak. Tread carefully. - CLEM | ONE LEFT | OPEN TO ALL

Please set your threads to the appropriate date & time - otherwise, your character is free to interact with any aspect of the circus and the aftermath that follows it. The timeline of this event is as follows:

10/09 - 10/11 | THE ARRIVAL.

8:00PM - 5:00AM DAILY: The circus has appeared in the middle of Wonderland, and its doors open only at night. During this time, all the open tents are bustling with acts and shows, and those closed are to be explored - if you are brave enough to do so.

10/12 | THE DISAPPEARANCE.

11:30PM: THE WISHBONE realizes that its prized fighter has gone missing, and unease is palpable across the city. The imbalance of the ring’s closed doors throws residents off - and without the outlet THE WISHBONE brings, most are restless in some form or way.

10/13 - 10/20 | THE QUESTIONING.

6:00PM - 4:00AM DAILY: THE WHITE QUEEN’s henchmen are sent to scour the city in search of answers and are hardly notorious for being kind. No soul caught is spared, and questioning will only be painless depending on your response.

10/20 | THE GAME.

10:00PM: The unknown dealer begins working at their table at THE HEART’S PALACE. .

10:45PM: The drunkard wins their game of roulette.

10:47PM: The drunkard realizes that the ball used in the game is a human eye. The dealer is no longer at the table.

11:00PM: Casino security arrive on scene.

11:10PM: The unknown dealer is last seen on security footage by one of the casino’s private doors. They are looking straight at the camera before the tape glitches, flickering back to footage without the dealer.

11:20PM: The entire casino is on full lockdown. No one can enter or exit the building as police begin to investigate.

Happy event day all! Thank you for sticking with us - we really hope you enjoy this one because we had a little too much fun with it ourselves. If you have any questions or require assistance during this event, please feel free to let us know - otherwise, happy writing!

[behindsanityrp]

II.V. DESCENSUS IN CUNICULI CAVUM 

You can almost follow it with your finger, close one eye and hold your thumb out to trace the path it takes through the city. Careful, child. You almost lose track of it, once, when it passes the corner of Nothing and Here. White vans swim through the city like koi fish in your great-grandmother’s garden pond but something about this one makes you think of those eels in those restaurant fish tanks, angry and crackling until they are served in small chunks on your fine-china dinner plate. 

The van stops in front of THE VALE, pulling into its back entrance. There is slight movement, its back doors popped open as something is loaded before the vehicle is securely shut, engines purring as it leaves the lot. Quick as a blink. If you weren’t watching, you would have never noticed it. 

It swims upstream to RUTLEDGE ASYLUM, bobbing and weaving through traffic. It does not wish to be seen, but we all know better by now, don’t we - something is always Watching. The van shudders to a stop, and you can catch a glimpse of what leaves the vehicle for a split-second before it disappears into the building: patients. 

The eel opens up its belly and its meat spills into the waiting mouth of the institution, Wonderland licking its lips. Delicious. 

Follow us downstream again for just one more second - THE VALE sends out notices to the families of several patients that visitation is no longer allowed, as they have been relocated to another facility outside of Wonderland for more specialized care. The monotone phone line after this update has been delivered to the families feels too much like noose around a neck, don’t you think? 

-

Hello, hello! We hope you like our second little subplot drop - there was a sighting of patients of THE VALE being moved to RUTLEDGE ASYLUM for reasons unknown, with THE VALE putting out a rather suspicious call to these patients’ families shortly afterwards… 

For this subplot drop, it can be assumed that all characters have heard of this through the whispers that travel through Wonderland. However, there is no official statement from either institution, nor has the police opened up any investigations. 

We hope you enjoy the drop, and should you have any questions please feel free to ask the main for clarification or our dear NPCs for some potential answers!

[behindsanityrp]

I. HEADS WILL ROLL & THE STREETS CRY RED

WE WANT BOTH OUR JUSTICE AND ENTERTAINMENT IN BLOOD ALONE

tw death, murder, mention of severed limb & implied suicide.

Those unfortunate souls which call Wonderland home know at least two things for certain:

The city has been at war with itself for years, an ancient power struggle nearly as old as Time themselves.

Time tires of such futile fights, and the shadows nod in agreement. There is a quiet truth as to who runs Wonderland, and it is not a Queen.

An unlucky child (as children tend to be) pokes their head into business they have no reason to poke their heads into (as children tend to do) and finds a box too ornate for this side of the City. Some animal-bone thing, smooth and innocent, nestled in the shadows and waiting to be opened.

They are wide-eyed, curious, with fingers itching to possess - (how Wonderland grins at this, watching hungrily) - opening boxes on laps, stopping when they see the contents of a treasure best left un-found. They are unblinking, bug-eyed when they look at the pale arm sitting comfortably in its confines, holding five bloody teeth. Careful, gentle, they entwine fingers with the hand’s, staying sitting in this embrace until mothers find them hours or minutes later.

Across the city, a body is found at the Silver Veil Hotel. Both arms are still attached to the dead man.

A search is conducted, but no body turns up for the severed arm found at the docks. Even so, identification is telltale in the freshly bloodied knuckles and scarred design on its wrist. All fighters at THE WISHBONE sport such brandings. Her fingerprints have been burnt off, but a quick count of the fighters indicate who the deceased is.

The body at the Silver Veil Hotel is soon identified as none other than an overseas investor of VELVET HOLDINGS CORP, meant to leave for Wonderland the following morning. A tearful note is propped by the bedside, and how bodies were found hanging from coarse ropes would have made the case open-and-shut - save for how chairs that should have been kicked away from bodies were neatly pushed to the corners instead.

Strange, Wonderland whispers. How timely. How unfortunate.

-

Hello dear players!! Welcome to our FIRST EVENT of the RP! We’re so excited to have you all here, and what better what to celebrate opening than with some mYStery and MURDER? Stakeholders of VELVET HOLDINGS CORP. & THE WISHBONE - affiliated with the RED QUEEN and WHITE QUEEN respectively - have been mysteriously targeted, perhaps in warning. With how the three Queens have been struggling for reign, and how two Queens bear a significant loss with sightings of some of the QUEEN OF HEART’s cronies in both crime scenes earlier that day, it is no question that tensions have risen.

Please set your threads to the appropriate date & time - otherwise, your character is free to interact with any of the findings of the murders & the repercussions that follow them. The timeline of this event is as follows:

08/16 | THE DISCOVERY.

1:00AM: The severed arm is found in the Black Hallows slums. Police are notified shortly afterwards.

3:30AM: The hanging body is found at the Silver Veil Hotel after a mysterious tip is given to the front desk. Police arrive on scene for investigations shortly afterwards.

8:30AM: The RED QUEEN is notified of the investor’s death.

1:00PM: The police arrive at The Wishbone with the severed arm as soon as the club’s doors are unlocked for the day. The WHITE QUEEN identifies the owner of the limb almost immediately.

6:30PM: The newscast reporting on the two deaths suddenly cuts out. In its place, a video of a dog chasing its own tail plays on loop until it is time for the weather forecast.

11:30PM: The QUEEN OF HEARTS holds a new record for the most number of guests in the casino in one night.

08/16 - 08/31 | THE INVESTIGATION - During this time, no new leads are found to either cases. Any funerals held are very much private, and an unrest settles across the city.

Thank you for joining us for our FIRST EVENT! We can’t wait to see how you’ll all bring your characters to life on the dash - we have big things planned and know it’ll be a lovely mess with all that’s to come. Iif you have any questions or require assistance during this event, please feel free to let us know - otherwise, happy writing!