The Rim of the Rabbit Hole: A Horror-esque RP

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

"No idea, I found an important document but then fog came in through the window and covered everything," She explained.

"Are you hurt? It's easier to trip in these conditions."

"Weird. But no, I'm fine. Are you hurt?"

[Mags she/they]

4 minutes ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

"Weird. But no, I'm fine. Are you hurt?"

"Nope I'm good, and the fog doesn't seem dangerous to me, I suppose you heard that loud voice too?

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

"Nope I'm good, and the fog doesn't seem dangerous to me, I suppose you heard that loud voice too?

"Yeah, I did . . . What in the world is going on?"

[Mags she/they]

4 minutes ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

"Yeah, I did . . . What in the world is going on?"

"I have no idea . . . it's possible some kind of odd air current pushed the fog in, but I have no idea where the voice came from."

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

Just now, Ookla the Finwëan said:

"I have no idea . . . it's possible some kind of odd air current pushed the fog in, but I have no idea where the voice came from."

"I don't think an air current pushed the fog in." She gestured at the forest floor.

[Mags she/they]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

"I don't think an air current pushed the fog in." She gestured at the forest floor.

She shrugged, "I'm not a physicist. Anyway, we need to be careful the document I found talked about concerningly regular disappearances . . ."

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

Just now, Ookla the Finwëan said:

She shrugged, "I'm not a physicist. Anyway, we need to be careful the document I found talked about concerningly regular disappearances . . ."

Astrid wondered if what was happening to them now also happened to the previous Rim staff.

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

24 minutes ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

She shrugged, "I'm not a physicist. Anyway, we need to be careful the document I found talked about concerningly regular disappearances . . ."

 

23 minutes ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

Astrid wondered if what was happening to them now also happened to the previous Rim staff.

Slowly but surely, the mist started to clear. As it did, the view of the forest revealed itself. The two still stood inside the facility, but were now outside the containment building, in the sparsely wooded area between buildings.

Several research portables were nearby, as well as Building 2, which the crew had entered the facility through.

Though the mist had faded, it still hung in the air, making it hard to see too far into the distance.

Edited December 6, 2024 by Ookla the Ouroboros

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

 

Slowly but surely, the mist started to clear. As it did, the view of the forest revealed itself. The two still stood inside the facility, but were now outside the containment building, in the sparsely wooded area between buildings.

Several research portables were nearby, as well as Building 1, which the crew had entered the facility through.

Though the mist had faded, it still hung in the air, making it hard to see too far into the distance.

"Spooky," Astrid said, looking around warily.

[Mags she/they]

6 minutes ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

 

Slowly but surely, the mist started to clear. As it did, the view of the forest revealed itself. The two still stood inside the facility, but were now outside the containment building, in the sparsely wooded area between buildings.

Several research portables were nearby, as well as Building 1, which the crew had entered the facility through.

Though the mist had faded, it still hung in the air, making it hard to see too far into the distance.

5 minutes ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

"Spooky," Astrid said, looking around warily.

"At least we didn't end up by the whole and accidentally fall in," Liv said. "Let's go back inside, I don't immediately see anyone else out here."

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

2 minutes ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

"At least we didn't end up by the whole and accidentally fall in," Liv said. "Let's go back inside, I don't immediately see anyone else out here."

Quote

I did a typo: the building you're by is building 2, the one with the TSA security at the front. The containment building is building 1.

Which one are you going back to?

 

[Mags she/they]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

 

Quote

the one we were just in if we can

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

5 minutes ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

 

Quote

You can, but it's a little bit of a walk.

 

[Mags she/they]

4 minutes ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

 

Quote

Okayy!!

Liv starting making her way towards the building they had just been in.

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

6 minutes ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

Liv starting making her way towards the building they had just been in.

It was the same path she'd walked less than an hour ago, the path that had taken them from Building 2 to Building 1. Something seemed....different this time. Off, in a way that was hard to put a finger on.

Or maybe the first time had been the one that was off.

After a few minutes of walking, about halfway to Building 1, the silhouette of a figure appeared in the mist.

@Ookla the Inconclusive

Quote

I'm assuming Astrid is going with her, right?

 

Edited December 6, 2024 by Ookla the Ouroboros

[TwinStorm He/Him]

 

2 hours ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

"Daniel Roost," Maria said, though she seemed distracted. "He's in charge of the Rim, has been for about eight months."

Maria glanced around to check on her team. Most of them were still inside, checking the equipment like she'd asked. Liv had found that document; it would be worth looking for more, perhaps to build a record of what had happened.

From what they'd all found, the contianment array had simply been shut down. No damage or interference, at least that they could detect on the surface level.

It was impossible to tell whether that was the reason for the containment breach and radio silence, or if the shutdown had occurred as a result of the breach. Even stranger was the fact that the power was on everywhere else in the facility. As if no time had passed, and the entire population of the Rim had just vanished seconds before they'd entered.

But then...wouldn't there be signs? Half-typed messages on computers, spilled stacks of paper, shattered coffee mugs? There had been none of that, nothing to indicate a sudden vanishing. The people were just...gone.

Maria uneasily turned her gaze around the clearing that held the Rabbit Hole, surrounded by glass which revealed the monitoring room most of her team was in. Then, both curiosity and terror fighting within her, she pulled out her flashlight, switched it on, and pointed it's beam into the blackness of the hole.

It had normal dirt sides, like you'd expect from a hole in the middle of the forest floor. But when she pointed her light straight down, the beam was swallowed up by the blackness. 

She pulled her pack off her back and got out a tactical glowstick. She broke it, and it started emitting an orange light. Then she tossed it down the pit.

The glow faded into a tiny dot in the distance before vanishing in the darkness. Maria felt like she'd lost sight of it faster than she should have. But she wasn't sure.

Of course, there was no sound of it hitting any bottom.

She pointed her flashlight back down the hole as she swung her pack back on. She frowned.

...There's no sign of what actually caused all these people to vanish, she thought. It's like-

A low rushing sound grew in her ears.

******

@Ookla the Finwëan @Ookla the Irreplaceable @Ookla the Inconclusive @Ookla the Dragonslayer @Ookla the Doomfrog @Just_a_Fan

Each member of the team heard the rushing sound now, like a growing wind, despite the stillness of the air. It grew louder and louder, almost reaching the point of deafening. Those that could see the Rabbit Hole would note tendrils of mist starting to leak out.

Words started to form in each of the agent's ears.

....Forest....Shadow...

...Sun in the sky....never rising...

Climb to when you need to be

Suddenly, without warning, a flood of mist exploded out of the Rabbit Hole. The white blankness became an expanding cloud that somehow ignored the physical boundaries of the glass, passing right through it, washing over every member of the team. Each of them was blinded by a sudden, overpowering grayness, as the mist descended on them.

The words became deafening now, overpowering, as if trying to burrow into their minds.

YOU LEFT YOUR NAME AT THE EDGE OF THE FOG

THE FOREST DRINKS YOUR SHADOW

YOU DIED WHEN YOU WERE BORN

WATCH YOUR STEP

YOU'RE RISING TO THE DEEPEST DEPTHS

YOUR PATH FOLDS ALONG THE CREASE

YOU'RE LOST, RIGHT WHEN YOU SHOULD BE

It's okay

The line has a center...

...exits....main event...

Slowly, the words finally faded, leaving each of them with a ringing in their ears.

All around them, nothing but that greyness.

Matthew staggered. The last time he'd heard voices...

[Wittles he/him]

After taking a moment to get his bearings, Tim hesitantly starts walking towards where he remembered the nearest building being. He was really worried about accidentally falling into the Rabbit Hole.

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

21 minutes ago, Ookla the Doomfrog said:

After taking a moment to get his bearings, Tim hesitantly starts walking towards where he remembered the nearest building being. He was really worried about accidentally falling into the Rabbit Hole.

The mist cleared, revealing that Tim was already in a building. He couldn't tell which one.

26 minutes ago, Ookla the Irreplaceable said:

 

Matthew staggered. The last time he'd heard voices...

Quote

Do you two want to end up in the same place?

 

[TwinStorm He/Him]

1 minute ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

The mist cleared, revealing that Tim was already in a building. He couldn't tell which one.

 

Quote

I don't really care

[Wittles he/him]

34 minutes ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

The mist cleared, revealing that Tim was already in a building. He couldn't tell which one.

 

Quote

Sure

 

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

2 hours ago, Ookla the Finwëan said:

Liv starting making her way towards the building they had just been in.

Astrid joined her.

 

2 hours ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

It was the same path she'd walked less than an hour ago, the path that had taken them from Building 2 to Building 1. Something seemed....different this time. Off, in a way that was hard to put a finger on.

Or maybe the first time had been the one that was off.

After a few minutes of walking, about halfway to Building 1, the silhouette of a figure appeared in the mist.

@Ookla the Inconclusive

 

She stopped dead in her tracks, grabbing Liv's arm.

"Wait," she hissed.

Hopefully it was only another one of their group, but . . . you never knew.

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

33 minutes ago, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

Astrid joined her.

 

She stopped dead in her tracks, grabbing Liv's arm.

"Wait," she hissed.

Hopefully it was only another one of their group, but . . . you never knew.

@Ookla the Finwëan

As the two agents got closer, the silhouette resolved into the shape of a young woman with black curly hair. She was facing away from them. She wore a white button up shirt with short sleeves and dress slacks. Standard office clothing. Obviously a worker for the Rim.

"Draw a cab. Is it here yet?" She said, still facing away.

1 hour ago, Ookla the Irreplaceable said:

 

 

38 minutes ago, Ookla the Doomfrog said:

 

The mist cleared further. Tim and Matthew found themselves in the same room, standing across from each other. The room was some kind of office complex, looking completely different from where they'd been before...whatever it was that had happend. In contrast to what they'd seen before, this building was crumbling, overgrown with vines and grass, as if it had been abandoned for years. Papers were scattered about, and most of the light fixtures had stopped working altogether. The scent of life and rot hung in the air.

[Through The Living Glass She/They]

2 minutes ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

@Ookla the Finwëan

As the two agents got closer, the silhouette resolved into the shape of a young woman with black curly hair. She was facing away from them. She wore a white button up shirt with short sleeves and dress slacks. Standard office clothing. Obviously a worker for the Rim.

"Draw a cab. Is it here yet?" She said, still facing away.

"Oh! Excuse me!" Astrid said, running over.

"Who are you? Could you tell us what's going on here?"

[Through the Living Wrath he/him]

10 hours ago, Ookla the Ouroboros said:

It was there. It felt like the floor of the facility. It was impossible to tell if he'd just missed the monitor when reaching for it, or if he'd somehow been transported somewhere else.

Kastel sighed, then took his shoes off, making sure to feel the ground in case he strayed into the grass, near the Rabbit Hole. He started to wander, aiming protectively with his handgun.

@Ookla the Ouroboros

Edited December 7, 2024 by Ookla the Dragonslayer

[The Bookwyrm he/him]

Just now, Ookla the Inconclusive said:

"Oh! Excuse me!" Astrid said, running over.

"Who are you? Could you tell us what's going on here?"

"The sun is behind you," she said. Her voice sounded...wrong. "The line is not straight this time. Was it ever? You died when you were born. Take a left at the next three minutes."