The Facility (pre-game)

[Eborne1]

 

The Facility

You are in a nondescript stone room that is lined with sleeping mats.  You wear simple, clean clothing.  The only features of the room are a wide set of ascending stairs and one reinforced, steel door.  There is a small latch built into the door for the occasional announcement or passing of requisites.  The stairs lead to an open-air courtyard that is surrounded by a tall smooth wall about 40 feet high, in which there is another steel door, like the one below.  There are no sounds that come from beyond the wall beside the wind.  Brief visitations from birds are not unusual.  

Exercise is encouraged in the courtyard where there are wooden swords and spears, as well as bows with dummy-pointed arrows beside a small target range.  Also in the courtyard are clean wash and waste facilities for your convenience.   

None of you knows why you are in the facility, but nor do you have any memory of having been anywhere else.  Despite the occasional odd dream that might suggest otherwise, the facility is all you recall knowing and all you have reason to think exists. 

Nobody is aware of any abuse or untoward behavior from the orderlies and your interaction with them is typically brief and seldom, yet naturally there is an air of disconcert that lives among you.  Despite your predicament, however, each of you maintains a mostly calm and tranquil demeanor as you carry out your simple, daily routines as if abiding in a tranquil dream state. 

You've been there for years...  

Anytime someone has become problematic in any way or vocal about breaking the rules or attempting to venture beyond the designated parameters of the confinement, they are quickly removed and unseen or heard from again.  Whenever you ask about the fates of those people, you are met with silence and polite dismissal.

Needless to say, there is an unspoken understanding among you to be discreet in your conversations.

 

You are being watched...

 

 

Edited September 1, 2023 by Eborne1 (see edit history)

[Brian Skies]

Elincia awakens with a cold sweat. She sits up and, with her left forearm, begins to wipe the sweat off her forehead. It was that dream...again, she thinks to herself. Almost without further thought, Elincia slowly rises to her feet and begins to roll up her blanket and sleeping mat. She carefully steps over the others and places them in her designated spot against the wall.

She quietly walks into the courtyard, momentarily admiring the multicolored sky and taking a deep breath of the fresh air before heading toward the clean wash facilities. She rinses her face and both her forearms before drying them with a clean washcloth.

After drinking a cup of water, she notices everyone else is still asleep. She was usually among the first to wake, but this is the first time she's ever been...first. She isn't sure how to feel about it.

Elincia walks toward the wooden weapons on the rack. In truth, she's best with the bow. But she's long since lost interest in practicing with the dummy-pointed arrows. She enjoys the spear, but since most of those willing to spar with her prefer the sword, she has taken an interest in practicing with the sword instead.

She picks up a wooden sword.

Elincia walks to a spot where she feels she won't wake the others and begins to stretch. She begins with her neck, her shoulders, and her triceps. She then follows up with her hips, legs, and ankles. Once she feels fluid and flexible, she slowly begins to swing the sword, focusing on the fundamentals, careful not to make too many wasted movements, taking a muted breath with each swing. She slowly increases the tempo, starting over every time it begins to feel sloppy. She's certain her swings look elegant and graceful. Yet the sword feels awkward and clumsy in her hands. And as most of her sparring partners can attest, beauty doesn't necessarily beget effectiveness.

The light exercise, or at least what Elincia considers to be light exercise, is cathartic. She can feel the lingering memories of her dream wash away. One swing at a time.

She continues her practice until something catches her attention or, even better, the first meal of the day.

Edited May 2, 2023 by Brian Skies (see edit history)

[OfficialNerdFire]

As the half-elf rises first, Edward decides it's time to stop fake sleeping and start his day as well. To avoid the awkwardness, he waits until she's made her way to the courtyard before sitting up. A silent yawn escapes him as he scratches his back, rubs his eyes, and shakes the sleepiness out of himself. He doesn't bother to put away his sleeping mat and instead moves to the courtyard. He pulls out a make-shift stylus he made from one of the broken wooden swords and begins writing in the dirt what happened in his dream so he might remember.

As expected, the notes he left yesterday have been cleaned up. No doubt by the shady individuals who run the place. It's the same routine every morning but he still tries to find a hiding spot for his text. After scribbling down what hasn't escaped his noggin, he locates the lady and decides to be friendly.

"Nice day isn't it? Bit early for training in my opinion but it seems like you're well accustomed to that sword there. More of a dagger guy myself." As he mentions it, he produces a small shiv from his waistband. He holds it away from the lady and towards one of the nearby dummies. "For some reason it just feels more natural. If you fancy a spar I could be your partner. Must be lonely practicing by your lonesome. Not with this of course!"

He twirls the shiv through his fingers and makes a jab at the "ribs" of the dummy slightly puncturing it. Satisfied with his handiwork he stows it away and retrieves a sparring dagger instead. "I must admit I'm not all that accustomed to sparring so you'll have to go easy on me sweetheart. The sword your preferred weapon?"

Spot DC 12(Rolled 4+8) Would notice that when he picks up a dagger, he stashes three others on his person

Edited May 2, 2023 by OfficialNerdFire (see edit history)

[Vedast]

Tannus - a term meaning "like oak bark" in reference to his tanned, leathery skin - arose to the rising of the sun. This seemed natural to him and sufficient time had passed that he had long since ceased wondering about it.  He was aware of the passage of time - one of his earliest memories here was establishing routines to keep himself grounded: such things as noting the altitude and azimuth of the sun at its daily zenith; the weather conditions; the birds that came and went.  Everyone here went by some sort of epithetSee recent (2MAY) GM announcement on name recall in the Facility. as they could recall no proper name for themselves.

He noted a few others of the inmates were already moving in the early dawn light.  At one point, like most everyone here, he had been sufficiently wary and disoriented that he had tried to sleep lightly, be the first awake: it seemed almost a contest, as much a grasp at something real that bound the group together as any serious precaution for safety.  Such wariness was natural, but ultimately unsustainable.  Oh, care and circumspection was still the daily business in this odd place - where tranquility was anything but soothing - but that jump-at-the-drop-of-a-pin level of alertness had soon grown exhausting. 

This morning, however, he was very much on edge, troubled by what had been a particularly vivid dream: The Dream.  The dream that had, over the past few weeks, been recurring with greater frequency and urgency although it had always been with him -- as far as he could remember anything.  

Somewhat preoccupied, and wondering whether others were faring likewise, he made his way out for his morning trip to the Necessary Area.  He noted two inmates already engaged in some exercise - as they all euphemistically called it. Curious, he paused to observe discretely for a few minutes as the two were apparently discussing the merits of various smaller weapons.  He was just about to turn away at the urging of his bladder when a subtle movement by one of the pair, the male, caught his perceptive Perception checkSee roll below. I'm having trouble figuring out how to place the roll within the text itself. I'll assume a 17 would be a success as far as narration is concerned. Btw, is "spot" a thing in PF1E? I rolled perception vs. the stealth attempt of palming the dagger. eye: the man had surreptitiously palmed at least one of the makeshift daggers.  Although Tannus had had no specific dealings with this particular inmate, for good or ill, this was a bit disconcerting though, probably, many of the other inmates had done similarly.  It had been some time since an inmate had been disappeared and he made a mental note to be wary of the clandestinely armed individual. 

Finishing his necessary business and since the yard was, for the moment, mostly empty - aside from the pair now sparring - he decided to work on some archery drill: he had built an A-frame with spears and set a dummy sword attached to the frame by a piece of torn off linen to swaying back-and-forth. Hitting a moving target was much more satisfying.  

After some callisthenic exercises with a spear, he took a few moments to cool down.  Looking up to the wall, he saw his avian friendhaving used Wild Empathy class feature per GM adjudication whom he had named Risha.  He'd saved a bit of fruit from last evening's meal and, sitting down on the ground gracefully, offered the bird (type?) a small portion.  Tannus had noticed over some time that he seemed to need less food and water than most of the other inmates: then again, the inmates were of all sorts of shapes and sizes and temperaments ... and appetites. In any case, he didn't begrudge the bit of food that Risha happily finished off after a few scritches. Enjoy your fill and your freedom, my feathered friend, he said softly.  

By the time Risha had flown off, the courtyard had begun to fill, with some inmates engaging in various physical activities; others perambulating individually or in pairs.  The morning meal would be soon forthcoming, so it was time to make his ablutions in preparation.  He noticed that the two sparring partners were finishing up.      

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 3, 2023 by Vedast
Elaborate paragraph #4 (see edit history)

[Brian Skies]

One of the humans approach Elincia. Not wanting to be rude, she stops her practice, turning toward the man to let him speak. He was approximately the same height as her, and his frame was ever so slightly larger. Looking at his face, she couldn't help but wonder, Was this person always here?

She watches Edward twirl the dagger and jab the dummy, shocked by the quickness and effectiveness of his movements. She had only considered the bows, swords, and spears before now, thinking a small weapon like the dagger to be impractical for combat. Now she wonders what it would be like to wield one herself. The sharpness of the shiv was a little concerning, as the weapons were supposed to be safe to use, even upon each other. Yet, she made no reaction condemning or endorsing such an item. When she notices Edward stash a few daggers, she makes a sly grin, but it quickly fades away before he rises.

"The bow is my preferred weapon. It's not much of a sparring tool, though. So I practice with the sword instead." She finds a nearby wooden dagger and replaces it with her sword. "This tiny blade of yours, the dagger I believe it's called, I'd like to try it, if you don't mind."

"For sparring matches, three successful strikes or hitting a vital area constitutes a win. We can continue for as long or as little as you'd like." After speaking those words, Elincia takes her ready position, allowing Edward to make the first move. Many of the others who would spar with her tended to be taller than her, so she isn't sure what to expect. She knew she had the advantage, having sparred regularly for the last few years, but knew it would disappear quickly, especially if Edward had any talent for combat.

Edward proves himself to be exceptional, at least in her eyes. She won most of the early matches, mostly to Edward's inexperience. But once he caught on, he began to win in bunches. By the end, he had just barely overtaken Elincia. Not that anyone was keeping score, of course. Elincia didn't mind, though. After a certain point, once she realized Edward was more skilled than her, she began to mimic his movements, incorporating what she saw into her own style of fighting.

Once they finish, she takes a look down at the wooden dagger, holding it softly in her right hand. Unlike the other weapons, the dagger felt light and easy to use. She begins to roll her wrist, twirling her fingers around the dagger. She then finishes by spinning the dagger atop one of her fingers. "I think I like this weapon."

Edited May 2, 2023 by Brian Skies (see edit history)

[Eborne1]

Like most days, the rising of the first few to meet the day stirs the rest, and before long all the facility residents are awake and attending to their regular morning rituals. 

Some residents sit in meditation, as those residents tend to do first thing in the morning.  Others engage in hard physical exercise, doing pushups, situps, and various forms of calisthenics.  Others, yet, spar with the wooden training weapons filling the courtyard with the all too familiar broken rhythm of clacking sounds that echo off the smooth stone walls rising up all around you.  Some talk idly among themselves.  Others bathe with varying degrees of prudence.  There are now forty-two residents in the facility.

Before long, a familiar dull bell is rung, two... three... four... five... six... seven... times.  The count is always different and goes on until everyone has stopped whatever activity they are engaged in and is standing quietly and attentively.

 

Another expected sound follows; that of a series of heavy, steel bolts being slid back and an unseen door opening and then closing loudly, followed by the sound of those same bolts being locked back into place.  Another series of heavy bolts can then be heard scraping on steel from their closed positions before a steel door, exactly like the one in the sleeping chamber opens up and three gray-robed men enter the courtyard, each holding a large wicker basket full of fruits and vegetables. 
 

The robed men appear healthy of body and all the hair is cleanly shaved from their head, face, and brows.  They carefully set the baskets of fruit and vegetables down in the center of the courtyard as they do each morning.  They then quietly turn, hands folded in the front, and exit out the door through which they came, followed by the expected sound of metal bolts opening and then closing again.     

              

 

Edited May 3, 2023 by Eborne1 (see edit history)

[OfficialNerdFire]

The spar goes as well as he anticipated. A dirty trick here, a stab there, a sneakily (or not so, given that they found him out) thrown dagger somewhere. While he is clearly more dexterous, if only slightly, the lady's moves have a certain elegance to them. Evenly matched they conclude their sparring as the others begin to rise and go about their business. Knowing what comes next he turns to the lady interrupting "Hold that thought sweetheart, breakfast is near."

Edward then begins sneakily weaving his was around about to where the food is placed. Should she allow him to, he'd take her by the hand and bring her along without much thought. Once there he'd eye the baskets as they entered, hoping for his pick of the litter. His head aches a bit as he holds his temples.

Why am I so eager today? And since when am I this friendly?

But as the baskets are set down Edward pushes the thought to the side and goes to snag his favorites before retreating to where they were before. Removing his shirt, he places it down like a picnic blanket and puts his food atop it. Using his shiv to cut and eat the various fruits and veggies. Assuming the lady is nearby he'd continue the conversation.

"So where were we? Ah yes daggers. I'm glad you see their merit. And I disagree, bows are plenty reasonable for sparring. Anything is if you're good enough!" A laugh escapes him as he takes a bite from one of his fruits. Chewing and swallowing he continues "Speaking of reasonable, some dream must've given you a right scare last night for you to wake like that huh sweetheart?" Another bite as he awaits an answer.

Edited May 3, 2023 by OfficialNerdFire (see edit history)

[Brian Skies]

Elincia pauses once Edward mentions breakfast. Sure enough, she can hear the dull ringing. Seven times this time. Not that she has any particular interest in the number of times the bell rings each day. She just can't help herself from counting. Then there is the familiar scene of gray-robed men, the one that would occur each day without fail.

She continues to watch as the men make their way back through the door, when she suddenly feels a tug on her hand. Noticing the hand grasping hers belongs to Edward, Elincia allows herself to be pulled along. Arriving in front of the basket, she waits for Edward to take his share of the food before grabbing a share of her own, grateful to not have to wait for the ensuing mass to crowd around the baskets as they always do.

Elincia follows Edward to their previous spot, keen to have someone to talk to this morning. After taking a bite of one of her carrots, she says, "I suppose I just lack the skill to spar with the bow, then. Perhaps one day I will gain the confidence to do so. This dagger, however, seems to have many functions, at least from what you've shown me. I've always considered their small size to be a disadvantage, but it doesn't seem to be the case."

She falls silent as Edward brings up the topic of dreams. Ah, so I really wasn't the first to wake. She takes a few moments before continuing. "Scared? No, I'd probably say distressed. I've had the same dream too many times now to be fearful of it. It's been occurring more frequently for me too. I just wish it wasn't always so cryptic..." Elincia leans slightly forward, taking a closer look at Edward. "What about you? Any bad dreams for you lately?"

[Vedast]

Tannus was eating his morning meal along with three other inmates, each, like himself, of a more laconic disposition compared with many.  Very few inmates found themselves not a member of various 'messes' as they were called: small associations of three to six individuals that developed based perhaps on affinity of temperament or, more defensively, on the principle of safety-in-numbers.

He had selected a banana and a pear for himself - along with some berries as Risha enjoyed their seeds - together with a handful of mixed nuts.  As he leisurely ate, taking in the companionable sounds of mastication, he observed momentarily the disparate pair he had seen sparing earlier: they seemed to be in a rather engaged conversation.  He thought again of the pocketed weapon, but dismissed the concern. Surely he was being paranoid.  Perhaps an effect of The Dream.

As individuals, the pair really were quite different, but then again, the inmates constituted quite a varied group: male and female; tall and short; dark hair and fair hair; light skin and swarthy skin; the calm and the tense; the active and the indolent; the taciturn and the talkative; the stronger and the weaker, though no one seemed actually sickly. 

Then an odd thought struck: the orderlies were likewise rather individual too.  Maybe the somber uniform externals; the nondescript and concealing grey cloaks; the placid demeaner of servants though they held a position of power and mystery relative to the inmates; and most of all, the odd yet compelling lack of any facial or head hair: all of this homogeneity had clouded and masked what had been plain to see.  And this raised a powerful question:

Had the orderlies once been inmates? The thought shook him.

Suddenly, he became aware of his messmates' staring.

Had he spoken aloud?  He shuddered at the thought. 

"Is there something wrong with the food?" one asked after a few moments.

I beg pardon ... no, nothing. I slept poorly last night, he stammered truthfully, though not to the point.  

The others resumed finishing their meals, but perhaps more disconcerting to Tannus was that no one seemed interested - or willing - to pursue the matter further.  Had they also not slept well last night?  Had they also dreamed? 

So many questions.

Had the orderlies once been inmates? How might he find out?  Did he dare to ask? Was he more afraid of the question ... or the answer? 

 

 

Edited May 4, 2023 by Vedast
wording changes (see edit history)

[OfficialNerdFire]

  

"Oh I'm sure you're plenty skilled with the bow. Best way to gain that confidence is to dive in head first."  He gestures around with his shivMeant perception lol. Also save for the shiv, the other daggers he hid were thrown during the spar and were just the provided ones. to the rest of the courtyard, a bit of grape currently adorning it's tip "Can't think of a better place to try. Well, can't think of anywhere else for that matter but I think the point still stands." The grape then dissapears into his mouth as a piece of apple takes it's place. Without chewing he swallows, As the lady leans in he follows suit, seemingly careful to point the shiv away from her as they get closer to one another.

"Well, I wouldn't say bad per-see. Cryptic sure. But assuming it's me they're depicting I'm pretty badass. Not sure that's what you meant though." He giggles in a hushed tone, taking a bite from his apple. Still chewing he moves it off to the side of his mouth as he continues. "Sorry to hear you aren't enjoying your rest. Besides spar and wash up there is little else to do besides sleep. Well," He swallows and twirls the shiv "Save for admire the wonders of daggers and make small talk with others. Luckily for me I found someone nice." His eyes sweep over the lady "And...easy to talk to."

He smiles slyly as he repositions himself next to the lady, though seemingly mindful of her space. He gestures to her set of food "Not much of a raw carrot fan. Bit earthy for me. Must have a strong jaw to enjoy munching on those sweetheart." He chuckles again as he absentmindedly spits out an apple seed, the lump of which soars through the air quite a short distance and lands not far off from Tannus. A bit farther and it may have landed in his food. It seems a few of the grape seeds were also adhered onto it all leaving his mouth in a small mass. Seemingly not realizing what he did he finishes his thought.

"Last guy I got buddy-buddy with ended up having a screw loose and bit me. Luckily he didn't have a strong jaw. Unluckily I didn't see his right hook coming since I was to busy wondering why he bit me. He's not here anymore, but next time..." He slides the shiv back into it's place as he pops the last grape into his mouth, patting it beneath his waistband "...They'll have to take me with em." He winks and rolls up his shirt, setting it behind him. He lays down next to the lady, gesturing at the sky. "Hey, doesn't that cloud look like a bunny?"

Edited May 5, 2023 by OfficialNerdFire (see edit history)

[Leonidas1789]

She had woken up late that morning - just in time for breakfast. 

The bad dream had returned; most terrifying to her was the vision of the hissing snake, and then of course the dead man's face... Did the dream have a meaning? She shivered and rubbed her hands together.

She decided she would have a pear, a ripe pear with perhaps an apple or an orange? 'No vegetables today' she thought.

And then she would grab a bow and practice on the target range - her favourite activity of the day. She was good with a bow, strictly better and more accurate than most of the other residents; yet she could always improve her aim and perfect her skills.

She had plenty of time to do so, too... 

Walking quickly, she approached one of the baskets and retrieved some food; she then made her way to a corner of the courtyard, where she would sit and enjoy her breakfast before starting her daily routine.

Edited May 5, 2023 by Leonidas1789 (see edit history)

[Vedast]

^

As breakfast ended and the inmates went about their various tasks and activities, Tannus noticed one of the women make her way to the archery area.  He had taken note of her before ... she went by Jinx in this place ... their eyes were of not dissimilar colors, his amber, hers honey; both with dark hair.  Maybe they were from a similar place ... before.  Such speculations were not likely to be answered, however, and more to the issue at hand were her impressive skills with a bow.  He thought the two of them of comparable talent, though perhaps Jinx exhibited somewhat more natural ability whereas he might be said to have a greater ease with the weapon itself [OOC] rationalizing narratively an 18 DEX vs. 17 DEX + weapon focus (bows)) [/OOC].  

Still pondering last night's Dream and the troubling questions that had arisen in his mind over the morning meal regarding the origins of the Orderlies, he made his way to the archery practice contraption he'd constructed that allowed a practice sword to be set oscillating to facilitate firing at a moving target.  He'd used it just earlier that morning. 

Wordlessly, he quickly set up the target and caught Jinx's eye.  He set the sword to swinging and stepped back just ever so slightly ... to indicate his confidence in her ability.  He did not think it misplaced. 

 

Edited May 6, 2023 by Vedast (see edit history)

[Pakk84]

Horas MacCoinnich

---

 

Horas wokes up late as he had been in the past few months. He sees everyone waking up early and training and so on, and he wonders about the reason to keep doing it.

He and his fellow inmates had been locked there for as long as he can remember, literally. No explanation; no reason. And worst of all; no recollection of anything before the Facility. He many times wondered that maybe there was nothing before the Facility, or outside the Facility... but then he'll have that dream, the dream that will tell him that there is more behind the high walls and the iron gates.

He takes some food and eats it with as much peasure as he can. Not much else to enjoy here. He had trained enough and he has no interest in taking any of the dummy weapons; they'd be useless in case of real combat. Instead he did the same thing he'd done a thousand times. He took a casual walk around the inside room and then the courtyard. He'll check for any changes in the locked doors or cracks the tall smooth wall and that would mean an opportunity to reach the outside. He knew he'd get nothing from this, still doing it as a daily rutine.

At some point he approaches the man and woman talking and with an awkward smiles, ignoring the conversation the are having and he starts his own conversation. "I was thinking... Maybe we are sick and contangious and that's why we were locked here. Some king of memory sickness. Or we did something horrible and we've been punished with forgetting our past and staying here forever. Do you think we are here because we can't remember anything prior this place... or we can't rember anything because someone put us in this place?" 

The answer does not matter to him, but talking to the other people has been his resolution for the last few weeks.

[Leonidas1789]

Breakfast had been satisfying and she headed to the target range. She grabbed a bow and six arrows, and prepared to practice.

Another resident, Tannus, had built a more elaborate target, using spears and a swinging sword; shooting at a moving target was indeed more challenging for experienced archers...

She knew him a little; of all the residents, he seemed to be one of the most gifted with a bow. Practicing with him would make her day interesting indeed.

She smiled at him as their eyes met.

He had set the sword to swinging and stepped back, thereby signalling that the time had come to shoot. She readied her bow and let a first arrow fly, and then a second. The first missed the target by a few inches, the second was more accurate, but still a miss. Average shots at best, if not mediocre ones. 

"Tannus, why don't you try. My aim seems bad this morning; show me how you would do it." she called.

 

Edited May 6, 2023 by Leonidas1789 (see edit history)

[Vedast]

After a moment of thought, Tannus shook his head in negation, his sparse beard moving in kind in the slight breeze.  

Perhaps it would be more wise to decline, he replied, slowly and hesitantly ... unsure, almost thinking out loud. 

I appreciate your confidence in me, but ... again, his mind drifted and he looked up to the sky ... but perhaps today is not an auspicious day for such things.  I must beg your pardon if I importuned you, he finished somewhat formally, to cover the awkwardness he felt.  

With that, he moved to dismantle his construction.  He  wondered whether Jinx had likewise experienced a troubled night and thought of confiding his unease regarding the Dream to her, but he felt a scruple. Overcoming the interior detachment one experienced here in The Facility for so long was difficult; it seemed to Tannus that emotions and thoughts were somewhat ... repressed? ... here, though he could not clearly understand why he thought so ... in any case, one did not easily share confidences in The Facility ... or, at least, had not until now.  Perhaps these sudden questions he had posed to himself this morning; a more piquant sense of awareness to his surroundings; frequency and vividness of dreams; and desire to talk and confide were a sign of ... something ... a time of change perhaps?  

He met Jinx's eyes ... wondering whether such thoughts might be reflected there.

Edited May 6, 2023 by Vedast (see edit history)