Chapter 1: Honey’s Return
The cold wind of the autumn season and the chilling rain were the first things Honey remembered as she emerged from the shadowy woods that surrounded the town. Her wings were a mess of dirty feathers, tufts of fur stuck out in all odd directions, and mud caked her whole body and covered her feet as she hobbled down the now waterlogged path.
Her brain was swirling with confusion and questions as she tried to regain her bearings. She shook her head, but immediately winced as it pounded from the sudden movement. Instinctively raising her hand to her head, she paused when she caught a glimpse of something on her shoulder. She repositioned herself to get a better look.
A dark purple circle with three jagged points and a line across it’s center adorned her left shoulder, and something about it made Honey feel uneasy. As she continued to stare at the mark she realized that wasn’t the only thing strange going on. Her fur, once a bright purple, now appeared a dulled grey. Honey looked over the rest of her figure, sure enough, her wings and body were all the same, having swapped out it’s previous vibrancy for that same grayish tint.
Honey’s mind bombarded her with questions, but she was much too tired to entertain any of them. Actually, she felt exhausted. Her body protested every feeble step she took towards town, and she struggled to keep her balance. Whether her tiredness came from the rain that soaked into her fur, or from being in the woods for who knows how long she did not know. “Probably both” she reasoned.
Despite her slow gait, the tops of buildings came closer and closer into view, and Honey found herself just on the outside of town when she heard a voice cry out towards her. Being disoriented and tired, the words didn’t register in her mind. Was...was someone calling to her?
“Housemaster Honey!”
A troubled looking Nyulop came running up to her. The nyulop spoke frantically but Honey could only pick up half of what they were saying, her mind still foggy. “Are you ok!?” and “what happened?!” were repeated enough times for Honey to respond with a small nod to show she was alright. Well, alright as she could be.
The nyulop gently draped Honey’s arm over their shoulders. With the added weight being taken off of her, Honey realized just how tired she actually was, and she struggled to keep her eyes open. She heard the nyulop call out to more figures in the distance, and a reassuring voice spoke in her ear, something about getting her help.
Something clicked in Honey’s brain as she struggled to stay awake. That was one thing she definitely remembered—someone calling out for help…
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Chapter 2: The Council Gathers
The council had called an urgent meeting almost immediately once the news of Honey’s return swept over town. The collection of Draken and Nyulop that arrived were unusually solemn. Though quiet muttering rose and fell among the group, it was Vortea who finally broke the silence.
“Is this everyone?” She asked, referring to the other members. Carina, Vac, Blaise, and Swift were all sitting next to one another, and Vortea, Tobias, and Silver sat opposite of them. Mayor Hyndrel and Gayle were positioned between the two groups. A few uneasy eyes lingered on the empty chair Honey once occupied, but nothing else was said.
Hyndrel crossed his arms, “Right then. I think our first order of business now that Honey has returned, is to figure out what exactly caused her to disappear. The room fell silent. Everyone seemed to have something on their minds, and it wasn’t hard to figure out what.
“Honey is alright.” Vortea said addressing what they were all thinking. She was loud enough for everyone to hear but there was a gentleness to her tone. “She’s being taken care of by none other than Dane, and she’s home safe and sound. It’s hard, but we can’t afford to worry right now, not when we can figure out the best way to help her.”
“I guess it’s just a little hard not to worry,” Vac spoke up, scratching at the back of her neck. “People have been disappearing all over town! Don’t get me wrong I’m beyond relieved Honey’s back, it just feels like we can’t catch a break.”
Gale raised her hand, “Actually, I’m glad you’ve mentioned that.” she said, pulling out a small map from her bag and lying it on the table. A crude drawing of Whistler Crest was drawn on it, and a red dotted line surrounded the outskirts of town. "Since this time of year tends to be particularly...um...eventful. Hydrel and I thought it might be a good idea to take precautions this time around. To be fair, we had no idea people would start vanishing, but we thought it best if people remained in town.” She pointed to Silver who sat next to her. “We had commissioned Silver and Oren to put up large signs on the outskirts of town to prevent travel through the woods, just until the end of Hollowturne.”
Silver waved, “Oren sends his regards.” She turned back towards Gayle, urging her to continue.
Gale nodded in thanks before turning back to her map. “And Mae has volunteered to patrol the perimeter of the forest along here”—she pointed to the dotted line—“for extra security. She should be reaching Remy’s farm right about now actually.” Gale straightened up, looking pleased with herself before turning to the rest of the council.
They still seemed quiet, much to Gale’s dismay. She couldn’t blame her colleagues though, now that Reynard and Skell were sealed away, the council had all hoped they could put this sort of thing behind them.
“Not to mention the mere fact that Honey has returned is promising,” Silver chirped, trying to aid Gale’s attempt to lift their spirits. She offered a hopeful expression, “It means there’s a chance that the others could return as well.”
Blaise joined in, hoping to reassure his friends, “Swift and I managed to see Honey as she was going into Dane’s clinic.” He gestured to Swift who nodded in confirmation before the blue Draken turned his gaze back to the table. ”She looked a little worse for wear but Dane said he was sure she’ll wake up soon.” At the very least, I’m happy she was found before anything worse happened.”
Silver took heed of Swift’s quietness and turned towards him. “Something still on your mind?” The room tuned towards Swift and Blaise offered his boyfriend a comforting hand on his shoulder, to which Swift gave a grateful smile.
“I’m not really sure exactly.” He admitted, avoiding the council’s gaze, “She had a weird mark on her arm, and she seemed grey...as if all of her color was gone.”
Vac tilted her head in confusion, “What do you mean by a weird mark?”
Swift was quiet for a moment, trying to figure out how to explain it, before shaking his head. “It kinda looked like a circle. It had a line going through it, and three points stuck out of it.”
“Do you think it could be making her sick?” Carina whispered, exchanging a concerned look with Vac, before turning back to Swift. He shrugged his shoulders. “It wasn’t like anything I’ve ever seen before. What about you Tobias,” Swift gestured towards the nyulop across from him, “Have any idea of what it could mean?”
Tobias drummed his claws on the table, before letting out a small sigh, “Unfortunately no. The description isn’t one I’m familiar with I’m afraid. Although I could look through my collection again, perhaps there was something I’ve overlooked?” He offered.
‘Oh wait!” Blaise exclaimed raising his hand, “What about the spiritualists?”All eyes shifted to Blaise as he continued. “I mean, this sorta thing sounds right up their alley!” He turned towards Hyndrel, who stroked his chin.
“I think that’s a good idea, if this is being caused by a spirit, their help would certainly be invaluable.” He extended a paw towards his assistant mayor, “Gale and I can ask them for assistance as soon as we can. We’ll also have them check up on Honey at the clinic, perhaps they have some insight as to what’s going on and how to stop it.” Hyndrel stood up from his chair, signaling the meeting was coming to a close. His gaze swept across the room. “Meanwhile, I suggest if you’d still like to volunteer your services, to meet up with either Mae or Oren.” He said addressing everyone. “The more prepared we are for whatever might be causing all this trouble the better.”
With that the meeting was over, and everyone began filling out of the great hall. Some joined Silver as she made her way back to her home, others made preparations to meet up with Mae, and the rest decided it would be good to stay at the houses and inform everyone about what was going on. Fortunately, everyone seemed a little more determined leaving the meeting than when they entered. Hopefully, they could finally get to the bottom of this mess.
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Chapter 3: Speckled Thuddleys
Mae took in a deep breath of the crisp autumn air as she patrolled the outskirts of the woods. Her ears were raised and alert and her eyes meticulously scanned every inch of the forest. She refused to peel her eyes away for even a moment. No one else was disappearing into these woods, not on her watch. She relaxed slightly when Remy’s farm came into view. Despite being so far from the safety of town, Remy and Tida seemed to manage fine on their own, much to the relief of the sheriff.
Remy was working close to his livestock when Mae finally arrived at his farm. The sheriff let out a small yawn and stretched her arms before turning to Remy. “All clear
on this side of the woods.” She sighed, not fully taking her attention away from the shaded underbrush, “Anythin’ amiss while I was gone?”
Remy shook his head, “No, nothin.” He mumbled softly, looking worriedly towards his farm.
“Somethin’ the matter?” Mae asked with a raise of her brow.
“Just worried bout’ my animals is all.” He said petting a pieshu who came out to greet the duo. “If the Spirits were heartless enough to take someone as nice as Honey, who’s ta say they won’t go after my lovely Csirkatrice?” The little pieshu yapped at Remy’s feet, “Or my Pieshu?”
Mae tilted her head, “You think this is the spirits at work?” She questioned pointing a finger towards the forest.
Remy stood up and dusted himself off as the pieshu ran off towards the barn, “Seems to be that way.” He sighed, “there’s always somethin’ going on this time a year with the spirits. For a while, it was them same two spirits every year before you and those spiritualists came to town. I’d hoped that when ya’ll took care of them we’d finally have a peaceful Hollowturne.”
“I ain’t so sure this was the work of the spirits.” Mae replied, “In my experience, Spirits don’t just go around abductin’ folks fer no reason. It seems to me that—“
Suddenly a rustling from behind them caught the pair's attention. Mae readied herself while Remy huddled behind her. A pale, yellowish creature emerged from the underbrush. Specks of color dotted its form, and a large, purple tail with a gaping hole in the back swished behind them. Mae was especially aware of it’s gleaming, sharp teeth and purple horns. It didn’t seem to have any eyes, nonetheless Mae dared not to move.
“What in the Great Circle are those?” Mae muttered, shooting a glance at Remy. He threw his arms up in confusion, still hiding behind the sheriff.
They watched in silence as the creature sniffed at the air, before turning to the right, ignoring the Draken and nyulop all together. Cautiously, Mae followed its trail and saw it arrive at what appeared to be a deceased Strahbyrd, covered in pink-orange spots spread across its face that mirrored the creature’s own. She grimaced as the it began eating away at the poor bird, before walking silently back towards Remy, who hadn’t moved from his spot.
“Told ya somethin’ strange always goes on this time of year.” Remy mumbled a little louder now that it was occupied.
“I don’t think spirits are yer problem here.” Mae retorted, looking back towards the strange creature who had almost finished their meal, “Not this time.”
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Introducing Speckled Thuddleys!
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What are Speckled Thuddleys? Find them on their species page!
Confrontation and Discovery: Oct. 22nd-Nov. 12th
Prompt #1: Draw your character confronting the new creatures being seen around town. Are they afraid of them? Do they hide? Fight? What do they do?
Weapons aren't required, but are highly recommended
Children or Draken who's TEG isn't fully out must have a teen or adult accompany them if they wish to investigate the unknown creatures, as a safety measure. NPCs such as the Housemasters sans Honey, and Mae may be used if you do not have any grown characters.
Prompt #2 (Drained exclusive): Draw your character returning from the woods. Does anybody on a patrol find them first? Or do they stumble/drag their way back to town?
Characters who's 2 week minimum timer has not been met, are considered "Inactive” at this time.
An image showing a healthy version of your character vs. the Drained+marked version is required upon your characters return.
The guide image for Healthy vs. Drained is below. The layer overlay colors provided must be used over the entire character, except the eyes, which remain normal.
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Exclusive Drained character upgrade Drain Marked
You can find more about this upgrade and its side effects under the "Rarities" category for each species. More information about the mark itself can be found under each species "Other" category.
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