So what is this? I am trying to brainstorm setting ideas for a modern horror world. I’ll be mixing ideas from Lovecraftian horror, conspiracies, the occult, weirdness, and whatever I feel like throwing into this cursed soup. For structure? Not sure. Maybe I’ll use Silent Legions to create a sandbox of sorts, for investigative horror. Or I might brainstorm more elements for my Romanian Mythos sourcebook. Or wild ideas for one of my many work-in-progress modules. Or just pretentious flash fiction.
The Party - short fiction
For today, some flash fiction using the Mythic Adventure Crafter:
Rolls
Theme slot 1 set to SOCIAL. Theme slot 2 set to MYSTERY. Theme slot 3 set to ACTION. Theme slot 4 set to PERSONAL. Theme slot 5 set to TENSION.
Turning point:
- A HIGH ENERGY GATHERING (SOCIAL)
- This Turning Point involves a social gathering with a great deal of energy or activity. This could be a busy nightclub, a loud party, or a sporting event, for instance.
CONCLUSION (SOCIAL)— ignored
- If this Turning Point is currently a Plotline Development, then it becomes a Plotline Conclusion. Incorporate anything necessary into this Turning Point to end this Plotline and remove it from the Plotlines List. If this Turning Point is a New Plotline or already a Conclusion, then consider this Plot Point a None.
- FRAUD (MYSTERY)
- A Character is a fraud. Whatever it is they are presenting themselves as, or whatever story they have told of themselves, is false. This result differs from Hidden Agenda, where in Hidden Agenda the Character may legitimately have both motives in mind, whereas in Fraud the image or story they are presenting is completely fake. For instance, the prince claiming he is the rightful ruler of a kingdom is actually a shapeshifting doppelgänger assuming the role.
- A FIGURE FROM THE PAST (PERSONAL)
- A new Character joins the Adventure, someone from a Character’s past. This Plot Point requires a new Character to be added to the Characters List and Invoked.
- CRASH (ACTION)
- This Turning Point involves a vehicle carrying a Character to crash or threaten to crash. The Character(s) involved must either mitigate the damage of the crash, prevent the crash in the first place, and/or survive the crash. The vehicle can be anything from a plane to a car to a snow sled … anything that can transport a Character and its crashing would be dangerous.
The party.
The high end club — Gremlin — appeared as if from nowhere. Over night, its name resonated across the night life of the City. All your friends keep talking about it. At the usual bar you go to, you arrive too late. Their plans are already set in motion.
”We’re checking out the Gremlin”, Steve says.
He puts on his faded leather jacket you suspect he bought pre-faded from a boutique pop-up and grins at you. The rest of the crew — Madelyn and Joey — are closing the tab and downing their drinks. This is beyond your saving.
”I don’t feel like rubbing elbows with trustfund bros,” you hopelessly dissent.
Two shots and three beers in you meet him. Magnetic, brilliant white teeth, and wearing a pale pink shirt that screams “I’m fun and safe”, Marco turns out to be just as much a fraud as you. You exchange vapes in the club’s lounge. His grape-flavored IQOS tastes like stale wine.
”I don’t know what I’m doing here,” he says. “I’m not much of a party guy.”
You stare at Marco. How can someone so perfectly at ease with the world be so relatable to you? You’re a weirdo and a half. You think peach tea and a book on the life of trees is the way to go down on a Friday.
She crawls out of the darkness of the Gremlin’s belly, like a panther stalking her prey. Samantha never looked good in dresses. At least not when you were dating. But that was back in college and now she’s working out. Yoga? You lock eyes enough to notice you stop breathing. She looks away, then sits on the sofa, near Marco. She grabs his leg.
”You boys having a good time here?” she asks.
”We*‘re talking about trees. Did you know they communicate through the soil, like part of a world-spanning brain?” Marco says, his flawless denture a reminder of your fallible nature. He waits for you and Sam to acknowledge this perfect summary of your interaction so far*.
”We’re friends now, right?” he says.
“Hey, Sam” you finally say*.
”You too know each other?” Marco asks.
Cut to the car. Crisp winter air comes in through the windows, mixes in with the vapes flavors. Strawberry? You don’t remember who’s driving, but they’re not good. The turns come and go too fast, and you’ve lost sense of where you are. You remember Sam inviting you to join them — who were they? — to the afterparty at Carl’s. Steve, Madelyn and Joey called it a night. The car veers hard left, your head veers the other way. You hear the driver scream, Sam screams too. Marco’s hand grab your shoulder hard.
You stand above the ditch, looking down. The car hit the tree head-on. The glass shattered and scattered across the snow, transparent reflections upon white reflections. No blood, no bodies.
You look at your phone. The screen is broken. In the crack, you see yourself: magnetic, perfect teeth. Marco stares back at you. From the woods ahead, you hear a voice:
“Follow me”, Samantha says.
What was this? Guess I’ll try to figure it out tomorrow.