the river takes and the river brings back...

In the wake of another disastrous event, the townspeople of Lethe have decided enough is enough. After demands from their people, the council has disbanded – but such a dispersal has led to unforeseen consequences. The council-made wards surrounding the town, centuries old, have crumbled. The previously elusive Lethe is hardly so secretive anymore. Humans and hunters alike are bound to find it with more ease. Many Lethean citizens take this as their cue to leave and seek safety elsewhere, where it is arguably more guaranteed. Others stay to protect their beloved homestead and hope for the best.

It is wholly an uncertain future.

TO THE MUNS...

This will be our final admin announcement on this blog. Before we go, let us thank you, the writers, for a year and half of energy, imagination, and creation. Simply put, we would not have been able to accomplish all that we have without you. As previously stated, you are welcome to keep writing here for as long as you’d like. But as it stands, our duties as your admins are done. Thank you, thank you, thank you. May we meet again.

Guests can’t help noticing the evening is nearing its close without incident, a situation unprecedented in the last few years. Some begin to relax, some notice the council are huddling together in pairs or groups, murmuring among each other and disappearing from view. Fifteen minutes to the strike of ten, a bell rings through the gala and a voice murmurs quietly from every corner of the grounds announcing the gala’s last dance and last call. Some return to the ballroom, eager to see the grand finale from the gala’s orchestra, or celebrating what seems to be an almost lackluster evening.

The music swells in a crescendo, and when the last note fades, the lights flicker out like candles in a wind. Applause meets this ending, and a sigh of relief echoes from most, until the lights continue to stay off. Murmurs start, and then cries of worry as the darkness continues. The only light, guests soon learn, is provided by a fire that somehow began in the library and has begun its venture down the hall and into the ballroom. Delilah Sarkissian’s voice echoes through the ballroom, urging a calm that is felt by none. Guests are encouraged to follow their council person to safety, each species separated and tucked into a separate areas of the ballroom far from the expanding flames as a safe exit is sought out. Security combs the ballroom for the arsonist suspects who have, finally, made their move. Those who find themselves outside of the ballroom at this time will find themselves trapped in whatever area they lingered in when the candles turned on. Those inside the ballroom find the doors locked, unable to leave until security can verify no arsonist hides among them. 

Those stuck in the ballroom: There is a palpable worry in the air that peaks to panic at the sight and smell of smoke. Some fight among themselves, and find themselves silenced by their council member or security. The council and security are conducting a headcount of their people, using the list of invitations activated to determine everyone’s location. Those unchecked off from the list will face further scrutiny until their whereabouts are confirmed. Throughout the room, you see security leaving and entering, the only ones capable of exiting the room.

Those stuck in the maze: You find the exit mysteriously gone. You are positive it was there before, but perhaps you made a wrong turn. Faintly, you can hear an announcement from the ballroom, but you hear and see nothing to tell you what is wrong, only a sense of foreboding as the hedges shiver with worry. Proceed with caution in the maze, for those who try to hurt the hedges in their attempts to leave might find themselves swallowed whole.

Those stuck in the gardens: You see the lights of the manor flicker out from the gardens, and if you stare at the building long enough, you see figuring darting in some of the windows. Delilah’s voice hits you, trying to ensure tranquility, but any attempts at entering the ballroom once more are met with a small jolt of electricity, enough to thwart any attempts to try again. Worse, the gates to leave the manor are shut tight, and you cannot touch the bars to hoist yourself free, as though a barrier is coating the perimeter.

Those stuck on the balconies: You see the lights go out behind you, and the doors for the balcony close with a wave of magic. Opening them hits you with a jolt, stronger the harder you hold on. Your options include waiting here, listening to the events occurring inside, or finding a way over the railings into the garden below. The air quickly begins to reek of smoke.

Those who have left the gala already: They may be none the wiser to what occurs, but if they attempt to approach again, they find themselves touching a barrier around the perimeter. Attempts to break it are meant with a magical backlash. 

For the muns:

It is up to each of you where you would like your character to be when this occurs, but please read each of the options as the dynamic for each is different. If you play a council character, please have a reason for why your character might not be in their station during this time. As stated above, characters are unable to leave the area they were in when this occurred (the only exception is people on the balconies, who may either stay on the balconies or drop into the gardens) except those who are daring enough to try an escape from the ballroom on their own terms. If your characters have left the grounds, they will be unable to return.

Our world and universe will still be open for our current/past members to write and explore however they prefer. You are not required to stop writing when the event is over, nor is there a date where we require you to stop, the world of Lethe becomes your oyster. We will no longer be making posts on the main.

We would like to thank everyone who have joined us for this ride. We haven’t met a group of people more willing to fling their hearts and souls into these characters. It’s such a privilege to have built connections and written with people who are capable of creating incredibly elaborate, painful, and beautiful plots for us all to witness. Lethe wouldn’t be the same if you weren’t all here to help carry the pieces of it. We hope you remember the good times of it with fondness.

Reyna Bengio

Fayre Avci

Ryō Takanashi

Kazuyuki "Nagisa" Ōtomo-nata

Yuri Sokolov

Yasemin Asli

Emira Birsen

Imani Kingston

Gwendolyn Wade

Thalia Sotomayor

Francisca Cavalcante

Biographical information:

Character Name:  UTP.

Character Gender:  Female-identifying (whether cisgender or transgender is UTP)

Character Sexuality:  UTP.

Connection to:  Joseph Attali

How long have they been in Lethe? Since December 2020.

Details:

This poor girl was transformed into a vampire anywhere from age 18 to age 21. Who’s to say how long ago that was? It’s not like she’s matured much since. In any case, she was abandoned by her creator some time ago – a creator who gave her purpose, and to whom she felt irrationally protective. The ensuing loneliness led her to practically imprint on Joseph when she first met him some time in the summer of 2019. She’s undead, he’s undead! Why not be friends? She was an absolute chatterbox for the first two weeks in which they knew each other, spilling detail after detail about life as a vampire. Heck, she knew enough about finding underground work and getting fake ID documents to help Joseph out. For over a year, they traveled across the United States, leaving town either when Joseph could no longer make money or when the poor girl exhausted blood supply.

At some point, she had heard of a strange town called Lethe, located somewhere in Washington. It was full of vampires and werewolves and witches, oh my! She and Joseph arrived in Lethe in December 2020, shortly before the Winter Festival was to take place. They were both in town to witness the arrival of bizarre ghosts called the shades. All in all, a highly eventful year for the vampire-lich duo, who happen to be roommates nowadays.

Much remains to be determined about this unfortunate girl such as the question of who her creator was, what this creator was like, how long she has been undead, and how exactly she learned about Lethe.

Notes for the prospective creator:

Faceclaim suggestions: Danielle Rose Russell, Kiernan Shipka, or any other faceclaim that would suit the character’s age and gender orientation.

By now, this girl would know the following about Joseph: that he is undead, that he is a murder victim, that he had a forensic autopsy performed on him prior to his burial, that he is something called a “lich,” and that he has some mind-reading capacities. Take note that this is not a comprehensive list.

If the prospective applicant would like, they can read through a tag on Joseph’s blog full of potential inspiration for this character. 

Whether you want to admit to it or not everyone knows someone like Trent. Born Trenton Buckingham in New York in 1892 to a Fae mother and Lamia father. His father was manipulative and unfaithful while his mother was volatile and argumentative. It proved to be a combination that was not meant to be long lasting and proved they were the wrong couple to be parents. They were constantly fighting and grew more and more toxic over time eventually pushing Trent into the middle of their drama to the point where all of the bad energy took a toll on his development into an adult, causing irreversible damage . Eventually their pushing and pulling got to the point where Trent came home to find his mother dead and his father missing.  Trent knew exactly what had happened and who had done this. It was as if the light that was in Trent went out that day. Things were always crazy but his mother had been the only solid foundation of love the young hybrid had. Once she was buried Trent walked out and didn’t look back at the life he once knew.

By the time he was legally an adult Trent learned a few tricks from his dysfunctional childhood and used it to climb up the social ladder. He traveled and lived it up in the 1920s with a reckless abandon that was clearly trying to conceal a terrible childhood and horrific memories. He claimed he hung out with the likes of  F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ginevra King, and Ernest Hemingway to learn about writing, but mostly he was around because of the amount of alcohol and sex that living that life provided. As well as  cultivating an ability to develop crushes  on emotionally unavailable people.  A love of writing organically did take shape in the coming years spurned by his own need for knowing everyone’s business. Trent lived for the gossip and the sordid details of others lives and wanting to talk it up like it was better than reality. He fancied himself a sort of Louella Parsons but more well liked by his peers while also sharing the similarity of being connected to a murder or two that he doesn’t particularly like to discuss. It is however one of the things that keep him up at night among the other things he had seen. He hadn’t expected his young life to be so dangerous nor had he realized just how many times he had been made an accomplice or even participant to some sort of sordid crime. He would then be paid off for loyalty purposes as well as to stop the spread of his very gossiping nature

Sometimes it seems like certain people are marked for unluckiness or doom. Mike and his younger twin, Violet, were two of these people. Their home life was unstable and rocky and, though Mike had an easier time pushing it aside than he thought his sister did, it still bothered him. It was living in a state of constant unsettled feelings and no matter how hard you tried, it was unnerving to be in day in and day out. It hardly helped that both twins seemed skilled at reading the situations and people around them. It went alright, though, until their mother was murdered. Their father changed then, warping into someone that Mike saw as only a threat from then on, someone that he had to protect his sister from. He rarely slept from then on, taking the position of her protector against even their father. This was seen as paranoia and heightened anxiety, no one ever considering that he might be right to sense danger. His bond with Violet grew until they became convinced it was psychic. It made sense in a way no other part of his life did, he found, and it also was the most comforting aspect of his life. Even his own sexuality was something he felt unsure in and even scared of, causing himself to withdraw a little more from socializing.

Slowly, it became known to both twins that their mother’s murderer was after them now. The stress outwardly affected Violet more than her brother, bringing many accusations of her being crazy thrown her way. Mike took these personally, always ready to square up against them or anyone else if need be. He began sleeping on his sister’s bedroom floor, something that had gotten him in trouble with their father once. The man refused to take their side in their fight or their pleas for help, making him marked as that much more of a possible enemy in the eyes of his son, whose own paranoia was warping every aspect of his mind and making the once extroverted boy more and more withdrawn. With both twins seen as unaccredited, there was no one they could turn to for help, leaving them as sitting ducks. Together, they got through the first attack but the second nearly ended in disaster. They fled together, searching for anywhere that they could go that might be safe.

Local nymph legend says his family were descendants of King Arthur and children of dragons. Anyone who asks Thomas, however, finds themselves getting a laugh in return, for the only Arthur he knows in his family lineage is his youngest brother. His family have always been the head of the nymph collective in their corner of England, passing the title between the eldest children of each branch of the family tree since their establishment over a millennia ago. It hasn't always been a seamless transition, the most severe grievance being Thomas’ great-grandfather’s attempted theft of the title from his own elder brother. The coup resulted in a massive fire in the 1600s. The deaths of opposing nymphs solidified the Ormson position as well as beginning the murmurs of dragons in their blood, a tale his relatives only encouraged over the years. Thomas didn't put much stock in these rumors as a child, regarding them as little more than horror stories. His own father was a distant, watchful man who didn't seem prone to the acts of ruthlessness that their legacy promised in recent years. In fact, he reminded Thomas more of the Arthurian legends of heroics. As the third child, Thomas was not privy to details of leadership, and found himself drawn instead into the world of medicine, thinking the rumors of cruelty simply that: rumors. That is until his elder brother spoke out against their father and found himself exiled from England with little more than the clothes on his back two evenings later. 

It was the last time Thomas saw his brother, but certainly not the last time he thought of him, nor did he stay with his family. His studies in medicine meant he didn't have to look for a place to stay, not with the spilling across the world and doctors in short-supply. He worked among the human doctors throughout England, made friends among the local witch branch, and paid respects to the fae who made this area their home. When Thomas reached the end of his connections and the requests to return home changed to demands, he flung himself into traveling rather than face whatever dire consequence surely awaited him. Traveling upon the sea was no easy feat, either, but Thomas rose to the challenge with ease. If it was his choice, he would stay, preferring this life to the one where his family might be the monsters people whispered of. Yet a man can't run forever and Thomas returned home without delay on the heels of a letter declaring his father dead. What he returned to wasn't much of a home: the collective had fought amongst one another and little remained once the dust settled. With only himself and a much younger Ormson left alive, Thomas swallowed his fear and gathered the survivors, fleeing the scrutiny of humans that were getting a little too close for comfort. Those who wished to follow another Ormson – and those folks were few and far between, a number just shy of two dozen compared to the collective's previous might – were taken with him and his sibling across the sea to America. On the invitation of an old contact among the witches, Thomas and the survivors settled into Salem, Massachusetts in 1995. The witches there were wary at first brush, and perhaps rightfully so. But with the already bloodied history in the town, the supernatural banded together with relative ease.

Welcome to the Spring Equinox Gala!

When: May 30, 2021 Where: Katherine and Patrick Antrim’s Manor From: 5 pm to 10 pm

Despite protests, democracy is democracy in Lethe, and so May 30th dawns to reveal gala preparations commencing as planned. Though the day comes equipped with blustering winds and hesitation lingers in the air, spirits around town seem to be relatively high as the day continues on into evening. It is at three o’clock that the gates to Katherine Antrim’s formidable manor are opened, giving any especially curious visitors access to the grounds. The last chime of the town’s bell tower has rung to signal the five o’clock hour when the doors to the ball room are thrown open and guests bearing invitations are welcomed inside. Those who enter the ballroom are awed by its beauty and impressed by the amenities –  a stage at the very front houses cheery musicians and some Lethean artists may even request to borrow the microphone, if so inclined. An exit on the left leads to an open bar, though food is not provided. Guests are encouraged by security to stay within the domains of the ballroom, but of course, the outdoor property still beckons. The especially adventurous sort may even venture to other rooms within the home at their own risk. Selections among the property other than the ballroom seem to be as follows:

The garden: Opened at three o’clock, Katherine Antrim’s pleasant garden houses many enchanting flora. As the sun sets, they may even reveal special, more ethereal qualities. Guests are welcome to tread these grounds as they please, though please, don’t step on the flowers.

The balcony: Serving as a respite from the noise, the balcony is just off of the ballroom. Guests are welcome to come and go as they please, sitting on marble benches overlooking the rolling gardens and getting a well deserved breath of fresh air. Smoking is not allowed.

The maze: Found deep within the garden, the entrance of the maze is well hidden as to discourage any adventures into its depths. But such discoveries aren’t impossible, though they are not entirely pleasant either. Guests who manage to touch the hedges that mark the bounds of this maze will discover that they are not especially keen on being touched and will react to indicate as much. If not grievously injured, however, skilled solvers will find a lovely courtyard in the center of this maze, equipped with a bubbling fountain and dreamlike, rare blooms abound.

The library: This is not a destination that will be reached with ease. Those who manage to charm open the doors will find bookshelves of towering heights and glowering portraits upon the walls. If they search the right places, lucky adventurers may even happen upon town records, some dating back to the town’s 19th century founding. Visitors who intend to try their odds here should work with haste – security will likely descend upon them in no time.

For the Muns

The Spring Equinox Gala event begins now! It will be a dashboard event and will last at least two weeks. When the time comes, we will ask in the Discord if people are interested in continuing or wrapping up the event.

Any details about plot drops during the event will be posted about here, via a Lethe News post or an event post.

We encourage the posting of open starters for the event, but also ask that if you post a starter, please reply to one as well. That way we’ll keep the dash moving!

If you’re willing, show us what your character is wearing! Whether through edits or through Tumblr-made photosets, we’d love to see the look your character is sporting to this black-tie event.

You are welcome to continue writing regular threads alongside the event! To differentiate between the two, please tag all event-related posts with ‘lethe: gala 2021′.

Sky Herrera Hammer remains in town and fully focused on her podcast.

Nagisa is a shapeshifter and lamia hybrid.

It was not sudden, but gradual. Slowly, the bright stage lights no longer blinded him. The cheers and applause started to fade and became a distant echo. The lines he recited were being spoken in a voice that was not entirely his own. As he stood on the stage, draped in layers of silk fineries and powdered with bold and exaggerated make-up, the manufactured glamour of it all became apparent to him. None of this was who he really was. It was beyond acting. He was living a lie. Though the countless awards he received and autographs he signed read “Kazuyuki Otomo-Nata,” the name felt as disembodied as the roles he portrayed night after night. It was the natural price of dedicating himself to the craft he was told. Losing himself, becoming a blank slate, so that he could become anyone. Masters of kabuki could train for years and never reach the level of captivating immersion he could already bring to the stage just as an adolescent with years still ahead of him to perfect his acting, and many would argue he had already done so. Jealous rumours insisted that as heir to a well-respected clan, his success was nepotism. Admirers claimed it was his innate talent and dedicated efforts. But it was the quietest whispers that knew the truth, of how he had literally bewitched his dedicated fans and would-be critics alike. “Demon half-breed,” his own family would say in hushed voices with looks of disgust. Those words still ring in his ears today even when the spotlight of the stage had long since lost its allure and dimmed.

Shifting was not unlike acting in a role. To do it well, one had to know every facet, commit each minute detail to memory, convince yourself you are who you say you are, until the lines become so blurred, no one — not even yourself — could really say who you were or what you had become; in that moment, you simply just are. But for all his success as an actor, shifting never clicked in the same way. No amount of practice helped him improve. Rather, the harder he tried, the worse the effects shifting had on him. It still was and always had been painful and disorienting. Nothing like how his family members had described it, euphoric and freeing. Again, “demon half-breed,” but this time with a sneer and a distinct lack of being subtle. It seemed that he would never fit in and resigned himself to that fact. For years, he lived basking in the spotlight and adoration of fans by night, and bowing his head and trailing in the shadows of those he had shared blood relations with by day. Time went on and he continued to feel nothing, all while wearing this carefully constructed mask of Kazuyuki “Nagisa” Otomo-Nata.

The first chance he had at running away was in the form of the eldest daughter of the Takanashi clan. Brash and unyielding, the fire he saw in her reminded him of his mother, Jezebel Nata. A proud lamia the Otomo clan had kept in a glorified cage, during their infrequent and brief meetings, she had always told him to take pride in being who he was: “My demon half-breed,” she would softly say in her singsong voice. When she said those words, there was no shame or anger, just unconditional love. He could not say if he felt anything towards the Takanashi girl, least of all love and especially not the kind that drives people to get married, and yet that was how they were introduced — betrothed. When he had met to present her with a ring, the exchange was attended by the girl’s elder brother. They shared nothing more than a brief acknowledgement of each other’s presence, but there was no denying that he felt something. Nagisa knew another skilled actor when he saw one, one who wore a mask like he did, one who was also looking for an escape. In that moment, he realized who he would rather be giving the ring to.

The time he actually ran away was when he died at the hands of the one he now knew he loved. Faking his death was a feat he had done countless times on stage, and having to fool his clan who had been not-so-secretly wishing for this very thing to happen was an even easier task. To say leaving the life that had caused him to become so numb was liberating would be an understatement. For the first time in his life, he could make his own choices, and among the infinite choices that were available to him, he chose to be the one thing he never was — normal. “Normal” gave him a new name that did not carry the weight of generations of tradition, a passion for making others feel beautiful without having to change who they were, and a love he never even dared to imagine could be his.

Hey, anon! Here are just a few suggestions of faces we’d love to see:

Sofia Boutella

Dev Patel

Sandra Oh

Jeffrey Dean Morgan

Avery Frost is still in town, keeping a watchful eye on her niece and trying to rebuild her own reputation at the Lethean Times.

Landon Kincaid remains in town, still serving as Lethe’s reputable grief counselor.

Wyatt Grey is still in town, enjoying the ease of a life spent in one place.