2019-11-14 - The City Of Forgotten Names: Coming To A Head

Maybe she was asleep and could feel the nightmares creeping close, or having a moment of weakness in front of a bottle or needle. The night could have been a little colder than usual, the raking of a gnarly tree branch clicking on the window at a rate that almost seemed purposeful. Maybe loneliness did her in, or maybe it was the fear of failure, a doomed relationship or crippling debt.

Tonight was not her night.

In that moment of vulnerability and self-doubt, warranted or not, her mind dimmed and her memories stop.

---

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHrKoE1cdEo

Erin is driving one of her expensive cars, even if this one might not be one she would have personally chose. The day is sunny, wind is blowing on her hair, and she just crossed the plaque that welcomes her and her friends into the city.

What city is this? The plaque is empty. A literal 'WELCOME TO -blank-'. In the car with her are other women, some she might have seen in the city before, some she has never noticed. A moment ago they seemed to have been laughing at a joke told by Cameron, who is in the passenger's seat, but now they all stare at each other, confused.

What the fuck is going on? A moment ago they were not here, and yet... they were. Madison is wearing Alison's sunglasses, Cameron is still holding the lipstick she asked from Erin when they stopped in the gas station a few kilometers back. It feels real, and not.

The city itself is coastal, sitting by the foot of verdant hills, the orange hues of autumn coating the landscape full of leaves on the ground. It is pitoresque and beautiful. The city reminds one of Gray Harbor. The sea to their right shimmers in bright reds as the sun seems to set in the horizon. This looks like home. And yet... it isn't.

It is breathtaking, though.

Down by the city they can see a group of ten or more people, dressed in white. They await for them, Erin and Cameron can tell, while Madison mouths at Alison in the backseat, 'What the fuck?'

Erin loves taking the car, but sometimes she hands over the driving to anyone else capable and just lets the wind blow through her hair. This isn't one of those days. She's still driving, the wind whipping her hair around and she doesn't seem to mind it. She's got a great hair dresser. "Woo!" she grins as they approach the board announcing the name of the town. They were close to their destination. Erin is about to bust into song. 'Making my way downtown, walking fast..." Then the sign is blank and she glances back towards the others. "Nowhereville. Bummer." It's weird. It's definitely weird. But maybe it's a mistake! As they pull into town, she taps the brakes and slows them down. "Time for.. something?"

Sometimes the partner in your life makes unwise and risky financial investments without consulting you. That is just a thing that happens, and it leads to some fitful sleep for a certain brunette Cabaret dancer. She rolls over, trying to find the best position to fall into the realm of the unconscious. Success, as her mind drifts and her higher senses shut down...

A moment later, she is no longer in her bed.

---

Cameron is in the midst of applying said lipstick on the flip-down visor of the passenger's seat, her seatbelt responsibly buckled. She's applying it through a smug smile as her girlfriends laugh at her oh-so-very clever joke. Her lips press together, mmming at her reflection in satisfaction. She narrows her eyes, turns her head a little, smoulders at herself. Eventually, she decides that she looks both fierce and fabulous.

She turns to say somethin to Erin, reaching over to lay a hand on her arm when... something doesn't seem right. This isn't her shitty Hyundai Accent. She doesn't know Erin. Madison and Alison are in the back seat. And just what in the FUCK is going on?

A sign flashes past, one that does not announce they are in Gray Harbor. Instead they are on the road to the literal Nowhere. Up ahead are the creepy Klansmen in white, which draws ALL kinds of alarms from the dark-haired dancer. "Um..." She looks around at their surroundings, a coastal road, a pretty place, the sun is shining, strangers looming closer with every revolution of the engine.

The dancer glances over her shoulder at the other two, meeting their eyes. "Are... Are we... Are we in the Astral Realm? How did we get..." Then she looks at Erin, her frown serious, thoughtful, a little wary. She doesn't know this woman that is taking them somewhere! "Uh... Who- Who are you?" A glance again in the back seat, "Do you guys know...?" And then a gesture at Erin.

Alison peers out the window in confusion, then over at Madison, simply shrugging with a lost look on her face. "Did we take a wrong turn or something?" She shifts in the uncomfortable back seat. The back seat in any car is never the seat of choice, but with the type of cars that seem to be Erin's peference (and privilege), the back seat is especially cramped, if it's present at all, even for the tiny redhead.

But then she realizes that she doesn't remember getting in the car in the first place. Cameron's mention of the astral plane distracts her, though, making Alison cover her own face and groan with annoyance. "I don't think we took THAT wrong of a turn. Also that shit's still not real, no matter how many times you mention it."

Astral plane? Across in the veil? Erin has been there enough she should have recognized it. She slows to a complete stop. "Those people are waiting for us. Should we meet them or should we not? I've never tried going back in the veil. Only forwards to get home. Anyone have any ideas?" She belatedly realizes she doesn't know everyone. "I'm Erin."

"Ali, baby, it's as real as the bacon I ate for dinner last night. Just bacon. Because we had nothing else! I mean... how else do you explain it? Last night I went to bed, and today I'm roaring down the highway in a stranger's car!"

Cameron looks back to Erin once the woman speaks up. "The what?" She shakes her head, pointing a thumb at herself. "Doesn't matter, I'm Cameron. Cam. That's Ali. That's Mads. We're..." Then a look forward at the figures in white. "Proper fucked."

Cameron unbuckles her safety belt, placing one hand on the dash, the other on the back of the seat as she looks around. Looks for anything around them that isn't cult-ish looking weirdos. "Okay... if we're in the Astral, if we're Projecting... then those would be Spirits. They might not be bad. But they're probably the ones that brought us here?"

Her teeth capture her lower lip, looking between the other women in the car. "We should probably find out what they want, because they might be kind of pissed if they have to do it a second time."

Alison eyes the figures off in the distance. "They remind me a lot of something that James and I ran into driving away from the park on Halloween. They looked kinda fucked up though, all black and missing arms and stuff.. these people don't look like they need help or anything. Maybe we should just go?" Alison kicks at Cameron's seat from behind her at the suggestion of interacting with them in any way, shape, or form. "Or we could not do that."

"Fuck it, let's see what they want." Not that Erin leaves the car, but she does pull over there close enough to ask. "May we help you in some way?" Because curiosity killed the cat and all. May as well find out what they can before leaving if they must. At least they would know!

"Alison, when are you going to stop this weird ass denial state?! You got bitten by a werewolf, healed by a witch, saw the weirdest shit, but no, joined dreams is TOO out there! Did you know they have been doing this for centuries in the Peruvian tribes? I mean, NatGeo much?"

Madison frowns at her friend, and then she eyes Cameron and then Erin, "Also, just so we are perfectly clear, I am losing my shit right now, so don't ask me for advice." Pause. "But if you do go over that town, -do not- ask what their food is made out of. Just don't!"

---

Arriving in the city is something done almost too naturally. It doesn't have the feeling of home, but of a place they were always meant to reach, like the house of a distant-living grandmother or somesuch. Life here is simpler, harkening back to a time without yer boys and girls Google machine, and it feels somewhat oldschool.

With the exception that... everything is wet. Water pours softly but constantly from the drains, and the parts of the city closer to the sea look positively Venetian, with the road submerged and the traffic consisting mostly of rowed boats.

There are children walking in packs, talking about how the last episode of a certain cartoon was just the best, and the stores are all, to the last, local-looking even if they lack big names on the storefrotns. No Starbucks, this is truly purgatory. The people in white, however, are not Klansmen. Instead, they are adults in suits, all of them pristine white.

They smile, and when the car stops in front of them, a benevolent-looking older man approaches the group. He claps his hands once, and a band of white-clad youngsters does a fanfarre for our arriving heroes.

"Help us? Oh no, child. We are here to help you! Welcome to ...! We were waiting for you. Took you all longer than we thought it would." The pause instead of giving an actual name is there. The man places his hands on his wide waist in a mock admonishing pose, before approaching the car. To Erin, he cants his head. "Driving. You haven't learned your lesson. Oh, I suppose it was fate. Welcome, honey. We love the Addingtons here."

He moves to Cameron, then, and pinches her cheek, "New cheeks. I thought we had lost you. You came back just in time. Just in time." He seems proud of Cameron, genuinely so. The prodigal daughter returns home. To Alison, he frowns. "I don't know -you-. We don't like your kind around here." The man seems legitimately angry at Alison, nostrils flaring, like he is one snappy comeback from attacking her.

Madison, however, shoves herself between them. "Do me! Do me," she implores, and the man eyes her. He is back to his gentle smiles. "You are late. Way late. But welcome. Nobody can resist a little visit to ...!"

He smiles, "If you would walk with me, I would love to answer all of your questions. I am sure you have many."

Yeah the whole driving thing. Erin gets it, for anyone who knew about her DUI anyway. They love the Addingtons? "Sorry you'll be disappointed then. My Grandmother disinherited me. I'm on my own now. Not a family one anymore." She shrugs like it doesn't matter to her. Oh but it does! It matters a lot! Watching him with Cameron has her tilting her head, but Alison's seems more intimidating. She looks back at the others then Madison. "If one goes, we all go, and we stick together and we protect her." Alison. Since the dislike was very clear from the guy.

Cameron scowls towards Madison in the back seat, being her usual 'helpful' self and chatting about things that are nonsense. And also unhelpful. But now isn't the time to be berating her, as Erin pulls them forward, towards their... destiny? Towards something. She is sure as shit not about to let it be her doom!

"Okay, that's... different." The dancer comments as they pass water-clogged streets, doing her best to shake off the effects of the world around them. It attempts to lull her into a feeling of familiarity, of safety and meaning. She pushes it all aside and eyes everything from the streets to the children suspiciously.

"A place without a Starbucks is just... freaky."

They finally stop in front of the people that are totally Klansmen, and Cam, barely, resists the urge to lock the doors. Wouldn't help, since the top is down. But the urge is there. She glances further around, at the children dancing around them. The man speaking to them with familiarity, as if expecting them, and she doesn't even seem to be paying attention. Not until her cheek is pinched.

The dancer turns her head to look at him, startled, reaching up to rub where she was just cheeked.

He snaps at Alison. He loves Addingtons. Which makes Cameron look at Erin anew, eyeing her up and down. She mouths the word "Addingtons?" at her. He then says Madison is way late.

"Guys. Stay in the car. I'm pretty sure this is Hell."

Alison groans at the decision to head closer to what's OBVIOUSLY TROUBLE, GUYS, WTF. She reaches over and steals her sunglasses back from Madison, putting them on her face. "It was definitely not a werewolf, whatever it was."

Alison looks out the window of the car and eyes the overall wetness. "Okay, this is definitely not Gray Harbor." And then they're talking to them. Fuck. Alison pushes the sunglasses close to her face, sliding down towards the floor of the car, trying her best to pretend that this isn't happening and she isn't there.

But the man addresses her directly, and there's no real way of pretending that didn't happen. The redhead holds her hands up in a gesture of proclaiming innocence. "Hey, I'm just a cute freckled girl here along for the ride. I just wanted to go home." And then she looks back over at Madison, glaring through the sunglasses. "You didn't dose us with the muddy water again, did you?" And then over at Erin. "Is reverse still an option? This bougie-ass car DOES have reverse, right?"

The children watch the group from affar, laughing and noticing things about them. Madison adjusts her bangs, so they cover her forehead, frowning.

"Pretty sure that, first, Hell has fire in it. Also, it isn't real, since Christianity...," and there goes Madison on her Christianity-hating spiel of control of the masses and corrupt clergy. The man himself smiles at it. So adorbs, the incessant prattling of the youth. He nods at Erin, however.

"As you wish, Miss ..., she can come with, but this is not her place." The xenophobia is real. At the mention of the Addington matriarch, the man chuckles, "She is still there, isn't she? Oh, ..., when will you understand?" He seems to remember the woman fondly, "You will never not be one of us, .... I am sure you know that." The last phrase is almost like a promise. Or a threat.

As the man addresses Cameron's worries, he begins to walk through the city. The others walk at a distance, out of earshot, letting the man take the guests through the streets, and towards short building that looks quite old, but of historic value. Seems a little out of time, in the middle of a park. "This isn't what you think it is, my dear, but I can assure you this is no .... In your darkest hours, we were always in your head. We were praying for you. And now you are here."

He laughs, and pats Cameron's back, "I love your new hair. It fits you." At Erin, he asks, "Why did she disinherit you? What did you do, ...?"

Behind the three, Madison eyes Alison, "Just so you know, my so-called muddy water sells very well! I didn't have any in stock last night, and I sure as hell don't get high on my own supply!" Madison folds her arms, before realizing almost the entire city is frowning at Alison. "Shit. What did you do, Ali? Is this because you are a ginger? I mean... come on."

"I cut the ties that Billy Gohl had with my great uncle. I unpossessed. him of his possessor." Erin frowns, looking at the others. "If you all want to go, we can go, I'm up for either. This is weird. If he's been watching us, he would know all this. "I mean so maybe 10 of us got possessed by the guy I cut out of my uncle but that was taken care of the day we gave our items to the asshole when we buried him." She fumes about things still and narrows her eyes. "We aren't yours to judge, this isn't heaven."

"Yeah, but... I saw this episode of the Twilight Zone. The devil wears all white and convinces people they're in paradise. Also..." Cam turns to aim her frown directly at Madison. "They're saying you're overdue, so... that's definitely a sign. They 'almost lost me'. And they love Addingtons. ...Sorry, sweetie." An apologetic glance towards Erin. "But your family isn't filled with angels."

"Alison's the only decent one of the bunch, which makes sense that they don't want her here. All we need now is a dog to sniff out the brimstone."

She's determined to stay in the damned car, but... the cardinal rule of Madison's tabletop adventures declares that one cannot split the party. The brunette walks reluctantly through the city, her arms folded in front of her defensively. Or maybe hugging herself for comfort. At least it's warm enough she can get away with wearing her tan shorts and her navy-blue blouse. Rather than buttoned up, it's tied in the front, with a white undershirt beneath it, hiking boots on her feet.

Classic summer attire for a drive through the mountains in a convertible! The brunette seems to shy away from his touch, distrustful despite usually being the one to caution others from angering 'spirits'. She flicks her fabulous dark hair over her shoulder and side-eyes him warily.

"So if this isn't Hell, who are you, why are you waiting for us, and why do you hate Alison?" She drops back a step, both to give Madison a PINCH just behind her arm, where it stings the most, for calling the shorter woman a ginger, and to slide her arm defensively over Alison's shoulders.

"Stick close to me, yeah?"

Alison brushes her hair a bit as well after climbing out of the car, keeping the sunglasses on. The expression on her face under the sunglasses, is one that suggests that this is the worst idea possible. Madison's initial words ranting about Christianity get no more of a response than Alison rubbing her own forehead, kind of whispering out towards her, "Not the time for this.." Madison's latter words get a glare back at her and the point of a finger, her voice back to a normal volume, irritation pretty clear. "My assssssss you don't get high on your own supply. And don't call me that. We've talked about this before."

The discussion of Erin's lineage seemingly goes in one of Alison's ears and out the other, not really paying attention. The name Addington seems to come up pretty often in Gray Harbor, but she's got no idea why, and certainly no idea who Billy is. The redhead whines a little in response to Cameron's protectiveness of her, but doesn't pull away from the wiccan woman.

Madison is getting increasingly more upset with this situation, not because they are in a city with no name and surrounded by people/spirits/demons. Not -just- because of it.

"Wait. I'm overdue?! What the heck! My soul can't be sworn to Hell! I haven't done anything yet! If I sell it will be for a LOT of money, okay, like the Addingtons did!" She eyes Erin. "Shit. Sorry, but... come on. You are the one talking about possession and burial grounds. No surprise there but... You guys are our Malfoy-!!!"

Madison screams out loud, jumping in place as her mother-FUCKING weak spot is pinched by Cameron. The goth is just fuming once she realizes it was the stripper, and she eyes Alison and Cameron with anger. "What the fuck is this?! She -is- a ginger! And we all know the rumors t hat gingers are soul-impaired! Addington, we are best friends now. I need a hug." She eyes Cameron, glaring as she quicksteps towards the rich woman.

The man, however, shakes his head. "We are .... We are no place of fire and brimstone, and although your friend does have a soul, now-Cameron, it just doesn't -belong- here." He growls the words. The man really hates the fact Alison's non-Harborite soul is in the wrong place. Maybe he is an OCD devil! "We are waiting for you because it is time. We all have our own clocks, and sometimes, the clock runs out. That is when you come here. Some get lost. Some, like ...'s matriach, get lost, or try to escape. But they all arrive sooner or later..."

The group arrives at the old home, and there the doors open. The man is cordial to his servants, all dressed in white as well, even if the house itself looks incredibly damaged by the passing of time in a coastal city. The wood creaks, and it has darkened quite a bit. Anyone with allergies would have a hard time living in the place that, although quite the manor, looks like it could house Swamp Thing, more than it would any other living being.

He asks about lunch, and upon receiving note that the table is set, he goes to it. The living room is, indeed, a huge place with a fireplace, hunting trophies full of maritime creatures, and pictures of this man with a staggering amount of people, always in small groups, like he knows them intimately. They range from black and white photos to modern selfies. He takes his seat at the head of the white table, where thre are four sets of silverware set for each other girls.

"I am a friend. I am here to help your transition, from one stage to the next. I know this might sound frightening, but let me assure you once it is over, you will feel better." He snaps his fingers so the food can be brought. "Death and taxes, am I right? Some things are just unavoidable." He smiles and looks at Erin, "Do you still eat sea food, my dear?"

"Hey! Calm down! We're all on the same team here we have to stick together." Erin tries to calm down Madison. "Just stay beside me we'll see what we can do. Usually if we defeat the bad guys we just wake back up at home. We can try and outsmart them. If we can't do that, then we fight them. But we do it together okay?" She's got on her reasonable voice. Until it seems like they seriously are there in purgatory, the before heaven or before hell. Hey, she was raised going to church. "NO!" she says defiantly. She must really not like seafood!

"We will not be losing our souls today. I'm afraid we insist. And if you think I'll give up being an Addington that easy, you're gravely mistaken." Nope, Erin is refusing to comply anymore. She doesn't sit, but she stands up to the man. "You have no power over me."

"Don't whine at me!" Cameron mutters lowly for the ginger to hear. "When you know how to do more than project feelgood vibes into your girlfriend and blow up my coffee mugs, then you can be the Momma Bear." The Amulet singer gives the redhead's shoulder a squeeze, doing her best to keep an eye out for when people start throwing things at Alison.

They arrive at an old home, and Cameron really wants to stop walking, looking over her shoulder to see if they can still spot where the car is parked. She glances around at the others, at anyone who will meet her eyes who isn't dressed all in white. To mouth 'See!?' at them. Because of course this is Satan! Or maybe Death. Just listen to how he's talking!

The more he talks, the more Cameron becomes sure of it. Shit, did she die in her sleep? In some lame-ass trailer park fire? That would be the shittiest end! ...At least if she had to go, she made Maddie come, too. That makes her feel a little better. Feels a little bad about Alison, though.

"Transition. Right." Cameron's boots clomp across the floor, waiting for the other shoe to drop as they wander through the house and towards the table. Silverware is set. There are photos. Photos that draw the eye. She looks at a few with a little frown on her thick lips.

The brunette stiffens, dropping her arms. One grabs Madison by the wrist, the other Alison. She has no hands left, so she tries to body-check Erin from approaching the table and bar her way. "Um, this- this has been great... Guy. But we're gonna go now. Not hungry. Not even a little!"

"Guys." She says, far more calmly than her frozen-in-place, trying-not-to-panic smile might indicate. "We need to go back to the car right now. Okay, crazy Erin, you so cray, girl, with your jokes! Haha, don't make the nice man angry..." That same frozen smile with the freaking-the-fuck-out eyes is turned on their host. "We'll, ah, we'll be right back. There's something I forgot in the car. Very important. Buh-bye."

To the minds of those willing (and able) to receive her thoughts as she concentrates her power through the small white circular stone about her neck, comes Cameron's thoughts: <<The people in these photos, I recognize some of them. They are people who have vanished. Forever! We need to go.>>

Alison eyes Mads as she starts rambling about hell and.. yeah, okay, that's just Mads being Mads. Alison just siiiiighs at it all.

But the second instance of Madison calling Alison a ginger sets her off. There's no warning this time, no accusatory finger pointed. The redhead just kinda lowers the sunglasses covering her eyes and glares at Madison, whispering back at Cameron. "Yeah?" And then she's sending a vivid mental scenario into Madison's head, of Alison choking the shit out of the goth until her head turns purple and bursts, not unlike a cartoon character's head might. She makes no attempt to hide who it is sent from, either. No subtlety here.

"I moved a few months ago, is there like, a waiting period or something for my soul? This is such a pain in the ass." Alison says, moving the sunglasses back over her eyes, mouth contorted into a frown.

Arriving at the house causes her to take the sunglasses back off, moving to stick it into her crossbody bag.. which is conveniently missing. Of course. So she drops one arm of the sunglasses into the t-shirt, hanging them off the collar. She sticks with the group, not as if she really has much of a choice in the matter. Ali can't help but mutter "fish and chips are pretty good.." at the question asked to Erin.

The whole mental walkie talkie thing is new to her, and that makes her spin around and look at Cameron, and say, "That's a thing? Of course it is. God damn it. I knew that I should have stayed in bed today." She'll stay with the group if they manage to leave the house, somehow, even though Madison is trying her very best to aggravate her.

The man shakes his head at Erin's denial, and then Cameron's. "Why do you people have to make it so hard? Why can't it ever be 'Yes, since I have no choice, maybe I should listen'?" He eyes Erin and Cameron, as if asking with his glance if that is really how they are going to do this. He looks disappointed, but also frustrated.

The servants arrive with the platters, all four of them with beautiful domes on top of them. They arrive just in time for the sky outside to dim, and for the seawater from the other parts of town to slowly take over the streets of the park around the house. It is like the sea itself, for no reason, has decided to come and watch the exchange.

Madison shivers quite blatantly, and hugs Erin's arm, "O-Oh shit. Time to use your Addington Sorcery, girl! Come on! Hellfire the fuck out of him!" Madison is very chill about this whole storyline of Erin being the antichrist that she wrote in her head. Antichrists make for -great- band members.

Shhh. She will talk about that later.

The man shakes his head, "No, no no..." He stands, watching through the window as the city is slowly overtaken by water. It is a massive amount of it, but when it comes to the sea to invade the house, it doesn't. Perfectly contained by OPEN windows, the water surrounds the now-drowned house.

"Quickly! SIT!" The man sounds afraid, as he reaches for the platters and removes the dome from plate number one.

Plate #1 features a delicious dish of Erin au Dead As Fuck. Her head is seated upon a bed of Cauliflower, her skin mottled and bloated, lacking any color. Eyes staring at different directions, her skin is badly damaged, as if small animals nipped at it incessantly before it was removed from a ditch. Her hair is an algae-ridden mess. On her forehead it is written 'Erin Addington'.

Plate #2 features Madison's head, the woman's mouth wide open in an eternal scream. Madison doesn't look half as metal as she wished, in death. Her dish is full of nuggets from McDonalds, the barbecue sauce pooled inside her gaping mouth. Yum! Her forehead is almost fully exposed, and that is what makes the real Madison yell in dismay. On her forehead it is written 'Madison Holloway'.

Plate #3 is Cameron's. Her beautiful face is pale like the others, her mane of hair wet like Madison's and Erin's, but arranged around her there are chocolates, black and white. She looks peaceful, almost welcoming of whatever ripped her head off her body. Of all beheaded ladies, she would be voted The Most Likely To Open Her Eyes And Talk. On her forehead there are two names written: 'Connor Cambridge' and 'Cameron Cambridge'.

Plate #4 has potatoes and relish, and they smell really good.

As they finish their staring of the dishes presented, the girls may or may not realize their white-clad friend has grown needle-like, piranha teeth in his mouth, as have his servants. He takes the silverware, a fork and a knife, and thrusts to Erin's chest, "EAT!" He points at the others, "EAT! EAT! EAT!"

He goes to grab his own fork and knife, and advances upon the Erin Dish.

The whole mental aspect of the powers is all new to Erin and nothing good would come of blocking herself from her friends, or even the people she was in hell with. Except the more hellish people. "I bet I wrecked my car again didn't I? And you guys, a trailer park fire? We all popped a ride here together?" Trying to figure it out as they try and make their mistake. Because hearing about the missing people being in the photos. She wants to leave but the water makes it possible.

Then their heads are delivered and Erin shoves the heel of her hand in her mouth to avoid freaking out. But she uses the quiet moment to focus on the guy and when it looks like he's going to eat her head? "Nooo!!!!!" Her eyes lose focus and she enters his body astrally and literally tries to sever his own head from his body. Poor John Goodman. Hopefully. She comes back to herself freaking out! "My head! He's going to eat my head!"

No. Erin's not o-fucking-k.

The heavy set man is about to bite a heavy chunk of Erin's head when suddenly his body is aggressively ripped to bits by the woman, the corpulent neck-and-down half falling down on the floor in a heavy THUD, while his head flies up and falls RIGHT on a platter, his mouth opening and closing like a fish's.

The maids and servants all scream and freak out, but none of them jump into the water, they all just run deeper into the house screaming in some foreing tongue that is impossible to understand.

"N-Names... i-it want names. It will.. have... names. Must eat. Name...," the man's head keeps repeating, mouth opening and closing, looking ahead, semi-conscious despite the flesh wound of lacking an entire body to support him. The water outside goes murky, and then it blackens.

The women are almost in complete darkness now, the lights of the manor fighting to stay on, flickering.

Cameron backs up another step as the man keeps talking, the fake smile dropping from her face. Oh. Oh, of course they are going to have to bargain or fight or escape a Spirit. One who has been kidnapping and vanishing people for, it looks like, centuries. God damn it, Gray Harbor, why can't you ever be nice? Like in Sabrina? The old one, not that new, much more rad, Netflix version.

Even as the brunette tries to herd the group of girls towards the door, the sea comes up to the porch and the lights outside dim. The sky darkens and Cameron scowls. She scowls at EVERYONE. "I told you we were in Hell and not to leave the car!" It's close ENOUGH to Hell, right!?

The water keeps climbing, rushing over the house, but not... inside of it. That's okay, the Astral is fucky like that. One can never believe their eyes. Cameron is shaking now, touching the spot on her chest her necklace is under. The dishes are revealed, and the brunette recoils in horror. It's Madison's head she can't stop staring at, though her own unsettles her quite enough. All the heads are... grotesque. In the extreme. A sense of disconnect from reality washes over her at the sight of her own head.

No, she can't be dead... can she? And Maddie? And... but where is Alison's? If they're all dead, and Ali is here... are THEY Spirits? It's all too meta, and shaking her head to clear it, the stripper-witch gets a grip on herself while Erin goes full on Poltergeist on John Goodman.

Something reverberates through her soul, the command of something deep and terrible. A head flopping around, talking on a dinner plate is gross enough. The murky water outside is enough to make her knees shake in terror, her eyes wide and white with barely-held-together sense of panic.

"Shit- Shit, shit! O-Okay, up, right? Water could pour in, we should go... up?" She points in the direction the other people fled to. "Or... in? I'm not- I'm not eating anyone's name. What in the ever-loving..."

The redhead peers at the, uh, 'offered' dishes. A few reactions pass through her head.

Firstly: Wow, Erin's head looks really gross

Secondly: Why does Cameron's have two n.. ohhh. Huh. Okay.

Thirdly: Are those MCNUGGETS? Sorry, Madison.

Alison moves towards Madison's dish, going to pick up a nugget and dip it in the barbecue sauce, but before she can so much as bring it back to her own mouth, there's a strange voice in her head. That makes her just drop the nugget. And then she notices the rushing water over the windows of the house. "Uh, guys, there's uh.. water?"

And then Cameron's glaring around. "Hey, I'd like to go on record and say that I said we should have gotten Audi 3000 the fuck out of here when we ran into these creepy ass dudes in the first place."

It's about then when the dude gets all teethy, and the redhead doesn't have anything funny left to say at that point. She just screams at the top of her lungs at the mere sight of it. And then Erin makes the dude's head fall clean off. That's a thing too, huh? More screaming. And then the room gets dark. "Nobody ever listens to Alison! 'Hey, let's stay in the fucking car, this shit looks haunted!' Noooooo! Let's go hang out with the children of the corn!"

The redhead doesn't have the presence of mind to get to problem solving at this point, so she just stays real close to Cameron, what with Erin doing.. Erin things to people's heads, Madison being a bitch who keeps calling her a ginger and probably dosed them, the one who keeps telling her these ridiculous stories about witches and the astral plane is her best bet, really. Somehow.

The water darkens and the house shakes. It feels as if whatever whispered to each of their ears is now quite present, physically, as the house creaks loudly, something heavy upon it. Drizzles of water fall from the roof, and the whole population of servants screams from various points.

As Erin and Cameron use their powers, Madison is busy slapping the nugget from Alison's hand, complaining that might be a Madison Nugget, and she doesn't want Alison eating her body parts. It is all white noise, something unimportant to what feels like a very real, even if surreal, death. So much so that the servants appear again, eyeing the four women.

They are at the same time afraid of what the women can do, after finding the dead host and his talking head, but they also need a sacrifice to appease the thing outside. Thre is a moment where it is wholly impossible to know what is going to happen, and it is from that moment that the children from before crawl from under the servant's legs, coming from behind them. The silently eye the women, their mouths full of teeth as the adults', and slowly reach for a head on the table.

Not Erin's. That one is explodey. Not Cameron's. Her hair is too fabulous. Not Madison's, they seem to prefer honey sauce as well. Whatever the reason, the one they settle on is the talking one. They catch it, and put it on the floor.

"W-what are you doing," the man complains, eyeing the kids, who get a marker, and write it on his forehead. They repeat, together, "Mayorman." The servants look aghast, but they do not interrupt the children.

"No! NO! I HAVE SERVED THIS COMMUNITY FOR CEN-AAAAAAAAARGH! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

The screams fill the room as the children bite the -fuck- out of the head before them, eating it, with the servants at the same time flinching in horror and urging them on. A name must be sacrificed! The water around the house pours in more intensely, dripping everywhere, until...

---

The four women taste the salt water of the sea as they wake up at the beach. The rest of the night becomes a little more clear. Sadness led to an attempt to fill the void. Party, drinking. Meeting new people. Four women dancing in the beach, passing out.

Madison wakes up first, groaning at the rising sun. The memories of their adventure still fresh, she shakes her head, her eyes going wide at the water bottle full of a murky substance, still held by a waking Erin. Realizing that is the smoking gun, the goth rapidly takes it from the Addington's hands, and throws it in the ocean.

Fuck you, Aquaman!

She then proceeds to pretend to be asleep, while the others wake up.

Erin wakes up on the beach. It's not something she had done since her high school days. High school right here in Gray Harbor. She's got sand.. everywhere. "Oh my god. It was.." she lifts her hands and touches her head. Her forehead. Was there writing there? SHe scrubs at it, just in case. "Girls. We have to get inside, it's getting cold. We'll really be dying." Hoping they remembered as much as she did.

Alison ughs as she comes to her senses. "Fucking beach. Sand is the worst." She spits some salt water out of her mouth.