[TCPDEX] TCP Research Initiative

[RudeBuster]

(There's been quite a delay between this letter and the last one. It's slightly thicker than the last one as well, perhaps to make up for the delay.)

Research Topic DN-1-1: What areas celebrate Darkest Night?

Michelle here. I'm sorry for the delay. Shortly after I sent my last letter, I went to go look for scraps once more, only to end up...overexerting myself.

Tremor was there to take care of me at least. He was really concerned and thought my research wasn't safe for me to continue, and it took me some time to convince him that it was my fault since I got careless, not yours. We just focused on my studies more, and before I knew it, it was the day of Darkest Night, and I hadn't started my research at all! But now, hopefully, I should be back on track.

Darkest Night is a mixed bag on Urovis. Some areas still celebrate it as normal, treating it as a triumph over a great evil, but one zone has banned it completely. I think it's called Dredge, but I don't know why its god banned the holiday in his area. Tremor just said it brought up bad memories, as a terrible incident happened close to that night hundreds of years ago. I decided not to ask him about that at least, I don't want to dig up any bad memories.

In Ichor, it's a bit different. Darkest Night is the time of the year where activity from the monsters reaches its peak. The inhabitants line the whole village with lanterns to keep the creatures at bay, and have a huge fire in the town square, where they distract themselves with food, songs, and scary stories.

Tremor told me we could go join them tonight if I wanted to, and I instantly said no. It was a bad idea. I've been into the hamlet before, and nearly had a panic attack, so I haven't gone back there since. All those big eyes staring down at me, cringing at my warped body, whispering to each other when they assumed I was out of earshot... They all assumed I was probably no better than the monsters, I wouldn't even be surprised if they thought I was a monster at first. I didn't want to ruin their special night, where they're supposed to be keeping things like me away...

But then Tremor had a solution.

Research Topic DN-1-2: What costumes appear during Darkest Night?

Tremor took me into the hamlet after a lot of coaxing, and hid me in his coat pocket so no one would stare at me. Along the way, he apologized for how his people acted and said I shouldn't be judged for how I look. After all, his domain means his body changes all the time, but they're not afraid of him.

Well, he's also their god, so they kind of have to respect him, but I could see where he was coming from and appreciated it. He didn't want me to have to hide myself from everyone, but he knew it'd be the only way to help me feel comfortable around everyone else. And he knew just the person to help.

Next thing I knew, I was taken out of Tremor's pocket and placed on a counter, where I came face to nose with...some kind of canid. A very shiny canid.



Her name is Skippop, and according to Tremor she's a "Rainbark," a big, gaudy-looking wolf species that originates from the zone Frolic. She was so pretty, I figured she was going to hate me on sight, but instead of a squeal of disgust, I was greeted with a gleeful shriek of, "Oh my gawds! Trems, is this the little cutie you've been telling me about?!"

She...actually thought I was cute. She didn't sneer at me, or try to at least pretend to tolerate me being there. She was actually ecstatic to meet me! Finally, someone in this village actually accepted me!

We exchanged pleasantries, and Tremor explained why we were here. He wanted a costume for me, something that could help me feel more comfortable at the celebration tonight. And as it turns out, she already had plenty of TCP-sized costumes set aside.

Well, they weren't exactly costumes, mostly just fancy suits and dresses, with matching masks. There was a lot, so I let her pick one for me. I got to try it on after she made some adjustments, and...



For the first time, I actually felt...pretty...

Research Topic DN-1-3: What food is common during Darkest Night?

I ended up spending the rest of the day with Skippop and Tremor, before the celebration. Skippop had a large game animal roasting over a fire in her home, and explained it to me when I asked. In Ichor, there isn't really a tradition they follow when it comes to food. They typically celebrate with a potluck, sharing what they can as each person brings their own dish to add to the feast. The only big tradition is the roast, which falls to one person each year to hunt and cook. I felt bad that I didn't have anything to give, but Tremor told me it's alright, it was his own fault for not telling me about the tradition sooner. He had some type of colorful, sticky rice balls he had prepared for the occasion, and said it could count for the both of us this year.

Research Topic DN-1-4: What are urban legends surrounding Darkest Night?

Once the sun went down, it was time for us to join everyone in the square. Lanterns were hung everywhere imaginable, a bonfire almost the size of Tremor roared in the square, and you could barely even hear the roars of monsters in the distance over the sounds of music and laughing. There were even a few TCPs there, and food made specifically for us to enjoy! A nice smoothie type even asked me to dance with it!

I spent most of the time with the TCPs, staying out of the complexes way so we didn't get stepped on, and I told them about my research. I told them I still had one question that needed to be answered, and a silk type in the group decided to tell me the legend surrounding Ichor's version of Darkest Night.

A long time ago, a very, very long time ago, Ichor was a lot bigger than it is now, and much less desolate. It was a bustling fishing and trading hub, actually befitting of its title as Epiphora's capital. Tremor would frequently come out of his lab to mingle with the locals, trades between other zones were frequent, and they even were even developing technology that would allow them to safely traverse Taverne's seas, allowing them to explore other continents!

But then, a few days before Darkest Night, something terrible happened. The horrible thing varies depending on who you ask. Some claim it was an experiment from Tremor gone wrong, others claim it was caused by an angel, others claim it was caused by the one of the other gods, and the most absurd claim of all is that it was a god using the power of an angel.

But the end result was always the same. The high gods vanished, something horrific happened to Tremor and caused him to go into hiding, abandoning his people. A great labyrinth opened up beneath the entirety of Epiphora, setting loose horrors of the likes the denizens of Ichor had never seen before. And a second species inhabiting Epiphora became the Missing, warped creatures that spread their corrupting influence to some and eviscerated others. The people of Ichor didn't know how to handle this threat, and without Tremor to protect them, the once-bustling city quickly crumbled.

The Dreadclaws, the reptilian, primary inhabitants of Epiphora, were quickly dwindling in numbers. They had to retreat further and further into Ichor's center, losing hope as the days leading up to Darkest Night dragged on. The creatures were always more active at night, when it was difficult for them to be seen, and the remaining Dreadclaws knew the once joyful holiday was going to be known in the future as the event of their extinction. They had no way to contact the other zones, much less the other towns in Epiphora, and they were just about to give up...

Except for one.



The smoothie type did its best to draw him out with some marshmallow sauce on the table, as well as his name. It roughly translates to "Firecaller" in common, as his name has been forgotten by time. He carried a torch on him at all times, and used the light from the fire to keep the creatures at bay, as they hated the light, and hated being visible more than anything else.

So, on the day of Darkest Night, he began to put this knowledge to use. While the remaining Dreadclaws in the square waited for the end, he began to collect everything flammable he could find from the nearby buildings. Furniture, books, wooden implements, anything to help him put his idea into action. When he found a bunch of instruments, a few musically-inclined Dreadclaws begged him not to destroy them. Firecaller agreed, so long as they played when he lit the fire.

Soon, he had a grand pile in the center, and as soon as the shadows grew long he set it aflame, bathing the hopeless Dreadclaws in warmth. Faintly, they could hear the sounds of the Missing growling and and searching for prey in the distance, but they never drew close enough to be seen. The Dreadclaws started to see that Firecaller was on to something, and the musicians began to play in order to block out the sounds of the monsters. The Dreadclaws started to talk, to smile, to laugh, recounting the hardships they faced on the way to the center and how finally, for once, they actually felt safe.

And Firecaller's courage rubbed off on them. A group made makeshift torches and lanterns and began to traverse what remained of Ichor, finding survivors and taking them to the square, all while the light of the fires and the joy in their hearts practically made them untouchable to the Missing. In one night, they spread out so far that even Tremor could see the lights and hear the music, and that stirred him to finally leave his lab and return to his people, beginning the daunting task of shooing the Missing out of Ichor for good.

Most of the one proud city returned to nature, as its population was too small to keep up with most of it, and unfortunately its people still live in fear of the Missing, but Darkest Night is the one time of the year where they can actually feel safe in each others company, and some say they can still feel Firecaller watching over them from the bonfire, and the lanterns they use to keep the beasts at bay.

Or, as an author type in the group speculated afterwards, the whole legend is malarkey and Tremor had made it up himself in order to give the miserable complexes hope. I still think it's a nice story though, and I'm glad to know that Ichor isn't as gloomy as I thought it was.

A few more TCPs invited me to dance that night, and I forgot to ask if there were any more stories, but I did enjoy myself that night, and now I'm actually looking forward to learning more about the hamlet's history.

Expect more research from me soon, now that Tremor thinks it's safe for me to do so again. And Skippop asked for me to write that you should expect to hear from her soon, she's gotten very interested in the program now that she's heard about it.