Ymc Det Vwmt Kbs Twyda Umc? I've Tried Every Single Cipher I Can Think Of For It, Everything From Rot

Today In Misery

I was outside of the deli with Julia when it happened.

The deli is settled between the second and third lights of a series of four intersections. Every road was empty, and every light on Crown Street, which led directly into the Lower Marcus Ward, had turned green at the same time.

I assume the driver of the green sedan yelled out "Score!" to themselves, since the moment they turned onto Crown Street they immediately started to pick up speed.

They didn't even reached the second light before the hood collapsed onto itself, as if they had hit something. The car spun and struck a mailbox, knocking it over, and then finally stopped. Julia and one other passerby ran to save the person.

Before the police came to try and control the situation, I managed to get a look at the sedan's damage. It was curved, like it was trying to wrap around a pole.

Since there were no cars, I tried to find what the person hit, and was met with empty air.

I did hear....something. I couldn't determine the sound or the source, only that it was getting further away.

It rained today. This doesn't sound odd enough for Misery; it isn't.

It's what happened in the rain that concerns me.

Micah Prince, heart throb of MSAA according to Julia, and a man of many secrets, is the only one in my neighborhood with a fence. No one knows why this is. Nor do the Princes care, since the fence is grimy, warped, and has no upkeep at all.

Perhaps this is why.

When the rain struck the fence, runoff revealed two different messages.

The first was: "Q xuqhj veh q xuqhj. Q iekb veh q iekb." Running it through a few ciphers (as I did with most cryptic messages like this), revealed, when using Rot16: "A heart for a heart. A soul for a soul."

The second message didn't need translating. It simply said "If you love someone, you have to be prepared to kill them."

When the rain stopped and the fence dried, the messages disappeared.

"Meet me under the screaming tree when the moon starts to blink."

~A conversation I overheard between two students. Possibly a couple

Today in Misery

As school ended and all of the students left their respective buildings, a murder of crows descended and swarmed around a random student, carrying her away. No one seemed to register what was happening, even as she struggled and and kicked and screamed for help.

When I asked Julia what the fuck just happened, she informed me "That's just Margo. This happens every day."

Today In Misery

An entire forest grew around the town in an hour. It stayed for three hours, before dying, then vanishing completely.

No one could damage the trees, with axe or fire, which were both attempted. About 10% of them had blue leaves, and fruits in geometric shapes.

People who had nothing to fear, like Colem Arth, tried this fruit.

Colem turned into a statue of diamond. A few others grew crystal horns, or had a ringing quality to their voice. One girl, a 7th grader named Nancy Hewitt, had her eyes and tongue turned to crystal. Unlike Constant Lee Anders, Nancy Hewitt could still see and retained the ability to speak. These effects did not disappear.

The peacock won't leave my neighborhood. Everyone sees it 3 to 8 times a day just....walking around.

Every day.

THERE ARE NO BEES IN MISERY

story, have you ever been harmed or changed (even temporarily) because of the things happening in misery? also, are you close friends with anyone or do you prefer to keep your distance out of fear?

Sadly, Reader, I have been harmed on more than one occasion in my time living in Misery. It’s not a targeted thing–The weirdness in Misery will often harm or affect someone in some way.

While they don’t individually cause bad luck, swarms of the mote like demons can. I had a particularly bad and almost lethal day when a demon swarm decided to stalk me. Because of this I was almost in a car accident, several angels went feral on me, and a pixie, a Phooka, and a rock golem all tried to kidnap me [which was how I learned that there is a Faerie Court in Misery, despite being told on numerous occasion that the Gentry were extinct or fictional] Because of the trip to the hospital resulting from that day, Principal Lee Anders has conducted an investigation on what caused the swarm to follow me. It’s still going on to this day, and I’m required to wear a silver ring on my middle and ring finger everywhere except for my home.

I was also harmed by Kevin, a black cat the size of a grizzly bear, though it was more of an accident than anything. Kevin just happens to be overly affectionate [he only sticks to the Marcus Ward, thankfully]. Similarly, I was attacked by a spooked colony of bats, and a curious murder of crows, according to the girl with cow eyes and Margo the Crow Girl.

As for changes…nothing permanent. But everyone seems to think that one is imminent. They keep calling it “the Misting”, despite the fact that I’ve avoided the Mist since that first night.

However, I’ve been temporarily changed a total of three times. In a joint advanced chem/alchemical transmutations class, the girl with pink hair who fixed the internet had tripped and dropped her concotion on my head. For the rest of the day, I had a third eye that was red, my hands had turned into black stone with three massive fingers, and my hair had turned orange. I was regarded with pity and artistic awe [there are still drawings of my…form in the art buildings. And one in the greenhouse for some reason].

The second incident was a completely different expirience. I was going to go to the Rock Beach to try and interview this clique of girls that always seem to hang out in the water. On my way there I stepped through an arch of red roots and yellow flowers. When I was on the other side, I had visions.

Not visions in the sense of seeing the future, Dear Reader. However, I saw spirits, or muses, or some kind of minor god that tried to guide me down certain paths for a week. I also saw what I assume was the aforementioned Gentry without their glamours. During that week, my eyes had been blue, even my pupils, for some reason. I don’t know how I saw anything. The science doesn’t make sense.

My third and final change was by my own folly and accident. Julia texted me an incantation in High Méliès for translation (I took the language for all of middle school, and was surprisingly good at it. And MSAA doesn’t offer the course).

I say incantation, Reader, because when I translated it, the next day Kurt, the boy who sweats a lake, bumped into me. And for the next day and a half, we were entangled.

Not entangled by ropes or anything physical, mind you. But by magic. The incantation [I refuse to repeat it, to prevent an expirience similar to mine], turned out to be a binding charm–anything that happened to me would happen to him, and vice versa. Kurt….heavily abused the situation. My retaliation got him suspended, though, and the guilt still eats at me.

Temporary changes aren’t that uncommon though. People often wake up with them, or gain them after walking away from some phenomena. Permanent changes are less common, but still happen regularly. An example of both is detailed in an earlier post of mine, with the Forest of Crystal Fruit.

As for your other question, Reader….Friends. I used to keep my distance out of fear, only approaching people for a story or sources for events that happened before my arrival.

That changed upon learning about Cynthia Jennings. Originally, Julia Ingram only gave me the missing Cynthia’s journal as a warning. But when I suggested that I could probably use it to find her, Julia became more forthcoming with what she knows, which, to be fair, wasn’t a lot. But due to being a native, she was much more effective at finding/referencing material than I was.

At first, our relationship was strictly professional. However, the more time we spent together let her open up and relax. Our interactions still focus mainly on trying to find Cynthia, but we do stuff outside of that together. We often eat lunch with each other.

Julia is my only friend, I think. She has one other friend besides me–Sara Powers.

Outside of Julia, I have a few other acquaintances that I’m on good terms with. Margo and I will occasionally talk or text, and the girl with the cow eyes will give me a smile and wave when she sees me. And my neighbors will hold conversations with me and give sagely wisdom if I ask for it.

Micah Prince will sometimes give me a nod or raise a glass of brown soda to me when he’s on his porch, but he otherwise treats me with gentle ambivalence. He’s reluctant to share knowledge, and gets defensive when I bring up the girl who lives with him (when I can remember her–I needed a sticky note to remember to mention her)

I hope that answers your question Dear Reader.

((Sorry this took so long! I think this is my longest post–I had to go through a bunch of notes to keep this accurate. Thank you for such a great ask anon))

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Building 17, Part 2

"You need my WHAT?" I had to take a step back. What would you do, Readers, if your principal asked for your blood?

Said principal casually drew a knife from his belt. "Your blood. The creature in there wants an offering."

"I would hope you knew better than to call a spirit a creature, Mr. Lee Anders." Prudence took the knife away from him. "That looked really threatening...."

"I'm a principal."

"Did you say a spirit?" I interjected. "Spirits haven't been seen in centuries..."

"Just because they aren't seen doesn't mean they aren't there. You're made of cells, no? Atoms? Quarks and gluons?"

"I-I guess....but--"

"Besides, magic can't hurt them."

"Nor should it." Prudence gave the principal a look. "The spirit should be appeased, not attacked. Which is why we need your blood."

"Why my blood?" I pulled my sweater sleeves down a bit. "Doesn't all blood work in spellwork?"

"This isn't spellwork, it's an offering. And your blood is....special."

".....No?"

"Yes. Your blood is....unchanged. It's what we call 'Unmisted'."

"....I've never heard of that."

"Its a local phenomena. But it just means that, for now, your blood is special. And sadly, that means you're a....delicacy."

I shuddered at the thought. "I--"

Principal Lee Anders stopped me. "This is our only option son. We need your blood."

I resisted for a bit, but eventually I gave in. None of Principal Lee Anders' spells worked, and Prudence's meditations gave her the same answer. My blood was the only way this would end.

Prudence carefully pushed my sleeve up and drew her knife. I clenched my eyes shut and turned away, and winced. Luckily she made the....incision on my arm instead of my palm. Principal Lee Anders quickly bandaged the wound while Prudence smeared my blood on her hands. I felt woozy; it was too much for me. The cut, the...ritual....

I tried not to throw up.

Prudence reached for the vines with both hands, and before she even touched them the vines fell away. Prudence glanced back at Principal Lee Anders, then tried to enter Building 17. However, she stopped short. "Ail'sur'ia..." She cursed. Prudence then gave me an apologetic look. "It wants you to come with."

Dear Readers, at that moment I spoke my mind.

"Are you guys going to feed me to a spirit?"

"Wha--no!" Prudence rushed to deny.

"No harm will come to you, Mr. Page." Principal Lee Anders came up and put a hand on my shoulder, and a chill went down my spine. "I swear it."

Our magician of a principal wrapped a silver thread around my wrist and Prudence's, then used golden confetti mixed with sand to draw a circle that hovered in the air around him. "Stay behind me at all times."

When we entered Building 17, the vines came up again, trapping us inside. The interior was destroyed; the walls were split by tree roots, and flowers grew at random intervals. Moss covered everything, and small glowing motes were the only source of light. It was warm, and the air felt wet.

I looked ahead at Principal Lee Anders, and he was smiling. "Let's do this."

[End of Part 2]