beleos: (Default)
beleos ([personal profile] beleos) wrote in [community profile] kenosooc2024-01-12 02:07 pm

JANUARY TDM + SETTING UPDATES


BEARING FRUIT (NEW CHARACTERS ONLY)
It starts out as a pleasant dream. You’re in your favorite place, with your favorite people. It’s a moment of idyllic comfort.
And then, it goes wrong. The sky turns dark above, and as you look up, you see the black expanse of space spotted with faraway pinprick lights of stars. Yet, they’re not stars. You’re certain. They’re watching you. A billion eyes all looked down, and they spilled forth as if the sky itself was a dam holding back those dark waters. You reach back to the people you’re with, but they’re frozen in place. Their eyes are black, reflecting only the expanse of dark eyes. Their bodies jerk, and convulse, as if controlled by puppet strings, reaching out to try to grip your hand, your shoulder, your wrist, but you know you should pull away. Something iswrong. If fingers or appendages meet your skin, there is a chill, that runs up your body, from the tips of your toes, up your spine, a full-body experience of wrongness. Would your loved ones feel like this, when they reach out?

So you run, even though you know you won’t escape it. You glance back and see it not overtaking, but consuming. The landscape around you is being devoured, and you can see it cracking apart. The world itself is breaking, and it cracks under your feet. You fall, and the billion eyes chase after you until the darkness swallows you whole. It's coming for you, it will not stop, it will not relent, and there is nothing that can be done. What a fool you were, for ever thinking you could escape. There’s agony as if you’re being ripped apart, and then—

You cannot see. You cannot feel. You simply are. Yet even so, impossibly, a woman’s voice speaks gently.

I’m sorry it couldn’t be saved. But, come, it’s time to wake.
Your senses come to you slowly. Are you here for days? Weeks? Longer? It is difficult to say. All that you are is inert, and still. You can feel parts of you that form, but they hurt, like your body is fighting through a layer of...something. Something that keeps you from a gentle regrowth. You feel a chill, next to your heart, and while your form grows, it also fights, trying to both find a form and fight against some darkness that clings to you, like it's trying even now to consume your soul. It has a taste of it, you can tell, though not enough to take from you. Enough to know you, and while your body grows, this darkness slowly, slowly ebbs away, as if it can no longer touch you when you are whole. Something protects you, a presence. You can sense it, just like you can start to sense the presence of others. Some are close by, you can tell, winking in and out of existence just like you are. Falling in and out of consciousness like you do, as you are all collectively regrown. A groaning, creaky voice hums in your ear, with breaths that thrum and hum, like a gentle summer breeze through the leaves, and it tells you: Try to reach them. Welcome their calls. Can you hear them? Through communion. Your emotions are laid bare, in this space. Will you allow them to project? Will you try to control them? Will you reach out to your fellow new bearers, and soothe their own worries, or exacerbate their fears?

Eventually, after a long time, you wake with a start, cradled by soft, velvety plants, and sticky with a sap that smells faintly of honey and iron, an acrid scent lingers, like the edge of rot that has been swept away. You can see the veins of the leaves that hold you, lit warmly and gently by what looks like a crystal embedded above you. Yet, it’s odd, because that crystal calls to you. When you reach out to touch it, it’s warm. Familiar. Important. You don’t know why, but you know you must hold onto this because now it feels wrong for it to be suspended in these leaves. So, you pull it out.

The light starts to fade, but only in time to see as the leaves cradling you immediately start to soften and crumble, and with it comes a torrent of dirt. Soft, loamy soil starts to fill the space around you in the dark as you’re buried. Or, rather, you already were. You reach out through the dirt desperately, and your hands finds a root, so you pull while you clutch that precious crystal so close that it almost feels like it sinks into you (in your panic, you don’t notice that it does). You reach out again, and this time, your hand hits open air, and plenty of sturdy roots around to grab.

From a seed you’re born, and like a sprout, you make your way out of the ground.

And once you’ve clawed your way out of the soft earth and the roots, nearby, you see the soil shift. Another hand comes up to grasp desperately for something, anything, just as you had been.


A LITTLE ISLAND HOPPING
With the new Shard-Bearers present or en route, it is Kathova and Cetina who approach the established ones, requesting that they form mentorships with the new souls to assist them with the integration process. To this end, they have both provided a centralized zone in both Highstorm and Springstar for a series of small, seemingly casual gatherings, they happen over the span of a week, so new visitors can get the chance to spend time in both cities before they make a decision.

Additionally, as Springstar and Highstorm are holding their events over multiple days, the knowledge-hungry can participate in both informational sessions -- the tones and opinions held by both cities are doubtless to differ.

For those established bearers of the opposite faction, however, your faces are known amongst the populations of our sister cities, especially the administrators of both Meridian and Zenith, and if you try to attend the parties of either city, you will be turned away, with varying levels of aggression, depending on your tier of harmonization. New bearers are free to notice if someone tries! It seems you've stumbled your way into an escalating war.

SPRINGSTAR, αιώνιος ήλιος

In Springstar, the seat of the Tribune becomes available for such an event. While a section of the building itself has been reserved for the meeting between fresh faces and experienced Shard-Bearers alike, the hustle and bustle of Heliopolis continues around them -- acolytes still gather their robes and tomes, hurrying from their quarters to lessons. A score of young militants march in step across the yard to the training grounds. The higher-ups amongst Meridian have taken it upon themselves to wrap up their Year's End and New Year's festivities with a celebration of their recent victory over the Harbinger Oracle, as well as a celebration of the possibility of new shard-bearers. One does not have to attend every day, but Springstar's celebrations do tend to be multi-day affairs, and everyone from the scholars to the titled nobility seems keen on greeting new bearers. The tribune himself, Cyrus, welcomes bearers with a rousing speech at midday each day, speaking of their victories and their battle to stand for the worlds now lost. His speeches are met with polite applause, but is it a bit lacking in enthusiasm? Cyrus seems to brush it off with little offense, but perhaps you notice, that his eyes crinkle slightly, and he may look a touch... sad.

The celebrations are in the Seat of the Tribune, with tables draped in white-and-gold-trimmed fabrics fare filled with fare typical to Springstar's slowly brightening summer -- platters of hard crumbly cheeses and stuffed doulmades, roasted meats and fish, like souvlaki and psari plaki. There are plenty of grains and other dishes that elude to the abundance of both Springstar and Alenroux, and bearer efforts there.. The atmosphere is ambient with informality and friendliness, though topics will inevitably stray towards philosophic or political, Springstar's meeting grounds are decorated with handsome chaise lounges and slouching klismos chairs in small, intimate groupings. This is a forum in the classical sense, where people are encouraged to speak freely, no matter the topic. Though excitement charges the air, the gathering at the Seat is much more muted than what transpires outside the center of the city.

The church, too, celebrates the victory. Now that the Year's End celebrations have passed, the head of the church, Hieropoios Natalia Theodora Vaso Helios offers proclamations daily to those who will attend. Her tone has turned in tone toward driving forward, for now, that they have two Oracles of 3, Meridian's light is in favor, and she offers blessings and venerations toward the bearers who support their efforts to restore worlds. Bearers who attend these masses will feel their discord ebb from her words alone, and their shards will feel warm to the touch for some time afterward, even if they are not harmonized. If they ask anyone within the church, they will be told that it is Meridian's light filling them.

One would assume after a victory, that the mood elsewhere in Springstar is jubilant, but while there is still the occasional party outside in the summer sun in the Psychagogía district, there is a hushed tenseness to the city of eternal-sun. Stay too long, and you will eventually find the reason why, when scared locals speak of disappearing friends or family members, and there are whispered rumors of attacks. Some accuse the denizens of the Below, and others whisper about monsters in the dark. Though they have captured the latest oracle, the hope that normally follows such excitement is... tentative, at best.

HIGHSTORM, луны-близнецы

Eternally in opposition, Highstorm uses the manor's courtyard as the location for a series of events over the next week, inviting bearers new and old to join them in celebration. The members of the Highstorm council have set the small gathering in the court beneath Yima's tree, and next to the reflecting pools. The Lady Yima herself is in attendance and oversees the gathering from the balcony of her manor above. She will visit the grounds sparingly, generally when a new bearer is afoot, but she will direct any questions to either Kathova, or her more established Zenites, as she has many people to greet. Though she will take the moment to hold each new bearer's hand that visits and tell them each: "You have the potential to hold the key to a new, and better world. We believe in what you can do, and what strength you will find in Kenos. Let the memories of your loved ones, and your world, guide you to the right path, and know that your loss will be honored when we achieve our new world," before she glides away.

There are few places to be seated in the Manor's courtyard, resulting in bodies milling about as they flow and ebb between smaller gatherings, clustering in small-to-large groups with small platters and shimmering flutes of drink held in their hands. Yet, as you look, you’ll see that the selection is also quite interesting. The foods and drinks on offer are from a multitude of worlds, and so you may find a new favorite! Or something not suited to your palate at all. It’s at least a chance to be adventurous. If you try something and don’t like it, might not want to say that out loud, lest you insult someone who’s from that world. More established Zenites are encouraged to attend to help draw in new Zenites, and both new and old inductees alike are encouraged to speak about what their vision of a new world would look like. The reflecting pool itself is at the center of the courtyard, and if one looks in, they can see their memories reflected back at them. Though... if you look for too long, something seems to try and reach out for you. Can you feel the allure of dark fingertips, ready to brush against your face? If you stare too long, an attendant will pull the bearer back, just before they land right in the pool, offering unsettling remarks of “that has been happening more lately, the last person it happened to disappear. We even drained the pool, but couldn’t find them!

Further into Highstorm, the Greenwood Yards attracts many visitors during the dead of Highstorm's winter. The doors are (proverbially, we can't let the heat out!) open, to bearers new and old alike. Attendants there will explain that this season is the best for starting some of the seeds that will grow well into early and mid-spring, but most seeds need warmth to grow. They will ask visitors to find a partner, to hold their combined hands together, and to offer shared warmth to the seed, and they will explain that seeds grow best when they come from the combined care of more than one individual. Bearers will eventually have to separate, but they will notice that the small seed in their palms has started to sprout. Visitors will also be welcome to turn fertilizer with the laborers at the yards (What's in it? Don't worry about it!) and there will be sessions held by the staff on the local flora and fauna, so consider this your primer on the native plants and animals of Kenos!

The denizens of Highstorm are putting out their bells and whistles for the new bearers, as they have less to fear in the streets (or do they...?) so feel free to stop by Benny's -- watch out for any fights, or participate, I'm not your mom -- or feel free to visit the Tomes, where a certain coffee shop has opened up a cart in the largest library in the district, offering drinks to comers and goers, which are becoming quite popular. This particular barista often offers drinks based on their shards, but as a little winter pick-me-up for the denizens of Highstorm, there are several new drinks offered for visitors! They even have a menu on display for bearers to select from!
CHEERS TO A NEW YEAR

  • Springstar Sunrise - One using the crushed vines that populate Springstar in their warm season, which makes bearers want to reach out and hold hands.
  • Scorching Slowdown - One using water from the Scorching Isles that makes bearers grow cold, and time seems to warp around them. (This one DOES contain a modified touch of the Blight that bearers once healed, but if brought up, an attendant will shake their head, and impress upon the patron a sense of calm. It will not hurt you.)
  • Xanadu Xing - that makes bearers feel warm and totally relaxed. A spa in a cup, and you’ll feel like you had a therapy session afterward!
  • Worlds Edging - A drink that makes bearers start to feel...amorous. (The Aphro Drink)
  • Highstorm Hiccup - A whimsical drink that gives the bearer hiccups! Do they float a little? Yeah, but there’s no fans over your heads, don’t worry
  • Pastoral Punch - A fruity concoction, it’s made from the crops in Alenroux (think a Sangria) and when drank, it fills bearers with warm memories, and reverie comes easy.
  • Yima Yammer - a tongue-in-cheek drink, it fills a bearer with the uncontrollable urge to talk
  • Cyrus Concussion - This drink puts bearers into a deep sleep. They have pleasant, warm dreams.

ALENROUX

The pastoral farmlands of Alenroux are seeing a resurgence of life and community, since the establishment of combined Meridian and Zenith forces, and the subsequent attempts to eliminate or displace the monsters that ravaged the island at night. With a more stable population, some of the workers have established homes, and have started opening their doors in the sunny, lush farmland, which is reachable by cornerstone, and oddly? Alenroux has taken to advertising their new interest in tourism. The small farming village has started establishing shops with wares, crafts, cooking classes, and wine tastings, pretty much an agro-tourist's dream! Drink beverages crafted by refugees from distant worlds, or dishes from other worlds! Bearers are encouraged to visit, and stay the night with a multitude of Alenroux's homes opening their doors for bearers to stay in their Bed and Breakfasts.

However, while the days are 24 hours long, so are the nights. Alenroux natives do not leave their homes, and staying in for a full day's time can feel like an eternity. You'll have time to get to know your hosts, but the night is haunted by the cries and howls of monsters in the distance, particularly on the north end of the island. Should a bearer step outdoors, they will find monsters still roaming. Take one on, if you dare, but watch out! Shadow creatures lurk until you least expect it, and may try to lure you in with a familiar voice, a soft promise, the lingering scent of a loved one. What you find in the woods might be just a run-of-the-mill big monster to fight, or it might be something deadlier, a shadow, mimicking a loved one, trying to draw you into the darkness.

KOWLOON

Though Kowloon is something of an open secret amongst those in Springstar, it was normally left to lay in the belly underneath the sunsoaked city topside, like an afterthought. Only those who already knew where it was, could make their way through the dangerous maze of tunnels and corridors that leads from the Springstar sewers, down into the Below, and then further into Kowloon. The Below is dangerous to all but the most powerful, as in the dark corridors, creatures lurk, and people make dens and nests within. Some will warn new bearers away, citing that there are Dark Things within the tunnels and that they don’t encourage anyone to stay down there for long. If you remain unharmonized, it's recommended that a guide assists you on the way down. Fellow shard-bearers who visit frequently are recommended, but particularly savvy types can find their way down on their own.

Kowloon itself is a thriving little beating heart underground, and much like its namesake, it truly is just a built-up city within a scant few blocks, the buildings are densely packed, and ascend to over 14 stories high. It’s massive, enough to occupy a large number of oddities, such as a hunting ground for monsters, and there are bars, clubs, casinos, and shops with wares from very nearly anywhere. Though if you ask where they get them, the owners of said establishments will dodge the question, or outright threaten you when pressed. Bearers will find that there are varying degrees of openness in Kowloon, after all. Don't ask too many questions, or you may not like how they answer. Kowloon is a place where you can satisfy your every vice, and that is meant truly. There are weapons dealers, drug halls, exotic liquors, and substances that could fill innumerable universes. Every world has its shadowy elements, and every world's shady types have made their way down here.

SETTING UPDATES
In both locations, information passes between all in a forum, spread and disseminated among the masses - it's a good opportunity for city residents, faction loyalists, and interested new parties to share and share alike. Once a day, after the meet-and-greets have concluded, twin missives from both faction leads are read out -- invitations for all present to explore the cities to their heart's content, and warnings about stumbling ill-prepared ( or at all ) into the Below, or worse yet, the Beyond. As Shard-Bearers new and old take in their cities, they'll all see it change throughout the month...

OOC, these are all updates to the setting at large that players both new and old are free to interact with as little or as much as they wish! Feel free to use them as prompts on this post, in your characters' on-going lives and arcs, or just let them go "That's none of my business" and ignore it. The world of Kenos is shaped by our playerbase, and these are some of the wider-reaching effects of various player plots and actions.

TRY TO JOT DOWN A FEW NOTES

As part of New Year's gifts to everybody, Yima and Cyrus gifted bearers with an enchanted notebook. They are embossed with your characters' names, and have some unusual properties. Bearers can now send each other little letters or notes, or they can address the group at large, should they wish to! This essentially serves as a network function. Please check out the AC requirements for more information about these special new gifts.

FRONT PAGE NEWS

After the last Oracle, both cities are abuzz with gossip. Normally, the oracle appearances were wrapped in secrecy, only the bearers themselves were privy to the internal happenings, and accounts tend to be scattered, as it's always relied on what the bearers can share. This time, the oracles were broadcast to the population at large, and bearer opinions have shifted wildly, based on how successful a bearer was. New bearers may hear the off-the-cuff snide comment about some bearers here and there, and they'll notice that the cities are not very welcoming to bearers of the opposite faction. The public opinion seems to be shifting as half of the oracles are captured, and their fates are being written by bearers new and old.

DON'T LOOK TOO CLOSE TO THE SHADOWS

Be wary, bearers. Whatever patches of darkness and shadow you encountered in the Harbinger's Labyrinth, seems to be making its way across Kenos. Things like patches of shadow against a building, the slightest flash of a familiar face rounding a corner, or even hearing your name called by a name long gone. Something is trying to reach you and tempt you to find it. The shadows are hungry. For something, and bearers new and old alike will be fine feasting for whatever reaches from the shadows. Step carefully, and watch your backs.

AAH! REAL MONSTERS

If the cities didn't have enough to deal with, Springstar is taking the most hits. The city of sun may not be dealing with as many patches of darkness (for truly, Meridian's light touches all) but that does not mean that there is no danger within the city of eternal sun. Attacks by people such as vampires, ghouls, and other intelligent, people-eating races are on the rise, and fearful whispers hint that they are coming from the Below, some even suggest that this is the hint that the balance is shifting. Kowloon has always existed with relatively little strife toward Springstar, but that seems to be changing. Be wary on the streets of Springstar, bearers, you may find that lurking around the corner are hungry murderers of varying levels of danger. The attacks are not... constant, but they have begun to increase in frequency. By this time in the month, they are moving to several times a day, and the legionnaires are having difficulty keeping up with the attacks. Even one of the more well-known Meridian higher-ups, Agapitos Voreen, has been seen fighting in the streets, flanked by his second, a large, emerald dragon-born woman. All of these combined efforts have not yet been able to turn the tide, and it's clear that Kowloon was always a threat, but one that until recently, had been kept well in hand.
OOC NOTES
  • Welcome to Kenos! As a reminder, all new players need to submit a request, and proceed through player screening to apply to the game. Apps are now open!
  • This log is Game Canon. Any characters who are not apped to the game will disappear. If Cyrus or Yima are asked, they’ll explain that this sometimes happens since not every soul has a strong tether to Kenos and sometimes return to the Timestream. They may return to Kenos one day, but for now, weren’t able to make the full journey.
  • As a note primarily for current players, closed toplevels/prompts are not allowed in this log. If you would like to interact with the setting changes in a way that isn't open to all characters (new and old), we ask that you instead make a log in [community profile] kenoslogs.

  • FOR NEW PLAYERS:

  • When characters emerge from their cocoon/the ground, they may be wearing their normal clothes or nude. Up to you!
  • At some point in the days after leaving the Tree of Life, new Shard-Bearers will have a dream, even if they're usually not capable of sleeping. All new players should read this post since this details how they'll learn about both factions and their goals and should help them make a decision about which Faction they'd be drawn to.
  • Characters who arrive and harmonize to Zenith will receive a bonus token!
  • When meeting with either Cetina or Kathova, along with their shard or sunbeam, they will be given a Kenotebook! Think of this as your text-based comm. (This is also opt-out, so if you want it to not be ready/lost, go for it!) Any AC with the Kenotebook must be doubled, so make sure you are aware of that!
  • As a reminder, your character has a Shard somewhere on their body that encompasses their soul, so keep note of where you're sticking it on their person for reference! Additionally, they have a tattoo of their Aspect somewhere on their body. Please be mindful this Aspect will be assigned to you upon approval and whatever you choose for the TDM may be temporary (for new characters)!
  • For the Island Hopping prompts, all locations will be fully open and accessible to all characters once they are freed from their rather harrowing ordeal at the Tree of Life. For prompt ideas and any general information about the cities and what you can find there, please see the Locations section of our Wiki!
  • New characters will not have access to any canon abilities on the TDM until they Harmonize, AKA make a choice of which faction they choose to support. For some characters, this may be an easy decision, but it make take others time. We just ask you keep this in mind!

  • CODING
    kinaesthesia: (69)

    [personal profile] kinaesthesia 2024-01-22 07:27 am (UTC)(link)
    [Intentional or not, it gets a mildly amused snort in response from her.

    Perhaps a year ago she might’ve been more surprised to hear of someone arriving here who’s already experienced with traveling to other worlds. Now, though? It’s something to note, but little to find shocking. Way too much going on here to be fazed by something like that.]


    Couldn’t tell you why it’s like that here, just that it’s true. Wanting to get my healing skills back is what got me to first pick a side, way back when.

    [Speaking of: she raises the staff in her hand for a brief moment, the soft green glow of her Arts enveloping it for a flash. It’ll ease the discomfort in his hand temporarily, but not much else for the moment. She releases his arm and shrugs her bag from her shoulder to place it on the table here under the gazebo's shade, along with her staff.]

    Alright. Unfortunately, I gotta get those fingers of yours properly set before I can go healing in earnest here. I suggest you brace yourself.

    [He gets the warning only because he’s being cooperative. Gavial is not known for being gentle.]
    tresemme: (🍼25)

    [personal profile] tresemme 2024-01-22 07:53 am (UTC)(link)
    [ it’s extremely space, and tony feels strangely heartened by someone just mentioning the word planet. he was beginning to feel like he traveled back in time, with this whole vibe. ]

    It’s a ship. It wouldn’t be much more exciting even if it was a planet… like I said, our numbers have taken a hit.

    [personal profile] ex_fend346 2024-01-22 08:17 am (UTC)(link)
    [ So he would have to choose a side in order to be whole again. Well, as whole as he can be in absence of Kamui. They've never been separated in such a way, and the absence of his twin is like missing half his limbs. There isn't anything he can do about that just now, save surviving long enough to find him.

    When the pain abates, surprise flits across his features, eyes widening for a moment. Magic is nothing new, yet that insistent pulsing throb had worn on so long he'd begun to get used to it. In absence of that, he's relieved, though his expression sobers soon thereafter. ]


    I understand. I've had worse, so I won't make it difficult.

    [ He says this with the certainty of age and experience that his youthful features belie, lips set in a determined line, and he braces himself. ]
    umurice: (114)

    [personal profile] umurice 2024-01-22 11:22 am (UTC)(link)
    I do not mind if you wish to call me that, Subaru!

    [No formalities, apparently. Perhaps in another lifetime, someone would teach him the proper etiquette for names in the city, but Hiiro has never had to learn it. It was probably due to his upbringing.

    Seeing as he isn't forcing his hand off, he takes it as a good sign to keep walking with hands held.]


    You seem very frail, so I hope you do not try that again. If you do, I worry about you breaking your wrist next. Still, I do appreciate the gesture. I have never seen such a large monkey before, so I hadn't been certain how to go about fighting it.
    umurice: (100)

    [personal profile] umurice 2024-01-22 11:25 am (UTC)(link)
    ...? No, I am Amagi Hiiro.

    [Angel? Demon? He isn't sure what he means by those, but that's only because the concept hasn't reached him yet. Not when he's from such a hidden village that the outside world barely touched it. This man looked tired though, so he just lets him rest. He probably needed it.]

    What's your name, sir?
    umurice: (106)

    that just makes me think of the wall hole now that's an imagery i'm stuck with

    [personal profile] umurice 2024-01-22 11:29 am (UTC)(link)
    ...? Me?

    [Chrono beats him in asking the question, which was probably for the best. Hiiro wouldn't really know how to comfort him, not when Hiiro has never had anyone to comfort before. So he follows him, deciding to answer his question.]

    I remember eyes. Millions of eyes in the sky where the stars were meant to be. As well as the voices we talked about.

    ... Is it related to that?
    clockpunk: (083)

    [personal profile] clockpunk 2024-01-22 01:17 pm (UTC)(link)
    It's better not to assume stuff.

    [ he smiles, grateful for her buying into his attempt at diverting the conversation. the few very brief times he'd found himself not on earth had all sort of skipped the being in space part. ]

    What's it like out there?
    clockpunk: (067)

    [personal profile] clockpunk 2024-01-22 01:23 pm (UTC)(link)
    Two years?

    [ in his surprise chrono almost chokes on one of the olives, sputtering in combined disbelief and attempted recovery.

    of course it makes sense that not every shardbearer was fresh out the ground, and it was logical there would be people who had been there for even longer, but when you're sixteen two years seems like a lifetime. ]


    That's- uh. A while.
    clockpunk: (061)

    just his hair went through one of those and it came out like this

    [personal profile] clockpunk 2024-01-22 01:48 pm (UTC)(link)
    Kinda, but...

    [ the eyes were one thing, but the hands grasping at nothing in an attempt to reach him were another. cold, chillingly so, pulling at his ankles and arms because he found it so, so hard to ignore their voices.

    but none of them touched his hand. his near-final memory before the nightmare had begun was too fresh and too hopeful to be anything but painful now. ]


    More like before then, before the voices started. When you were last home.
    umurice: (116)

    the rest of his hair learned from the sacrifice of one

    [personal profile] umurice 2024-01-22 02:24 pm (UTC)(link)
    [This time, he falls quiet, pondering it. In truth, rather than forget it, he felt like he might have been subconsciously suppressing it, or more accurately, he had been too dazed.

    Being forced to think about it now, he shakes his head, swallowing.]


    I remember the feeling of being chased. I do not recall by what, but it felt like a hopeless escape-- it is the first time I have ever felt such a way. Like I was running from a pack of wolves that wanted to devour me, perhaps, is the closest I can think of.
    eventhandler: Made by cottonbun on tumblr! (that somehow all of this mess)

    Royce Bracket | Transistor | new player...Zenith very likely...

    [personal profile] eventhandler 2024-01-22 02:25 pm (UTC)(link)
    1. BEARING FRUIT

    [He would find the irony in this if he wasn't panicking. When dying, everyone goes to the Country. And here he is, in soil, like he's one of those many wheat plants in the endless fields of that place.]

    [Royce Bracket is only human, though. The crystal is so inviting - it reminds him of the Transistor, in all its splendor, and his heart aches like missing a lost lover - but after comes the frightening flow of dirt and earth. He struggles, writhes, pulls himself up until his hand breaches the surface.]

    [Even if someone is helping him up, he seems to be talking to himself as he does, coughing throughout it all.]


    Is this...the Country? The Country. Is it? [A beat - his soft twang of a voice (ill-fitting with the stern angles of his face) spills over itself, tripping on his own tongue.] No, no. No, it isn't. C-can't be, really isn't...that at all. I would know.

    [A shaky inhale of breath, finally letting his vivid green eyes fix themselves on whoever is nearby..]

    ...Do you have a smoke?

    [Yes, this IS the time for a cigarette, of course.]

    2. HIGHSTORM

    2a. nerds gotta nerd

    [The architect finally gets his bearings. None of this seems quite real - Cloudbank would have never allowed itself into such a messy state of affairs, both with its people and structures. Or rather, it would have never allowed itself to show the chaos brimming underneath in the claim of stagnant stability.]

    [While the lure of the courtyard is from the Lady herself and her words (he doesn't say anything to her greeting, though his eyes seem to flicker, darkly, at you have the potential to hold the key to a new, and better world), he's avoiding the people there, choosing to look at the courtyard itself. He's peering at the pools, gazes up at the manor, hems and haws at the buildings - one can even find himself pressed against one, intricately examining the way the stone cracks as he babbles to himself.]


    Hm. Hmmm. Not...bad. Though....as it were....no, no, the material...but then again....

    [Is he, like. Okay?]

    2b. time for a drink (or two. or three)

    [Reality seems to catch up in the midst of curious, rabid exploration for this man, though, and eventually he tumbles into the Tomes. He's just realizing that he's far in over his head. He's not familiar with any of this. His Transistor. Cloudbank. What happened...? Red...? She's not here, is she?]

    [He chooses a table and slumps into a chair, physically and mentally exhausted. He feels he could sleep for eons. And...oh, someone's already here at this table. Whoops. Royce makes a little light noise of frustration, gesturing at the menu.]


    ...Choose something for me. I'm not picky. Any. Any drink, it would...do, yes. Get a little bit of relief from all of this.. [A little pause.] Too many thoughts, you see. Tooooo many thoughts.

    [And he sighs, running a hand through his hair.]

    [Someone save him.]


    3. WILDCARD

    [if you have any prompt you want to throw at this weirdo math man PLEASE GO FOR IT, he is HERE to be BOTHERED]
    siriusly: (:\ um this is uncomfortable)

    clearly not a spacedog fan smh!!!

    [personal profile] siriusly 2024-01-22 02:51 pm (UTC)(link)
    [he withers a little at that.]

    A...auh...right. Sorry. Everyone else who's talked to me has mentioned just...Earth mostly. I kind of got excited that someone was from a different planet.
    tresemme: (🍼31)

    [personal profile] tresemme 2024-01-22 02:52 pm (UTC)(link)
    …huh?

    [ it takes him a moment, and then he crosses his arms, really considering this possibility as he looks around the crowd. ]

    Do you think they would?
    slashing: (33)

    [personal profile] slashing 2024-01-22 03:02 pm (UTC)(link)
    [ everything is now Wet, which means therion is also Wet from the coffee that he spilled, which is making him even more of a cranky cat than he already would be. he's also got the kind of advantage of having a slippier surface to be, well, slippery on, except for the fact that this lady will not let go at all.

    he will not be quitting his wriggling. in fact, he's struggling to get purchase, but it's not working nearly as well as he wants it to, as he pushes a hand on her face and - then, she slips, and they both hit the ground. that's enough, at least - therion springs up to his feet faster than he has any right to, and he's about to go on his merry way and, indeed, skitter away as fast as humanly possible, which is pretty damn fast.

    however, before he can make his grand escape, she can successfully grab a hold of his poncho scarf thing - he makes an unflattering hghk noise and jerks backwards, grabbing at the nearest shelf to keep from falling over. ]


    What is your problem - let me go!
    slashing: (25)

    [personal profile] slashing 2024-01-22 03:05 pm (UTC)(link)
    There are plenty of normal humans who do that, too.

    [ prey on others for survival, skittering around in the dark underbelly of a city. too familiar. thieves and parasites, the same narrative he's always lived.

    therion gets it, though; he frowns, looking in a vague direction outwards towards the city at large. ]
    What a pain. No wide-eyed travelers looking to take care of it to make a few leaves? Or is that our job.
    Edited (not the repeating icons ) 2024-01-22 15:05 (UTC)
    sheezit: (s24)

    [personal profile] sheezit 2024-01-22 03:31 pm (UTC)(link)
    Good. Don't be shy to ask around if you have any questions, though-- I know it's a lot to take and I sure needed all the help I could get when I first got here.

    [ There's... definitely a few warnings to be made, but it's probably best not to scare off the newcomer that fast. At least Aetos hasn't shown himself recently... ]

    As for Fodlan, I guess it's not that different. The whole continent was at war before I came here, and now I've just been pulled into yet another conflict. I was a mercenary back home, though, so I guess I'm used to all this fighting. What about you? Got any combat experience?
    slashing: (2)

    [personal profile] slashing 2024-01-22 03:34 pm (UTC)(link)
    [ he shrugs a shoulder. ]

    Depends on how unhappy they are. Depose the guy, get overthrown by another kingdom, whatever. Or, people try it and it gets quashed.

    [ there are so many wars in orsterra ] Nothing ever really changes.
    sheezit: (s10)

    [personal profile] sheezit 2024-01-22 03:44 pm (UTC)(link)
    [ He wouldn't judge her if she did disbelieve it, in all truth. Even now, Shez has a lot of questions about it, himself-- and they're only further aggravated by the fact he used to share his body with a second soul, too. But that's not something to go sharing with the newcomer, either.

    Instead, her question draws forth a quiet sigh. That's not an easy answer, either, but he'll still give it his best shot. ]


    Honestly, who knows. [ An all too honest -- and unhelpful -- shrug later, he adds: ] What we're told is that we're supposed to pick a side and fight for it: to either restore our home worlds or to create a new one. As far as I know, it's not always a conscious choice, either. Meridian and Zenith... somehow, they just know how you really feel.

    [ Or: they pick up on Vibes, good luck with that. ]

    And once you are assigned to either side, you'll be expected to fight for it. The mood isn't always great between factions, but once we have to go through an Oracle trial... that's when you can expect an all-out war to break out.
    weallbecomeone: (pic#13478422)

    1 - I couldn't resist.

    [personal profile] weallbecomeone 2024-01-22 03:46 pm (UTC)(link)
    [She knows that voice.

    A haunting sound that settles into the very pit of her person. If she had dreams, she would say it lingers there, with every piece of information that's left her insides twisting and turning. Can she call Royce the catalyst for the way things turned in every direction? Perhaps.

    She does, at least along her insides.

    And each time she even thinks about the Country, the Process, it's a tonne of pins and needles all across her. As if she might never be free of that sensation.

    How could he.
    How could he.

    And she has no voice with which to say as much. But that isn't what he's asking for and it doesn't take her long to meet his question with merely a look that must betray every single one of her sentiments.

    She's ready to start all of this all over again if that's what he wants.]
    sheezit: (s24)

    [personal profile] sheezit 2024-01-22 03:52 pm (UTC)(link)
    [ To her luck, Shez has a working sense of humor, so the joke isn't lost on him; quite the contrary, it earns a good laugh from him. Highstorm has been a particularly gloomy place for any Meridian as of the last Oracle trial, so it's always refreshing to see someone in such a good mood... ]

    Oh, yeah? As long as I don't have to foot that bill, I'm game! Honestly, you eat about as much as a buddy of mine...

    [ And he says that with the fondest smile, so there's really no judgement in his comment. Instead, he just invites himself to the seat next to hers with another quick glance over her private feast. Seriously, how is going to pay for all of this... ]

    So, what's that nice thing you want me to do?
    eventhandler: Made by schemilix on tumblr! (you would open my eyes)

    ME YELLING

    [personal profile] eventhandler 2024-01-22 03:58 pm (UTC)(link)
    ...Ah.

    [His vision clears, his hands wiping away the dirt from his face. There's no reply from her. He knows exactly why there's no reply from her.]

    [He leans back with a hand on the ground, and lets out a breathless, shaky sort of laugh.]


    Oh. What a fancy...what a fancy meeting you here, Red. Long time. No see. Ah, don't give me that look. If anything, I thought you would have...survived. Defeated me fair and square, didn't you.

    [Fair fight. That's what it was. And what does she want to do now, kill him again? He shakes his head - it feels so horrible as to be ridiculous.]

    What's done is done, anyhow. We're not in Cloudbank anymore. You can see that.
    tresemme: (🍼33)

    2a

    [personal profile] tresemme 2024-01-22 04:02 pm (UTC)(link)
    [ tony has many thoughts: shut up, you’re annoying, are you crazy, what are you talking about… the list is endless, as he scrunches his nose at this weird stranger talking to himself about buildings. but since he’s on self-imposed probation after ultimately joining the side where the most people heard him declare war on humans, he decides he should be nice instead to avoid making more enemies. ]

    You’re not going to break it like that.
    eventhandler: Made by lineupmu on tumblr! (do what it takes to step through)

    [personal profile] eventhandler 2024-01-22 04:06 pm (UTC)(link)
    Break...?

    [He makes a swivel on his heel - there's almost a paradoxically abrupt grace to it, indicating a man who can clearly move quickly when he needs to - and addresses him.]

    And why would I...break it? Hardly. I build. I'm merely examining it. The way it's structured, ah, its different from what I've done.
    tresemme: (🍼45)

    [personal profile] tresemme 2024-01-22 04:11 pm (UTC)(link)
    Oh.

    [ tony is so used to breaking things, he thought this guy was leaning his weight and trying to… okay, the idea of toppling the building seems stupid now that he’s been corrected, but he was trying to set himself up to be helpful.

    pre-emptively defensive, tony crosses his arms.
    ]

    Can you make something better? These buildings all seem like they’d fall apart if I sneezed on them.
    weallbecomeone: (pic#13478415)

    PROBABLY NOT AS MUCH AS I AM.

    [personal profile] weallbecomeone 2024-01-22 04:13 pm (UTC)(link)
    [Her expression hardens. Don't give him that look? He deserves so much more than that. But what good would it do to run him through over and over again? What would that even fix? And he wouldn't want that for her.

    It's like a little dagger, prodding in and slowly making an invisible wound larger. It's torturous to hear the way he puts it. Survived. Survived? What use was there in trying to survive in that? Red could have remade it in the image she wanted. But why? Why do so?

    So she'd done the only thing she thought she could do, against the wishes of a pleading voice that haunt her in the same way.

    The sound she looses is disdain. Disbelief. Incredulous. She shakes her head at him, as if that ought to convey every single complicated feeling that courses her veins like rapid wildfire.]


    ...

    [I can see that.

    A hand lifts, she gestures about them. She still has eyes. They still work. Yet he's right. This isn't Cloudbank. It's not the world inside the Transistor either. So what is it? And why? Suffice it to say she has about as much information as he does, which isn't much. She knows what she saw, what she experienced, but can't make sense of any of it.]