TDM 005

[etrayamods]

⏵ arrival ⏴ Arrival goes as anticipated. Characters awaken in a sterile hospital bed in a clean, white room to the hum of machines under the unnatural lighting common to well-kept institutions. Every bit was designed to be comforting and calming, even with the jarring undercurrent of this situation. The first face they see is Aurora's: her smile appears to be warm, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes. She might offer a quick explanation, or leave characters to figure it out for themselves depending on their approach. The door to the room swings open, revealing a hallway that stretches out ahead of them. There’s noise from outside and strong pumpkin spice scents coming from the lobby. Ah, muffins and tea. Grab one and head into the crisp, sunny fall morning ahead. ⏵ potluck ⏴ Cutthroat Iron Etrayan Bake-Off As you step out of the arrival holding area into the main thoroughfare, the entire street has been turned into tents and chef stations to accommodate the activities of thirty people at once. There’s seats, trailers, and robots bustling about to make sure everyone is ready. A couple of cheerful robots in aprons and colorful sweaters approach and redirect you as you step towards the cooking area. There’s gas ranges, ovens, grills, blast chillers, mixers, and set walk-ins and pantries with just about every ingredient you can imagine. There are cameramen (also robots) patrolling the area to capture all your best moments and to broadcast them directly to your fellow citizens’ devices. Your instruction? “Make your signature dish. You have one hour, chef.” It can’t just be straightforward, can it? The land itself is held together with pure chaotic energy. If you’re lucky, all goes as planned. If you aren’t… well… Roll a Die 1 Your leg is now tied to another chef’s 2 Your meal is continually un-cooking itself. 3 All of your ingredients are pickled now 4 The longer you touch an ingredient, the bigger it gets. 5 Every time you lift your pot lid, a component changes. 6 The aromatics are glowing and flashing like LED lights. 7 Your knife has been replaced with a cheese grater. 8 The ingredients are now magnetically stuck together. 9 Your meal is becoming deep fried. 10 Kittens are multiplying out of the cupboard. * 11 All of your ingredients have become incredibly heavy. 12 Your cook pot moves burners whenever you turn around. 13 Eggs scream when you crack them 14 The kitchen has become incredibly slippery. 15 It’s soup now. 16 All utensils have been replaced with crustaceans. ** 17 Your knife has a mind of its own. Watch out! 18 Your fridge catches fire. 19 Your pasta is trying to escape. Go get it. 20 Any ingredient not in the pot starts to float away. * All kittens disappear at the end. ** These however, stay. ⏵ share a meal ⏴ As all the cooking concludes, you will be invited to plate your meal into one of many casserole dishes, regardless of what was made. A ladle will be tucked into the corner and placed on the table with a folded bit of cardstock declaring the chef’s name and the name of the dish. A helper camerabot will come around to each participant and ask for their thinking and their process. Even if you got away without having to cook, even looking towards the table of dishes will spur a helper bot to start making you a plate with one of everything. The helperbot will insist that it is rude to not at least try what their peers have made. In fact, if you are to fill out the score card for each person, you really must taste everything! The robots can’t try the food, so it’s up to you. The cards look like so. The grading system is opaque. Is it meant to be numbers? Stars? Letter grades? Well, you’re the judge. You figure it out. Chef: ___________ Dish:_____________ Judge:___________ Overall Rating:_______ Flavor Presentation Stackability Wet Originality Rizz ⏵ tummy ache survivor ⏴ No matter how well your compatriots cooked or baked their dishes, there are… factors. You see that carrot? It’s really just condensed chaos in the shape of a carrot. No matter how powerful you are, these particular ingredients may not mesh with your being. …And even if it is truly a carrot, do all the chefs know the proper cooking temperature of chicken? Even chickens are aliens to many. (Optional) Roll a Die 1 Tummy Ache. Go lay in bed. Complaining alleviates symptoms. 2 That plate of food has energized you. You feel compelled to race or spar. 3 The food has reminded you of home. You must tell someone a detail of your childhood. 4 That food was so horrible that it simply must be washed out somehow. Spicy peppers? Booze? Gravel??? You’re going to over do it. 5 You have now discovered your new favorite dish. Make them teach it to you or you’ll lose sleep over it. This is all you want to eat for the next week. 6 The oddity of the ingredients has transferred to you. You start floating away. 7 The range of food and textures have inspired you. Acquire an annoying new hobby or habit. 8 You are now haunted by the digital souls of chickens. ⏵ NOTES ⏴ Please direct all questions to our mod queries comment! ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

[fortitudosalutis]

Ecstasy would do it. Hallucinogenics if they really wanna fuck with us.

[ Pope didn't like them relying on drugs back in the old world, before the fall. Unreliable, he called them. But sometimes the orders determined what methods were used. Sometimes there wasn't much of a choice. It's better to know what you risk with an enemy like this than to be caught unaware. ]

There are probably cameras here. I couldn't spot any but that doesn't mean shit.

[ He doesn't have the tools to look with more than his own two eyeballs right now. ]

[this_ismydesign]

[ Having been given similar cocktails over the years -thanks Chilton- Will doesn't react with shock or dismay at the way Carver spells out the use of such substances. Recreational drugs usually did not start out as just recreational drugs. They usually had a purpose, a purpose one did not discuss in polite company. ]

It would be foolish of them not to have us under surveillance. [ Will agrees in a pensive tone, even as he looks upwards and tries to spot cameras on any nearby buildings. Nothing stands out to him. But given the technological sophistication that can be assumed from Aurora's existence, Will suspects they might never see the cameras. ]

Especially if what we were told, about our reason for being here, is genuine. It stands to reason this Echo, will want a full picture. Not just pieces of us being on our best behavior.

[fortitudosalutis]

Mhmm-hmm.

[ It's a kindness to be in company that understands. Hal isn't a Reaper, but he knows. He walked through the Valley and the fact that he survived means God loves at least some part of him. It's important to remember that.

Carver rolls his shoulders, watching their surroundings. Calculating. ]

Can't have us fucking it up, either. There'll be contingencies in place.

[this_ismydesign]

[ There is a long pause, before Will speaks again, as he considers Carver's words.

He has no trouble believing the larger man is correct. There will be some sort of control mechanism designed for this place. You don't bring in complete strangers, especially men like Carver and Will, simply on faith that they'll behave.

Hmm. ]

Those contingencies might help us learn about Echo. [ He says, tone pensive. ] The more confident they are in their power and control, the less need they'll have for contingencies.

But, if they're bluffing? [ He leaves the statement hanging, expecting that Carver will have no trouble following his line of thought. ]

[fortitudosalutis]

[ Carver tilts his head. ]

You want to play this out. See exactly what we’re working with.

[ We, he says, almost unthinking. But they are in task together, aren’t they? ]

[this_ismydesign]

[ After a brief pause, Will nods. ]

I believe what we don't know, vastly outweighs what we do. [ He says, slowly rotating as if to absorb as much of the environment around them as possible. ]

We need to be patient. Unassuming little worms on the hook. Let the fish come to us.

[fortitudosalutis]

Mhmm. Whole lot of people around here to bait on the hook.

[ Carver hasn't seen many yet, not up close. But he has a feeling. This is a situation that can be manipulated. That can be controlled. They can make this work. ]

[this_ismydesign]

Any successful fishing expedition requires a variety of worms. You never know who is going to entice the fish to bite.

[ His response is given with a knowing glitter in his eye. He is thinking along the same lines as Carver. This situation can be made to work, but for now they are in the watch, listen, and learn stage. ]