TDM 007

[etrayamods]

content warnings for this TDM include: violence, potential death, body horror, physical transformation, loss of senses, loss of autonomy ⏵ arrival⏴ Arrival does not happen as Aurora usually plans for it. New characters are introduced to the AI, then informed of a mission that they are required to participate in before they can return to their home base of Etraya. A world called Aphaia is falling apart, and while there is nothing they can do to resolve this broken world, they can participate in the Gamerunner's Stratagem. Their mission is simple: step through the glowing purple portal that Aurora creates once they've had time to listen to her, and survive until a similar portal reopens in front of them, allowing them to return to Etraya. The Gamerunner's Stratagem is something they have been working on building for quite some time. She informs all newcomers that they will not be present on this world that long: their exit will appear to them exactly when it's meant to, allowing them to meet the others who have been recruited to save their worlds. She provides each and every arrival with an earpiece, allowing them to communicate with the other Etrayans. Aurora suggests taking a bag full of supplies along with them, which she will fill with a few generic items as well as any specific items they may need: synthetic blood for vampires, protein bars for those who may burn through calories faster, medication for anyone who requires it. ⏵ aphaia ⏴ Aphaia is a neon-lit, chaotic planet. Cameras are everywhere, every action and inaction is judged by the 'audience'. Towering holograms advertise upcoming events while flashing leader boards track the most "popular" players. Contestants are thrown into challenges, many of which are games of skill, survival, and deception all to keep the viewers entertained. Not participating is an option! However, avoiding playing along and not putting on a show will quickly cause participants' score to go down, and scores that reach zero? Well. Unfortunately, there are only so many resources left on Aphaia. Their wildlife has died off, their planet is falling apart, and most others in this galaxy were either destroyed from the inside out, or warring planets trying to gain control of remaining resources destroyed them to avoid others getting involved. Their natural resources are depleted, and only those who manage to keep their scores up are given the luxury of having any supplies. As soon as one steps foot on Aphaia, as soon as they breathe, they intake nanotechnology which tracks their oxygen consumption, their food, everything they do or need. As soon as their scores reach zero? They disappear. There one moment, and completely gone the next. Their communicators go offline, and while everything they were carrying will be left behind, no one will be able to find them. They are simply--gone, erased from existence. This is a death and counts as a death as outlined in the game FAQ! Please keep this in mind. "Points" that go towards their total score will be assigned to contestants from the moment they drop down on planet. This will be visible using the HUD on their earpiece, and will be randomized at the beginning. For the sake of the TDM, we ask that no one be assigned Paragon initially, but you're free to use other ranks! The possible rankings are: 100: PARAGON 99-80: LUMINARY 79-70: CHAMPION 69-50: CONTENDER 49-30: UNDERLING 30-0: SHADE Ranks may change daily, or even hourly depending on the kind of situation one has found themselves in. Are they having a very public break up in which it comes out that they wronged their ex? They may go from a Champion to a Shade before they can even blink. Did they save a defenseless reporter from the big bad villain of the week? They may find themselves quickly elevated up to Luminary and given all the benefits that comes with being upper class. The world is their oyster, they only need to figure out how they'd like to utilize it! Aphaia is broken up into four districts. The Colosseum is a dynamic battle arena where combatants fight for entertainment, with shifting environments controlled by the audience. Victories earn points, while losses depend on performance. The Symposium is a lavish social hub for top contestants, where alliances and betrayals are made under the audience’s watchful eye. The Agora is the public center of Aphaia, where contestants engage with the audience through polls, interviews, and challenges to maintain popularity. It also houses the contestants in high-rise apartments. And Backalleys provide hidden spaces with intentional blind spots for secret dealings, though the Gamerunner is always aware of what happens there. ⏵ st★rlight soirée ⏴ Something special is happening in the Colosseum. Lights flicker as the arena shifts, rearranging itself into a grand, glittering ballroom - if a ballroom had stadium seating, paparazzi drones, and an ever-changing floor plan designed to disorient those within it. Silver chandeliers pulse with artificial starlight, their glow refracted through the crystalline floors. Music swells, but it sounds - unnatural. It thrums through your veins, setting your blood alight with the urge to dance. Why is the ballroom designed as if intentionally put together to throw off one's balance? Well, it's time for the Panopticon Prom, of course! The Panopticon Prom isn't just an adventure in dancing and impressing your most recent crush. It's a test of endurance, cunning, grace, and charm. The floor beneath your feet moves as if it has a mind of it's own, shifting to the beat like a living creature all of it's own. It tilts, undulates, even vanishing in sections to keep dancers on edge. After all, it's difficult to keep up one's pace if they're falling through a hole in the floor to the foam pit below. Drones zip through the air, catching every stumble, every misstep, and every attempt to throw off others on the dance floor. This is a competition, after all; and what fun is a dance battle without having the freedom to thwart someone else on their road to victory? The rules are simple: You must dance with a partner. This can be an ally, an enemy, or someone you intend on using as a stepping stone to victory. It matters not, as long as you have one hand (or limb) on them at all times. The longer you last, the better your chances. Endurance is the name of the game, meaning one must pace themselves on the dance floor. While epic twirls and impressive moves will garner more attention, it may also hurt your chances in the long run. You may sabotage others by throwing them off balance, but keep in mind: everything is televised, and it won't stay secret for long. The arena adapts to the chaos. Expect sudden obstacles, environmental shifts, and sudden changes in the music's tempo. Gravity may shift, walls may close in, but participants can't let that stop them - they must continue to dance, if they wish to win. The audience is watching. Who will make the final cut and become Prom King and Queen? Everyone is vying for the titles: it doesn't matter what rank you started at when you joined the Panopticon Prom. Whoever wins becomes a Paragon until their points drop. There aren't many opportunities to sail through the rankings, but this is a sure way to do it. As long as they can keep up. ⏵ casino royale ⏴ Out in the Agora, another popular quarterly event is being set up! The Casino Royale has been destroyed countless times, but it seems as if the Gamerunner just can't let it go - every time it gets knocked down, it gets rebuilt. There is one rule. One must take a turn at the revolving wheel just inside the door as their entry fee, and whatever the wheel lands on, they must maintain until they exit the building for the night. Sometimes, this is easier: an effect they have no control over and cannot undo even if they wanted to. Sometimes, this is more difficult: an assigned task they must complete. Failure to abide by the wheel once means receiving a penalty. Twice? Certain death if caught by any employee. The wheel's effects are as follows: 1 You must speak entirely in rhyme. 2 Your body has become unnaturally delicate. The smallest injury hurts like a fatal wound. 3 You must avoid stepping into any sources of light. Doing so causes massive burns to appear on any area of your skin where light has touched. 4 You have been transformed into an animal! You can still think as you had before, but you cannot speak or communicate easily. 5 You have been cursed with supernatural strength, but cannot control it. 6 Time doesn't flow normally for you anymore. Each mistake you make makes you visibly younger, slowly erasing your experiences, skills, or even memories. 7 You can no longer form your own words, but only repeat what others have said to you. 8 You cannot meet another person's gaze. 9 You can no longer turn around, physically or metaphorically. If you try to return where you came from, you'll find that the pathway no longer exists. 10 You are given a specific letter that you must avoid using out loud entirely. "A"? Better hope you know enough words without one. 11 Every time you speak, your words come true - but never in the way you intended. Trying to control this is futile; the monkey's paw curls with every new sentence. 12 Within the casino, you lose the ability to feel anything. No pain, no pleasure, no warmth, and no cold. At first it may feel like a blessing - until you realize you cannot feel hunger, or tell if you're injured. 13 Regardless of if you've drunken anything, you still act inebriated. The effect only gets worse the longer you stay. 14 No one can see you. You are invisible, even if you are still able to reach out and touch or converse with those around you. 15 Any special ability you have is gone. You are reduced down to what an average human being is capable of - regardless of if you are human. 16 Violent impulses become impossible to ignore. You are rage incarnate, and you will be heard. 17 Every time you make a decision - to walk into an area, to start a conversation, anything, a small thread pulls loose from your clothing or your skin. Keep making choices, and you may become entirely undone. 18 You may speak freely, but for every syllable you say, your ability to hear slowly fades. You may want to watch your word count - too many, and you may not be able to hear at all. 19 Perhaps you arrived with a friend, or beside a stranger. It matters not: whoever came in either just before or just after you, you feel a powerful urge to protect them to the point of aggression. 20 Love is in the air - at least it is for you. Every time you meet someone's gaze, you feel the need to try and make them fall in love with you, through whatever means necessary. The casino is alive with the hum of conversation, the clink of glasses, and the steady whirl of the roulette wheels. Golden chandeliers cast a warm glow over velvet-lined tables, where fortunes are made and lost with the flick of a wrist. But something feels. . . off. The dealers never blink. The cards never seem random. And the house always wins - always. Maybe it's just paranoia, or maybe this casino is something more than just a den of chance. Tonight, you're not here just to play; you're here on a mission. You've arrived dressed to kill, blending into the sea of bodies filling the casino's floors. But you're not here to win points or boost your social standing - you're here to win intel. Somewhere in this casino is a single flash drive containing information on just how Aphaia maintains their system. The only problem? The House knows someone is coming for it. After all, they're well-aware of the game: whoever retrieves the flash drive will obtain information on how to flip the script, to change the rules of the game to fit their wants and needs, rather than following the current Gamerunner. After all, this is the Gamerunner's Stratagem that Aurora has sent them out on! Many apply for 'employment' within the Casino Royale in hopes of getting insider information on where the flash drive is hidden and what it looks like. However, it seems that even the employees have no clue where it has been hidden. ⏵ NOTES ⏴ This is an extension of our Aphaia Mission! We have included enough information in this post that catching up to current in game logs isn't necessary to play with it, but you are welcome to use any part of the Aphaia setting in your prompts as you'd like. Current players are also welcome to bring the events from this TDM into their in-game threads. This mission can happen outside of time as needed! Incoming characters will find themselves introduced to Aphaia as they arrive. Current characters may find Aurora calling on them to visit Aphaia after the current mission for the Gamerunner's Stratagem. Characters already in game are welcome to post to the TDM, too! Please mark them as current characters in your header. Threads can be kept as game canon as long as both characters get into the game! Please direct all questions relating to this log to our mod queries comment! All other questions can be directed to our FAQ. ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

username: sophiecuckoo

[sophielicious]

big time, but can be pretty fun.

[laserguy]

[He thinks about switching to 'text' as well, but he doesn't feel like typing. Seems like a pain, even if he feels like he's talking to the void right now. No voice or image to associate with this.]

So. You're nuts.

[Maybe the 'cuckoo' part of her name really checks out.]

[sophielicious]

wow that really, really hurts my feelings. i'm sobbing.

is that a way to treat a lady?

[laserguy]

Yeah that's me, a total heartbreaker.

[He can hear her sobbing from here....]

Besides, thought you'd enjoy being called crazy. It's in your name.

[sophielicious]

Mmm. It's working. Broken into a billion little pieces.

(Haha, baby slim.)

I didn't choose that. What's your name, so I can make fun of it.

[laserguy]

[Oh, there's audio now.]

Yeah, I hear it in your voice. How will you ever recover?

[And his name, huh? Well FINE except he doesn't feel like giving her name. Maybe a guy version of her name, like--] Scott... Screwy.

[Smooth, Summers. So good.]

[sophielicious]

Can't. This will haunt me for the end of my days.

(Scott. Screwy is definitely not a last name.

God, that was BAD, Summers.)

Scott? Wait, you're Slim?

(Scott + Username Shades + THE LARGE MUTANT POPULATION = solve.)

Oh my God, they brought Slim, actual Slim. Ah-mazing.

[laserguy]

Wha-- what the hell are you talking about?

[Slim?? WHO'S SLIM-- WOW?? Is she trying to start something?] I'm not super skinny-- you don't even know what I look like!

[sophielicious]

I'm talking about that I know a Scott who would definitely be very attached to his shades.

Summers?

[laserguy]

[What the fuck.

He's sure that he's never met a 'Sophie Cuckoo' before. Name like that sort of sticks in your mind. Unless she's making it up, which definitely possible, but that doesn't erase the fact that she knows his last name and that he's attached to his sunglasses. He's only worn them for like a day.]

Well, I don't know you at all. So, don't go making assumptions about me. [He's so defensive already... and part of him wants to leave it at that. But.] How. How did you know?

[sophielicious]

(He dealt with a whole different younger Summers, but okay, she's got this.

Let's break it down gently.)

Different universe and, different timeline, if I am to guess. Too many X-Men here already, so I just took another guess.

Wanna know the craziest part?

(Getting defensive is fuel, Scott!)

Totally dated your son.

[laserguy]

[He understood like none of that. Well, conceptually, yes, but actually believing all that? Hell no. What even is a X-Man???

Then she says that last thing and--]

You really are crazy. [It's the easiest thing to believe right now, instead of different timelines and another him existing and this girl apparently dating his son. Just. Nope. Backing up the entire fucking way on that.]

If you wanted me to believe you, maybe don't mention the whole bit of me having a son and introducing yourself as a cuckoo.

[sophielicious]

(SON YOU SHOOT RED BLASTS OUT OF YOUR EYES. This is just a tad weirder. Or a lot weirder. Fine, it's super weird.

Either way, she's not hurt at all, instead she finds this hilarious. Her options of fun are limited, so she does what she can with what she has.)

That's just my name. You get hung up on the weirdest details.

[laserguy]

Your actual name is Sophie Cuckoo.

[He's so skeptical. But if so, that's so unfortunate. At least this is better than talking about the fact that she dates his son or whatever. He's still recovering from that.]

Wow. And you actually want to be called that?

[sophielicious]

Oh my god, I think I like my version of you better.

You really want to be called 'Shades'? At least you can choose that one, you know.

[laserguy]

Well, why don't you go hang out with him then.

[NEH NEH. Although shit, is she really serious about the whole different universe and different timeline thing? He just got his powers a couple of days ago, got brought to some alien universe, and now he's being told that the multiverse exists.

It's a lot and he doesn't want to admit it.]

What, the same thing applies to you! You also could've picked your own username.

[sophielicious]

Hang? With Cyclops? What part of 'has a kid' tells you he's of hang-out age?

(NEH, NEH.

Welcome to the life of a mutant, Scott. It gets worse from there.)

Yeah, but I'm a a whole brand. Say Cuckoo to the other mutants, see what the others say.

[laserguy]

[Cyclops???? Yeah of course she'd have a dumb nickname for him. Other him. Older him. WHATEVER--]

You literally just said you like him better!

[Arguing with other teenager(?), even while stuck in the middle of nowhere. Why not. At least he doesn't feel as alone anymore, even if because most of those feelings have changed into irritation.]

So you're one of those types, got it. [...] How many of us are here anyway? Since you're apparently keeping track.

[sophielicious]

And you're not helping your case at all!

(Good, because if he hangs with his people, this is every day. Every hour. Every minute. Enjoy.)

Gorgeous and fabulous? Correct.

(She's ignoring the question, solely because she CAN.)

[laserguy]

Yeah go write that down it will last longer.

[NEEEEEEEEH.]

More like pain in the ass. [His mood is down in the pits... he also noticed that she didn't answer his question, so WHATEVER.] Whatever, I'll figure this stuff myself.

[sophielicious]

Boring.

(NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEH. NEH NEH NEH.

Also, don't play with him, don't play with him—

Oh, she's messing with him. Searching, searching, searching... Got it. She's talking to your brain now, Scott. Have fun!)

/Will you figure this stuff yourself? All alone? Oh, honey./

[laserguy]

[BRUH. WHAT THE FUCK.

Okay, so this has happened to him before and the first time it was weird, but then he sort of got used to it. But that was with Jean. And he likes Jean. They're friends now. He's absolutely not friends with Sophie. He's upset and he doesn't want some telepath he doesn't like going through his mind.

Have some mental grumbling. Scott doesn't really have any training on mental shields rip.]

This was surprising the first time, so you're late on that. [Lies, because he's still a little surprised. And kind of annoyed. Another weird girl creeping around in his head--]

And what? You're trying to say that you care?

[sophielicious]

(Oh my god, the teenage ANGST in this brain. Was her version of Scott like that?

Wait, she doesn't want to know.

Don't humanize him.

He dated your mom.)

/Let me guess, Jeanie, the meanie supremey?/

(Pfft.)

/Mmmm, maybe. Call it curiosity./

[laserguy]

What's your beef with Jean? Sounds like you're jealous.

[Already so young and he's already defending Jean. Scott Summers truly, 'I met Jean for one afternoon and already attached.']

I'm not some circus freak that you can observe. Get out.

[sophielicious]

/Ew. She's old./

(Scott, please. Although, nothing she wasn't expecting?)

/Fine. Where are you?/