etrayamemes | TDM 007

Entry tags:

!tdm

TDM 007

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⏴

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Do not worry about it, if Alex passed out-- Henry would not leave him there, there was a part of him deep inside that would not allow Alex to be vulnerable. It would be like a Robot and his boy, deep inward programming to at the very least see that Alex was protected. "From what I gather, you like the journey toward getting inebriated, and you did not receive that."

Oh look, he was being perceptive-- robots were good at that you know.

"Perhaps when we leave?" that was of course a logical conclusion, he did not think it would last forever.

"I mean... yeah. Getting there is half the fun..." And the whole choosing to do it in the first place thing. Sure he'd gone overboard before and paid for it in the morning, but that had at least been the consequences of his own decisions (ill advised as they may have been). A heavy sigh at the weight of the world that had been levied onto his poor drunken shoulders. Alas and alack. Woe is Alex.

He was hanging off Henry now, fully relying on the blond robot-mode man to keep him on his feet. "You're really nice, you know. Even when you're all creepy with no emotions you're still real nice. 'm sorry I thought you were a dickhead. And an asshole and an entitled elitist jerkwad." Ah the feelings and honesty portion of drunken Alex had now begun. Filter was off.

"And I am sorry that I thought you were a chaotic chaos gremlin with no sense of self-preservation or sense of right and wrong, though that may still be the case." and because he had no emotions at this moment, it sounded wooden and disjointed, which made it all the more jarring.

After all sincerity was also an emotion. So maybe he should save this apology for when he is not so.. voided like a uncashed check.

"I am royalty though so naturally 'entitled and elitist jerkwad' comes with the territory?"

"Hey. I'll give you most of that but... I know right and wrong." In fact he very often did the wrong thing for the right reasons. That was his lot in life. Alex Claremont-Diaz lived with his heart in the right place, but his brain had not always been given the proper directions to arrive at the same location.

He snorted a very undignified laugh. "Guess it does. But I mean... you're not. Is my point. I mean you totally are, but like not really at all?" Clear as mud, right? "It's annoying."

Another put upon sigh. "And you're stupidly pretty. That's annoying too." Really that pissed him off a lot because it had been on his mind way too much lately. And also maybe always.

"Stupidly pretty?" Effort to raise a brow, and of course there was will as well- He listened to Alex ramble on and on in a haze while they walked, well more like he supported and Alex made like slow honey against him, he could almost feel him dip against him in a way most obscene.

But horny was also an emotion, it appeared.

Being an emotionless robot was not very fun at all. "Well you are annoyingly charming if you ask me."

"Yeah. Real stupidly... like your whole face... and the rest of you." Which like, was just objective fact. Annoying objective fact that had suddenly become a much more complicated fact.

Horny sure was an emotion, and all Alex's emotions were running rampant right now with nothing to filter them out or rein them in. He did however, beam at being called charming. "You totally think I'm charming. HA." Yes, Alex, that was literally what he just said.

Well, it was rather nice to know the truth of the matter.

Though the smug outburst from Alex had Henry starting to drag the other man toward a man carrying a platter of food, he took a goat cheese and fig crostini with one hand and then while Alex's mouth was open in exultation, he shoved it inside his mouth.

"Do not forget to chew and swallow, it would be a shame if you choked." Yes, stuff that in your mouth, Alex.

Alex found himself with a mouth full of hors d'oeuvres, any further gloating he had about being irresistible were instead cut off by the need to chew. Oh. It was pretty tasty actually, so most of his fussing was mollified and quieted.

Huh.

"Why does that sound like you don't think it'd be a shame at all?"

So mean, Henry.

Anyway, Alex opened his mouth again expectantly. Feed him, Seymour.

The desire to eat was a basic human need and so well Henry would oblige. He took a few more crostini off the platter and fed them to Henry systematically. "I would say do not throw up on my shoes however I am not quite sure where I found them."

The entire evening felt surreal and the only thing that was real was this moment and even then the idea of nostalgia was a feeling.

Honestly, Henry was surprised to find that 97 percent of things attributed to humanity was things that at this moment he could not feel-- sad, that is if he could even fathom the memory of being sad.

Oh shit that worked. Alex would happily play drunk as fuck baby bird right now. Were they helping him sober up? No, not even a little. But they were tasty and he was enjoying the attention, even if said attention was monotone and emotionless. God he'd really give anything for Henry to threaten to murder him or being amused at him for his (incredibly justified) fear of large gobbling birds.

"You eat too."

Alex snatched up a crostini and held it up with a surprisingly almost steady hand. "Even robots need food... when they're not really robots."

Robo!Henry (as the case may be) was at this moment methodically feeding Alex because the computations in his wooden brain was saying that Alex probably needed to eat. He was going off of previous held data that stated that the best thing for a stomach-full of drunk was something to soak it up.

This, however, was not logical in the slightest. Nothing was in this strange topsy-turvy looking-glass realm that they landed themselves within.

"I do not feel hungry, I do not feel anything Alex.." he said as he tried to move his head away from the food. "Hungry is evidentally a feeling." and he had no feelings, no wants, no wishes, nothing. Apathy at it's finest, the ennui that was bone deep.

"Then... that's even more reason y..you gotta eat."

There was logic here, Henry. It was drunken logic, but it was sound. "Even if you're not feeling hungry... you still have a body. Bodies need food."

That was biology. Now, he wasn't a science major but he was entirely correct about this, and would be very drunkenly stubborn about making sure Henry consumed something right now. "So don't be stubb...stubby...stubborn. Don't be stubborn."

If Henry had the actual capability to laugh, he would do so instead he decided to be non-stubborn for once and open his mouth. No mumbling only opening the mouth so that Alex could feed him.

"I hope you are happy now."

Because Henry was not happy, he was not much of anything.

Alex popped the crostini into the prince's mouth, nodding a definitive little yes good, as it should be typ enod.

"Ecst.... ecstart...ecsta... super happy, yeah."

Alex had too many emotions right now, so it balanced out. "Actually, 'm also sorta... sorta... pissed off.

"Why are you angry." it was starting to feel just a little bit odd to continue along this way, considering that he could not use feeling quantifiers to get his point across. He was boring and uninspired and he knew this instinctively, it was like expecting a kid to play with a cardboard box. Except the cardboard box was him.

"I can see why you would be angry at this situation, but is there a particular reason for it?"

"Because... this..." A gesture at Henry and his total lack of emotion. "This... is what... this was how I thought, how I thought you were before I knew you. All the no... reacting... no personally...ality. Personality."

It had been infuriating back then, and it was mostly worrying now.

"But you're not... and... fuck. You're from the past, and that pisses me off too... because you don't know... you don't know what happened... is gonna happen... but already happened. BUT!! But... but I know and it's driving me insane."

Honestly, Henry thought that perhaps they should not be having a conversation about the space time continuum here and now, it felt like in both their states it would come across as infuriating and potentially a big soup for even more miscommunication (which to be honest, communication was not their strong point and 9 times out of time left them in a big muddle soup.)

But he was virtually helpless so he just sort of lifted his shoulders in a half-hearted sort of gesture that was helpless. But not too helpless, being helpless was also an emotion it seemed.

"This is not fair, you are correct. But perhaps we should think about getting clear heads before we do anything else? Since you had only a single drink and I have lost my ability to feel, a conversation like this will not be doing anyone any favors."

Henry was right. It was the wrong place and the wrong time and a terrible idea. And the longer they stayed here and the drunker Alex kept feeling, the more he found himself having the utterly insane impulse to kiss the numbness right out of Henry. Because that was totally how it would work, right?

Alex swayed on his feet, and for a moment he was made almost entirely big sad brown eyes as he looked at Henry as if pleading for the prince to make this all make sense.

"Maybe... maybe we should... leave?"

Honestly, Henry was not even sure what they were looking for in this place. He had forgotten whatever purpose he had come in here for, he existed on threads that evidenced at that particular moment, with no true goal-- that required focus and ambition. He would be tired of feeling like this, but that too required emotion to evidence.

"Yes, I think that would be the best bet. We should leave."

Whatever this meant, he did not want to feel this wooden robotic feeling anymore. "That is probably the best idea you have ever had." he cast his glance toward the exit and then headed toward it. If anything fresh air would be good?

"I don't like it here..." Alex grumbled, straight into the sad pining portion of drunkenness. Because here he was this close to the guy he'd been utterly obsessing over for the past weeks (and longer, if he was honest with himself, which he wasn't very good at being on this point even when he wasn't drunk to the point of being in danger of not keeping his feet under him) and said guy was an empty shell of himself.

He'd be happy even if Henry was giving him the chewing gum stuck to the bottom of his shoe treatment that had marked the first few years of their interactions.

"C'mon then. This..." A pause and he swayed on his feet. "I don't actually... know which... which way."

There was a sad puppy feel to Alex Clairmont-Diaz which Henry would feel absolutely gutted about if he could feel anything. He'd already gotten a rank up from the House already when he was playing cards with Kaeya at the tables so he thought perhaps there was nothing to discover.

His arm slipped underneath Alex's arms and then he started to pull him toward the exit. He knew it, Shaan had already marked all exits for him in case of a need to escape or find cover. What a good Equerry.

The pushed past the Wheel of Hubris™ and finally out into the air of the Coliseum City. It would take a few moments for them to come back to normal, it wouldn't come right away that was for sure. But within a few moments they would start to feel some rationality return to them.

Alex was grateful for the support, and showed this gratitude by draping himself against Henry as he let the prince guide them towards the exit. He was very ready to leave this behind. The pleasant buzz feeling of drinking had long since been left behind, and he was intoxicated enough right now that he was at the threshold of bad decisions and blackouts.

It didn't dissipate immediately, which meant that Alex made no move to not be glued to the other man, not trusting his feet to not betray him.

It also meant that the first thing out of his mouth once they were out the doors was an unprompted, "You smell really good."

This would've been his dream come true if not for the fact that the proximity of Alex was not something that truly registered at this moment, he kept Alex supported as they came out into the fresh air. The first thing that he could feel was the blood flowing back into his body which made him tingle a little bit.

Very uncomfortable.

Then he heard Alex's mumbled 'you smell good' which his own psyche had not yet reverted back to the art of knowing

"It's the same cologne that you wear, it just scents different on myself then it does on you likely." give him a few moments and he'd be back to normal.

"Is it? Huh... def...ffff..initely smells better on you." The effects were beginning to loosen their hold, and he'd sober up in what would be record timing if it were actual drunkness. But it was still a process, and he was still leaning heavily into Henry.

And he was right there, and higher logic and reason were still out of reach even stretched on his metaphorical tiptoes, so Alex took the opportunity to bury his face against the crook of Henry's neck and inhale as if to assure himself of his conclusion. Yup. Smelled better on Henry. Delicious even. And he hummed a pleased little note at the confirmation.

Yes, Henry was starting to feel those little things and there were tiny receptors in his brain that are waking up but not quickly enough. It was just enough that he could feel Alex's smooth cheek against his neck, the smile. Perhaps even the indentation of the dimple-- it hadn't clocked in yet that this was perhaps not the fairest situation he'd ever been in but here he was.

He still had his arm wrapped around Alex's waist to steady him and it was still terribly needed in this situation, while the fog and haze cleared.

It appeared that Alex's fire ever innate was going to work overtime to boil Henry's water. "You are still drunk.. it is absolutely clear."

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internationalrelations - 2025-04-13 23:14 (UTC) - Expand

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