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etrayamemes2025-03-28 09:16 am
etrayamods) wrote in etrayamemes2025-03-28 09:16 am
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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:
 ⏵ 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:
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. 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. |
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if that doesn't help, a small grunt in reply to indicate the other can go ahead with his "something". ]
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I need to check something, so take it. [The needle he had obtain was left on the table after their little tussle. Picking it back up.
...He's not going to stab you with it, so try anything funny while he goes off to pop some balloons.]
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Mhm.
[ he responds acknowledging that the other has somewhere to go.
tbh i wish he did and it was a tranq, i think it'd be nice. ]
You don't meet the standards....
But you're ... [ catacually bc shadow can't say this aloud and i need it for ref. ] not dumb.
Fine he [ ...alonst... ] the.... drunks.
The payoffs, and ... [ ...urd ] rum.
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He's not going to tell the other the lack of results of his search, so instead, he lifts his head and listens to the other try to decipher the note. He leans to one side, so the note was in view while they were reciting a bunch of words.] ...Amongst. [Fine he...? Or Find me?] Find me amongst the drunks?
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it's one of those puzzles, insert the proper letter, make sure it adds up right, but when it's said clearly aloud that shadow groans in annoyance. ]
You do it.
[ to show frustration at not filling in all the words is... embarrassing, but he won't allow that to show. instead, he's indifferent while folding the slip of paper with the key between for the other to take if he dares come close. ]
I haven't seen any bottles.
[ but he hasn't seen a lot. ]
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You don't meet the standards for ...something. [His brows furrow. He still can't think of a word for those combinations of letters provided. Shaking his head, it's probably fine. He thinks he has the rest that it may not matter.]
But you're certainly not dumb
Find me amongst the drunks,
The payoffs, and used gum.
[...] Things that are found, under a table?
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his eyes glance at the table that the other is sitting on, then his gaze lowers to where the water has risen.
if there was anything under the table, it's sure as hell gone with the water. ]
Is that a song for a child?
[ reluctantly he'll ask because if it's for children... maybe this is a game for children. ]
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I don't think it's a song at all. It's just a riddle. [Said matter of factly, as if he's solved these sort of word games before. He stares at the water....he's going to have to get off this table huh. There's a splash as he moves back into the water, proceeding to flip the table over.]
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two tables remain. ]
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as much as he would like to get straight to the point, the hedgehog takes a step back so that the other can walk by safely if he wishes to go to the next table. at this point, he's wondering if he should check anything else, but since the other has the note and the key, it's best to leave it to him.
can he walk over to the bathroom and shut the door to stall the water, he's getting sick of that actually. ]
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Rather than walk, he's going to just blip on over to them. Less time in the water, and walking in the water is slower anyway. He nearly stumbles reappearing a little too close to a chair. By it was a desk he remembered the first time he walked through the room, turning that over next.]
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against the wall, almost entirely submerged, he might be able to get a glimpse of something through the water. if he investigates further, upon touching it, it seems to be a small doorway. if he feels around for a handle deeper under the water, there's a small chain and padlock keeping it closed. ]
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You! [Yes, he's going to call them the same way they do to him. And they better listen because this is important.] I need some light!
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shadow saw him before.
whatever, it doesn't matter. the more he does the quicker they can solve this "puzzle". it's a children's game, he doesn't want to take part, and there's that crackle manifesting in his palm. the energy forms into a spear with ease that illuminates the area a little more from where he stands.
he uses it to cross the water in the direction of the other's voice until he stops near him to light up where they are. ]
What did you find?
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Where that key should go. [He doesn't know if this is actually the way out, or just another piece to the puzzle. Hoping the former. That bathroom door isn't going to hold the water back forever. With light reveals in the area better, he can see his hand was gripping a padlock. There's no way this key they got doesn't go with it. He starts trying to get the key into the lock, eventually having to dip his face under so he could see better. A few moments later, there will be a click as he finally unlocks it.]
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well, maybe it sounds a little muffled from under the water. the lock opens, and the door will open easily without the chain keeping it shut. no additional water seems to seep in though into the passage. it seems like they'll have to crouch down into the water to get in, but it slopes upwards, and it shouldn't be too long until they're out of it again. ]
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tiredly he stares at the back of the other, counting the quills behind his head, looking down his shoulders then to the middle of him. the spear in his hand continues to spark with energy, snapping occasionally but nothing too worrisome.
the only part that should be an issue is how shadow's heart works, how it fluctuates with anger and then subsides because of a request. his hand tightens around the spear, his gaze burns at the other's back before glancing off to the side. ]
...I'm not sure how long the door will hold.
[ or how well he will either.
... ]
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Moments of fear, he can usually try to mask it with another emotion, but this is out in the open. The way his ears visibly fall against his head. His body shakes, eyes unfocused, pulled somewhere else. He doesn't want to go back to that dark place again. Never again.]
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that dangerous threat from before with hatred in his eyes, the one that yearned to die is now afraid. shadow looks down at where they have to go, the door behind them still holding back a good amount of water, but they don't want to push their luck.
the other one is crippled by some sort of fright. ]
You.
[ he draws attention to just him, taking a step closer to inspect their path. this is... not maria, so any gentle touch or comforting words are lost upon him. what can he even say? people are watching, they're noting his fright.
the spear still shines showing their path they must take. ]
Do you remember what I said?
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He gives them an irritated glance as they present him with a question. Not really? Why would he remember what they said when most of the time they have been insults? He stares at the chaos spear...that was more than just a light source, he's realizing.] How you want me dead most times you open your mouth? [He knows that's what they meant.] What? Gettiing it together?
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[ be more perceptive.
yes, he's judging him because of their situation at hand right now. the water is still rising whether the other likes it or not, and it's with every second they stand here and waste that they'll be pressed for time.
shadow clicks his tongue. ]
I said we would drown together.
[ not reassuring words, but they're as much as he can give at the moment. ]
Hmph... I'll be behind you. You have to go.
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