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etrayamemes2025-05-30 09:20 am
etrayamods) wrote in etrayamemes2025-05-30 09:20 am
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TDM 008
content warnings for this TDM include: gambling references, mild horror themes and suggestive content  ⏵ arrival⏴ Arrival does not happen as Aurora usually plans for it. Newcomers generally find themselves waking up within the hospital, are given a brief overview of their situation, and sent on their way. Now? They wake up immersed in a game within The Gold Saucer. But it doesn't quite feel like a game: whether it's snowy mountains, riding a chocobo as you listened to the wind quickly pass by your ears, or in the middle of a battle with a beast, it feels utterly real. It's only after the game concludes - either by winning or losing - that you find yourself back in the main game area. A bot, dressed as personnel in this lavish playground, approaches each arrival with an earpiece allowing them to communicate with those in their same situation. It also serves to inform them of their goal: collect enough gold saucer points (or GP) by playing the games to acquire a card fashioned to their own likeness from the game counter. Then, they must trade it for someone else's. Seems simple enough, right? Hopefully the cards aren't too expensive...  ⏵ the gold saucer ⏴ The Gold Saucer is an ode to the very idea of fun. It’s huge, labyrinthine, colorful, and lively. Everywhere you look, there’s something to do. At the same time, it’s also impossible to tell what time it is. There are no windows to the outside, there are no clocks. This place is beyond such a thing. There are games everywhere you look, ranging from the pseudo-gambling to sports to pixelated video games in cabinets. Yet no matter which boxing game, pinball machine, or skeeball machine you look at, the same creatures and themes arrive. Cactuars, chocobos, the fiercest Behemoth, the cuddliest Moogle… For those from the realms of Final Fantasy, this will feel natural- homey even. Everyone else will simply understand that there is a fairly strong central theme here about magic, machines, and monsters. It’s hard to tell how long you spend here, and it seems to sit outside of the very concept of time. Still, there are many restaurants, lounges, and vending machines. There are shops and costume rentals. There are even little pharmacies with headache remedies if the partying gets out of hand. And when you grow tired, there is a hotel- though it is made up like a haunted house, you can count on getting some semi-restful sleep.  ⏵ playtime ⏴ At first, stepping through to play any of these games may make participants wonder if they have been teleported somewhere else entirely. But on closer inspection, all the skies above are merely well-constructed interiors with painted ceilings. After all, it always seems to be daytime during these games. Snowboarding - Race to the bottom of the mountain, but avoid obstacles and complete as many tricks as possible! Chocobo Racing- Race on Chocobo-back around a treacherous outdoors race track which can either be taking place in a desert, a swampy forest, or upon an island beach. Work in tandem with your rented bird and against your competition by throwing hazards in their way or utilizing buffs garnered on the track. Different colored birds will yield different advantages. Yellow - Good All Rounder Red - Fast, but hard to steer Blue - Slower, but very easy to steer. Much easier to pick up items from them. Green- Resilient against traps and sabotage Colosseum Battle- Face off against the fiercest beasts around. Pair up with friends or rivals to Collaborate or Compete to do the most damage and deliver the final blow. These battles are synced to the comparative power of the one entering the competition. We wouldn’t want anyone to get hurt unnecessarily, after all. And indeed, no one will get seriously, gruesomely, or permanently injured in these battles. Those without fighting capabilities can rent weapons outfitted Materia to assist them in their trial. These will allow anyone to cast spells, though not guarantee any better wielding of weapons. There are a hundred rounds, starting with fairly simple Spriggans, ranging all the way up to blood-thirsty Behemoths to challenge even the most battle-hardened hero. Leap of Faith- Players are presented with an obstacle course that stretches a hundred feet into the air upon floating platforms and islands. Both are held aloft by magical crystals. Powers are entirely nerfed, though falling and hitting the ground is strangely painless. Those who collect the most silver and gold statuettes of cactuars placed at random throughout the course will be awarded proportionate GP; though there is a bonus for those that reach the very top first. Triple Triad- Everywhere you look, people are playing this game on little 3 by 3 boards, or any surface with enough space. You will be given a loaner deck to play with. Are you clever enough to defeat your fellows. Fashion Report- Theobold, familiar to some, stands by himself in a little booth with a dressing room and an incredibly expansive walk-in closet. He is a robot of distinguished fashion and strong opinions on those fashions. Do you dare subject yourself to his scrutiny? Come prepare in his wondrous closets to make the best outfit for the chance to win a prize. Please submit your fashion here! There are Arcade Machines and activities galore. If you can think of it, it’s probably there- Just with that Final Fantasy pastiche on it, of course.  ⏵ the beehive lounge ⏴ There are other places to eat at the Gold Saucer, but the vending machines and cafés all pale in comparison to the dinners at the Beehive. For all the rave reviews, there is a dress code at the Beehive, and this is literal. If you step inside and are not currently wearing a dress, you will be ushered into a sideroom and appropriately made over. However, this is only for those trying to go in through the normal doors. Around the side there happens to be an employee entrance, manned by a bot. He will only allow those in who seem like they intend to work— and therefore must be wearing at least one piece of the Bunnysuit Collection to trick the guard. Once you are made over or have snuck in, you are free to relax inside with drinks, dine on a fine meal, watch the dancers, or participate yourself if you feel brave enough. Why would anyone ever dance here? Well, that’s simple. It pays really well. So if you’re sick of games, or terrible at them— you can always come dance for a shift. Though, don't get any unseemly ideas about freeing yourself of your clothing, this isn't that kind of establishment!  ⏵ haunted house ⏴ When you grow too weary or drunk from a day of games, you may be directed to somewhere a little quieter to sleep. Up the elevator, and through the doors reveals a modest walk through some woods until a quaint, victorian hotel appears. It is always nighttime here, and the stars and moon twinkle above. The receptionist, a bot in a rather bedraggled-looking chocobo mascot costume checks you in and shows you to your room. You can sleep here, especially if you can tolerate the hokey haunted decorations strung up around the place. Though sometimes, late at night, there will come a vigorous thumping on the door to startle sleeping patrons awake- Only for the culprit to vanish and be impossible to locate.  ⏵ ticket counter ⏴ The prize counter is manned by a bot and has a sign posted overhead. Most prizes will be handed over inside an appropriately sized wrapped box, as the contents are a mystery.
This TDM may be treated as a mini-Mission. Time will not pass inside of it in relation to the world outside - meaning, this can be happening at any time between late May into early July! This Gold Saucer is a bit of a mix between that of FF7's and FF14's, but it also has some things that neither have as well. Any inaccuracies are entirely intentional, aimed to make this rest within a space of uncanny valley for those who are familiar. While otherwise being a bit of a chaotic fantastical funhouse for everyone else! If there is something unlisted, chances are it will exist if it is in either of the other versions of the Gold Saucer. 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 to our mod queries comment! |
ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴇᴇʜɪᴠᴇ
It'll do. Her feet are sore, and so is her back, and she wants something to eat.
But the sound of a laugh, too familiar (and so fake even though it sounds so effortlessly genuine) stops her, and she looks around, scanning the crowd suddenly. ]
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Let me get you a drink.
[ A quiet invitation to walk with him. ]
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Convenient, that I don't have one of those yet, then.
[ Turning is effortlessly smooth, as is falling into step next to the man who looks like she's expected for a year—but a year is enough to have tarnished most expectation here, and hope (and the stalwart logic, that she isn't looking for any further kidnappings). She taps her smaller earbud once, allowing the retinal tracking program in her second HUD to scroll through several screens until she locates where Dick's tracker indicates he is currently. ]
When did you get here?
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[ It is effortless how they seemingly come together in a way that's clearly familiar. Like the steps in a dance they've done 100 times before. Bruce takes the lead, he always does and he expects Barbara to follow. At the bar he taps the counter once and gets their drinks ordered. Bruce doesn't intend to drink his, just something to give the appearance of preoccupation while he works out what Barbara knows of their current situation. ]
I got here about an hour ago. [ he gives her a curious look ] More importantly, when did you get here? [ She seems at ease in a way Bruce hasn't acclimated to yet. ]
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Then, he's done with that short task, and she knows she doesn't know enough to know anything yet. That he looks like himself. Neither so achingly young, it's a constant reminder of who he isn't yet, nor old enough to be someone's grandfather, edged and alone. ] A very long time.
[ There's a vague twinge. A tired habit of leaving it at that. That she's grown used to keeping her words and her thoughts to herself. Across the year, and especially in the two months before this last one. (Except for Jason. And, now, again, Dick.) He deserves a clearer answer. He won't be satisfied with its obliqueness. But she leans against the bar and presses something else instead. ]
Where did Aurora take you from?
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Instead he gets another question and he's half tempted not to answer it - if only because she had not adequately answered his own. The bartender slides their drinks towards them and Bruce scoops them up with a smile and a thank you. Then he turns back to his companion and gives her the glass to nurse or drink at her leisure. ]
Aurora is the AI?
[ He's heard it mentioned while he was mingling. An AI dragged him out of his Batcave. How far reaching is this intelligence? ]
I'll answer your question when you've answered mine.
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[ Barbara still isn't comfortable with it. Aurora and Echo. The protracted missions that don't seem any closer to making sense of what they were told at the beginning, and are constantly reminded of. The focus of Barbara's gaze shifts when Dick's voice breaks into acroess the comm line. Then it goes back to Bruce, and she lifts a single finger, for the pause, before it taps her comm again. (She needs to finish those gloves; right after Harold's ILS is complete.) ] No. It's immediate, but not emergent.
[ She already knows that will come with its own questions, but she gestures with her drink for them to walk, rather than stay right here in the middle of where people will be coming back and forth for drinks. ] I've been here well over a year, but you'll find everyone's answer to that is a little different. As is, often, the when and where they came from.
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[ Honestly Dick would have been there even sooner if it wasn't the Beehive, he didnt want to get scooped up and forced to make a change of clothes, he would rather stick with what he's got, thanks, even if it's not fully up to the level of sophistication that they're going for here. But it could be worse, he could have been relegated to his pajamas or an entirely different kind of suit.
He also considered sidling up to the bar to talk his way into getting a drink without anyone worrying about what he is or isn't wearing, just to give him a minute to scope out the situation that elicited a text like that, but once he sees who Barbara's talking to he decides against that in favor of a much more direct approach.
It's hard to miss Bruce. He would stand out in a crowd even if he wasn't tall and broad, he just has that kind of presence. Until he decides that he doesn't want to be noticed, of course. ]
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He's taking it in, as he walks with Barbara, trying to sort the pieces of the puzzle into an order that makes sense. But it feels impossible with so few of them in posession. Either way, it's a problem he sets aside when Dick joins them. Something to brood about later when he's found himself an appropriate space to do so. ]
When did you get here?
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Dick's one of the more pecular circumstances I was talking about. [ She could be more apologetic for the awkward nature of it all, but it's brass facts, and she knows Bruce will want them ] He got here a few months ago. From maybe around a year before I was pulled from.
But there was an earlier version of him that came in at the same time, from the same time and place as me. Who also ended up skipping further into my, our, future than I've seen while here. Before he vanished from this place. And— [ Because it does bear putting out there, given what he'll figure out about both Jason's, and Crane, soon enough. ] —there was a version of him for an entirely other universe, where all of us were different in his history and current world circumstances, too, during my first few months.
[ A beat. ] I have charts and timelines for everyone.
[ Because, of course, she does. Who would she be if she didn't? ]
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I'd say that you get used to it, but... I haven't yet. [ He says it in a lighter tone, but it's true. Knowing that Barbara does understand this place so well, and that she's entrenched herself into every location and system she's come across so far, means that he's been able to take all of this in stride much faster than he ever would have been able to do on his own. ] I think it's just one of those things that you have to take one day at a time.
[ They definitely don't have much of a choice. ]
Have you met any of the others yet?
[ Damian. Jason. Both of them. More names, familiar but not theirs... He doesn't know that this is 'his' Bruce, and maybe Barbara doesn't yet either, but the immediate impression is overwhelmingly him. Maybe not from the same exact time, but the more he's looking at Bruce's face the more he's sure that there are far more similarities than differences. ]
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One day at a time seemed far too slow when things felt urgent back home, but Bruce could manage. ]
Just you and Barbara so far. Who else is here?
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[ Beat. ]
Currently.
[ Yeah. There's more to that list when and where it comes to people who have come and gone, both in the family and in The League. The first influx has been bigger, if not all that less complicated. At least the lion's share of them had come from one world. ]
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[ There's no point in beating around the bush with that one. ]
There's a few other names to keep an eye on too, Barbara can fill you in better than me, I'm still taking it all in too.
[ He's not sure what he thinks about the fact that Aurora would decide to pull in people like that but... ostensibly there's a good reason for it, and whether or not that's true they just have to deal with it regardless. As if they needed any concrete reasons to take all of this with a grain of salt. As much emphasis as he's putting on trusting people it's hard to know exactly who, or what, is behind all of this.
None of those thoughts are particularly evident in his expression, Dick seems to be as easily confident as ever, but both Bruce and Barbara know him too well. ]
Should we find somewhere to sit?
[ The Beehive isn't bad, as far as attractions in the Saucer go, it's at least a little distracting from the fact that they're presently stuck here. ]
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There didn't seem to be a rhyme or reason for the people the AI deemed worthy of testing. Not if it was pulling Scarecrow of all people in alongside them. It seemed less a test of worthiness and more a test of patience. But at least there were plenty of eyes here to keep trained on Crane and knew how to deal with him if he somehow got out of hand. ]
Yeah, let's sit.
[ Preferably away from the crowds, but in a place like the Beehive, finding any kind of privacy is a feat. They at least knew each other well enough that talking about anything sensitive would be easy enough to decipher. Bruce leads the charge in finding a table, since it's not terribly difficult for him to cut through the crowd and all Barbara and Dick would have to do is follow the trail. When he's satisfied with the location he takes a seat and waits for the others to do the same. ]
I haven't been able to find a way out of this place. I've checked. I'm going to assume that's normal.
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(Though, some part of her remains ready for that to be the reason something could. ) ]
I'd say you get used to that, but— [ The sentence drifts off with a raise of eyebrows and a half-roll of her eyes, that finish it, as the words that could slot there weren't ever meant to go beyond that addition. Even after over a year, it chafes at her—demands she cannot brook or back talk or get around. ]
There are portals into and out of Etraya for most of the missions. Sometimes they come with a timeframe, but most of the time they don't. They leave you to complete your challenge until the invisible timer in the sky says time is up, and the portal appears again.