etrayamemes | TDM 001

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!tdm

TDM 001

⏵ arrival⏴
Arrival goes as anticipated. Characters awaken in the pristine, new hospital, greeted by Aurora and potentially getting a rundown of what's happening depending on their approach to being dropped somewhere new. The door to their room opens, and new arrivals are left free to explore their new environment.

Or what exists of it anyway. Exiting the hospital will show that there isn't much of anything just yet. Generally, Echo can build new facilities before new arrivals awaken, but it appears that this time… well, it didn't happen. The apartment complex exists, standing just beside the hospital, and there are a few facilities that are half constructed, companion bots carrying around rebar and other necessary bits and pieces, but they're not quite ready. Oops. But maybe, just maybe, one of those half-built facilities is familiar - a childhood home, a favorite supermarket, the run-down garage they worked at as a youth, a grounded spaceship in the middle of one of the massive bridges connecting land over rivers.

The companion bots will offer quiet apologies if approached; they were expecting new arrivals to touch down, but not quite this early. They'll be ready soon! A few more days at most, they promise. In the meantime, do not stray too far from the hospital. While most of Etraya looks habitable, they have not finished verifying that it's safe for its new inhabitants.

The apartment building and hospital are safe, and the land directly around them is fine, but beyond that? Stay away. But hey, the hospital's cafeteria is fully stocked with cuisine from across the multiverse! Please feel free to settle in, choose an apartment, and get to know your new friends.

⏵ water you doing?⏴
Decide not to listen? Well, the companion bots had offered their warnings.

Etraya is a new establishment, one that received newcomers before it was ready. And as such, the land has not quite been prepared for their arrival. Wandering off the land the apartment building and hospital are settled on comes with very, very poor results. Take a step down into the river below, and you'll find yourself uncomfortably hot. Or cold. Or hot and cold, because whatever that 'water' is, it wasn't meant to be played in. The only way to resolve the temperature regulation issue, as Aurora informs, is finding a buddy to cuddle up with. Those who are lucky may have a nearby friend they're familiar with and don't mind leaning a shoulder against. Those that don't? Well. . . have fun having a very uncomfortable conversation with a stranger, asking them if it's alright if you lean into them or hold their hand for a bit. Any physical contact will do, as long as it's directly skin-to-skin.

Except that's not where the contact stops. Characters will find that, for the next several hours, they'll feel everything that their companion feels. Frustration, anger, amusement, homesickness that comes from being so far away from their families and friends - all those feelings? They're not your feelings, they're our feelings now.

No explanation is given for how the empathy bond and the temperature regulation are related, but it may have to do with how since they had decided not to listen, it was time to test how well they could cohabitate with their new friends.

⏵ bonding bingo ⏴

Maybe it feels a little too much like Obi-Wan had when receiving Leia's message, but all new arrivals are their universe's only hope. Except they're not the only ones arriving, and not the only ones who are trying to keep their worlds safe. Instead, they've arrived with several others who carry the same weight on their shoulders. And they aren't meant to go through this alone. The people they've arrived with are both their new companions and their competition. Both comrades to fight beside and enemies to battle against, depending on what the specific mission of the month is. But currently?

They're here to bond. It's important to get to know those who they'll be spending the next unspecified but lengthy amount of time with, isn't it? To that extent, Aurora's hologram waits just inside the hospital's front doors, offering bonding bingo cards to those willing to participate. It's not necessary, but she does specify that this is one way to get ahead: cooperation is important, especially given what they're going to face together. Bingo cards are three long and three across, and offer a multitude of activities you can do to check each box off.

Some examples include:

Learn someone's biggest secret

Get into a fight

Tell someone something that you've never admitted out loud to

Throw a drink on someone

Win a game of pool in the apartment building's recreation room

Cheat on a card game without getting caught

Hug a new friend

Get stabbed

Steal something important to someone

Pull off an elaborate prank on a stranger

⏵ matchmaker ⏴

When the earpiece is put on, a nice green HUD(head-up display) lights up in front of new arrivals. It asks them for their name, which is fairly standard for these.

Except it seems it wants them to put together a profile to help pair them off with other new arrivals. For some, this information may autofill with what Aurora was able to discern about them from watching them in their home worlds. But some lucky individuals may catch their profiles before they're posted live, and have the opportunity to edit out information included in fields, even if they're not able to clear it out entirely.

Welcome to Aurora's idea of matchmaking. Have fun getting paired off with a buddy or four, with your profiles exchanged between one another. Maybe they're the perfect match. Maybe this is a nightmare in the making.

⏵ OOC ⏴
Welcome to our first TDM! We're excited to have you here. For more information on character arrivals, click here. For any questions relating to the TDM please reply below. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

⏵ arrival ⏴

Shit. [ sydney hadn't been polite when she woke up, but this is not the first time she's woken up in a place that is distressingly sterile and perfectly clean. last time it was a morgue and this time she isn't surrounded by bodies and on a cement slab but she still doesn't react well and the ai disappears, leaving sydney with little to go on but an explanation she didn't actually pay much attention to.

etraya? is this some eon off shoot?

well, no, it couldn't be. for one thing, the door is open and she isn't in a cage so it must not be eon. being alive is also another point in the favor of not eon. surely they wouldn't keep her alive, she's sure her name is on the neutralization list. she shuffles out of the room, and into the corridor of the hospital. ]

Hello? Anyone around that didn't insult the nice lady. [ somebody has to know what is up. ]

⏵ water you doing? ⏴

[ syd's curiosity has recently been nurtured like a baby plant so despite the voice of victor in her head telling her to stay put, she ignores his probably better judgement and heads outside. mostly to find dol. he has to be here somewhere. instead she finds the river and absolutely does not step foot in it.

turns out she isn't the first person to find the river though and that person looks like they aren't doing well. ]

Hey. Do you need... a hand?

[ she creeps closer to the edge, mouth pinching with nerves, but holds out her hand nonetheless. if the poor soul takes her hand they will discover that she is cold. very cold, freezing cold. not only that but she looks young, a teenager who still has the softness of baby fat to her cheeks despite how thin and small she is. her blue eyes are as icy as her skin feels. ]

⏵ wildcard ⏴

( go where your heart takes you! )

⏵ arrival

[ Ben pays very close attention to everything he's being told and well, maybe he's lost his mind. Or maybe he's leapt into the far future. Sure, he shouldn't be able to, but his leaps have never been constrained to what should be possible. This might as well happen.

Saving the world— a world, whichever world he's here representing, is much bigger in scope than anything he's done before, so that can't be what the leap is about. But if this is the future, or if he's in some alien world (a thought that makes him helplessly giddy) then his team will be unable to help him. He'll have to figure out the mission himself.

In the interest of doing that he tries drilling the robots, and once it becomes evident they won't provide him with any clarity, he drills them some more just because robots are cool and he's fascinated. But leaps about people, so eventually he decides it's people he needs to be talking to.

He approaches the nearest human-looking person with considerably more enthusiasm than should be normal given the news they just got, or the nearest alien-looking person with way, way more enthusiasm than anyone should be feeling given the circumstances. ]

Hi, hello! Did we all get the same introductory speech?

⏵ bonding bingo

[ This is not quite the kind of bingo card he expected. Though honestly, after giving it half a thought he has to admit he wasn't really expecting ice-breakers at all. The point is, his card could be worse; there is a path towards victory that involves no fighting or getting stabbed, so he's taking it in stride. ]

Who's down for betting a secret on a pool game?

[ He can finish it up with a hug and he'll be golden. ]

⏵ matchmaker

Dr. Ben Song (36 or 37 or 39)
The Nicest Guy ever, out there possessing people for a day or two and leaving their lives much improved.

Talk to Ben if you like quantum entanglement, Freddie Mercury, or food. Literally any food.

[ Ben is staring up at his own profile in utter bafflement, like this is the first time he's seeing his own name. ]

Wait, do I look like the guy in the picture?

[ If he's himself then he's about to have a crisis. Crises. A collection of them. ]

[ The teenager Sydney offers her hand to has stripped his orange jumpsuit to the waist, sleeves tied around his hips, and he's still already sweating through the white tank top he was wearing underneath.

He stares at her quizzically from where he's crouched by the river's edge, like he somehow doesn't quite understand what she's saying. It's a temporary hesitation. Wordlessly, he unfolds to his feet and steps towards her. ]

...are you sure?

[ His voice is quiet, creaking slightly with disuse. ]

[ A teenager in an orange jumpsuit tied off at the waist and a white tank top blinks at Ben, taken aback either by being approached, the question he's being asked, or some combination of both.

Krouse can't think of a reason to say no. ]

Sure.

[ He doesn't sound enthusiastic or put out, just quietly neutral. He's played pool before, technically. Hit the white ball with the stick, knock the other balls into the holes. Not that challenging. ]

You don't look like you're doing so hot, [ she says by way of answer. her fingers wiggle insistently because she is not getting any closer to the water.

his stare makes sense though. she's a tiny thing, age an uncertain range of teenager, and he's got at least half a foot on her. syd is determined though. ]

Don't throw up on me.

🦋 water you doing?

[When Sophia sees the river, she can’t help but pull up the skirt of her dress so that she can slip out of her boots. She tests the water with her foot, and the water is just as cold as she imagined, but the chill persists even once she’s stepped away. It thrums through her now as if she’d jumped right in.

Oh. She should have heeded the bots’ warning — now she’ll have to find someone to touch. After being locked away for so long, the thought is both exhilarating and terrifying.]

Might I hold your hand? [she asks, turning to someone nearby.] It seems I’m, understandably, to be punished for not listening to the little robots.

🦋 bonding bingo

Some of these options sound quite concerning. I don’t have it in me to stab someone, but… perhaps one of the games, or a secret. Or even a hug.

[She turns to the person nearest her.]

You don’t think people will go around stabbing each other, do you?

🦋 matchmaker

[Sophia reaches up to touch her hair as she looks at her picture.]

I had brown hair once, you know. Blue is a lovely color, though.

Sophia Monad (25)

Captive for many years, now free to frolic on Etraya. Loves cats, reading books, and watching the stars. May or may not be a ghost (unsure).

🦋 wildcard

(ooc: Feel free to throw anything at her! PM or message

giangio if you’d like to discuss anything. I’ll match if you prefer prose.)

[ Krouse's mouth picks up at one corner, his eyebrows drawing together slightly as he tries to parse if she's making a joke. Not doing so hot, when he's more feverish than he can remember being since he was a little kid.

He can't tell. The almost-smile ebbs away, unnoticed by him. ]

I'll try not to.

[ He closes the rest of the distance between them and holds his hand over hers. There's another slight hesitation before he drops his fingers into her palm, and then he sucks in a shallow breath at the shock of how cold she is.

But then comes the relief, a break in the clammy caul that's been clinging to him since he trailed his fingers in the water. He exhales unsteadily, half-lidded gaze fixed on their hands. ]

Great, let's find the pool table.

[ One would normally introduce themselves at this point, but Ben has no idea of who he is right now. He's wearing what looks like a futuristic, skin-tight onesie. It hasn't occurred to him to question it. ]

How are you feeling about this whole thing?

[ It hasn't occurred to Krouse to question much either. He has questions. Plenty of them. But the urge to act on asking them is lacking, even though he has a sense he should be trying anyway. ]

Fine.

[ An off-hand answer, given in the midst of glancing around the room for anything that might look like a sign or a map. ]

How are you feeling?

[ The question is normal. The slightly robotic way he asks might be a little less so. ]

Arrival

What the hell? [Are the first words uttered by Xue Yang as he comes to in a pristine white bed. He squints, because everything is too damn bright, and pushes himself into a sitting position. He is sore - definitely bruised - and there is a cut on his cheek again, but amazingly, he is alive.]

Who do I have to thank, hm? [He kicks off the covers and stands, a little dizzy on his feet (it's pretty normal for him these days) and he immediately checks his person.

Then he freezes.]

Where is he? Give him back! [Racing to the door, he staggers into the hall, his dark eyes wild.] Answer me! Where did you put him?! I'll cut you into so many pieces no one will be able to recognize you!

Water You Doing

[He calms, for one reason or another, and ends up exploring. Screw what anybody thinks about boundaries. He can handle himself, right? When he comes to the water, he can't resist. It has been awhile since he has seen good, clean running water.

Stripping down, he enters said water and -

Immediately regrets it. Yelping, he scrambles back to shore and stares down at his arms...his hands. He's hot. No cold. No...both?]

...the fuck?

Matchmaker

Xue Yang (27)

A murderous man who loves candy and anything sweet. People included, though he will never admit it. Watch out, he has quite a mouth on him!

Edited 2024-02-24 04:37 (UTC)

Discombobulated.

[ That's the most honest way he can put it. He's used to rolling with the punches both literally and metaphorically, but this is so weird.

He's also used to focusing on whoever he's with, though, and this kid doesn't sound quite... right. ]

Weird stuff happens to me all the time, but this takes the cake.

[ There, truthful and nonspecific, a great combo. ]

[ Discombobulated. The word has a rhythm to it that catches at some thinned thread at the back of Krouse's mind, but whatever that thread might be tied to doesn't come obediently trotting out for him to see.

It's been a while since he had to make conversation that wasn't goal-oriented. It's not a problem. ]

That's life for you, I guess. [ He glances at the door, then back to the stranger. ] Weird stuff happens. Then you die.

[ Or you don't. ]

Pool tables are heavy. Chances are it's on the ground floor somewhere.

((OOC: The game came out in english about a week ago, so please let me know if you're cool w/spoilers or not! Michiho's canon point is the Good Ending))

A. Arrival

[She cannot even begin to comprehend what's happening here. She sits in her room for a long time, just staring at the walls and the bed and the vitals monitoring machine. She pokes at her skin, pulls at her cheeks. She feels...stuck.

After a while she gets herself up and about, poking her head out and wandering around. It still doesn't feel real, but she smiles as she enters the cafeteria. There's at least familiar-looking food around and she grabs what she wants ebfore making her way to sit down at a table with really anyone.]

So! How about that multi-verse thing, huh? Crazy, right?

B. Matchmaking

Michiho Kinukawa (17)

Upbeat, plucky girl with a powerful sixth sense, Michiro loves reading about bugs, talking about bugs, playing with bugs, and making friends with bugs!

A lover of the occult and everything spooky, as long as you can take a joke you're A-Okay in her book!

...

You know, the weirdest thing about this is realizing my hair is white in the picture?? Does everyone see it like that now?

I'm not that sure about the dying.

[ The comment is mostly to himself. Do you die in the accelerator? Is Sam Beckett really somewhere out there, still leaping? Who knows, he sure hopes he won't find out. ]

Ground floor's a good call, let's check that first.

[ They don't have that many places to check, they can start at the bottom and make their way up. He glances at his bingo card as they walk. ]

They went weirdly analog for these. I'd have expected a tablet or something.

⏵ arrival⏴

( damian's initial reaction is to not react at all. to listen, to gather as much information as possible while continuing to act as if he hasn't woken up yet. unfortunately, the only sound he's able to pick up is the sound of the monitor copying his heartrate which is not helpful at all.

so he gets himself up. doesn't say a word to the hologram, which works in his favor as not opening his mouth means he avoids snarking at her.

and unfortunately, he has enough experience with the world to know that while it could be a ploy to attempt to catch him off guard, the likelihood of it being true is not low enough to disregard it entirely. he hears aurora's story, listens to her tell him about the situation they've gotten themselves stuck into. and slides off the edge of the cot to make his way down the hallway, black and yellow cloak (not a cape) following behind him as robin makes his way out to discern what he's working with here.

one may spot him lurking in the cafeteria, hood pulled low over his face so the only thing visible is the scowl twisting his mouth down. or they may find him crouched down on top of a nearby high bookshelf, watching newcomers walk out of their rooms to start. regardless, he doesn't say a word. not yet.

reconnaissance first. )

⏵ testing the waters ⏴

( when given strict orders to not do something, there is no better way to discover why not than to investigate exactly what he's not supposed to be investigating.

he's not touching the water, not yet, but robin is crouched down low just at the edge of the land they're supposed to not leave, eyes squinting under the domino mask covering them as if that will tell him the great secrets of why they seem to believe it's not safe.

there's an atmosphere, within the city bubble. he's able to breathe, the water looks clear, the land beyond it looks just as solid and stable as the land they're currently on. )

»Tt«. ( nose scrunching up, and he reaches a gloved hand out. flicks his wrist, so a batarang falls between his index and middle fingers. ) They're hiding something.

⏵ matchmaking ⏴

Robin (13)
Absolutely not.

⏵ wildcard ⏴

( hit me with whatever! i'll run with it. )

[ Krouse goes with Ben readily, falling into step with his pace. ]

Eventually.

[ He remarks, mildly, on the concept of dying. He doesn't mean to make it sound like it'll necessarily be soon. Then he lets the thought go, sliding down to join the dull litter of other unnecessary thoughts carpeting the floor of his skull.

It's when Ben comments on the bingo card that Krouse's demeanour shifts for the first time, a v forming between his eyebrows as his gaze sharpens in focus. ]

A tablet has an interface. [ He's still quiet, but it's the quiet of intent, not of a TV volume turned down low. ] And it'd be easier to reconfigure than the earpieces. Paper's more secure.

[ He took one from the hologram at the door too. It's folded up and tucked into one of his empty sleeves above where they're knotted at his waist.

But the guy is right. It doesn't seem consistent. Everything else is some tinker tech arrangement, and then paper cards? ]

...but why not upload them to the HUDs, if we have those anyway?

Unlike Xue Yang, in another room, Xiao Xingchen waits silently, listening to the explanation and politely asks a few questions before finding his feet. So what if his heart is pounding and his voice trembles? Anyone who just looks at the man can tell he's Seen Some Things.

Theoretically.

The bandage around his head is a big indicator, though it has been cleaned and replaced, and Xingchen's clothes have been similarly tidied up - as he gives himself a distracted brief pat-down as he stands.

He offers a brief smile and bow in the direction the voice had come from before making his way out of the room. There's no point in lingering when he is apparently expected to explore.

But then he hears...an unfortunately familiar voice. Screaming down the hall. He feels himself pale and he sways, leaning against the nearest wall as he clutches at anything that seems remotely stable.

No...! He can't even escape by coming here!

Xue Yang is beside himself (and then some!) when he comes pounding down the hall. Even his leg won't slow him down much, though his hip catches painfully when he nears Xiao Xingchen's room.

"Give him back! He's mine!" he sounds insane and that impression intensifies when he falls to his knees right in front of Xingchen.

Though of course he hasn't noticed him yet. The angry, frustrated, terrified tears in his eyes are blurring his vision.

"I'm going to bring him back..."

Xingchen shies away as he hears the mad steps heading right for him. Insane words lash at his ears and mind, taking a moment to sink in. Who? Who is this murderer calling for with such desperation?

It makes his heart and chest squeeze painfully, aching in helpless sympathy even as bloody tears drip down his cheeks.

He gasps when he hears a body drop to the ground before him, and shakes his head in mute denial. But...something is wrong. He gradually recognizes that much. Pressing thin, raw lips together, he struggles to gather himself.

And only notices then that he's also crumpled to the ground.

"Who?"

He hears a gasp and then...someone dropping down to the floor beside him. Wiping at his tears with his sleeve, he frowns at the intruder. Either they have nothing to do with his lost spirit pouch or they are the ones that took it! He is ready to lash out at them in either scenario, opening his mouth to rebuke them for being a dumb-ass.

That is, until he sees Xiao Xingchen. His perfect face covered in bloody tears. Xiao...Xingchen. Not in the pouch. Not in a coffin. Beside him. Xue Yang takes one breath, short and sharp, and lurches to the side, dragging the other man into his arms.

"D-Daozhang! Daozhang, is it really you?" he doesn't hide how he sobs, his body, thinner and more fragile, shaking.

( i. arrival )

[ aang doesn't quite grasp all that was told to him. he's not too stressed out yet. he knows the story. he knows his path. even if it may curve along the way, his calling is steadfast. save the world.

so he's taken it with good grace (and some curious tapping of his earpiece) before asking for some food in the cafeteria (no meat please, happy to try new things). what he got was . . . odd?

aang pokes the seaweed. the seaweed twitches. ]

. . . Is it alive? Is it supposed to be alive?!

( ii. water you doing )

[ deep breaths.

the temperature was uncomfortable, forcing aang to tug on his robes every few minutes. even with how loose the fabric was, it seems to cling to him like a second skin. he felt bothered, uncomfortable, at odds with the environment itself. as if the world was fighting him, pushing him away.

deep breaths.

aang closes his eyes. focuses. with his waterbending, he draws a sliver of moisture from the stream, letting it ring around him. he slams his foot onto the ground and lets the soil rise up into the air, forming a boulder. he darts his hand, collecting a flame in his palm. and the air. the air is all around him.

good. aang feels himself settle. feels more like himself. wherever he was, he was still . . . connected.

except, as his brows draw together, he seems to be connected to someone else. ]

Uh. Is that you? Thinking . . . loudly?

( iii. bonding bingo )

[ this is . . . some game. aang squints at some of the prompts. seems a bit much.

but there's one he can knock out quickly. in a loud voice. ]

Free hugs! Get your free hugs!

[ he's a helper. ]

( iv. network post: theavatar )

So like. How often does the world usually need saving? Do we get holidays?

I'm asking because I thought I just finished doing this and the world needs me again? I wanted five seconds of breathing room!

( v. wildcard )

( got a prompt in mind, hit me up / pm this journal )

Like what?

[ aang looks around. and where?? ]

I think so?

[ aang shrugs. looks the man up and down. ]

. . . Are you here to save the world?

Alive. Somehow, alive. The horrible cut on his neck has been closed, leaving just the faintest of scars.

Xiao Xingchen jerks back when arms latch onto him, but the wall stops them both from completely falling over. Panic lashes at him again and he tries to brace himself for an attack.

But it...doesn't come.

Instead, there's disbelief in that voice. And...sobbing, as Xue Yang shakes against him.

Xingchen hears himself panting and struggles to stop. Surely that's what Xue Yang wants. To keep torturing him.

"Why...won't you let me go? Even here...you won't let me go." Despair leaches strength from him and he sags against Xue Yang.

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Page 1 of 89

TDM 001

QUESTIONS.

sydney clarke — vicious

Dr. Ben Song | Quantum Leap (2022)

water you doing?

bonding bingo

no subject

Sophia Monad | Lies of P

no subject

no subject

no subject

Xue Yang - The Untamed

no subject

no subject

Michiho Kinukawa | Spirit Hunter: Death Mark II

no subject

damian wayne ( dc comics )

no subject

Arrival of course :3

Poor XXC.

Poor boys ;;

D:

aang | avatar: tla

( testing the waters )

( arrival )

no subject