TDM 002

[etrayamods]

⏵ 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. When the first round of citizens arrived, Aurora and the companion bots had been largely unprepared. This time? They made sure to put up welcome banners, even if the sentiment isn't quite right. There are cupcakes and cookies set out in the hospital's lobbies, and a digital map has been placed just in front of the entrance of the hospital, telling others how to reach the various locations throughout Etraya. Companion bots wander throughout the city, some carrying construction equipment to half-built facilities while others act as nurses, servers, or sales associates throughout the constructed buildings. ⏵ rainy awakenings ⏴ Many concepts are new to Aurora, including rain. She is familiar with how it functions, and its purpose, but rain has never been present on the lands of Etraya. Given how new it is, that may not be all too surprising - but the method of how it’s being introduced is… a little much. Rainfall commences in the early days of April, a persistent downpour that waxes and wanes in intensity but never ceases entirely. Most nights in Etraya are characterized by a soothing patter of rain against rooftops. Yet, some nights leave the grounds flooded come morning. Rivers begin to swell, the current much too strong to justify trying to go for a swim. These showers also bring a new assortment of plants blooming across the green lands: bright blossoms whose petals spread wide when the yellow sun shines down on them, while numerous cherry blossom trees have grown out of nowhere, flourishing despite the rainfall. Clover carpets the grassy expanses of the islands, weaving a beautiful tapestry of color across the grounds. ⏵ Getting drenched by the rain can trigger a surge, followed by a slump. Initially, individuals will feel giddy, excited, full of energy, and ready to take on the world. However, in the subsequent days, they’ll find themselves feeling depressed, lacking the energy and motivation to move forward. Aurora advises that these effects are only temporary and should fade within the week, but they can be resolved more quickly by embracing a stranger. Attempting to hug anyone they already know well will not produce the same effect. ⏵ With the rain comes a significant increase in the greenery around Etraya that isn’t fake. Most of these plants will resemble ones originally found in the characters' universes. ⏵ A couple of these plants contain magical properties: The Emberloom is a bright red, fiery flower that only inhabits smaller land masses. Those exposed to its pollen will experience heightened aggression and impulsivity. Shadowbloom resemble tulips during the day, but during the night the petals open and it looks more like the night sky: dark petals with specs of white throughout them. Growing too close to the apartment building for comfort, those who look at the petals after nightfall will fall into a deep sleep. Worse yet: the dreams they find themselves in are not their own, but are the dreams of other residents. Ones who had not looked into the Shadowbloom, but had drifted off to sleep elsewhere on the planet. The one who looked into the Shadowbloom will find they cannot awaken until the person whose dream they have entered does. These flowers will continue to bloom through April, after which the companion bots will search for and remove them from the atmosphere bubble. ⏵ If there is a specific, unique plant that those in game (or those accepted during the next round!) would like to add, please comment to the LOCATIONS page! We’ll add mentions of these to the Outskirts section. Along with the botanical resurgence, numerous new animals appear: glowing fish swim freely through the waters. In the canopy above, new species of birds and critters flit among the branches. Some diligently construct new nests in anticipation of the coming spring, while others seek refuge in the shelter of trees, retreating from the weather. Not all the creatures are so small, or so peaceful. ⏵ Small critters make themselves comfortable in the forested area around Etraya, staying mostly out of the way. There are the occasional visitors that will let themselves in through windows for a quick visit, or maybe a snack, but they’re mostly harmless. ⏵ Several larger beasts make their way into the city to try and find land that’s more habitable for them. Giraffes navigate gracefully through the areas designated for new arrivals, using their elongated necks to reach for the foliage near the hospital when they aren’t finding new places to make themselves comfortable. An eclectic array of cats, ranging in all sizes and breeds, brazenly saunter into buildings they don’t belong. Hopefully, the lioness lounging in the apartment complex's common area does not prevent residents from reaching their rooms, because she has no intention of yielding. ⏵ The leopard adorned with a rattlesnake tail in the hospital's cafeteria may be difficult to ignore, given his determination to devour everything in sight and attack anyone in his way. ⏵ Cat scratches and bites pose a significant risk of infection. In the event a character is injured, individuals can expect the companion bots to quickly seek them out and approach them with a special antibiotic cream developed specifically for these cats. Refusal of treatment may result in severe symptoms, including high fevers and itching. In extreme cases, individuals may begin to exhibit cat-like characteristics, ranging from physical alterations to changes in mental traits. ⏵ Numerous other creatures of all shapes and sizes will be coming and going through the city. You may play with this as you wish! While the uproar caused by these guests doesn’t particularly bother Aurora, she does send out a message to everyone wearing an earpiece to request their assistance in capturing the larger animals that her companion bots may not be able to handle themselves. She has converted an island to the East into a temporary holding area until the companion bots can set them up with something a little more permanent. ⏵ network ⏴ Welcome to Etraya! Upon your arrival, Aurora provided an earpiece, a device to make communication with others stuck in the same situation more simple. The device connects to an internal network, which is accessible by everyone else currently residing on planet. Whether you’re looking for guidance, camaraderie, or want to see if there are any familiar faces around, this is the perfect place to do it! Please feel free to post any questions, offer your name, ask for assistance, or maybe complain to the powers that be about how you’ve got better things to be doing than sitting around here completing their missions. Maybe they’re listening. Maybe they’re not. ⏵ NOTES⏴ ⏵ During April, Etraya’s getting a little wet! Those who spend too long in the rain may experience a few unfortunate effects. ⏵ The rain brings in new flora, including a couple that may cause characters to experience aggression and impulsivity, or take a stroll through others’ dreams. ⏵ New animals also appear! While many of them are friendly, others… are less so. The cats specifically seem to be a little grumpy. Characters scratched or bitten by these cats may find themselves becoming just as catty. For any questions relating to the contents of this log, please reply below. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ. The TDM is game canon, meaning everything happening above is occurring within the game properly. Those who apply to join in the April application round may keep their TDM threads as game canon. ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

[matermali]

[ It's a wonder if there's any selfish nature that could be inherently good. She doesn't wonder long.

With another sigh, she turns to rest her head against his shoulder while watching him reach for his sand. Despite her words, her smile is unshaken, and her tone is a tease. It's exactly the sort of response she would have expected. ]

Silly man. You're supposed to say that you are just as glad to have me at your side.

[hypnagothic]

I am not a man.

[ but while he has to let go of her hand in order to use both of his, he doesn't simply let go of it but rather positions her hand to it will wind around his waist again. keeping her by his side.

while she remains so, he opens his pouch so that a thin pouring of sand will land on the palm of his freed hand, letting the grains fall between his fingers so that they begin to swirl around them. a dry breeze stirs at Vanessa's wet hair and clothes as it swirls, the rain ineffective against such power. it grows around hem, enveloping, and she'll feel a tug somewhere behind her middle that spreads outward ...

and the grains then dissipate, falling and scattering to the ground before disappearing, leaving them in front of the door that Vanessa failed to close earlier in her haste. she'll also find herself dry, though not warmed. ]

[matermali]

[ For that, she finally does chuckle for true, holding close as he brings out his pouch. It isn't the first time she's used the endearment and it won't be the last, no matter how literally he takes it. That's only more of his odd charm. He absolutely is her silly man.

The last time Morpheus had used this power to take her somewhere, she had been at her worst. Lost in her own mind, trapped in a repeating torment. None of that has been forgotten, but now, she's of a much more optimistic perspective, enough to actually appreciate the wonder at such magic.

It's tempting to reach out and touch, but she resists.

Her dry state is the most surprising on arrival, and she needs a moment to realize what he's done. It really is a grand power. Vanessa is quick to lean up and touch a kiss to his cheek in gratitude before stepping away to head through the door. Her cards are likely still on the floor of the parlour, where a fire awaits. ]

'Silly Endless' does not have the proper sound to it, I'm afraid.

[ Anyone hearing him called 'silly' at all would probably be baffled, but that's entirely their problem. He is of course much more than that, magnificent even, but she needs to take care how often she feeds his ego. ]

Worry not, my lord. I know well enough what you are. My hope is that our captor has underestimated exactly that.

[ She may not have seen all of his forms, but she has seen enough to lead her to imagine plenty more. Now, though, she is left to wonder what else he can actually do, with his power returned. Of that, she's only been witness to a little. ]

[hypnagothic]

[ he has ego to spare so there's no worry there. please keep doing it, Vanessa.

he tucks his pouch away as she turns to head inside, and he steps to follow behind her. there's a moment of hesitation as he passes the threshold, his expression blanking slightly as he feels the power of her ward as he passes by it. once he's fully inside, he turns to close the door behind them, something he could do with a thought (or not thought of it at all, quite frankly), but doing so allows him to look at the scorpion design she's affixed via her blood into the door panel. he considers it for a moment before turning away to truly follow her further inside. ]

Perhaps. Though that they succeeded in my presence here, I would assume there is some notion of it.

[matermali]

A notion, certainly. If they fully understood what I am, they would not have called me here for their...tasks.

[ The room is mostly as she left it, with the hearth still bright. The seating area is untouched, as she had set up on the floor where there is no rug. The cards seem to have been scattered in her earlier rush for the door, but rather than clean up the mess, Vanessa tucks her skirt and kneels to look them over with a head tilt. The energy has entirely shifted from when she had pulled her last card.

The Five of Swords is partially visible under a reversed Nine of Wands. Nearby, just on the edge of the lavish rug, another card is half flipped, and something has her hesitate before she tips it the rest of the way.

The Tower.

Leaning back onto her heels, she shuts her eyes and listens, though not for any response from Morpheus. A ringing guides her hand to another card. There's a stifled cry in the distance that has her quickly opening her eyes to look back up, but the sound is only for her. The card she's currently touching is flipped.

Judgement.

Continuing from the first two cards she had pulled before finding him, the story told seems clear enough, and something difficult to spin positively if considering her own history. But the energy instilled from the rain, even while still dry, keeps her from wallowing in dread, and leaves her more focused on solving these potential problems. ]

...But it won't be simple to counter them, even as we are.

[ Of course, she never thought it would be an easy thing. ]

[hypnagothic]

Likely not.

[ Morpheus stops just outside the area her cards are strewn in, giving it some space while he watches her work. ]

What have you learned?

[matermali]

We need to be cautious in who we engage with.

[ Vanessa doesn't need Tarot to inform her of that, but to see it this plainly will leave her more wary than ever. She leans to pick up the Five of Swords, sending the other card to fall face-down, and a shiver courses through. ]

Betrayal is imminent, if we are careless.

[ Both hands settle back in her lap while she scans the seeming 'mess' of Tarot. ]

And it will weaken us, enough to have us question any manner of hope. This is a dangerous place to be so lost. Catastrophe is imminent, and we need clarity to see what comes after so that we may turn the tides in our favor... To make the necessary choices, or victory may look like failure.

[ There's a pause before she leans to begin gathering up the rest of the cards. ]

No matter what, there will be a sacrifice. A loss of one, in order to gain another. But it's difficult to see... The more I concentrate, I can feel a heat, it closes in — at the back of my neck, as though a branding iron hovers just behind me.

[ It's the best comparison she can make with her experience. ]

Something is clouding my vision.

[hypnagothic]

Catastrophe ... yes. Given what was told to us. Perhaps there is truth to it, after all.

[ he finally moves as she does, stepping in a little closer as she picks up her cards. when she leans back up, the tips of his fingers find the back of her neck, touching there gently; a cool presence to help against the heat she spoke of. ]

[matermali]

[ She is no stranger to catastrophe. It could mean so many things, but the sense this brought was...immense. Then, she must also consider the possibility that her own power is being manipulated here. Vanessa has no wish to bear another false prophecy.

Unless they are the very same. A fate others claim for her, that she continues to deny. 'Conflict, betrayal.' Could it be speaking of her?

No, of course not.

For just a moment, again, she questions the cause of her own power, but the touch just under her collar is swift in soothing nerves. Whatever is happening here, she knows who she is, and she knows that she isn't alone. With only that knowledge, there is nothing that can stop her. Anything managing to slow her will not keep hold of her for long. ]

...Perhaps, even if it is not the entire truth.

[ Caution must still be practiced.

With the cards placed carefully back in a velvet bag, she slips them into her coat pocket and leans to glance up toward him. A sardonic smile follows her words. ]

If a savior is what they wanted for my world, they have called upon the wrong person. They must not know as much as they claim. Which means that the dangers they speak of regarding our worlds may also be false, or...embellished.

[hypnagothic]

Perhaps they know more than you may think, as well.

[ his fingertips press ever so slightly more, a reassurance of presence before they withdraw, the hand bring held out now to assist her in standing. ]

Your story is not yet complete, after all.

[matermali]

[ She already doesn't like how much they do know, so Vanessa has to hope that she still has some secrets to retain. In this moment, she wishes she could ask Ethan for his thoughts on her future, but even now he might still attempt to hide it. While she may deny any prophecy laid out for her, it was clear from his vague comments that something terrible happens. Beyond even Sembene's death.

She misses them both, but it seems easier than ever not to linger.

Weighing Morpheus down even more with her worries will serve no good, so she nods to his remark and reaches for his hand, the edge of her smile having softened. ]

They seem to know something of Sir Malcolm, in the least. [ Standing, she glances back around the room with a perked brow. ] As far as I can tell, this seems the perfect mimicry of his home in London.

[ Even the décor is exact, of which there is plenty. Aside from her mostly barren room. ]

The upstairs even seems exact.