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Aion Mods ([personal profile] aionmods) wrote in [community profile] aionooc2022-07-30 12:18 pm
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TDM #3

TDM #3
DREAMING (new characters)
At first, there is nothing. You are nothing. Whatever existed before ceases to be if for a moment. Then, bit by bit, you start to become aware. Where there was not even darkness now is a dim haze, gentle and almost mist-like. You have limbs again and beneath your feet lays a path of light reaching out like limbs of a great tree beneath you, twisting and climbing out into the horizon.

You take a step forward for what else is there to do? As you walk you begin to remember what it was you were doing before the nothingness; maybe something as simple as chatting with a loved one or close friend. Maybe you were just beginning a great journey or facing off against an old foe. Whatever it was, you get the distinct feeling that wherever and whenever that was, it is not here. Not now.

The path of light twists off into different directions. When you look up you can see that it is not a sky above you but the sky of everything, a grand cosmic tapestry littered with not mere stars but galaxies and clusters of galaxies that gleam like crystals against the velvety backdrop of space. Admire it for a moment, if you will. You don't know how long you will drift here, but you are not alone. Other wanderers will come and go as you bask together in the vastness of creation.

It seems to you that there are two paths to walk in this place, the light and dark beckoning in turn.

THE LIGHT AT THE CENTER
One leads you to the center, splintered fragments folding together and colliding until only one thing remains: a light that speaks to you with the voice of all there is and has ever been. It greets you simultaneously as an old friend and as a lost child, both rejoicing in and mourning your arrival. You remember it too, somehow, with a feeling of complex nostalgia, as if returning to a place recalled from your distant childhood.

You’ll feel the same of the other wanderers that join you in the light; you know their faces, their voices, and as you reflect upon the world of your birth, you may witness fragments of theirs as well. You feel a comradery, then, a synchronicity of thought and emotion. Are the lives of others truly so different from your own? Or are you simply two hands of the same, greater being? Though some individualistic part of you may resist, the longer you spend in the light, the more you will find yourself becoming one with it.

Despite this welcoming call, no matter how eagerly your pursue its embrace, before you can fully submerge yourself in this oneness you will find yourself being torn away. As if seized by the impossibly long, cold arm of a creature unseen, you are plucked from the edge of fulfillment. The last thing you will remember is the sensation of your world, and all the others your experienced here, collapsing into nothingness.

THE DARK OUTSIDE (CW: deep despair, ego death)
The other leads towards the outside, where the splintering becomes so great that the vestiges of reality can do nothing but collapse back into the abyss at the end of everything. As you wander to these barren outskirts, your thoughts will not be drawn to familiarity and oneness, but instead to memories of discontent and waste. The darker the path becomes, the more you find yourself dwelling on life’s disappointments and injustices, of the things about yourself and your world you find wanting.

If you see others here, at first they will feel frightening or contemptible, as if representing to you the worst experiences in your life. Even if they are someone you’re certain you know, that familiarity and affection will be stripped away in the face of the great emptiness before you. In the end, you were all the same. In the end, none of this was worth it. If you approach the end together, you may even form a kind of kinship around this acknowledgment, as the need for paranoia and hatred fades.

Slowly, the darkness encroaches, and you can see it devouring all the things you once knew. Memories of your home, of those you loved, dissolve into nothing, and you can only reflect on the barren emptiness in your heart as you see it happen. In your final moments, though, you feel peace with it all, knowing that there was no other way. You step from the edge of the last dwindling fragment of being and are greeted by silence.

THE END
No matter which way you go, you are left with a single impression: you feel the world you came from die. It's a realization that transcends logic or sense; it weighs on your heart and leaves the vestiges of dark memories dancing in your thoughts like motes of ash. It's a memory of your home crumbling away into nothing as if consumed from within by rot. Returned to the void, all that's left to you is to be reborn.

REBIRTH (new characters)
In a new time and place, you awaken. Stirring within a capsule of warmth and isolation your senses will slowly return, only to observe that you are trapped. Your body, as it wakes, is tangled in close, yours eyes unable to open, as if still within the womb. You are held tight in the embrace of something unyielding, so smothering that at first you only have the strength to struggle for moments at a time. Yet, as you persist, the pressure begins to relent in turn; it may take hours, but eventually you will find the purchase to push, to claw, to fight, and it will all give way.

The chrysalis surrounding you bends like flesh and cracks like glass. It tears as you force your fingers through, finding liberation one inch at a time, until finally you have emerged. As if having undergone metamorphosis, you feel old and new all at once. You are weak, piteously so, but the markings and scars of your previous life remain. As you slump down upon the smooth cavern stone, you realize that you've just wrenched yourself free of gigantic crystal, though its hollow, shimmering form is now in pieces on account of your passing. Somewhere on your body, a shard of similar material remains embedded.

The cave itself looks almost like the inside of a geode, the walls and ceiling bedazzled with greyish crystal that shines with all the colors of the rainbow. While they vary wildly in size and shape, only a few have grown large enough to hold a form like yours, and you can see the one you just escaped isn't the only one bearing a passenger within. They may have already hatched, or they may still be lingering in stasis. Either way, there's enough time that you may have a chance to speak to yours unexpected peers, or to perhaps to struggle to find something to cover your naked body with. You feel the chill of the open air against your moisture laden skin, a distant light trickling in through the cavern's opening.

Make the most of this time. It won't be long before you're interrupted.

[Mod Note: If you don't want to deal with your character being naked in front of the others at that location, feel free to assume they emerge at a different time than the others of their legacy. Characters will be 'hatching' over a period of several hours.]

DREAMING (OLD CHARACTERS)
For those already in Horos, they will find themselves in the same dreamscape as the new arrivals, only, this time, it's familiar. You'll feel more cognizant of your surroundings as you reawaken in this psychedelic realm, more in control of your emotions. What's more, you recognize that light at the center and the darkness at the edge: it's the Pleroma and Kenoma respectively. The one you are attuned to will call our to your soul, and though you are technically free to wander as you please, the closer you get to the force of your opposite sect, the more it will grate against you spiritually. Pleroma attuned nearing the Kenoma will feel as if its presence is desperately trying to tear them apart, and Kenoma attuned nearing the Pleroma will feel as if its light is burning them from the inside out.

More importantly, you notice that entirely new souls are wandering here with faces you didn't see in the cavern. It gradually becomes clear that they are Aions in the same state you were prior to your rebirth, lost and wandering this stretch of the cosmos with no idea what's to come. Maybe this is your chance to ease the confusion of their arrival, or maybe you'd simply like to scope out what kind of people are on their way. It's also possible for you to run into Aions already in Horos, wandering just like you are. Unfortunately, things are a lot less neutral than they are the last time you shared this realm.

No matter what you do, eventually the cosmos above will begin to burn out, just as it did the first time you were here. As darkness swallows reality itself, you will wake with the visceral memory of your world corrupting and breaking apart.

SEARCHING (OLD CHARACTERS)
Soon after the dreams begin, it will become clear that the Aion NPCs of either sect are also aware of what's happening. For those in Achamoth and Greentruth, the imminent arrival of new Aions will become a matter of official discussion. All able Aions will be called upon for their aid, in whatever way they can offer. Getting to the shrines themselves will be easily accomplished via teleportation. What's would be more complicated is ferrying any new arrivals back to a secure location. Thankfully, this is something both sects have already prepared for.

All characters will have the opportunity to acquire a 'returning stone' if they don't already have one. In all cases, this will amount to an amulet made of the same shimmering material as the shrine monuments, though the stylization differs between the Pleroma and the Kenoma. While regular Aion teleportation can bring you to any of the shrines you know the sigil and location of, a returning stone is magically programmed to bring its wearer back to a specific destination to which it is attuned. Normally, these stones will only be able to store enough energy for one 'return' a month, but it turns out that the ambient power created by the shrines being active will temporarily super charge them. Though it's not guaranteed, this means they may generate enough energy to perform multiple returns for TDM purposes. More information about returning stones can be found on the powers page.

Spare returning stones will be issued to all Aions so that they can be used to bring back anyone they collect, as it's possible to bring someone alongside you if they are also wearing a returning stone. Where your stone leads will depend on your sect.

PLEROMA
Tehri will be the one to supply returning stones, based out of Greentruth. She will not travel to Godsblood to deliver returning stones to those that have not visited Greentruth, but it can be assumed that Greentruth's visitors can pass them along to anyone who has been staying in the city. The returning stones are set to bring them to a secure location beneath the water of Godsblood's coast. From there, new arrivals will have to be allowed to rest and then brought up into the city when they're ready.

Greentruth is limited in its resources, but it will attempt to send troops to the Innocent, Seeker, Wanderer, and Firebrand shrines, all of which are close to the forest. Compared to the last attempt, these troops are a bit better armored. Meanwhile, bolstered by recent events in Godsblood, bands of Resistance members and guerrilla fighters will turn up at the Artisan and Sovereign shrines. The Resistance members will work willingly alongside with the Pleroma Aions, but the guerrilla fighters seem to have their own priorities and that is mostly that they have a beef with the Achamites. These reinforcements will struggle against powered Aions, but they might be able to delay any troops sent by Achamoth or Hylici.

KENOMA
Xishen will be handing out returning stones to all Kenoma the day after the dreams begin for the Aions that don't already have one. She'll explain how to use them, and state that the Regent expects for them to head to the shrines once they become fully active. The Kenoma will have whatever mundane weapons or supplies they need at their disposal for this mission, along with minimal Achamite reinforcements. Due to injuries and death in both Godsblood and Venera, many are in recovery or on their return to Achamoth. She'll reiterate not to rely too heavily on them; after all, only the Aions are able to quickly move between the shrines and at the Citadel. The regular troops will have to be deployed by river or by land, and mobilizing them will take time. They will feasible be able to reach all of the shrines to some degree or another, but will more easily populate the shrines of the Martyr, Celebrant, Lover, Champion, Visionary, Sovereign, and Firebrand.

The Hylicians will be called to fill in the ranks of the diminished Achamite troops. They follow the orders that they are given but are very standoffish otherwise, even more than usual for them. Xishen herself says she will be traveling to the shrines and the Kenoma will be expected to communicate their movements to her as they work. Dionys remains in Achamoth to 'keep watch'. All Kenoma Aions will be given a familiar vial of black sludge, and are instructed to feed it to any Aions they capture at the shrines. It will cause the same effects it did in the cavern, though it will resolve in a few days rather than a week.

RETURNED (ALL CHARACTERS)
New characters that are found a the shrines will be brought back to one of two lodestones, depending on which sect they are taken by. This will be accomplished by their escort putting a 'returning stone' around their neck that will enable them to be teleported to a secure area in their sect's territory. It is advised for your character to be taken by whichever sect you'd like them to end up in.

TO THE PLEROMA
In a dazzling flash of psychedelic light, you will find yourself brought to the Pleroma's lodestone: a monolithic rock set in the center of temple-like ruins. The entire cavern is hidden away beneath the ocean waves, just outside of Godsblood, and the ceiling itself is comprised of nothing but a barrier of water, as if held back from filling the space by some unknown force. The waters surrounding the lodestone are exactly body temperature, with swarms of tiny, violently iridescent fish darting through it. Crabs that look as if they're made of pure, clear crystal wander the sparkling, sandy shores.

There isn't much here in the way of accommodations, but it's comfortable enough that the new arrivals brought in by the Pleroma can take a moment to catch their breath. Some relatively plain but assorted new clothing will have been brought to the cavern to make sure they are actually clothed, as well as blankets and basic food items. It's a good time to ask your questions, or if you are an established Pleroma, to help out your freshly arrived peers. After all, their welcome at the shrine may have been a confusing one.

New arrivals will be permitted to leave the lodestone's temple when they are ready. Unfortunately, the only ways out of these place are through your choice of either swimming through pockets of water that eventually lead to the surface, or by spelunking through a series of tunnels to make your way the cliff faces near the city of Godsblood. More information about the city itself can be found on the setting page, though it would be preferable to keep TDM interactions to the lodestone area. As characters emerging from the shrines will start our as Untouched (more info about attunements here) they will not be permitted entry into Greentruth until they have attuned to Pleroma.

TO THE KENOMA
As your returning stone activates, you will feel yourself thrust into a suffocating void, only to emerge just as quickly somewhere else. The most pressing thing on the minds of anyone taken by the Kenoma will be the vial of pitch black sludge they are forced to drink, whether it is before or after their arrival. Maybe their 'escort' from the shrine gave it to them, or perhaps another Kenoma does soon after they arrive. If not, one of the Achamite cultists wandering around definitely will. Dedicated servants to the Regent's will as they are, they are not afraid to gang up on the vulnerable new arrivals and force it down their throats.

Once in your mouth, the potion will slither down your throat as if it's a living thing. The effect takes hold quickly: as this darkness creeps through your insides, it will embolden your darkest and most despair inducing emotions, plaguing your thoughts with the worst sorrows of your life. What's worst, it simultaneously seems to awaken some form of enhanced psychic empathy within you, both projecting your thoughts for others to hear, and allowing you to receive those of the others around you in kind. Black ooze will begin to seep from orifices, or the space around your shard. The effects of this contamination bring out your worst, and its recipients will be forced to live with these effects until they accept the force corrupting them into their souls.

This world is not good enough, a voice speaks to your through the Kenoma. This suffering you feel, the cruelty that has birthed this darkness in you... it is simply the rot that is consuming this existence. A better universe awaits, one forged by your own hand, and all you need do is first bring about this broken reality's end.

How long this goes on will depend on how long the characters is able to fight it. Acceptance of the Kenoma can come as quickly as immediately, if your character is inclined towards it, or it could be drawn out to take a few days. In the meantime, they will have to stay in the barren halls surrounding the Regent's lodestone, and will not be permitted to exit into the greater Citadel as the current Kenoma are. All that will immediately be offered to them down there are stone slabs that can be used as beds and formless white robes that reach down past their knees.

Of course, that doesn't mean the characters that are already of the Kenoma can't do something about that. If they desire it, they will be able to bring food or other supplies to those suffering with their Kenoma infections, and it will be equally within their power to try anything from bullying them into accepting to lovebombing them. Once a character accepts the Kenoma and attunes to it, they will be permitted to leave, but for the sake of the TDM interactions should be kept to the lodestone area.

QUESTIONS
Is this TDM canon?
Mostly! It's part of an in-game event. However, only threads with new players that app and are accepted will be considered game canon. Threads between old characters will all be canon, but threads involving new characters that don't apply or aren't accepted will either need to be tweaked to remove their involvement or made non-canon. New characters will also be able to decide TDM threads aren't canon if they end up changing directions.

Who can toplevel on this post?
Anyone, whether they are a new character or a current one. However, we do ask for current players to do their best to tag new characters. If you are bringing in a new character and want a current character to bring them into your sect of choice, post your request here! ICly, current characters are fighting to claim new arrivals, but it's up to the player of new characters where they ultimately end up going.

When is this TDM taking place chronologically?
The beginning of August. The shrines will be active and forming Aions during that time. The dreams will start around the 29th of July. All current Aions will be able to sense when it's time for the new arrivals to start emerging.

What are the shrines like?
Every shrine is comprised of the crystal-filled cavern character emerge inside and then the massive statue symbolizing the relevant Legacy built on top. More information about each shrine can be found in the "Aion Shrine" section of the setting page.

Are everyone's homeworlds really gone?
That's a complicated issue, and while the fate of their world is not without hope, they may certainly get the impression its been destroyed from the dream they had. Alternatively, they may refuse to believe what they felt and attempt to dismiss it as only a vision. More about this situation will be revealed as the game goes on.

Can I only experience one end of the dream sequence prompt?
New characters may experience one ending, both endings, or neither. If they experience both they will struggle to recall which came first or which feels the most 'true' to them, as both will simultaneously be the thought they are reborn with. If your character refuses to pursue either path they can simply linger in the middle until the infinite worlds above them start being extinguished one by one, eventually expelling them into darkness in a similar style to the light prompt. Which dreams they experience will not dictate their initial sect affiliation.

Is it possible to pull another character back from the end of the light or darkness dreams?
Yes! If your character is able to resist the pull of either end, they will have the chance to try to pull another character back from the edge of the abyss or the edge of oneness. Whether or not they succeed is entirely up to the other character, though.

Do you come out of the chrysalis wet?
For most intents and purposes it's the same experience as hatching out of a real butterfly chrysalis, so yes, a bit.

How does attunement to the Pleroma or Kenoma work for new characters?
More information about sect attunements can be read on their dedicated info page, but in summary: when new characters are brought to Horos, they will be in the state of being "Untouched" meaning they are not attuned to either sect. By the end of their first month in game it is expected they will either attune to Pleroma or Kenoma, though for those taken by the Kenoma's forces, the transition will be forced within the first few days. If taken in by the Pleroma, it may take then some time to attune to Pleroma, depending on the strength of their spirit, but it could also happen almost instantly if they are allowed to. How quickly it happens will depend on how strongly they align with the Pleroma's traits. Characters who have been taken by the Pleroma but that remain Untouched will not be allowed into Greentruth until their attunement to Pleroma is complete.

Can a character taken by one side end up attuning to the sect of the opposite one?
This is theoretically possible, yes: a person taken by the Kenoma could potentially resist the Kenoma's call, and someone taken by the Pleroma could end up falling to the Kenoma while staying with them. Generally, though, we recommend that you have your character be taken by whichever sect you want to end up in, as doing a switcheroo will cause narrative complications that might bog their introduction down in plotting that will need to be done with the mods. It can happen, but it is not to be done lightly!

subsist: (pic#15626284)

[personal profile] subsist 2022-07-30 09:57 pm (UTC)(link)
[ there is a few brief moments where kaeya considers leaving her alone for now, because this encounter is quickly becoming uncomfortably similar to what happened with collei. he hates that he can see a bit of himself not only in collei, but in this person too, because he knows what it feels like to have no control over your own actions. it would have been much easier for him to walk away, come back with someone else who is better equipped to handle this, and yet he chooses to stay.

he sets the basket down on the floor before he gently pries her hand away from her leg, holding onto it as he kneels down by her side. he is careful when he tries to study her other hand, the one with broken fingers, watching the pulse of neon blue be snuffed out as quickly as it appeared. ]


There are people who will be very cross with me should any harm come your way.

[ gone is the serious demeanour that asked her why? (why does she want to die?), replaced by something more like his usual self. his tone remains casual, but the way he looks at her has more hidden underneath the surface. it's not sympathy he can offer, but more so that of understanding. that there's someone else out here who knows what it's like. ]

So I can't give you that. [ slowly, he reaches for her broken hand, wanting to look at it more closely if he's allowed to. ] What happened to your hand? Did someone hurt you before coming here?
galdorleod: (Default)

[personal profile] galdorleod 2022-07-30 10:00 pm (UTC)(link)
I was not going to put Howl on this TDM bc I'm planning on bringing in a second character and wanted to focus on her, BUT........ seeing other Celebrant Aions is really making me rethink that bc Howl has been all alone for months now and it's probably the one Shrine he'd actually check. soooo I can offer one moody disaster wizard who'd be very shocked/happy to see Yeager there!
baltimores: (084; (I can keep going))

[personal profile] baltimores 2022-07-30 10:00 pm (UTC)(link)
Expert forcing-Kenoma-down-your-throat guy, right here!
horniness: (085.)

cave;

[personal profile] horniness 2022-07-30 10:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Such a small creature... he nearly steps on her while wandering around but is cognizant enough of his surroundings not to, if only because he takes no pleasure in hunting mice and the sort. In fact, he finds them useful to keep around as they will often hunt even peskier insects from his castle or dormitory and keep them from aggressively multiplying.

When she doesn't immediately scuttle away in terror at him, his curiosity intensifies a little further, having figured that would have been her first instinct. Even humans can't behold him without wanting to run. How peculiar.

"Hmm... you are no ordinary rodent, are you?"

He doesn't sense anything magical about her, but she is bold.
leicesters: academy (138)

[personal profile] leicesters 2022-07-30 10:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[From where he's hunched, Claude's grip on the crystal shard he's holding tightens instinctively, ready to fight. But then the guy is -- cringing away and holding out a blanket? He stares at him in disbelief for a second. So... He's really here to help?

Wordlessly, he gets to his feet, necessity overcoming distrust. He's recovered a little more strength by now, so he manages to unsteadily make his way to Thoma and snag the blanket, wrapping it around him.]


Thanks, you're a lifesaver. [Despite the seemingly friendly words, his brow is knitted in suspicion as he eyes Thoma, trying to piece everything he's saying together.] I'm Claude. You're saying this is a shrine?
cutlery: please do not take! (bitches y'all know the difference)

[personal profile] cutlery 2022-07-30 10:06 pm (UTC)(link)
[ The glow catches Sebastian's attention immediately, and though it's very slight, Kaeya might notice just a fraction of increased sharpness in his gaze. For one, much to his annoyance, he's not quite in possession of his full spectrum of ability to be able to discern what Kaeya just did, but he has a fair enough guess, though it surprises him. ]

...Magic?

[ If his appearance were one of being fully human, he wouldn't question it so openly, but it seems a bit silly to feign ignorance when he can't mask his eyes or teeth at the moment. Not that he's that put off by it, clearly, since he takes the canister. He makes a light sound of surprise at the chill, but doesn't hesitate to take a drink all the same.

There's a half-made question in mind about Kaeya's familiarity with the situation, but his question gets Sebastian to frown with mild concern. ]


I have not. Should I have?
baltimores: (004; says me)

the kenomaing...

[personal profile] baltimores 2022-07-30 10:07 pm (UTC)(link)
[ This is simultaneously awkward and annoying.

After a quick set of introductions — he's Amos, he's here to help, here's a robe for your troubles — he finds himself back in a similar situation as he has... a couple of times now. Unruly teen, check, although given the circumstances he can't blame him. Refusing to take something he has to, unfortunately, check.

Amos takes the vial back from Atsumu, bemused and only a little impatient. The second-to-last time he'd done this, he'd wasted too much time, and a Pleroma had fought him off for a new Aion right out from under him. The last time he'd done this, he'd succeeded, and there had been some resentment involved. (A lot of resentment, maybe.) He looks over his shoulder; as far as he knows, the clock's ticking again, but surely he can find the right balancing act this time.

... Probably not. He's not the best at sales pitches, regardless. But. ]


You're outta your mind if you think you're not drinking it.

[ Come on — surely Atsumu can see what's going on here. He's freshly hatched, weak, and at the mercy of someone who clearly knows more than him — and is something of an imposing figure to boot, broad and battle-scarred and the kind of guy who it should become apparent isn't going to take no for an answer. Not here.

Atsumu might be able to detect the slimmest of chances for him. Amos is also still a little weary, still worn down from recent battles; some of those scars are newer than others. But also... come on.

Amos fixes him with a flat stare, though his voice is bright and amiable as ever as he holds the vial back up for him. ]


C'mon. You wanna do this the easy way or the hard way? You get to choose that much.

[ Don't say he can't be considerate! ]
warmare: (恨み)

3.

[personal profile] warmare 2022-07-30 10:10 pm (UTC)(link)
[Hayame did not intend to be at the lodestone for long.

She has only come to change locations, accompanying a group back from one of the shrines and waiting for the next to head out, ready to go wherever the threat of Kenoma might present itself. Not to save new aion souls for the cause of the Pleroma... But perhaps the motive of hunting down Achamites was decent enough.

Except, as she begins to pass through the strange cavern with its watery ceiling, her equine half largely concealed by a crumbled ruin wall she passes by... a man calls out to her... and asks one of the most pointless questions she could imagine.]


Do you think I care?

[This seven foot tall something woman? doesn't seem impressed with his curiosity.]
wavetrain: <user name=animatedwings site=twitter.com> (pic#15836501)

[personal profile] wavetrain 2022-07-30 10:11 pm (UTC)(link)
Her posture does not get less defensive. Her own tail is curling warily from side to side as she watches him. What is going on with this guy? She's not about to claim to be some kind of scavenger expert, but this is not a normal scavenger. Some of his features are like a dragon's, but she's never seen a dragon with wings like that.

Her wings spread slightly at her sides, unconsciously trying to make herself look bigger.

"Take me where," she says, uneasily.
galdorleod: ([black] interrupted)

[personal profile] galdorleod 2022-07-30 10:14 pm (UTC)(link)
[ At that moment, the crunch of footsteps comes from Ciel's flank, deep in the brush. Within a few seconds, a thin, black-haired young man can be seen between the trees, sporting a long, unbuttoned black coat and carrying a woven basket in his arms. The young man stops suddenly as he spies Ciel and an unknown individual speaking together, and after some hesitation, he trots through the bushes to join them. Even a stranger would notice that he behind his nice clothing and careful grooming, there's exhaustion on his face. And... feathers on his face, too, along his cheeks and jawline.

Howl keeps his eyes on the unknown man until he reaches Ciel's side, where he gives her a cautious glance. A new Aion, from the Celebrant's shrine...!
]

...I hate to say it, but you were right. [ Howl looks back to the Aion in question and, after looking him up and down, gives a polite nod. ] Greetings, sir. I see we've been fortunate enough to bring clothes of your size?
leicesters: academy (141)

[personal profile] leicesters 2022-07-30 10:19 pm (UTC)(link)
[Unfazed by that frosty reception, he gives her a shrewd look over. She looks tall and powerful, so if anyone could help with his little experiment, it'd be someone of her build and stature. But since she's in a bad mood...]

All right, then let me rephrase. Have you ever been so mad you just wanna throw stuff, get it all out of your system?

[He offers her the rock, and then quickly adds,] Uh, but not at me or anyone in here, though! Just throw it up.

[Do it for science, his expression seems to say. Doitdoitdoit.]
horniness: (069.)

rebirth;

[personal profile] horniness 2022-07-30 10:19 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Who left their child here unattended? Does he look like some kind of caretaker? This matter he would normally allow Lilia to deal with in his stead, as Lilia is far more accustomed to dealing with small human children than he is, but he has yet to find him or his housemates anywhere.

...Meaning he's stuck with this child for the foreseeable future, even if all recent experience with the youth who are not from Briar Valley has generally been unpleasant. ]


I have seen neither. You are the only other creature I've encountered in this world.

[ Unfortunately. For the both of them. ]

Do you not have a magicam device with which to summon him with?

[ He's sure that's what all the kids use to communicate over long distances these days, but such knowledge is still foreign to him. ]
coerthantorment: (129)

[personal profile] coerthantorment 2022-07-30 10:21 pm (UTC)(link)
There are many reasons that Estinien is feeling particularly unstable and aggressive, and it takes a conscious effort for him to remain composed. She is a dragon, after all... a people has come to love but spent most of his life fearing and hating. Seeing one coiled defensively triggers instincts within him that have kept him alive. Yet, he knows he cannot forsake her here.

"...Away from this cavern, past the warriors guarding it... and then... wherever you please."

He settles on clawed feet, his pale skin and scales seeming to glow dimply in the low light of the cavern.

"But know... Wherever you call home, you are there no longer. You have woken on a different star... one ruled by a being intent upon destroying all you hold dear. Had they their way, they would enthrall you as one of their servants. I have come to spare you from that fate."
arcaneward: (Default)

aerith gainsborough | ff7 remake | martyr (pleroma)

[personal profile] arcaneward 2022-07-30 10:21 pm (UTC)(link)
THE DREAMING.

[ No. No, no, no. It’s all wrong, this is all wrong!

Aerith reaches out, stretching her fingers as far as they’ll go, but she can’t reach any of it, can’t save it — she sees the church in the slums, the people of Sector 7, her mother — all of it devoured by the chilling void that she had fought so hard to stop, that she’d defied destiny to stop. She can feel heart sink, heavy with the knowledge that she couldn’t do it, after all. That it was all for nothing and no one.

And, so. She walks. Her steps are slow and meticulous. She takes it all in, watching the world she called her home turn to nothing. Not even ash remains, and she reaches up, clasping her hands together in a prayer that she knows now will reach no one, and after a brief second, she gives up. There is nothing now, and maybe.. maybe this was the only way it could go after all.

There’s one last hint of color at her feet, a small garden of bright yellow lilies, glowing with life abundant. And then, they too, are taken, and Aerith closes her eyes and drops to her knees. It’s over. There is nothing left.

Perhaps it’s only a few seconds. Perhaps it’s an eternity. She can’t really say, but she hears footsteps behind her, and Aerith opens her eyes and turns, guarded even in her desperation to see someone else. ]


Cloud?

[ Whoever it is, she slowly stands to meet them, turning around, trying (with little success) to hide the pain on her face. ]

THE REBIRTH.
[ The warmth is a stark difference from how cold she felt in her dreams, and at first Aerith doesn’t want to wake up. She scrunches her face in annoyance, at first, and then when she opens her eyes, it’s fear — something has caught her up, and panic begins to set in as she starts to struggle. Her strength isn’t very good on a, well, good day, and she tries to get her arms free of the position she’s in; something fetal. Her mind flashes to her days at the Shinra labs, and she stops, breathing hard.

No, she won’t let them take her again.

Her hand finally finds purchase on the side of her cage, and she pushes, surprise turning to determination at the feeling of her hand move through whatever substance has her pinned so tightly against herself. She punches and kicks and finally feels the wall give way and with a cry of surprise, she slides out of her capsule and onto the floor in a heap, trying to catch her breath.

It takes her a few moments to get her bearings, but the first thing she notices is that she’s not in Midgar. The second thing she notices is how cold the floor is against her bare skin. The third thing she notices is that she’s got bare skin, and she fumbles to try and cover herself with hands, arms, and hair, cheeks flushed bright pink as she glances at the other people around her, just as weak and naked as she is. She shivers, clearing her throat to speak. ]


Does anyone know where we are?

[ She doesn’t recognize any faces, but the fact that there are other capsules — no, crystals — like the one she was apparently in that are still in tact doesn’t mean that the other four members of her group hadn’t been taken just like her. ]
.

TO THE PLEROMA

Oh!

[ It’s one of the iridescent crabs that’s caught her eye, and Aerith trots forward towards it, kneeling down to examine it a little bit closer. ]

Hello there!

[ It’s the first time she’s really smiled since arriving here, or so it feels like. Wherever this place is, at least it has it’s own beauty, right?

She stands up after the crab wanders away and slowly turns around to take in her current surroundings — she even reaches out to dip her fingers into the wall of water surrounding the area, though she doesn’t do much more than that after noticing the clothing and blankets laid out. She takes one of the blankets first, wrapping herself up in it and heaving a small sigh of relief at the warmth that starts to creep back into her body, and then settles down near the water wall to catch her breath.

She’ll think about actual clothes when she’s taken a moment to collect herself. ]



Edited 2022-07-30 22:26 (UTC)
galdorleod: ([black] interrupted)

rebirth

[personal profile] galdorleod 2022-07-30 10:22 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Outside the cave, a young man is waiting, and yes, he is actually waiting specifically for you, Yeager. He'd seen the crystal that birthed him inside the cave a few hours earlier and knew that someone was likely to hatch from it, so he made sure to be here when that did happen. Howl has been the only Celebrant Aion in Horos for so long now — aside from Dionys, that is — and how could he pass up the chance to not just meet another of his Legacy, much less claim them for the Kenoma?

The wizard lounges on a rock, enjoying the later afternoon sun, when he hears a voice coming from the entrance to the cave. Even having expected one more person to emerge, it's still a surprise to see them there. Once the surprise passes, he leaps up from the rock and picks up a wicker basket that had been sitting beside him, filled with what looks like folded clothes.
]

Ah, good afternoon! Over here! [ He waves to him and holds up the basket, but he does not get closer. There's no way to know how a person is feeling when they emerge, considering everything they've just been through and will be going through, and he doesn't want to spook him. ] No weapons, I'm afraid, but I've clothing for you!
fallingsand: (83;)

bruno madrigal / encanto / the martyr

[personal profile] fallingsand 2022-07-30 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
crossroads (dreaming)
[ It feels impossible to move from this spot, standing, frozen in part both horror and awe of the expanse of galaxies spread out all around him.

Both paths — the dark and the light — tug at him but he remains where he is, staring up, watching as, slowly, lights in the distance begin to blink out, one by one. Witnessing it drags up a gut-twisting sensation of dread. He feels as though he's seen this before. He may have. This place feels familiar enough. In a vision, perhaps, once upon a time, but when? Why? Or is it all in his head?
]

They're... they're dying. Why are they dying?

[ He asks in a hushed tone, speaking as though in a church and not wishing to interrupt anyone else. He yearns to know why, why are the lights going out, but, at the same time, he wants to reject any answer that may come.

This isn't real, after all. It can't be. It's only a dream. He needs to wake up.
]
rebirth (shrine of the marytr)
[ Nothing is more traumatic than being hit with the realization that your world is gone. His home, his family, he can't even feel the magic from the miracle anymore, and all three of those crushing realities hit him as he breaks through the crystalline shell and lands wetly on the cold, stony ground of the shrine. That he's lacking in clothes of any sort doesn't break through everything else rushing through his head just yet because all he wants to do is curl up and keen like an injured animal, arms covering his face and fingers threading through his damp hair, gripping clumps of it simply for the sake of having something to hold onto as sobs wrack his small, narrow form.

Things were about to be better. He finally got to go home, for real, to be a part of his family again, to be a part of everything again. There wasn't going to be any more hiding, no more isolation because of his visions, no more... he was finally going to be happy... and now, it was all gone.

It would be sensible to try and figure out what's happened, where he is, anything at all besides weeping in despair, but he can't even consider it right now. It's too much for Bruno. To have everything he could have hoped for one moment and then have it senselessly destroyed the next.
]
returned (kenoma; cw: intrusive thoughts)
[ Let's be honest here, in the state he's in, Bruno was and is an easy mark for the Kenoma, and one would think his despair over the loss of his family would make the odious sludge they've forced down his throat do its work quickly, only therein lies the dilemma. To accept the better universe the whispers offer, one has to desire continued existence in the first place.

Bruno will spend several days pressed against a corner, trying to hide — and failing, there isn't really anywhere to hide. There, he leans against where one wall meets the other to form that corner, legs drawn up to his chest as if trying to make himself as small as possible. Easily done, as he is already a truly small man. There, he sits, still, staring off blankly across the vast room, black ooze rimming his eyelids and slowly dripping down his face.

Sheer misery is all he projects as he's forced to go over and over again everything he must have done wrong in life to deserve this. He was the one who caused trouble. He was the one people feared. Maybe they had been right after all. Why is he still alive, why is he here, why isn't he dead and gone, too? He would at least be with his family then, if he, too, were...

Safe to say, it isn't a fun time to be around him. The thoughts he projects are grim ones, to say the least.
]
arcaneward: (Default)

[personal profile] arcaneward 2022-07-30 10:24 pm (UTC)(link)
Hello! I'd love for someone to snag Aerith from the Martyr shrine for the Pleroma side!
settingup: (i won't give up)

[personal profile] settingup 2022-07-30 10:27 pm (UTC)(link)
[ At least this time the kid Amos found doesn't have a magical mentor waiting in the wings to swoop down and attack anyone trying to steal her student away.

Not that Amos knows that. These two haven't even had a conversation about whether or not Atsumu has any magic (he absolutely doesn't), and Atsumu's still trying to wrap his head around this whole mess to begin with. Everything about this feels beyond surreal, and despite the multiple face slaps and inability to wake up, he's still struggling with the idea that he's stumbled ass backwards into another world.

What he does know is that the 'beverage' that Amos is offering him looks putrid, and whatever safety his strange man is offering him doesn't seem worth it to sip something that might really mess him up. He's a boy who prefers to watch sports on TV to fantasy movies, but he's still seen 'em. You drink an unknown potion, and who knows what's going to happen to you?

Besides, the clear difference in their situations doesn't dawn on him the way he should. He's been a big guy for a long time, taller and more muscular than most of the adults he knows, and that can give a guy a real false sense of security in the world around him. Not a lot of people on the street are going to go out of their way to pick a fight with him, and even though Amos doesn't look like a pushover at all, the fact that he'd use force on him hasn't really set in.

He recoils from the vial, giving Amos a disgruntled look at his refusal to accept Atsumu's clear pass on that one.
]

I ain't doin' it at all!

[ And with that he reaches up and tries to push Amos' arm away. Give it up, buddy. He's not interested in your evil energy drink. ]
emblazer: (019.)

[personal profile] emblazer 2022-07-30 10:31 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Not the fanciest of shrines, especially since the ones in Thoma's world tend to be more architecturally impressive, but– he nods. ]

There are a couple around, though I couldn't tell you who built them or much about them at all. If you're really like the rest of us, then you're probably still feeling fuzzy from the recent dream and being transported here from your world.

[ Which is why he brought snacks. It's harder to think on an empty stomach, and he's trying to reduce some of the trauma of the whole situation, especially if it was a bad dream Claude experienced... Thoma still only remembers the barest traces of blinding light and watching his own home at a great distance in his own. ]

If you're hungry and still tired, you can take a load off and eat, then I can try and answer your questions as best as I can.

[ The cover on the basket is removed to show off all the tightly rolled up rice balls he made with salmon-like fish in the center. ]

I promise it's not poisonous, but I can eat one in front of you if you need more proof.
vapour: (pic#15073514)

[personal profile] vapour 2022-07-30 10:32 pm (UTC)(link)
( ooc hey! We had an Aerith before albeit not for very long; Are you okay with current players recognizing her or would you prefer blank slate? )
arcaneward: (Default)

[personal profile] arcaneward 2022-07-30 10:34 pm (UTC)(link)
( OOC: I'm fine with that! :D She won't recognize them, but that's part of the fun! )
eightfoldfiend: (Kiss me like the apocalypse.)

Yuber | Suikoden | Firebrand (Going to Kenoma)

[personal profile] eightfoldfiend 2022-07-30 10:36 pm (UTC)(link)
I. THE DREAM

[Yuber had been withdrawing from the world, pulling his soul back from the realm of humanity into the familiar chill of the World of Emptiness. But when he opens his eyes that world seems to be lifetimes away.

What meets him is definitely empty but it is not the barren landscape of the World of Emptiness. It is a churning void of colors and stars.

He stares upward at the infinite firmament, thoughts unreadable from his distant expression. Stars have never been beautiful to him. They are the sparks of the cosmos, marks of the law of order. A place for everything, everything in its place.

Slowly, his mismatched gaze lowers to stare down the churning pathways before him. One seems to lead into the light. Deep down, he feels that light calling to him. The pull is not unlike the longing of the True Runes. Despite their war, they want to become one and return the world to darkness. This light will consume him, just like the Runes wanted to.

So he starts walking down the shadowed path. Better to face oblivion than become one with the forces that have plagued him throughout his long existence. He would rather die than become order. He'd rather be nothing.

Unlike some of the other travelers, people will see him march down the shadowed path with confident purpose, taking comfort in the ruin around him. Or, at least, he outwardly seems to take comfort in it.

Sometimes he stops and looks around. The longer he walks the more he feels himself fray at the edges. Must he come undone, he wonders? Being alive had so been so much fun.

Maybe if he kills someone, maybe if he hears screams, he will come back to himself.

Anyone who is feeling afraid may see him looking their way, studying them with cold, reptilian eyes.]


II. REBIRTH: FIREBRAND

[Yuber slowly drifts into wakefulness. Having never slept before he isn't sure at first what is the lingering remnants of a dream and what is reality. Every sensation he has is thin, wispy, and barely there.

The world had been twisting and giving away around him. Blackness had filled his vision and his mind, had twisted his heart. Everything had been sinking into oblivion, including himself.

Now, suddenly, he breathes again, but the air is stifling. For a moment he wonders if he has been trapped between dimensions. A heartbeat later and he realizes he is encased in something. He thrashes, digging his fingernails into the material laying against his body until he finally manages to claw his way free with a satisfying crackle and shatter.

The crystal blows violently outward as he emerges, staggers, then drops to his hands and knees.

Weak. He is so weak.

Somehow his world is dead, he is dead, all of creation is in ruin and yet he still breathes.

Stupid.

There is a shifting sound close by and Yuber realizes there is someone else in the room. Many someones, in fact.

He will lash out with one arm and grab the nearest person without looking up.]


Where am I?

[His low voice is dark and unpleasant, not because he is trying to sound menacing, but because it is always dark and unpleasant.]
Edited 2022-07-30 22:40 (UTC)
regressor: (REGRESSING)

[personal profile] regressor 2022-07-30 10:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[It is pathetically easy to pry her hand off of his pants. She is weak, not just from her recent rebirth, but from far before, her petite body thin and bony from years of living as unnoticed as she could between small wads of filthy cash. He holds it, and she instinctively clutches not just at her robe but at his fingers, her grip shaking with effort despite how pitifully lacking it is in strength.

Whether he intended it as comfort or not... She gropes for anything that she can use, anything that might tether her in this moment and keep her from answering the whisper of Hell's Gate pulsing behind her eyes.]


Please...

[People who will be cross with him... She doesn't want to ask it of him. She's sorry to. She was supposed to have someone who would do this for her, someone who had promised that he would kill her, if she turned out not to be able to accept her powers back without losing the precious scraps of feeling and budding emotion she'd been able to scrape together since she awoke in eastern Europe.

He reaches for her other hand, and though she seems to be trying to stop him... it's a bit more that she can't offer it to him. She has been clutching that fistful of robe for so long that all of her joints are locked, frozen in the claw-like curl and the occasional tightening to force her broken bones to throb with pain as a defense against losing her focus, losing the battle against the sludge coursing through her veins and spilling out of her shard and her ears.

If he can't give that to her... His question about what had happened to her hand reminds her of snaps and screams in a Syndicate safehouse, of Hei-]


Hei... Is Hei here? I need... I need to see Hei....

[If it were Hei... Surely she could convince him. He had held her cheek so gently when he told her that she could live, that she didn't have to die...

But he'd been wrong. She wasn't strong enough.]
scythegun: (COY ⇝)

[personal profile] scythegun 2022-07-30 10:46 pm (UTC)(link)
There are other Celebrants at long last!!! I'm going to be delayed on tags but I am very excited to hit Howl's, I love him and while I have no idea how this thread will shake out, I'm sure it'll be a lot of fun!
eightfoldfiend: (A Rorschach test on fire)

[personal profile] eightfoldfiend 2022-07-30 10:46 pm (UTC)(link)
Any Kenoma recruiter is welcome to collect a newly hatched chaos demon thing at the Firebrand shrine.