You're probably woken up by the explosion first. A loud, deafening boom comes from behind the walls of the residential district. When you look outside your window towards the darker, more secretive area of the city, you might see the structure around it... crumbling, the land falling in on itself slowly but surely. That might be what wakes you up first. If it doesn't, you may be awoken instead by the sudden jerking feeling behind your navel pulling you from where you are to somewhere... else.
It's dark. The first thing you notice is that it's dark -- and then come the scrabbling sounds of creatures in the dark, like metal being dragged across metal, a chilling, sharp sound. The first thing that becomes clear, as your vision adjusts, is that you're on a rickety pathway, metal and rusting and frail, above what appears to be yawning blackness. Far, far below, there's the faint sound of rushing water, a ways away.
The second thing that becomes clear is that you are very much not alone. Something is out there with you, and from the screeching metallic noises that come ever closer, it seems to be stalking you.
Thankfully, you're not alone -- right?  ...
...........
................
:)
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PHASE I [ ??? ] It’s drafty here. You’re below ground, that’s for certain from the echoes of the wind in the darkness. If you continue on forwards along the rickety, metal railing that serves as a walkway, the skittering noises of creatures in the dark follow -- but they don’t appear.
It seems everyone has been dumped along this pathway at random; you may be with friends, with enemies or with someone you’ve never met before, but either way, it soon becomes clear. There are only two ways to go along this path: up or down.
If you choose to take the path that follows a gradual slope down, the sounds of water lapping against a surface increase bit by bit, the air growing heavier and danker, until finally, the metallic platform gives way very suddenly (watch your step!) to a muddy bank. Down here, everything is darker, and not far away there’s the water. It’s cold and frigid and there are unfriendly creatures that await if you choose to delve into it. However, if you brave those creatures, and dive deeply enough, there is a mask. It rests half-buried by silt and rocks, but it’s there, and can be found by any intrepid explorers.
Somehow, it feels a little familiar.
And if you carry on in the cave system underground, eventually you will come across what appears to be an altar. There is blood on it -- not fresh, but not more than a month old -- and pieces of trinkets. Old bits of cloth, locks of hair, and some of them may even be familiar. Any dropped character who has a reasonably large amount of spiritual or magical power may have left scraps, such as pieces of clothing, trinkets, hair, or the sort behind at the altar.
Maybe that's why they weren't in the Nexus Code.
PHASE II [ ??? ] If you go up, you will eventually make your way above ground. It takes some time, and some luck -- you’ll have to avoid rusty railing and pathways, the path crumbling under you and that creeping sensation that something is following and watching you -- and then you’ll suddenly be in fresh air.
Well. It’s not so fresh, really.
The landscape is broken down and crumbled. It may have once been part of the city of Cerealia, but now it is in utter disrepair and decay. Buildings have crumbled, and debris is everywhere. There are signs of the same level of technology that Cerealia has -- but it is all broken down and utterly inaccessible.
And you’re not alone.
It seems the technology and metal and broken down destruction has gained sentience over its time sitting alone, waiting. And it is not happy to be disturbed. The creatures are made of pieces of everything around them, and when cut down, they’ll just slowly rebuild themselves from the debris.
It might be time to run.
They aren't happy about being disturbed, and you're in their way.
PHASE III [ ??? ] Above ground, there are a lot of broken down buildings.
Some can’t be accessed at all; some are too broken, too reduced to rubble. For those looking for shelter, they'll be able to find buildings where the doors can be forced open and they can camp out on the inside to various degrees of stability. Though the ceiling may cave in or the floor fall out from under you at a moment's notice, it's better than being out there. Be careful, because none of the architecture here can be trusted anymore.
And other buildings... are even less trustworthy than that.
There is a series of buildings in the midst of the wasteland, somehow still standing. They stand there silently, towering over the rest of the rubble in their two-story glory, and if the doors are forced open, it soon becomes clear that the building itself is full of mirrors.
Once, the mirrors had perhaps covered the walls and ceiling. Once, this building might have been akin to something of a ballet studio, somewhere to express yourself creatively. But now the mirrors are shattered and broken into pieces and the building lacks the joy it might have once held. Shards of mirror cover the floor, some big, some not so big, but they still hang from the walls as well and everywhere you look, you can see yourself.
And then, the reflection changes. From one blink to the next, you see a memory playing in the mirrors. Your memory. You’ll see a glimpse of one of your most traumatic or life-changing moments, broken up but clear in the shards. Blink and look away, and it’s gone, only to show up again in the next mirror a few moments later. Surely it’s just a trick of the light, right?
Except if someone else is with you, they’ll see it too -- and you might end up seeing a bit of their own past as well. Hope you're fond of sharing.
PHASE IV [ ??? ] If you survive the monsters, the crumbling landscape and the untrustworthy buildings, you may eventually find a terminal. It is buried deep among the rubble. One turn around a corner, one stumble into a hole, and you will find it. It sits there, out in the middle of nowhere; the building in which it used to be housed is apparently long gone, reduced to nothing but rubble.
And if you turn it on, there is a brief message.
Transmission Broadcasting.
Transmission Connected.
And then, there is a face.
BONUS [ ??? ] For those who have been wearing their masks a little too much, they might also start to notice that there are some strange effects attached, which worsen the more they’ve been wearing said masks. How badly they worsen is up to your discretion.
➝ Broken Mask: An intense feeling of paranoia, focused on whoever your character is with. They might also begin to remember fabricated memories of being betrayed by those people.
➝ Barcode Mask: Everything will begin to have value to them. There will be whispers in the back of their mind of the worth of their friends, the worth of a monster, the worth of everything around them. An intense need to own and consume as much as possible and as quickly as possible.
➝ Dripping Blood Mask: An intense lack of self-worth, a hollow feeling and thoughts of being weak and empty. Feeling as disposable as possible and an intense listless along with it.
➝ :( Mask: A need to prove yourself, to show everyone how strong you are as quickly as possible. You can do things, you can be of worth to everyone around you. Why won't they see that? Why?
➝ Ivy Mask: A choking sort of terror from all things metal and technology based, and a need to lash out against it. An intense distrust for anything that they feel is against the laws of nature.
➝ Grey Mask: More personable than normal, more emotional, more empathetic. An intense feeling of kindness and gratitude to those around you and a renewed love of life.
➝ Feather Mask: A dulled, lack of emotion. A detached feeling to everything around you. A sort of bland curiosity towards things without any empathetic reaction.
➝ Bloody Fingerprints Mask: They'll feel absolutely fine. No change.
The effects of the broken mask can stack on top of the others, if they chose to break their mask after the other effects began to appear. No other effects can be stacked, as no other changes can be stacked.
PENALTY [ ??? ] For characters who die while in the dark parts of the city, things will get... a little strange. They will die as normal, but they will wake up almost immediately after their death -- in the Nexus Code. They will have a few surreal moments to be there, to see their friends who have left Cerealia hanging lifelessly from odd, glimmering strands (though there are some faces, of course, that are missing, anyone who was spiritual, or magical, seems strangely absent) and then --
They’re back to being dead.
When characters revive in Cerealia, anywhere from one IC day to three or four IC days later, they will find that things are… not quite right with their code. They’re glitching, for a lack of a better word. Sometimes, their fingers will phase right through an object, their own limbs registering as cold and lifeless. Sometimes, they will see a face watching them -- but when they turn around to try to see who it is, the face will be gone.
These effects will last an IC week, before slowly things go back to normal.
That was strange.
[ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with sensitive or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the log. ] |
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still ota!
[Obviously the only way out is up. That's how it worked in the TV world and that has to be how it is here. So she goes completely unarmed and stepping lightly to the surface. She pauses to look at the area, not at all understanding what it is she's seeing…until she realizes the mechanical creatures are in front of her.]
Persona!
[Kanzeon's summoned forth and gets Rise out of the way, but not far enough. She'll collide right into someone else, but she knows she has to get them out of here. She'll take whoever by the hand and pull them to run.]
Let's go! We can hide out this way.
Phase III
[Successfully outrunning the creatures Rise finds herself carefully stepping through the rubble of the buildings. She'd gone to seek help and scout, find friends or people who need help and it's then she comes across an oddly suspicious building.
She doesn't sense anything malicious about it though, and though it's an effort she manages to push herself inside. She's used to studios like this, used to practicing in them and watching herself dance and perform.
However. She approaches the mirrors and steps over the glass, peering at the shards on the walls for a moment. It's not long before it changes and she finds herself watching something horrific. She backs away in surprise, tripping backwards and landing on a few shards of glass. The glass cuts her hands and her arms a bit and there's a cry of pain as she sits up, staring at the mirrors that've now gone back to normal.]
What…what the hell was that?
Wildcard/Telepathy option
[For those with psychic abilities or telepathic abilities, over the course of time you might hear a young girl calling to you inside your head. Where's she coming from? How's she doing this? All that's clear is that she's not sure who she can reach.]
--yone hear me out there? Answer me.
[Or any other wildcard situation from the other phases, etc]
kaz
[The "ow" doesn't escape her but he doesn't seem to be too bad off. Kanzeon would have noticed if he was low on health. Still, she glances up at the Persona for a moment before she smiles brightly, almost proudly.]
That's right. You've probably heard all about them from Yu-senpai and Arisato-san. [She sure isn't even stumbling over the honorific for Minato.] This is Kanzeon. She helps me find people and guide them.
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[Kazuya tried very hard not to ask why her face was an antennae, as his admittedly poor knowledge on Persona was: "they represent our soul somehow or something". What did an aerial face mean? She... watched too much television?]
I... see. Huh, that seems useful. [...wait] Wait! You said find people? So, you can find them, anywhere, anytime??
[Then... she'd be the perfect one to ask to track Minny! He had no idea where his wayward friend had gone...]
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leon
[Stahn would probably blow up the entire colony looking for Leon if he disappeared, let's be fair here.
She's just...staring at him for a moment when he wields his sword and begins to speak to it. She's not entirely sure what's happening or why he's ignoring her, though it does surprise her when she hears the thing answer back. Her eyes widen and she's left looking between the two of them and...stepping away from the middle of the room. Good call, Chaltier.]
Why is your sword talking? [That was blunt, but uh.] Does it have a demon in it, too?
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rei
So...a third enemy. [THAT'S FANTASTIC!] Judging by the monsters out there maybe it's something manmade. Do you think CERES even knows we're here? [Would CERES even bother trying to bring them back this time?]
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keimi
[She's going to have to ask about these magical bubbles later, but right now there's now a question of actually moving someone. She looks at Keimi's hand, pouting a little as she realizes pulling her herself isn't really a viable option.]
I don't think I can move that fast, but I know someone who can. Do you trust us?
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flynn
[She just might!!! If they live that long. She looks momentarily surprised and then it suddenly makes sense why Flynn brought it up in the first place. She gives him another considering look as she nods, confident enough that she can pinpoint a good hideout for them.]
Gotcha. How fast can you run anyway? [Oh so casually...]
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viridi
I've heard the elemental spirits have shrines here. Why not build one of those if you're looking for offerings? [Duh??? Viridi come on, you've gotta market yourself!] What makes you think this isn't a vital case of survival right now?
[But suddenly all bets are off because wow. How dare you.] You've never even seen my skin! [Ugh!!!] It's glowing. [...ugh.] I take really good care of it, okay? And I bet yours wouldn't look that great either after days out here.
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rhys
It totally looks like they were built, but why? And why are they mad at us? [Being blamed for somebody else's mistake is the worst. She's quick to dodge around a pothole and making sure Rhys does the same.]
...and what kind of monsters are you used to anyway? [This might actually be important, please share with the class.]
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kashuu
Don't most machines have a core? Or a battery? Maybe we just have to find the battery pack and dislodge it...but that means getting a lot closer to it than we can right now. [She's worried about that, too. There's also the fact that they don't know how many of them there are.
In response, she just makes a little face.] Let me rephrase that. I want to repay you. [And she perks up just like that.] Think of it as something to look forward to when we get out of this mess!
[...but yeah. Food's pretty necessary.] It'd be easier maybe if we had water, too, but that supply's pretty low from what I've seen and there's no way I'm trusting the water in the caverns underground. But if you're really sure...maybe we can help you hunt next time, too.
[And by help she means make Yu do it. Sorry Yu.]
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dipper
[Honestly he's not wrong, but she was just hoping.]
No. [That's new. And she's wondering if maybe he would have brought it up if they were talking but things are still a little dicey for them.] What'd they have to say about them? He didn't tell me very much about the jungle.
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rapunzel
That's not--[She doesn't even get a chance to argue before the ripples begin and she's quietly watching. That's...a little bizarre, and only one thought occurs to her who the woman could be.
" I know how that is. Needing to do well all the time and behaving perfectly."
The scary part is how Rapunzel's not even phased. She's used to this? (Or it's the mask and Rise doesn't know it, either way.)]
What are you saying, Rapunzel?
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"chat noir"
[Considering the Shadow's back to swinging around on that pole it's probably for the better that he's not watching it. She drops her hands from his face, giving him a perplexed look before she smiles, slightly embarrassed now. She knows he's right, but it's not really something she considers all too often.]
You think so? [Let's be honest she's just happy he's not arguing with her. Sorry Adrien you now have a new friend...who...doesn't know your name is Adrien.] My friends and I all had to face our true selves at least once. Even if we were able to back then I guess it's still not really something I like to think about. But without her...I wouldn't really be me.
[They can talk about the "real me" stuff someday, maybe. For now she's attempting to be more friendly and less focused on the bad parts of this whole scenario.] My friends call me Rise.
i laugh at his name in quotes
I was so tempted to make it """""chat noir????""""" tbh
that accurately portrays his mystique
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mitsuru!
Yeah. These big things with lots of faces and made of metal. They're totally weird...they're not too fast but they're heavyhitters and they don't have a lot of weaknesses. Seems like there's a pretty set path. It's like a whole abandoned colony up here. I've been trying to find answers.
...you're alone. [It's not a question. It's a statement. Mitsuru are you going to be okay by yourself...]
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chrollo
[CHROLLO THAT'S VERY RUDE??? She's trusting you even though she really shouldn't given her canon but whatever. Alien planet. Gotta take some risks.]
Sure, give me a sec! [There's a moment of silence as she allows Kanzeon to scan, trying to sort through all of the different readings she's picking up on. It's hard to tell sometimes who's who, but she makes a "hmm..." sound shortly after.]
You're near the water?
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III!
Her wounds don't look that bad at first, but he's wasting little time taking out his Evoker regardless as injuries like these could get dangerous if infected.] These mirrors...you might want to look away from them.
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yuichiro
Depends. [There's a yell of protest as she feels herself being pushed but catching herself easily enough. Okay, so that was actually a good call.] Do the legs grow back or are these just new monsters joining the party?
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leon
[She's unaware of what he's thinking though she wouldn't be surprised. She would feel the same way if she'd found out she was being fooled (and okay, she did feel that way...less furious and humiliated but more frustrated and upset.) It's hard to really think clearly in those moments though. That's another thing she understands.
It's the same way it was hard to really think things through when she first faced her Shadow, not even fighting back as it taunted her and mocked her and only begging it to stop.
She's more focused on navigating their path (and how the hell she's doing it without really looking is yet another mystery) but it's when he speaks that she looks down, staring with surprising blankness at the reflection in the glass. The Shadow giggles, twirling suddenly and running down the stage and into the unknown to give chase.]
Yeah. It is. [What can she say? Ignoring her Shadow last time caused the whole memory that's looping, but at the same time she can't really deny that it's her either.] Don't worry about her. She's been taken care of.
[They make it out to a hall and she decides it's safe to let go of Leon's hands, eyes filled with concern even if she's glancing at a large shard hanging just behind his head.] Is this better?
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byakuya
[Not the type to just take no for an answer, huh? She tilts her chin up a little and watches him closely, testing this out to see just how much she wanted to reveal.]
And what did Kirijo-san have to say about them that made you so curious?
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hajime
Maybe that's true but it's not like--h-hey! Wait a second! [NOPE, BEING PULLED. This isn't exactly unusual but she's used to leading.] Where are you taking us? This way's faster!
[Unless of course Hajime has another idea which...she might. Rise could get behind that.]
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rock lee
[Ah. Lovely. She frowns lightly in thought as she glances back at the mirror with the call of "look at me~!" from the Shadow in her memories.]
They're kind of weird, aren't they? Don't believe what you see in there. This is the real me right here. [Who...has accepted the Shadow part so clearly nobody should look at the mirror again.] You didn't see anything else?
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genos
Right, like I'm just gonna leave you here? [Don't be a moron, Genos. She's ducking behind a stray piece of rubble though, peering around it to get a better view of the advancing monsters.] I can help you defeat them, I just have to scan their weaknesses. Then you can hit them with everything you've got!
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yuuri
[She doesn't hesitate and she keeps up the pace, glancing behind them to find that they're at least able to keep a good distance from the monsters rolling right along behind them. When they reach the building and Yuuri opens the door she follows right behind him and slams it shut. Letting go of his hand, she approaches the window of what looks like what used to be a store front, staring out into the wasteland to pinpoint their mechanical friends.]
That was close...why are we always running from something around here? [SERIOUSLY, CEREALIA.] You okay?
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jaune
...it...wasn't really awkward until you said that. [But she finds it funny more than anything judging by the fact that her response is to laugh instead of blow him off.] So let's make it less awkward. I'm Rise. Sorry about the whole...drag and run thing.
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iii
It doesn't make sense to her - why is Rise so scantily clad? Is that truly her occupation then? Even though she'd been about to look away, shaking her head over it and calling it a trick of the place, she sees the deranged look in the other girl's eyes. Curiosity keeps her rooted in the same spot, watching as a different Rise - a fully-clothed one - looks completely distressed over the actions of the other. From there, Lili can't look away. Not when there's a monster and a battle and--
The sound of a cry of pain pulls her away, Lili immediately running toward it before she can stop herself.
She doesn't stop to think that there's nothing she can do - but upon seeing Rise on the floor, she blinks once. Twice.]
Y-You....!
[Sane Rise!! But in all seriousness, she's wandering over, moving to kneel in front of the other girl carefully.]
Did you hurt yourself?
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