buttrinthum | TDM #10

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TDM #10

Arrival / Enchanted Garden

Whether it be sleep or death, you feel your eyes close, and as your body begins to let go, you see a barn owl that is flying through the darkness, soon sweeping you across the clouded sky. You feel yourself mouth the words, “I wish, I wish..” and utter your deepest and darkest desire.

When you regain consciousness, you’ll find you are in an unfamiliar place with no recognition of how you arrived here. You have the clothes on your back, but nothing else. No weapons and if you had a particular superpower, you’ll notice it is missing. All you have is a satchel with a piece of bread, a vial of water, and a potion. The potion could be red, blue or golden. There are no instructions about these potions other than two words: Drink Me.

Will you drink it or not?

There is a parchment, handwritten in scrawling, jagged lettering that seems a bit... ominous:

“Welcome to my Labyrinth. Your CONTRACT is SEALED.”

You’re in a garden, surrounded by flowers and plants– most of which you cannot identify. However, there are a few that you can make out: Sunflowers and Hibiscus. You’ll soon find out that being around the Sunflower makes it difficult to pass through the already disorienting garden, even with the light guiding you. Where patches of them grow, even if only waist-high, you cannot pass through them, over them, or even destroy them to get them out of your way. In each grouping that blocks your path, there is one that has a key-shaped opening in the middle of the flower. Maybe the key is nearby? (Spoiler: it's probably under a rock nearby that you forgot to check!) The hibiscus offers an entirely different effect - inhaling the pollen grants you the temporary ability to shoot fireballs out of your hands. But be careful, those fireballs are difficult to control and seem to bounce in random directions no matter how hard you try to aim (cannot be used to destroy the sunflowers). The effect ends once you step out of the garden.

It's Dangerous to go Alone! Take This.

Somnius is once again recovering from a devastating blow. Buildings need to be restored to their former glory and the emotional turmoil of the previous weeks surely needs to be alleviated. What better way to lighten the mood than a little fun for the whole family? A new arcade has appeared in town, beckoning residents with its stone doors set wide open.

With multiple levels, a variety of games and even a snackbar, Appl3 Pi Arcade is sure to be a hit!

Of course, as with everything that ever happens in Somnius, the arcades appearance is not without some complications. For one, playing the games inside might see characters teleported into the machine itself, perfectly pixelated to fit the game they're in. Hope you weren't about to fight the final boss, because now you might be fighting for your life! The good news is, if you die in the game... you don't die in real life and are just popped back out into the arcade again.

Strange things happen outside the arcade too. Walking down the road you might suddenly see a healthbar pop up above someone's head. Are you supposed to fight them? Are they going to fight you? Best to be cautious and reach for any trusty weapons you have just in case. Weapons that have become pixelated and can be pulled seemingly out of nowhere like some kind of hammerspace. They are also prone to breaking and shattering into glimmering pixel pieces (your normal weapons are still intact, don't worry).

Boxes and pots around Somnius are somehow more breakable than usual, smashed open with a single swing of those pixel weapons and producing gold coins! What a shame gold coins aren't the currency here. But if you don't want to destroy more things around Somnius, why not try fishing instead? That seems safe - if not suddenly more difficult with the fishing minigame that popped up in front of you. Quick! Keep the fish icon in the green bar or you'll lose it!

All things considered? It's all relatively harmless fun up until-

But Enough Talk, Have At You!

Vaeros wakes up. For those new to town, this means nothing. For those that were here for the castle raid? They can rest assured that they're in for a surprise. The Overlord of Visium has finally awoken from his Hyalily induced coma and he is furious. A shout echoes from the castle:

"Did you think you had won, dear Dreamers? Did you think you had bested me? Go, play your games, but know that there is only one winner here, and it is me."

A wave of magical energy sweeps through the town, shaking it to the very core. Miraculously, the destroyed buildings and any remnants of the forest onslaught are gone and returned to their usual state. Perhaps Vaeros shouting was just another tantrum, an empty threat?

Not quite.

The town has been restored, but the locals? They are nowhere to be seen - cowering in their homes and fleeing to the sanctity of the Church of the Moon in hopes of staying out of sight of Vaeros and Dreamers both. The once tame video game effects are now far more intense - monsters from within those games are now rampaging through the town. They seem to shift through buildings, but if they run face first into a Dreamer, they will find them very corporeal and very deadly.

Not only that, but the lines are starting to blur between reality and fiction again, the healthbar above your head flickering in and out, the monsters turning from pixel beasts to real, live animals that roam Somnius - both feral and not. One second you are walking through town, and the next you are stepping onto a platform that starts to break under your weight, demanding you jump to the next platform before you plummet into an odd, multicolored abyss.

And strangest of all is that music coming from the labyrinth, growing louder when you approach and fading out when you move away.

OOC

Welcome to the labyrinthum TDM! Characters will arrive depowered and with only their clothing, and will be given a satchel with a crystal pendant, a communication device, some water and bread and a magic potion. If they drink the potion, they will manifest an elemental, healing or animal transformation ability.

With the exception of Castle Vaeros, characters are free to go as they please, so feel free to place them in any of the locations available on the map. Yes, this includes the Labyrinth - though characters will not be able to clear the maze.

You can find more information about the game here. Any questions regarding the TDM can go under the comment below.

OVERFLOW POST

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Arrival

Waking up in a strange place in not something he is used to. He rises carefully, aware enough that his sword and knife are gone, and takes in his immediate surroundings.

No Vhagar.

He notices the pouch at his side and peers inside curiously. A pendant of crystal, an unknown device, water, bread and a tonic of some kind. He turns the device over in his hands, attempting to figure it out. The potion he ignores. He takes out the pendant and examines it closely as well, holding it up to the sky.

Perhaps the light will reveal something?

Enchanted Gardens

There are gardens enough in the Red Keep, yet he recognizes nothing about this one, not even the flowers.

The garden doesn't seem to end, yet the further he moves it feels the less ground he covers. There's no real forward movement and he lets out a noise of frustration. Another few moments and he starts to get the feeling he's not alone.

Where in the Seven hells is he?

Wildcard

[The worst player/character combination for a video game theme! Throw anything at me you'd like. PM for discussion.]

Fortunately (or unfortunately), Aemond is not alone. Loki was not one to frequent the garden, but he did wander there occasionally. This was one of those times, when he spotted the stranger. Making his way over, he was amused when the stranger held up the crystal to the sky to peer through it.

"Looking for striations or interesting designs?" He called?

Edited 2024-07-05 20:53 (UTC)

He glances over his shoulder at the other man. What appears to be a man. Once determined not to be a threat, he turns his attention away from Loki and back to the crystal.

"Anything that may explain to me where I find myself." He looks again at the device in his other hand. "This tells me nothing."

He turns to face the stranger. "Do you know?"

Loki only looks like he's not a threat. He very much could be if he wanted, but fortunately he's in much better moods and places these days. "There should be a piece of paper in your bag too. Not that it'll help much, but it will tell you something. I can fill in the gaps after you read that."

Aemond can only do a threat assessment based on appearances at the moment. He'll learn quickly.

"A paper?" He sets the crystal and device aside and rummages through the satchel, bringing the paper out to read aloud. "'Welcome to my Labyrinth. Your CONTRACT is SEALED.' That is extremely unhelpful."

"Huh, the text is different." Loki was making a mental note of that, and of roughly what month it was, so he could update his notes. This might or might not have significance.

"It used to read something like 'Welcome to my Labyrinth. Per our agreement, you have consented to live your life here for an undetermined amount of time. In exchange, I will grant you the wish that you desire the most.' Everyone who's brought here had a copy of that in a bag, along with the crystal pendent, the device, a potion in either red, gold, or blue, and some water and bread."

Crossing his arms, Loki murmured. "I wonder what made Vaeros change it..." Mostly to himself.

He looks affronted.

"I consented to no such thing." Did he? He doesn't remember... an owl and that's about it. Did he make a wish? He may very well have. And he likely meant it.

"The tonic? Golden, it is. I did not touch it." The vial remains in the pouch, full and unopened. "Who is Vaeros?"

"Well, let's start at the beginning. As you were approaching unconsciousness via sleep or some other means, you were likely approached by a being we suspect to be a member of the Fae, named Vaeros. You're not alone if you don't remember, or only remember a little bit. That's common. We're all here because we supposedly made a wish. In exchange for living here for some time, we'll be granted that wish. No, we don't know any more details."

A pause. "If you had any weapons, they're gone. If you had any powers besides being an ordinary human, they are also gone. The bottles are not tonics, but potions. Different colors can give you a magical ability. Gold means that you'll shapeshift into an animal, though that's random and not of your choosing. The animal, not controlling the shapeshifting--you'll have some control over that."

He listens attentively, more questions coming to him than anything, though they are too many to voice right now.

There's just one he has for the moment.

"Who are you?"

"I am Loki, of Asgard. I've been here about 8 or 9 months at this point." It's a fair question to ask. Loki is waiting to see if there's any recognition from the other too.

There is none. A name and a place he has never heard of.

"Well met, Loki of Asgard. I am Prince Aemond Targaryen of Westeros." He makes no offer of a hand to shake nor does he nod toward Loki. He is too on edge for niceties.

"A labyrinth, then? Are we meant to find our way in or out?"

"It's not clear which. Well met to you, Prince Aemond. I should warn you, that most of the royalty here doesn't stand much on protocol. Hopefully that will not be too much of a problem?" Loki really hoped it wouldn't, and that he might not have to pull rank considering he was a prince AND a rightful king... Then again, he didn't know where Westeros was so it might not matter.

"The labyrinth basically guards the castle. It's only open at certain times as well, and none of us have found our way through it yet. Vaeros stays in his castle as far as we can tell, and interacts with us rarely at best. He's also not in the best of moods, given recent events. But I'm not sure he has a good mood. If you're suspicious of all of this, then you're quite right to be so."

A soft chuckle, and Loki unfolds his arms so the prince can see them. "But I mean you no harm. I'm not usually one of us who comes to the Gardens to check for newcomers, but sometimes... All of this is freely offered, as you're stuck in this situation as much as any of us."

"I should think not. I am more a knight than a king." Though that Loki still calls him prince is helping.

He eyes the castle, a place he would be more comfortable living in than being off in the distance. "Of course I'm suspicious. This is all quite a bit to take in."

He then looks back to the other man, his arms open and clearly unarmed. As is Aemond himself. "Freely offered for what? Merely living here?" Too easy an answer. There is always a give and take.

"Freely offered information for the new arrival. Should have guessed you'd be suspicious regardless." Loki shakes his head with a soft chuckle.

"I find myself suddenly in a strange place with strange people, unarmed, and I am not to be wary?" That makes no sense to him. Loki is weird.

"No, if you're smart--you're wary. I didn't expect you to be unsuspicious. I was actually attempting to reassure you. Clearly I failed."

"I doubt anyone would have success in this moment." He's draw his sword, just in case, but he doesn't have one. Seven Hells.

"What do you suggest I do first?"

"I suggest you let me explain to you how the local currency works, and then you head to town. I can also try and answer some other questions if you'd like." Loki said amicably.

"Go on, then." He'll take as much general help as he can get right now. Knowing there's a town and others like him is somewhat comforting.

"The local currency here is 'shard's. They're not physical, but are transferred between crystal pendants or the big crystal in town, if you're wishing for something. You gain them simply by interacting." Loki explained, more patiently than he was feeling honestly.

"There are also quite a few beings here who do not look human, so try to not assume they're automatically the enemy. Some of them are just like you and I--trapped here."

"I can request a sword, then." It won't be his but it will be something. The patience would be appreciated if it wasn't expected.

"I only assume something is the enemy if it tries to attack me and mine."

"You can, there's also two blacksmiths in town. Would you like to know how to use your device?" Loki assumes yes, but he's still gonna ask just to be a smartass.

"Blacksmiths will be useful. I thank you."

The device? He'd forgotten about that.

"Aye. What is its purpose?"

"Well, I'm guessing from your manner and dress, as well as unfamiliarity with it, that you're from a time period most would refer to as Medieval." Not that Loki expected Aemond to know what that meant. "The good news, is that most of the town and this area will be familiar in its ways and means to you then. But there are those of us brought here who are from what you or I would consider the future. Things such as electrically based indoor lighting, or running water in the home, might be unfamiliar but common to others. The device is modeled after things known as mobile telephone. A telephone itself is a device from the future, per our current viewpoint, that allows others to talk to each other over great distances via voice."

Loki was trying to keep it simple, but helpful. "If you'll examine the device, you'll notice it has buttons with numbers on them. Those numbers also may have tiny letters as well. You can use that device to talk to someone else who has one, by dialing their number or using the numbers to type out their username." There's an eyebrow raise. "Would you rather this be demonstrated?"

Edited 2024-07-08 02:55 (UTC)

Again, a lot to take in all at once. He eyes the device as Loki speaks, again turning it over and studying it carefully.

"It projects our voice to another device, to be heard by an intended listener." It's a great simplification but it gets to the basic point, one that he can understand and utilize.

Aemond Targaryen | House of the Dragon | New player/character

Arrival (Welcome to the TDM)

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