buttrinthum | 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

"I did not say I would not be trouble, merely that I do not make to be so on purpose." It always follows him, though. As does a large, green dragon. He searches the skies again, just in case.

"All hands on deck. Seems a worthwhile approach. What is the solution we are looking for?"

"That's the other question." Loki said with a sigh. "Some want to get back home away from this place. Others want their wishes granted. The two are not mutually exclusive either, but how to solve them is where folks disagree."

Loki raised an eyebrow. "As I said, you're stuck here. What do you want? And while I'm curious you needn't tell me what you wished for, in your contract. If you're even aware of what you wished for."

"I recall." But he isn't going to tell. It's treason and that's not something he's at all comfortable voicing to anyone, regardless of where he might find himself.

"I would like my dragon. For the moment, however, I am keen to explore this place and see what it has to offer."

"There are dragons here, although it's unlikely your personal dragon is among them. If that proves to be false, please let me know as it'll be an interesting piece of information." And Loki would be questioning the other further if that turned out to be true. He had not sensed the other lying yet...though that didn't necessarily mean anything definitive.

"Any other questions about your arrival here?"

"Are there?" He brightens at that. Look, Loki, you might have made his day.

"Is there somewhere to stay? An inn, perhaps?"

"If there is, it's well hidden. But you're in luck. Basic housing is free." Loki tilted his head, and chuckled a bit. "Although given that you introduced yourself as Prince Aemond, you might find the free options beneath you. Or you might not. I've not talked with you enough yet to determine what kind of royal you are, really."

Loki shrugged, then crossed his arms. "Basic housing is free, in the form of hill houses, mushroom houses, or tree houses. All require some fixing up, though the hill houses are a little nicer in my opinion. Cottages can also be had, and also require a bit of fixing up. They're a bit much for one person, being designed for 2-3, but they're nicer. Anything beyond those options costs shards though. None of them come with the amenities of indoor plumbing, running water, or electricity outright though."

A pause, then a faint smile. "If you're a social sort, you could possibly find room-mates, as there is a castle or two around that groups have gotten and live together."

He finds all of this beneath him. There is none of this that he wants to deal with.

"I am not the social sort." Like, not at all. "A cottage will do. I will fix what needs to be fixed. Where can I find them?"

Too bad, because he's gonna have to deal with it anyways. "Social or not, hopefully you can at least be polite as that'll get you far enough. The cottages exist on the south-east side of the business district in town, not far from the exit of the garden. To the true east are the castles, the school, and the Labyrinth and lake Omen. To the South West of the cottage area are the tree houses."

Loki smiles wryly. "Would you like me to play tour guide as well?"

He assumes so and he's not looking forward to it. Fixer-uppers. Being social. No Vhagar. Could this get any worse?

He takes in the directions well enough, mapping them out in his mind.

"It might be helpful."

"Then let's find our way out of this garden. I can continue to try and answer questions, if you'd like." Loki just started walking, assuming Aemond would fall in beside him. Or behind him. Or wherever.

He follows at first, but quickly takes stride beside the other man. "What manner of businesses are here? And what is here called, if it has a name?"

"The island is called Visium, with the town being known as Somnius. And it depends. There's a tavern and other places to get food and drink; some more advanced in technology than others. We've a dance club, which is a place people gather that has music and alcohol for people to dance and socialize at. There are the usual sorts of shops and businesses. There's an arcade of video-games--which you'll have to see, carefully, and I'll explain once we're there."

Fortunately they both had long legs and could make a decent pace, even though Loki talked as they walked.

TDM #10

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