buttrinthum | TDM #10 OVERFLOW

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Jasmine's continuing to take trips to the garden in search of new people, even in the midst of... whatever's going on with these video-game things in the village. Actually, maybe it's because of what's going on, she can hardly wrap her head around most of it.

So she dodges the sudden brick walls and the bouncing red balls and the giant ravenous corn cobs - seriously, what? - to get there, praying for some real peace and quiet despite the magical flowers-

"Why... does this look so familiar...?"

Why does that voice sound so familiar? And without thinking about it further, Jasmine turns the corner with a sprint.]

Poppy?!

[ As a woman comes running around the corner of a hedge, Poppy looks up from her seated position on the ground, completely confused. There is not a shred of recognition on her face as she regards Jasmine, something that will immediately clue the princess in to the fact that there is something amiss.

After blinking, startled, for a moment, Poppy gathers herself and gets to her feet, smoothing out her ruffles skirt. ]

Ah, um. I'm afraid you have me at something of a disadvantage.

[ Was her arrival announced somehow? Otherwise, how would this stranger know her name? ]

Yes, I am Portentia Poppyfield.

[At first, all she notices is the distinctive face, the height difference from her, and of course the affirmation of her name.]

Poppy!

[But just as she runs up to hug her, Jasmine sees the confusion in her eyes, and stops in her path. And now that she looks more closely, she doesn't quite look the same... in fact, is she older...?]

...You don't remember, do you?

[ Okay, this is... Interesting. Is this someone who knew her before Zerox petrified her? But that makes no sense, because Poppy was petrified for 37 years. This woman looks far too young to have known her before then. ]

I... am sorry. There is a lot I don't remember, it seems.

[It's alright, Jasmine, this isn't the first person to return and remember nothing; the Doctor was the same way, as was Hunter. It doesn't mean they can't still be friends, or that she can't help her old housemate now.]

No, don't be... Vaeros plays with all of our memories, even when we're asleep.

What do you remember before coming here?

...Vaeros? [ Not Zerox? Now, that has Poppy confused. ]

I was traveling, with my... friends.

[ She's pretty sure she can call Vox, Celes, and Tog her friends. She's sure Tog would take no issue with it. Vox likely wouldn't care either way. Celes' reaction would depend entirely on what mood she's in at any given moment, and how preoccupied she is with being sad over her missing pet pig. ]

We were on our way from Espara to Galleos, traveling up the coast.

[Despite Poppy's confusion, Jasmine can't help but give a warm smile. When she was last here, Poppy wanted so much to go on her own adventure and seemed starved for friends. Knowing what that's like, she prayed that's what she'd find upon her return, and it's a huge relief to hear it proven before her.]

Vaeros comes to us in a dream and sends us here, with the "promise" to grant our wish. Sometimes people return home and then come back, but can't remember the first time. It looks like a few years have passed since your first time, but...

[You're still Poppy, she thinks in her head, but doesn't know how to say that out loud without making her uncomfortable. Memory is a fickle thing.]

I see... [ If other people have forgotten being taken to this place, then it would seem that this particular bout of amnesia may be unrelated to the main mind-muddling that Poppy has endured. But all the same, she is intrigued by what she is being told. ]

Then, am I to take it... That we were acquainted, when I was here last?

That's right.

[She extends her hand.]

I'm Jasmine. When you were last here, we and Aurora were roommates.

TDM #10 OVERFLOW

Arriiiivaaaaal~

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