TDM #10 OVERFLOW

[labyrinevents]

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.

Comments

[arcanerecovery]

[ It's a good thing that Poppy happened to be rescued by someone rich in the local currency. Not that she knows this, of course, but it's lucky all the same. This way, she won't have to work off to repay the grocer like she has been assuming she would.

The watermelon seems to do the truck as a finishing blow, smashing apart on the ogre's head with just enough force to knock it out, sending it falling backwards prone into a large heap on the ground.

Poppy takes a moment to catch her breath, then smiles broadly. ]

Well done! Thank you, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't— [ Except she's cut off when the unconscious ogre suddenly dematerializes into a glittering pile of pixels, which twinkle for a moment before they finally wink out of existence. ]

...O..kay... That is. Certainly interesting.

[xploud]

[Katsuki is grinning wildly himself, still snickering at the inventive and fun way or taking out a baddie, before he watches the ogre die like every mid-level boss does in a video games without gore and violence. Yup...gotta maintain that E rating. He seems completely nonplussed by it, and even goes to inspect if the big guy dropped any loot - coins, a heart container, experience...anything, really. Sue him, the young blond is just on the look out for anything worthwhile in terms of farming collectibles that may be worth something in the future. Sadly, nothing, and he pouts a little bit, disappointed. Ah well...at least the fight itself was enjoyable.]

Mm? Ah, don't sweat it...big ugly fuckers like that have been popping up all over, left and right. You're fucking lucky it wasn't some kind of sand worm...those pieces of shit are way worse.

[They can swallow you whole and engulf you, and uh...well. Let's just say it was the second time he had to blast his way out of something, and it was a bad time. It was a bad time. Katsuki looks past where Poppy is, at the storefront, and waves a hand with a loud shout, putting his thumb up and then down with a tilt of his head. Getting a thumbs up, albeit shaky, is a good sign. They're okay.]

[arcanerecovery]

So I have heard...

[ She may not remember a whole lot of her life prior to being un-petrified, but she remembers enough of hearing tales of purple worms to know that they are no laughing matter, enough to swallow entire adventuring parties whole. ]

Even so, I must find some way to repay you. [ A pause, and then a sheepish turn to look at the storefront she has just robbed produce from for use as ammunition. ] Or... repay this kind shopkeeper...

[xploud]

Oh, I can do the paying, don't worry about it.

[He's going to stride up to the shop itself, and actually do a very quick check on the people inside - it's part of his job to make sure no one needs any medical attention, or isn't about to go into shock or anything. The grocer is indeed a bit shaken, and merely blurts out a number at random for the produce they used, and Katsuki doesn't even contest it. He knows when and where to pick his battles, and this ain't it, chief.]

Sold. I'll send you the shards in a few hours, aa? If you need clean up, I'll help with that, too. And her. [He jabs his thumb over his shoulder at Poppy, voluntelling her that this is a job they're going to do if the vendor asks...or even if he doesn't ask.]

[arcanerecovery]

[ Poppy feels an immediate surge of petty indignation at being volunteered to assist with repairs without having been asked. Not that she would have disagreed, but it would have been nice for this spike-haired boy not to have assumed!!

But still. She takes a deep breath, and consciously buries her negative feelings. Now is not the time to make a scene and be rude. ]

Yes, of course. [ She straightens to her full four-foot-four height, before offering the shopkeeper a formal bow of her gratitude. ] Whatever you require, I am happy to assist.

[ With the personal allowance of one stink eye thrown at the teen hero's back. ]

[xploud]

[Hey, you helped make the mess, you help clean it - that's his general rule of thumb. Plus, the grocer and their family look pretty damn frazzled, and they've already lost some decent gains in the ruined produce as well as the minor damage to their storefront...and there's not a chance they're keeping the shop open today, so that's just even less of a profit they're making. The two should help to at least clean up the place.

Katsuki doesn't even blink, or perhaps he doesn't even...really notice, considering Poppy is nearly two feet shorter than he is (Katsuki is 5'9", give or take). He finishes up trading off the shards, dumping even more than what he's quoted to help with any repairs, and he grunts with restrained indignation when his one hand is grabbed and shaken furiously. HNNN--STOP TOUCHING MEEEE....]

Oi! Okay, fucking shit...just give me a broom.