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buttrinthum2023-01-01 04:59 pm
TDM #1
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, and it simply gives you a welcoming:
“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.”
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: poinsettias and mistletoe. You’ll soon find out that being around the poinsettias give you an odd sense of joy no matter how confusing the situation may seem and the mistletoe, which is left over from the holiday season, gives you the desire to kiss or hold hands with the nearest person to you. It looks like there are plenty of others who are just now waking up from their dream-state as well.. why not go ahead and say hello?
With the influx of new life, the humble town a barkeep tells you is called Somnius seems to come alive as well, with new faces to join that of the resident fairies, goblins and other townfolk. There’s bustling energy to the land that the townfolk will tell you wasn’t quite there before, and some suspect that the presence of the new arrivals might be powering the world around them in some way - but that’s a question to be answered on another day. The quaint town of Somnius needs a little bit of care, that rustic feel to the mushroom houses, old shops and weathered castles too evident at first glance, but it’s not a bad place to live, as the locals will tell you. It almost seems like everything will be okay…
But of course, things are never so simple.
Whether you have been wandering around to get your bearings, talking to the locals or exploring your new humble (very humble) abode, you can expect to find mysterious ice sculptures - fashioned in the shape of snow angels, with blades in their hands - appearing in random places around the town. There are some that manifest in the middle of the street, some that sit quietly at the edge of an inn, and even some that appear right beside your bed, staring at you as you wake up. It’s unclear how these sculptures even got here, but close proximity to them will conjure up feelings of unrest, like you should not step any closer.
It’s smart to trust your gut in these situations. Step too close to a snow angel and it will come to life, moving with the grace of flowing water. They make a vague request and will spare only those able to heed it.
“Cold … so cold … Even the days of Visium are so cold. Have you any warmth to spare us?”
Some angels will accept an article of clothing as warmth. Others are greedy and keep demanding more, wanting to take everything that you have on your body. Heed their requests and they will spare you. Resist even just a little, and that’s when they draw their swords.
It’s not too easy to defeat an angel with brute force given that they reform themselves immediately. Running away or blasting them with fire could do the trick. Be careful not to get cut by their blades, however…
Characters who get cut by their blades will experience an inconsolable sense of chill and emptiness, right down to their bones. They will find themselves desiring ‘warmth’ from others in different ways - whether through physical contact, or affectionate words and gestures. There might be the few who go feverish in their desire for warmth. For those characters – the open fireplace is looking like a very tantalizing place to sit in right now (Yes, sit in, not by). They might even feel compelled to pull a friend in with them. That can’t be good for anyone…
The effects will only subside if the condition of receiving ‘warmth’ is met. This can be in the literal sense (physical warmth and intimacy) or figurative (feelings of love, acceptance and happiness).
When night falls, the temperatures only drop further, which does no favours for the poor souls who had to give up their clothing. The locals want to welcome the new arrivals and give everyone an opportunity to unwind from a busy and chaotic day of being hunted by snow sculptures. That’s why they’ve set up a gathering in the middle of town square. Food and alcohol is being generously supplied by The Cask & Anvil, and marketplace vendors have set up pop up stands to try and cajole the new arrivals into purchasing some fancy new clothes or a pretty gemstone they claim will ward off danger (claims not verified).
At the center of it all is a large bonfire that’s warming up the square. Everyone is encouraged to warm themselves by it after a long day, eat, and make merry. In fact, there’s a certain sense of enchantment to the crackling fire that seems to draw even the shiest wallflower in, pushing them to sit with others and make conversation. As the night goes on, the newly arrived dreamers will find themselves settling easily into the warm and bustling mood, any stresses and anxieties melting away. With time, they’ll start to find themselves without a filter, more than happy to talk about themselves and the life they had led prior to coming to Visium. In fact, they will feel compelled to share a story from their past - one that might be joyous, comedic, thrilling, or tragic. Whatever sorts of feelings come attached to their story, it will be one of emotional significance.
In the back of their minds, they might get the sense someone else is listening.
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. Please comment here to request an outcome for your character's labyrinth exploration and a moderator will get to you shortly. (The longest a character can stay in the Labyrinth is 3 days.)
You can find more information about the game here. Any questions regarding the TDM can go under the comment below.
I have to do 2 it's required
Mm... Do you really think so?
( Regret? She's doubtful, and that much is clear in her eyes as she defies the Traveler's wishes, picking up the book. At the very least, she doesn't open it yet. )
I've read countless books, and I can't say that I've ever regretted picking one up, even if it may not have been to my taste. If anything, I'm curious to know what someone like you has deemed as uninteresting enough to toss aside.
( Now is when she opens it, turning her back on the Traveler to stick her nose right into it, peering over the words. She has to start at the beginning, of course, even if she wants to skip to the middle... )
no subject
and if it were a normal day, lumine wouldn't turn down a single book offered to her. after all, there's so much to learn from books, so much to read about and know. it's helped her during her travels, providing her with the necessary information she needs to survive. why else would she collect books and writings throughout her journey in teyvat?
but as it stands, it's not a normal day, so much so that she doesn't even realize kokomi picking up one of the books in question. ]
... Well, there are some books that aren't meant for public consumption. These are some of those, I'd say.
[ because how raunchy can this fanfic get??? help ]
no subject
( That's spoken a little quietly, since she's already wrapped up in this fanfic. Immediately, she's drawn in by the main character, but the more that they're described, the more she realizes that this draws strange parallels with Lumine.
No, this is definitely just Lumine, right? Kokomi goes strangely silent as she rapidly reads, drawn into the story even as she finds herself reading the beginning of an incredibly heated scene where Lumine is so desperate to visit some mystery friend of hers and "speak her heart" (with a noted attention to the way her body is reacting to this), she can't stop. Oh...
There's a faint blush at her cheeks now, too. But she's turned away, and maybe Lumine is too distracted with her other books. How long can she read this? Is this really fair? Ohh, but she wants to know who this mystery stranger Lumine is dying to meet up with is... )
no subject
or more like, she's also preoccupied with what she's reading on her end, too. something about a midnight tryst in mondstadt, of all places. which, if lumine were to be asked, wouldn't work at all, considering master diluc and rosaria roaming its streets and possibly apprehending them without another word; liyue harbor is honestly a more viable setting here.
but she digresses! and that momentary digression gets lumine to look up from her own book, glancing at kokomi's direction. the girl has gone silent and that's never a good thing. ]
Kokomi—
[ she freezes, staring in horror at the book the other girl is holding. ]
... What are you reading?
no subject
( Immediately at the question and her name, Kokomi feels caught. She slaps the book closed, but a skillful and subtle finger has the page she's left off on marked. A thin slip under the right page, you see...
She whirls around, holding the book close to her chest (partially covered with her more free hand) and putting on a performative smile. )
I... haven't gotten too far, really. ( That's not an answer. )
no subject
instead, she sighs under her breath, hoping that whatever she's picked up isn't something from the pile for (eventual) burning. ]
... How bad am I in it?
[ she doesn't have to lie to her okok. it's fine, kokomi. she can tell her the truth. ]
no subject
It's not such a bad representation of you, at least so far. I believe it must be heavily exaggerated, but as I'm not one who fully understands your thoughts, I can only guess... It may be good practice for understanding the hearts of my people.
( Is that the excuse?? )
If you could only tell me which thoughts were accurate or false, that is. I'm sure much of this is left up to someone's eager imagination. Do you happen to know any authors who might fancy you? One in... ( She glances at the text. ) Liyue, perhaps?
( This fanfic is not about any authors in Liyue. But. That's her best guess right now! )
no subject
after today, after kokomi has left this library, she's setting it on fire, someone else's be damned. ]
In Liyue ... [ she pauses in thought—only to frown when she realizes what kokomi's asking about. ] Who might fancy me?
[ lumine shakes her head dismissively. she knows a few authors, sure, but their feelings towards her have always been neutral, in a professional capacity. even xingqiu whom she considers a good friend has never shown her interest other than the usual curiosity most people have towards her. ]
No, there's no one.
[ she's confident about that, at least. ]
no subject
( The light way her voice carries doesn't always show her true emotions, but they tend to slip out a little more near Traveler. Still, her expression is unreadable aside from her deep thoughts here, and she stares at the page a bit longer. )
Ahem. ..."His amber eyes, normally cold and distant, stared deeply into the blonde's eyes as they stepped closer. Both of them seemed to hold their breath, but the Traveler could see that the Yaksha wanted this as much as she did."
( Kokomi pauses for a long moment, seeming to deem this a good place to stop reading it aloud. )
Oh my. Well, I'll set this down, then.
no subject
yaksha—
the temptation to bury her face in her hands so kokomi won't see the growing blush on her face is right there for her to take. but lumine just takes another deep breath and clears her throat, hoping it would disperse some of the embarrassment she feels.
it doesn't. ]
I, thank you ... [ archons, she can't even string words together. ] And yes, it's totally fiction. Xiao and I aren't even that close, to begin with ...
[ why does she even need to explain herself? ] I'm sorry you had to read something like that.
no subject
You did warn me, so I feel like I'm the one who owes you an apology.
( A pause, and she brings a hand over her mouth. )
Um... If you'd like, I could help you locate these books to remove them. Of course, if you'd rather do that yourself, I suppose I could simply offer to keep you company.
no subject
she sighs under her breath, looking at the pile in exasperation. ]
No, it's ... [ it's not kokomi's fault, even if she was warned about it. ] I'd appreciate any help in sorting them out.
[ she can at least trust her and her organization skills. and she supposes she doesn't really mind her seeing some of the more sordid materials, even the ones that involved ... multiple people. ]
... There's also one with Gorou in it, last I checked. Sorry in advance if you stumble upon it.
[ and she has to apologize because he's her general ok!! ]
no subject
( That seems to catch Kokomi off guard. Her expression doesn't share much other than deep thought, but after a long moment of pondering and making these "piles" a little more like stacks, she hums. )
He did enjoy his time on the battlefield with you. I wonder just how many familiar faces we can expect to find here?
( This time, she moves to pick up a previously untouched book, flipping inward a few pages to find if it's one about the Traveler. )
Looking past the flowery language of that book I read from aloud, there is a surprising number of details about you that are accurate, from what I know. Do most of these hold the same? Rather than good guesses, if these are accurate representations in some historical sense, then I worry what it might imply.
( Has someone been stalking the Traveler?? )