etrayamods: (Default)
∎ ETRAYA MODS ∎ ([personal profile] etrayamods) wrote in [community profile] etrayamemes2025-01-02 03:19 pm

TDM 006



⏵ arrival ⏴

Arrival is absolutely not normal this month. Instead of a hospital bed, you wake in a tunnel with a large group of other people. These are the residents. A woman’s voice in an earpiece hurriedly clues you in with an apology.

I apologize; I had not planned to introduce you this way, but we are low on time. Please proceed down the hallway.

An image of a shattered pearl pops up on your personal HUD and rotates.

I am Aurora. You are joining many others on Etraya in order to save your world from destruction by completing missions. Your current mission is to find the pieces of this object that have become scattered in the library ahead of you.


For everyone else, coming in is much the same. The instruction goes out to head to designated areas immediately, where companion bots will escort the residents of Etraya down into the depths, the area beneath where much the same is explained.


⏵ disrobing ⏴


The tunnel eventually opens directly into the foreroom of an expansive library, painted in marvelous hues and patterns with skylights far above. There are wizards milling about, bearded and holding tomes, quietly chatting amongst themselves.

The reception area of the library has tall ceilings with equally tall doors Before you get too caught up in the scenery, a voice directs you forward. A gentleman, hunched and bespeckled craws out.

"Make a line! Make a line, everyone! You cannot enter the library dressed as you are... Come forward and give me your name."


The receptionist asks your given name and then hands over a box from underneath his counter. You can give him any name you want, he doesn’t seem to mind. It is tied with a tagged ribbon- labeling it accordingly. “The _____ robe of _______.”

(First Letter of Given Name) (Last Letter of Given Name)
A Controlling N Helpful A Melodies N Light
B Glimmering O Floating B Discretion O Mind-Reading
C Wet P Handsome C Growth P Climbing
D Gruesome Q Gullible D Grasping Q Jumping
E Observant R Ratty E Flying R Hurting
F Powerful S Adhesive F Reading S Guiding
G Psychedelic T Sweltering G Dancing T Bug-Speaking
H Swift U Cheerful H Shouting U Exploding
I Voracious V Anxious I Extracting V Complaining
J Soft W Likeable J Punishing W Dividing
K Keen X Ruthless K Creeping X Slapping
L Fabulous Y Dramatic L Walking Y Charming
M Fair Z Demonic M Listening Z Combustion


As you read what the contents of the box may be, they form inside- Looking and behaving as your character expects them to. After all, magic is all in the wielder’s mind.

Don your robes and enter the library.


⏵ unfamiliar familiars ⏴


For those without a familiar (like one hatched from an egg not too long ago) you may borrow one from the library counter. They all have strengths and weaknesses, but they will all assist in the very important mission. As you roam the library, they will make little indications that you are closer or further from finding a piece of the pearl.

Image Image Image
Pro • Hardworking
• Gives correct directions 75% of time
• Won’t run away from you
• Very affectionate
• Gives correct directions only when paired with another rat, toad, or personal pet.
• Gives correct directions 90% of the time
Con • Must feed bookworms • Will run away if too close to a cat • Does not care for you
• Sleepy
• Will run ahead
• Gets distracted by rats



⏵ the task at hand ⏴


With robes donned and creature in hand, you must now complete your mission. Find the pieces of the shattered pearl. As you enter the library, you may notice that it’s all very dim. There’s oil lamps around the place that may be moved with you to assist in your journey if your robes do not already emit light.

Break off and search the library. There is a directory at the front to point guests to all the different sections.

Wings of the Library
A General Works B Music
C Philosophy, Religion D Fine Arts
E History, Auxiliary Sciences F Language and Literature
G Magic, General H Science
J Geography, Anthopology K Medicine
M Agriculture N Hobbies, Recreation
P Social Science Q Military
R Political Science S Practical Arts
T Law W People
X Education Y Spiders


Each section looks enough like the last, though the books within have immense power. Pick up the wrong book, and you might conjure a dragon or a historical figure! You must persist and avoid making too much noise or breaking too many things.

Or else the Librarian, a tall mass of knotted fabric will confiscate your robe and usher you back outside. Your name will be struck from the list, and you must pick a new one to re-enter the library to continue the search.

You can try to fight back against him- he may be set alight with the lamp. But should you be starting fires in here?

⏵ NOTES ⏴


Any thread with 15 comments between you and another may be submitted to find a piece of the pearl. There are 20 pieces altogether, and we will determine if the mission was successful by March 28th. A post will go live on the OOC comm for this!

This mission occurs out of time, similar to how the spaceship had. Meaning, those currently in game can experience these events any time between now, and March 14th.

Please direct all questions to our mod queries comment!

FULL NAVIGATION

miniroth: (pic#17076197)

[personal profile] miniroth 2025-02-01 01:06 am (UTC)(link)
[Know what's not going to be forgotten? Any of it.

Especially the hole in the bathroom that led to monster filled meat hallways. That's the kind of thing that's really going to stick in the mind, and Henry's request is so puzzling the boy almost actually looks directly at him. Not quite, but awfully close.]


... Why? None of it was bad.

[By certain definitions.]

Honesty is best. Even if it's awkward. Do you want to keep going, or do you think they'll be satisfied with this?
tiedyed: (010)

[personal profile] tiedyed 2025-02-01 01:07 am (UTC)(link)
[ honestly kristen isn't sure tht she wants to go deeper. she wants to find her friends and get the hell out of here — but it's becoming more and more clear that that's not really going to be an option, at least not any time soon.

resigned to that bleak thought, she might as well attempt to help with whatever this situation is--and frankly kristen doesn't really want to go it alone all that much, so after a brief pause, she nods. her toad, at least, seems pleased by this response. ]


I guess so.

[ not the most enthusiastic of responses, but kristen takes a few steps in the indicated direction all the same. it's not that she's unwilling to help as a general rule, she's just having a hard time figuring out how real any of this is — and in that same vein, how much of a threat any of it really is, too. but it's a little less concerning with company, probably, even if it's the company of a stranger. ]

I'm Kristen, by the way.
instabilitatem: (063)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 01:13 am (UTC)(link)
[Connor stares at Hank, his LED burns red again. You are not alive. The wall is back and Connor stares it down. This time, however, Conner feels like he has a firmer grip as he pulls.

He wrenches it away from the wall and for a moment, Connor's stare goes blank as his system stops running and then restarts, establishing a blank new objective.

You are alive.

He blinks, looking over at Hank. His eyes are warmer, less sharp.
]

I apologize, Hank. Could you repeat yourself?
bootyshortsforoldmen: (say what you say ⬆️)

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 01:23 am (UTC)(link)

Was just asking if you thought I was stupid.

[Which obviously isn’t an important question at all. Hank just wanted to push him a little.

Although he should be patient. He knows that.

But the sooner Connor accepts that he’s alive...]

The hell is going on with you? Your systems going all haywire from blood loss?

tiedyed: (005)

[personal profile] tiedyed 2025-02-01 01:28 am (UTC)(link)
[ weird sounds keep cropping up in the otherwise quiet, dim library, and the whole situation is just very creepy in a way that feels, frankly, very nightmare forest-esque. it's hard not to feel worried, alone and glowing in this quiet aisle of bookshelves, so when someone at all approaches, it's something of a reassurance.

and when kristen sees who it is approaching--well, it's more comforting than she'd probably admit. ]


Fabian?

[ for a moment she's just relieved, happy to be spun up into his arms and twirled around because she's hugging him back just as tightly. it's not even been that long, but kristen had just missed her friends so badly, and more than that, she's just glad that she's not alone.

the poor toad trying to direct her in the right direction has a hard time clinging onto the robes at her shoulder, but kristen has already forgotten whatever details she had gleaned from this 'mission' anyway. ]


I didn't know you were here, did you just wake up in that tunnel too? How did we get here?
nomoreleftshoe: (6)

[personal profile] nomoreleftshoe 2025-02-01 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
[Sam flicks his gaze from Harold back out at the hellscape before him. An investigation would help distract him.]

Yeah. Yeah, let's do that.
instabilitatem: (091)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 01:34 am (UTC)(link)
No, Hank. It is self-checking after deviant feelings.

[Connor is looking at Hank with something soft, akin to affection.]

I'd like to leave the library.
shadowsincryo: (I'm a believer)

[personal profile] shadowsincryo 2025-02-01 01:41 am (UTC)(link)
I'm Kaeya. [He dips his head slightly, his smile fading into something more sympathetic. This has been a long day of what had been a vacation day, but it ended up, well. Best not talked about. She doesn't look like her day is going that great, either. He offers her the snowflake.]

Hours new to this whole situation, I'm afraid. [He collects Charles the toad and tucks him into his inner robe pocket.] I have seen what happens when a book has something in it, but that's all.

[If she takes the snowflake. The magical ice is cold to the touch but not unpleasant. It glows with an inner light and seems in no hurry to melt. The wonders of an allogene's elemental magic.]
Edited (phone cut off part of this) 2025-02-01 01:42 (UTC)
bootyshortsforoldmen: (I’ve been working on me)

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 01:43 am (UTC)(link)

Sure thing. Sounds like a good idea after — well, y’know.

[Setting fire to the Spider room, and all that.

Hank’s not sure if to mention Connor said “like” again.

And he’s not sure how to feel about that look on Connor’s face, either. He’s worried, but that’s sort of his default now.

Still, Hank rises. Offering his hand to Connor without really thinking.]

Let's get the fuck outta Dodge.

instabilitatem: (013)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 01:48 am (UTC)(link)
[Connor stands up on his own, but he quietly notes the offered hand.]

I want to see Sumo now.

[His programming puzzles, but has no qualms over wanting to see Sumo. New objective: see Sumo.]
bootyshortsforoldmen: (the last time I saw you)

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 01:57 am (UTC)(link)

Sure thing. I said anytime, didn’t I?

[They just need to go back out through the tunnel. Leave this godforsaken library of horrors behind them.]

Anything else you want on the way home?

[Hank’s fishing a little. Sue him.]

instabilitatem: (012)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 02:05 am (UTC)(link)
[Home. Connor glances over at Hank, blinks for a moment and then smiles.

Home.
]

Is there somewhere we can purchase thirium? I am not at risk of shutting down, but I am at critical levels.
bootyshortsforoldmen: (I told you I’d change)

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 02:16 am (UTC)(link)

[Hank almost smiles back, but hearing “critical” stops him.]

Probably the general store — on the way home. Sort of.

[It’s a bit of a detour, but Etraya isn’t that big. Just looks like it, feels like it — especially when Aurora does her weird summoning thing. Just bringing out a library to fuck with everyone.]

No purchase necessary. We just take whatever the fuck we need. Could just lay at home all day, if you wanted.

[Which is exactly how Hank spent a not-insignificant amount of time when he first got here.

But regardless, Hank starts walking. Hands tucked in his pockets.]

monstercoat: (pic#17359726)

Ryuunosuke Akutagawa | Bungo Stray Dogs

[personal profile] monstercoat 2025-02-01 02:22 am (UTC)(link)
i. Arrival

[It felt like a moment when Akutagawa departed from his world with a fatal encounter. Slowly, he felt himself drifted away, able to let go of the world from his grip after assisting his companion’s escape. Then, the cold floor crept up on him like water trailing down his back, and then, unfamiliar noises. His eyes shot open as he sit up right in reflex. Alert was second nature to him.

He still wore his attire, a loose white dress shirt with a jabot tied around his neck and black pants. A hand reaches out, fingers dragging across the side of his neck. It was also then he realized, his coat is missing.

No blood.

His coat nowhere to be found.

Then the unknown woman talked. He quietly listened, resting his fingers on the earpiece. If the thing planned to offer some information, he’ll take it and work with it. His eyebrows narrowed as the AI explained the situation.

There is an audible tsk, picking himself up, scanning himself.]


You there. [Yes, you.] What is this about a mission? And my coat?

ii. Disrobing

[The Ratty Robe of Melodies his box reads.



He tosses the box with the contents over his shoulder to the person behind him. Yeah.. no. He’s not casting another glance at that. Neither is the wizard is allowing him entry until Akutagawa complies with them.]


iii. Familiars

[Just as the robe incident wasn’t humor enough, he’s pair with a rat.

The creature settled down on the palm of his hands, Akutagawa stared with intense, as if reading too deeply into it. The rat stared back in return, neither of them blinks.

Finally, the rat nudges its head on the man’s thumb, being affectionate. After a long quiet pause, he glances over at another person. Expressionless.]


This thing isn’t helping.

[[ooc: wildcard option!]]
instabilitatem: (052)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 02:22 am (UTC)(link)
[Connor nods, though it feels wrong to take without paying anything. His programming churns at the idea of robbing a store, even if his thirium levels are critical.]

I am not designed for housekeeping duties, but I could clean your apartment.

[Laying around is not in Connor's programming.]
instabilitatem: (012)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 02:53 am (UTC)(link)
[Connor looks down at the toad and then back up at An Zhe.]

My programming needs to register me as alive.
instabilitatem: (053)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 02:58 am (UTC)(link)
That is not an uncommon sentiment. [Connor regards Harold with that robotic, distant stare.] My predecessor was well-liked.

[Connor is less sure that he will be liked, but that is not a priority in his programming.]
stolentrinkets: (pic#17569484)

vex'ahlia | critical role

[personal profile] stolentrinkets 2025-02-01 03:56 am (UTC)(link)
arrival

Vex'ahlia is confused when she awakens; instead of the soft linens of the castle of Whitestone, it's a dark tunnel. She's not sure what's happened or if it's a dream - the tunnel feels real enough, the ear piece in her ear feels real enough, the people around her feel real enough as she heads through the group, cautiously touching and moving past people as she heads to the front. She's cautious, sharp eyes looking back and forth and ears keeping out for anything that possibly dangerous.

"Wait a second," Vex starts, not addressing anyone in particular. Her tone is sharp, authoritative, and commanding attention. There's no use in getting angry right now when she doesn't know the situation. "We need answers to our own questions, not to just assume what you're telling us is true."

She turns and looks at the rest of the group. "Or someone else who's willing to answer questions?"

disrobing

"What do you mean, I can't enter how I'm currently dressed? These are-" She stops herself, looking at the robed figures ahead of her.

"Wizards." She sighs to herself, rolling her eyes, talking to the person nearest to her.. "Of course they'd complain about clothing when they only wear robes. They know nothing of fashion."

When it's her turn, she says her name. "Vex'ahlia-" she stops herself for a second. She used to never address herself with her last name, foregoing attaching herself with it because of the negative connotations to her father. But she was married now, to someone who had a prestigious last name, and she's so hesitant to sully it. "Vex'ahlia de Rolo," she finishes. The wizard hands her a box.

"The Anxious Robe of Grasping? What sort of fucked up magical item is this?" There's no way she can enter the Library without wearing this, so she grumbles, donning the robe. "I swear to all the gods that if this is cursed, I will find you and threaten you to remove the curse!"

unfamiliar familiars

Animals is what Vex'ahlia knows. Granted, her personal animal is a bear, and these smaller creatures are nothing to what she's used to. She eventually chooses a rat, scooping it up and holding it in her hands. Anyone who observes her, she's gentle with the animal, handling the smaller animal with the utmost care. She checks it over, making sure there's nothing wrong with it. She doesn't like the fact that creatures are kept in cages, and the fact that people are just handing them out irritates her.

"Don't worry," she says to the creature. "You'll be safe with me. Just lead me true."

the task at hand

Vex stands in front of the directory, looking up at the list. Despite the dim light, Vex doesn't seem to be bothered. Being a half-elf, she has dark vision and can see in the dim light as if it were normal light. The library reminds her of the one in Whitestone, or even the massive one they visited when they saw the Knowing Mistress' domain. "Where to start, where to start," she mutters to herself.

She looks to the person who's come up next to her by the directory. "Where do you suggest?"

wildcard

[ open to anything! feel free to dm me or find me on plurk at [plurk.com profile] earthkingdom. ]
levelshift: (ugh)

[personal profile] levelshift 2025-02-01 04:42 am (UTC)(link)
[Docile, huh?]

Okay, then maybe you won't have to worry about it fucking biting you.

[He sighs. A rat is probably better than some of the other options if they made for good pets.]

You wanna look for one of those damn pearl shards together?
hyphanated: (。)

[personal profile] hyphanated 2025-02-01 04:46 am (UTC)(link)
[...What does that mean...An Zhe stares blankly at Connor for a long moment before looking down at the toad again as well.]

...Let's look somewhere else.
bootyshortsforoldmen: (I’m overcompensating)

cn: alcoholism mention

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 05:04 am (UTC)(link)

Whoa, whoa, whoa. [Hank’s apartment isn’t that dirty, thank you very much. He’s barely been here long enough to trash the place. The worst of it is after he’s gone on a drinking binge and there are bottles everywhere, but he hasn’t done that in weeks.

Sumo does shed a lot, though. And the kitchen cabinets might be getting a little drool-stained.

He mutters:] Fuckin’ android trying to clean my apartment.

[Because the last thing he wants Connor to do is clean up after him like he’s, yeah, some sort of housekeeper bot. Because he’s not.]

We’ll find you some hobbies, Con.

instabilitatem: (015)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 05:09 am (UTC)(link)
[Connor glances down and away when the word 'android' re-enters the conversation. His programming reminds him that at the end of the day that's what he is. He can pretend to be family or friends or partners, but he's still not alive. The wall comes back up and it's comforting, in a way, to have those parameters back. You are not alive. You are an android.

His LED spins yellow and then blue.

You are not alive.

Connor nods at Hank's suggestion of hobbies, but Connor has no real intent to do such a thing.
]
bootyshortsforoldmen: (you were alone)

[personal profile] bootyshortsforoldmen 2025-02-01 05:19 am (UTC)(link)

You’re spinning yellow again there.

[Which concerns Hank far less than his quiet. Because his quiet reminds Hank of earlier, back when Connor couldn’t talk.

And it’s not as if that’s happening all over again — no spiders or whatever to hurt him — but Hank can’t help that familiar dread that starts creeping in.]

You, uh, thinking about stuff you might like to do? [He’s gotta reach for something.] There’s... some good people here. I think you’ll like ‘em.

[Hell, even Hank likes some of them. He thinks Connor and Accelerator might get along, but it’d probably be weird, seeing as how Accelerator was friends with Connor’s predecessor. So it’ll probably hurt at first.

But Hank wants to see Connor happy — Accelerator, too — and friends are part of that equation, aren’t they?]

instabilitatem: (084)

[personal profile] instabilitatem 2025-02-01 05:22 am (UTC)(link)
I am not designed to make friends. It is not in my programming. [Connor replies simply without blinking.] You were a rare case, lieutenant.

[Connor still doesn't answer regarding hobbies, but his internal answer is simple. Hobbies are for living beings, for humans, and Connor is not a human.]
nimbuster: (hey what gives??)

[personal profile] nimbuster 2025-02-01 05:23 am (UTC)(link)
"Hey, no way. Just...haven't come up with anything yet."

Look, Rose, he's bad at naming things, okay? But he sure does seem to be offended at the idea that he's not attached to his little chocobo buddy. He even leans slightly toward her as if his instinct was to put himself between his buddy and her hand.