not one in the ocean, but one in the sky. it has a brilliant silver hull, and it's about the size of a medium-sized yacht. it's enough to house seven people and their supplies for a long journey. there's a long open deck at the top of an elevated bridge that houses the helm, near the center of the deck, and that deck has sort of a field around it that can sort of support life during your travels. the most notable thing about this ship is the engine that powers it, however. it is this large, shimmering white ring about twelve feet in diameter that is sort of suspended and tethered to the back of the deck by some unseen force. it is constantly silently rotating behind the ship.
the thing you know intrinsically about this ship is that it has been your home for sixty-four years. you are coming in on a new world, today, at the start of the sixty-fifth.
the world below you — it looks cruel. there’s an expansive land mass here with little defining features, long stretches of ash grey rock. there’s almost no rivers or lakes below. you see these small settlements of like ramshackle tents, built around bonfires that are giving off these black columns of smoke, and you see some figures below in those settlements and you can’t imagine how they live in these places. but past that - there's a place that breaks up the monotony.
there is a city of white marble, and it’s built in the center of this massive blue lake, and from above, you can see into the city, you see these verdant lawns, and mansions, and a towering college, and a municipal building surrounded by a botanical garden... it looks idyllic. it looks like textbook utopian—save for a bizarre feature right in the very center of this city. the core of the city is surrounded by this tall, circular stone wall, and kneeling within that circle are four humanoid figures—statues. they are twenty, maybe thirty stories tall, and they’re all facing each other in this kneeling position casting shadows over everything else in the city.
for now, you are just... on this ship! on the deck, specifically. the deck has a table with a few papers and maps on it, and some chairs around that table, but not much else. the ship itself seems to be flying a little closer to that white marble city.
but yeah sylvain is surprised while being not-surprised, because he remembers being here for... a very long time... somehow. he looks to diluc and estelle with a slightly baffled frown. ]
Oh no, is this another one of... those.
[ things! thursday excursions! trouble!
anyway. greetings aside he'll check out the deck. what are the names on those maps and where are they headed? what do the papers say? ]
[They're in the sky! ... No, they've been on this vessel for a long time...? Estelle's looking around with curiosity and mild confusion before she turns to see the other two. Then she tilts her head to look around some more.]
Huh...?
I think I've been here before...
[...... déjà vu? Hmm.
She comes over to Sylvain's side and looks around him to also peek at those papers.]
[ joing the confusion train, diluc blinks, looking around the ship. he does not recall ever having been here before, yet he knows he has been...and for quite some time it seems. his eyes land on the other two. ]
This must be one of those adventures...it's been some time since I've experienced one.
[ he frowns, looking to estelle with a questioning look. ]
You've been here before? What do you mean by that?
[ might as well join them in looking at these papers!! surely there's a name for this place they're hovering over. maybe even a name for the ship their on or a sign of their own identities? anything to explain what's going on here. ]
[you remember, vaguely, that you've been on this ship for sixty-five years, traveling from one world to the next, every year. you haven't aged - in fact, you are always reset to the same age you started out as, when the year changes. you can't remember the other worlds very well, but you do know that you've never been to this one before. it is unfamiliar to you.
they all make their way over to the papers! there's no name for the place they're hovering over, but there is some documentation here.
a pamphlet advertising the IPRE (that's the Institute of Planar Research and Exploration) and their latest new exploration endeavor. Seven brave explorers (listed as Lucretia, Magnus Burnsides, Taako, Merle Highchurch, Davenport, Barry Bluejeans and ... a scribbled out name that seems to fill your brain with static when you try to read it) set out to explore the planar system with the use of the Starblaster. That seems to be the name of the ship that you're on. It runs on bonds, which... you don't know what those are, but they sound important!
a couple of maps seem to be outlining a triangulated area in a place called faerun. there's a big red circle around a place called wave echo cove, with a question mark attached to it. you get a sense of despair from these maps. weird.]
Lucretia...I swear that's a name I've heard before.
[ much like sylvain, his brain is only static, as he tries to recall from where or who, he's heard that name before. he frowns.
startled by estelle's response, he looks to her, confused. ]
What was that, Estelle? I couldn't understand that last part...
Strange...anyways, are these marked places here? On this world that we've just come to?
[ he just continues to frown, that wave of despair very puzzling...hm.
as estelle looks around for signs of other crew, he's going to go to the window and look out at the place they've just arrived to. can he see anything else, from here? other than what was described in the beginning, that is! ]
[there doesn't seem to be any other people that they can see, weirdly enough. the ship is supposed to have seven people on it, but there's only you three. as they look over the map and try to match it to the place they're in, it doesn't look like the same area at all. it's strange. almost like the maps are out of place.
anyway, diluc makes his way over to look out over the horizon. which is great!
in a sense. because he gets to see a beam of light shoot right for the ship.
there’s a flash of light, and a feeling of heat against your face, and a thunder clap. and just like that - the starblaster abruptly starts to fall. you are falling, and you are going to crash into the earth below.]
once sylvain isn't so disoriented from the sudden plummet, he scrambles to find anything that resembles a control station. he's been in a tram before—points to eyes points to pazu—and has a vague understanding of how vehicles work...
...but does he have any idea how to steer a ship like this? hell no! but maybe it is in their fake memories. they should probably try something before they crash and die. ]
[ what a beautiful view, he can't help but wonder what it's like down there on the surface...well he doesn't have time to keep thinking about it, because here comes a beam of light and
ow. he gets knocked back as the ship is hit, fumbling to catch himself on something, anything. if/when he does, his eyes immediately go looking for the other two. ]
There has to be an emergency protocol in place for things like this, yes!?
[ are there alarms and things going off as they begin to crash?? he'll try and get himself over to estelle, reaching for her. ]
Sylvain try to prevent us from crashing head first into the earth...! [ sure?? he guesses?? IDK. ] Brace yourselves!!
you open your eyes, the three of you. you're... standing in front of an elevator? a small, circular room with a few doors around on the walls, with an elevator in the middle. the temperature is perfect, here. and the place itself low-lit in fluorescent neon colors which shift and pulse over time, with a soft, reassuring humming sound under your feet. it looks familiar, if you went exploring the week before. it seems to be the station.
but you feel... weird. disoriented, weightless. when you open your eyes, the first thing you see is the floor, which is weird, because your hand should be blocking that view. but it isn't. with a start, you realize that you are see-through. perhaps you are... a spooky ghost?
oh, and you're wearing a sick set of red robes. hella.]
[ his focus is on the two beside him, as they all drown, turning slowly to stone, until all they see is...nothing.
but then there is something, again, a location they're all familiar with. he blinks his eyes open, head hurting like hell, looking down at the ground through his hands?? hello??? and this weightless feeling...he looks at the other two, relief upon seeing them. ]
I very much hope that does not happen again...[ he's not a fan of dying and coming back and dying and coming back etc.
he looks around the room, is he able to discern what floor they are on or what the doors are??]
Ghosts in red robes. And we appear to be on the Station.
[as you sort of acclimate to the situation, you find you kind of know a little about what's happened to you. you died. you did do that. but that feels... familiar. maybe uncomfortably so. you know that like this, you can't really die again, and you shouldn't be able to take damage. as far as you know. you also know that you can possess things, and that you can walk through walls, if you want.
and as you're pondering this, you get this weird sense that something is watching you.
all three of you are on the base floor of the stations! the doors lead to the sleep bay, the kitchen, the rec room, the music room, simulations, the conference room, and the common room. the elevator also seems to be working.
estelle, though - you experience something a little different. for a second, you are not on the base floor, but somewhere else. it is small, and cold, and claustrophobic. the walls are covered in black velvet curtains, and you hate it here. you can't see, you can't hear, you can't feel - it's just you, and your thoughts, and you don't know how long you've been here but it's been a long time, it must've. every minute feels like a year, and just when you think your mind is going to break from the strain --
you're in the station again. everything is fine.
diluc and sylvain do not experience this, and to them, estelle seems fine, if see-through.]
To the others, her body appears to suddenly go rigid, her eyes wide with terror. She looks shocked at her surroundings -- how long has it been since she was here? Diluc and Sylvain... how long did they wait for her?]
[ sylvain's attention is diverted by the noises coming from within the walls overhead. that's not ominous at all! he looks up, trying to figure out the source of the sound. ]
[She's disoriented, and seeing Diluc's hand pass right through her just sends another wave of confusion through her. She starts to regain her bearings, though, as her awareness of their surroundings starts to sink in.]
I... I was somewhere else. Some horrible, lonely place... it was familiar, too.
the three of you, brave and warm, stand, and watch the people you love stagger towards you. things will be okay. you know they will.
diluc summons his chains, and they shine, buzzing with the strength of how much he feels. they shoot forward, and wrap around kaeya, mikazuki and sieghart, holding them in place. none of them struggle, too tired to do so - they just slump into the chains, as if relieved to not have to fight any longer.
estelle brings a shield - she protects, this time, instead of hurts. her shield settles like armor around both diluc and kaeya, around the hostages, too, glimmering. and she will know, as she focuses, that she has accomplished exactly what she wanted to do. she is a saving grace, not a poison.
and finally - sylvain. the relic in his hands thrums with power, and as he adjusts it in his hands, he knows it is strong enough to bring down the thing in front of him. the uwu stomps its feet, angry, and he can see it start to shift, start to grow bigger, tentacles slithering out from its back, but it doesn't matter. he lunges forward, and the relic strikes true - right through the heart. the uwu roars in pain, trying do whatever it can to fight back, but the tentacles bounce off estelle's shield, and the hostages are safe in diluc's chains.
there's a pulse of light, and a whisper of that same voice: you did amazing, you three.
and then everything goes dark.]
✦ ✦ ✦
CONGRATULATIONS!! you solved my uwu puzzle, you win! your rewards are as follows:
★ 2 tickets ★ a small plush of a very long furby with antlers, wearing a gaudy vest ★ and a VHS tape!
you will find that, upon coming out of your cyoa, you will have all of your wounds you accumulated over your time inside. you don't have to have bone limbs, though if you really want to i guess you can, just keep in mind that i'm not sure that can be healed. otherwise, you have all of your injuries as they would apply to a human body!
two more important things: you will exit the cyoa wearing red robes. and! until saturday at trial start, you'll have a fun status effect. you will be afraid of the dark, extremely claustrophobic, and occasionally, you'll hallucinate that you are momentarily in a small, cramped room with black velvet curtains lining the walls. yay.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
guestservices) wrote2022-07-10 03:36 pm
PART ONE: JUDGEMENT
not one in the ocean, but one in the sky. it has a brilliant silver hull, and it's about the size of a medium-sized yacht. it's enough to house seven people and their supplies for a long journey. there's a long open deck at the top of an elevated bridge that houses the helm, near the center of the deck, and that deck has sort of a field around it that can sort of support life during your travels. the most notable thing about this ship is the engine that powers it, however. it is this large, shimmering white ring about twelve feet in diameter that is sort of suspended and tethered to the back of the deck by some unseen force. it is constantly silently rotating behind the ship.
the thing you know intrinsically about this ship is that it has been your home for sixty-four years. you are coming in on a new world, today, at the start of the sixty-fifth.
the world below you — it looks cruel. there’s an expansive land mass here with little defining features, long stretches of ash grey rock. there’s almost no rivers or lakes below. you see these small settlements of like ramshackle tents, built around bonfires that are giving off these black columns of smoke, and you see some figures below in those settlements and you can’t imagine how they live in these places. but past that - there's a place that breaks up the monotony.
there is a city of white marble, and it’s built in the center of this massive blue lake, and from above, you can see into the city, you see these verdant lawns, and mansions, and a towering college, and a municipal building surrounded by a botanical garden... it looks idyllic. it looks like textbook utopian—save for a bizarre feature right in the very center of this city. the core of the city is surrounded by this tall, circular stone wall, and kneeling within that circle are four humanoid figures—statues. they are twenty, maybe thirty stories tall, and they’re all facing each other in this kneeling position casting shadows over everything else in the city.
for now, you are just... on this ship! on the deck, specifically. the deck has a table with a few papers and maps on it, and some chairs around that table, but not much else. the ship itself seems to be flying a little closer to that white marble city.
what would you like to do?]
no subject
EXCUSE ME?
but yeah sylvain is surprised while being not-surprised, because he remembers being here for... a very long time... somehow. he looks to diluc and estelle with a slightly baffled frown. ]
Oh no, is this another one of... those.
[ things! thursday excursions! trouble!
anyway. greetings aside he'll check out the deck. what are the names on those maps and where are they headed? what do the papers say? ]
no subject
Huh...?
I think I've been here before...
[...... déjà vu? Hmm.
She comes over to Sylvain's side and looks around him to also peek at those papers.]
no subject
This must be one of those adventures...it's been some time since I've experienced one.
[ he frowns, looking to estelle with a questioning look. ]
You've been here before? What do you mean by that?
[ might as well join them in looking at these papers!! surely there's a name for this place they're hovering over. maybe even a name for the ship their on or a sign of their own identities? anything to explain what's going on here. ]
no subject
they all make their way over to the papers! there's no name for the place they're hovering over, but there is some documentation here.
a pamphlet advertising the IPRE (that's the Institute of Planar Research and Exploration) and their latest new exploration endeavor. Seven brave explorers (listed as Lucretia, Magnus Burnsides, Taako, Merle Highchurch, Davenport, Barry Bluejeans and ... a scribbled out name that seems to fill your brain with static when you try to read it) set out to explore the planar system with the use of the Starblaster. That seems to be the name of the ship that you're on. It runs on bonds, which... you don't know what those are, but they sound important!
a couple of maps seem to be outlining a triangulated area in a place called faerun. there's a big red circle around a place called wave echo cove, with a question mark attached to it. you get a sense of despair from these maps. weird.]
no subject
Taako... Where have I heard that name before...
[ nope, he's not able to make the connection. looking at the markings on the maps, ]
Is that where we're headed? 'Wave Echo Cove'...?
[ then looking ove at estelle, ] What do you remember of this place? Did you see it in [ static, static, more static, ] ...someone's memories?
[ whose.... WHOMSt ]
no subject
[...? She looks a little startled.]
Are we... here to explore this place? On a sort of research expedition?
... Are any of those other explorers here? [She looks around again. Any signs of activity besides the three of them on this deck?]
no subject
[ much like sylvain, his brain is only static, as he tries to recall from where or who, he's heard that name before. he frowns.
startled by estelle's response, he looks to her, confused. ]
What was that, Estelle? I couldn't understand that last part...
Strange...anyways, are these marked places here? On this world that we've just come to?
[ he just continues to frown, that wave of despair very puzzling...hm.
as estelle looks around for signs of other crew, he's going to go to the window and look out at the place they've just arrived to. can he see anything else, from here? other than what was described in the beginning, that is! ]
no subject
anyway, diluc makes his way over to look out over the horizon. which is great!
in a sense. because he gets to see a beam of light shoot right for the ship.
there’s a flash of light, and a feeling of heat against your face, and a thunder clap. and just like that - the starblaster abruptly starts to fall. you are falling, and you are going to crash into the earth below.]
no subject
once sylvain isn't so disoriented from the sudden plummet, he scrambles to find anything that resembles a control station. he's been in a tram before—points to eyes points to pazu—and has a vague understanding of how vehicles work...
...but does he have any idea how to steer a ship like this? hell no! but maybe it is in their fake memories. they should probably try something before they crash and die. ]
Any ideas, guys?!
no subject
Oh, Lucretia, she's --
[Never mind, we're getting blasted out of the sky. She stumbles with a panicked yelp, and scrambles to find something solid to hold on to.]
I... I don't know! Are there... life boats? Can an airship have those?
no subject
ow. he gets knocked back as the ship is hit, fumbling to catch himself on something, anything. if/when he does, his eyes immediately go looking for the other two. ]
There has to be an emergency protocol in place for things like this, yes!?
[ are there alarms and things going off as they begin to crash?? he'll try and get himself over to estelle, reaching for her. ]
Sylvain try to prevent us from crashing head first into the earth...! [ sure?? he guesses?? IDK. ] Brace yourselves!!
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PART TWO: PUNISHMENT
you open your eyes, the three of you. you're... standing in front of an elevator? a small, circular room with a few doors around on the walls, with an elevator in the middle. the temperature is perfect, here. and the place itself low-lit in fluorescent neon colors which shift and pulse over time, with a soft, reassuring humming sound under your feet. it looks familiar, if you went exploring the week before. it seems to be the station.
but you feel... weird. disoriented, weightless. when you open your eyes, the first thing you see is the floor, which is weird, because your hand should be blocking that view. but it isn't. with a start, you realize that you are see-through. perhaps you are... a spooky ghost?
oh, and you're wearing a sick set of red robes. hella.]
no subject
...he's floating? he can't seem to gather his thoughts enough to even be shocked. he's feeling entirely out of it, in mind and body. ]
Did we... die...?
Estelle, Diluc, are you okay...?
[ ALL THESE GHOSTS and not a single boo ]
no subject
...
Estelle comes to with a gasp. She lifts her hands to stare through them, then looks to the others.]
I... I think we're ghosts...!?
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but then there is something, again, a location they're all familiar with. he blinks his eyes open, head hurting like hell, looking down at the ground through his hands?? hello??? and this weightless feeling...he looks at the other two, relief upon seeing them. ]
I very much hope that does not happen again...[ he's not a fan of dying and coming back and dying and coming back etc.
he looks around the room, is he able to discern what floor they are on or what the doors are??]
Ghosts in red robes. And we appear to be on the Station.
no subject
and as you're pondering this, you get this weird sense that something is watching you.
all three of you are on the base floor of the stations! the doors lead to the sleep bay, the kitchen, the rec room, the music room, simulations, the conference room, and the common room. the elevator also seems to be working.
estelle, though - you experience something a little different. for a second, you are not on the base floor, but somewhere else. it is small, and cold, and claustrophobic. the walls are covered in black velvet curtains, and you hate it here. you can't see, you can't hear, you can't feel - it's just you, and your thoughts, and you don't know how long you've been here but it's been a long time, it must've. every minute feels like a year, and just when you think your mind is going to break from the strain --
you're in the station again. everything is fine.
diluc and sylvain do not experience this, and to them, estelle seems fine, if see-through.]
no subject
(...this sounds like something someone told him about before, but the more he tries to reach for the memory, the more static it generates.) ]
Should we look for a way back to the hotel...?
[ does a part of this station lead back to the revolving doors...? ]
And is it just me, or do you get the feeling we're being watched?
no subject
To the others, her body appears to suddenly go rigid, her eyes wide with terror. She looks shocked at her surroundings -- how long has it been since she was here? Diluc and Sylvain... how long did they wait for her?]
Wh... where was I just...
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[ he's really hoping this means they can't die again, and knowing they can possess things and just phase through walls, that's pretty neat.
it's when he's looking at the elevator, that he hears estelle speak up, he turns to her, immediate concern. ]
Estelle, are you alright? You look like you've just seen something unpleasant.
[ he'll try to touch her shoulder, but i imagine his hand will just phase right through her. ]
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oh, and there's no doors that lead to the hotel. it seems like they're... actually on the station, maybe.
there's some rattling above them in the walls. it's probably fine.]
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[ sylvain's attention is diverted by the noises coming from within the walls overhead. that's not ominous at all! he looks up, trying to figure out the source of the sound. ]
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I... I was somewhere else. Some horrible, lonely place... it was familiar, too.
... Did we just get here?
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[ he frowns at that. hateful. ]
This place will try to trick your mind...You've been with us this whole time, since we woke up here. And it hasn't been very long since we did.
[ oh those noises sure are spooky! he looks over to sylvain, then up at the wall. ]
Are those noises coming from within the walls?
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ENDING
the three of you, brave and warm, stand, and watch the people you love stagger towards you. things will be okay. you know they will.
diluc summons his chains, and they shine, buzzing with the strength of how much he feels. they shoot forward, and wrap around kaeya, mikazuki and sieghart, holding them in place. none of them struggle, too tired to do so - they just slump into the chains, as if relieved to not have to fight any longer.
estelle brings a shield - she protects, this time, instead of hurts. her shield settles like armor around both diluc and kaeya, around the hostages, too, glimmering. and she will know, as she focuses, that she has accomplished exactly what she wanted to do. she is a saving grace, not a poison.
and finally - sylvain. the relic in his hands thrums with power, and as he adjusts it in his hands, he knows it is strong enough to bring down the thing in front of him. the uwu stomps its feet, angry, and he can see it start to shift, start to grow bigger, tentacles slithering out from its back, but it doesn't matter. he lunges forward, and the relic strikes true - right through the heart. the uwu roars in pain, trying do whatever it can to fight back, but the tentacles bounce off estelle's shield, and the hostages are safe in diluc's chains.
there's a pulse of light, and a whisper of that same voice: you did amazing, you three.
and then everything goes dark.]
CONGRATULATIONS!!
you solved my uwu puzzle, you win! your rewards are as follows:
you will find that, upon coming out of your cyoa, you will have all of your wounds you accumulated over your time inside. you don't have to have bone limbs, though if you really want to i guess you can, just keep in mind that i'm not sure that can be healed. otherwise, you have all of your injuries as they would apply to a human body!
two more important things: you will exit the cyoa wearing red robes. and! until saturday at trial start, you'll have a fun status effect. you will be afraid of the dark, extremely claustrophobic, and occasionally, you'll hallucinate that you are momentarily in a small, cramped room with black velvet curtains lining the walls. yay.