003 - Memories of a False History

[tabularasa_mods]

Memories of a False History State of the World ▲ Locations ▼ Bestiary
OOC ▲ Comments Please refer to the original Event Announcement for more information or to ask any questions you might have! For the disaster prompt, players are not restricted to the versions given, but they are intended to be the most common. Feel free to borrow ideas from the disaster suggestions thread as well!

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The Sound of All Things Bad
The sound comes without warning. What the sound is cannot quite be made out - it is at once artificial and natural, bestial and mechanical, rumbling and roaring and crunching, shattering and crashing and screaming. Everything about it feels like a threat, warning of danger. The cacophony of noise reaches throughout the entire Void, loud and inescapable, the mangling and clashing of different sounds leaving each individual with a different idea of what it could possibly have been. It sounds different to everyone, each person able to pick out a part of the sound that ties to their own fears.

What if...?

How long the sound lasts would depend on how the individual perceives time. It might last for seconds, or it might last for minutes, but once it stops it does not repeat. Where it came from or what it is does not become the slightest bit clearer, and people are left to only speculate.

Disaster
No one can quite be sure what has prompted them to remember that day. It might have been that noise of approaching doom, or perhaps it is seeing the crumbling ruins of Hammerlocke itself. Once a stray memory surfaces, it is easy enough to look into the details and recall in full the vivid memory of Hammerlocke’s destruction - the ‘truth’ of what caused the mountainside city to crumble into ruins, as so many have wondered since their first appearance. Though the memory is clear and detailed, vivid enough to have been witnessed in person, it is out of place and does not belong, and anyone who can recall the events knows it.

Attempting to discuss the matter will soon reveal that while others recall the event with similar clarity, the details vary from person to person. Over time, their own memory changes and adapts, occasionally changing to something new entirely, yet the original is never completely forgotten. Memory is a strange and fickle thing, so easy to influence and manipulate, that the truth is difficult to find.

While memories differ from person to person, there are three particular tales that recur:

From the Sky

Though the sky above did not change from its paper-like blank white, the land grew darker and darker as though cast in shadow. The source of the shadow was clear: above, slowly descending towards the wings of the castle, was... something. Something immense, yet shrouded in crackling storm clouds.

As it continued to grow closer and closer, something in the clouds began to swell. It grew larger and larger, an electric hum of energy in the air, until with a resounding crack it burst and a great shadowy beast fell to the ground, landing with such force that the resulting shockwave shook the earth and tore through the stone buildings, causing so much of the city to tumble in an instant. It moves, and it screeches, raising its head up as the great storm above continues to swell and crackle.

This would not be the only beast.

(Based upon: Meteor, the Lunar Cry, and the Darkest Day)

The Battlefield

It was never clear why the fighting eventually made its way to this defenseless city, but it came without warning. The chaos was heralded only by explosions as the city walls were blasted through by tanks that had somehow made their way along the treacherous and narrow mountain path that simply was not meant for such heavy machines. The thundering explosions and the collapse of buildings could surely be heard for miles, and people and animals alike were quick to flee.

Though they reached Hammerlocke first, the tanks seemed like nothing compared to the enemy. The enormous shadowy monstrosity that swooped in from the sky seemed to be made from far more advanced technology. Even just the one towering machine, as large as the castle falling to ruins beneath its feet as it lands, proves deadly as it fires upon the approaching tanks, blasting them all to pieces within an instant before turning fire on whichever buildings remain standing.

(Based upon: Tanks, and Reapers)

The Mysterious Storm

There had been no way to predict the change in the weather, never mind how destructive it would prove. One moment, everything had been still and quiet, and the next the city was assailed by howling, violent winds and freezing, glittering snow and ice. Though the city was built of stone and had stood the test of time for centuries, it could not stand against these combined forces. The only shelter was underground, for the furious storm was so powerful it could rip through earth, lift up and fling any object in its path with devastating force, shattering windows and toppling buildings.

Propelled by such force, the ice and hail proved destructive in its own right. As the storm froze everything in its path, the hailstones became like bullets and great chunks of ice became missiles. By the time the winds began to grow calm, there was little left standing.

Something about the storm seemed somehow unnatural, but where it came from was anyone’s guess. Some, however, may have spied a vague figure through the tempest, of unclear appearance but its presence somehow threatening.

(Based upon: Weather, El shortage, and Diamond Dust)

Misplaced Memories
Worries about whatever disaster must have befallen the ruined city of Hammerlocke aside, people quickly become aware that memories of the disaster are not the only invasive, foreign memories. How the other memories come to them seems, on the surface, to be very similar: a connected thought occurs, and upon realizing the memory is not theirs, people are compelled to think more about it until the memory is uncovered in full detail. Unlike the memory of the disaster, however, this one quite clearly belongs to someone else. Someone who is here.

On puzzling this out, some might find they have more than one stray memory sitting in their minds. More importantly, however, is the feeling that something from their own memory is missing, and whatever memory is missing feels like it is something important. It could just be their own phone number, or it could be their name, or the face of whoever is most important to them. It could be something small, it could be something big, but all people know is that it’s something important and it’s gone.

There is no clear, immediate answer as to what people can do about their lost memories. With regards to their new memories, however, the path might seem a tiny bit clearer, for surely it seems a bit unfair that they can see into someone’s past in such a manner without their knowing. Perhaps it’s best to talk to them about it?

Although the lost memory is not always the same as the ones borrowed, taking the memory back to its source and prompting them to discuss and think about it proves a great help - as they talk, the invasive memory leaves, a lost memory is restored, and those who succeed are able to tell others the solution.

While the invasive memory is gone, people can still recall having it, and can still recall the details, but they will no longer remember it from the other’s point of view. Perhaps it might change how they see each other from now on?

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code bases by tricklet

Comments

2/2

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[It was clear that recalling the person was difficult, from her actions and the way she was attempting to talk herself through it. He wished he had more details to offer up but they were oddly elusive. Mostly he remained silent as not to serve as an additional distraction.]

Short- about shoulder length? Wearing a....... yellow top and green skirt... possibly in a floral design?

[Oddly, he was doubting himself]

Or.... was it something else..

[There had to have been someone else in the ring. Marisa couldn't have been battling thin air]

Ugh- whoever she is she seems like the sort of person to delve into mind games. [That was the only explanation available for someone they were both struggling to remember. The snippets of the altercation were like wisps of smoke breaking apart] How scary can she be if no one can even remember that she exists?

Did you just say squeak toy..? [No one is going to fall prey to a dog's chew toy. Still, to hear that last part he felt a little more convinced that maybe Koishi was a threat]

Then it's a good thing she isn't here. I get the feeling that not only could she get the drop on a person but she would relish every moment of it as the life drained from her victim..

[bridge_princess]

Yes, Marisa's an arrogant little shit, and Reimu's got an unfair advantage. Pinned it down in one, but I'm not surprised. You'd figure that out easily even if you were half as smart as you are, and you're a lot of things. You aren't dumb.

[Enjoy that little admission. She didn't think Kaiba was actually stupid. Arrogant and stubborn? Absolutely, but not stupid. He was one of the smarter folks she knew here.]

Yeah, squeak toy. Don't ascribe motivations to her. Now that I got her in my head, I can piece the tiny glimmers o memory together. Probably won't be able to tomorrow. It's weird how it works with her. It's like remembering how breakfast tasted ten years ago. On a Monday.

What I remember? She doesn't plan things out. She just does what interests her. If she wants to see your guts, she'll do it. If she wants to giggle and tickle, she'll do it. And ... it can change any minute, like she's a gadfly.

She literally exists in the moment, like an animal. I think... I remember Satori said she did it to herself once. I don't know why.

[blue_eyed_obsession]

People like that... need to be taken down. [Something Kaiba likely shouldn't have been quite so invested in given his track record. Still, he enjoyed enlightening other duelists on just how inferior they were if they had overinflated egos themselves, or if they were clearly cheating]

[He acknowledged the admission with a hint of a smirk, honestly it was strangely mutual. Although he didn't think of Parsee being on his level, she did what most people didn't in questioning the norm, and actively seeking answers. She wasn't someone to follow others blindly.]

That unpredictable, hm? [Beginning to fully comprehend the danger. Even someone like Pegasus, Marik, or Dartz had motivations. They had goals they clearly were striving towards and wouldn't do anything to jeopardize those plans. This other girl, was something else... wild and unstable like a supercell. Near impossible to outmaneuver strategically, since her whims could alter in a moment's notice.]

Guess we lucked out that you're here instead of her- [It wasn't meant as a slight but it could have been taken as one. He genuinely meant it] ... though this place would put a stop to her before she could try anything. [Was this an acknowledgement that supernatural powers could exist?! Ok, yeah even going that far made his insides twist in revulsion] I wonder... with all of this going on, just how many times are we going to experience similar. [Ie. Would there be more misplaced memories?]

[bridge_princess]

Just a little bit, but I'm not the one to do it. They kick my ass whenever we run into each other. I don't pretend to be one of the big fishes of that world. There's no way I'd ever be that powerful.

[Though with the right boost, she'd be scary as fuck herself. It was kind of warped that way.]

Yeah, there's some crap in Gensokyo that's seriously messed up. We're better off not dealing with any of that.

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[Least she knew her limitations, many didn't. The calm acceptance of it was not something he could relate to. Considering how often Parsee talked down about herself, he found himself questioning it. What she was actually capable was likely somewhere in between.]

Agreed. The pontificating buffoons and the psychopaths need not apply.

[bridge_princess]

[Whether he realized it or not, that calm acceptance came with the equally calm acceptance that she would always be jealous, and by always being jealous, she would retain power. It was a strange cycle that kept her empowered out of habit. Far more self serving than she let on.]

Oh, you know that they will. that's in their nature by being psychopaths and buffoons.

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[One could say that her jealously fueled her, as he believed his anger did for him. The difference being he might actually become more unstoppable if he would listen to some of that advice the pharaoh had tried to impart on him. His desire to best others, led to an obsession of an unhealthy level]

Unfortunately, I do.

There will be no end to them. [Thinking back on it, he considered what she had initially told him and how it must have related to the vision she saw] Respect is a strong word- I will admit that he provides a stimulating challenge on an intellectual level, that's it.

[bridge_princess]

[Precisely, though it was very literal in her case. And in her case, it was unknown what would happen if she had no jealousy. But maybe one day he would listen to the Pharaoh for a hot minute... preferably when not prattling about the power of friendship.]

No, I get it. You'd never deign to call him a rival, but ... you relish the idea you beat him.

[Which was basically calling him a rival, but not saying the word.]

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[The negative emotion was so interwoven with her very being that it would be difficult to imagine her without it, if she would even continue to exist should it be extinguished. If Kaiba ever did listen, he would never live it down.]

I will beat him. [By probability alone, if necessary though even that wouldn't content him if he suspected it was a fluke. No, he would hone his skills, strengthen his deck and wipe the pharaoh out completely]

I wonder..... if there was supposed to be any point to all this? What good does it do either one of us to know this information? [Then with a huff] I guess- if I know more of your background then I also have a better handle on what might appear here in future but.. that's about it.