004 - Lucid Dreaming

[tabularasa_mods]

Lucid Dreaming Event Info Pt.1 ▲ Event Info Pt.2 ▼ Comments Please see the two info posts linked above for details on the nature of the event, the nightmares within, and the setting it takes place in. You may ask any unanswered questions in either post. If your character dies at any point during the dream event, please leave a comment in the death report thread to notify the mods.

As a final reminder, all characters will fall asleep for the full duration of this event whether you decide to take part or not. You may continue tagging threads that take place before the event, but everyone will fall asleep simultaneously.

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Falling Asleep, Waking Up
The shift happens without warning, much like the first time people appeared in the world. Perhaps you remember what you were doing in the last moments before a strange feeling of exhaustion overwhelmed you - or perhaps you remember nothing at all. Whatever it may be, you've appeared somewhere new. A seemingly ordinary train station, if not for the bizarre walls of flesh blocking the only exits. The only path forward is down into the pulsating depths, a humid breeze pushing at your back.

There may be others here with you, or you may be alone. Could there be more people trapped in this strange place? You won't find them just by standing around.

Nightmares
The screeching of a distant train will echo through the tunnels on occasion, shadows flicking through the translucent flesh of the walls. Sometimes, however, instead of fading away the noise will only grow louder, closer, until it sounds like the train should be upon you. It never appears, but something else always will.

The train is a siren call for nightmares, and you're unfortunate enough to be their victim. The shadows turn alive, twisting and growing as they rise up from the ground and begin to transform. What form they take varies, but the shadows of the mind know the true fears of those who walk among them. Are you prepared to face the darkness?

Volcanic Panic

The shadows congeal at the edges of the floor, and soon after a hot orange glow begins to fill the room - molten lava is pooling in from the other end of the tunnel. It rolls slowly forward, devouring everything it touches with an unquenchable searing hunger, leaving behind only the charred bones of its victims... although, strangely, the tunnels themselves appear to be completely unharmed.

Outrunning the flow of lava shouldn't be a problem, but there seems to be no end to it. How long can you run from something that never stops? Or worse, what happens if you find yourself surrounded? You'll need to find a way to higher ground before that happens.

A Radiant Plague

The shadows rise up into familiar shapes, and at first glance it'd be easy to mistake them for people. They may even share the faces and voices of people you know, stumbling towards you with wide, open arms... and empty, glowing eyes filled with an orange light. Something smells sickly sweet, and it's only once they're close enough to grab you that they begin to attack.

These are not your friends, and they'll do whatever it takes to make you one of them instead. Unfortunately, it's not an experience you'll be able to survive. Your only hope is to fight back before the plague can take hold, lest you become another mindless husk that knows only to further spread the infection.

Trust No One, Not Even Yourself

The shadows stretch and fill the air, choking everything in a thick blanket of darkness... before dispersing just as quickly as they'd appeared. A few moments pass and nothing else seems to be happening. You must've gotten lucky this time!

... Or did you?

Surely it can't be that simple. Nothing else here has been, so something must have happened just now. It's only you and the person you're currently traveling with... but are you sure that's really them right now? How do you know they haven't been possessed by another nightmare, waiting until you let your guard down to stab you in the back? Should you interrogate them to be sure, or start with restraining them and ask questions later? Wouldn't it be better to just kill them before things get out of hand? The sooner you strike, the safer you'll be when their true form emerges.

Yes, that must be the real explanation. It has to be them that's been possessed by a nightmare. What else could it be?

Joker’s Wild

There’s no limit to what form the shadows can take. The world may have its own perception of fear, but your nightmares are something only you could understand. What darkness lurks in the depths of your heart?

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code bases by tricklet

Comments

[simulatio]

[Damien draws the gun his boy had lent him, and Loki laughs. How could such a pointless act of defiance be anything but amusing? Humans are so willing to lay down their lives for the pettiest reasons.

Loki simply grins at him, a flick of his wrist materializing the sword of Lævateinn. In this form, he's only a few inches taller than Akechi had been, and his clawed hands should be much too small to easily grip the pliers needed to safely carry the red-hot blade, but somehow, it works just fine.]

Do you miss my boy so badly that you desire to meet him yourself? [he purrs, flicking his long tongue through pointed teeth as if scenting the air. His eyes glimmer with amusement as he locks his gaze on the hacker. His phone would be infinitely more useful than the child's toy his ward had lent him, but either way: this man doesn't stand a chance against him. How could he, facing the manifestation of chaos itself?] You, the man who thinks you can claim ownership of my master.

[abeautifulgame]

[he's practically a manifestation of chaos, himself. Akechi may know a little of his dirty little secrets, and Loki, too, through him, but oh, the fun he had with Chicago at the end there, and never mind the fact that that was an act of desperation. he was the city; he destroyed the city. Loki would be proud]

[but that's a moot point, at the moment. at the moment, he falters a little, shaking his head. it's not that he's afraid of Loki -- or not anymore afraid than he was a minute ago, thinking he was his nightmare. it's more that there's a lot there to unpack, and he doesn't follow -- doesn't want to. he's certainly smart enough to follow the implication there, but no]

What?

[simulatio]

[Again, Loki simply grins. This man is smart enough to know what he means. Akechi had known that, once, and Loki is nothing but a part of Akechi. The parts of himself that he'd repressed for long enough that they became his own separate being, a separate mask worn when it's time to hurt and destroy; if Robin Hood had been born from a misguided sense of injustices faced, Loki is the roar when such injustices inevitably keep happening.]

You may lower your weapon, [he suggests amicably, as if it's anything but an order. As if Loki is giving him his permission to do so. He twirls Lævateinn, pointing its tip toward the floor as he leaps into the air with impossible grace and perches atop the pliers that serve as its hilt. The sword hovers a few inches above the ground, and Loki hovers a few centimeters above that, horse-like legs crossed, horns barely brushing the fleshy ceiling.] Do you know who I am, mortal?

[He rests his elbow on his knee, chin in his hand, grinning with a mouth that's too wide for Akechi's face.]

[abeautifulgame]

[Damien lowers the gun not because Loki orders it, gives him permission to, but because Loki's made himself less of a threat. he's obviously not coming at him, not for the time being, anyway, so there's no point in standing there like an ass, carrying on a some ridiculous standoff that only he's party to]

Should I?

[he does, thinks he does, albeit not specifically. he knows that Loki is one of Akechi's Persona, but not that he's Loki. he's going to deny that he does, if only because that means admitting the truth he's avoiding -- if Loki is here, than Akechi isn't]

[simulatio]

[He laughs again, his voice richer and deeper than Akechi's vocal chords should be capable of producing, and lightly drums red-clawed fingers against his cheek.]

A man who prides himself on his intelligence, playing the fool by not wagering a guess. I am the chaos-bringer, the havoc-wreaker, he who tricks gods and betrays kin.

[His too-long tongue again runs over his pointed teeth, licking thin lips as his eyes brighten, as if brought joy by talking about all the things he's capable of.]

I am the true spirit which dwells within Goro Akechi, the parts of him that he hides from society and that you, Damien, admire most. In another world, perhaps you could have been worthy of my mantle, you who gave Chicago a taste of your own Ragnarok.

[abeautifulgame]

[fine, he'll stop playing stupid. he doesn't look thrilled about having to acknowledge any of this, though]

Loki, then. [he's not even going to ask how he knew about Chicago. he does, however, wonder how he keeps attracting the divine. his evil son is host to Loki; the woman he's seeing is the daughter of Hades and Persephone. it's a bizarre coincidence, if it is one. it's enough to make him wish and wonder, both, that he was part of that crowd]

[regardless, though]

So, what now?

[simulatio]

Well done.

[It's almost a purr as Loki leans forward, steepling his fingers and resting his elbows on his knees in a mockery of one of the scripted poses his boy is so fond of.]

And yet, that is my question for you, would-be lord of Chicago. My boy gave you his weapon to allow you to protect yourself, but now he's beyond my reach. Should I sink my claws into his soul once again and return him to how he should be, what do you intend to do with him?

[The sword vanishes, and Loki does, too. Only for an instant, though; all at once, there's warm breath on the back of Damien's neck as Loki leans forward over his shoulder.]

If you wish to use him as so many others, take care that you aren't caught, mortal chaos-bringer.

[abeautifulgame]

[he straightens, hackles prickling at the feel of Loki's breath on the back of his neck. it's not so much a fear response, though, as -- well, he's not sure what it is, really, but he's not afraid of Loki. he knows that much, at least]

[which is why, maybe, he can let out a bark of a laugh at the idea that he might be using Akechi] For once, my boy, my only agenda is that I have no agenda. [a beat] What would be the point? [what would there be to gain, in using Akechi? would would he even use him for?]

[simulatio]

[Loki lets out a dry, rasping hiss that somehow conveys annoyance and amusement all in the same breath.]

I should kill you for your insolence, mortal, speaking as such to me, but you are one of the few my boy would prefer to remain alive. He pledged himself to me long ago, and it's my power that kept him alive.

[He bares his teeth in a too-wide grin as he circles around Damien, spreading his arms to either side.] But you have answered correctly, and so, I won't see if your death reunites the two of you. What would be the point?

[Just like before with the sword, Loki dissolves, but this time he doesn't bother to reappear. He got what he needed, after all.]