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

DAMN RIGHT, YOU BETTER HAVE BOUGHT A TICKET

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[Still being bombarded with accusations and demands from the gathered crowd, some of them were even angling their limbs as if they might turn to violence or start lobbing projectiles.]

You can lodge your complaints at customer services.

[Trying to dissuade them long enough so he could go inside and better assess the situation. It didn't work, they only pressed closer. The crowd starts to thin towards the middle but only in a peculiar pattern. It's accompanied with grunts, groans and more disparaging remarks. When the figure forcing it's way through comes into view it amps up the confusion]

Ann?! [Not Takamaki for once, but Ann. The way she handled the customers was ... hilarious but he refrained from cracking a smile. This was serious and he was about to be facing bankruptcy if he didn't fix this or at least a sharp stock decline] This is my responsibility, I can't just leave.

HELL NO, THE PRICES WERE TOO STEEP SO I JUMPED THE FENCE

[menaretrash]

[ Things are getting more and more out of hand, and it looks like most of these people are considering opening a can of literal whoop ass on Kaiba. He's a big, strong guy, but he's just one guy, and from the ridiculously large 'Kaibaland' sign, she's going to assume that yes, this place belongs to him, and yes, these people are his customers.

Well, they're not hers -- generally, she tries not to go out of her way to be rude to people, not on purpose at least, but she's making an exception to that rule today. Something is wrong, something is very off here, in more ways than one, and also... she really, really doesn't want to watch him get jumped.

A larger woman in front of her squawks indignantly as she's nudged forcefully to the side, and finally, Ann manages to barely, but literally pop through the angry mob that seems to be... doubling in numbers, somehow. ]

Hi, Seto. [ Since they're temporarily on a first name basis! Someone tries to elbow her out of the way, and she growls, shoving that person off to the side again, lifting a hand in a 'DON'T YOU DARE' gesture towards the next person who seems to be thinking about making the same attempt. ] I know, I get it, but... don't you think this is all a little convenient? Something's not right here...

YOU SHOULD HAVE BROUGHT YOUR FRIENDS FOR THE GROUP RATE!

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[Sure, Kaiba thought he was in control and that somehow he would get a handle on this, but he just didn't realize how incredibly wrong he was. These people couldn't be reasoned with or placated and they outnumbered him greatly. The disparity was only going to keep growing.

By the time Ann managed to push through, the crowd's ire was hitting the boiling point]

... [Look- he really wanted to correct her, he did- but he knew where his priorities should lay. It was one oversight, she likely wouldn't repeat it. Maybe. You know- he's kinda impressed with just how obstinate and rude she was being, look it's not a phenomenon only to him. Other people could be just as obnoxious.] Convenient is more like the opposite of what this is.. but I get what you were going for. [Even he had to admit that her presence here likely meant something wasn't on the level. He pressed a hand to the KC logo on his collar and tried to raise his security team to inform them on what was going on..] Let's get out of here..... now. [How he proposed to do that wasn't initially obvious since the doubled crowd was forming a barrier around them. The only way out... was up]

[That's when the chopper blades could he heard and they were drawing nearer until the thing was hovering above them, a coiled ladder was unfurled, and he grabbed for the highest rung he could reach before taking the liberty of wrapping his free arm around Ann, hoping she wouldn't complain about the close contact long enough for them to fly off.]

YOUR PRICES ARE TOO INFLATED! I COULDN'T AFFORD THAT EVEN WITH MY FRIENDS!

[menaretrash]

[ Ann's growing more concerned and confused by the moment, honestly. She knows that this can't be right, that there can be absolutely no way that they've gone from the Void, to Mementos, to his world and his theme park that has literally turned into a dumpster fire.

She briefly thinks back on something Ren and Akechi told her about, and her concern absolutely spikes for a second as she briefly considers that perhaps the enemy from home has decided to screw with their memories and futures here, too. But that can't be possible, either.

Thank you for not correcting her, Seto, because she wouldn't have listened, anyways. ]

Something is way off here. [ This is his world. She shouldn't be here. And she can't see anything built by him being... like this. At all. As another hand reaches to grab for her shoulder to try and pull her towards the back of the line, she slaps it away, and she's about to turn around to tell someone off when Seto speaks again. ] Okay. What's the best route out?

[ Maybe she'll feel guilty for snapping and shoving these... people out of the way later. Maybe not, because really, this was an emergency situation as far as she's concerned, and they were being far more aggressive in their pursuit of Seto, anyways. She can't really linger on that, though, because suddenly, the sound of helicopter blades catches her attention. She looks up just in time to see it descending from the sky, close enough to lower a ladder.

That's cool. She's half expecting him to leave her behind, not that she could blame him, but she's not expecting what comes next. His arm slides around her, and immediately, her cheeks heat up with slight embarrassment tinged with something else she can't quite pinpoint. She just hopes he doesn't complain when she quickly wraps her arms around him in return because... safety first, okay.

She's going to pointedly keep her gaze down at the growing mass of people, too. ]

HOW ELSE CAN I COMPETE WITH THE HOUSE OF MOUSE?!

[blue_eyed_obsession]

[There has been an alarming amount of incidents recently, enough to really question the stability of the void and the alternate dimensions it's connected to. Reality and fiction were being blurred beyond what was recognizable.

Given their prior experience it's a logical concern to bear in mind. The opponent they faced before was undoubtedly capable of warping the world to it's whims.]

There's no way that all of these things could have been orchestrated to occur at precisely the same time. [That he granted her. Not a great believer in the alternate worlds theory, he wasn't sure if her version of Japan was completely blocked off from his or not- despite the misgivings he felt from seeing her here. Either way he doubted she would make a special trip out to Kaibaland the moment they returned home.] See for yourself. [Sounding suitable smug when things go off without a hitch. This time]

[Oblivious to the affect this is having on her, and focusing on the immediate need to escape he doesn't so much a grunt when she clings onto him. He's looking skyward, making sure that the helicopter itself isn't suffering from random defects. So far- so good. As they ascend into the air, he also takes a peek at the people below. They grow smaller with the greater distance placed between them.] They never saw that coming.. [Congratulating himself, as the wind generated by the propellers whipped all around them.]

THE KEY IS THE FOOD, MAN. MAKE GOOD FOOD AND THEY WILL COME

[menaretrash]

[ There's a whole lot of theories bouncing around in her head right now, honestly. Some are legit, some are stupid. What she does know, is that something here has hideously twisted things around into something that can't possibly be real. ]

No, not at all. Also, I'm pretty sure I'm not supposed to be here, either. [ Which honestly, is her first real clue that yeah, this is some sort of weird, fucked up version of... everything. Of course, there's always the possibility that she's been spit out into his world, in which case that would be a worst case scenario, too... ] ...Wow. [ ...Extra. To no one's surprise!

It's good that he's not having an internal crisis like she is. She's currently berating herself in her head, because she's surrounded by cute, stupid guys almost constantly at home. They hug her sometimes. This is the same thing, except it's not, because he's not a stupid, cute guy from home, he's a handsome, strong man and wow they're going really high up. She's forced out of her thoughts when he pipes up, though, and she clears her throat a little. ] Yeah, they sure didn't... neither did I... [ He... wasn't kidding when he said his name came with a whole lot of clout, jeez... ]

I THINK I NEED TO HIKE THE PRICE HIGHER

[blue_eyed_obsession]

I know some of my enemies are sticklers for details but this would be out there. [As for her not belonging here..] Guess that means you didn't buy a ticket. [You fence jumper you. Still, that in itself was peculiar. It's not like his security was that lax, and he had this place as well monitored as any building with KC stamped on it.] ... [In this rare instance he genuinely smiled. Yes, do be impressed Takamaki. This kind of thing was nothing to him]

[That crisis might surface for him later but not as of yet. He's technically where he's supposed to be so he's more in his element. To her credit Ann was taking the situation in stride, as he wasn't sure how she would take to the air. They'd never discussed their experiences with aircraft before, so maybe this was as old hat to her as it was him? At this point she might have been thinking that he was planning on going up the ladder and getting into the helicopter but... you know.. he wasn't. Not only would that have been hard to manage with their current position, but it wasn't necessary] Drop us off at the Kaiba dome. [Ok, maybe he needed to be a little more creative with names. The helicopter made for the dragon-head shaped building]

[Then to her] There's another control room there, that we'll be able to get to from the roof. [ Y U P]

NO JUST MAKE BETTER FOOD AND ALSO MAKE SURE YOU SELL COPIOUS AMOUNTS OF STUPID HEADBANDS

[menaretrash]

Yeah, this is... craziness. I can't see anything with your name on it being a disaster like this, enemies or not. [ Because, he might be a jerk sometimes, but he also seems like someone who would not settle for anything less than perfect. Quality over quantity sort of thing, like a proper CEO should be. ] ...H-haha, yeah, sorry about that! Accidentally sneaked in... [ He smiles, and suddenly she wishes he'd do that more. He looks so good when he smiles so genuinely like that, and she can feel her heart doing strange, stupid flips that she's going to shelf away as just an aftermath of the adrenaline rush from moments earlier. Must be it.

The air isn't much of anything to her at this point, after fleeing crumbling castles and pyramids, jumping from buildings and casinos... this is almost like an every day, normal thing, really. Except usually, that's a Metaverse thing, and this is no Metaverse. Seto is too warm and solid to be anything but the real deal, and that's... she doesn't even know why that matters.

They're not going any further up, and that's okay, too. She's not necessarily concerned; he's got a good grip, and if he's comfortable like this, so is she maybe a little TOO comfortable on her end.

...Of course he'd name that big building the Kaibadome. Of course. ]

Sounds like a plan. Do you think it's going to be flooded with people, too? Just... so we know what we're potentially up against once we get there.

THE HEADBANDS CAN HAVE LITTLE DMG AND DARK MAGICIAN HATS SEWN TO THE BAND

[blue_eyed_obsession]

For this level of chaos, literally every system and failsafe would have to be in a state of disrepair. [Which trust him, that likelihood is exceedingly low. That was one of his positive attributes. Seto wanted quality products, a substandard one would be an insult not only to costumers but a personal one to himself] How do you accidentally sneak in.. [It was a rhetorical question that didn't need an answer. Smiles were a rarity with the boy that was usually more intent on scowling, so it was certainly a sight to behold. Little did he know the effect it was having on her.

It was kind of strange, despite how everything was blowing up around them- sometimes literally- this seemed more like Kaiba's element. Troubleshooting was something he hadn't had the opportunity to engage him in the while, nor the needless dramatic stunts and apparently he'd been missing the excitement. The feeling was invigorating. Keeping a firm grasp on her he readied himself to let go of the ladder when they were over the Kaiba dome. It was a rounded roof, so they needed to stick the landing just so to not roll off.]

Most likely. The patrons will be down on the ground floor, where the duel monsters arena is. If they find out something is going on, it won't take them long to locate the stairs. We'll have a few moments to pull this off, without interference.

[Or so he assumes]

Get ready.

[The chopper lowered itself enough to make the drop less but it couldn't remain entirely stationary. Then in another moment, his arm slid free of his hold on her once he was sure she was prepared, then he hopped down after]