TDM + GAME OPENING 🎉

[beleos]

Who: Shard-Bearers, new and old
What: Seeds take root
Where: The Tree of Life, Highstorm, Springstar
When: October 14th and onwards
Warnings: Potential for (mild) body horror, death, dismemberment

I. BEARING FRUIT (new characters only)

It starts out as a pleasant dream. You’re in your favorite place, with your favorite people. It’s a moment of idyllic comfort.

And then, it goes wrong.

The sky turns dark above, and as you look up, you see the black expanse of space spotted with faraway pinprick lights of stars. Yet, they’re not stars. You’re certain. They’re watching you. A billion eyes all looking down, and they spill forth as if sky itself was a dam holding back those dark waters. You reach back to the people you’re with, but they’re frozen in place. Their eyes are black, reflecting only the expanse of dark eyes.

So you run, even though you know you won’t escape it. You glance back and see it not overtaking, but consuming. The landscape around you is being devoured, and you can see it cracking apart. The world itself is breaking, and it cracks under your feet. You fall, and the billion eyes chase after you until the darkness swallows you whole. There’s agony as if you’re being ripped apart, and then—

You cannot see. You cannot feel. You simply are. Yet even so, impossibly, a woman’s voice speaks gently.

I’m sorry it couldn’t be saved. But, come, it’s time to wake.

You wake with a start, cradled by soft, velvety plants, and sticky with a sap that smells faintly of honey and iron. You can see the veins of the leaves that hold you, lit warmly and gently by what looks like a crystal embedded above you. Yet, it’s odd, because that crystal calls to you. When you reach out to touch it, it’s warm. Familiar. Important. You don’t know why, but you know you must hold onto this, because now it feels wrong for it to be suspended in these leaves. So, you pull it out.

The light starts to fade, but only in time to see as the leaves cradling you immediately start to soften and crumble, and with it comes a torrent of dirt. Soft, loamy soil starts to fill the space around you in the dark as you’re buried. Or, rather, you already were. You reach out through the dirt desperately, and your hands finds a root, so you pull while you clutch that precious crystal so close that it almost feels like it sinks into you (in your panic, you don’t notice that it does). You reach out again, and this time, your hand hits open air and plenty of sturdy roots around to grab.

From a seed you’re born, and like a sprout, you make your way out of the ground.

And once you’ve clawed your way out of the soft earth and the roots, nearby, you see the soil shift. Another hand comes up to grasp desperately for something, anything, just as you had been.

II. MORAL HAZARD

There are new Shard-Bearers at the Tree of Life, and Yima has asked that the earlier arrivals go to greet them and help them. These aren’t people from Horos, after all, so they’ll have many, many questions. As Yima explains, the roots of the tree rise up to create caverns underneath, and it’s there you’ll find the new Shard-Bearers. And indeed, with careful steps to not slip on the mossy roots, down you go. Perhaps Communion will help you find the new Shard-Bearers, but it might be a confusing process for them.

The roots all start to look the same, to the point that you’re sure that you’ve already been through this passage. You turn around, and most of the people you had come here with are gone, if not all of them. It’s confusing and unsettling, and strangest of all.. You’re starting to feel ill, even if that wasn’t something normally possible for you. But continuing forward, you do eventually find an unfamiliar face of a new Shard-Bearer. They look no better than you feel.

Before introductions, however, roots around you shift suddenly until you’re enclosed in a room together. From the roots, a face forms in the wall. It speaks in a creaking, uneven tone, as if it weren’t used to speaking at all.

Give to take. A sacrifice. To live.

---

LET'S PLAY A GAME...

As the Dryad will explain, characters are now trapped in a room and have been poisoned by the spores that the lichens underfoot release. An antidote lays beyond the roots the dryad has curled around you, but to access it, you must make a sacrifice.

Characters can pick one of the following options, but the decision must be made unanimously. If one character takes a drastic action (such as murdering another), it’s counted as a failure for the group.

• Each of you must offer up a personal/treasured memory. The memory will be shared in Communion with all characters assembled, and then will be destroyed. No character will retain the memory or memory of its Communion.
• Each of you must offer up something physical. A finger, a toe, an ear, it’s your choice. The dryad will offer a knife if this is chosen that will sever the body part of choice cleanly and immediately stop any bleeding.
• Offer up another. Kill one person in the room.
• Refusing is also a valid option. Characters will get more ill as they debate until they start to find it difficult to breathe, and they’ll die quickly after.

The following is OOC knowledge that will not be known IC: The consequences of this game are about intent, and thus are not real. When characters are freed from the tree’s thrall, they’ll have their memories/body parts/life intact.

This can be done in groups of 2 to 4 players, and Loremasters recommend three if you can swing it! It’s more fun when you get in philosophical debates, right? Regardless, when your group comes to a decision, please record it here. These don’t have to be fully threaded out to be recorded, so the conclusion can be discussed OOC if you prefer. Actions can be submitted until October 21st, after which groups will be informed of what comes of their choice…

When a group receives the antidote, they'll be released from the tree's thrall... But will have a hard time waking up. It feels like something has grabbed onto their spine.

III. DREAMING OF HOME

You may wake with a start from your deliberations (or arguments) with a jolt of pain from the base of your spine as something is pulled away rapidly. A dark-haired man who looks to be in his thirties or so holds you carefully, but as soon as you start to regain your senses, he sets you back and holds up his hands.

Woah— Woah there, it’s fine! The tree was, uh, trying to take you back is all. You’re fine now.

As long as you’re not going to attack him, he offers a friendly smile and a hand to shake.

Name’s Cyrus. Sorry about the rude awakening. Let’s get your friend here unhooked too.

And indeed, glancing over, you can see the person you met in that room laying nearby, and it looks like a vine has snaked underneath them to exactly where something had just been pulled from you… Best not to think about it, maybe. Or if you've been unlucky enough to be one of the last people rescued, you might find vines and roots starting to grow into your skin. It's fine!

---

CYRUS, THE TRIBUNE

Cyrus is the NPC heading up the Meridian Faction, and is available to thread with under this header. Cyrus has come to the Tree of Life to help rescue the Shard-Bearer’s from the Tree, so he’s not going to be inclined to explain too much right away, since he’s on a mission, but he’ll stick around once everyone is successfully freed from Prompt 2 to speak with anyone that wants to. The following is just an OOC summary of information in case you do not need to thread with Cyrus:

Cyrus will gladly introduce himself to everyone, and will further explain his position in Meridian and Springstar (see the NPC Page) and the goals of Meridian itself (see the Faction Page, save for the italicized section). But most importantly, he’ll explain that he knows it sounds like something overly optimistic. It’s fair to be skeptical. He’ll produce a small glass bead from a bag he’s carrying. It looks like the necklace he wears, though not lit up. He’ll explain that the force of Meridian is a gift and can be a tether to your home, if you let it. As his fingertips light up, the energy is infused into the bead, which he’ll hand to you.

Taking the bead into your hands, you’ll take a bird’s eye view of your home world as if your consciousness is split, since you’ll still perceive standing in front of Cyrus at the tree. Rather than a vision, the view of your world is absolutely real, you’re certain. It’s a glimpse at the world that you thought destroyed, and if you focus on a particular place or a particular person, you’ll find the view shifting rapidly to it. No one you watch is aware of your presence, but simply continues about their daily life, whatever that is. But after about a minute, the view will fade as the light in the bead also fades.

That’s an iliachtida, a sunbeam, and when infused with Meridian’s light, allows someone Harmonized to it to check in on their world, he explains. It also acts as an anchor that tethers their soul to their world in the Timestream. With it, their world can’t entirely disappear, so eventually, they can go home. It’s a gift he’ll allow anyone that wants it to keep it, but indeed, they’ll be unable to use it again without first Harmonizing to Meridian.

To help manage threadload for the Loremasters playing Cyrus, we ask that you only tag him with the character you are most likely to app. Similarly, new tag-ins will not be accepted after Monday, October 17th.

III. SPRINGSTAR, αιώνιος ήλιος

After your ordeals at the Tree of Life, perhaps you’re drawn to Springstar, the city of eternal sun and the seat of Meridian.

It’s currently (and fittingly) Spring in Springstar, and the bustling city is coming back to life after finishing up winter. It’s not as if the winters are especially harsh here, but you’ll quickly get the sense that the people of Springstar are vivacious and happy to celebrate. You’ll find the Entertainment District to be the liveliest, whether it’s at a rowdy bar or a brothel, but no matter what, you’re welcome with open arms and without question.

Of course, if you’d just like to use the chance to explore the city alongside your fellow Shard-Bearers, that’s fine too. It’s easy to get lost in the crowds of Springstar and see all the city has to offer.

IV. HIGHSTORM, луны-близнецы

Or maybe Highstorm, the city of twin moons and the seat of Zenith is more to your liking. It’s certainly the quieter of the two cities and is a relaxing, meditative place if that’s what you prefer. The chill in the air is constant, since it’s Autumn in Highstorm and the eternal night doesn’t help keep things warm, exactly. Snow isn’t out of the question at this time of the year, but it’s beautiful in the moonlight.

Because of the cooler weather than Highstorm is prone to, you’ll find many of its delights inside rather than outside. Libraries and museums are popular in the more introspective city, though it’s easy enough to find something that might please you. For example, the indoor hot baths are popular at this time of the year too. You’ll find the people are kind, if cool-tempered, though if you mention the fact that you’re a Shard-Bearer or allied with Zenith, they’re more likely to warm up.

Though much like Springstar, it may just be more interesting to explore the city with a fellow Shard-Bearer. And as a resident may warn you, it’s best to stay in the city. Wandering out into the marshes and forests isn’t advised. Of course, if you do, just contact a Loremaster to find out why. ♥

NOTES

Welcome to Kenos! As a reminder, all players are required to fill out an application, which are now open. This does include characters/players from Aion Teleos, so please don’t forget to fill one out! Any character/player that does not submit an application will be swept from the communities and the Discord after applications close.

Activity Check is optional this month, but is highly recommend so Christy can check her fancy program so that you can earn Activity Reward Tokens! Activity will be able to be submitted shortly after applications close. You can find more about how we do AC here.

This log is Game Canon. Any characters who are not apped to the game will disappear. If Cyrus or Yima are asked, they’ll explain that this happens sometimes, since not every soul has a strong tether to Kenos and sometimes return to the Timestream. They’re fine and may even return to Kenos one day, but for now weren’t able to make the full journey.

As a reminder, your character has a Shard somewhere on their body that encompasses their soul, so keep note of where you're sticking it on their person for reference! Additionally, they have a tattoo of their Aspect somewhere on their body. Please be mindful this Aspect will be assigned to you upon approval and whatever you choose for the TDM may be temporary (for new characters)!

For the Highstorm and Springstar prompts, both cities will be fully open and accessible to all characters once they are saved from their rather harrowing ordeal at the Tree of Life. For prompt ideas and any general information about the cities and what you can find there, please see the Navigation page and check out the locations!

FOR NEW PLAYERS:

New players are welcome to join our Discord Server if you haven't already!

When they emerge from their cocoon/the ground, characters may be wearing their normal clothes, or they might be nude. Up to you!

At some point in the days after leaving the Tree of Life, new Shard-Bearers will have a dream, even if they're usually not capable of sleeping. All new players should read this post, since this details how they'll learn about both factions and their goals and should help them make a decision in which Faction they'd be drawn to.

New characters will not have access to any canon abilities on the TDM.

Your character will be offered temporary housing either at the Heliopolis district or Yima's manor for the first few weeks after their arrival. They will also be given a stipend for basic supplies like clothing and personal effects, and food is served in the cantina (Heliopolis) and at regular meal times in the Dining Room (Yima's manor). Once they Harmonize, they will get personal permanent chambers and a fancy retainer in their Faction's city. Wow! 🌈

FOR OLD PLAYERS:

Characters may be Harmonized to their Faction (if that makes sense for the character, of course!) by the time of this log. This is more for IC reference, and just wait until application acceptance to do the OOC paperwork!

General reminder that your character won't have access to their powers until they have Harmonized.

CODING

Comments

[exhound]

[It’s funny how Vander had always said he started a new life by turning away from killing, from using violence as a tool. All it had ever seemed to accomplish was cause him more problems, worse problems, and he’d managed to forge another path for himself without it. And yet here he was, living yet another new sort of life—new home, new role, new everything—and somehow he’d already fallen back into old habits. Maybe some things never change after all.

Silco always had brought out the worst in him, hadn’t he?

The whole ordeal was over faster than Vander had really expected. No need to hold on longer, to be sure, nothing but an unceremonious and abrupt end as the weight in his arms vanished. Just the clink of crystal on stone and only the sound of his own tense breathing to fill the silence that followed it.

There was the brief flash of satisfaction and then—nothing. The furious heat still beat in his chest, the anger hardly assuaged by his victory. The old phantom of a grudge long-held would not lay itself to rest that easily.

He pushed himself off of his knees, leaned back on his heels. Stared long and hard at the shard glittering on stone. But he couldn’t seem to make his hand reach for it. Instead he absently brushed at his arm, flinched at the sudden sting as fingers disturbed fresh knife wounds. He glanced down to find blood reddening his fingertips and his arm fielding a number of uneven, frantic cuts.

And it seemed to snap him back to reality. His head jolted up and he cast his gaze around him. Found the immediate area well clear of people, but there were still those brave or stupid enough to stay and watch the scene unfold from the periphery. What the hell had he been thinking?

He needed to get up. Needed to get out of here.]

[kabooming]

[ before Vander can make it much further than poising himself to stand, he would hear the frenetic, harried sound of footsteps approaching from his right. in a narrow alleyway between two buildings, there's a blur of blue, of someone pushing and shoving their way through the thinly gathered ring of onlookers who had kept their distance.

a fight between Shard-Bearers - a serious fight, one to the 'death' - was a rarity, after all.

Jinx is shouldering her way past two well-dressed men and coming to a jerky, uneven stop where none of the Zenites dared tread; her boots skid on cobblestone with her momentum and her eyes are wild, wide - searching. she had been pulled, drawn, guided; it had been by the uncanny sensation of suffocation, the roiling anger of defeat, the vicious seep of pain that clouded off into nothingness--

as Silco faded off into nothingness...

--but she had not expected to find Vander where the precious, jewel-like Shard now lay in the street between them. still panting and breathless, Jinx looks half out of her mind already yet protected under the cushion of shock as she takes everything in.

but it isn't hard to see the insidious simmer that is beginning to burn beneath it, one that will surely erupt when the numb haze starts fading. her eyes jerk, tilt, from Silco's fallen Shard to the one who had killed its Bearer as if she can't believe what she's seeing.

it is so, so very quiet, isn't it?

isn't that what Vander wanted? ]

[exhound]

[In the moments following his victory, Vander’s mind slowly begins to work itself up into a frenetic flurry. The quick and oh-so brutal struggle replayed itself, intermingled with memories of days past. And as more of his sense returned to him, the ramifications of putting on so visible a display of their intimate hatred began to slam into focus. He needed to get out of here, fix this, prevent things from getting worse—

All of that slams to an abrupt halt the moment he turns and sees a familiar lanky girl push her way through the crowd.

It’s been a long time since she’s seen him in a state like this, standing over the equivalent of a corpse, chest heaving from the exertion and the aftermath of committing the gruesome deed. The mere sight of her shifts his features into something reminiscent of the expression he’d worn on his face years and years ago on that bridge. The day he’d laid down his gauntlets and scooped up two little girls in his arms and returned to undercity and didn’t look back.

There’s none of that day to be seen on her face, though. Instead there is a thin veneer of shock that is quickly fading to reveal something much more intense hiding under the surface.]

You shouldn’t be here.

[Shouldn’t be attaching herself to the mess he’s made here in Highstorm. And frankly he shouldn’t be here either—shouldn’t have come out to the markets, shouldn’t have let Silco’s inflammatory taunts bait him into doing something so stupid and yet so satisfying. But more importantly, neither of them should be lingering here under the watchful eyes of the onlookers any longer.]

[kabooming]

[ Jinx has never been one to care much about an audience. gaining notoriety had been half the fun, after all - she left her custom calling card in the form of colorful neon graffiti everywhere she went for a reason. she isn't hiding. she isn't pretending to be who she's not anymore.

she isn't pretending now, either.

that low-burning simmer has already begun smoldering in earnest. whatever embers had caught alight were rapidly evolving into fire - the kind that consumes all the air in the room, that spreads like a flash. Jinx doesn't really do anything half-way; it's all or nothing. this is no exception.

she's trembling. it isn't fear - it isn't even grief. (that will come later.) it's a complete and utter disbelief, that incredulity (hurt, betrayal, pain) morphing into rage. her hand coils at her side, and maybe the force of her unsteady, rapidly unraveling composure can be felt through the air like an electrical charge. she isn't worried about Vander. she isn't worried about gawking onlookers hushed and murmuring among one another about the Bearers in their midst causing a scene.

if she was armed--

if she was armed, the blood lust she feels right now would've resulted in the instant spill of blood across the cobblestones - the kind that's much harder to disregard than the marks on his arms. the marks Silco left, fighting for his life. --there's a twitch, a crack - a break,

and Jinx is slowly drawing closer, prepared to take the Shard - to take things from Vander, to--

she knew it. she knew it. it was too good to be true; Silco was right. he's ALWAYS been right. they would betray her, betray them - Vi, and the Enforcer, and Vander, they're all... ]

Traitor.

[ Jinx is unclasping a pouch at her side, pulling out something vaguely familiar to Vander - sure, she had her gadgets and tinkered in her youth, but nothing ever really worked out the way it was supposed to.

what looks like some sort of explosive in her hand-painted with streaks of neon green to make a face across its side is being unpinned, a rapid ticking beginning to fill the air between them. ]

[exhound]

[The fading embers of his own anger soon give way to confusion that writes itself plain on his face. The Shard itself is barely even an afterthought in his mind now, so focused on the rapidly growing display of Jinx’s ire. He steps over it, one foot then another, drawing himself closer even as she does so as well. And then that single word rings out against the silence surrounding them and stops him in his tracks.]

What?

[Traitor? Why would she even think that, why look at him now with such anger and betrayal in her eyes? How did she even manage to find her way here, so frantic already before she even pushed her way through the crowds—

And very slowly, through the haze of his faltering adrenaline and the swirling storm confusion and cooling anger, he begins to put the pieces together.

He doesn’t like the picture that’s starting to form.

Recognition and alarm replace the confusion on his face as she quickly pulls out and unpins her gadget. There is no doubt in his mind that now, much older and much more experienced, she must surely have perfected her tinkering skills in the gulf of missing years that stood between them. He needs to stop this before things get worse.]

Powder, this is— [—mistake, big mistake using that name, and he knows it but there’s no undoing it, so he lets the rest of his words barrel on—] We shouldn’t be here, we need to go. And I can explain what this is, what he is.

[Or was? Not permanently, and the truth of that hits him now, hard and fast, but it is the least urgent of his problems in this moment. Tick tick tick.]

[kabooming]

[ he's right - his use of that name sets her teeth even more aggressively on edge, the not-quite-right light of a manic rage growing all the brighter in her eyes. the tick-tick-ticking in her hand is slowly growing faster, but Jinx shows no signs of making a move with the colorful grenade just yet. ]

What he is? [ she spits the words back at him like they're a curse. ] Oooh, I don't need anything explained to me. I know what he is, and I know what you are. What you aren't, what you say you'll be but you never WILL be. Just another liar, another traitor, another--

[ another...

...

she makes a noise of frustration, and then almost like it's an afterthought - the grenade in her hand begins reaching a frantic fever pitch of ticking, and Jinx lobs it almost casually to their left--

right into the crowd of onlookers. it's his nature, right? to play hero. to be the good guy. so go fetch, Vander; you have precious seconds before it hits something - someone - and detonates. ]

[exhound]

[Her words hit hard and fast like a dagger to the chest—a different sort of pain than the stinging of his arms, but a much more potent one. Very suddenly, he is feeling the weight of those missing years in a way he hasn’t yet in the week since he arrived here. Before, it had been somewhat baffling and somewhat sad, yet still something he could contend with. But seeing her here, changed from the innocent and eager young girl he remembers, to… this? To someone who would turn against him to defend Silco, of all people?

It hits harder than he ever could have expected.

That unrecognizable fury in her eyes almost makes him feel like he’s looking at a stranger. And she only hammers it home further when she carelessly tosses that grenade of hers aside and right into the gathered crowd. The pleading retort he has dies on his tongue—there’s no time for words now, only a crestfallen look shot her way before he goes running after it.

The onlookers have already begun backing up a tad in confused apprehension, but the sight of the Shard-bearer central to the violent display put on just moments ago barreling toward them is enough to really light a fire under them. He hardly has to shout, Move!, before they start clearing out in earnest.

And it’s enough to give him just enough space to go after the frantically ticking object, reaching out for it as the noise reaches a crescendo—]

[kabooming]

[ he goes to save them. save these worthless nobodies who aren't Zaunites, aren't their people, aren't anything. of course he does.

they begin spreading like cockroaches, running from both the intimidatingly large and well-built man they just saw take another Bearers life right there in the streets - and he, ever the hero, swoops in for the save. it's irrational, of course - just like everything else rattling through her head right now - but in Jinx's mind, this is a choice. Vander is choosing others over her, just like Vi had. throwing her away. (it isn't fair, is it? but lost in an intense downward spiral, it is what it is. Vander knows better than most how unfair life can be.)

he reaches the colorfully painted neon-green grenade as it finally clicks to a frantic and harried peak--

and he'll feel it blow in his hand. it isn't an explosive, thankfully - but he might find himself abruptly doused in a cloudy smog of hot pink smoke that stings his eyes and burns his airways should he inhale it. but its true purpose is obfuscation, distraction--

because by the time it clears enough to have any visibility, Jinx is gone.

and so too is Silco's Shard, leaving him alone with the panicked shouts of Highstorm's people; someone is calling for help; someone else is brave enough to get closer and ask him if he's okay, and...

yeah. life really isn't fair, is it? ]

[exhound]

[Sometimes Vander felt like two different men. One a bleeding-heart averse to seeing anyone suffer or struggle, the man he thought had—after years of change—firmly supplanted the other. The hound. The one who let anger and impulse and outrage drive him, the one who would take any means necessary to right perceived wrongs.

Today he realizes he is both. Such an odd juxtaposition of two temperaments, but there is no denying it now, is there?

He tries to pull the grenade in toward himself, flinches at the ticking finally gives way to go off—and finds the hiss of smoke releasing to be what awaits him. No explosion, no innocents harmed, and he hardly has time to really grapple with the relief before the sting of it has his eyes burn and a coughing fit start up in his chest. It takes a moment before he can rein it in and work his way through the cloud of smoke to search for her.

There’s nothing to be found there in the spot where he had just taken Silco’s life. No Shard, no Powder. He stares there at that spot for a long tense moment as the smoke continues to further dissipate, the memory of that unabashed fury in her eyes front and center in his mind.

No, Powder had never been here, had she? Just Jinx.

He’s startled out of his reverie when some brave fool approaches him with concern, and it hits him all at once that he still needed to leave. He brushes past them wordlessly, feet hurriedly carrying him out of the markets and out of the city, the remnants of the spent neon-green grenade still clutched tightly in one hand.]