tdm 19

[savmods]

test drive meme

Ingress travel can be disorienting, but there’s no need to worry! All side effects are temporary and lessen with each trip. Your body may experience several sensations at once: being pushed forward as if a hand is resting on your back, momentary and startling blindness, a gentle ringing in your head. You may have difficulty discerning whether it is hot or cold, but where you have been prodded is noticeably warmer than the rest of you. Some may suffer from dizziness while others are perfectly fine. You notice that the area you are in is filled with a soft cerulean light and feels slightly humid and dark despite the glow around you. Regardless of your current state, however, the stress of initial Ingress travel forces your body into unconsciousness.

Waking up is another story. Or maybe it isn’t.

You find yourself in a nondescript room; sometimes with others who have found themselves in the same situation, sometimes alone. A medical tech is always present to explain what’s happened before giving you some clothes, a TAB, and a guide that discusses things in further detail. This entire process also consists of a complete work-up of medical history and current health in order to obtain your signature—a specific frequency that will allow them to hone in on exactly where it is you’re from in order to get you back there. You spend your first week on the Ingress Complex while other accommodations and arrangements are made for you. The techs and others in the facility seem strangely frazzled and tired, but if asked, they reassure you that nothing is wrong, the danger has passed and everyone is all right now.

welcome to thisavrou

---

escoria

⋆ Escoria is classified as Exploration Class (EC), and travel through the Ingress is mostly smooth except for one issue: anyone with powers or abilities will find that the distortion between worlds has temporarily caused problems accessing them. Essentially, it has left all travelers depowered. Another similar issue comes in the form of the location of Escoria’s Ingress—seemingly in the middle of a vast ocean, the Ingress is balanced precariously on a set of buoys connected to a small floating dock. Once on this dock, it is clear there is no getting anywhere without some transportation. Testing the dark waters will find it unbearably cold, though not cold enough to form ice, and far off in the distance, between the mist and ever-constant gray light - where’s the sun? - some might even notice what looks like an island.

⋆ The boat that eventually comes to your rescue isn’t very big, one of a fleet used to transport visitors from the floating Ingress platform. Only a few passengers are allowed on each one--a maximum of six. The boat’s captain is quite insistent that each group remain small, handing out blankets to those who did not come prepared for the chill. It isn’t too much trouble as there are a great many boats and plenty of natives to pilot them. The weather is cool, the skies are dark with rain that might fall, but for now things seem alright. Leaning out on the rail, you might see some shark-like sea creatures breaching the surface to breathe. Of course, you might also see quicksilver figures darting underneath the water from the corner of your eye, which is then followed by a sharp rocking of the boat. Did something nudge the vessel? Maybe you ought to make sure people stay back from the sides in case they fall in...

⋆ Despite the calm appearance of the sky, the worst has happened. A storm hits at just the right time to drive your boat against one of the multitudinous reefs, roughly jarring its passengers, and then, the waves continue to batter the ship against it until it falls to pieces. You get lucky and find a piece of debris to hold onto to keep your head above the water until the storm passes, although it’s some time before even a calm comes. Once it does, you have to deal with the facts: you’re stranded with minimal supplies, all alone except for the other people who were on board with you when the ship went down in the waves. And what’s worse, the water isn’t getting any warmer. What do you do to survive until help, hopefully, arrives? Will you make an attempt to swim to shore or wait for someone to send another boat?

⋆ The few who manage to weather the storm and make it to one of the few islands of Escoria are, indeed, lucky. What lies beneath the surface of those dark waters is much more dangerous and deadly. Distant cousins of Thisavrou’s native Gorgona of Region Four, these nameless creatures are ruthless as they hunt. They slither the shallow surfaces of the reefs spread out across Escoria, waiting for even the slightest ripple of water to alert them to their prey. At first, looking into the water reveals nothing. Then, the closer these things come to the surface, the faster it begins to change and look as if something familiar, something you long for is calling to you. It can be a person, alive or dead, or it could be something intangible like a goal waiting to be fulfilled or an object waiting to be touched. This is how they lure the unsuspecting below the surface, and once they have their claws in you, it’s very difficult to escape. The urge to be with them is impossibly strong regardless of the fact that no one can hold their breath for that long or survive the deep cold of the water for longer than a few minutes.

Your only chance of escape? Someone who might have noticed that you’d suddenly slipped under without a sound. Or, if by chance, you manage to snap off a piece of the coral in the reefs. It changes with the shape of the holder, and that, if you’re lucky, might be the very weapon that saves you.

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OUT OF CHARACTER INFO

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For mature or graphic content, please label.For questions, please direct them to the FAQ or the Feedback page. Any scenarios listed (unless otherwise indicated) can be used as game canon. As always, be kind and have fun!

Comments

[a_shadow]

[ She catches his meaning, and she turns as though to walk alongside him. They're not moving anywhere though. Not now. ]

Everyone's from a different time, here. We don't all come from the same point in time, from what was happening back home.

[ It's an explanation, but not a full one. ]

[bloodbathing]

[ Texas moves to his side. It's a small thing, but it serves to ease the tension Maine's been feeling from the moment she strode toward him, all business. Texas as his side is a comrade. Texas standing toe-to-toe with him is an enemy, and he doesn't feel like getting his ass kicked.

[ That explanation, though? Really not much of an explanation. Maine turns his head to continue watching her and grunts an affirmative. He knows about the different points in time: North convinced him earlier. What he doesn't know is the reason behind Texas' aggressive reaction.

[ So he waits, silent and attentive, for her to continue. ]

[a_shadow]

I'd probably contact York and Wash first if I were you. Explain about it. They're not going to be happy at first, but they know about the timeline thing, both of them.

[ She looks at the way he's looking at her, the way he's obviously expecting more of an explanation than that, and frowns. ]

I know you deserve to know more about it than that, but it's not a thing I want to tell you in public.

[bloodbathing]

[ York and Wash. Two more allies. He can hazard a few guesses as to why York won't be happy to see him. Wash, on the other hand? He's drawing a blank. It must have something to do with whatever Texas doesn't want to discuss. The need for discretion, at least, is something he understands perfectly. It's enough that she might be willing to tell him in private.

[ Maine nods and lets the subject drop. His next priority? ]

They're good?

[ Finding out the status of his teammates. ]

[a_shadow]

Well. Wash is kind of...different.

[ Something she understands the reasoning for but doesn't think it's her place to tell about. ]

And Carolina's here, too, by the way. Most everyone is a lot further along in the timeline than you are.

[bloodbathing]

[ "Different." That could mean anything. Given the hesitation, he suspects it's not an altogether good thing.

[ The mention of Carolina prompts a visible reaction: his head jerks up and he turns slightly towards Texas. The last time he saw Carolina, there was a sniper aiming at the back of her head. The last thing he remembers is intercepting the bullet. Until now, he's had no way of knowing what happened next. That she survived is good. Very good.

[ It's almost enough to distract from the realization that his teammates are very, very unhappy with him because of something that happens in the future. Almost.

[ But now isn't the time to ask about it. ]

You?

[ It's meaning is twofold: Are you further along? and Are you good? in one. ]

[a_shadow]

I'm right in the middle of things, actually.

[ She doesn't answer about how she's doing. ]

Do you have a place to go, yet, or have you just arrived?

[bloodbathing]

[ He notices. He doesn't press. From what he can see, she's fine. If there's anything going on beneath the skin that will become a problem, they'll deal with it when they have to. Until then, Texas can handle herself.

[ To her question, he shakes his head. He hasn't given much thought about where to go. He's been more preoccupied with thoughts of how to get back. ]

[a_shadow]

All right. I'll help you find a place. We can talk there.

[bloodbathing]

[ That's ... generous. There's a brief hesitation that betrays his surprise before he nods. ]

Thanks.