▶ TDM .001

[prismods]

Cybernetic dream, something like you've never seen

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"Michael Sembello - Automatic Man (original music video)" (Watch on YouTube)

▶ Lisa Frank's LSD Fun House
anytime, anywhere on the moon Iris | top

Everything is darkness except for dim lights sparkling in the distance, a faint gleam that greets you as you start to unfurl from your dormant state. Your body is hemmed in by shards of crystals, gently sparkling and possibly pricking your skin. The surrounding landscape is dyed in the pinks and purples of the dusk filled with crystals protruding from the ground, some as large as a skyscraper. Throat parched and skin dry and aching, you grope your body in alarm to make sure your possessions are still in place. This is far from home— perhaps a dream? You pinch your skin and slap your cheeks, yet nothing seems to do the trick. Searching for answers only rewards you with an endless expanse of purple dust as far as the eye can see. You have four options: one, panic; two, soil yourself; three, admire it all then soil yourself; or four, go into survival mode. Eventually, you’ll realize that you’re not alone.

A ⬤ As you traverse the near-barren landscape, you feel something sting your skin. It's small and subtle at first, then you finally catch sight of it: an elegant, crystalline mosquito buzzing around from the corner of your eye. However, a pest is still a pest. After a while, marks near your welts begin to form strange patterns on your skin, mimicking ancient runes. Each rune has with it a particular side-effect that may hinder you on your journey:

✾ The Mark of the Enchanter: Hallucinations, hallucinations galore. Your character will see everything and anything their imagination can conjure and will have difficulty separating reality from fiction.
₪ The Mark of the Destroyer: Limbs start to cease their function, causing you to stumble or try and get around one-handed. Other certain body parts may be affected as well. Look at the bright side: you can stop worrying about jiggle physics and hiding your fear boner.
⍢ The Mark of the Sinner: Your hunger, your thirst, your fatigue and your desire are at an all-time high. Your impulses are rabid and uncontrollable. Maybe you experience only one of those symptoms. Maybe you experience them all. All you know is that you want relief now.

These effects will eventually clear up with a bit of accidental or purposeful physical contact with another person, making you wonder if there was anything wrong with you at all.

B ⬤ Hunger starts to gnaw at you vigorously. Perhaps you consider hunting the moon's creatures to sate your hunger. That's when you see it: a thick, meaty, juicy meal on legs. No, we're not talking about Alex Louis Armstrong. A wild silver-white pegasus runs across the purple landscape, its hair billowing in the wind as its hooves smack loudly against the ground. Try and shoot it, and you may find your efforts curtailed by its legendary rage. Eyes aglow and wings beating up a storm, this pegasus is no dainty horse. Two thousand pounds of pure muscle swoop down and charge at you, all blades and ammunition deflecting off its impenetrable skin. Taming appears impossible; it will buck anyone away and leave a sizable horn- or hoof-shaped hole in them for their efforts. Hunting it, however, should be easier. Relatively.

C ⬤ Or you may decide that you'd like to take a drink in the prismatic waters. A small pond can be found just a few miles away from where you first awoke, but gazing into it reflects what appears to be a window into your own world. You see the faces of loved ones or at least someone very close and familiar to you gathered around your prone body, shaking it frantically as though to try and rouse you, yet your image lies frozen and unresponsive, not even a whisper of life running through you. Did you die in your world? Is this your afterlife? The questions start to pile up along with the gnawing dread that you may never return home again.

▶ Camp Nowhere
anytime, anywhere on the moon iris | top

Time moves strangely when you're trapped on a moon with no sun to guide you. Hours feel like days, and days feel like weeks. Travelling has rendered you weak and tired. Luckily, a few crystal formations in the shape of a cavern may offer you a small place refuge as you decide to nap. You notice a few artifacts left over from previous explorers.

D ⬤ A comm unit abandoned within the cavern will display the former owner's idol obsession. As you tap the buttons indiscriminately, a holographic screen will appear, and you will see a fabulous recorded concert featuring three bubbly young ladies in animal print, singing to you about something called Cordis, a cat, and a bag of gems. Does this make any sense to you? Probably not, but the beat is catchy. You may even find yourself tapping a foot along to it. Don’t worry. We know it’s plastic love.

E ⬤ There's a small cooler-like container of preserved powdered food bags labeled with only the word “Edible” that can be safely consumed. Although the powder tastes as bland as you’d expect, it’s oddly filling, sating either hunger or thirst. But who will be the first — and the bravest — to try eating them?

F ⬤ A strange, pointed instrument is among the effects found in the cavern. It's silver, long, and thin with a curved end and a light. When you grip it with warm hands, it seems to vibrate enthusiastically and comes in three settings indicated by a frowny face, a neutral face, and a happy face. What could it mean exactly? No one knows, but you can fiddle with it to your heart's desire. Just don't ask yourself where it's been before. You don't want to know.

▶ Interstellar Action Force Assemble
prisma, iris | top

Over a day has passed when a group of people find you worse for wear. Some are full of uncertainty and fear while some are full of curiosity and excitement. They claim that they are scientists from the planet Prismatica here to investigate the sudden appearances of rainbow crystals in the skies. That means you and the others they’ve located within the area. You are all a surprising find to them, and they are quick to load everyone in their transport vehicles for examination and questioning.

You all may have your usual inquiries — Where are we? Who are you? What's going on? Why are the pegasi so ill-tempered? — and the Prismals are almost too eager to answer. They do have questions on their own, so it’s only fair to trade. They tell you about their world as they poke and prod you, trying to understand what you are and how you came into their land. If they’re not trembling in fear, some of them may ask you odd and invasive questions in return, such as what the rate at which your body achieves thermoregulation is, how long your refractory period is, and if you would be willing to submit various kinds of body fluids to them. It's up to whether you wish to comply or protest.

G ⬤ If you react violently, you will be restrained and nerfed with a specialized neurotransmitting gun that releases a numbing agent through the top of your spine. They came prepared, so have fun with that! In any case, conscious or not, you’ll be brought into one of the transport vehicles. If you choose to peacefully cooperate, you’ll be provided any necessary first aid and a refreshing drink to help you recuperate after the rough time you had for the past few days. Each transport vehicle has a few small rooms to rest in, but due to the limited space, you’ll have to snuggle up with someone else on that bunk bed. Unfortunately, the moonshine fruit the ship is also carrying in its cargo has an extremely sweet smell that’s been permeating through certain areas of the ventilation system… Taking a whiff of it may inebriate you for the rest of the trip.

H ⬤ It’s a bumpy ride as terrain vehicles draw over various crystal formations until you see a large dome-like structure up ahead. Within its confines lies the seat of the Prismatica's government, Prisma. It’s a bureaucratic wet dream: skyscrapers practically touch the upper surface of the dome, windows glimmer with a prismatic sheen as daylight hits them, and small ships can be seen flying to and from its spaceport. The scientists, members of the Lunar Scientia, usher you into their facilities for tests. Arrivals are likely to twitch, tremble, and panic as Lunar Scientia fellows take and broadcast every embarrassing, unfiltered detail about you — height, weight, age, strange odors, estimated frequency of sexual activity —- to one another. These scientists will ask you politely to undress, too, but understand if you don't want to. They're especially fascinated by the readings of pure Chroma inside you, whispering among one another excitedly about the possibility of the new arrivals being a new moon species. What should they call them? Moonborne? Moonblessed?

I ⬤ At long last, the questions and physical examinations are done. They’ve decided to call the arrivals as the Moonblessed. They’ll take you under their care until they understand more about you. You're allowed a very refreshing hot shower and a warm meal for your efforts. Don’t worry, the meal was imported from their planet. “Planet?” you might ask, but you won’t need to wonder for too long. The ships are preparing for their next destination: the nearby planet Prismatica, where you will be dwelling for the time being. You're free to explore the government center until then.

▶ Wildcard
Lunatia, Prismatica | top

It only takes a couple hours for the ships to reach their home planet. The ships drop the characters off at the city of Lunatia, where they will be given their communication devices and a plastic card they can present to certain landlords at any residential district for their subsidized (read: absolutely free) lodging. Officials at Prisma instructed the newcomers to await further instructions from the government, but you have a lot of time to kill before then. Why not explore in the meantime? Learn the ins and outs of the world, get a job, transform under the full moon, and discover the many mysteries of planet Prismatica!

TDM OVERFLOW can be found here!

Comments

c!

[kiritin]

(quick heads up, arjuna is technically a spirit much similar to the touken danshi, so if you want the saniwa to notice that about him at some point it's totally cool with me. 👌)

I wasn't intending to.

[ This body of his has no need for nutrients, after all - food helps preserve mana, but not once Arjuna has felt like running out of it. Other of his kind, Heroic Spirits, see food as a form of hobby. He isn't quite one of them, albeit he finds himself tasting a couple once in a while.

But drinking from a pond in such a peculiar and unknown place is hardly something wise to do. The prince almost, just almost feels insulted that this one would assume such a thing of him. ]

If a simple pond leaves a person as distressed as you seem to be, I would hardly advise coming close to it.

[swordstho]

[ despite the alarm of mere moments before, the saniwa finds himself relaxing almost instinctively in the presence of what.. feels like a spirit, if one somewhat different than those he's accustomed to. his arms slip to his sides once more, and he tucks his hands into his sleeves with a glance that's a little apologetic. ]

It's a sort of.. viewing device, [ he explains after a moment of thought. ] What it offers is not the sort of vision an average person should likely see so soon after.. arriving here. [ 'arriving', he guesses. what other word can he really use?

but that's odd, isn't it? if he's really dead, then why would a spirit like this one set off his senses the same way? clearly there's more to this place than his initial observations have revealed.

he offers a polite bow, glancing back up once he straightens. ] I apologize for my outburst. May I ask your name?

[kiritin]

[ A viewing device? Despite the warning, Arjuna approaches the pond. It reflects not his image, but something else entirely. His body, passed out and only apparently lifeless, at the arms of another Servant. There is no scratches, wounds or blood to his figure - it is perfectly clean, as he would always present himself.

It's all he needs to understand the boy's sudden outburst. He had been concerned about a complete stranger - much reminiscent of the one Arjuna calls Master.

The boy stands correct, however. It is certainly no vision an average person should see. ]

I see. It gives us the belief that we have died, I suppose. [ Only Arjuna would hardly allow himself to be killed in such a sneaky way. Such possibility has never once crossed his mind. ] But to trust the image that a simple pond in an unknown place reflects is quite naive. Fabricated images such as this one are rather easy to make.

[ Anyone who knows a thing or two about magic could pull this off, is what he believes. The Casters at Chaldea would all easily mimic such a trick. ]

Please, worry not. You were simply showing concern, weren't you? I appreciate it. [ A polite smile, and a hand to his chest. ] I am called Arjuna.

[swordstho]

[ he's right, of course-- though the saniwa's abilities are focused in other areas, he could probably have created something similar if he'd been more practiced at it. illusions are simple magic, particularly purely visual ones like this. ]

This place is a lot to take in, [ he agrees with a small, weary smile. ] Particularly for anyone unaccustomed to the extraordinary. [ everyday people, simply living their lives, protected from anything that doesn't fit into their world view.

the introduction teases at something familiar, though he can't quite put his finger on what it is. the name has weight somehow, and as it belongs to a spirit, he expects that it's significant. still, it's not a japanese name, and the saniwa is largely concerned with japan and its history. ] It's a pleasure and an honor. [ there's nothing rote or reflexive about the response. it is both pleasure and honor. ] I'm afraid that I have no name to offer, but my role is as a saniwa. You can call me that if you like.

[ he hesitates, then nods in the direction arjuna arrived from, expression faintly puzzled and questioning. ] Am.. I the first human you've encountered here..?

[kiritin]

[ Arjuna thinks that this boy, who looks so young, is more than what he shows.

It's his words that induce such thought. Again, he is quite reminiscent of his own Master in more ways than one, but he lacks the naivety, the sparkling eyes of one who trusts their summons with their entire life, their alignment be damned. He has more experience, is what he assumes. As though he has watched the same video over and over, read the same book until he has memorized every page of it. That's how Arjuna sees his behavior - but that is hardly a bad thing.

Sad, though, perhaps. Young people should be able to enjoy their life until adulthood came, overwhelmed in responsibilities.

Arjuna would know; his own childhood was overflowed in expectations that quickly became too impossible to meet. ]

'Saniwa'... [ Not a word he is knowledgeable about. The fact the boy lacks a name, however, reinforces his prior assumption. ] Indeed. It is a pleasure and an honor.

[ Here, then, the prince finds it peculiar. First human, he says, and it's surprising. Any normal person would have said person, and Arjuna can't help but wonder if this boy - the Saniwa - has seen more than he has, or if he knows more than he is letting show. ]

You are not. Admittedly I have not seen many others, and I'm guilty to have not talked to them. But we are certainly not alone. Could it be that you're looking for someone in particular?

[swordstho]

[ he doesn't offer an explanation for what a saniwa is, despite the clear unfamiliarity with the term, if only because the the answer to the following question will do more to explain exactly what he is than any default, convenient response he can give. ]

Yes and no, [ he admits, though he does yearn to ask arjuna about his observations of the others he's met in passing here. at the very least, it's good to know that they're not the only two here. ] I'm admittedly looking for my spirits more than fellow humans. [ he pauses, gold eyes lifting to meet arjuna's, cautious and faintly apologetic again. ] They're.. a little like you, from what I can tell of you. Though they're the spirits of weapons manifested and made flesh, and I think-- Well, I beg your pardon if I'm incorrect, but I think that you're a bit.. different.

[ not a tsukumogami, but not that far off from one. .. maybe. this place throws his abilities off and he's still getting his feet beneath him, so to speak, so perhaps he is utterly wrong, and he's just projecting his hunger to find something familiar onto arjuna. ]

.. I haven't been able to sense them near, but I'd be remiss in my duties if I didn't search anyway. I wouldn't want them to be alone here.

[kiritin]

[ Truly reminiscent of his Master.

The surprise lasts very little - a second or two. He knows this one not to be a mage like he knows magi, for he cannot sense it in him. The Saniwa is something entirely else, a being that knows of spirits, refers to them with a possessive pronoun, and he wonders, then, if he's the one who has given them - the spirits of weapons - bodies of flesh. It's a power that must have its limitations, else it would be too surprising to hand it over to a young boy.

Appearances can be deceiving, however. He is a living proof of it, and to assume the Saniwa is anything but a young boy would be naive of him, especially in light of recent news. ]

... You're right. [ It explains his wording, at last. ] I'm rather surprised you can tell, but I assume it has to do with being a 'saniwa'. I am not something as simple as the spirit of a weapon; rather, you could say I'm the spirit of one who has once lived. A mirror image, or perhaps a manifestation of who I once was, sustained by magical power. I was human, once. [ A human demi-God, but a human nonetheless.

The words that follow are a bit shocking, if only because Arjuna couldn't help but wonder; if his Master is in this place as well, would they be looking for him? For their Servants, like this boy is looking for his spirits, companions? For a rather small moment, Arjuna feels as though he has wronged his Master, for not looking for them back. ]

You're a truly kind saniwa, are you not? These spirits of yours must be lucky to serve you. [ The smile is still there, but something about it feels distant. ] Truth be told, much like your spirits, I was summoned by someone as well. My existence in this body would not be possible without someone with the strength to sustain me in this world. If you'd like, we can search for our companions together. We seem to have quite a bit in common, after all.

[swordstho]

[ a reflection of a person that had once lived, sustained by magic? like and unlike his swords indeed. the last part of it is concerning, though: if arjuna was summoned by and sustained by a human being and that person isn't here.. ]

Will you be alright? [ his brows knit, concern in the downward tilt of his lips. ] If that person isn't here-- [ he shouldn't. he knows he shouldn't. his mission should take priority over a spirit he doesn't even know, and yet-- well. he wouldn't be the master his warriors care for if he ignored his instincts. ] If that person isn't here, and you need the power they provide.. [ he trails off a moment, then spreads his hands in a small shrug. ] I can't promise to be adequate, but I'm glad to offer what I can.

[ he expects that his magic and this other person's capabilities differ, but the saniwa is nothing if not adaptable. he'd manage somehow.

he draws himself up to his full (unfortunately unimpressive) height a moment later, though, expression brightening faintly in spite of himself. ]

Truthfully, I'm the lucky one. They've been good to me, and patient, and their trust means the world to me. [ given what he asks of them every day, letting history play out the way it was meant to do.. it's a lot for some of them to deal with, and yet they come back to him at the end of every mission without resenting him. it's more, perhaps, than he deserves. ] I'd be very grateful for the company, thank you. [ a beat, touching fingertips thoughtfully to his lips. ] I came from what I think was the southeast and saw no one, so a different direction to start in, I think.

[kiritin]

[ It shouldn't come as a surprise, considering the boy's behavior throughout their entire conversation, but ah, it does. That he'd go as far as imply something of the kind, that he, an existence so similar yet so different to his Master's, would go out of his way to offer his aid in keeping Arjuna's body well and materialized in this world if it came to worst... Such an existence is too kind for one such as himself. He's not worth it, no, to burden the Saniwa with such a thing.

But the thought is appreciated. The sentiment, even more so. He'd keep this information safe in the back of his mind, in the case that Ritsuka Fujimaru was lucky this one time to keep themselves away from the unknown.

(Truthfully, it would make Arjuna more relaxed, too, not to have his Master somewhere completely new. If he weren't able to protect them, then...)

His smile, here, is soft and polite. There's a bit of warmth in it. ]

Thank you. There are certainly other methods in which this body is able to survive without a source of magical energy, but... [ That'd be by drinking blood, or having sex. Those things Arjuna wouldn't exactly look forward into doing with most people. ] I will keep it in mind. You already have enough people that depend on you.

[ He'd find a way to survive by himself. It's what he had wished upon the Grail, after all. ]

The southeast... [ A look around isn't quite as helpful, for their surroundings continue to be rather barren, sans the crystals. ] Very well. How about west, then? I'll be happy to guide you until we find something of worth. And if any trouble arises, this Arjuna will easily fight it off.

[swordstho]

It's what I was born to do, [ he assures him regarding the people that rely on him. it's the absolute, unvarnished truth, as dramatic as the statement might seem. technically, he exists for the sole purpose of winning the war, of directing and supporting and caring for the spirits that he'd given human form to. adding another is only to be expected, even if that other is one that's foreign to him.

on the other hand, he certainly understands caution, and he's content to subside after the simple reassurance. arjuna has heard his offer, has assured him that he'll keep it in mind, and that's enough for the saniwa. he trusts the other spirit to know what he needs and when he needs it, and to reach out if necessary. particularly if there are fights, and he needs to be healed during or afterward.

the saniwa, after all, isn't helpless when faced with danger, but he's also practical. despite his upbringing, he's still a teenager, and his spirits are literally the manifestation of weapons. better to leave the fighting to experienced warriors, and for himself to act as backup.

his lips quirk upward in a quick smile. ] West it is, then. [ direction decided, he falls into step with the older man, peering thoughtfully out over the horizon. ] I have to admit, I'm not quite sure what to make of this place.

[kiritin]

[ And it's a burden too heavy, nonetheless. ]

It's quite something, is it not?

[ Once they start walking into the unknown, it allows Arjuna to observe their surroundings. The colors are peculiar, a mix of pinks and purples, crystals of all shape and size being the only and most interesting thing in this barren landscape. It feels, and certainly looks magical. Not a soul with a taste would ever think of it ugly, but it raises more questions than allows answers. There's no civilization where the eye can see - even with his sight, granted to him as an Archer-class Servant -, no sign, or house, or anything at all. There are pegasi in the sky at times, but other than that, hardly a thing to even connected them to what truly brought them here.

He could not help, however, but think that those shards of crystals on his clothes once he had woken up have something to do with it all. ]

I'd like to hear your thoughts about it, if I may. Since you possess magical energy, I have been wondering it this place affects you somehow.

[swordstho]

I've certainly felt odd since arriving, [ he says after a few moments of careful thought. ] But truthfully, I don't know if that has to do with the manner of my arrival, or some effect this place specifically has on my abilities.

[ he glances down at his hands, curling and uncurling them, then folding his arms, discomforted and feeling oddly vulnerable suddenly. what if they do find one or more of his spirits..? he's as lost as they'll doubtless be, and they look to him for guidance. he has to have some kind of answers for them by then. ]

I didn't sense a spell on the pond, though, and normally I'd notice something like that. [ he was bred for his powers, he's no slouch in that department. ]