monstertruckers (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
monstertruckers) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
memestertrucks2025-05-15 04:31 pm
monstertruckers) wrote in memestertrucks2025-05-15 04:31 pm
Entry tags:
MAY TDM
Things are a little stranger than usual at the gas station and garage. Namely that gravity just isn't working as it should. Objects float, pieces of the floor float... Even unlucky new arrivals can also find themselves floating! It's going to be a challenge to get around without any scrapes or scratches... Though at least there's what looks like a hospital nearby? Granted, it's an upside down hospital, but it's better than nothing.
01: SUMMONING CIRCLE
Drifters come to with an odd floating sensation hooked into their stomachs, and instead of laying on the concrete find themselves drifting a foot or two above the floor. An unfortunate few may be stuck on the ceiling. Whether they crash down hard into the floor (and the various vials, daggers, and broken glass scattered about) or remain floating in the air is a coin toss.
Still, it might be best to lend a hand with pulling them back to the ground, and hoping gravity will work as normal in another breath or two.
Once they make their way out, they can see a gas station and garage located in the midst of strange, floating rocks… And an upside down hospital close by, for those who had a rougher landing.
Still, it might be best to lend a hand with pulling them back to the ground, and hoping gravity will work as normal in another breath or two.
Once they make their way out, they can see a gas station and garage located in the midst of strange, floating rocks… And an upside down hospital close by, for those who had a rougher landing.
02: START UP
New arrivals will have a similar experience to before; a Convoy waiting for them, and a collection of vehicles, one of which feels like it belongs to them. The key to the vehicle may already be in the ignition, on the dashboard… It may have even been on their person, ever since they woke up in that garage. Either way, Drifters have the keys to the vehicle now.
…But there’s a few rough edges on these vehicles. Flat tires, cracked windows and mirrors, maybe some stuck doors and locks; all of them the sort of thing that requires two pairs of hands and supplies. The garage can take care of the (sometimes floating) supplies… Now it’s just a matter of finding some extra hands.
And hopefully no one's vehicle has decided to float. But one can never be sure in a place like this.
…But there’s a few rough edges on these vehicles. Flat tires, cracked windows and mirrors, maybe some stuck doors and locks; all of them the sort of thing that requires two pairs of hands and supplies. The garage can take care of the (sometimes floating) supplies… Now it’s just a matter of finding some extra hands.
And hopefully no one's vehicle has decided to float. But one can never be sure in a place like this.
03: HUSKS AND HAUNTS
The inverted hospital seems to have trouble deciding the exact formation of its hallways, whether the new arrivals should be walking on the ceiling, floors, or walls. But one thing that is certain: this place isn’t entirely deserted. Warnings of “Beware the Husks” have been spray painted on the walls. Metallic bodies line those same halls, some of them broken open. A wet trail leads from the broken Husks to the rafters… Where several odd monsters wait to drop down. Some look like they’ve merged with the hospital equipment, while others look like they’ve been cobbled together from different body parts. And all of them look ready to turn the newcomers into a corpse, or part of a specimen collection.
Strange, malformed chimeric creatures that are Unknown stalk the hallways. Unknowns come in three different colors, red aligned with fire, green with poison, and purple with lightning.
Adding to that are the various screens flickering on, and diagnose new arrivals as infected. The screens declare the infection seems to be contained, but requires further study… And if the monsters aren't enough to worry about, there’s also the restraint systems trying to activate and tie the new arrivals down.
Strange, malformed chimeric creatures that are Unknown stalk the hallways. Unknowns come in three different colors, red aligned with fire, green with poison, and purple with lightning.
Adding to that are the various screens flickering on, and diagnose new arrivals as infected. The screens declare the infection seems to be contained, but requires further study… And if the monsters aren't enough to worry about, there’s also the restraint systems trying to activate and tie the new arrivals down.
04: TESTING (CW: Needles)
The deeper someone plunges into the hospital, the more the building reacts to them. More defenses are deployed, treating them as thieves or intruders. Traps and monsters alike wait for them, with syringes melded into the forms of attackers, or lining places where someone might step or reach for. The syringes make a quick bite on skin… But it’s only a few minutes later where the effects become clear. Something in those syringes is now in the blood and forcing monster transformations. There might be an antidote amongst the supplies… Or the newcomers might need to rely on each other, in order to stay anchored.
The needles can also force temporary Swarm traits, along with:
+Group Mind: compelled to link thoughts with other Drifters, to share emotions, memories, and achieve cohesion.
+An increasing reliance on telepathy/empathy/etc in place of speech.
+Increasing collectivist mindset. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few; this becomes more evident during high stress situations.
+Compelled to hunt and share their prey with others.
+Gravity Affinity: If possessing wings or the ability to wall climb, may freely hunt/traverse corrupted gravity areas.
The needles can also force temporary Swarm traits, along with:
+Group Mind: compelled to link thoughts with other Drifters, to share emotions, memories, and achieve cohesion.
+An increasing reliance on telepathy/empathy/etc in place of speech.
+Increasing collectivist mindset. The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few; this becomes more evident during high stress situations.
+Compelled to hunt and share their prey with others.
+Gravity Affinity: If possessing wings or the ability to wall climb, may freely hunt/traverse corrupted gravity areas.
05: LONG WAY DOWN
A portion of the gas station breaks away with groan and a rumble. And it is slowly pulled up and up, taking a portion of new comers with it! They (and anyone watching) will need to act fast, as gravity starts to go weird the further they rise. They’ll need to find a way back down, taking any supplies from the now-floating garage that they can grab.
What’s more, they are drifting closer to the broken moon, and that seems to be having a strange effect on those stranded on the new floating ruin. They may start to feel their control fray, and their forms shift, the higher they rise.
In terms of getting back down, there’s a handful of tow lines in the ruin that might work as ropes. There’s also a few pieces of rock that are floating up more slowly, and could work as stairs back down… Or there’s just jumping and falling fifty feet and hoping for the best.
What’s more, they are drifting closer to the broken moon, and that seems to be having a strange effect on those stranded on the new floating ruin. They may start to feel their control fray, and their forms shift, the higher they rise.
In terms of getting back down, there’s a handful of tow lines in the ruin that might work as ropes. There’s also a few pieces of rock that are floating up more slowly, and could work as stairs back down… Or there’s just jumping and falling fifty feet and hoping for the best.
06: PSYCHIC ECHOES
There's one last quirk to this area; a few scattered bits of odd plantlife, and the odd dead brain monster. While these things aren't a threat on their own (beyond being unnerving) they still pack a psychic punch; mainly in the form of temporary psychic abilities.
It's possible that after coming in contact with either plants or corpses, newcomers will find themselves gifted with either empathy (projecting or receiving emotions) telepathy, OR the ability to share their dreams with others, and having their dreams influenced by others in turn. This effect fades in just a day or so, but is still capable of causing mishaps.
It's possible that after coming in contact with either plants or corpses, newcomers will find themselves gifted with either empathy (projecting or receiving emotions) telepathy, OR the ability to share their dreams with others, and having their dreams influenced by others in turn. This effect fades in just a day or so, but is still capable of causing mishaps.
MICRO ENCOUNTERS:
PLEASE NOTE! These are small bits of set dressing for players to include in threads if they wish, rather than full fledged prompts or events. You may handwave your exploration of these areas, or thread them out.
Broadcast: The garage contains a few burnt out monitors. But a handful of them are playing a message over and over again on loop, filled with static. It’s a recording of important looking people in lab coats advising people to remain indoors and avoiding all objects falling from the sky. Especially “moon shards.” They insist that they are working to contain and cure the infection, but the safest action is to remain inside.
Warped Air: As seen in Long Way Down, the air overhead has strange warped pockets in it. There seem to be slightly different shards hanging suspended in the air, looking more silvery than the surrounding rocks. Almost like it could have fallen from the broken moon overhead.
Medical supplies: Most of the medical supplies found in the hospital seem to consist of healing salves and potions, a handful of healing herbs, and a few antidotes for poison or sickness. As for reverting transformations… It’s advised that new comers be careful of taking any experimental medicine. It may revert a change. It may also leave them hallucinating nightmares and fears, and they’ll be wanting someone close by to help administer the drug.
Lucanis Dellamorte | Dragon Age: The Veilguard
Many of the objects in the garage are unfamiliar to him; mechanical bits unlike those from his world, but he takes what he finds useful to him and moves onward to the larger building, intrigued by it and hoping to find answers.
BEWARE THE HUSKS
A Crow's keen senses are always on alert, and Spite sniffs out the presence of something strange and inhuman long before it shows itself. Lucanis is graceful in the way he fights them off; acrobatic even without the aid of Spite's wings. A mangled mass of limbs tumbles in his direction, and he evades its attack, using those wings to carry him as he runs along a wall, trails of feathers floating behind him and falling like ash in their wake. It's cornered and sliced at with a swift movement of twin blades until it goes limp, but he isn't expecting the next falling monster to have metal implements for arms, and parrying at the last second, he relies on his footwork to get him off-line.
Lucanis grunts as he thrusts his rapier forward to the creature's chest, knocking it's needle-like arm aside with his dagger, it's other arm sliding along the blade but well over Lucanis' shoulder. He smirks, lunges, and then retreats, pulling his sword from its chest so that it drops to the floor.
A moment of triumph is barely awarded to him before several more monsters get the drop, and he finds himself surrounded. He doesn't panic, exactly. He has, of course, once successfully killed a half-dozen Venatori in an elevator. How hard could this be? Still, he's outnumbered, and he doesn't love his chances.
"Mierda." he hisses, raising his dagger to his chest in defense, his rapier arm extending again as the creatures begin to move in.
MY SHADOW'S STUCK
The last time Lucanis had been strapped down and prodded at, it didn't end well. His blood had been drained into a phylactery that would later be used to control him. He had been fed something rotten. His body and fate had been sealed to a demon against his will, against both their will. When he comes to, he begins writhing immediately, all the panic he'd suppressed before bubbling to the surface as he tries to grasp his surroundings.
Spite stares at him from across the room, where only he can see him. His shadow self, its glowing purple eyes somewhat empty and defeated.
We had. An agreement. it rasps for only him to hear, and Lucanis growls, attempting to throw his weight to break free from the contraption that holds him. "Can't you see that I'm a little tied-up right now?!" he yells, aggravated.
RISING TO THE OCCASION
The gas station seemed like a safer place to rest after the monster-filled hospital, but at least Lucanis was able to stow away some medical supplies for himself. There's a loud crack, then the groan of rubble breaking free as part of the station lifts away, the screams and cries of the drifters floating away on it piercing his eardrums. Lucanis acts quickly. Death may be his calling, but these are innocent people, and he cannot imagine their fate should they be stranded in such a way. Spite's wings unfold from his back as he leaps into the air, scaling the side of the exposed rock until he can lift himself atop it.
"Quickly!" he shouts to someone nearby, "Take my hand."
He's assessing the others with a scan of his eyes and already running the numbers. He won't be able to save them all... but he can try. "Be ready- I'll come back for the rest of you."
A SPACE IN BETWEEN
It's becoming more clear to Lucanis that he isn't lost in the Fade. This is another world, altogether, unlike any he's seen. He'd spent a year trapped beneath the waves and broke free, only to be imprisoned somewhere else entirely. He's busy brooding as he walks along the road, away from the caravan. Spite scurries at his side, antagonizing him as he tends to, but Lucanis has already began to tune him out, wincing as he steps around the carcass of an unusual brain creature and determines it best to head back. He has a better chance of survival if he stays with the group, after all, and it's getting late.
Lucanis doesn't often sleep, but without the convenience of good coffee and the caffeine withdrawals making his head pound in pain, he finds a corner to doze off in. Even Spite feels too weak to take control of his body, but they do dream, walking together in an ever-changing landscape that seeps into the minds of others, melding dreams together into intricate, woven patterns.
"Where are we?" he asks softly, not to Spite, who stands beside him with his head tilted to the side like a confused pet, but to the figure before them who in this plane of existence can see and hear them both. "Who are you?"
my shadow's stuck
Honestly, were Gale strapped down to the kind of thing making him expect to be vivisected by an undead Sharran cultist and an army of brainwashed nurses at any moment, he'd be yelling fit to wake even more of the dead, so he can't actually fault this poor guy for doing the same. Besides which, it had worked, after all. Gale would like to think he would still have noticed a prisoner in need of aid on his own, but then, Gale would like to think he'd pick up on a lot of things that end up going over his head.
It's only occurring to him now, for one, that the man might have been talking instead to his...mirror image? Why one would talk to one's own summoned projection, Gale isn't quite sure, but it's a possibility. He's certainly been hearing and seeing stranger things than that, ever since he nudged that dead intellect devourer with his boot on the way inside to make sure it wasn't just playing possum.
"Let's see here," he muses, approaching the contraption with a thoughtful rub of his beard. "Hardly calls for magic at all, and that's not something I say often. A knife ought to do the job. Can your projection give me a hand, or is he not corporeal enough?"
no subject
"Smells like. Ink and rose water." he hisses in assessment, his head tilting as he realizes that the source of that smell is looking right at him. This never happens.
Lucanis, on the other hand, is making his own assessments of the man, who looks too out-of-place to be anything but another transport like himself. A mage, clearly, by the way he dresses and the staff he carries, but a seemingly helpful one, so far, although the mild talking-to he's being given renders him a bit speechless for a moment in his panic. If Gale can see that Lucanis is tied up, he can probably also see that the man is dressed-ready for a fight. The leather armor and all shapes and sizes of weaponry strapped to it a dead giveaway.
"You'd better work quickly, then." he answers belatedly, his voice different in accent, tone, timbre, and all other matters of difference than the one Spite had spoken in moments earlier. Given the shade is also glaringly purple, it's probably safe to assume it's an entity of its own.
It isn't until Gale addresses the 'projection' in the room that Lucanis realizes that he can see him. People do not see Spite that way. Not even Emmrich, who has played the listening ear to Spite when within close range. His face falls, a wide-eyed look of shock or amazement, and he stammers for a moment before Spite responds, instead.
"HANDS?!" he bellows, leaping forward like an excited animal, fascinated with the mage and practically circling him like a shark.
"Ha--ignore him," he blurts out, panicking, which only causes Spite to growl. "I have plenty of knives. I just can't reach--" he struggles, his hand testing at its straps, fingers reaching and clasping but failing to grasp the handle of a knife strapped to his thigh.
"Perhaps you could do the honors?"
Beware the husks
Monsters fighting monsters.
But with the new, more immediate threat, the multi-limbed creatures turn their attention away from Lucanis, giving him breathing space.
no subject
"Mine." he growls, leaping into the air and landing on a larger creature's back, embedding his dagger in its neck. He kicks off of it, flipping directly into another monster, where his rapier is thrust deep into the center of the mangled limbs, then pushed into a wall before it is withdrawn and he can retreat.