memestertrucks | JANUARY TDM/EVENT

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The storm drives the Convoy to the very summit of the mountains, before hitting a blinding pitch. The wind howls and drives snow in a way that promises to freeze everything… And there’s also a twist of smoke in the air, to further blind everything.

There’s one thing visible through the storm: a massive fortress clinging to the side of the mountain. The Convoy pulls up into the shelter. It seems this will be the best place to wait out the weather, even if the storm lasts for weeks.

It’s a cold welcome for new arrivals. The garage offers scant protection from the elements, and a winter storm rages outside. Snow, lighting, and thunder all blend together and do their best to break the windows and doors of the structure.

The storm itself shows no signs of abating, at least until several days have passed. So it’s up to the new arrivals to figure out how to survive the storm, find better shelter… And weather the strange changes foisted onto them.

01: SUMMONING CIRCLE

New Drifters arrive to a cold and half frozen garage, almost swallowed up by snow drifts. The Convoy is just visible through sheets of snow falling from the skies, and it is parked in the shelter of a nearby fortress. Getting out of the garage and reaching the fortress will take some work, though.

Starting with digging out through the snow. At least there’s a shovel or two inside the garage and the gas station. But digging through the snow is still cold work, and it’s imperative to duck back in the garage and find ways to warm up.

There’s still a small fire burning in the corner of the garage, near the summoning circle. It curiously doesn’t seem to need fuel to keep burning… Though throwing more on it will certainly increase the heat of the flames. Be advised that the fire will also burn clothing and flesh if a Drifter gets too close to it.

02: FORTRESS 

The abandoned fortress offers some reprieve from the elements… But the prior battles have found a way to seep into the stones. Ice and Fire both have an effect on the surroundings.
+FIRE Condition: Arcane lava is flowing through the foundations and seeping up through the stones of the building. This is especially clear in the kitchen and dining hall. It may be toasty to the touch, but it also threatens to set things aflame; objects and people alike. Drifters weak to fire will suffer from the increased temperatures.
+ICE Condition: The extremes of the fortress are freezing over in enchanted ice, leaving only the main hall and kitchen with any heat. Drifters who lack ice affinity risk frost bite and hypothermia while exploring the other areas of Bastion. Direct contact with the ice also carries a risk of encasing the limb or the entire Drifter in ice. Might need some help getting chipped out.

In the midst of all this, there are still rooms and beds available for those who want a change of pace from the convoy, or bedrolls for those who want to camp out in the main hall.

03: START UP

After digging out, one can see that there are various cars surrounding the garage. Some of them parked directly outside and sheltered from the worst of the storm. But a few are further out, and will also need to be dug out of the snow.

There’s also a certain connection between different newcomers and cars. Something that suggests a particular vehicle is theirs, backed up by possessing the key to that vehicle. 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 supplies… Now it’s just a matter of finding some extra hands.

04: WILD ELEMENTS

Even when taking shelter in the fortress, the storms from outside have a way of seeping through the bricks. And trying to take root inside any Drifters. Cold mists and winds seep into the castle, along with fire traveling across the floors and lightning crashing against the roof.

Drifters exposed to extreme elements will find those same elements seeping into their blood.

Teeth also grow along portions of the walls in long fangs, ready to snag at any newcomers. Drawing blood on those teeth can result in changes in the new arrivals… As well as pulling a monster out of the hallway to try and draw more blood.

These monsters frequently manifest as:
+Gyuki, a spider and bull demon fusion.
+YinYang, a Frankenstein abomination
+And Malzeno, a strange eldritch dragon.

05: FUEL PUMPS

The fortress also holds a network of pipes leading through the halls and connecting to the gas station. Text from the Convoy asks for at least a few Drifters to follow the pipes to their source, and activate them. Following those pipes leads to a chamber in the base of the fortress, with basins full of liquid.

Glowing and quicksilver liquid, at that. Liquid that looks like it could have been poured straight out of the moon. An inscription on the tanks reads “Moonshard fuel refinement” while a stack of papers details the various attempts to distill moonshards into an energy usable by humans without mutating them. It seems they’ve mostly succeeded with this attempt: once the valves are turned on, the fuel can be pumped into the Convoy and top off almost depleted fuel tanks.

But there is still a risk. Coming into contact with the fuel can instill a sudden, ravenous hunger and push new changes to the front. Prolonged exposure activates all traits at once, and will only revert the person when another monster has been hunted down, and their energy absorbed.

06: IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK

The walls of Bastion reach an impressive 20 feet up and stretch for long distances… And have Husks merged into them, often in the hallways and occasionally in the rooms. The Husks clearly belong to either the Silver Tear or the Steel Wardens, given the insignias on them. Many of them are locked together, frozen in a fight. And their last words and thoughts are written on the walls in gold and silver script.

Most of the words are frantic, about defending the moon shards from heretics or freeing the moon shards from confinement. But if any of the words are read aloud, the Husks react by merging together and spawning a berserk heavy tank/tankceratops. Or a large Burner type monster. OR a dragon dinosaur with exploding, punching fists. Drifters may also get caught up in the monster changes, and fuse their own monster forms together!

07: MONSTER FUSE

An element saturation isn’t the only strange thing in the fortress. Anyone who makes contact with the fortress stones will find themselves building a resonance with a fellow Drifter. This grows stronger the more time they spend in the fortress.

Until finally the bond solidifies on the next change the Drifters go through and hits a fever pitch. The next threat they encounter WILL force a transformation. When that happens, their next change fuses their two monster forms together into something new.

Their fusion form is a combination of two Drifter’s traits. It is also twice the size it would normally be, and is well suited to taking on any giant sized monsters. It can even give Drifters a brief insight into the memories of their partner, as the fusion takes place.

When this happens, both Drifters can switch control over their merged form. Those with greater synchronism will have more control, while those who squabble and fight will find that their monster form becomes more feral and savage. This fusion lasts until the threat abates: when that happens, the fusion breaks apart, and Drifters return to their prior state.

08: STORM CALL

There’s something outside that isn’t just the storm; it calls out in a howl that can make the blood run cold, and also pulls at one’s feet. Until it hits a point where the Bastion doesn’t feel like a restful place. Drifters who hear the storm call need to step outside and find the source; the storm itself isn’t particular on if they search on their own feet, or behind some wheels.

Drifters who travel on their own feet will swiftly be overwhelmed by the storm, and a moon warp hiding in the snow, and forced to transform. It doesn’t help that there’s wild saber-tooth Barioth wyverns prowling the wilds and ready to pounce.

Being inside a vehicle helps to shield them from the worst of the storm and the changes, and also gives Drifters more traversal options:
Tough cars are capable of wading through even the deepest snow without getting bogged down, as well as towing any stricken or stuck vehicles out of the drifts.
Fast vehicles can follow rivers of fire and lava that move through the wilds, without burning up due to prolonged exposure.

Eventually Drifters will find their way towards the summit of the mountain, and the discovery waiting beyond.

09: MONSTER CHANGES

Between the weird fuel, the teeth in the fortress, and hostile elements trying to force changes, new arrivals can quickly find their humanity getting worn away and new monster transformations taking place.
With the cold weather and regal structures, the environment calls out to Undead. As long as the elements rage, all Undead traits are available and also:
+Warm Blood: Undead can easily track living bodies through the wilds and the fortress, sensing the warmth of their blood in contrast to the storm.
+Rivalry: Tends to form rivalry with other Undead monsters, becoming territorial and protective of potential food sources.
+Ice Affinity: Undead find themselves better preserved by the cold and thriving in it, energized and strengthened by the snow, and even taking on glowing blue veins and eyes.
+Fire Fear: The presence of fire inspires aversion, and even terror and need to flee from it. Smaller flames like candles provoke unease, larger flames like a bonfire result in more panic.
+Holy Symbols: Presence of Steel Warden symbols (a sword piercing moon) can cause unease in Undead, and even repel them a location.
+Snow Shift: Exposure to snow forces the Undead into a more bestial form. This could resemble a bat, wolf, or deer/horse/bull.

10: FROZEN HEART

At the summit of the mountains is a collection of freakishly tall and twisted trees. In their branches is a collection of frozen hearts growing like strange fruit. And further up is a massive object that looks like a deer skull with branching antlers. The ice storm flows from its eyes and mouth… And it shows no signs of ceasing without destroying the skull.

The frozen hearts are giving off a cold aura that freezes anything that doesn’t resist ice. Drifters will need to neutralize the hearts to dispel the cold aura. The hearts can be melted by fire, shot down with ranged weapons, magic, etc. When burned, the hearts give off a smoke that causes a terrible hunger and need to hunt in anyone who inhales it. Shattered heart shards also rain down and embed themselves in Drifters, and cause a berserk fury in those they cut.

But with each felled heart the barrier of the skull weakens, as does the storm. When the last of the frozen hearts falls, the storm skull fractures and breaks apart like brittle ice. Drifters can deliver the finishing blows, ending the storm in the process. After that, the way down the mountain becomes clear, and the Convoy may continue down without worry.

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.

Fortress Library: Books and screens seem to have fused together. Assorted data about monsters is on display here; everything from hunting strategy to contradicting praise of their strength. (Read: all lore information from the monster pages is available IC.)

Dining Hall: This time around the gas station and garage are empty of supplies… But there’s plenty of preserved foods in the castle kitchen and dining hall. Though the hot dishes are almost painfully spicy, and the cold served foods can almost freeze a mouth shut.

Snow Fields: Surrounding the fortress are fields of snow, ready to bog down anyone who wanders too far into them. It would be next to impossible for anyone to make it far on two feet without the aid of a vehicle… Or the aid of a monstrous transformation.

Fire Snow: The storm can wildly swing between temperatures, from freezing to burning with how the snowflakes fluctuate. They can suck warmth out of a Drifter’s body on contact, or risk burning any exposed skin.

Armory: The Steel Wardens kept an armory and arena close by for sparring. Various weapons and armor are stored here; some antiquated, some modern and augmented with technology. And everything but the older models are badly damaged by the elements; frozen over and metal crackled, or half melted from fire. They won’t have much use as weapons, but could be used as metal materials.

View from the Peaks: When the storm clears, one can look out from the peaks and see what’s next. A strange, twisted landscape stretches out below the peaks. And beyond that is something on the horizon; a massive city reaching upwards, and the buildings intact and gleaming. Going back to the Convoy reveals a new update in the database: Nirvana is near. And will be reached in an estimated 60 days from now.

NAVIGATION || RESERVES || APPLICATIONS

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I. Summoning Circle | I Can Feel the Chill of This Place Through My Suit

[ Danse is not a stranger to deja vu. Hard to be, when neither the Institute nor the Railroad has truly infallible mindwipe technology, whatever they both might say. But it's difficult to focus on that sensation when one wakes up halfway frozen through on a hard stone floor, in clothing not exactly sufficient for the weather.

Better for that, though, than it could be. The skintight and violently orange jumpsuit he's wearing does not offer a great deal of protection from elements other than fire, but he does have thick leather gloves and a fleece-lined bomber jacket overtop of it. The first time he'd woken up on the floor of a Revan garage, it had been January in his own world, and only the fact that he'd just stepped out of his power armor had prevented him from being dressed in suitable layers. The moon warp, in its helpful convenience, had zapped him directly back to the moment he'd left.

And then apparently reconsidered. From Danse's perspective, it's simply been one hell of a confusing and foggy week, distracted as if by the details of an unusually strange and vivid dream. As those details rapidly begin to resolve again, he recalls--wasn't it autumn when he was here last? ]

...Hello? Is anybody there?

II. Fortress | Proceed Carefully, These Fortifications May Still Be Inhabited

[ Scouring abandoned buildings for useful salvage is second-nature to Danse whether here or at home, but never does he get more excited to do so than in buildings that look like they might have armories.

Once again, this place has denied him his power armor, and once again, he curses this woefully, because that thing has been set on fire by a rocket engine with him inside it and left him with nothing but grouchy, sweaty first-degree burns. But the underarmor helps a bit with that, and the ice proves somewhat surprisingly more problematic. ]

I remember the squires liking to play a game they called 'The Floor Is Lava.' Never seen what that would literally look like before.

[ This called loudly over his shoulder, while searching with reasonable cheer for something he can use to de-shell the nearest hapless iced-over drifter. Don't worry, buddy, he'll get you out. ]

III. If These Walls Could Talk | Time To Send This Creature Back To Hell

[ Ah, the Steel Wardens. His brief sojourn back home, having to carefully plot out his travel routes to avoid being shot by their counterparts, has not made Danse feel any less weird or guilty about seeing their too-familiar insignia around. Or any less strangely curious about them, enough to read over this writing first in silence and then, as he sinks deeper into thought, murmuring along with it.

If there is one thing that can be said for the Brotherhood of Steel, though, it's that reading their Codex aloud does nothing worse than make the less-indoctrinated roll their eyes. It does not leave anyone abruptly facing down a goddamn tank-treaded triceratops. He yanks the laser rifle from his back and levels it, stance squaring. ]

I'll hold its attention! If it doesn't have an underbelly, try aiming for the mouth!

IV. Monster Fuse | Aim For the Fusion Core

[ There's no such thing as getting to re-adjust to the monster nonsense, is there. Having to take a knife to a perfectly good flightsuit to accommodate the mortifying burden of a tail again, bad enough. The omnipresent threat of hulking out into something much larger and wolfier, even worse. But at least those are all things Danse remembers well enough to be able to use the coping mechanisms he'd developed before.

But this is beyond the pale. This is invasive beyond anything he'd sucked it up and dealt with last time, confusing beyond anything he'd been forced to wrap his brain around before, and requires a very different kind of cooperation than what he's been accustomed to in any military unit. He remembers, unbidden, the convoy's springtime trip through that desolate broken gravity-defying valley, because the way his mind and dreams hadn't been his own is the only frame of reference he has for the way his body is now shared.

But this does not actually help him move it. There's a lot that isn't helping right now. ]

Damn it! Watch where you're--

V. Wildcard

[ Hit me up at layonmacduff if you'd like to plot something else, or just toss something at me here! If your character met Danse at all during his previous tenure in the game, or was just around for a while prior to November, he'll probably remember them. He has a tough truck for towing if necessary, he'll be super into helping shovel show, and I like the idea of any/all of the micro-encounters. ]

Yes? Hello?

[Sonia turns from where she's stopped to warm herself by the fire, noticing that someone else has stumbled out of the strange ritual circle. She's dressed even less prepared for the snow than Danse is, wearing a dress that's tailored like a school uniform and nothing to protect her arms or hands.

So she's not alone. That's probably a good thing.]

Hello! So you have also been summoned here.

[Whatever that means, exactly.]

Evidently. And not for the first time.

[ Danse remembers making a habit of finding these places, weapon in hand to defend the new arrivals against the monsters they wouldn't be expecting, brusque monotone explanation at the ready while escorting them. He barely remembers what it felt like to wake up here himself, and it's disorienting as hell--but at least he is still armed, if not armored.

He looks up at her, eyebrows suddenly arching with alarm at the state of her clothing, and immediately shrugs off his top layer. ]

--Take my jacket. That's no fit uniform for scouting in adverse weather conditions.

Oh! Thank you very much.

[She takes the jacket; it's a bit big for her, but she puts it on all the same.]

I greatly appreciate your kindness, and hope to repay it in full. But to return to our original topic, you mean you've been here before?

[That's certainly interesting.]

No repayment necessary, civilian. Just give it back once you've found something warmer.

[ In a sense, he's stalling for lack of certainty as to how to answer the question, because it doesn't seem like it can be possible, and yet he can't find any other explanation. ]

I remember traveling with these people for months. I remember that we should be somewhere else, I just can't pin down where. The important thing is that there's a unit out there past all of this snow, and we need to join up with it.

[Civilian? Well, that's a new one. And not exactly accurate...

For now, though, she focuses on the more important part of the statement.]

Hmm... could it be that something is wrong with your memory...?

[She's been there.]

It's something to look into. But yes, if there are others outside, we should join them.

[She starts looking for something to help them clear the snow.]

By the way... The way you speak. Are you a soldier?

[ For as much research on cryogenics Deacon has immersed himself in, he'd never anticipated becoming a human popsicle, himself. That was the sort of cute nickname that would get lobbed at Nora on occasion, and yet here's Deacon up to his waist in ice. ]

I dunno. You see one Forged base, you've seen 'em all. [ Deacon grunts as he tries to lift his knee, ice cracking slightly but over all not budging, too thick in the areas he has leverage in. ]

A-Any progress over there? I think it's getting thicker. Surely there's a nice crowbar laying around. [ A shiver. ] Or-- or something to transport a warm little lava rock to 'ole Deacon before he loses his legs to frostbite. I'm not panicking. Who's panicking?

[ It's been a very, very strange week for Danse. The longer he spends here, the more real and solid his memories feel, but back in the Commonwealth, it had all been impossible to parse when the details had simply felt like the kind of dream he's never had except when shared with someone through Revan's magic.

This is to say that he'd had absolutely no idea what to do with the fact that whenever he saw Deacon around the settlement they were both guarding, he'd felt the sudden strange urge to kiss him in greeting as if that were a perfectly ordinary part of their dynamic, as if they were something more than people who might once have been called upon to kill each other if the peacekeeping efforts of the Minutemen failed, as if those memory-flashes of what it felt like to share his bed were something other than fantasy--

--and he remembers why, now. He remembers exactly why. ]

Don't panic.

[ His voice is soothing, tender, almost warm enough to melt the ice on its own. He returns with what looks like a meat tenderizer, sizing up the ice for its weakest point, and gives Deacon's arms and shoulders a brisk rub accompanied by a brief capturing of his lips. Because he can. ]

I'll warm you up once you're out. It was this or a steak knife, and something told me we'd both be better off with the hammer.

I'm not. [ The normally well-crafted and performed lies seem to slip when frozen to the ground, but cut him some slack. He can't be 'on' all the time.

Even if he could admit he'd been panicking, Danse's return to his side and calming efforts somehow already make him feel warmer, even if he's shivering through that little kiss.

There had been a similar moment for Deacon, back in Sanctuary, where he normally may have ribbed Danse with the best of them, but he'd felt a unusual softness for him instead. A guy apparently has one wet dream and it changes everything. Deacon stopped sleeping after that, but now that he knows that it hadn't been a dream at all, he regrets not catching up on his beauty rest.]

That something would be a desire not to stab me. Probably. [A loving little pat on Danse's cheek follows.]
C'mon- Batter up. And try not to shatter my bones? Restraint looks very good on you.

Probably.

[ It's the kind of teasing people other than Deacon don't usually get from him, and that he'd half-forgotten how to do in that brief period back home (particularly when Deacon wasn't instigating in his usual manner), but that feels more natural now, like a hinge being cleaned and oiled. ]

There's quite a bit more damage that could be done with the slip of a knife in this area, so avoiding that would be just as much to my benefit as yours.

[ Not the snappiest innuendo, but that's coming back to him now too. He taps at the ice near Deacon's thigh with careful experimental force, trying to keep up that oh-so-handsome restraint, but when it doesn't make more than a small dent, he knows he'll have to try harder. ]

Here. Brace yourself on my shoulder.

Aha- [Deacon replies dryly between shivers, squirming as much as he can to try to keep warm and loosen up the ice. The tapping isn't instilling confidence in him that he'll be freed any time soon, and there's a brief whine that escapes him at that thought.]

And here I was going to spend the day catching up on my reading. [ Deacon whines, then grabs Danse's shoulder as instructed. It does help keep him from shaking, at least... and it's probably for the best, considering he's lost feeling in his leg at some point. ]

Oh god, [ He groans, ] We're gonna have to take the whole thing off, aren't we?

Paladin Danse | Fallout 4 | Werewolf | Returning Character

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