MARCH EVENT/TDM

[monstertruckers]

code

The Convoy leaves the mountains behind and sets off across a long expanse of strangely bleached and tangled up land. The landscape is littered with both Husks and spent moon shards alike… Along with strange ruins and remnants that clearly don’t belong to the wilderness.

And always on the horizon is a mass of buildings; a shining city that doesn’t seem affected by the chaos and ruins dotting the landscape. The Convoy database continues to try to update, but can only label the location as “Nirvana” and leave the information corrupted.

The surrounding landscape is match for the database: These lands are twisted. And navigating them to reach Nirvana is going to be a task.

01: PATH OF SPIRES

Dotting the landscape are tall spires glowing with ominious light. Moonshards have been gathered together and carved into radio tower spires and fixed with glyphs that mirror Sigils. Various Husks rest against the spires, and it’s clear that they gave their lives up to create these structures. The worst of the environment twists are centered around these spires, like they’re acting as magnets to Warps and sparing the rest of the area. Drawing close to the spires results in whispers in the ears of the Drifter, and seeping in through the speakers of their phones or vehicles.

“We can’t let them destroy what we’ve built. They’ve already sundered so much of the world… Whether it’s Tears or Wardens, they can’t be trusted. We turn our backs on them, we renounce what we used to be.”

Skeletons of monsters drift around the spires, orbiting in weird halos. Coming into contact with either the spires or their halos results in the spire trying to absorb the Drifter, even as it heals them of any wounds and tries to pull their changes out of them. The Spires also try to broadcast any thoughts or strong the emotions the Drifter is feeling to those nearby; that transmission disrupts the spire just long enough to pull at trapped Drifter free.

02: SUMMONING CIRCLE

New Drifters arrive in a bleached out garage, looking like color and life has been drained out of the structure. Broken down walls are crumbling away, which at least makes it easy to get outside. A collection of spires rings the garage, but many of them are broken and give off sparks instead of drawing Drifters into them. It's enough to let people make a break for it, into the wilds.

There’s dark shapes prowling around the periphery… And strange metal, humanoid Husks gathered all around the towers. The towers give off faint, whispering messages that can be heard through the radios lining the garage.

“Nirvana… Imminent. Last leg of the journey almost complete. Advised to find your vehicles, and adjust to your powers and forms.”

03: START UP

Outside of the ruined garage, one can see there are various cars ringing the structure. Most of them are parked near the garage, but a few of them are placed near the towers. Approaching them increases the odd humming transmission in the Drifter’s ears: various snatches of information about Nirvana, and how it is only weeks away. That it is a safe haven from the rest of the chaos.

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: CROOKED PATH

The landscape is twisted, even on the road. And the further one travels, the warping of the land becomes more volatile. Stepping off the road results in hostile terrain that fluctuates depending on the time of day.

During the daylight hours, the grounds are rife with streams of aether. The aether behaves almost like water with how it flows and refreshes those who come in contact with it. But while contact can heal, it also transforms Drifters by imparting Angel traits. Staring into the aether streams can also show people visions of "could have beens" in a Drifter’s life in a positive and hopeful way, and share those wishes with other people.

At night the landscape begins to burn, with streams of fire and lava. The unchanged aether currents react by flowing upwards and away from the fires as far as possible. It’s possible to ride the aether currents; either on wings, on feet, or on very swift and lightweight vehicles. Those who can’t avoid the lava will either be burned or forcefully turned into demons. They will also catch visions of potential disasters and nightmares that could happen in their lives… And these visions are easily visible to other characters.

05: THE HUNTER

Something else stalks the twisted lands; something that travels in a pack, and dwarfs even the Convoy. It walks on taloned legs that shriek with rust and metal on each thundering step. It keeps a maw full of steel teeth close to the ground, seeking out prey… And when it opens that mouth, a distorted roar spills out.

Once it comes into view, the Convoy screeches to a halt and throws up its shields, while blaring an alarm. An automated voice urges Drifters: “Remnant monster approaching. Seek shelter in the shields or retreat immediately. Remnants are hostile weapons of the Steel Wardens, seek shelter immediately.”

And as the monster sees an old, rusted car and pounces on it, it becomes clear why the Convoy must hide behind its shields. The Remnant monster looks like a dinosaur built out of machinery, and is hungry to absorb more… Or to simply make a meal out of any flesh and blood creatures it can find. The database urgently blurts all of this out... Even as the Remnant turns towards the Convoy.

05-A: THE CHASE

The pack of robot t-rexes attack the Convoy, trying to beat down and break the shields. This close up, Drifters can see all the various vehicles and scrap that make up the robot… And worryingly, how some of those electrical components look almost human or cyborg based. They could easily have belonged to the Steel Wardens. A strange droning sound emits from the speakers; sounds that could be a creed or a doctrine, all blended together with snarls and roars.

It’s clear the Convoy won’t be able to last forever under this assault. Fast Vehicles are needed to act as bait, and lead the Rexes away from the Convoy. Meanwhile, Tough vehicles need to brave the off road warp conditions to see if they can find something to help weaken these monsters, or find a hiding place.

05-B: THE DOCTRINE

During this time the Remnant gives off a piercing roar while attacking and chasing vehicles. And now there’s words audible in that roar:

“We are denied a place in Paradise, because of our zeal… We do what we must, what we know. We hunt.”

The Rexes do their best to run cars down, trying to throw them off their wheels or paralyze the drivers with a thundering roar and shaking footsteps. The Warden’s Doctrine also spills out of the speakers, causing adverse effects for any Drifters who listen too closely. At close range The Doctrine weakens monsters by driving them feral and activating all of their monster traits at once.

Those speakers will need to be silenced if anyone wishes to go toe to toe with the Rexes. And since no one can get in close at the moment, that means either ranged attacks and magic to temporarily silence the speakers. Fortunately, there’s a tool for disabling the speakers permanently, close by.

06: SPIRE ANTENNA

The burnt out moon shards forming the towers aren’t that burnt out, after all. And they seem to be providing some power to the spires, along with a strange and almost melodic hum. There’s a build up of residue that needs to be torn off the towers, as they seem to be muffling the transmission…

And there’s still the Rexes prowling the landscape. But any time the robots get close to the towers, they reel back in pain or confusion. It seems that once these Spires are cleaned, their sound should be boosted. The coating can be burned or washed away.

And once they do, the hum is amplified and overwhelms the Doctrine; the speakers on the Rexes short circuit, busting out completely. It leaves the Rexes reeling and retreating away from their attacks on the Convoy. Other attacks can also short circuit the speakers, leading to similar results.

07: SHATTERED TEMPLE

The closer the Drifters get to the city the more old ruins crop up; they look far more ancient than many of the structures previously encountered, like they belonged to an ancient temple, long since exploded and had various pieces thrown across the landscape.

There’s still some strength left in the old stones, and it’s possible to duck into the ruins and evade the monsters swarming the lands. Old cloisters can also be turned into improvised parking garages. And while the hazards outside are kept at bay… There’s the various altars to investigate.

There’s always an altar in each of the ruins, along with the usual incense smoke and stained glass decorating the halls. The symbol of the Silver Tears has been painstakingly, artistically carved onto each one. Along with a scripture. Coming into any contact with the altars, or even staying there long enough to read the inscriptions can also activate event monster traits… Or swap them between Drifters.

Those who visit more than one shrine may also find their monster forms becoming more fluid, enabling them to swap or fuse as they need to… Which may prove to be very important in facing against the robot T-rexes.

07-A: SCRIPTURE

Snatches of the following text can also be found all over the shrines:
“Those not forsaken by the moon, we’ve called to you across worlds. We are no longer worthy of carrying the blessing, so it falls to you. Bring the gift back to the Moon, where its body lays shattered… Just beyond the reach of Nirvana.

Listen to our tale, know the truth of your blessing and our woe. When the creator shaped our world, a spark of brilliance and madness was placed in us. A fragment of the divine. But our flesh was too weak to hold such a thing. Our bodies needed to change to better accommodate that blessing, to wield the magic and knowledge. Sometimes. Many times. It drove us mad. But we were determined to master it… Until the Creator took pity on us, took much of the power and sealed itself and the blessing into our moon. Trying to protect us and purify the blessing… Though pieces still found their way to Revan. Moonshards to transform us, test us.

But of course, the wretched Wardens viewed it as a curse. Hunted the blessed to ‘safe guard’ humanity, unaware how they stifled us. Almost hunted the blessing to extinction. We’ve had no choice but to try and awaken the Creator, to break the moon open and release the secrets once again… No matter what it may do.”

08: MONSTER SHIFT

Due to the twisted energy and moon warps wracking the landscape, Drifters can also find themselves gripped by changes in turn. Two monsters reflect two extremes of the landscape and try to manifest in Drifters. Angels and Demons are both available, with the following traits:

+Chaos Pull: Drawn to places of chaos and conflict. The wilds are an especially powerful draw.
+Order Pull: Drawn to places of order and tranquility. The Convoy shields are a powerful draw, as are the shrines and temples.
+Light Switch: Monster powers and traits grow more powerful when bathed in light, whether that's daylight or headlights.
+Night Switch: Darkness powers up monster traits and powers.
+Hellfire Surge: The nighttime lava and fires cause hellfire powers to grow in power, but also lose control and fires grow more chaotic.
+Heavenly Surge: Contact with the aetherstreams boosts holy and light powers to a high degree, but leaves the Drifter half blinded from using them.

09: METAL MOSH

Since the Doctrine speakers have failed, the Rexes are all the more eager to hunt down the Drifters and consume them and their vehicles. Fire leaks out of the jaws to try and melt metal. And equally worrying, the dinosaur can combine that with a sonic scream/roar, to make a combustive hunting cry.

The Rexes try to use this cry to ignite anything in a cone in front of it; flesh, plant, or anything flammable. If there is nothing to take the impact, it super heats the ground and turns the dried sand to glass. If the Rexes manage to weaken anything with their roars, they try to close with fang and claw. The robots also become briefly disoriented after using its roar, leaving them vulnerable.

The Rexes would sooner be destroyed… Which considering the capacities of fused and empowered Drifters, is more than doable. Due to assorted attacks and mishaps with the tower spires, there is also one Rex that is too weakened to fight back, and all of its vital circuits are exposed and open for reprograming. When the Rexes are reduced to scrap and exactly one is tamed due to player feedback, the Convoy can finally continue on.

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.

1. Twist: The landscape isn’t always content to stay in the same shape. In fact, it seems conflicted between being a bleached out desert and badlands, and warping into a landscape populated with venomous and vivid plant life. Said plants have a way of causing wracking pains or vivid hallucinations with too much exposure; either way it’s advised to step carefully.
2. Torment: The pathway off the roads is sometimes lined with spikes, ready to pierce all but the Toughest tires and feet. And if the ground draws up blood, it eagerly drinks it in and begins to shape a calcified echo of whatever it bled; the pale sculpture looks like it is in pain and shifts between various monster phases and forms the Drifter has experienced.
3. Warp Weather: The assorted moon shards have been pulled toward the towers. Gathered together their warping nature is channeled towards the sky. And various weather starts to unfold; auroras snake across the sky before turning to thunderstorms, then rain shifts into a fog that distorts sounds and melts into bright sunlight. The weather is wild and varied, and often hostile.

NAVIGATION

Comments

07

[purplexing]

For the moment, the old temple ruins have been deemed safe enough to serve as a temporary lair. Beyond are creatures that can't be taken down as he is now, but he will protect this precious space.

The sound of someone entering this temporarily claimed territory is enough to draw him to investigate. The scent isn't one he's familiar with. There's something...odd about it too, but he can't quite put a finger on it.

The subtle scrape and click of talons and claws on the stone floors are slow, cautious as something stirs in the shadows off to the side.

[rockitforme]

Rock jolts out of his upwards fetal position a tad slightly upon hearing that unfamiliar yet so dangerous scrape-and-click combo. He raises his head slightly, his eyes attempting to readjust themselves within the dark, but he sees nothing.

Definitely not comforting at all.

He blindly grabs at the crevices of the wall, using that as leverage to pull himself up to his own feet as he transformed one of his arms into a buster cannon. It's not active, but it will be if the unknown stranger makes their next move.

For sure, it can't possibly be a harmless mouse. But there isn't a way a massive creature could fit into the temple, right?

Right?

[purplexing]

Glowing eyes are a perfectly safe sign!

Because that's what Rock will see first, although the glow of purple seems somewhat mismatched. The right eye seems less defined, a confined glow, while the other is most definitely an eyeball, its slit pupil most definitely locked onto the boy in blue.

The creature that emerges from the shadows into the dim light isn't all that huge, although he'd stand taller than Rock if he were on his hind legs. But currently he walks on all fours, his fore...arms? Legs? Arms. Are covered in black fur from claw tip to just beyond his elbows, giving way to green scales before feathers and more fur war for supremacy at his shoulders. A pair of dark brown-black wings come up from his shoulder blades, bearing a faint iridescent purple sheen when the light hits it just right. His rear legs look reptilian or birdlike, complete with wickedly curved, sharp talons, and the long tail that stretches behind him makes almost suggests lizard.

It might be difficult to see the shell from this angle, so perhaps the face doesn't help to clarify at all what this beast might be, save for the fact that he wears a purple bandanna with ragged edges, and oddly enough, a pair of metal goggles.

[rockitforme]

Strangely, Rock isn't even that scared of the creature's eyes. Granted, glowy eyes are quite the common sight back at home, but this was something a tad different!

Regardless, Rock keeps his cannon out, but left it relatively inactive so he doesn't accidentally wound a potential ally. Rock freezes up upon seeing the creature emerge out of the shadows, a silent breath escaping his lips.

"Ah," Rock uttered out suddenly, his frame shivering slightly.

He isn't too sure if he should say hello, but the creature doesn't seem to be a threat . . . though he is being scaled up, that's for sure!

Should he —?

With a dry swallow, Rock shakily raises a free hand at him in a vague attempt to wave. A trembling smile begins to quirk at the corner of his lips.

Play it cool, Rock. Don't give him a reason to attack you!

"H-Hi."

Crud.

[purplexing]

Unfortunately it seems the creature is well aware that that has to be some sort of weapon aimed at him. His singular eye narrows, and indeed it is singular because the other, now that one can see his face, seems to be nothing but a hollow socket behind that mask, containing a wispy glow.

His tail sways behind him, probably not really helping to disperse the idea of a predatory animal. But it's wearing goggles and a mask! Surely it can't be all beast!

Right?

Those eyes shift towards Rock, meeting his gaze. 'Hi', this one says.

Donnie snorts.

"Put that thing away before you make us both regret something," he finally says, grimacing slightly at how rough his voice sounds.

[rockitforme]

Rock doesn't even have to be told twice to transform his weapon away. Within milliseconds, Rock raises both hands with a clearly heavy frown. A frown that practically screams —

"I'm sorry."

He pauses, hoping that message would come across as genuinely remorseful. Mainly because it is.

"I'm just —" Rock squeezes his eyes shut, and briefly turns his head to the side before returning his gaze to the creature, "— I've been hiding in here since the last couple of days and I honestly don't know where else I can go. Everything is just so confusing without anyone to help me . . . don't you agree?"

[purplexing]

Donnie's gaze seems to soften somehow, the glow of his left eye fading outright, the right dimming in intensity.

"I don't know how long I've been hiding in here. But I don't blame you." He's slipped outside a few times, mainly because his growing hunger demanded it, but never too far where he couldn't come back to hide if he thought he heard Those Things tromping about.

"...you didn't...?" he starts to say before frowning, glancing back in the general direction of the entryway.

"...no, you probably wouldn't have. Signals are interrupted out here. Area's unstable."

[rockitforme]

The boy's frown grows heavier with each passing second, and it's hard not to blame him for reacting as such given the . . .

". . . no wonder I couldn't call anyone for help," Rock looks down at the floor, the realization beginning to hit him like a brick wall. "I've been trying to call my family ever since I've gotten here, and I didn't even realize."

A clearly distressed sigh escapes his lips, and Rock shakily clenches his fists at his sides.

Come on, Rock. You can do it. You can do it.

"I don't even remember how long I've been out there," Rock manages to say. "All I remember is that I woke up in the middle of a really horrible place and that I managed to escape before those —"

Eugh, ew.

"I'm fine."

No, he is not.

"I'm alive and OK; that's all that matters, now that you're here to help, right?"

[purplexing]

"...it wouldn't reach them, not if they aren't here," Donnie says quietly. "This isn't the world you know. It's not one any of us knows."

He turns back, looking at Rock, his brow furrowing. Click, click, his talons tap at the ground as he approaches. Sorry, he can't help but look a little imposing doing so, but he doesn't know how else to effectively walk when he's like this.

"This world is broken. So some of the locals thought that their best hope of doing something was by calling people from other worlds to help. Unfortunately, once we get pulled into this world, we become tainted by the same chaos that's warping this place."

Donnie stops when he's a few feet from Rock, settling onto his haunches. He looks at a clawed hand, his wrist slightly thinner and more elongated than it should normally be, but that uncomfortable tension's eased somewhat, the strain of his body unable to decide which direction it was transforming.

"We help each other. The rest of us, we all came the same way you did, woke up in some abandoned gas station on a creepy summoning circle. If we're lucky, someone's usually around there to catch the newbies up. But I'm not surprised if no one was able to do that for you. This area's different. But we're closer to our destination."

[rockitforme]

Rock remained completely silent. What was he supposed to say? What was he supposed to do? He clearly can't just give up now, especially if the creature's words are anything to go by. In fact, hearing that the creature and his friends are this close to finding salvation gave him cautious hope.

"Like to go home, right?" Rock's tone is shaky, almost as if it could shatter upon touch.

He could return home to his family if it is the case. Please, please let it be the case.

"I don't know what to say . . ." Rock finally tilts his head to face the creature, "but whatever you and your friends are doing, I'm happy for everyone. How did you — how did you and the others not give up? Someone must've saved you for you to say that. You're lucky that you're not hurting."

[purplexing]

"That's what we're hoping." Donnie smiles weakly. He's been more anxious about it the closer they've gotten, but he can still hope. "I need to get my brothers home, after all." And himself, but he'd never go back without them.

Rock's inquiries make him fall silent again. How indeed. There's been so many instances where giving up probably seemed the most clear route. Yet, that's never an option for him, it's never entered his mind.

"I can't give up. I can't expect someone else to do everything. I have people relying on me as much as I'm relying on them. And I know I'm not the only one who's been having to suffer through all that we've been through so far. None of them have given up, and I'm not about to either. We support each other. There's no way any of us could have gotten this far alone. I'm sure of that much. ...but that doesn't mean we haven't been hurt. We're still struggling. It gets harder..."

[rockitforme]

Rock, on instinct, couldn’t help but return that weak smile. The creature has siblings too, just like him! That’s a good thing to hear out of him, someone he could bond with during his darkest hour.

Still, he listens silently, nodding along slowly. Something about the creature’s speech feels rather familiar, almost comforting if you ask him. Not that he’ll admit it, but something worth noting.

“That’s —“ Rock starts to fumble with his words, twiddling his fingers, “— I am so sorry that the many of you had to go through that. I know what it’s like, especially when Ra Moon attempted to —“

Rock clears his throat, swallowing dryly as he attempts to — come on. Don’t let this stranger worry about you too; he already has enough on his plate to look after, he can’t possibly afford to have another, now can’t he?

“— it was so horrible. Everyone was hurting and —“

A strained sigh, and Rock shakes his head.

“I don’t even know if I want to go there, I am so sorry.”

[purplexing]

Donnie glances over at him again. There's baggage there that that small frame is carrying, that much is clear. Seems like almost everyone here has something big they're coming from.

"...no one's asking you to. I know it's going to be difficult to not think about what happened before you got here, but for now, it's the least of your problems. Trust me, things unfortunately are not going to be easy here, but it's nothing you need to tackle on your own."

He winces a bit.

"...I need that reminder too, a lot of the time."

[rockitforme]

Rock's frame slackens a bit, but he isn't too sure if it is out of relief or of exhaustion. Either answer works.

"I mean . . . I almost got eaten alive by those mechanical things when I first arrived, and I didn't have much choice but to go into hiding so they wouldn't keep trying to catch me," Rock sighed, burying his face into the palm of his hands. "There was only so much that I could do on my own, and I even got lost trying to find a way out."

Rock then lifts his head to meet the creature's eyes, a weak smile now resting on his lips.

"I'm just glad to have finally met a friendly face," Rock said, slowly extending a hand out to the stranger. "The name's Rock. Rock Light. What about you? I never got a chance to catch your name."

[purplexing]

Donnie shudders outright at the mention of those metal beasts, his left eye thinning to a narrow slit, the glow returning, if briefly, echoed with the flare of the right as the light within it brightens, and he curls in upon himself, tail wrapping about his legs.

He shakes his head. "They're not here, they're not here," he says under his breath, trying to calm himself.

Drawing in a deep breath, he lifts his head again as Rock reaches out. It might be a bit weird because he uncurls from himself enough to sniff at that hand first before seeming to remember there's more to the gesture and bringing up his own.

His arm seems a little longer than it should be, just enough to make it look off somehow, aside from it seeming so narrow as they taper towards his furry hands, but he's careful with his claws as his grasps Rock, like he's remembering how this process works.

"Donnie. Donatello Hamato, but Donnie is what I usually go by."

[rockitforme]

Rock winced upon seeing the stranger huddle up into a shaky pile of silent horror, his hand beginning to falter.

Crud, Rock. Don’t mess this up, please.

A pang of guilt began to stew within his core as he attempts to withdraw his hand away. Luckily, at the last minute, Rock was able to catch himself from removing whatever comfort the stranger could’ve had from him.

He deserves better. He definitely deserves better. He needs this now.

Shakily, Rock let out a deep sigh as he extends his hand out again, only to startle slightly upon feeling that warm, moist air tickle his fingers. He may be a robot, but not even robots are immune to being sniffed at!

Eventually, the stranger gently grips onto his hand and reveals himself to be —

“D-Donnie …” Rock couldn’t help but smile softly at the name, “I really like that.”

He then lays another hand over Donnie’s, and then let his grip tighten gently.

“It’s a nice name.”

[purplexing]

The smile reappears, shy, in a way. He manages not to pull his hand away. It was grounding, having contact, not being alone.

That curious set of eyes peers at him again, head tilting.

"You're not human, are you...?" It's not really a question so much as seeking confirmation.

[rockitforme]

“Ah —“ Rock blinks in surprise at the sudden question.

And to be honest, he couldn’t really blame Donnie for asking such a question. In fact, Rock might’ve done the same thing to Donnie given how nonexistent creatures like him are back at home!

Upon regaining his composure from blanking out on Donnie’s question, Rock ends up chuffing out a light-hearted giggle — a now rare noise to hear from the young boy these days.

“I mean — you’re not human either too!” Rock quipped in an attempt to alleviate the dreary atmosphere, “But you’re definitely right. Doctor Light created me and the rest of my siblings back at home …”

Rock’s smile fades away slightly, but he swallows that frown away quickly.

“You said you have siblings too, right?”

[purplexing]

His eyes brighten, not in the glowing sense, but for the intelligence behind it, the intellect that Donnie prides himself on.

"Incredible... Your Doctor Light made you well. I don't think anyone would be able to tell right off the back. I can smell the difference though, familiar scents. Synthetic, metal and oil..." He pulls back a little, embarrassed. "My scents are sharper now, but I'm no stranger to tech."

Donnie nods then. "I do. Three of them. They're here, well, two of them. And one alter-time variant."

[rockitforme]

“Of course!” Rock began to fumble over his words a bit, now lacing his fingers over Donnie’s hand, “I didn’t expect you to notice that so quickly! I have to tell him that you said ‘hi’ if we ever get to meet each others’ families.”

It was nice knowing that someone his age (or around that range) could finally connect with him, especially given the … well … circumstances of pretty much everything that has happened so far.

“And about you being familiar with tech …”

Oh boy.

“Did those … things try to eat you alive too? If so … then I’m horribly sorry that you also had to go through that too.”

He is so sorry for this, Donnie. He really is.

[purplexing]

Meeting each other's families... Donnie can't help but feel a pang of something in his chest. He could wish that it could be so simple. But they need to figure out how to get home, first.

His expression falls at that, but with Rock holding his hand, he can't draw away again, so he simply turns his head. The glow within his right eye socket flickers uneasily.

"Probably would have tried to eventually. Almost took off my head when I tried to drive them back. And then the words from the Wardens that they played..." He twitches, head shaking. "They sunk in, couldn't focus. Lost control of monster sides..."

[rockitforme]

Rock, in response, ends up mirroring Donnie’s fallen expression, his frown pulling at the corner of his lips as he carefully noted the way his new-found attempted to look away. Reluctantly, he loosens his grip around Donnie’s hand so the latter could slip out as he needs.

Maybe he shouldn’t have pushed at the subject if he knew Donnie would’ve had a bad reaction to it, but at the same time … he just had to know what is going on, especially with those mechanical beings in mind. Understanding, Rock winced upon that revelation. Ouch, indeed.

“I think …” Rock began slowly, “I think I might’ve also heard from them too. The voice wouldn’t stop leaving me alone until I left that place and I almost stumbled across those things. I don’t even remember what it tried to say to me, but is that why …”

Rock sadly looks at Donnie, especially with his claws and everything.

“Did the voice do that to you? Will it happen to me too?”

[purplexing]

He doesn't want to think about the voice, the words. They're such deceptively simple words too, stating an intent that Donnie knows all too well by now, so he doesn't understand why it's driven harpy and cerberus and what all else into such a maddened state. Perhaps there's something else behind the words. He just doesn't know, but just being reminded of them threatens to stir the droning doctrine back up in his mind.

Donnie pulls away, clasping his hands over his head as if to shut it out.

"-d-don't listen to it," he stammers, even though he knows the metal theropods are nowhere near at the moment. He squeezes his eye shut, light winking out of that socket, leaving its disturbing emptiness, somehow more unsettling than before. Perhaps it's a trick of the shadows, but for a brief moment as he ducks away, his silhouette seems all wrong, neck elongated into a head more canine-like save with sharper features.

[rockitforme]

Sheesh on many accounts.

Rock quickly draws his hands back as he nervously watches Donnie grasp at his own head. He doesn’t know what he’s even seeing right before his eyes, but whatever that was … he doesn’t like any of it.

From what Donnie managed to utter out to him, the voice that he heard upon his arrival is bad news.

“OK, OK, I won’t —“ Rock shakily takes a step back, his eyes unable to pull away from the sight. “Whatever I said, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to — I was just —“

He then falls into silence, his eyes now staring out to whoever is now in front of him.

“D-Donnie? Are you … are you OK?”

[purplexing]

Unfortunately Donnie has no idea that Rock is speaking of some other voice. He had no idea that somehow the radios were picking up messages from Nirvana. But the garage was miles back now, and he can't even be sure how far these ruins are from the rest of the Convoy.

The turtle-creature hisses, pulling his arms around himself.

"It's okay. It's okay we're okay, we're okay they're not here," he repeats, trying to convince himself, it seems. His tail lashes about, anxious, the rest of his body tensed like the curve of a bow being drawn back. He collapses to the floor with a whimper that sounds almost like the canine Rock had glimpsed, but Donnie still resembles the strangely mismatched creature that he'd first seen come out of the shadows.

"...we're okay..." he whispers, trying to catch his breath, eye still shut, but the rest of him finally relaxes again, tail ceasing its twitching, curling around him.