test drive meme: january 2020

[modblob]

Redshift: Welcome to the v͖͕̺̲̘̱̜͎o̴̦̣̠̦̘̹͞i̯̖d̛̪̬͈̱̦̝͍̕.

▶ Click here to read what characters will experience when arriving in Anchor.

▶ All TDM threads can be considered game canon, and current players are welcome to either top-level on the TDM so prospective players can tag them, or use the prompts for logs or network posts on the communities. All threads on the TDM can be used for Activity Check.

a. nuclear fallout boy.

There is a mid-90s strip mall forming outside of Anchor.

Which is to say that there is now a Hot Topic next to the Blockbuster, and a little canopied sidewalk connecting the two. The difference between them is that the Hot Topic has an airlock entry and is safe from the radiation outside.

It's also not decked out for any Earth holidays, but it is fully stocked. Just not stocked with things that an Earth-based shopper would recognize as their "typical" fare. There are band t-shirts, with extreme fonts and symbols, but said fonts are almost cuneiform and the symbols are references that no one who wasn't living on Mars-15 in 1994 will get. The joke t-shirts are much the same, with cartoon characters, visual puns, memes, and designs that are, well, out of this world. There are bizarre earrings in standing cases, body decorations that might not quite fit a human, temporary tattoos, and random junk that cool fifteen-year-olds would snap up if it existed on Mars. (Use your imaginations, Anchorites.)

One thing you won't find in this store is advanced technology that serves any actual purpose. Sure, there are thumb-sized fart machines and little wall-mounted projectors that can decorate ceilings with preprogrammed holographic scenery (mostly starscapes). But none of it is any more useful than the keychain of that fat hipster cat with butterfly wings and bug eyes hanging from one of the displays. The cash register, which is the most futuristic thing in the place, is smashed to bits. Gotta get those Mars credits somewhere else.

b. looking kinda familiar.

There are little creatures scuttling through Anchor again, though these ones... well, they really are creatures more than they can be called animals. They're little blue-gray blobs of tissue, growing as they roll around until they finally split in two, both pieces then going their own way. Even though they don't have legs, the little blobs are fast, and many of them have no interest in interacting with the people of Anchor, and disappear into the ether never to be seen again.

Some of them, however, will single people out and start following them. The longer that little blob follows, the closer it gets, the more it takes the shape of an animal that represents the follow-ee's innermost soul or personality. The part of themselves that they hide away. As it begins to take shape, the person it follows will start to hear a tiny voice, at first just muffled sounds that could be coming from anywhere, but as the creature's form clarifies, the mumbling turns into actual speech. Clumsy, at first, almost like babytalk, but soon the little creature following its chosen Anchorite will be able to speak with its chosen person in full sentences. No one else can hear the little creature talk - only the one it decided to follow.

Keep the little bugger (or big bugger, if your innermost soul is an elephant or something) around for a week, and it will settle into its chosen shape, bonding to you for as long as you're alive. It can speak, listen, and understand, but you're the only one who can hear its voice. If this whole animal companion stalker situation isn't up your alley, though, and you're not feeling the connection, the little critter will slouch off to its own blobby existence.

c. creatures from the black locked room.

There's been a lot of exploration happening in that flooded area that Joe warned you all about. A lot of rooms opened, a lot of rooms explored and/or destroyed (thanks, Jacob et al. srsly). It's a lot of noise in a somewhat confined space. And something in one of the rooms is stirring...and done with being locked away.

Midday on the 20th of the month, the sounds of metal shrieking as it is twisted out of shape burble up out of the flooded halls. Thumping, rumbling, and eerie hooting noises are all muffled by the water at first.

There's only one at first, sloshing up out of the water and looking perfectly dry. Well... it looks like nothing, actually. A deep blackness that can hypnotize if it's stared at for too long. Long, dark claws that shine with a silvery edge. The vicious teeth in its shapeless head glow a pale blue-green.

Then another comes to the top of the stairs, and another.

They're perplexed at first by the webbing Peter Parker left to block off the hall, but a few experimental pokes with a claw shows that the stuff gives under their talons with only a little bit of effort. The three creatures slice their way free and move as a pack through the lower levels of Anchor, prepared to mob whoever they come across and tear them to shreds.

There's a problem when it comes to straight-up fighting these things, though: when physically attacked, they simply bounce back, when pieces are hacked off with a blade, each piece becomes a new, identical monster. The only way to beat them is with energy and other alternate fighting styles - magic, lasers, energy projectiles, etc.

Some people might be lucky enough not to run into them. Good luck to the rest.

d. the network.

Need to get hold of someone, call for help, ask the city at large a question? Need to ask a friend to back you up to take out the toothy voids? Maybe you need to hold your sat phone up to whatever crazy thing you're seeing and send out a recording to double-check if your eyes are deceiving you and what you're looking at is real?

Whatever the reason, the network is going strong, so feel free to include a post to it in your top-levels.

Navigation.

Comments

QUESTIONS.

[modblob]

Any questions for the mods can go here!

Re: QUESTIONS.

[itsnotaonesie]

How big are the horrible glowy darkness monsters? Are we talking like people sized or are they huge demon puppies?

[superposition]

Regarding the pseudodaemons in part B:

- If the science types perform some kind of bio-analysis on the blobs, what will they find out? What would they be most similar to genetically (assuming they have DNA)? Does it change once they take an animal form?
- Is the link between a pseudodaemon and its person detectable in any way? (Psychic, magical, etc.)
- What sort of stuff do they talk about? Or is that just up to individual preference?

[kometes]

Hello!

Question re: Part B

Would they have the same behaviour as the animal they take the shape of?
Do they eat? Can they eat each other?
Can they be destroyed?

Re: QUESTIONS.

[nothinglikefather]

Jacob just wants to say he's always happy to help!

[hersay]

hi mods! would allison's powers work on the creatures from the back room? she wouldn't use her powers to try to kill the monsters, but she would use them to temporarily incapacitate them, etc.

Re: QUESTIONS.

[mustact]

Do the daemons blobs turned creatures stick around even after January as long as they and/or the characters they bonded to stay alive? AKA do we have talking pets now?

Re: QUESTIONS.

[numerouno]

Would the Creatures from the Black Locked Room be able to sense the essence of Aku that resides within Scaramouche? If so, how would they react to it? Just wondering, since it's ~*magic*~.

Claudia Donovan | Warehouse 13

[artifacetious]

a. nuclear fallout boy

This shop's wares are actually a lot like what Claudia wears on a regular basis, if Mars-themed. As such, having just wound up here she's come across the place and is grabbing a ton of clothes because hey. A girl's gotta stay on brand even when hijacked to a horrifying post-apocalyptic nuclear wasteland.

She's rummaging through a rack of space pun t-shirts at the moment, and turns to the person closest to her in the store (congratulations, it's you) holding up a black shirt with a glow-in-the-dark moon surrounded by takeout containers claiming oof, i'm full! in comical text.

"What do you think? Too obvious?"

b. looking kinda familiar

It's shortly after this, on her way back to her chosen room with the haul of totally not hot topic merch, that Claudia finds herself being followed. Not knowing what the little blob is she walks faster.. and faster.... into a jog and then running full-tilt through the compound making an alarmed "eeeeeeeeeeeee" sort of sound. She narrowly avoids bumping into several people, dodging and abandoning the smaller items that fall from her grip like socks and a studded belt -- until finally she turns a corner and slams directly into you, bouncing off with a yelp and falling backwards in a pile of questionable fashion choices.

The little blob, now looking an awful lot like a ferret, catches up and scurries onto her shoulder. Its appearance is still shifting back and forth but it curls its tail around her shoulder and burrows its little face into her hair.

"Oh god." She's frozen in place on the floor, eyes squeezed shut, terrified of whatever it is currently perched on her. "I can't look. Is it still a spider? It doesn't feel like a spider...."

c. creatures from the black locked room

Claudia has been poking all of Anchor, ill advised as that may be. Especially alone. On the 20th she is unfortunately near the newly unlocked area the creatures are emerging from. The rending of metal is enough to snap her head up from the door panel she was examining, and she watches in horror as claws sink into the webbing to tear their way through.

"Nope. Nooooope nope nope." She draws a strange looking weapon that looks like a very steampunk tiny pistol and shifts her bag on her shoulder, backing away slowly. If she turns and runs that'd draw more attention, right? Maybe she can just get around the corner quickly, so that whatever it is doesn't even notice her there--

Oh shit, they did.

Nevermind the gun, she needs something more for crowd control, clearly. Swallowing with an audible gulp, Claudia reaches into her bag instead and pulls out a sphere that looks styled after the gun, flicking a switch with her finger and rolling it into the center of the creatures. It shoots out multiple bolts of electricity that manage to stun them and once again she's bolting and running headlong through the halls of Anchor.

The stun won't last long, and anyone she comes across will get a warning -- "You really don't want to go that way!!" -- And sure enough, there's the sound of claws on the flooring, the shrieking nails-on-a-chalkboard sound of the gouges left behind.

She snags the stranger's wrist as she passes, encouraging them to join her fleeing. At least until they hit a critical mass of people who can actually harm the things.

"Run!"

d. network

Hey there fellow abductees! Does anyone want to clue a girl in on the story so far? Is there a pamphlet? A number for the dude in the welcome video? Or ooh, a manual. A manual would be great, I'm happy to be your new resident tech girl but I don't want my trial and error to turn off the life support or whatever. Cuz like wtf, space? Already super dangerous without whatever the hell's going on here.

I can pay you in twizzlers? I've got maybe three people's worth of twizzlers.

B

[itsnotaonesie]

Well that sure was a thing that Peter just watched happen with his own two eyeballs. This lady just kinda bounced off him and now there's a weird... blob ferret and you know what stuff like this isn't even weird anymore. He probably shouldn't laugh but he can't help a little chuckle.

"Definitely not a spider, wanna say it's more like a ferret. Y'know, it's actually kinda cute."

He holds a hand out to help her up, waiting patiently for her to open her eyes.

A.

[abheirrant]

In good news, Carlisle finds that the "Hot Topic" doesn't have the undead infestation the Whole Foods (which seems to have gone missing) did. In better news, it has clothing; despite the practicality of his outfit, Carlisle has to wash it every now and then (as one does with clothing) it's because he's gotten ink on it, or he's been tossed into a watery hallway, or it's just generally dirty from day-to-day wear. Unwilling to let most see what's beneath his many layers, this means using the washing machines when no one is around, and even then, he spends the whole time paranoid someone will see his ruined face.

Having additional sets of clothing would solve that problem, but that's where the unfortunate news comes in: there is neither anything appealing, nor appropriate in the Hot Topic. What masks they have don't cover enough skin, and the tunics are all... decorated. He'll have to make some alterations, but it beats nothing. Well, almost beats nothing -- he's not sure he would ever consider a garment that seems to mock his tragic existence.

With a sigh, he glances over his shoulder at the only other person who decided to brave the journey to the store today, disgust carved into his brow as he sets the sweater aside and surveys the design on the shirt. "Obvious? Obviously what?"

The only thing obvious is that he probably comes from a world without takeout, and likely doesn't get the joke.

D | Text | @totheark

[0thingsonmymind]

whatis
twiz zler
?

Peter Parker | MCU [CRAU] | ota

[itsnotaonesie]

This here's the very cleverly named post-canon update prompt, around the 15thish

A: for Poison

Long story short, Peter's been missing for a couple days. Probably two, probably three, it's hard to say in a place like Anchor. Either way he hasn't been around, hasn't been at home, hasn't been at the lab, hasn't been popping in to check on his buddies in agriculture, hasn't been answering his phone. He's just been gone, ooooh nooooo.

See, he'd been teleported home for five years and eight months, except he was dead for five of those years so they probably don't count? Who even knows how that works, but the eight months he was alive definitely counted. He did a bunch of shit, fought some things, made a friend who turned around and betrayed him, some other stuff happened, it's been a busy year. But now he's back, reappearing in a cool new Spider-Man suit in the same spot he'd vanished from, that being the living room of the apartment he shares with Poison. This of course scares the shit out of the cats which in turn startles the shit out of him, so now he's up on the ceiling trying to get his ENTIRE BRAIN in order and also one of these cats is part octopus and is climbing up the wall because it missed him and wants pets.

B: Open

After finally managing to calm himself down (Poison most certainly did all the work let's be honest), Peter's out and about and on his way to R&D because hoo buddy he and Qubit need to have A Talk. He's ditched his mask, maybe he should have changed out of his suit into something less superhero-y, but fuck it, he's cranky. Not too cranky to stop and chat if someone pulls him over though, and certainly not too cranky to check his phone for messages he might have missed while he was gone.

In fact he's just going to post a brief text to the network just in case.

Hey, it's Peter. Sorry about the radio silence for the past however long you haven't been able to get a hold of me. I promise I didn't get eaten by any crazy, radioactive mutant bears or anything. 👍

Of course he's going to leave it as vague as possible what did you expect.


Looking kinda familiar

Aside from what seemed to be a very brief encounter with one of those weird blob things, there isn't anything obvious following Peter around. He saw it trailing him, went 'aw you're weird and cute' and probably tried to pet it because that's how he rolls, but didn't think much about it after that and never really saw it again. The reason he didn't see it wasn't because it stopped following him, it just made itself super tiny and decided to become a teeeeeeny tiny jumping spider and started catching rides on Peter's clothes and stuff. Which he never noticed, and that was fine up until it decided to start talking to him.

Understandably, disembodied voices aren't really doing Peter's mental state any favors, even if the thing can't quite make full words yet. He's still getting out and can be found pretty much anywhere, but when he's not nervously looking over his shoulder for the source of the mysterious voice, he's grabbing the nearest person to him and saying "please tell me you can hear that too."

This is fine, everything's normal.


Creatures from the black locked room

What Peter wants to do is post to the network with obnoxiously sized sparkle text that reads "I TOLD YOU SO". What he's actually doing is getting his ass kicked by these monsters while trying and failing horribly to stop them. Hitting them does nothing, their claws can cut through his webs, none of his usual advantages are helping him here at all. Life sucks for ya boi Peter, basically. Even more so now that he's gone and gotten his leg torn open by one of theses nightmare puppies, and they've got him cornered in the bar. He's just bleeding everywhere and trying not to freak out while also wishing he'd thought to call for backup before he'd lost his phone while trying to wrangle these things.

So, that's how Peter's day's going.

B; text; @Qubit

[superposition]

[ It's not like Peter to go incommunicado like this, and by day three, Qubit's extremely worried. None of his friends have seen him, not even his girlfriend. He hasn't gone outside (Qubit checked the logs). He didn't leave a note or set an away message or anything.

But just as Qubit's starting to seriously consider the worst-case scenario(s), he spots a new network post from Peter's account. Oh, thank God. His relief is palpable.

... which does not mean he does a good job of conveying it. ]

Where have you been? It's been three days! I was starting to think you'd been Ported out!

Cassandra de Rolo | Critical Role + CRAU

[ofwovenstone]

a. nuclear fallout boy.

Even with her time in the City... this is like nothing Cassandra has ever seen before. It’s fascinating, really. Also utterly strange. But she can’t help but explore. It reminds her a little of Rome, in an odd way. The jokes and humour that don’t quite make one hundred percent sense because she’s not from that world. That time. That culture.

So she looks through the clothing racks, at the crop tops and jeans and flannels and spandex in eye-scorching colours. “Was this in fashion ANYwhere?” she muses aloud in amusement. “I find that very hard to believe.” And yet she’s still tempted to get something to wear.


b. looking kinda familiar.

The odd little blob... creature that has been trundling along after her for a while doesn’t seem to be losing interest in her. It’s harmless, or it seems to be, and as odd as it is Cassandra doesn’t really mind. Although it’s starting... to change shape. No longer quite so... blobby, it’s shifting into something larger, something more animal shaped, with four legs and wings.

And she’s hearing a voice. That she’s assuming is from her blob-shaped companion. Or else she’s losing her mind a little. (Which, she’s not sure it would be so delayed; if she was going to lose her mind at all it would have happened years ago, she thinks.) It’s mostly nonsense, at first, but the longer it follows her the more coherent it becomes.

“Are you sure you want to follow me?” she asks it one day. “I doubt I’m the best company.”


c. creatures from the black locked room.

Cassandra can’t help but stare in horror and curiosity at the pitch black things with eerily glowing teeth. They’re like nothing she’s seen before, and she’s seen a lot, at this point. Vampires, Strix, fauns, Titans themselves, Cthulhu rising out of the lake... and yet these... creatures... are like none of them.

For one, none of them had been so strangely hypnotic if you stared at them for too long. She quickly figured out how to keep her eyes on them without looking at them dead on. And for two they didn’t split into two separate creatures when you cut at them with a blade.

Oh. Fuck.


e. wildcard.

C

[itsnotaonesie]

"Ooooh, that's not ideal."

Sooo using bladed weapons on these guys is a bad idea, good to know. Anyway, that voice would be coming from the dude who just landed behind her. Where did he come from? I dunno, up, he has a bad habit of just dropping into places, literally.

"Maybe let's not hang around with the demon dogs anymore, yeah?"

Finnick Odair | The Hunger Games | OTA

[fishermansweater]

a. nuclear fallout boy

Finnick is a district man, for all that he's spent ten years living in the luxury only afforded to the elite and the victors. Still, there are some luxuries he's gotten used to, and one of them is having more than one set of clothes. He'd lived with one outfit before, of course. He'd survived the arena twice with nothing but the clothes on his back and what could be claimed from the Cornucopia. And there hadn't been a surplus of anything really in District Thriteen, but he'd had more than one uniform and he's sick of wearing the same set of clothes every day.

So when he'd seen people wearing new outfits he hadn't seen before, he'd paid attention, and worked out that another strange shop had appeared outside the city. Which meant it was time for another expedition. So Finnick, in his well-worn t-shirt and military-issue
pants (with his trusty rifle slung across his chest), has found his way past the shop that was already there to the new one, which is apparently called Hot Topic.

He's not surprised by now that the store isn't anything like what he's used to. He buys most of his clothes in designer boutiques run by exclusive stylists, and even if a shop like this existed in the Capitol, he's never been to it. But the clothes here are weird enough that he can imagine someone from the Capitol deciding to wear them, even if some of them would need extensive body modification to fit. He pauses to eye a display of something that could be armbands if they were a little smaller, then a collection of earrings that look exactly the sort of uncomfortable that's always in style in the Capitol.

It looks like someone tried to make Capitol fashion without the skill to do it properly.

Still, it's better than nothing, so he makes his way around the store looking for things he could possibly wear. He has a few pairs of pants and a jacket slung over one arm when he sees something that looks at least a little familiar: a device that projects images onto the ceiling that make it look like the night sky.

"This is great!" he says, laughing, and looking around to the nearest person.


b. looking kinda familiar.

He'd been suspicious when the little blobs started appearing.

They were like strange, formless mutts, and mysterious things have sometimes proven dangerous in this place, so he's tried to avoid them. But it's been hard to shake them, and it's seemed like one of them was following him. He'd thought he was going crazy when it started talking to him, until he realized it was possible to have a conversation with it. The strangest part was that Annie couldn't hear the voice.

Eventually, though, the thing seemed to have actually changed into an identifiable form: a sea hawk, an osprey. It's still sticking close to him in a way that no wild bird would, but when he's out in the park, fishing, or on the agricultural level, it hovers in the air or perches on nearby trees and starts to feel more like an actual animal.

It's definitely acting more like an actual bird when it swoops out of a tree to steal a fish Finnick's just caught.

Fank oo.

"That all you want?" he asks, exasperation creeping through in his voice. This is going to be annoying

a.

[circumitus]

On the flipside, Rey has never been a fashionable one. Sure, she finds the appeal of fanciful designs and looking nice for the sake of looking nice, but in a practical scenario where she would have to act on her feet? It's a different story for her.

Still, there are some things here she can see herself making use of, and others with some small modifications if she can help it. A long-sleeved shirt she can rip off unwanted articles of fabric order to free up her arms, for one thing. Turning a leather jacket with deep pockets (and some unnecessary chains) into a vest, for another. Some footwear looks adequate, others leave something to be desired.

Hot Topics were distant relics of the past, as far as Rey can recall. Not something she paid much mind to, as even to her many past lives, popular chain businesses were never a priority for survival. And even then, clothes and useless trinkets were hardly deemed a necessity to purchase or pilfer. Not that she has the same concerns now as she had back them. Hell, she could think of a few things that might entertain that mutant cat staying in her room, Tripod.

...Or Elleru, who comes to mind when a guy turns on a light projection of the night sky over their heads. Rey will have to check to see if there are extras.

"Outdated, especially for this place. But... neat," Rey responds before she recognizes the one who spoke -- if only in passing. Her mouth tightens into a thin line as she tries to ignore that; it wasn't her finest moment after coming here.

Fortunately, she doesn't look so bone tired that she's sleeping while standing in random places at the moment, and the weary dark lines that were a constant under her eyes have since faded with rest and time.

Zer0 | Borderlands (pre BL3 i need to beat it 8( ) | OTA

[gh0stamidstthec0mbat]

Nuclear Fallout Boy

Now usually, when one suddenly finds themselves in a strange new place with little to no explanation of how or why they're there, one's first move should probably be to figure all that shit out. This guy isn't like most people, though. With nothing in the immediate area to shoot or stab, Zer0 loses interest in Anchor very quickly and decides to just go outside to take a look around. Turns out there's even less to look at here than there was on Pandora, aside from a couple of very dated looking stores, that is. So, fuck it, he's already out here so he might as well pop inside before heading back into the fancy shielded space colony. Aaaaand, well. There's certainly a lot more to look at inside the space Hot Topic than there was outside. None of this stuff is practical or useful in anyway, but that doesn't stop this weird motherfucker from sitting on the desk next to the smashed register and attaching a tacky, bug-eyed Lisa Frank kitty cat key chain to the hilt of his very cool sword while chatting idly at whoever else happens to be in here. Or just to himself. He'd be chatting either way, honestly.

"A splash of color / can confuse your attackers. / That is my excuse."

Don't you judge his tacky key chain, he'll cut you. Probably.


Looking Kinda Familiar

Okay, so now this is happening. Honestly, this isn't the worst thing that's ever followed Zer0 around, and since it doesn't seem to be interested in giving him a challenging fight, he's just been ignoring it and letting it roll around behind him like a little weirdo. A little weirdo who can't seem to decide what form it wants to try taking, one day it seems to be going for something more dog like, and then next day it's like maybe bird though, and then it seems to be going for big ant with a metal butt. Eventually it seems to just settle on blob, because fuck Zer0, his innermost soul is a goddamn enigma.

Still having nothing to stab, Zer0's just wandering around and exploring the joint, occasionally stopping to poke at the blob a bit because it's still weird okay. Every now and then a holographic question mark will pop up in front of his helmet because he just does not get the blobs, man. He doesn't get anything here.

"I think mine's broken, / or perhaps it's just lazy. / Blobbert says 'hello'".


Creatures From the Black Locked Room

Zer0 has no idea where these goddamn things came from, and he doesn't care. All he knows is that there are things he can stab now, and he couldn't be happier. Well, he could be, if he wasn't stuck here, but you know what I mean.
He hasn't tried to attack them just yet, for now he's perched a level above them, out of their line of sight while he just observes them though the lens of his sniper rifle for the time being. He doesn't see any other people in their area, at least not yet, and he doesn't really want to have to shoot these things because he has a very limited supply of ammo. So like, don't get bit, guys.
Or do, really it's up to you.

Nuclear Fallout

[arcadedragon]

From one sword ninja who likes cute things to another: good choice bro.

Genji has taken one of the hoodies off the wall that shows a cassette tape and a boombox in some bright, colorful geometric patterns, and he's using his wakizashi to cut bits of it so it'll fit over his sword on his back. Unfortunately his armor isn't exactly designed for clothes to be worn over it. Not until Overwatch 2 anyway.

His own sword has a pachimari keychain hanging off it and a sparkly holographic sticker declaring "YOU ARE FREE OF DISEASE".

"Has that worked in the past? I feel as though I am colorful enough, and lit up, to distract many, but it rarely functions as intended."

Rey | Original | OTA.

[circumitus]

i. looking kinda familiar;

After being followed around by a mutant cyclopean cat not so long ago, Rey didn't anticipate any more critters shadowing her. Especially not after she made sure to keep Tripod safe and sound in her new room rather than bumming around all over the place with her.

So when a blob starts taking a newfound interest in her, it almost seemed natural to try and ignore it. Hell, she even tried to get rid of it a few times, but somehow it always found its way back to her. Eventually she found that it no longer took the form of a blob at all anymore, but a perturbed-looking thorny lizard.

Suspicious specks of red decorate its horned skin, its black eyes glaring at anyone who dares to go near it. Despite its tiny size, it puffs itself up with bravado.

"Er, wouldn't go near it," Rey warns. "That thing shoots actual fucking blood from its eyes, apparently."

Oh. God, no. Now those red splotches start to make more sense...

ii. creatures from the black locked room;

Although she hadn't ventured down into the flooded verboten depths of Anchor, the warnings of that crazy tentacled-face guy seems hollow now. Not that Rey would know one way or another, as she was just minding her own business when they appeared for absolutely no reason she can think of.

"The fuck's your problem?" was the first thing to come out of Rey's mouth as she had been trying to enjoy a drink and her lunch at the mess hall in peace. Until the shadows move, and those teeth leap out from the darkness and lunges towards her.

Quick to her feet, the chair pushes back as Rey narrowly avoids the creature chomping her arms off. Instead it slides across the table, landing on the floor.

Scowling at her spilt liquor and remains of what had been a delicious but basic sandwich, a slightly tipsy Rey (who had started drinking early that morning) flings the pint glass at the fallen creature. "And that's what you get for wasting perfectly good bourbon!"

Priorities. Rey has them.

i

[0thingsonmymind]

He is not at all interested in going near the strange lizard-thing following Rey. However the artic fox folliwng him has other ideas and pads up to the lizard, sniffing at it. The fox means on harm but friendly canine isn't always harmless.

Brain tries to hang back, but turns his attention to Rey. He shrugs but his expression is unreadable due to the black mask with the red :( on it.

Brian "Hoody" Thomas | Marble Hornets + CRAU | OTA

[0thingsonmymind]

B

There has been a strange, white dog-thing following him for awhile now. Or maybe it was a fox? He doesn't really know much about foxes other than that they got upset when he suggested they were the same as dogs. The only fox he knows is black, though, and this thing is white. Also it used to be a blob but he's not sure that's not normal.

What he is sure of, though, is he doesn't want anything to do with it. So as he travels through Anchor he does his best to ignore the thing.

The artic fox following him, however, is much more sociable. It will trot up to anyone they come across, sniffing, wiggling and yipping to get attention. His human should totally talk to this person! Or, at the very least, this new person should give him scritches.

[arcadedragon]

Genji is out taking his three dragons for a walk like the good pet parent that he is. Sōmen is noodly floating along at shoulder height (which for five foot five Genji is pretty low down), and the other two are scampering next to him. He's noticed the white ball of fluff ahead of them, trying to get the attention of the man in the hooded sweater but it isn't until it comes up to sniff at him that he realizes it's an adorable fox.

"Hello, what are you doing out here little kitsune?" He kneels down to pet it, eyeing Brian from behind his helmet, wondering if it's his. "Where did you find a fox?"

Ratonhnhaké:ton (Connor) // Assassin's Creed 3 + CoS CRAU // OTA

[mustact]

b. looking kinda familiar

Since the strange blob had left the room Ratonhnhaké:ton and the others opened, he hadn't entirely forgotten it once. The station is big, so he isn't surprised that he doesn't run into it quickly, but considering they don't really know what it is, he keeps an eye out in case it turns out to be a problem. Which is why, when he first sees it approach him, he's instantly on guard.

However, as soon as it turns out not to be a threat, he relaxes and goes about his day. Most of the time, he can either be found in the library, the park, or wandering around the Agricultural Level, while the blob slowly shifts into a red deer stag.

Even then, he doesn't pay it much attention beyond occasionally glancing at it, intrigued by the transformation. It's not until the voices he's heard clarify and he can actually tell where it comes from. He's in transit, having just left his room, knowing the stag is following him by the somewhat unsteady clip-clopping behind him.

"Floor is ..." it starts, as a finally fully formed hoof slips on the floor. "I slip."

Ratonhnhaké:ton stops abruptly, and turns towards the stag with wide eyes, staring in utter disbelief.

"What ...?"

It's not often that he finds himself at a loss for words, but he does now. Did it just speak?

c. creatures from the black locked room

If Ratonhnhaké:ton were to say the creatures looked like anything, he'd compare them to the demons of the City. Black shapes that don't show much in the way of other characteristics. Since Angel made him a gun - that she named Claw - that shoots lightning specifically because she was concerned about him having the tools to fight said demons, he opts to forego any other weapons he has in favour of bringing out Claw.

He's never been one to run from danger, so he can found all around Anchor trying to fight the creatures. Maybe you run into him in the middle of shooting at them. If there's only a few of them, perhaps there is nothing to be too concerned about, as he makes sure to keep his distance. It may be, however, that he finds himself nearly overwhelmed, and perhaps he could use your help.

If not, perhaps you could use his help. He will gladly leap in between you and the creatures, with the gun at the ready.

Perhaps his new stag friend isn't too far away either, but it's also unlikely to be much help beyond being yet another body shield.

Wildcard

((OOC: Write me something or contact me for plottings. c:))

c

[0thingsonmymind]

He could definitely use Connor's help. He'd been trying to run from the creatures but he doesn't know Anchor that well yet and has ended up cornered by two creatures on the lower levels. The only weapon he has is a steak knife and he knows how cutting these things ends.

The arctic fox following him is doing its very best ferocius but it doesn't seem to be doing much.

ANGEL THE SIREN | BORDERLANDS | ( crau, ryslig )

[circumspector]

i. does this make my hooves look big (closed to Jacob)

Jacob always put up with her very stupid requests or ideas. He didn't even tease her much more than she teased him about it - which is why when she found the store, he's the one she sent a message to.

With a pretty obvious bait: a picture of a cute hat that she found there.

For her part, though, hats don't serve much of a purpose when you have two feet of horns to contend with. But she did have a chance of lots of cute clothes that she picks in the haphazard way she picks anything.

Which he is immediately dragged along for. Holding up a skirt at him.

"Here, what do you think of this?" It's a barely-nothing bit of a skirt, too many belts and fringed with lace. Predictably something she would pick for herself. Not least of all that it should stay on her hips with a tail in the way.

ii. with friends like these.

The blob can't seem to settle, she waits, as she watches others takes form, and it's not that she doesn't bond with her own, of course she does, bundling it up in her arms, lowering her head to kiss the top of its head. Wrapping it up in with her and the other Reindire.

But it can't stay defined. At times it seems like it might become a cat, at times a bird, at times something bigger or smaller. In as much as she has no definition of herself, she settles only as what she doesn't want. An act of self-determination that only knows the shape she refuses to be.

So maybe it isn't a surprise that it settles on a bird, it is nothing beautiful, a creature that should not be that seems stuck together and too much. Something like a rakk of Pandora, something like a phoenix, as big as an eagle with huge hanging tail feathers and dark eyes that watch everything. A beak that could snap bones if it wanted. Pure white that shimmers.

But as Angel learns to hold it, talk to it, not questioning that it speaks to her because after all, she exists as a monster with horns and a tail. So why wouldn't it talk? They are most especially kind with each other. Her head lent to let it groom her hair, as she in turn runs claws through its feathers. Settled amongst her reindire, they talk. Even if the conversations might be strange, well, Angel managed to help give Krieg of all people instructions, so it's nothing really to her.

"No, there is nothing to worry about. We'll be free here." a pause, listening, and then - "of course we can. I don't see why you can't make a nest out of clothes and bones if you want."

iii. we're only as good as the mistakes we make

For all she is strong, able to kick in walls, she is still completely without any real experience being able to fight, and a terrifying, overwhelming rage inside of her bones that lashes out at her as it does others, it makes her mind go overwhelmingly numb with it. Not process that even when she lashes out, she's not doing anything to hurt it.

It is hurting her though. A great deal.

Eventually, it lands a proper blow, even with her speed, sending her flying, banging hard into a wall, hard into the floor as she drops with that density, but now - as little as a rag doll. She is after all, not very tall. Even though she is heavy enough to leave a dint in the wall when she thrown.

But it’s enough to snap a clear thought in her head. She has to run. Get herself out of there. So she starts to scramble away, as it chases her. Half on her hands and knees, half on her hooves, heading for a door that she slams open to throw herself down another corridor. Panting weakly, blood on her lips, bruised down one side of her body as she shuts another door behind her. Bruised and battered. Coughing up a lung and a mouthful of blood.

No. No more trying to claw that thing. She came from Pandora, she knew better. Regular attacks won’t work? Then fire it was.

Now she just had to get the strength up to get back to her dorm, where she had been keeping her guns.

[nothinglikefather]

He's not entirely sure what this place is- part Aladdin's cave, part pawnbroker, but presented in a way he's never experienced before. The place is dark, lit strangely to highlight wares that any tailor in London would be shamed to sell.

Then again, the little skirt she holds up has got a certain appeal.

"Is it a belt?" He asks, eyebrow raising as he fights to hold back a grin. He knows it isn't, because her usual clothes are shorter than his time period would consider decent. But it makes her happy, and comfortable, even though she seems to have forgone clothes almost entirely since they arrived here. Lucky old Connor.

"They have... are those dresses?" He says, nodding at the wall, and then grabbing one down. It's black, and red, and once more there's no small amount of lace. The style is vaguely familiar to him, but again all of the dresses are far shorter than he's actually used to. But for that, they've got the same appeal as the skirt: almost nothing below the thigh is left to the imagination.

Achilles | Fate/Apocrypha

[kometes]

looking kinda familiar.

[ He hadn't paid any mind to the blob that appeared suddenly at his heels, thinking it was just a bit of magic that had failed to manifest properly. It isn't until later on, when the thing sprouts a head, a muzzle, and four legs, that he finds it worth giving any attention to, reaching down to give it pats around where two ears are just starting to develop, talking to it as if it were a woodland creature rather than a strange, suspicious, misshapen thing that has been following him around for no apparent reason. Even weirder, it seems capable of human-like noises that sound too close to actual words he's able to understand to be coincidental.

When it takes on its complete form as a wolf, Achilles hardly bats an eye, having seen much weirder in his lifetime. When it speaks to him, he's receptive, because this wouldn't be the first animal to communicate with him. They converse briefly for the first time once its speech is understandable enough, and once he confirms that the thing isn't a product that came about from the enemy (like one of Caster's golems), he settles and appraises the creature.

The canine stares up at him with the attentive stare of a begging mutt seated upon its haunches, to which Achilles responds to by waving an empty hand. ]

No need to follow me around like a lost pup. You're a wild beast, so roam freely and hunt to your heart's content.

[ Maybe it's not such a good idea to let a 'wild beast' roam around freely when it could possibly try to hurt someone, Achilles? The thought crosses his mind briefly, but the thing is intelligent and hadn't tried to attack him, so he assumes that if it were to attack anything, at worst it'd be a bird or a stray cat.

The wolf will follow his advice, taking off once it is permitted to explore Anchor and meet the inhabitants. Achilles has left it to its own devices, but he will come running if an ordeal is to occur.

1. If you are attractive, the wolf will make an attempt to pounce on you and lick your face.
2. If you look strong, the wolf will stalk you, probably with the intent of eventually lunging.
3. If you are neither attractive or strong, the wolf will stop in front of you, roll over onto its back and offer its belly for rubs.
4. If you have a blob-animal following you that's on the smaller side, the wolf will attempt to hunt it. Whether it ends up playing with the other blob-animal or actually makes a meal out of it is up to you.

]

nuclear fallout boy.

[ Achilles is a Heroic Spirit who comes from a time and place where 'malls' were outside markets stocked with plentiful goods of varying quality and merchants that make an art out of haggling. Though, he knows what malls are, because that came with the knowledge imparted on him by the Throne when he was initially summoned, but Hot Topic in particular? He's never heard of it, nor does he understand why it would be sitting outside of Anchor.

He decides to explore the vacant building because there is nothing better to do, and with no vendors around, he figures that everything is about ripe for pillaging (this is what they did back in his day, don't judge).

He'll grab the nearest bag (which is designed after a Hello Kitty motif) off of the wall and begin filling it with anything that looks moderately profitable. Which... isn't very much, all things considered. Even the jewelry he finds mounted to a stand seems cheap, too light in weight to bear any value. ]

This junk ain't worth much, is it? Look how poorly polished the jewels on this necklace are. Any woman would slap me across the face if I tried to gift her something like this.

[ Snap. Trying to unclasp the necklace has led to him breaking the chain completely, scattering all the plastic jewels across the floor. ]

wildcard.

[ The intimacy lounge had drawn him simply because of its name and the nature of the business he assumes it's purposed for.

If someone (as long as it is an adult) happens to be there for any reason, he'll approach, Hello Kitty bag (from Hot Topic) in hand. ]

Hey. Are you working here? I need some service.

looking kinda familiar

[fessus]

[ Noctis isn't a fan of questionable magic, goo, or baby talk. What he is a fan of? Animals. So when his own familiar finally takes its shape as a glorious two-toed sloth and gains the full use of speech he spends a little too much time apologizing for his dismissiveness beforehand. Not that he doesn't have plenty of chances to make up for it by spending his every waking moment with the creature over the following day, even taking it for an extremely slow walk. ]

–that's what I would've thought a hibiscus flower was, anyway. I mean I guess I can try to find you one, but I wouldn't get my hopes up. The cocoa leaves might be easier...

[ He barely gets the thought out before he hears a growl, instantly scooping up his sloth like an overprotective mother – and it's good enough to hang onto his back and make the job easier – and even summoning his engine blade in a wash of blue light when he spots the stalking wolf. Great. ]

Hey! If anyone lost their dog, you better come get it now! –here, chill out. Neither of us have food but I can probably find you something...

hanzo shimada | overwatch

[nockturnal]

a. nuclear fallout boy.

For someone who'd stuck to traditional and formal wear for most of his life, a place like this is most peculiar. Everything in here would have raised the ire of the clan elders if he'd thought so much as to look at it in consideration.

And, honestly, maybe that's reason enough. His brother and he are already disappointments, shunned and exiled and wanted dead. So who cares what the clan thinks anymore? Perhaps it is time he made some sort of final severance from that old life, now that he and Genji have been reunited.

Though perhaps not everything is due consideration. That neon pink mesh shirt is a mistake and a sin, and he's going to avoid everything on that rack just for good measure. But it's possible he might be able to get a new pack to replace the one that was torn, as well as some other -- more frivolous -- selections.

Decisions.

b. looking kinda familiar.

"Quiet."

At first, you might assume that barked command was meant for you, or someone nearby. But it doesn't appear to be the case. Hanzo continues on his way, hands in his pockets, while the front of his coat wobbles and shifts. It appears something is shuffling around in there, but Hanzo just scowls ahead resolutely as he walks.

"Of course not."

Again, nothing seems to have prompted the curt remark, but whatever is in the front of his coat shuffles around again, in response.

nuclear fallout boy

[itsnotaonesie]

You know how when people go shopping they walk around and look at stuff like normal-ass human beings? Well Peter's decided that hanging from the ceiling by a strand of webbing while he browses a rack of band hoodies is socially acceptable, sooo that's what he's doing. He's also humming to himself, which is maybe annoying, I don't even know.

Also probably weird as fuck is the big bundle of tee shirts that he has wrapped up in what looks like a creepy spider egg sack sitting on the floor near him. Don't even worry about it, it's fine.

His body is kind of idly turning slowly while he hangs from the ceiling, and after tossing the hoodie he's been looking at into the pile of junk he's going to take with him, his eyes lock on Hanzo and he abruptly stops humming. Oooh, awkward.

"Oh. Hey." Smooth, he's totally got this.

Jack Harkness | Doctor Who / Torchwood | OTA

[fixedpointintime]

B
If you happen to see the man being followed by the slowly solidifying form of a creature that looks more or less like a pale flower floating on the wind trailing several long streamers, you might think that he just doesn't notice it at all. Unless, of course, you've also got one. In which case you can be pretty certain that, given its level of solidity, it's at least attempted to talk to him in something approaching understandable concepts.

So it's being ignored, actively and thoroughly. Whatever it's saying, this man is not interested in hearing it.

Pretty little thing, though. Not that that counts for a ton.

C
When Jack rounds a corner and finds himself staring into nothing, and finding in the next moment that the nothing is staring right back, claws flashing and teeth gnashing, he's struck with the tiniest bit of wry humour. This rundown primitive city has finally succeeded in making him long for that rusted out broken down limping along space station and the certain death waiting around every corner. At least the death there didn't also rip your clothes to shreds.

Regret won't do him much good, though. Sadly. So perhaps time to shoot at it. The guns are not large, but they are familiar and highly effective and, perhaps most importantly, nearly fully charged. He's not entirely certain what shooting this moving void will do, but he's about to find out. One round from the blaster opens up a small gap in the darkness, and he's pretty sure he can see a metal wall behind it. More than that, the void retreats from the hole with an unpleasant shrieking sound.

Jack smiles with only the left side of his mouth. "Didn't like that, huh? Looks like it's not going to be a great day for either of us, friend." More so for the void, though, which is momentarily caught in its indecision - attack or retreat?

D
@:CJH - audio

Anyone else had a run in with a very bitey shadow that wanted to rip your throat out? Or am I just having a spectacularly bad day?

D

[fishermansweater]

@ Odair65

Probably not just a bad day in this place. Haven't been attacked by any shadows lately though. What happened?

jeff calhoun | oc | ota

[cacophonish]

[ tldr: aspiring rock star bard who's currently got a demon tethered to him. character info here. warning: given his 'canon point', references to addiction, inpatient treatment, and demonic possession (and adjacent subjects) may come up in tags, though I'll always warn in the subject line if a scene starts to go that way! ]

i. sticky fingers
He's still not sure if he's fucking snapped, or if he's in some... ritual-induced hallucination or something. Or maybe this is all real, and he's really trapped in some dead city on some alien planet.

All three options are equally plausible. The only certainty is that Jeff's alone-- well. Mostly alone. Yeah, there are other people here, but nobody he knows. None of his family, his few remaining friends, his doctors or counselors or anyone who knows him from any other anonymous asshole.

So, he's effectively alone.

(Good morning, starshine. You're never really alone.)

Fine, fuck it: effectively alone except for his very literal inner demon.

Jeff spends the first days living like a ghost. He stays where it's safe: the barracks, mainly, venturing out to take food from the mess hall when there's nobody around. He pretty much grabs chips from a vending machine, then slinks back to hide in his room and hang out with the voice in his head.

It doesn't take more than a few days before he's too antsy to hide out anymore. With too much nervous energy, and nowhere to direct it, he heads out, aimless in his exploration of Anchor.

Annnnd it's only a matter of time before junkie survival habits kick back in. There's a certain odd comfort in snooping around and swiping any valuables (or potential valuables) he comes across. Whether it's in other people's rooms, or the abandoned shops: if it looks like something that can be pawned or bartered, he's taking it.

Does he need it? Maybe not. But there's a certain comfort in casual kleptomania. At least it's a kind of normalcy, which is in pretty short fucking supply here in Anchor.

Anyway, he's not exactly subtle. We're not talking ninja-master levels of stealth here. Anyone's likely to come upon him, humming a tune or singing under his breath as he rummages through other people's things.

"Good morning, starshine. The earth says hello..."

ii. a boy and his opossum
Jeff and his magical talking opossum just fit together. Maybe it's because he's a little scruffy and trashy, himself, with the nervous demeanor of an anxious scavenger, and a certain sweetness and affection once he's relaxed.

One day, Jeff's alone, a solitary nervous wreck with a bad habit of nicking anything that isn't nailed down. The next, he's got a fuzzy juvenile opossum perched on his shoulder (or curled up in the hood of his bomber jacket), a constant companion. And he feels... weirdly whole with her at his side.

In fact, he's giddy, all sunshine and smiles as he shoves the possum at anyone who happens to come across them.

"Hey! Sorry-- uh. Quick question! Does she look like a Kim to you, or a Kelley?" The possum chitters something, in obvious disagreement, and Jeff rolls his eyes. "She says she doesn't like either name. What d'you think?"

iii. network; un: wallofsleep
[ Okay, how does this work? Jeff has used a computer, like, ten times in his life, and the internet approximately zero times. ]

hi i have 2 questions

1. i heard theres a blockbuster here where is it?
2. does anyone have a vcr?
3. does anyone know anything about possums?

also is there even a differance between possums and oppossums? i think my possums lieing to me

ok so i guess thats 4 questions sorry

/end
/the end
/send
/send message
/SEND MESSAGE NOW

[ Eventually, he figures it out and gets this message out! And there you have it, Jeff's first ever attempt at using an internet. ]

iv. wildcard
[ CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE. Jeff will wander around Anchor, but is too much of a coward to go outside on his own, so he can be found pretty much anywhere but the Blockbuster/Hot Topic strip mall. ]

closed to annie | early januaryish

[fishermansweater]

District Thirteen would have been a more interesting place if they'd had winter inside. Or if they'd had parks like this, or let their visitors and refugees spend time in the agricultural levels, which they must have had but that he never saw. Of course, the indoor ice and snow down on the bottom level of the city has its problems, most notably that it's harder to fish when the fish are all hiding at the bottom of the water, making them more difficult to find and catch. That is, in the ponds that haven't frozen over.

Of course, it's not immediately necessary to fish for food, not when the machines that run the place seem to have decided to set themselves up as purveyors of treats. Not that he's sure he trusts them; they've done plenty of weird enough things that the wintery festival they seem to be trying to start seems a little suspicious.

"What do you think?" he asks Annie. "Do we trust them enough for hot chocolate?"