achates | [DAY 0] TDM.

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Error in final launch sequence:
Failed to execute MI command:
target remote localhost: 01633
Error message from debugger back end:
Cannot access memory at address 𝟹͚̽𝚡̰̍̂𝟸̠̯̘ͭͧ𝚌̭͉̺͖ͥ𝟿̳̰̒̇ͅ𝟷̦ͣ̉͌̅𝚋͓͎̈̒̀𝟻ͭ̌͂𝟷ͩ̓𝟾̦
Failed to execute MI command:
target remote localhost: 01633
Error message from debugger back end:
Cannot access memory at address 𝟹̖͇͕̃𝚡͉̹̯͇̻̉̓̂𝟸͚̹͈͓̩͚̲̼͒̾𝚌̱̠͙̝̪͇̈̌̂̃̄ͭ𝟿̱̜̪͓̳̹ͤ̊̈́ͦͥ̑𝟷͖̱̝̀̒̇̂̄̈́̓̇ͅ𝚋̥̯͉̹͛͛̊ͤͦͩ𝟻̬̮̈́̋ͯ͛̉̐𝟷̋ͩ̔̔𝟾̼
Waiting for debugger connection...
Debugger connected
Debugger connection lost.
Waiting for debugger connection...
Debugger connected
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Target is not responding, retrying...
Debugger connection lost.
Shutting down...
Rebooting
Download in Progress:
File download complete
Time elapsed during download operation: 00:12:33.131
Rebooting
Launching Demon Summoning Program. . .

You open your eyes to the end of the world, but you do not see it.

Instead what rouses you is screaming and crying, blood and tears: all around you are signs of life. Inside the overturned train, people begin to awaken, sprawled on the ground as if thrown violently from their seats, broken bones and bleeding wounds struggling to rise from the carpet of shattered glass from the windows at their feet. Emerging from the wreck, characters will find themselves at the edge of a dense forest, a towering stone wall at their backs. Bright eyes peer out from the shadows of the foliage, more and more blinking into view like stars in a darkening sky, but despite being drawn to the scent of blood that hangs heavy in the air, nothing steps out of the forest. Not yet.

None of the passengers can recall what happened, what they were doing on a train, where it was going- there's more they can't remember, but overshadowing the gaps of memory are things they have gained in return. A familiar item that is not theirs. A gemstone that feels lighter than it appears, as if hollow inside. And a device that wraps around their wrist (or rests on their head, or hangs around their neck, or however it presents itself to each character) that starts up on its own the moment the character turns their attention to it, as if waiting. Each character's COMP has a "navigator" selected at default, either "A☆L☆A" in bright neon orange, or "K5" in cool slate blue, although the presiding navigator can be freely switched between them.

Heya, boss! My name's Ala, your new navi!

You wanna know something really funny? Go ahead and touch the map on the corner of the screen to enlarge it. See all those little red dots? Those are demons out to kill you. Haha! You're surrounded!

Heya, boss! You can call me Keigo, your navigational AI.

If you touch the map on the corner of the screen, you can enlarge it and see the positions of all your allies. Looks like some of you are already heading out: see those little blue— oh. That one just disappeared. ... Try to stick together.

Along with providing a map with enemy/ally positions, the navigators will walk characters through the demon interaction, recruitment, and summoning processes, with advice varying between the two navigators (click to expand)

Just beat 'em up and force 'em to join! They can't say no if they're dead!

Nobody is immune to bribery, not even demons. What do you even have, though...? No matter what, don't let them get that life stone.

More demons incoming! Ooh, you're screwed. You'd better run! Don't worry, I won't tell.

Let's hide here. We'll wait here until that demon passes, then move!

Look, a body! Are they still alive? Wonder what's in their pockets...?

It's already too late to help. But better them being demon food than you.

Or, you could stay. There is nothing forcing anybody to leave the relative safety of the train. Those who stay behind will find the conductor's cabin empty, save for a small black cat perched on the headrest of the driver's seat that peers out with bright golden eyes at those who enter. Otherwise, there are no signs of a fight or struggle inside the cabin. Elsewhere, there is unclaimed luggage in the overhead compartments with an abundance of clothing and blankets, although characters will not find any of their own clothing except what they're already wearing. The dining cart is still stocked with enough food and beverage to last each passenger at least two days— maybe longer, if people keep leaving/dying... But at the same time, maybe shorter, considering the pervasive hunger that gnaws at the pits of everybody's stomachs, an emptiness that yearns to be filled by something... more.

As minutes stretch into hours, it becomes painfully clear that nobody is coming to help. Everybody only has each other, this town, its inhabitants. The forest is dark and unforgiving, near impossible to navigate even with a map. Strange creatures jump out from the shadows, eyes bright, mouths salivating, hungry. Strong hands claw through the dirt underfoot to grab at people's feet, pulling themselves up, mouths wide open, hungry. Sharp talons swoop down from the skies above, snatching characters up into the air, crushing skulls and snapping spines. Hungry. The demons here seem delighted to see such a feast wandering right into their home; those who are stopped for attempted conversation express surprise that characters are able to see them, but ultimately the hunger wins, and hunger does not listen to reason.

Casualties are inevitable. Blood mist permeates the air, and follows even as characters break out of the forest and across town, all the way to the fraying end of the world. Out in the open, however, the sun rays beat down bright and harsh, and those hungry eyes shy away from the sunlight to remain in the shadows, inside husks of buildings and thickets of overgrown fields. Characters will be able to find refuge in the greenhouse and the church, and some of the standing houses are truly vacant (as opposed to "surprise! there's actually a demon inside!" vacant); the only eyes that follow you are those of photographs hung crooked on the walls, of familiar strangers and forgotten friends. Look, there's a picture of you too.

Other locations require more caution to explore:

The sound of crying can be heard from the upper stories of the school building, thin wails echoing up and down the deserted halls, and human-like shadows peer out from the broken, unboarded windows, as if watching. A barricade inside the front doors makes it difficult to enter from the main entrance, and with most of the windows boarded up, the hallways inside remain dark even during the day. The smell of rot is prominent, heavy and cloying, especially in the auditorium-become-mausoleum that is littered with crushed bones, thin and brittle, every last scrap of flesh already nibbled away. A flock of demons crowd around outside principal's office, where a blizzard blows through the entire hallway, rendering visibility near zero and temperatures below that.

The hospital is also deathly cold, breath visible in puffs of mist that sometimes form into screaming faces, and when all is still and quiet, you look up and see yourself. Shadows form into mirror images of the characters who enter the hospital, silently approaching others and attacking once the person's guard is down. If a demon borrowing your face isn't bad enough, Phantoms go a step further and take the form of people who are close to your character: friends, family, foes. Exploring the hospital may or may not be worth the potential backstabbing, considering the fact that the supplies found are maybe not the most sterile, half the equipment is rusted or corroded, and a lot of the medicine is unlabeled tablets and capsules inside unlabeled bottles (essentially, take at your own risk). Moreover, hordes of all sorts of demon ghosts will bar characters' way down to the basement, gathering in massive numbers anytime somebody tries to descend. Electricity bounces around the top of the stairway down, while bright flames lick the bottom of the stairs; particularly unlucky characters may be hit with a confusion spell, liable to throw themselves headfirst down the stairs to be consumed by the waiting demons below.

Hauntingly beautiful music can be heard from within the concert hall, and listening to their song puts you fast asleep— possibly in the middle of the street if you're not careful— while those who manage to make it past the front doors are immediately frozen in a hunk of ice or electrocuted to a crisp before being kicked to the curb. The concert hall appears to be actively guarded, and it's clear that strangers are Not Welcome. Even the other demons keep clear of this building, drawn to the music but lingering far enough to not be overwhelmed. Characters may have an easier time of initiating conversations with demons from around town or inside the houses nearby the concert hall.

The crackle of electricity can be heard from inside the power plant's upper stories despite the blackout, and the entire building shakes from time to time, as if caught in a thunderstorm, or an earthquake. A slow drip... drip... drip... can be heard throughout the building, of amorphous demons clinging to the walls like mold and leaving puddles of caustic acid Everywhere. Anybody who enters the power plant's front entrance is met with a massive agglomerate of black Ooze that has expanded to fill the entire first floor from wall to wall, floor to ceiling, preventing anybody from going upstairs while it remains. Arms and legs poke out of the demon's body in places, desperately clawing and kicking, weaker, weaker. done.

OOC

Welcome to Day 0! What better meet-and-greet is there than everybody being tossed into the fray to fight for their lives? ('': For convenience, here are the game info, locations, and demon compendium pages; please use these as reference for what more can be found in the setting.

The characters' COMP will turn on only after they notice and focus on it. If they do NOT activate the COMP, they will not be able to see the demons or interact with them in any way other than being killed. Activating the COMP will allow characters to see demons and somewhat understand their language, with an added effect of allowing physical attacks to harm demons, and mitigating the damage taken from demons.

For characters who app and are accepted, please report demon recruitment here. Characters who are just tdming do not have to report. Recruited demons are inclined to listen to their summoner, but are not necessarily friendly at the beginning: if your character shows weakness, the demon may be just as likely to eat them as they are to protect them.

There will be no NPCs in this game other than the two navigators and some key demons. You're on your own for now!

This first event/tdm is open to the public, and can be used for test driving at any time after the game starts. I'll be keeping a pulse on threads for when characters have gotten their bearings and seem to have a general idea of how they want to proceed into the next day, and we'll go from there.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ His head tilts the other way now, but his logic is sound. If he searches his memory further, he finds that it's a common gesture of kindness: People give things away or do favors while stating that it's for the sake of seeing a stranger smile. Things like that. But it's out of place in this situation, with these two people.

He stares for another moment more, blinking, before Elmer accomplishes his mission by drawing out a quiet chuckle and an easy smile. ]

You're a strange person, aren't you?

[ Dazai holds out his hand again. ]

Okay, you got me. Now pay up.

Yup, they do! But hey, if it works and gets people to smile--

[ he'll toss over the bottle towards dazai, hoping that the other young man catches it. the smile was wonderful to see, refreshing and filling like most true smiles are. it's even nicer when there's something unexpected about them, like if even the person themselves didn't expect to be able to smile over something so silly. ]

--then I'm not gonna complain. Far from it, actually! [ he shrugs, returning to searching through the scattered contents. ] So? Did you wake up on the train, too?

[ Dazai catches it easily, using his thumb to slowly turn the bottle around. There are only so many pills here that are labeled, but it'll come in handy later. Dazai can never go all that long without suffering some injury or another.

This one is definitely a strange person. People tend to ask others for those things which they lack, so he wonders if that's the case here too, if that painted on smile is ever anything more than a habit. ]

Yeah... I was in the middle of something, so it's kind of annoying. But this place is interesting too. I would have never expected to run into demons.

[ Though granted, the demons haven't proven to be of much interest. The majority are no better than mindless animals, ones infected with rabies that can only be put down. But there's a kind of thrill in that too, a heart-pounding sensation, and so he perks up a little more. ]

I feel closer to death than ever... I could really die here! I don't have any back up, or access to the tools or intel that I normally do! I have no idea what to expect!

[ But that's exciting too, in its own way, for a person who could tell the future better than any fortune teller and manipulate it just as well... No one's outsmarted him, no one's surprised him, not quite yet. ]

Man, me too. I mean, the place I was at before I woke up here also seemed like something out of a bad indie horror movie, but this is the real thing.

[ and it's not like elmer has that much expertise with demons either. sure, the one they summoned in the advena avis, but that one was amicable-- far more human-like than elmer himself. these, however, looked like creatures straight out of the stories you'd tell your child to have them fear the devil.

still, elmer takes note of dazai's mannerisms, the way that his excitement elevates when he's talking about death, and he himself perks up with curiosity. he's met and befriended death seekers before, but not even nikki's eyes lit up in this manner whenever she talked about how she wanted to die.

he also takes note on the word 'intel'. is he some sort of officer for an intelligence agency? or something different? either way, it might be useful. ]

Huh, you're really excited though, aren't you? Is looking for death a hobby for you or something?

[ there is no concern in his voice. only genuine interest. with how happy he sounds, elmer has no reason to judge dazai if he has a fucked up interest. ]

[ Dazai's eyes light up at that question, as though he's been waiting his entire life for someone to ask it. It's the expression of a child who's been searching for the acknowledgment of adults. ]

That's right! Suicide is my hobby! Don't you want to hear about the wonders of suicide!? I've been trying to die for years now, but I can't seem to! Even Odasaku doesn't get it! He never says it, but I can see it!

[ It's there in the microexpressions and his complete lack of enthusiasm those rare and few times he tried to comment only to make the entire affair worse. Dazai is perfectly aware that it was an attempt at discouragement, but lord knows he didn't act that way.

It's not strictly the case here either, of that he's certain - but it's not that apathy either; it's something more selfish. That, too, is why he can lift his balled hands with such excitement, followed by somewhat exaggerated gestures - because no one is really interested in his thoughts on the matter (aside from the aforementioned Odasaku, who is given no choice but garners more from it than anyone else.)

Either way, he's clearly been waiting for someone to share these thoughts with. ]

I've been trying for years! I've tried almost every method possible, and I joined the mafia thinking I would, but I can't seem to die! I just watch everyone around me die! It's like they're dying in my place... I'm so jealous of that!

[ It's such a grim subject, but it really is just like watching a little kid going on about an adult subject... But it's fine, because he has the sense that this person won't care, since he seems happy enough to be able to be able to go on about it.

It's nice. He doesn't want someone to scold him for it. ]

Hey, what's the best way to die? I don't want it to be painful, I hate pain, but...

Edited 2024-08-31 05:13 (UTC)

[DAY 0] TDM.

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suicide ideation tw (probably for the rest of this thread lbr)

lord in heaven definitely cw: suicide ideation for the rest of the thread