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FEBRUARY TDM.
● ● ● T D M . 0 5
… What are you willing to do to erase your regret from existence?
The words ring in your ears as in the darkness of your dream, an ocean-deep blue glow hovers in front of you. Transfixed, you reach out to it... only to hear a different voice, a distant echo of cruel laughter, and with a sudden certainty you know — whatever you’ve just agreed to has changed everything forever.
It is to this laughter that you wake, and as it fades and your heart slows into something resembling a normal tempo, you notice something you should have noticed immediately: you are not in your bed.
1.0 White walls, clinical yet clean, sparsely-furnished rooms. You may wake in one of three rooms: a room with only one bed, a room with two beds, or a room with four beds. Those waking up in rooms with more than one bed notice that they are very much not alone. Perhaps the other occupants of the room are still sleeping, dreaming the same dream as you just did, or a regular one after returning to the station just barely a week ago … or perhaps you wake to the other person in the room watching you.
What you do is entirely up to you: yell in surprise when you wake to someone staring at you? Or maybe you’ll try to sneak away before anyone notices you...
2.0 Those with life-threatening injuries find themselves awakening in the infirmary, in a regular hospital bed. Most of their injuries have been treated, and any lingering illnesses or conditions will have designated medicine bottles on the table next to the bed.
White curtains surround the bed on both sides, giving an illusion of privacy. But is that a rustling sound you hear? Some footsteps? Perhaps you’re not the only one in need of some medical attention... or you've attracted the attention of those with experience in medical aid, and they rush to your bedside, surprised about this sudden new patient.
It is not just for your injuries that you may want some company, but also for leaving the infirmary — you can’t stay there forever, after all, and will have to make your way through the hallways of the station to the living quarters, and claim a room and a bed there.
Once you’re up, you may notice there’s something in your ear: an earpiece that, when you become aware of it, quickly runs you through the instructions for how to use the network, a recorded message by a female voice that explains exactly why you’re here… and leaves you with a map of the station.
So what else is there to do but to explore? Best get to know what is now your new home.
3.0 When trying to decide where yo go, you may find your way to the armory, where you can try to work the machine there to make yourself a weapon — perhaps to replace one that didn’t come with you to the station… or maybe you want to be prepared for the future. The recently-returned team members will surely recommend having a functional weapon with you.
And speaking of weapons: to put it to good use, head to the training room, where the entire purpose is to provide you with a space to spar and train to your heart’s content!
4.0 After you’ve exhausted yourself training, it’s time to grab a bite. For that, you should head to the kitchen, which is equipped with all the basic appliances you might need, and ingredients for most regular dishes... and large amounts of chocolate. Weird.
5.0 A welcome reprieve to the cold, dark space that surrounds the characters can be found in the sunlight room. A skillful illusion surrounds anyone who steps inside the room: you can hear the trilling of birds, feel a light breeze caress your skin as you walk through a grass field. It seems that the illusion reflects the season — the leaves have fallen, a layer of white covers the ground, and the air is crisp and clean. If you follow the path, it leads to where a bridge rises over a brook that has now iced over — but maybe don't try your luck walking on it, as the ice may crack underneath your feet and you'll find yourself plunging into the freezing water.
Regardless of whether you like the wintery atmosphere, it is easy to forget you are in space at all. Perhaps that gives you comfort, or just makes you miss the real nature all the more.
6.0 If you’d rather choose tinkering over nature, the lab is guaranteed to provide you with some entertainment. Glass vials and jars of chemicals sit on shelves in a surprisingly beautiful display of colour on one side of the room, while the other side of the room contains stacks of boxes containing assorted equipment: cords, bolts, panels, buttons, gears, gadgets, gizmos, and thingamabobs. The downside is that the parts available seem to have no apparent method to their sorting. So get digging, and you may just find exactly what you need to make what you’ve always wanted to make!
7.0 If it’s items you’re lacking, though, some time after your arrival, the earpiece alerts you to a new message.
Indeed, the platform near the personal quarters is still whirring with power, and new items form neat piles on it. There’s clothes, shoes, dishware, skincare, books… even a couple of CDs, and a few cute stuffed animals. So sort through what there is and grab what you want, before someone else does!
Eventually, you’ll find yourself at the doors of the the simulation room — it has been equipped with a new simulation to take you through possible mission-like scenarios so it’s best to prepare yourself and see what it has in store for you.
8.0 The doors slide shut behind you and the room goes dark. Small pinpricks of light will start to build on each other until you’re surrounded by grey skies overhead and grassy green lawns, a row of old stone columns lining your vision. It seems you’re in a courtyard of some kind, but that’s not all. Something tugs at the hem of your sleeve or nudges at your leg, a warm presence that feels comfortable and ultimately very familiar. They look up at you, or maybe they meet your eye-level, a creature that varies in size, shape, colour, and form depending on what reflects you best. This creature, known as a compalion is a physical manifestation of your spirit or soul and will stay by your side on this journey.
You can stay here and get to know your compalion, or you can take your new companion and explore the campus. Because, if you do move forward past the line of columns (a hallway it turns out), you’ll find that the small cluster of buildings forms an academic campus of some kind.
a) They cannot go any further than a few yards away from their person; the further the distance, the more painful the separation will feel.
b) Your compalion will shift into one form throughout this simulation and can be any creature that best mirrors your personality.
c) They can be as small as a flea and as large as a small elephant; get creative!
d) Whether they speak to you in your native tongue is entirely up to you (some speak, some don’t)
e) Basically daemon rules apply.
9.0 While it might seem like fun to spend hours just exploring the old buildings with your compalion and any Orbers like you that you might bump into along the way, it’s important to remember that you have a goal to achieve: follow the clues and retrieve the orb. Your compalion might offer an idea or two for where to go, or it may just be voicing the thoughts in your head, but it’s not a bad thing to follow your heart (or your gut) as it were. You might find that the rooftops of the campus buildings are easily climbable to get a good vantage point of your location. (Just be careful not to slip and fall! The height from here is quite dangerous.) A clocktower stands proud in the distance among a cluster of other campus buildings, marking the time.
Inside, you might be led down dark stone halls and into a series of classrooms: including reading quarters, study rooms with old leather couches and warm carpets covering stone floors; lecture halls with stiff wooden seating and individual desks to match, a chalkboard with indiscernible scribbles half-wiped away; and a laboratory that deals with something a little less modern than you might be used to, or perhaps with its twisty vials and bubbling potions, it suits you perfectly. There is the large library filled from floor to ceiling with books beyond imagining.
If you look out from the tall arch-shaped window from a classroom, or if you’re outside and you tilt your head up to the sky, you might notice that the sky appears to be darkening further, growing heavy with what is inevitably an oncoming rainstorm. If you’re inside, it might be best to stay indoors; if you’re outside, perhaps it’s time to find some shelter. Or if you’re determined to find that orb outside, risk you and your compalion getting wet.
● ● ●
N O T E: Additionally, there are three personal tasks provided to each character as they enter the simulation. In-game, each character will be given one task. For the purposes of the test drive, we’re leaving it to players to pick a task for their character and run with it.
A Team up with another Orber and their compalion to find the orb's location.
B Climb into the clocktower and ring the bell.
C Explain your best theory regarding your compalion’s manifestation to a fellow team member.
F Y I
• This TDM covers the month of February.
• TDM threads can be used as samples for apps. In fact, we encourage it!
• Reserves are currently open!
• Apps open February 24 and will remain open until February 28.
• For any questions regarding TDM, please direct them here. For questions about the game, please refer to the FAQ.
FOR SOME FUN:
Have a clue for your upcoming mission:
4.0
One slips his hand and smashes into a thousand pieces anyway. Damn. Whatever, Bones is shook. )
Spock!
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Doctor, I am not sure that my presence warrants the smashing of cups.
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Minding the chunky bits of glass across the tile, he moves in closer, and promptly takes the commander by the arm. )
My God, it's really you.
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He reaches behind him to place his knife on the cutting board. ]
Who else would I be?
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( Welp that was too raw for half a second, as Leonard's gaze slides away and he lets Spock go, as if assured by the presence of heat and solid muscle beneath his grip. Bones gives him back his personal space and remembers the broken mug, casting around for a broom he knows is just around here somewhere... )
Jim, uh, he's gonna be happy to see you.
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Is the entire senior staff here or only the three of us?
[ And should he be making enough for the Captain, as well? He's not sure what to make of the reaction he'd just received. He's barely been here a few hours. They'd all just been on the Enterprise. ]
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Just us three. I got here four– no, three months ago. ( Just a bit of uncertainty there, thanks for that additional month in the Bend, stupid orbs... Bones takes the dustpan to the disposal unit, giving it a little tap against the rim. ) Jim got here over the summer, about three months before that.
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[ It's not a question. He knows McCoy is thorough and that both he and Jim would use the tools at their disposal to get whatever answers they could. ]
From my understanding, we were all aboard the Enterprise right before I woke up here.
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...what was the last thing you remember doing?
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We had left the Yorktown to go into a difficult-no-navigate nebula on a rescue mission. What was yours?
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The other side of that nebula. ( He gives him a searching look before his gaze drops to his hands again, carefully toweling off his knuckles once more. ) Jim's farther ahead, after the mission's over. Is there... anything you want to know?
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[ Which isn't what he wants, but then it also is. He's afraid to know more than he already does. He doesn't want to hear about his leaving or about his changing his mind and staying. The fact that knowing his future could have negative ramifications is a convenient excuse and he knows it. ]
Unless there is something you believe is high priority to relay to me.
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Bones slips the towel back on its holder. )
We end up working closely together.
( Will it bother him? Maybe. A bonus, honestly. Bones nods at the assorted collection of chopped vegetables on Spock's cutting board. )
Need some help?
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If you wish.
[ He gestures to the vegetables. ]
I confess I only know what some of these are.
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These two– ( Here he sidles up next to Spock and takes a gander at what they're working with, ) –are root vegetables, as far as I can figure. The green one tastes a bit like an Earth jicama, though a lot sweeter. This yellow one is very starchy, and tastes nuttier. It's better fried up with other veggies, or stewed. I think one of our resident bakers made bread with it?
( Like Spock would know. He shrugs. ) It was okay.
( Pointing at the other few, that have yet to be diced, ) Those are basically Earth vegetables with a palette-swap, so you're safe there.
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Do you have any suggestions for preparation or would you prefer I continue as I was?
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Skip the jicama, ( he advises, as he takes a thin slice to crunch, ) Or mix it into a salad– there's some melon in the fridge no one's touched; should go fine together.
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[ Did he just leave Leonard to do the cooking? Yes. He goes to the cooling unit and finds the melon behind a head of some sort of yellow cabbage and something that must be some sort of iced tea. ]
It will be a strange adjustment to go back to preparing food.
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( Really? Rolling his eyes, he takes a bowl down from the cupboard and scoops the not!jicama into it, setting it aside for Spock to handle. If he's cooking? He's making this his way, mostly, and promptly commandeers Spock's cutting board and knife, too. )
You'll get used to it. Kind of a pleasure to, after last month.
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What happened last month?
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Do you want the good stuff first, or the bad?
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The bad first.
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We were sent to a town that was dead.
( And he'll just walk Spock through what happened, summarizing the events of the mission in broad strokes with almost clinical detachment. Facts only, because he hasn't the energy to wade into how he feels about it-- establishing themselves, learning about the lack of food and their subsequent course-correction into finding nourishment, the moment the illusion was stripped away as Ford fled, the bandit attack and his own injury, and their return to the station.
By the time he wraps up, the onions have gained a little color and gloss on the stove, and he's tossing in a few more vegetables to cook with them, glancing across at Spock. )
So yeah. It's nice to eat a decent meal again.
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I am quite sure that it is. Have you physically recovered?
[ Spock is careful to specify what he means there. He has no doubt that the stress had been tremendous, but he is ill-equipped to assist with that. ]
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( Bones continues tending to the pan, because by god is he gonna get this dish right, and sighs. )
I'm okay, Spock. If it weren't for Jim, I wouldn't be here.
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