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AUGUST TDM.
● ● ● T D M . 0 3
… What are you willing to do to erase your regret from existence?
The words, when they die out, leave you in emptiness — despairing, all-consuming, the kind that invites only the worst thoughts. What have you done? What have you agreed to do?
But then, from the emptiness, a golden light shines, and as you reach for it —
you wake up.
1.0 Perhaps it was less the golden light in your dream and more the insistent feeling of something metallic poking your side repeatedly, making beeping noises… wait, beeping noises?
When you look down, you’ll see a small robot staring at you and looking less than happy (maybe it has something to do with your disheveled state, maybe it's still mad about having to clean up after a certain pizza-induced mess). When you get up, it unleashes a series of beeps — and then furiously starts to scrub the floor.
Yes, the floor — instead of waking up in a bed, you find yourself lying on a hallway, white walls and white floor surrounding you. You don’t have long to stare at the minimalistic look of everything around you before the little bot starts poking you again, the word MOVE blinking across its visor.
So better get out of its way! Perhaps you’re on the hallway on your own and leave on your own… or perhaps there’s someone else, sleeping near you. Maybe do them the courtesy of waking them up before this little angry bot does! Or perhaps you’re the poor soul still sleeping and needing a rescue before the beeps make it to you.
2.0 If you need a visit to the infirmary, the situation may be more dire — perhaps there’s blood on the wall that you wake up against, your clothes may be dirty or ragged… whatever it is that has happened to you before waking here and has left you injured, it sure doesn’t create a reassuring sight. Best get to the infirmary as soon as possible.... with some assistance, perhaps.
Once upright, 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 The most pressing question that you might ask yourself is: but where will I stay? The question is answered once you walk through the winding white corridors to the common area. Behind it, there are three types of rooms: those with one bed, two beds and four beds. The rooms are clinical yet clean, and sparsely-furnished — and most importantly, most are occupied. So be prepared to get some roomies!
4.0 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!
5.0 After you’ve exhausted yourself training, it’s time to grab a bite. For that, you should head to the kitchen, which… seems to be filled with a lot of leftovers: takeout boxes with an assorted collection of pizza slices, kung pao chicken, lamb curry... not to mention the entire tray of chocolate brownies. Feel free to eat your fill — or if takeout isn’t your cup of tea, open one of the large fridges to pick fresh ingredients and make your own lunch.
6.0 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. A new addition is a flower garden where there once was a meadow — now, roses, camellias, lilies and dozens of other flowers sway in the wind, all varieties in their own flower beds, with a winding path of stones leading through them. The path leads to where a bridge rises over a sparkling, babbling brook.
Here, 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.
7.0 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!
8.0 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!
(CW: POTENTIAL BODY MODIFICATION)
Whether you’re a quick study and you’ve become settled into life on the station, or you want to get the full lay of the land (in a manner of speaking) first, if you decide to explore the hall past the control room, you’ll eventually come across the simulation room.
Step past the threshold and the doors will slide shut with a quiet woosh. Nothing suspicious; nothing to worry about. But before you can really get a sense of your environment (a grey, large-ish empty room, no furniture, no discernable objects to provide markers), the room goes dark, and then … there’s really no other way to describe it: the room transforms.
You find yourself in a club. The music is upbeat, loud, but not too loud. Down a short flight of steps flanking the bar and seating is the open floor with more tables and booths bathed in a warm, dim glow of light, and at the very end of the room is a stage with its bright spotlight showcasing its performers — though, at the moment, the stage is empty.
9.0 When you take a step forward, you’ll feel a presence gently push at your chest or your shoulder — a tall and jovial man resembling a well-dressed bartender from the top up (the rest of him appears to move along wheels) approaches with a tall flute glass in hand. Its contents are sparkly and blue.
Will you proceed? Please respond ‘Yes’ or ‘No’.”
There’s something a little strange about his voice, a cadence that doesn’t sound quite natural even when the simulation is so realistic otherwise. Once you’ve given your consent, the bartender continues.
10.0 It seems the bartender wasn’t lying. Once you’ve allowed the drink (tasty, sweet-but-not-too-sweet, effervescent, with light notes of your fondest childhood memory) to settle in your stomach you might experience a myriad of effects on your body, ranging from a change in skin colour (pink? green? blue with spots?), an additional limb or two (or three), a tail or wings, or cybernetic parts such as lie-detecting eyes or a tongue that can uncover truths and lies in others. If you happen to find another Orber within the room and both of you have consumed the offered drink, you might find yourself experiencing a full bodyswap.
None of the changes are painful; if anything, they might not even be noticeable until you look into a mirror, look down at your limb-in-question, or your companion points it out.
11.0 The moment you approach the stage, a performer will appear as if out of thin air and begin to sing, her voice strong and smoky and melodic. Her enthralling performance could put you into a trance, but you have an orb to find and a personal task to accomplish, so it’s time to put your best foot forward and do a little investigating.
Talking to some of the patrons might prove fruitful as some of them are convinced that the stage has never sounded or looked so good, like there’s something giving performers that extra oomph that no one can explain. It might be wise to wait until that last performance before you sneak up there — or maybe you want to do a little snooping around now, you know, while everyone’s distracted. Strategize with your fellow Orbers and uncover the location of this hidden orb.
● ● ●
N O T E: The effects of the drink and the level of changes your character experiences is entirely up to you. Patrons of this fine club won’t bat an eye if you look a little like them.
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 If you’ve been given a particular body change that might aid you in this mission, do not use it to your advantage.
B Team up with a fellow Orber to uncover the hidden location.
C Get up on stage and put on a performance during the simulation. Your song choice will determine the outcome of success in your investigation.
F Y I
• TDM threads can be used as samples for apps. In fact, we encourage it!
• Reserves are currently open!
• Apps open August 27.
• For any questions regarding TDM, please direct them here. For questions about the game, please refer to the FAQ.
FOR SOME FUN:
Have a listen for some clues about the second mission.
(Hint: there are four clues in total.)
4.0
[ it's not an insult by any means, impressed by the choice, even if kovacs is still a bit surprised by it, since most people don't typically go for the more archaic weaponry. too slow, mostly, although if the right wielder picks one up, it wouldn't matter how many guns they have pointed at them; they'd still be able to get themselves out of there.
dragging his feet across the room, he gives a pat to the machine there, even if he hasn't figured out exactly how to work it himself yet. ]
Supposedly this could print you up whatever you want. Though I'd still suggest picking up a gun, too, while you're at it.
no subject
[ still, she idles over to the machine herself too, peering at it curiously. ]
This one of those 3D Printers? [ she feels like booker had talked about getting one. maybe. andy isn't terrible with technology, though her skills are baseline compared to his. besides, she had a stockpile of weapons back home, hadn't seen the need to print one out. now, however... ] I'll probably grab a couple things, guns included. You never know what'll be useful.
no subject
[ if there's supposed to be mannerisms about not asking a woman's age, kovacs isn't concerned. age is something people tend to hold with more pride where he's from, since typically being older means being richer, one version of what society considering a brand of success. that or they're like him — just carrying a lot of prison time.
he's not so sure about the 3d printing concept, but he knows what it is for technology to build things from scratch, so he expects this isn't much different than what he's seen be used for crafting.
he starts pressing buttons on the machine, not like he knows what he's doing, but just winging it to see what options come up. he tends to just figure things out as he goes. ]
You know how to use 'em? [ guns, he means. it's a question just for the sake of asking, but he can figure the answer with a vague look at her. he's been around enough experienced fighters to know how they hold themselves. ]
no subject
[ she watches him fiddle with the printer, or whatever it is, preferring that to attempting any of it herself. she'd rather see if he can get it working first, or what it even does in general. maybe she really can print out an axe as close to her ideal as possible. ]
Guns, yes. This machine, no. They your thing? Guns?
no subject
while it's not his kind of tech, kovacs tends to be a fairly quick learner with catching on, so that the very least it's only some brief moments of tapping around uncertainly before he works his way to some more comprehensible menus on the machine's screen. ]
I know my way around them. [ understatement. ] But I can get by without.
[ he's good at improvising in a fight, even if a gun will always be the easiest way to take someone out, especially permanently, with the way death is trickier in his world. after a moment, he finally steps aside, gesturing with his hand to the screen. ]
Think I got it up to selecting hand-to-hands. If you wanna take it from there.
no subject
They're useful, as long as you have the ammo to support them. Good to have a back up. [ which is why she loves her axe most of all. it never runs out of steam. ]
[ she comes closer, peering at the machine, how he's got it all set up. ] Thanks. You sure you don't wanna go first?
no subject
even his answer is plenty casual, not too concerned with how that might be perceived. ]
Have at it. I can wait.
[ he's not in a particular rush, especially since he found his own gun already stored with his things, a relief to have found that old unicorn backpack just the way he had it. it'd even had a full carton of cigarettes waiting for him which he pulls out of his coat now as he leans back against a wall to wait his turn, plopping a stick between his lips. ]
Want one? [ he's not even asking if she minds if he smokes it. again, only some manners. ]
no subject
[ he steps away from the machine, leaving her free reign, so andy scrolls through it, looking for an axe. she knows any axe will do, but she still would like to find something akin to hers. the double sided part makes it. ]
I'm good. Smoking will kill you, you know. I'm looking out for my lungs. [ there's a small glint in her eye, but the amusement is more internal than a joke at his expense. ]
no subject
[ which would generally apply to the rich and powerful that typically end up having the resources for living that long, but — well, he's definitely an asshole, too, and he's not denying that.
he chuckles at her casual warning, thumb pressing against the lighter to ignite a small flame against the end of his cigarette. ]
Plenty of other shit that can and already has killed me. Cigarette's the least of my worries.
no subject
[ she finds an axe that seems... fine. and if this machine really can print out multiple weapons, there's no reason she can't just test it first. andy gives it a good look over then... presumably presses the start or begin button. she'll find out. ]
[ there's a pause with his next statement, barely perceptible, but her interest in Piqued. ]
Most people don't really suffer multiple deaths either.
no subject
[ there's almost a thin playfulness in his voice, like someone who's definitely been called an asshole more times than he can count.
the fact that she focuses in on his deaths gets his attention, though, mostly because he realizes it might not actually be something that's normal to her. he's met a few people already who don't know a thing about stacks or sleeves, a fact that's still difficult to wrap his own head around.
then again, even for those familiar, dying so many times still isn't necessarily normal. ]
Guess a lot of people just have it out for me. [ he looks over to her, taking a long inhale of his cigarette before blowing the smoke out slowly, tilting his head up with his eyes still peering at her. ] And I usually get thrown into a hell of a lot of trouble.
no subject
[ the machine whirs and beeps, but it's not that loud. not loud enough that she can claim it captures her full attention. besides, the death thing is the bigger catch in the room now. ]
How's it work? Coming back to life? [ he did admit it as much already, she doesn't think it's that absurd to be curious. that's all her expression says at the moment: curiosity. and it's not even a lie. ]
no subject
[ though he still leaves it up to anyone else to decide for themselves, but most days, he prefers that people carry that expectation of him, since usually the opposite means that he ends up letting people down eventually.
at least the machine seems to be doing its thing, though whether or not he ends up testing it out for himself too depends on the final result. even still, he's not in a rush, having his smoke while he debates how to answer her question. ]
If you're asking, I'm gonna say you don't know about sleeve death. [ or rather, that she doesn't have it where she's from. it's been stranger to explain this part lately since it's the standard in his world. ] The body's just a sleeve. Anything happens to it, it's just organic damage. [ with his free hand, he brings his fingers up to the back of his neck, tapping lightly. ] Everybody's got a stack implanted in the base of their skull. Sleeve goes to shit? As long as the stack's still good, they could just put it into a new body. The politics are a bit more bullshit to run through, but that's the science.
no subject
[ the machine is (mostly) forgotten while he explains his version of revival, as she is paying careful attention, even if it becomes evident very quickly that it isn't anything like her own so-called gift. ]
So it's a science. Your universe figured out how to manufacture longevity. [ though it does explain a little about his remark about the assholes. tech like that would be hoarded, or at the very least expensive. ugh, andy hates capitalism. ] Politics turn everything into bullshit half the time.
Does that mean you have to be careful here? Can't imagine you have a spare sleeve up your sleeve.
no subject
[ for a brief moment, he thinks of quell, of her dream to explore the stars with longer life, but it passes as fast as it comes. ]
Guess so. Haven't seen anything on this station with stack tech or sleeve storage, so if something happened, I'd probably be fucked. [ which means dying like anybody else. as they all should, eventually. it's probably a good thing. ] Anyway, I can't shit around with this sleeve anyway. Only got it on a loan and I promised I'd keep it one piece, so — [ he shrugs, bringing the stick to his lips again. ]
no subject
[ given the comparison, she thinks she prefers her version of longevity. at least she still has the same body she was born with, even when she no longer wants it. ]
Maybe this machine can print stack tech too. [ probably not, it mostly seems into weapons, which it is currently still spitting out her axe. ] They even loan 'em out? And I thought the black market for organs was bad enough. Can't imagine it with full bodies.
no subject
[ that's just the way life goes for him, and while there's plenty of shit that goes on in the black market, a lot of the trade offs for sleeves all happening legally. sometimes it's just a matter of who's got the money to get the better deal.
he takes a moment to look at the machine, not even sure he wants to bother trying. after all, he fought once to try wiping out stack technology in the first place. maybe it's good that it doesn't exist wherever he's ended up. ]
Rich asshole spun me up to solve his murder. Put me in this sleeve temporarily. Got stuck with this shitty nicotine habit.
no subject
[ she doesn't want to imagine the idea of a government run immortality scheme, though it's not much worse than a corporate version either. what he describes is nightmarish, though it's not like it's hard for her to believe either. ]
[ the machine finally spits out her axe, looking a little more modern than she might have hoped, but she takes it in one hand, testing the weight and feel of it. ]
You could slap on one of those nicotine patches. Or is it not your body, not your problem? What happens if you die in it and can't get a new one right away?
no subject
[ no need for a patch because he could sometimes use the habit to his advantage. and even if he personally never liked to smoke, the body's addiction to it means a different kind of relaxation when breathing in the chemicals, even if the disadvantage is needing to constant battle the withdrawal.
seeing the axe pop out of the machine, he watches her take it up in her hands, studying how she moves with it, like maybe it might give him a better read on her and what makes her so akin to that particular weapon. ]
If I die, I die. Lived too long anyway. [ which is an entirely different conversation that he dodges by shifting the topic — ] How's it feel? [ the axe. ]
no subject
[ it's on the tip of her tongue, three hundred years is nothing, but she holds back, mostly because she's still figuring out how to handle that part of her here. but he shuffles away from that area of conversation and she'll let it slide, for now. she's curious enough to come back to it in the future. ]
[ andy shifts the axe again, adjusting her grip. she holds it like it's a limb, like it's simply a part of her, fingers folding around it without thought. ]
It'll do. At least we know the machine works now.
no subject
eyes on her gripping the axe, she seems to be fairly comfortable with it, and it makes him all the more curious to see her use it in action. ]
I'd offer you my limbs to test out the sharpness, but — [ he gives a shrug with a purse of his lips, snickering against with the cigarette at his lips, carrying the joke. ] Only body I got.
no subject
You should work on getting a back up. [ she could... test it on herself. but maybe later. ] There's a training room here, right? I'll find something to test it. I'm not in a rush. [ it's got an edge and a handle therefore it'll be fine. she's used worse. ]
no subject
with a hum, he considers the idea of the training room, along with the weapon in her hand, before his eyes go back to the machine that crafted it. straightening up, he keeps the stick tucked between his lips as he brings his fingers to the screen. ]
Well, if you promise to go gentle on me, we could both do some testing.
no subject
[ she steps to the side to give him the space to pick out his own weapon of choice, admittedly curious as to his preference. if he's got centuries under his belt too, there's a pretty wide range of options. ]
I'll see what I can do on the gentle front, since you're such an old man and all. [ man does she wish joe were here, he'd laugh at that. she's not sure she wants to test it against him yet, but she's considering. ] What's your poison?
no subject
[ seems that she's really enjoying herself on the teasing, but he hardly minds, instead just smirking a bit as he keeps his eyes on the screen, sorting through the options. ]
Mostly prefer a good gun in my hands, but I already had a pretty solid one get brought over here with me, so — [ on the screen, he instead selects a katana. ] Might as well pick something a little closer range.
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