intro mingle

[anaplasiamod]

INTRO MINGLE

「INTRO」

Whether they meet or reunite in the goo hallway they're shot into (with only a sheet for decency, no less), or elsewhere around Esagila Base, one thing everyone will immediately notice upon arrival to the section of Uruk called Esagila Base is this:

It sure as hell could be worse.

For those who benefited from Ishtar's "trial" mission, as they make their way through their new home, they'll notice there are no corpses this time. No water zombies. No giant crabs. Some suspicious brown splatters on the walls in a few places, but they look very old. While equipment and infrastructure is rusted and broken in places, it seems more from age and overuse than anything, and less like something monstrous has been smashing through the hallways like a giant death crab in a china shop.

The thrumming of the sensor grid generators ringing the area has something to do with that. Even some of the dumber creatures have learned to associate the sound with death, regardless of whether or not they understand the connection. In some areas, Ishtar's hard-light tentacles can defend small sections. And in the past, breaching the ring of sensors meant facing a heavily armed response from the survivors within.

In the past. Who knows how long past that's been, but for now, it means relative safety. (Key word: relative.)

Which is a good thing, considering everyone has to wait possibly up to an hour for all their implants to finish their full calibration cycle. That means no implant weapons, for those who have added benefits from them. No Enki suits. And an itching feeling under the skin, a sense of squirming wrongness that wasn't even there during the "testing" for those that faced it. It's not just the slime, either, as that will start evaporating off on its own.

For some, it'll just be annoying, for others, it'll be almost maddening. No amount of scratching can alleviate it, it runs far too deep, feels too strange and alien. It's at its worst around the places where the implants poke out of the skin, along the spine and in the inlaid metallic lines of the arms. Those without any ARC weapons may find it's slightly less severe, but since everyone has the base implant, no one is fully exempt. Those who feel it the worst will feel completely out of tune with their own bodies, as if even walking requires a conscious effort it doesn't normally require. Some will also suffer dizzy spells or nausea for a while.

They can count themselves lucky that whatever process they were put through left their stomachs empty.

ISHTAR

It's pizza party time! Ishtar's AI figure projects from a janky projector.

《Congratulations! I have decided that both teams in the trial mission scored adequate points to be rewarded with a piz-zuh party! You all get to partake.》

"Congratulations" seems to be one of her favorite words.

《Please enjoy your piz-zuhs, I worked very hard to make them.》

They are not pizzas. This is not a reward. This is a punishment. They all stand here, clearly judged, condemned, damned. Especially anyone used to a good New York Style or Neopolitan or even the tomato pie travesty Chicagoans pretend is pizza.

Because this is anti-pizza. This is worse than vegan pizza. Some kind of horrific freeze-dried paste of unknown something that is somehow worse than wheat germ has been formed into flat circles, but instead of being baked it seems almost like it's been put in a dehydrator until it has a texture that could be used to club someone unconscious. For anyone that tries it and manages to chew without breaking their teeth, the only way to describe the taste of this "crust" would be "canned bread."

But what is this hard-tack from hell without toppings, right? Some kind of vague vegetable-ish jelly has been smeared on the pizza in place of sauce, but whatever the vegetable is, it's more bitter than any vegetable from Earth. Globs of some kind of vaguely soy, vaguely yeast, vaguely dehydrated dairy, mostly salt - so much salt, too much salt - substance is the "cheese." Meat Circles (tm) with a consistency between canned vienna hot dogs and uncooked spam have been arranged on some of the pizzas. Others have slices of some kind of terrifying meat-esque pate that, in taste and consistency, can only be described as "everything but the oink."

Truly, this meal of horrors is fit for only the desperate.

Or people from New Jersey.

At least she's given back their Single Designated Belonging (tm). Oh, did they want the rest of their stuff? Too bad!

PLACES OF INTEREST

The area is large enough it'll take some time to explore, as if big enough in anticipation they may someday wind up with greater numbers. And while showers are available, since the goo will fortunately dry off and evaporate on its own, the initial lack of Enki suit is the biggest hurdle. But at least they have a sheet until then?

The extra industrious may want to search for better textiles in the Promenade to wear as makeshift clothing until the Enki suits kick in. Sadly, it appears that any actual clothing has long since been cleared out by something - maybe people evacuating with said clothes on their backs. These textiles are also all that the Squad can claim for sleep, as the barracks is completely caved in. They'll have to eke out sleeping places wherever they can find them, like dibsing market stalls. Some preserved food can be found there, as well, left behind in shops where it was meant to be traded or sold.

Supply rooms can also be raided for more of what little food stores are available, as well as converted to other uses, like makeshift labs, machine shops, or, if they can find seeds or plants someday, indoor gardens.

The armory is also a must-see for anyone that wants the security of a weapon. Ishtar will scold anyone that takes too many for themselves, threatening an unknown and alarming punishment, but people will be allowed more than the single weapon they were given if they were "tested." That means, for instance, projectile weapons can be supplemented by something blunt or bladed, close range can be supplemented by something long range, and so on.

There isn't much in the way of relaxation. Even the lounge only has a foosball table; none of the power seems to be working for the screens.

There are more places than that to explore, but not so much that they can't settle in quickly to carve out a space for themselves. There are also supplies to gather, like handheld computers and some limited but useful tools.

SUPPLY RUN

【 CW 〗

Hallucinations, possible blood and gore

---

Some of the group is tasked with a short supply run for some extra food stores and possibly some useful equipment. It's beyond the localized sensor grid fence but still close, and Ishtar has assured them a probe of her long-range sensors indicate the area is safe.

(Relatively.)

She's at least honest about physical threats, just as she was right about one section in her "tests" genuinely being cleared of whatever aliens had left some bodies behind. There will be no physical attacks.

What they see isn't physical is the thing. A flash of a familiar face, a voice, a laugh, an alarming shadow. Until they turn a hallway and see something terrible in all its glory: an old enemy that tortured them that they hoped was long dead, a monster they're terrified of, friends failed or love lost, or perhaps someone they love but they look injured and in pain. Or perhaps it's a reminder of guilt - someone they hurt, a weapon involved in a crime, a symbol of an accident they caused.

These illusions are sometimes plain, just a vision that turns a corner and disappears or that bolts towards them in a terrifying sprint before disappearing. Others look grotesque, bleeding from wounds they suffered from - or that the character fears seeing them with. Any blood that hits the deck will disappear when the illusion does.

They can cause no physical harm and can't be touched - but that doesn't mean they're harmless. When they beckon for someone to follow or run at them to make them jump back, it seems to have an alarming tendency to put them in danger. Tricking them to try to get them to run over a gap between some deck plates to a relatively small but still injurious drop into a maintenance space. Or spooking them into jumping back onto a section of hallway where the gravity is broken, causing them to slam into the ceiling. Maybe they're tempted to touch someone that isn't there and the second the illusion disappears they touch a hidden steam pipe instead, burning a hand.

It's likely not enough to kill them, just injure them.

But one thing is in their favor: they're not the only one that can see it. Whoever they're with can see this vision too, this spectre of their past. Which means they may be able to catch them before they fall, notice the objects on the ceiling behind them, or see the steam pipe behind the illusion. With the right help, they can maybe escape this section with the necessary supplies with minimal injury.

Maybe they can just walk away lightly haunted by the past.

USEFUL LINKS

nav \\ esagila base \\ arrival-welcome \\ faq \\ powers

DETAILS

⌲ Powers and Belongings: Full game powers are now in effect. Everyone's single key belonging has been returned to them.

⌲ Implants: Implants and Enki suits will work within an hour. Alongside the side effects listed, you can handwave other side effects to the implantation, including some of the ones from the Deaths page as these partly result from re-implantation. However, those effect will be far more brief, as more severe reactions are rarer. Please ask in the mod comment below if you want to explore other ways for the character to react badly to the implant.

⌲ Weapons: Weapons can be bladed weapons, chain weapons, blunt weapons, projectile small arms, or equivalent non-conventional weaponry like sports equipment. There's a lot of freedom here since this is one of the main armories they'll have access to. If you're not sure if a weapon would be an option to choose from, feel free to ask under the comment below. Characters can switch weapons if necessary but will be encouraged to dedicate one or two specifically as assigned to them to make sure they get divvied up in ways where everyone in game can have access. Currently, these base level weapons can be used by ARC users. As the game goes on and people find weapons that are more advanced and cooler, these will need to be given to the "No Powers" folks as their perk in place of powers. ARC abilities shedding nanites will screw with them making them impossible to use for ARC wielders.

⌲ Deaths: Unless stated otherwise for any plots or TDMs, everyone is now locked into their max of two possible deaths. Ishtar will not inform them the limitation is in place - yet - until it becomes relevant or she's asked directly, so the group can learn about it organically.

⌲ Ishtar: There is a section below to thread conversations with Ishtar. The mod only requests that you possibly look at previous questions asked and determine if there might be an opportunity for characters to share info received from Ishtar instead of asking her directly, such as on the network. This can both promote CR and prevent repetitive answers I'd most likely just be copying and pasting.

⌲ Network: The mod is also going to set up a network post with one of eir characters for introductions and characters to start cooperating, set while they're still waiting for their suits to kick in. (Only having a sheet provides a pretty good reason for some of them to keep to themselves and talk on the network rather than meeting in person.)

⌲ Resources: If you want to know if any resources will be available, as far as food, tools, devices goes, etc, please feel free to ask in the questions comment below.

⌲ Locations: While a few places of interest have been listed, you can set your threads in any section of Esagila base. There will also be a section below for questions about changes to the setting, such as establishing a lab/garden/etc. If characters choose to do this, they will be added to the game info. However, you'll have to decide what area they commandeer. A few stalls in the Promenade? Storage room? Will they retool the light therapy rooms into a combined hydroponics garden/light therapy area? Etc. A form will be added to the setting info to allow for these requests for changes in between plots and the mod will work up a description based on a combination of what players are asking for and what's currently possible in the setting.

Comments

[evendeathmaydie]

>>> Intro - {cw: various degrees of emetophobia warnings, mild talk of blood/gore}

[Stumbling down a corridor, Keni used the wall to keep himself stable. Light-headed, his vision swimming, limbs feeling heavy, it was hard to stay standing, let alone walking, but the cold oppression of the empty halls kept him moving forward.

During their "test", the implants had been uncomfortable, sure, but compared to the ambient discomfort and pain he was used to, it was easily shoved to the background once he was pushed into the fray. This time, it was like the mother of all hangovers. Like his body was revolting against the intrusion, doing everything in its negligible power to reject it. The feel of it under his skin was far more pronounced, invasive. The places where the implants could be seen above the skin, itched with a maddening persistence, like his body was trying to drive him to dig them out. Stomach acid sat burning at the back of his throat, and his stomach lurched despite how empty it felt.

Losing his footing, he thumped to his knees as his body attempted to retch, but all that came up was spit laced with thin bile, nothing substantial, and his body didn't feel any better for it. With a shaky breath, he curled in on himself, pulling the sheet he'd been given tighter around his body. Shivering and still attempting to spit out what remained of the bile in his mouth, he stayed as still as he could, hoping that would help the nausea pass, and fearing that getting back to his feet would trigger another round of dry heaves.

He's been worse off than this. FAR worse. At least he wasn't throwing up blood and clumps of his own viscera like he's faintly feared he would. But reminding himself of that wasn't making this any more bearable.]

Ishtar? Did I do something to piss you off?

[The words pour out of his mouth in a wet, miserable mumble, barely audible. He wasn't sure if she could even hear him, let alone if she would actually answer, but speaking to her made him feel at least slightly less alone.

The sound of footsteps up ahead catches his attention. There's a moment of fear that it might be some kind of monster, but the hope of not being alone easily overrides what little sense of self-preservation he has. It takes him a moment to work up the ability to crock out a harsh -] Help [loud enough for it to actually be heard.]

>>> Pizza Party -

[After the worst of the symptoms wore off, hunger pains began to settle in, and even the "piz-zuh" began to look appetizing. It wasn't as bad as he was afraid it would be. It wasn't good by any stretch of the imagination, but comparable to some of the stale or cheap, lightly expired food he'd eaten just to put something in his gut. And it didn't come close to some of the truly vile concoctions his friends have wiped up and dared him to eat for money.

All in all, he rated it "technically edible, with a side of bleck", but with the voracious way he was shoveling it down, even going so far as to suck the remnants of "sauce" jelly off his fingers when he was done, it wouldn't be hard to mistakenly believe he was actually enjoying it. There's a method to the way he eats it though, born from a lifetime of learning how to keep down "garbage food". He licks the veggie jell off the crust without so much as a wince at how bitter it is, breaks the hard tack crust into chunks, and pops pieces of it into his mouth, letting them soften until he can chew and swallow it without breaking a tooth. The meat actually wasn't bad, kinda like Spam, so he left that for last, eating it with the overly salty cheese.

Again, it's not good but loads better than having an empty stomach. Add in the fact that most of his earlier discomfort was finally fading, he'd managed to fashion the sheet he'd been given into a toga of sorts, and he'd found some company in his fellow "piz-zuh party" goers, and he was about as close to content as he could be in this situation.

After finishing his second "slice", he goes so far as to lick the plate clean. Because fuck the prospect of respectability! Who knew when or if Ishtar would feed them again? If her idea of pizza was anything to go by, he wasn't sure if he trusted her to know what would be edible for them or how often they would need food, let alone if she even had the stock to feed them again. He would take what edible food he could while he could get it.]

>>> Supply Run - {possible cw: - body horror, and depictions of blood, violence, and death}

[Keni makes for a quiet but easy partner to go salvaging with. Easily letting his partner take point if they want, or gently moving to lead if they prefer. He's not great for conversation, really only speaking up if he's spoken to or if he needs to get his partner's attention, and most likely not speaking at all if he's with an adult, but he at least listens diligently.

As they make their way through the new environment, Keni moves through the halls with curiosity, laid-back confidence, and little to no caution unless he's in the lead or his partner is voicing concern.

But when they turn a specific corner, that all melts away. A few feet ahead the hall opens up to a large room with reddish purple dirt covering the floor, and alien vegetation that, while sparse, is far too large for the thin amount of sandy soil they have to be planted in. The vegetation sways smoothly like they're underwater, moving independently of any airflow through the room. Decrepit stone structures, or what remains of them, litter the area, completely at odds with the metal walls that match the rest of the structure they've been walking through. Some of the pillars, despite their damage, still manage to reach high enough to seemingly meld into the metal ceiling.

At the center of it all is what appears to be a burial mound, with steps carved into the dirt, winding their way up to the top where a broken stone statue sits looming over the room. It's heavily damaged, but what's left of the crumbling and pitted stone figure is grotesque. Humanoid, but wrong, with twisted and elongated limbs, malformed tentacles or roots seeping out of its rotted cloak. What was once presumably a face peeking out from under a hood has been completely worn away, now pitted and unrecognizable as anything. The same has happened to what was likely either meant to be a crown and antlers, or a twisted halo, what remains of it is too shattered and warped to know which.

Keni freezes upon seeing the space, recognition putting a cold shiver down his spine.

R'lyeh

He could swear he'd never seen this part of it, but it was just as bone-chillingly familiar. The figure at the center of it all both hauntingly fascinating and horrifying. Part of him just wants to get closer to it, like a moth to a flame, while every rational instinct in his body screams for him to run in the other direction.

He does neither, stuck rooted to the spot. But he has enough sense to stop his partner from going further, either grabbing their arm before they can take a step onto the dirt, or putting a hand out to stop them from going ahead of him. Either way, he shakes his head at them in a silent plea to not go further, panic very clearly written on his face, in stark contrast to his former carefree confidence.]

intro

[memcake]

[Well, not human, but not a monster either.

Eight needed to step away from the group for a bit. That many people gets overwhelming for him on a good day, and this is not a good day.

Eight's implants feel like pieces of rebar pounded through his body, like a marionette given a skeleton against his will. His ink glands are dry and sticky, his gills don't work, he can't switch between his octopus and humanoid form and all that goes to make Eight feel very wrong and very strange and very, very helpless...

But he's still doing better than this kid.

This person needs Eights help. A little bit selfishly, he hopes that focusing on this new person will help him get grounded, but mostly it's his soldier training.

As his old commander would say, no squid left behind.

Eight approaches quickly, stepping around the mess, as if it mattered in a place this filthy. He slowly lowers into a squat in front of Keni.]

Can you walk?

[Some of his old soldier training is intact: he's not going to touch Keni until he knows he won't hurt him by doing so.]