interstellar5555 | ☆TRACK VII: IN REACHING OUT PT. 1

Entry tags:

☆TRACK VII: IN REACHING OUT PT. 1

Who: Everyone in Pride and Virgo HQ.
What: Ghosts need your help.
When: The evening of January 30th, 2055
Where: Pride and Virgo HQ.
Warnings: Phantasmal violence, possibly some real violence.

“Hold your colours against the wall,
When they take everything away,
Hold your colours against the wall,
With me (soaking through)”

☆IN REACHING OUT

Starting around the 20th of January, the heavy lockdown and supervision of the musicians of both labels will begin to fade. While they still require escorts to be out and about, the guards that have been routinely stalking them around their own homes and HQs will be gradually phased out, until it is just the regular managers and security remaining. Sweet deal, right? Over a month after the hysteria of the ill-fated solstice party, things seem to be finally letting up a little. Whether because you've played nice for long enough, or whether their attentions are being directed elsewhere, it isn't clear.

Either way, this is the also the start of some increasingly familiar paranormal activity. All the way back to the first tour of this generation of musicians, members of both Pride and Virgo have found themselves haunted by strange and inexplicable happenings. Starting on the 23rd, these happenings begin to flare up again - lights switching on and off, TVs starting on their own, and even things falling off of shelves unprovoked. (These minor happenings can be made up by you and don't need to be mod designated - however, they should not be anything that would be threatening or dangerous to the characters.) For some people this will be completely new, and for others it may even be faintly nostalgic.

This will continue until the night of the 30th, when things finally seem to come into swing. The hauntings will become more pointed and explicit. The details are specific to each HQ, and there and you can make yourself open to an NPC haunting down below.

☆PRIDE RECORDS

About halfway through the evening on the 30th, Predator will begin prowling the halls of Pride HQ. At first it won't be clear for what, but after catching a few snippets of conversation (this can be handwaved) characters will have a change to realize that they are looking for the ghosts that have been causing a fuss recently. How crazy this will sound to you will probably depend on how new you are. They will actively shake down random musicians they meet for information about what they've seen the last couple days. As usual, Jenny is leading the pack, with Cass and Donny (nsfw) providing back up muscle.

Provided you lie well or tell them the truth, they will move along fairly quickly. If you start shit with them, they will probably rough you up a little. Any major confrontations with them will be handled on the companion OOC post, and a few top levels may appear over here that can be tagged into in limited amounts.

Beyond those activities, Pride members will feel various effects based on their EMOTIONAL ALIGNMENTS:

► ALL: Their connection and desire to create music will be especially heightened. They will find themselves subconsciously beginning to tap out rhythms, hum, peck at instruments, or straight up sing things even when it would otherwise be totally inappropriate. Strong emotions will cause them to want to sing and play to each other. They may also feel very strongly that they want to dance, to a particularly addictive beat that seems to emanate from the air. It may shift and change as the night goes on, but at any given moment everyone will hear the same rhythm. It sounds like particularly great percussion.

► LOVE & DUTY: They will have no extra special effects, but they will feel this urge to create music even more strongly than the rest, as it seems to be focused on them as they are not being directly targeted by any other sensations. When Hope and Passion musicians hear music made by these characters, they will feel stronger, like energy is being gifted to them.

► HOPE: Characters of this alignment will feel increasingly like they are being drawn somewhere, or like someone is calling for them, but they can't quite make out the direction it's coming from. The aspect of hope will be empowered within them, and they will find themselves unusually trusting towards the other characters, as if they only have the most optimistic outcomes in mind. Beyond this, they may feel dazed or confused by the sensations they are feeling. They may also experience strange visions, or the sensation of being another person they are not (and not just their true self this time, someone else completely).

► PASSION: Characters of passion will be targeted by the 'hauntings' much more directly than the others. More than random acts, the hauntings around them seem like someone is actively trying to communicate with them. Sometimes it will even feel like someone is trying to speak in their heads, though they won't quite be able to make it out. Passion characters who request haunting instances will get the most major effects.

☆VIRGO ENTERTAINMENT

Soon after things start to get extra weird on the 30th, Juno and a couple Virgo veterans (Anansi and a man you recognize as a popular folk artist named Brett Hogan) will start wandering the halls. They will pull individuals aside for questioning in private rooms, asking about the strange occurrences. They will not attempt to rough anyone up, but excessively resistance or attempts at violence towards them may result in characters being locked in their rooms for the rest of the night.

All three of them seem particularly hard to lie to for some reason, tonight. It's possible, but while you make the effort to do so, the words seem to be on the verge of falling out of your mouth. Juno seems to have something very particular in mind as she searches the HQ, like she can see something you can't. There will also be top levels for these guys appearing.

Beyond those activities, Pride members will feel various effects based on their EMOTIONAL ALIGNMENTS:

► ALL: Their connection and desire to create music will be especially heightened. They will find themselves subconsciously beginning to tap out rhythms, hum, peck at instruments, or straight up sing things even when it would otherwise be totally inappropriate. Strong emotions will cause them to want to sing and play to each other. They may also feel very strongly that they want to dance, to a particularly addictive tune that seems to emanate from the air. It may shift and change as the night goes on, but at any given moment everyone will hear the same song. It sounds like someone riffing expertly on a guitar.

► HOPE & PASSION: They will have no extra special effects, but they will feel this urge to create music even more strongly than the rest, as it seems to be focused on them as they are not being directly targeted by any other sensations. When Love and Duty musicians hear music made by these characters, they will feel stronger, like energy is being gifted to them.

► LOVE: Characters of this alignment will feel increasingly like they are being drawn somewhere, or like someone is calling for them, but they can't quite make out the direction it's coming from. The aspect of love will be empowered within them, and they will find themselves unusually loving, connected, and emotionally open to others, even if this would usually be out of character. (This can also mean they are more inclined to get physically intimate, if you want to.) Beyond this, they may feel dazed or confused by the sensations they are feeling. They may also experience strange visions, or the sensation of being another person they are not (and not just their true self this time, someone else completely).

► DUTY: Characters of duty will be targeted by the 'hauntings' much more directly than the others. More than random acts, the hauntings around them seem like someone is actively trying to communicate with them. Sometimes it will even feel like someone is trying to speak in their heads, though they won't quite be able to make it out. Duty characters who request haunting instances will get the most major effects.

☆PLOT NOTE

This will be a two part event, and the second part will be posted in a few days and will only include those that choose to help the spirits. This can be discussed OOC. Any alignment can assist, though the Passions from Pride and the Duties from Virgo will be the most directly pursued because they will be the easiest for the spirits to communicate with. Realize that participating is serious business, though: there are good odds the characters will be caught eventually, and there will be consequences. Do not volunteer your characters for this plot if you don't want them to suffer potential physical or mental trauma.

“Fading gently, soaking through,
And starting not to show at all.
In reaching out and into you, 
nothing else could touch me.”

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A - JAMIE IS PROBABLY GOING TO END UP IN THE WOMEN'S LOCKER ROOM AGAIN: (open to all)
Somebody out there wants him to do something, that much he can figure out; he just doesn't know who or what or where to go. It's maddening, like an itch he can't scratch or a face he can't quite match to a name, and the only thing he can think of to alleviate it is to keep moving, keep looking for whatever it is that's calling him.

And so he prowls HQ, from the stairwells to the front lobby and everywhere in between. His progress is impeded by the fact that he's occasionally overwhelmed by a sense of disorientation that leaves him lingering in random areas with a bewildered expression, as though he can't quite remember what he was doing or how he got there.

B - JAMIE CAN'T STOP THE MUSIC: (open to all)
As he wanders, he can't stop thinking about music. Not that it doesn't already constitute a significant portion of his daily thought processes, given his line of work, but the need to express himself musically is even more pressing than usual. In the elevator between floors, waiting in line at a coffeeshop, poking his nose into some isolated corner or another - he's humming, singing under his breath, tapping out a rhythm, even breaking stride to work in some dance moves. At some point during the day, he commandeers a piano in one of the rehearsal rooms and starts banging out a melody - something as meandering and improvised as the rest of his movements have been today.

No matter what he does, it never seems to be enough - the more he indulges in the urge to create, the more he wants to keep doing it. Criticism and collaboration alike are equally welcome, and interruptions won't keep him down for long - more than likely he'll derive inspiration from all but the most abrasive of intrusions.

Sabo is in the coffee shop, getting his fourth in however many hours. He reasons to himself if he buys it he won't drink as much but his eyeballs are starting to feel electrified so maybe it's a bit too much. Still he sips his fresh coffee, tapping out a random beat on his thigh with his other hand when he hears the humming.

"Hey, that's a nice tune. What's it called?"

You caught him about to bite into the pastry he just bought, Sabo, good job. When he realizes the guy's speaking to him Jamie hurriedly lowers it, looking somewhat sheepish.

"Uhh...'taking the elevator downstairs to get a cruller'? I dunno, I just kinda made it up." He grins and offers a lopsided shrug.

"I like it." Which he does and it gives him something to focus on, besides. "All it needs is a nice beat." He leans back and grabs two straws, tapping out a tempo on the table.

"I've got the skills if you've got the time."

And in this particular case, where Jamie stops to be confused is right in front of the Crown of Thorns penthouse. The door of which opens, and out steps Artolo... almost right into the other guy.

"Whoa-" He backtracks, brow furrowing. He knows this guy. Not personally, but he's pretty sure this is one of the many pretty faces from Flashstep. He knows this because he knows Sora. "Uh. Hi. What the hell?"

Jamie blinks slowly and turns, just as slowly, to look at Artolo. He seems puzzled, although whether it's due to Artolo's words, his location, or the world in general is thus far unclear.

"Hhhhiii," he drawls, with a frown of intense concentration. "Um - did you..." He trails off, looks over his shoulder in confusion and then back at Artolo. "...where am I?"

...Oh. He's pretty sure he knows what this is.

"In front of our penthouse," he answers, which probably isn't the most helpful of responses. "Also, are you on drugs or something?" As far as Artolo's concerned, it's a legitimate question in Pride Records of all places.

It is an entirely reasonable question. Unfortunately, the actual cause of Jamie's befuddlement just isn't that simple.

"Drugs?" Jamie looks, if possible, even more bewildered by this suggestion. "I don't...think so." He frowns at the floor briefly, then back up at Artolo. "Am I?"

He stares into space for a minute or so, then suddenly says, "Wait - who are you?"

Okay, yep. "Yeah, you are," Artolo confirms, opening the door wider and encouraging Jamie inside. Casa del Haunted As Fuck probably isn't the best place for a guy who's clearly tripping, but whatever. Sora will probably be upset if Artolo lets him wander off and get hit by traffic or something.

"Artolo, Crown of Thorns, wassup."

The introduction doesn't seem to clarify anything for Jamie, who just nods and keeps looking sort of politely confused, but it also doesn't stop him from gamely stepping into the apartment. ~~Emotional alignments override any sense of personal preservation, apparently.~~

"I don't...normally do drugs, so...but maybe I took some by accident?" He looks at Artolo, suddenly chagrined. "Someone's gonna be upset I took their drugs. They were probably saving 'em for something special." This is a real dilemma.

With casual disregard for personal space- and the pang of pain in his side because stop moving Artolo you shit- he flings his arm around Jamie's shoulders and just guides him over to the television set. They'll find something mind numbing and distracting for this poor fucker yet.

"Sssshh, shhhh," he says with a lazy kind of comfort, which probably isn't that comforting at all. "You're with Pride, man. Whatever kind of drugs you accidentally took, they can probably find them again reaaaal easy in this place. There's a party every hour here, I swear to god, and they deal like freaks at those things."

"I...guess so." Jamie lets himself be led, glancing around the Crown of Thorns suite sort of distractedly, as though he still can't really figure out what he's doing here. He frowns deeply.

"Was...did I go to one of those parties? Like, I mean, if we were at the same party or something - not together, I mean, unless...have we met before? I can't remember." Hope you like disjointed rambling, Artolo, there's probably going to be a lot of it.

Honesty, with the assumption he's going under, Artolo would be surprised if there wasn't at least a little disjointed rambling. That, or seeing weird shit that isn't actually there around. Who knows what the kid took, right?

"Nah, don't think so," Artolo says idly as he helps shove Jamie onto the couch. "But I know your band. Actually, more like I know Sora and B. So I kinda know you by association."

He mouths the names under his breath, still looking profoundly confused, then shoots Artolo a guileless glance and a little shrug. "...well, okay. If you say so."

Perched on the sofa, he drums his hands against his knees a little and asks, "So what are we doing now?"

Staying? Not falling off from lack of balance or being amazed at sofas in general? Artolo considers this a success and gives a nod to himself before sitting down himself. Normally, he'd flop, but... side.

"We're gonna watching TV until you stop being high a little." The remote gets waggled in his hand. "What do you like to watch?" That'll distract him for a minute if he keeps going as he's been going, at least.

Jamie grins uncertainly at this and starts to answer, only to pause again as though this question has him stumped. His eyes dart for a moment or two as he considers and then says, with another shrug, "Uh - y'know, whatever. Anything's good."

He settles back into the couch a little more comfortably and looks around the living area of the penthouse again. "So do you live here alone?"

Jamie|Hope|Pride HQ

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