interstellar5555 | ☆TRACK X: PLAY ALONG

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☆TRACK X: PLAY ALONG

Who: Everyone!
What: Vista City amps up for Pride and Virgo's WORLD TOUR with HYPE WEEK.
When: May 1st - May 5th 2055
Where: Various places in Vista City
Warnings: Could be anything.

“Try to make it look like it's all somehow getting better,
'Cause I know how to play it pretty good against the measure.
Everyone started out a little insane,
But we learn pretty quick how to fake it for the game.”

☆PLAY ALONG

Hype Week is less an official label event, and more something that the media has created in response to a particularly odd situation. Pride and Virgo appear to be functioning in unison - launching separate world tours on practically the same date, launching vast quantities of new material and media events, and making a point of never mentioning or acknowledging the actions of the other. Could this be some kind of collaborative event? A viral marketing campaign? No one is really sure, but the local economy is happy to capitalize on it in order to make it as big of a city-wide ordeal as possible.

For musicians, this means all kinds of event that they have to attend and cooperate with - everything from photo shoots, to signing, to music video premiers. For rescuers, this means one last opportunity to track down those still trapped before they are whisked away on a world spanning journey. Events that will be happening:

► NEW SINGLES: Hot new singles are getting released by bands all over the place. While actual concerts and performances are not actually happening much during the hype period, each band is probably releasing at least one new single and hyping it all to hell with one song performances here and there on TV and the like. You can have fun defining that single for your band, or leave it ambiguous! Up to you.

► PANELS AND INTERVIEWS: Musicians will get carted all over to various talk shows and public question panel events - a lot of questions will be asked about the World Tour and its specifics, of which the musicians themselves seem to know very little. This goes for the veterans as much as it does the fledglings.

► MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERS: In which a bunch of fancy music people go to fancy theaters and watch all the new music videos for the new singles, and then write articles about this. This is also something you are welcome to create specifics for.

► SIGNINGS AND PUBLIC APPEARANCES: While many of the veterans and doing things like autobiographical books signings and what not, the newer musicians are more likely to just be signing millions of World Tour specific posters and CD releases. Its quite likely that they are going to be totally run down after all these appearances and preparations - try to stay awake at the table!

► WORLD TOUR PREMIER: This will be covered in a second log a few days from now. For now, the musicians are just being prepped for a music festival to end all music festivals, that will start May 5th and cover the entire weekend. They've been practicing rigorously all month - they'll have to hope they have the stamina to make it to the actual performance.

All the while, Gold and Silver have been mysteriously absent. Silver has been here and there, handing out supplies and necessary tech, but guidance for rescuers has been minimal. Gold hasn't been seen at all.

Part way into the week, at least, Shep will return with a new batch of rescuers, just in time for the premier! New musicians and band combinations will slowly be announced over this week as well, with some of them being saved for the premier festival itself. That is, any OOC changes made to bands and last minute new members are going to get announced like they are big exciting unveilings, because spin doctoring is what the labels do!

☆SINGULARITY

Everyone hearing the new singles will be able to tell that they seem especially ear wormy - extra hip, extra catchy, like the best examples of each bands radio popularity. Rescuers in particular, though, will notice something sort of strange about them. It's more than just song being catchy. People who are not musicians themselves will find themselves being unnaturally charmed by them, as if each time they hear these singles they are being slowly brainwashed into becoming more and more fixated on the artists performing.

Of course, this can be stopped by just not listening to them for a few days, but it's hard to avoid when pretty much every public location has been playing these singles non stop. Along with this effect, there are some particulars:

► PREDATOR DREAMS: The Pride band Predator is the same as the others, in that it has a particularly intrusive single that's just been introduced. There is one difference. It may take a while to notice, but it can be noted that one starts to feel somewhat tired and dazed after listening to it repeatedly, like they are somehow drained. The single is called The Spaces In Between and it is somewhat unusual that Cass, the member who usually primarily focuses on instrumentals and back up singing, is now performing lead.

If your character hears this song several times, they may suffer some weird DREAMS - especially if they received a dose of Gold's magic powder in the Better To Pretend event. If you'd like to receive a dream, please write "DREAM PLEASE" in your subject line, along with a written section describing an instance of your character having regular dreams that I can manipulate. Anywhere else and I might miss it.

► ESCAPED MUSICIANS: Musicians that have escaped and are now in hiding will find themselves particularly mentally manipulated by the singles released by their home label. They will find their minds unusually filled with thoughts of returning to their labels, as well as increased paranoia about being caught. Any remaining programming will be particularly triggered and brought to the surface. They'll be able to push it down with self control and assistance from other characters, but the thoughts will become more invasive the more they listen to it.

“'Cause everybody's so scared,
We don't wanna go there. 
We don't wanna make a move,
We got all our lives to lose.
Screaming in the dark while we just play our part out.

I play along, 
Like I don't know what's going on.”

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Shin laughs, "Especially if Stella doesn't find out. She's all about being constantly active." He rolls his eyes, "Maybe that's why I've got so much energy still."

Marty smiles, turning the corner of the street. The glorious fast food restaurant stood there, shining in all its glory. He keeps his hands in his pockets, shrugging. "What Stella doesn't know won't hurt her, right? It's not like some french fries and a burger's gonna kill your diet, anyway."

When they approach the doors, he opens it and holds it. "Right?"

"I think it'll just improve it," he smirks as he enters.

"Besides, I think Stella's gotten used to me causing trouble for her." No, really, he's sat through quite a few lectures, but never for something worth her true wrath, thank the stars.

"You gotta have a troublemaker in every band." Marty couldn't exactly name who it would be in Defying Atmosphere. Maybe Greg. "It's kinda boring without one, right? Usually the guys who get into trouble all the time make it interesting though." That could be seen as a good or bad thing, though...especially with the paparazzi being as they were.

He approaches the counter, only taking a second to eye the menu. "I think I'm getting a Big Muck." He looked over. "What 'bout you?"

"I like the Baconadoes," he says, leaning on the counter.

He looks to his new friend, "Someone has to keep her on her toes. Roxas is too mild, and" he rolls his eyes, "the rest of the band is complete shit in comparison. They're passable, but barely."

Marty winced when he heard the state of the band. When it came to drama or bandmates being absolutely terrible, Defying Atmosphere never had that problem. Sure, there was drama once or twice but it was to be expected. Not often.

He gives a sympathetic look. "That sucks." Marty looks down to his feet under the table. "One of our band members went missin' not too long ago. Don't know what happened to her."

Actually, he does. But he's not gonna say.

That's the problem when most of your band has gone missing. They need replacements for Shin's kind of music. "Everyone but Roxas did the same a month or two ago. I don't think Virgo even tried to get people above passable. They're probably desperate to have a full band for the Tour," he says as he shakes his head.

Shin knows. Shin gives him a knowing look and then a glance towards their bodyguards as they hover not too far away. He's playing it smooth for them, all attitude, but when he turns his face away from the guards he looks a little scared. He quickly hides that look and goes back to relaxing.

"Jesus, they're gone from your band, too?" How many musicians from all over were leaving? It was scary; Rarity left because she said people here were brainwashed. Virgo didn't care, the whole city didn't care. A part of him wanted to ignore this, because look where they all were! Every band was living in luxury. There were fans all over. Nobody got the treatment they were getting.

But then again, look what happened when him and the group he joined went after the ghosts. Marty can still remember what they were all put through. And how by simply bending his wrist the wrong way, a broken bone almost ended his career. They told him that if they messed it up just a little more, they would.

The look Shin gives him makes Marty feel a little better; maybe he knows too? He has to.

He leans in, enough so the guards nearby don't hear. "D'you want them gone? It's kind hard to talk with them breathin' down our necks."

Shin rolls his eyes, "Of fucking course. I don't need a babysitter."

He glances to the guards, and smiles. "Mine's been getting better at catching me though."

Marty looked up to the guard and gave an innocent smile. "We gotta run for the hills or somethin'. Sneak our way on a taxi."

He shrugs, tilting his head off to the side. "We might get in trouble but I honestly don't give a shit. I'm tired of bein' followed around like a kid."

Shin grins. He's got a terrible idea. Not as bad as Squalo's first time meeting Shin, but probably not a lot safer. Then again, Shin hasn't died trying to do it yet. "When we finish eating, follow my lead."

Ooh, this could get interesting. "Gotcha."

Marty's sure to quickly wolf down his food, chugging down his drink without a second thought. Hopefully he doesn't get carsick, or whatever. "Ready when you are."

Shin finishes as well and casually tosses his food. As usual he ignores the guards as he walks out of the restaurant. He's totally casual as they walk back towards the club, lighting up a smoke outside of the place.

He waits for someone to show up on a motorcycle. Plenty did, considering traffic and how cool motorcycles look. He didn't need to wait too long, and once a dude rides up Shin pulls Marty forward and he pushes the Valet aside. He slugs the owner and hops onto the bike, "Get on." He pulls at Marty to encourage to get him on.

So, he's not the most creative. He's mimicking Squalo, but hell, he'd been craving the rush from the first night. He felt like he needed it. Something to feel alive so he could forget about the feeling of emptiness plaguing him.

After Shin finishes, they take their leave and start outside. And they just...walk.

Marty doesn't know what's going on, but the more they get down the street, the more he's convinced that Shin doesn't want to do anything. Or at least get into trouble. That he can understand fine; the guards are a little on the scary side and it's kind of late. The last few hours have been absolutely exhausting. He isn't expecting anything to happen when the motorcycle pulls up beside them, about as innocent as it can be.

He stumbles when Shin drags him forward, pushes the Valet aside, and punches the owner off of his bike. From then on his jaw is dragging on the ground as he hops on from behind.

"You, you just...!" Marty turns around to see the guards rushing to them, about as flabbergasted as they both could possibly be. But a grin curls his lips, and he leans forward. "Let's get the hell outta here!"

Shin takes the bike into a sharp turn that threatens to drop them on the pavement as he spins the bike into the opposite direction. He's shouting and hooting as they fly past other vehicles, earning countless horns blaring and angry shouts. He leans close to the bike so that his eyes are shielded by the short windshield, and maybe adding to the aerodynamics of the bike.

He takes it to one of the highways that cuts through Vista City, revs the engine and shouts "Hold on!" before finding out just how fast it is this bike can go.

Marty couldn't ever say he was truly a daredevil, but this was amazing. Cars were beeping, fingers were flying. Hell, did the people around them even know who was driving by? Through his whooping, Marty looks back to see the guards way behind them. Probably calling to get the CIA involved, or something along those lines.

He grips onto Shin as best as he could, squinting as the wind bites against his face. It leaves him kind of breathless, but either way Marty finds himself yelling like a maniac, especially when the driver floors it. "Keep going!"

This was a pretty damn good way to end the day.

Shin keeps going down the dividing line between the passing lane and the middle lane. He is going at stupid speeds, to the point where one pebble in just the wrong place could send them flying to their death.

But he keeps going.

Until a car cuts them off.

Shin swerves, nearly knocking them off to one side, but somehow manages to recover and go across three lanes of traffic, cars stopping and blaring horns. Fortunately it's late enough there aren't many people on the road, so the crashes that do happen are only after a significant amount of speed. If Marty looks back, he'll notice that it seems like no one is too hurt.

The bike complains as they weave back across the highway, losing speed as Shin tries to gain control of the vehicle again. He's laughing like a mad man, though something in the bike's engine isn't working quite right and it grinds and keeps slowing. It managed to clip the ground when they avoided the crash.

They clip a ditch and the bike loses complete control. Shin curses and grabs Marty's arm as he bails, making sure the guy gets off with him. The bike slams into a tree and crumples with a horrific crunching sound.

Marty doesn't really understand their situation at first, not until the first car cuts them off. He's too busy being blinded by the adrenalin rush, the fact that they're going way too fast, and there's probably cops or something on the lookout for the both of them and he doesn't have a care in the world.

He's too surprised to scream when Shin swerves, but he digs into his jacket with an iron grip. His stomach lurches, and a grip of panic grips him so tightly, he's okay with them just pulling over and getting in trouble. This was fun yeah, but he doesn't want this to end with them being buried in graves.

For a while after that incident, Marty can breathe...until the engine starts acting up.

This time he does yell when the bike clips a nearby ditch; he yells loud enough he's sure whoever's looking for them can find them by the noise he makes. Something yanks him to the side hard, enough to make him topple off of the bike and down onto the ground.

Marty feels himself rolling head over heels and acquiring a bunch of new scratches and bruises, until he finally rolls to a stop. He needs to make sure Shin's okay, but he's kind of dizzy. Really, really dizzy. "Sh-Shin?"

Shin is fine, somehow. He doesn't answer so much as start laughing in delight. He's got some twigs in his hair and a small cut on his cheek, but it doesn't look like he's seriously injured. He sprawls out in the dirt and the fallen leaves left from the last autumn.

Life choices. Marty might want to reconsider his.

Shin definitely needs to.

There's a stunned silence from Marty when he hears Shin laughing. Is he hearing it wrong? Maybe he's hurt so bad, he's laughing. Because there's no way they can both be intact after a stunt like this.

But Marty smiles. A smile brings a chuckle, which then summons a laughing fit so bad, his stomach starts to hurt. Being in a band was fun and all, but it was stuff like jumping off of a bike that seemed to make life...real. As stupid as that would sound if he ever told anybody about it.

When he can finally breathe, Marty's gotta ask. "Where, where the hell's the bike?"

Shin wouldn't think it was stupid. He's the one that dragged him along for that exact reason.

Shin sits up and points to a nearby tree, which the bike is wrapped around. Wrapped around.

He then takes out a cigarette, licks the tip and dips it in a bag of white powder. It wasn't even enough for a line left in there, but like hell he would let it go to waste. "Want to really feel alive?"

Marty looks up to see the motorcycle literally wrapped around the tree. His laugh slowly dies down, and so does his smile. That could have been them for all he knew. Their bodies could have been lying on the ground, broken in a million pieces that could never be put back together. They could be vegetables for all he knew.

His brow furrows when Shin digs out a cigarette, especially when he notes that he dips it in white powder. That certainly wasn't weed. Or something you usually added in with your smokes. "Have you been high this whole time?"

The offer is...tempting. He's heard about drugs and what the high is like. But at the same time, he knows damn well about the fall. And the addiction. And the damages it could do. Shit, cigarettes were bad enough. He wrinkles his nose, and shakes his head. Marty doesn't know Shin much at all, but he can't help but feel a little disappointed. "No thanks."

Shin raises a brow when he's asked if he's been high this whole time, but skims past it. Instead he pushes, "you sure? It's fucking amazing." He's not going to push any further than this, and he's not really going to judge Marty either. He knows how stupid it is to be doing this crap. He knows he shouldn't even be pushing this on someone else, but maybe if it's not just him it would make it more okay.

Marty takes notice of how Shin doesn't answer that question. "Y-Yeah. I'm sure." He shakes his head, and tries to crack the best smile he can. "Thanks though."

In a way, he shouldn't judge; it was kind of stupid whether you were sober or not. It still leaves a sour taste in his mouth, though. At least Shin wasn't being pushy about it. That Marty was thankful for, at least.

"Guess we should call someone about that." He points to the trashed bike, grimacing. Once upon a time, that was some guy's bike. "We're gonna get in trouble..."

Shin drops it there. He stands up and starts walking towards the treeline, "If you want to get arrested you could call. There's probably people on the way already."

He nods for Marty to follow him, "This comes out on a side street, I think." He points to a few points of light that look like street lamps. "We can get a taxi back from there."

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

☆TRACK X: PLAY ALONG

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now... does he use his motorcycle or steal one

marty will probably shit himself either way! |D

Ahhahaha, I should apologize, buuuuuuut ;D

YES GOD THIS IS BEAUTIFUL

Dem should get the credit. Shin is such a copy-cat

the both are you are amazing for this

:D

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if he gets called a chicken this will get pretty dang interesting

Shin's too nice though

shin is a sweetheart

He really is