☆TRACK X: PLAY ALONG

[interdimanagers]

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.”

Comments

☆QUESTIONS

[interdimanagers]

For event specific questions, or even more general ones if you need to ask!

Agent J | DREAM PLEASE

[eba02]

It's been a rough few days, to say the least. Working in a coffee shop has its perks, but musical selection is no longer one of them. The new singles are so dang catchy and J hears them all multiple times a day on loop, depending on how long his shift is and whose turn it is to choose the music. He barely manages to stagger home on the day Layla, the local Predator fan on staff, chooses the playlist. As for the rest of the songs...he's starting to like them - to move to them - and that scares the hell out of him.

Knowing that Gold is gone, and knowing why Gold is gone, only makes it worse.

At work, his smile is forced and his peppy demeanor is just about gone - he's just trying to get through the day anymore. At home, he's surrounded by music: playing it from speakers, or wearing his headphones, or even humming when there's nothing else around. He doesn't look like he's enjoying it - not the way he usually does, at least; it's the best defense mechanism he has for getting the ugly, infectious new singles out of his head.

Dreaming

At least his dreams are a relief.

He's been dreaming of home more and more often - not the Alan Jackson favorite, not where he's from, because that hasn't been home in a good long time. He dreams of Los Angeles, of sunshine and traffic and fame - those who have it, those who seek it, and those who simply couldn't care less all singing together to create Music he knows and loves just as much as he does the city itself.

He dreams of the city at night, late, in the lull that occurs after the late theater shows have let out but before the bars close. He usually finds himself by the little hole-in-the-wall theater where nothing ever panned out for him, not that that ever kept him from trying. He's comfortable there, somehow, next to a relic from his past, from before he dropped the rest of the letters from his name, listening to the night ebb and flow.

It's quiet uptown. He's never liked the quiet before - not usually - but after living with the unimaginable in his waking life in Vista, it's a respite.

Superbia Squalo // ota // DREAM PLEASE // ???

[sharktrash]

-- p r o m p t s


► NEW SINGLES

[ The month had been pretty funny. While Squalo was pretty sure by now that he wasn't actually a musician, some part of him still insisted on creative perfectionism, not to mention that there were eyes and ears on them expecting to perform and he suspected testing the bosses' patience (again) was a bad idea right now. ]

[ So, yeah, he'll be contributing not one but a bunch of new songs to his band, some heavier than others, but he'll happily provide Superior Arrangement on anything the others might be bringing to the table. ]

[ He can't help but think how weird it is to have music come so easily to him. ]


► PANELS AND INTERVIEWS

[ Interviews are great. Appearing at panels to be worshipped is pretty great too. Being invited into several dozen talk shows as a guest is less so, especially when one of said shows turns out to be some weird mix of "An hour with celebrity" and "Dear Abby". Oh, he's still interviewed about ~*~WORLD TOUR~*~ for a good portion of the screen time, but then the show's host gleefully announces that it's time for the viewers to call in with their problems and questions and oh, maybe today's guest with an admirable career and an extensive love life will offer some excellent insights as well! ]

[ Are you a stranger in need of the worst advice ever given? A fellow musician? A troll (literally or figuratively)? Go on and pour your heart out! ]


► MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERS

[ Of course there'll be MANTICORE videos. But maybe the most surprising one? Squalo had shot a video with Xanxus and it's nearly as gay as that late night show at the "Variable". Meaning, most of it is Squalo playing, fighting (a lot of hours of choreography must've gone into that, right?), or walking ~down the road of life~ while Xanxus just occasionally shows up and chills in the background until at the end of the song, there are some lines addressed to him. Something about being captivated by his anger probably. The whole thing looks roughly similar to this. ]


► SIGNINGS AND PUBLIC APPEARANCES

[ Posters and CDs it is. And yeah, it's been a long day. So when thanks to some kind of miracle there's nobody asking Squalo to sign anything for at least thirty seconds, he just falls asleep in a blink. ]

[ Yeah, still sitting up, pen in hand, head rested on the table and his other arm, mouth gaping open and spewing a hellish, loud noise that sounds like it's been cultivated carefully through years of trial and error to be torturous. ]


-- d r e a m i n g s (pick your poison, dear NPCs)


► PAST REFLECTIONS

[ Now, various trash invading his spaces was nothing new both in life and in dreams. The vague memories and dreams suggest he'd usually cut them down and be done with it, but it's different this time. He's pretty sure the warehouse isn't his, and even though he's not exactly being stealthy while walking into it for some reason, he's not being jumped by a bunch of cretins. Yet. ]

[ They do when he reaches the middle, where a lone chair with chains is sitting. Several shadowy assailants that he easily skewers with -- a cello bow. What the fuck? ]

[ It goes through flesh easily like butter, more easily than he thinks a sword should, but he can't help but think he's seen those people somewhere before. The surroundings have shifted into a mass of colours and sounds, and he'll grab the one remaining figure to shove them into that chair. He's not sure where the bow went, but he's got a pocket knife in his hand now, and his voice sounds unfamiliar like someone else is talking for him. ]

Better start talking. Or do you want me to peel all this skin off your face?


► DEEP BLUE SEA (DREAMS ARE A FUNNY THING)

[ Water washes over him, and he feels alive. ]

[ Quickly, he pulls himself out of the warm shallow full of crabs, and rolls toward the dark water. Maybe it was a bad idea to go in for the easy dinner but hey, all's well that ends well, right? The ocean feels cool, and he happily dives in, enjoying the way the water gently tugs at his hair and brushes against his tail. ]

[ Oh yeah. He's kind of a shark from waist down. Long tail, two dicks and all. All of him silver in colour and a bit scaley. It feels surprisingly natural, though. ]

[ Sure enough, there's a bored looking shark nearby, and Squalo swims a circle around it before coming up near, wrapping one arm around it's back and grinning at it. What comes out of his mouth is some kind of bubbly, whistley incoherence, but the meaning's pretty clear. ]

Heeey, you're one hot piece of tail!

Greg Universe - Dream pls

[panspermia]

If you've had it on you mind to check any of the Defying Atmosphere fansites or forums, you've probably heard something about it: something feels different. It's just a recent shift, something the fans and public haven't quite been able to place quite yet, but it's unmistakably present.

Once the buzz kicks into high gear and the media buzz kicks in anyone can see it, clear as day. Mr. Universe, lead and bassist for Defying Atmosphere, has completely changed.

A - All Go For Launch - Open to bandmates

When it's time to perform, he sets down his demands for how this show's going to go; there's none of his usual collaborative friendliness. He's going to take center stage for this one. If you've got a problem with that, you'll have to take it up with him after the show, because he's not budging.

"We're blind and eager
Avarice will set us back to blank
Those who wager all will have to name a reason
If you can't let go, you will end up empty handed
If you can't control, you'll live your life in vain

Who decides about my time to come?
Who is able to break through the circle of life and doom?
Don't look back
Keep on track to break the curse
Take the chance
Design your universe"

And besides, why would you complain? The audience positively eats up ever moment he's under the spotlight. He is the star, and their attention makes him shine. Heck, if everyone didn't know it was the stage lights, you might think he was glowing all by himself.

B - Progress vs. Pettiness - Open to Pride and Virgo Musicians

Interviewers quickly take note, needling eagerly for tidbits and quotes. He slouches in chairs, charming and disheveled as ever, but his hands are always tense, eyes sharp. Always smirking.

"I'm starting to take my career more seriously, now. You know?" He spreads his hands. "You ever think about how vast the cosmos really is? Big and wide enough for literally anything to be possible. But the only way you'll ever find what you want is to take it," his hands clench for emphasis, grin sharpening, "one star at a time. You can't stop, not for one second, until the whole universe is yours."

All blurbs and interviews are full of metaphors and decrees of this nature. How invigorating, say the papers, how inspiring! What drive, what determination!

He never brings up his bandmates, or any fellow musicians at all. Questions about them are shrugged off as quickly as possible, and mentions of Pride are met with a mocking grin, directed right to the camera. He's challenging you.

C - Galaxy Detour - Open to All

If one thing remains the same, it's Mr. Universe's zeal for public meetings. He'll gladly pose for photos and sign as many autographs as needed. Yet even this holds a different aura. The playful banter with fans involves less thank-yous and more bragging. The bright laughter sounds more like mocking chuckles, the beaming smiles look closer to knowing sneers. There's no more gratitude, only affirmation of what he already knows.

Of course you're here to see him. He's the star, and you're in his orbit. Come and bask in the light.

D - Don't Overheat On Me - Open to All

Every now and then, Mr. Universe needs to excuse himself. It comes at random moments: while eating, or in the middle of practicing instruments, or thirty seconds before autographs are actually supposed to get cut off. He'll walk off, not turning back for anything.

Looking like a diva is no concern to him. What he can't abide is the media catching sight of weakness. He feels that first twinge in the gut, a pang of something he can't quite place, and it sets his hands shaking. It always passes quickly, but not fast enough, and he hates it. Sometimes he retches, just to try and get the feeling out of his chest, but it never seems to help. Muttering curses at his hands does nothing to steady them.

What works best is when he gets himself someplace outside, where he can see the sky, breathe the air. Where there shouldn't be anyone around to see.

E - It's Only Chemical - DREAM

Dreams have become hazy and feverish. In all directions, landscapes waver in the distance: debris-strewn beaches, glowing spires piercing high to the clouds, barren craters flashing with lightning, a humble and broken down barn.

There's no way to tell how far away he is from any of the landmarks. All warp as though seen through a heat mirage, and are shrouded by the pinkish fog that swirls around him. A thin bubble is all that protects him from the choking mist, yet his chest already feels tight and strained from trying to breathe. He can't stay here, he needs to pick a direction and go, but still he dithers with labored breathing. They're not safe, none of those places will protect anything. But he won't suffocate there. Is that what matters right now?

There's not a lot of air left.

D - I WANNA RUIN OUR FRIENDSHIIIP

[exhumerus]

There are autographs happening, but Sans doesn't get too close. He doesn't dare risk it. There are a million different anxieties swirling in the space in between him an Greg, and in reality there is no way Sans is fit to be handling anything like this at all. He's too weak and too scared.

But something has happened to Greg, and he knows that much for certain. He's been listening to Defying Atmosphere's new track, hoping that their new angle will start sounding anything like his friend, but it doesn't. He can't stop thinking about it. He doesn't know what happened, but he's had a taste of so many things that could have.

For most of the appearance, it seems like Sans is going to end up just watching and then going home. Words are failing him, and his heart is too. It isn't until Greg cuts out early that Sans sees an opportunity he can't turn down.

He appears near where Greg has gone off too, his face partly concealed with a scarf and hood but no longer changed by a holo projector. He steps into sight, still limping with the damage caused to his right leg, and then freezes, staring.

He's got nothing.

Terry | OTA | DREAM PLEASE

[traumatizing]

INTERVIEWS

[This has always been his least favourite part of the whole fame thing. People ask questions he doesn't give a shit about and he has to pretend to care. When there were more of them, he could hide behind the others, let Nariko and Garnet take point and only chime in when necessary.]

[This time there's no hiding behind the others, and more than that, most of the questions that aren't about the tour are about Garnet. Terry manages to feign excitement about her solo success for the most part, and he's 100% honest when talking about how great her music is but.]

[God does he not want to be here.]

SIGNINGS

[With how intense everything has been, dealing with fans is kind of a relief. They're intense and occasionally overwhelming, but at least they're as close to genuine as anyone gets in this place.]

[He sits diligently at the long table, greeting each fan with a tired smile. He's sort of operating on auto-pilot, "hey, great to meet you" "enjoying the new stuff?" "thank you so much for your support." And then on to the next person, the same thing again. Anything beyond the standard would probably jolt him right out of his automatic responses, but it hasn't happened yet.]

DREAMING

[Lunch break? More like nap break.]

[He's gotten pretty used to weird dreams at this point, and this is no exception. It's pretty mundane by normal standards, but he's still piecing all this together in his waking life. The grey halls of the Initiative. Grey and lifeless, cold and empty. Terry wanders the halls, looking for... He doesn't know what. Somebody else, probably.]

[He ends up in the training room, but there's not much there. A big, open space with nobody there except a deactivated training robot. He looks up at the observation deck, and spreads his arms open.]

Anyone here? [He can't help feeling a weight of expectation, but there's no one here he can see.] What do you want?

[eba02]

Do the new singles affect people's tunes? Signs of brainwashing, etc?

[interdimanagers]

Sorrrt of, yes, but it's subtle. It probably depends on just HOW effected they are being. It will definitely show up in the escaped musicians in a way J can easily comprehend, but with random people and rescuers just listening to the music, the effect won't really show up until they are already getting a bit down and dirty.

[eba02]

So essentially, with the exception of escaped musicians, he won't be able to hear it until it's almost too late.

[interdimanagers]

Essentially yes, that is the predicament. Though I imagine after he's discovered that it's a thing, it will be easier to spot the warning signs because he knows what to look for.

[sponsorigami]

Ivan has had his tune fixed by J and gotten dosed with Gold's powder and is an escape musician. I am not sure at all what level of affected he's at with all three in play.

Also, if your character (read: 3) always wears headphones outside, often playing her music from back home, how much does the underlying brainwashing still happen?

[interdimanagers]

The powder only really affects him in regards to the Predator dreams, so you needn't worry about it besides that. The escaped musician part will still effect him, but less so depending on how much of his brainwashing is left.

And if 3 doesn't hear the music enough to really comprehend it as music, it won't affect her at all! You have to be able to hear it enough to recognize its catchiness, etc.

[sponsorigami]

That helps me out a lot. Thank you!

HERE WE GO

[panspermia]

Sans will be hard pressed to decide if his freezing in place is to his advantage or not. Without the sound of anyone approaching to tip him off, Mr. Universe continues snarling and retching air for a good twenty seconds before he catches sight of the figure nearby. He whips around eyes wild and furious.

Seeing who's there doesn't help. That sick pang in his chest gets worse, and he wants to throw up.

"You."

YOUR ONLY APPROPRIATE ICON NOW

[exhumerus]

Well, that's usually not a good first thing for someone to say to you. Sans sinks at the shoulders nervously, sweating a little under his hood. The last he remembers of Greg, he was taking his hand with that familiar, stupid look on his face. Sans had barely known his coccyx from his cervicals at the time, but it had been purely compassionate.

But maybe that was before he'd been caught. That was a week ago, at least. A lot can happen in a week, and the idea of it terrifies Sans down to his core.

"Greg, I gotta get you outta here. Now."

[panspermia]

Mr. Universe bares his teeth. "This again." If he didn't accept the chance to leave before, there's no chance in hell he's going with the idea now.

He should take him out right now. This is a hand-picked moment to bring in the... the traitor. That's what he is. Except... Greg's the one who got him out of there in the first place, isn't he? So then, that's... that's not Sans' fault... but he's still working against Virgo. So the two of them are...?

The internal battle doesn't show on Mr. Universe's face, but his hands are shaking badly. He jabs one finger at the skeleton, his grimace equal parts anger and effort to keep the motion steady.

"I'm not going to warn you again. We're not on the same team anymore. Don't come to me expecting to get all buddy-buddy again, because I'm not making a habit of that anymore.

[exhumerus]

Okay, that's just fucked up to look at. Sans grimaces, in the sense that his grinning teeth are more droopy looking than usual. Part of him is screaming that he needs to run, and immediately, and for more than one reason. He doesn't know how much more of this he can take.

What happened, here? Even with everything that had happened to Sans in the Virgo labs...it still came away from it more like himself than this.

"The hell is that supposed to mean?" Sans asks bruskly, tucking his neck further down into his scarf. "What did they even do to you, man?"

[panspermia]

"Do I have to spell it out for you?" He shakes his head, without taking his eyes off of Sans. Unbelievable. How did he think this was gonna go, huh?

"What they did to me was make me famous. I'm not going to give any of this up."

Literal sparks start flying off him. He's not afraid to use his magic anymore. This is his. This is the power he's earned.

"Don't mistake me for someone like you."

[exhumerus]

Sans stares at Greg like a surrealist painting. This shit just doesn't compute. This isn't character development, it's just a total turn out of nowhere. Like two different people with the same face.

The core of Sans's being aches at that idea, right around his chest. The feeling betrayal is so familiar, and so cold. But this can't really be Greg's fault, can it?

"Oh yeah? And what kind of person is that?"

[panspermia]

His eyes narrow, and he sneers back at Sans.

"A quitter."

[exhumerus]

Ba dum tch.

That one needed a drum roll.

Considering how badly he'd wanted to quit everything, up to and including his own life, and not that long ago...that statement rings too true for him to even be offended. But still, that's more or less a surgical strike for his own feelings of self loathing - and ones that Greg knows. Part of Sans is already pulling back, coiling into himself more tightly, and eager to detach himself from this before its too late.

But, despite everything, Sans is still here.

"Hehehe...fair enough. Funny you should say that, though." He shrugs his shoulders. "With how I'm still standin' here and all."

[panspermia]

"Yeah. Weird." The smirk doesn't flicker or fade. "I think I gave you the wrong idea. Maybe you're expecting something out of me still." It makes sense. He was a pushover, before.

Those little sparks start gathering together into tiny, white-hot spheres, glittering and glimmering around him. "So let me make it clear: when I said that was your last warning, I meant it."

Think fast, Sans. Faster than those shooting stars.

[exhumerus]

Well, if there is one thing Sans is good at it's avoiding things. He reflexively teleports out of the way of Greg admittedly shocking strike - straight up attacking him is not something Sans was expecting, even with Greg acting so unreal.

The betrayal is there on his face when he reappears, for a solid moment before it shifts into his own biting sneer.

"Your a lover, not a fighter, Greg. Still can't aim for shit."

[panspermia]

Something about those words rankle Mr. Universe. The pang in his chest turns burning. Starlight burns brighterin defiance.

"Then I won't bother."

The lights sizzle through the air in a scattershot. He can't dodge forever.

Aramat Drawdes | OTA

[scalpedsociety]

01: PANELS AND INTERVIEWS | places, places, get in your places/throw on your dress and put on your doll faces

[If Aramat knows anything aside from music, it's how to cultivate a sweet, personable persona from the media. So as she makes the media blitz for the 'world tour, she gladly takes every question no matter how repetitive or stupid or outright rude with the grace and charm of a lady. Never let them know that you are pulled almost to your limit. Right now the interviewer is taking questions from the crowd.

What do you, an NPC or a rescuer that want to ask questions have to say to Datura?]

02: MUSIC VIDEO PREMIERS | did the things you thought you should/all the things they said were good

[Dressed to be every ounce of the dark flower goddess she is for the new music video for Crown of Thorns newest single: 'Grace And Its Consequences'. It's a slow song, with a unique vaudeville stage theme with it's hint of darkness. It's a miracle they even got this video done, but it's nice. It even has cameo's from other artists in Pride. She looks proud of her bands work.

We said she looks it.]

03: SIGNINGS AND PUBLIC APPEARANCES | and you think of tearful partings/when they left you here below

[She tried, she really did. But she signed and signed. CD's and posters, all come at her quickly and without any though that she was tired. Soon her eyes start to lower... and her movements get more and more sluggish. Then she falls asleep, pen in hand.]