interstellar5555 | ☆TRACK IV: COME TOO FAR

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☆TRACK IV: COME TOO FAR

Who: Everyone!
What: Something explodes in the distance. In a figurative sense.
When: November 6th.
Where: Anywhere you are.
Warnings: ???

“Like the legend of the Phoenix,
All ends with beginnings,
What keeps the planets spinning,
The force from the beginning.”

☆COME TOO FAR

On November 6th, the sudden lockdown of Pride Records and Virgo Entertainment finally ends. But not before some unseen actions have their consequences.

Due to the nature of the conflict, none of you can be there to see it, but that doesn't mean it can't be felt. In the morning of the 6th, something cries out to you spiritually - like the voice of a guardian angel, or a haunting ghost. Something, somewhere, is calling on you for aid. Pleading for you to lend it your power.

Whether or not you consciously agree, you'll feel a connection stronger than anything you've felt up till this point, like whatever this creature is is somehow in the room with you, or maybe like you're with it. What happens next depends on your alignment.

► LOVE & HOPE: All at once, characters with these alignments will feel as if they have taken a deep, spiritual blow - much like having someone clasp their hand around your "soul" and attempt to snuff it out. The attack itself will be brutal but brief. It's the after effects that linger, which may be any of the following:

1) Lingering spiritual pain that triggers symptoms akin to a fever in the body. It may also trigger effects such as nosebleeds and other signs of intense stress.

2) Forgetting everything except the memories you've regained.

3) A feeling of being desperately alone. How your character reacts to this feeling can vary, but the most common response will be seeking comfort from anyone nearby, even if you are not usually the sort of person to do that.

These effects will last from anywhere as short at 15 minutes to as long as 5 hours. You can pick more than one of these effects for a character, but try to balance the potency of each if you take more than one, so you aren't completely kicking the shit out of them. Vestiges of these effects can linger throughout the rest of the day, but in a significantly reduced capacity.

► DUTY & PASSION: All at once, characters with these alignments will feel an intense sense of fear and grief, as if they have lost something extremely precious to them. Generally speaking, this will manifest as a sort of panic or desperation to save whatever that thing is - but not being entirely clear on where they have to go or what they have to do to accomplish it. This can very well trigger some brash and irrational actions as they sort out this abrupt feeling of urgency.

1) Soon after the feeling begins, affected characters will feel empathically drawn to the characters suffering from the effects listed for Hope & Love, even if they are not normally the sort to be so concerned for others. This can go as far as having them be aggressively protective to the point that they will conflict with each other over it.

2) Along with that feeling of being drawn to protect them, all characters will feel an intensified kinship with all the other player characters - from both labels. This feeling of kinship won't cause them to know anything more about each other than they did before, but it will cause them to feel like much closer friends than they actually are.

These effects will last from anywhere as short at 15 minutes to as long as 5 hours. After that period has ended, all these empathetic effects will fade off on their own.

Any network posts made in the chaos will be deleted by the execs after the 5 hours period has closed, if not sooner. By the end of the day, Lesedi Santiago and Edward Blanche will announce their return, and bans from leaving HQ will be lifted.

They will not acknowledge the events of the morning unless someone goes to ask them about it.

“We've come too far 
to give up who we are.
So, let's raise the bar 
and our cups to the stars.”

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A) Sick

[Compared to several others Doctor had been lucky enough to escape the dizzying side effects of regaining memories over the past few days. It seemed his luck had run out though. When the blow first hit him he had dropped to his knees clutching at his chest. He wondered if he was having a heart attack, the way his heart banged in his chest faster than what should have been possible. A moment later, though it felt like it lasted forever, the pain subsided, leaving him panting for breath.

Eventually he continued his day as normally as possible but as he made his way around the HQ throughout the day- the kitchen, the halls, the practice room, the lounge- the fatigue would return for a time, leaving him stumbling and sweating.]

B) Forgetful

[A cardboard box large enough to fit a refrigerator in it stands in the hallway near the Flowers Over Bones penthouse entrance. The outside has been scribbled on in blue marker and POLICE BOX has been written at the top of it. If one stops to look long enough they might notice the box thump occasionally and a low murmuring voice from inside. Here and there, the recording of a dog barking plays.]

I don't understand, I don't understand... [The voice inside murmurs.]

C) Wildcard! Surprise me.

☆COMMON AREAS
Tiger had gotten a surprisingly early start that day, springing awake with a shadow of alarm he’d woken with a day previous – his first day back after...being gone. He didn’t have any words to put to it, and he didn’t really want to. Any thought in the direction of the place he’d been filled him with a deep sense of dread.

He felt weird. Like his head had been shuffled all around. He barely remembers why it happened in the first place.

He wanted to get out of the penthouse soon after waking. They weren’t allowed to leave, he knew that much, and he couldn’t even muster the strength to be resentful of that fact now. That’s fine, he said to himself. It was out of his hands.

It’s due to some strange feeling of restlessness that he’s out and about the common Pride areas, maybe planning on trying to find food somewhere that he can eat alone. Instead, it just means he is out in public when he gets hit by the spiritual whammy.

He falls down, his head swimming and his chest aching. Suddenly...he can’t remember where he is. Or why. In fact, he can remember very little about who he is at all.

He just realizes one thing, very strongly: that he wants to find his dad.

☆THE PENTHOUSE
Kido gets him back to the penthouse at some point, and despite not even recognizing her, he trusts her somehow. Way more than he ever has with his full memories. It’s kind of weird, how different he acts like this – so much younger and less aggressive.

All he wants to do is attain some level of comfort , his heart still aching terribly from whatever attacked them. It has his head swimming with heat, and for the moment he’s just going to curl up in whatever defensive fort monstrosity we’ve got going on here.

☆CELL PHONE
You can call or text him, too, that’s a thing.

[She's bleeding. Her nose is bleeding even as the hotness of her body seems to consume her. It hurts. It hurts so much, she drops her pen as she works. Stumbles around as she looks, first in her room, then the penthouse, then...just the building.

This pain, this horrible pain. This cry for help. It sounds so familiar. If only she could figure out who its from.]

A. Common Areas

For all of Greg's restlessness the last few days, he'd found that one advantage to this lockdown was the option to sleep in. Rest was a limited commodity with their lifestyle, and he appreciated it where he could get it.

One might find it strange to see him up so early. Perhaps that was why he looked so tired: leaning on the wall for support, staggering down the hall, hazy look in his eye, sweaty and shaking. ...Maybe that last bit didn't have to do with being tired. Progress was slow, but he was a man with a mission. He had to keep moving.

B. Penthouse

He put up a fight to going back, but not much of one. The fever had begun to fade, but there was a weariness to his attitude beyond the bout of illness. He couldn't remember where he was, or who these people were, or much of anything at this point.

There was one thing he was sure of, though; he needed to find his family. They're all he had. Please, please help him find them.

C. Cell Phone

Call the man.

Edited 2015-11-09 18:44 (UTC)

1 - Torture
[The dreams had been troubling but after the whole mess in the basement of the building, Ankh decided that he could not tell anyone about them. Which was good and fine even though he knew that someone would soon find out about the stupid online searches and call him out. After all, how many rockers had a keen interest in alchemy and the concepts of desire? Especially one that was working in a pop rock band?

But he can explain it away, and even have a melody to use for a song basis. It was just the other stuff that he was having problems with, like the urge to fly and the almost physical need for anything red. But that was good too. He can explain it all. Even the dreams about the king, the murderous rage that form put him in, and even the sound of coins only he could hear. He can deal with it.

Then came the blow deep within, the feeling of something needed getting ripped out. Ankh could taste blood on his lips, feel the pounding of his heart, hear the cracking of a coin.]

My Core....

2 - Hall of the Mountain King
[Ankh had found his way down to the museum and was presently in the old European castle area. For a long moment he will stand behind a suit of armor, just staring at it and then he attempts to hit it but for some reason he keeps on missing. Either he stops before fully hitting it and shakes his head, or he jumps back, crouching down with his back arching and his arms open like either he expected them to turn into wings so he can fly.

All the while, he is muttering in an anarchic version of German. For anyone that might know the language it almost sounds like he was talking about how to get some kind of medal back from the king.]

Wildcard - Time Judged All
[So there is a blond guitarist trying t build a kind of cozy nest in the center of the common area. He has dragged a bunch of cushions off of various chairs and sofas, taken a bunch of sheets and blankets off of whatever beds he could find (even a few from linen closets he could access), and then filled up the lacking spots with pillows and bean bags and anything else that is comfy and warm and soft.

He is also a sobbing mess but denies that when anyone tries talking to him. Unless they are of the Duty/Passion groups and then he will just cling and tell them to shut up.]

1.

Fear, panic, grief -- Meril rarely felt any emotions with great intensity, and never these. Little surprise that their grip on her left her confused and trembling, struggling to comprehend what she felt. Uncertain and driven to rash decisions, Meril made the only logical conclusion: what she feared losing was her band, and so she had to find them.

So a petite woman with a long silver braid stormed through the hallways of the Virgo headquarters, fire in her eyes and determination in every fiber of her being. Her right hand clutched the base of an ornamental statue she'd snatched on her way out of the penthouse. And she was in an unholy fury indeed -- she smashed through everything in her way, be it a door or a personal chef's cart or a person. Kicking, trampling, and even bashing with the statue cleared her path as she hunted her band. The only ones safe from her rampage were fellow musicians, and they alone seemed capable of eliciting any acknowledgment out of her besides mindless, livid determination.

2.

Once people had finally gotten Meril back into her quarter, she at least refrained from kicking the door down and stomping out again. Enough sense had returned to her that she knew she was behaving madly. But that didn't make the feelings go away!

The woman paced like a caged animal, storming from room to room and upsetting things in her wake. Occasionally she grabbed a nearby object as if to wield it like a weapon, the way she'd slung about that statue before -- but there was never anything to strike, and she invariably tossed it down without any further regard before she could do harm.

By now, she was fuming -- at herself, at her feelings, at the world.

3.

She also sent messages to those very few people she knows. All the rage in the world won't keep her from making sure they're okay.

Descending on him like a howling banshee riding the winds of a storm came Meril, whose purposeful stride became a run the moment she saw him. "Greg!" she shouted -- actually shouted, Meril -- as she charged to him, barreling over a potted plant without even seeming to notice it.

[So. Meril is in a state. A state of panic and fear and grief that has compromised her ability to think rationally. Her focus, her one burning desire, is to find her bandmates and make sure they are safe. To that end, she has no patience and no tolerance for anything that keeps her from that goal.]

[Which is why the petite but strikingly strong woman slams her shoulder directly into the box that blocks her path, then shoves hard with her forearm. The idea that it might be occupied doesn't occur to her until the very moment it's too late to do anything but regret her choices.]

He jerks at the yell--his name, that's his name--and looks to find an oncoming storm of a woman. The ferocity at which she approaches sends a chill down his spine, and his knees go weak. "Wha--ah, no, g-get away--"

[Man she is just a freaking roller coaster of things going on this week. Kido's a mess and now she's more of a mess because something is gone and that hollow in her chest just isn't going away. And her band--her band is really all she has at this point and she knows she needs to find them and...

Tiger's not here. Damnit, kid.

She scrubs her hair and she's after him, knowing they can't leave, that he has to be somewhere in the building... and she's worried. And really, when she comes upon him, it's clear she had every reason to be.]

Tiger?! [Shit kid. She moves to make sure he's okay, crouching next to him, worry clear in her expression.] What happened?

Lora's in a better state, at least a little. She's sweating and wild-eyed, her hands repeatedly bunching into fists as she tries to suppress a tremor that comes and goes. Those hands are bruised from hitting a wall earlier today.

"Meril. I'm going to beat the shit out of a punching bag. You wanna come with?"

There was a solid thump on the wall and the sound of Lora cursing a minute ago. She comes through the door rubbing her knuckles and shaking off her hand. She approaches to loom over Greg, a muscle twitching in her cheek. "You look like shit. What are you doing up?"

[Wordlessly, Ryouta slips into the nest that Ankh made and wraps his arms around his band mate]

Ankhcchi, shh. I've got you.

Even in good health, he doubted he could have regarded the looming figure with any more than slackjawed intimidation. For a moment Greg only stared with frightened eyes. Then, he set his jaw, drew himself up as much as possible (which wasn't very much), and spoke as firmly as he could manage (which wasn't at all).

"Wh...where... is my family?"

She doesn't know a thing about his folks, she realizes, or those of the rest of the band. ~~Or her own.~~ She does know he shouldn't be up and about when she can feel the heat rolling off his skin from here.

"Not here, and if you keep stumbling around like this you'll hurt yourself and freak them right out. Sit your ass down and swallow some water and asprin. I'll find your phone."

I. If I ever Lose my faith
There's simply no question as to where Xanxus might be in their little prison. He's more or less lived at the bar since the day he had gotten back from his little meeting with the powers that be. His stool probably have an imprint of his ass on it with how long he's been here.

But even drinking wasn't helping. It wasn't filling the void. Something was missing. So much was missing. He felt so cold. Like some fire inside of him had been put out. But it's not just that. It's too quiet. Too cold. Too empty. He keeps expecting to see someone out of the corner of the eye. The flutter of feather boas. A crown. a hooded figure not even to his knee. An umbrella. The streaming of too long silver hair... Those fucking bastards... Where were they. They should be here. They should... Unless something is keeping them from being here...

He had to get to them. After 8 long years he was free and he needed to find them!

He stands abruptly and that stool falls to the floor with a loud clatter. He needed to go NOW. He had to go and find them and let them know he was here. He was here and awake and alive. And with the doors still locked, there was only one other way. He was getting out!

Xanxus picks up the stool and starts towards one of the windows. If he's not stopped, he might just find out if those windows are breakable or not.

II. I will protect you always
He was probably stopped by now, since he's still inside the building and there might or might not be shattered glass around. Whatever that was...it's gone now. It's gone and he feels that if he tries to grab hold of it again, it'll slip away like smoke. Instead, it's just better to grab and hold onto what's real and what's here. There are people here who matter, even if he sucks at showing it. Well now he is. He is the best way he knows how.

He pours a stiff drink and just approaches someone who looks like hell.

"Here."

III. His ringtone is Death Metal. You can hear it down the hall
Xanxus' voice is loud as his ringtone. He has zero phone etiquette. "What?"

"But--" It's a feeble protest, and he's already shrinking again. He looks around, hazy and distraught. He doesn't know where he is, who this woman is. She sounds concerned, in a gruff way, but that only confuses him further. "What is this place? Who--where am I?"

"Are you all right?" Her demand was short of a yell only in volume, not in tone. She ignored his protests as she roared right up, stopping just short of him with a suddenness that was practically physical. Her eyes immediately flicked over him in cold assessment.

"Yes," she snarled with uncharacteristic fervor. As often seemed to be the case, Lora and Meril were two of a kind today. "Can we -- will the others be all right?"

one

[The fever comes first. It lasts almost an hour, and it comes with the loneliness. He shivers and sweats and it's worse than any hangover he's ever had, so naturally he seeks out his bandmates for comfort. He just wants to be held for a while.]

two

[The symptoms wear away after a couple hours and he wanders out of the penthouse for a change of scenery. He wanders through the halls, finds himself in a cafe for a little while, trying to just forget about it. Occasionally it comes back and he has to sit down for a while - you may find him sitting down in a hallway concentrating on just not crying or nursing a bleeding nose.]

phone

[He'll be carrying it around all day.]

"I - what?!"

Jamie blinks at the glass being thrust under his nose and then looks up at the towering man holding it.

"Is - is that alcohol? I can't - I'm not old enough to drink." He thinks. He's not sure of much of anything right now, except that there's images lodged in his head of sprawling expanses of sand and wide blue skies.

You look like shit, man.

[Jamie is as tactful as ever, but there's a hushed, strained quality to the words that's very...un-Jamie-like. He hovers for a moment at the opposite end of the couch Maxxie's occupying and then sort of slithers over the arm and onto the seat, like he's desperate for some kind of contact but unsure if his presence is welcome.]

Feel like it too.

[Maxxie's laying down, curled up a bit, and he lifts his head to look at Jamie. He just wants some comfort, but it's not enough to outweigh his pride just yet, so he doesn't invite Jamie to lie with him or make any movement toward him at all.]

[Jamie huddles up at his end of the couch, arms wrapped around his knees, watching Maxxie with poorly-concealed anxiety. A part of him really, really craves physical contact, but just sitting nearby and talking is enough to take the edge off his pangs of loneliness for right now.]

Do you, um - do you wanna talk about it?

A — Love is a Sickness

[And she had been doing so well, too.

As if the waking-up-from-crying thing hadn’t been bad enough Nariko feels as if her insides have been ripped out and then shoved back down her excuse of a throat. Emotionally, she might as well be a sad, dried up wasteland, one that does nothing but whimper in bed for nearly an hour. Granted that might be thanks to the quickly oncoming fever. Not only does she feel as if she’s lost something important again but she’s sick as fuck.

It takes effort to drag herself out of bed but Nariko pulls on clothes with careful movements, and drags herself to the kitchen. Every step is dizzying, she’s so hot and uncomfortable in her own skin, but she ends up draped over the kitchen’s counter anyway.

If anyone would like to watch the most pathetic coffee-making display in the world then she’s there for the observing.

Just know you’re a terrible person if you don’t do anything.

B — Contact is The Cure

[The feeling is slowly wearing off. It feels less like she’s missing organs and hearing strange things and more like an ever familiar sense of isolation and loneliness. On the one hand it’s nice to jump back, but on the other this is the third major recovery in less than three weeks. If the universe could maybe give her and everyone else in this building a break, that’d be awesome. In fact Nariko might kiss whoever puts that mercy into effect.

But until things pick up (again) she’s just sort of … Around (again). But instead of hiding in corners and existing in the way she’s just meandering. You might find her in CI’s penthouse or at Pink or near the elevators, whatever. Time is a relative concern and they’ve been stuck in here so long that she doesn’t really trust much of anything.

Except hugs. Those would be nice.]

C — Martyrdom the Successor

[She’s obviously stuck at home but that doesn’t mean she can’t be reached. Texts and phone calls will be answered immediately.]

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☆TRACK IV: COME TOO FAR

Doctor | Hope | Virgo but accepting phone calls from Pride friends

"Tiger" Universe | Hope | Pride HQ + Phone Business

Garnet | Love | Pride, but Virgo feel free to check up on her phone-wise

Greg Universe | Love | Virgo HQ + Phone

Ankh | Hope | Virgo HQ

Lenneth Valkyrie (Meril) | Virgo | Duty

A

B

no subject

common areas

2

A

Wildcard

no subject

no subject

Xanxus | Passion | Pride HQ + phone calls

no subject

no subject

no subject

Maxxie | Love | Pride

II.

one

no subject

no subject

Nariko Lunae | Love | Pride