Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Trinculoisdead]

The setting: A wide and lushly forested valley, ringed by impenetrable crystalline ice-peaks. Overhead a darkly-red sun, bloated and tired, is partially-eclipsed by an enormous moon. The sun is just beginning to be obscured.

The characters: Just regular people.

The problem: When you went to sleep last night, it was in your own bed. When you woke up, you were sore all over, had an ache behind your eyes, and were lying in a fetal position in the middle of a ring of... electric-car charging stations? At least, that's what they look like to you. A small screen set into the top of a metallic pillar, and a rubbery cord coming out one side with a strange plug set into it.
Your throat parched, you croak in pain as you roll into a sitting position and blink at the strangers around you. They look as ill-treated as you feel.
You catch sight of your left wrist; there is a small metal socket set into it. Revulsion! What an unwelcome addition to your anatomy. But trying to peel it off of your wrist you can feel a tension coming from it and traveling up your arm... it is embedded deeply.

The trees crowd thick and tall around your little ring of suffering. But set into the hill-side near you is a gaping hole, twice as tall as yourself and three times as wide. A mouth, almost, primeval, carved by eons of flowing water, moisture dripping from toothy stalactites. It is shocking in its size and proximity, as though you had opened your front door to find that the street had changed over night into a reedy river-bank, and alligators were sunning on your lawn. Dimly, oh so faint, come the sound of thrumming engines from within this cave, and an exhalation of warm breath.

What do you do?

Spoiler: "Character Creation" (click to show/hide)

Name:
Description:
Favourite sci-fi movie:
Worst way to die:

[King Zultan]

Name: Burt Smith
Description: A regular looking dude with a mustache
Favourite sci-fi movie: Alien
Worst way to die: Probably being set on fire.

[NAV]

Name: Douglas Fir
Description: A regular looking dude with glasses
Favourite sci-fi movie: They Live
Worst way to die: Buried in a tank of industrial desiccant

[Trinculoisdead]

Just a couple of regular guys, lol.
Alright, post an action!

[NJW2000]

Name: Elizabeth Fripp
Description: A fifty year old woman, in a grey business suit, of average build, slim, slightly severe, spectacled.
Favourite sci-fi movie: Moon
Worst way to die: Old age


Action, if I can post it: Examine the screen on the charging bay. If it's boring, go drink some water from a stalactite.

[Egan_BW]

Name: I
Description: An almost entirely human-looking figure whose features, while impossible to make out, are perfectly normal. Any feelings of alarm at this lack of data are simply overwhelmed by an overwhelming force of normalcy pushing down upon your psyche.
Favourite sci-fi movie: The Thing
Worst way to die: Bored

Examine trees for any useful features. What kind are they?

[Trinculoisdead]

Turn 1:

Spoiler: "I" (click to show/hide)

Description: An almost entirely human-looking figure whose features, while impossible to make out, are perfectly normal. Any feelings of alarm at this lack of data are simply overwhelmed by an overwhelming force of normalcy pushing down upon your psyche.
Favourite sci-fi movie: The Thing
Worst way to die: Bored

Examine trees for any useful features. What kind are they?

The trees around you are as overwhelmingly normal as your own self. Looking at them, their individuals features blend together into a predictable impression of "northern evergreens, like, you know, in Alaska or something".

Spoiler: "Elizabeth Fripp" (click to show/hide)

Description: A fifty year old woman, in a grey business suit, of average build, slim, slightl severe, spectacled.
Favourite sci-fi movie: Moon
Worst way to die: Old age

Examine the screen on the charging bay. If it's boring, go drink some water from a stalactite.

As you approach the shimmery screen set into the top of the metal pillar, all the screens in the circle flicker to life and turn a dull red like the sun above you. A not-quite-human voice comes out of them, accompanied by soft music:

https://soundcloud.com/user-954539388/awake *

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Welcome human, to this world.

As unexpected as your sudden departure from your home must be, rest assured, it is only temporary. Your presence here delights and entertains us greatly, and we wish to thank you for your pains. Please, connect your arm to the.... "car charging station" ...in front of you. Some optional enhancements will be shown to you, select two of them if you like.

Once you are done, feel free to explore the area around you. We are watching from a safe distance, and your reactions are highly satisfactory to us. There are some... ooh, oof, ouch, ouwie, ...things around you. If you break while above ground, the sunlight will fix you up again look at that all better. But the same is not true underground. Above all else, do not get lost in that cave and die.

Good luck, I love you.

Hint, hint: although we like watching you no matter where you are or what you are doing, it will be interesting to find out how you feel about the cave.

If you connect the cord to the socket in your left wrist, the reddish-orange screen swirls and alters, revealing a grid of nine options. A short text disclaimer at the bottom of the screen instructs you that these enhancements are single-use, so don't waste them! It says. Additionally, there is a small "decline" option in green at the bottom of the screen.

Spoiler: "Choose two" (click to show/hide)

1. Molecular-disintegration: when you want to atomize something.
2. Singularity: briefly form into a single point of transcendental matter and send another creature through a warp-tunnel, traversing time and space
3. Gene-splice: take on some of the features of a living creature you kill, or incorporate pieces of tech into your physiognomy
4. Amplimorph: increase or decrease your size by orders of magnitude, lasts 1d6 turns
5. Cognitive Immortality: if your form is destroyed, your essential self will be uploaded into another being nearby
6. Meditative State-projection: enter into an indefinite stasis, free of physical needs. Your astral projection can wander far while in this state, but is easily sent back to your body by a sudden energy surge, for example.
7. Bio-rejuvination: heal your body of all physical and mental scars
8. Cyber-oracle: attune to cybernetic frequencies, gaining the answers to two of your questions
9. Reset: instantly return to the circle in which you woke up

*(psst, sorry about the soundcloud link, but I couldn't embed it on the forum.)

[Egan_BW]

"A game, a game!" I tweet delightfully. "Any-game has its borders. Except those that don't. I wonder what I'll find past the edge."
I turn a sight at the cave mouth. "A curious game. The only way to win" *haha* "is not to play!"

Walk directly into the woods, keep going in a straight line till I run into an obstacle.

[NJW2000]

"Immortality, hm? Maybe waking up here wasn't so bad. So what is this, some kind of gameshow?"

Just choose option 5, for now. If I have to take two, choose 6 as well.

Spoiler: sheet (click to show/hide)

Name: Elizabeth Fripp
Description: A fifty year old woman, in a grey business suit, of average build, slim, slightly severe, spectacled.
Favourite sci-fi movie: Moon
Worst way to die: Old age

[King Zultan]

"What a strange place."
Plug my self into the thing, and I'll take a number three and a number five.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Name: Burt Smith
Description: A regular looking dude with a mustache
Favourite sci-fi movie: Alien
Worst way to die: Probably being set on fire.

[NAV]

Examine the northern evergreen trees further. Do they happen to be fir trees? Maybe even Douglas Fir trees?

"Guys.... We probably shouldn't just mess with the alien technology yet... or go wandering off into the forest. We should try to stick together and have a plan first."

[Naturegirl1999]

Is it too late to join?

Name: Ronda
Description: Blonde haired woman, she was studying to become a teacher before waking up here
Favourite sci-fi movie: Haven’t seen many of them
Worst way to die: Don’t know, probably getting slowly killed by prions

Plug my arm into the socket and pick the Gene Splice and Cognitive immortality implants

[Trinculoisdead]

Turn 2:

Spoiler: "I" (click to show/hide)

Description: An almost entirely human-looking figure whose features, while impossible to make out, are perfectly normal. Any feelings of alarm at this lack of data are simply overwhelmed by an overwhelming force of normalcy pushing down upon your psyche.
Favourite sci-fi movie: The Thing
Worst way to die: Bored

Walk directly into the woods, keep going in a straight line till I run into an obstacle.

2
The tree-trunks are thick and close-together. Your straight-line leads to inevitable impact as you walk directly into a tree just outside of the circle of stations.

Spoiler: "Elizabeth Fripp" (click to show/hide)

Description: A fifty year old woman, in a grey business suit, of average build, slim, slightly severe, spectacled.
Favourite sci-fi movie: Moon
Worst way to die: Old age

"Immortality, hm? Maybe waking up here wasn't so bad. So what is this, some kind of gameshow?"

Just choose option 5, for now. If I have to take two, choose 6 as well.

You insert the cable; it fits perfectly into your arm with a satisfying click. You press the Cognitive Immortality option, an image of a person slumped to the floor as bits of glittery data fly out of their head and into an owl with a comical expression on its face. Immediately, you can feel your mind being ordered, sorted, and then prepared for transfer. A sensation not unlike what you imagine your computer feels when you optimize the hard drive. Your arm glows blue briefly, and then the plug falls out and you are released.

Spoiler: "Ronda" (click to show/hide)

Description: Blonde haired woman, she was studying to become a teacher before waking up here
Favourite sci-fi movie: Haven’t seen many of them
Worst way to die: Don’t know, probably getting slowly killed by prions

Plug my arm into the socket and pick the Gene Splice and Cognitive immortality implants

You plug yourself in and make your selection. The Gene Splice option has an image of a person dragging an enormous lobster-claw behind them in place of one of their arms. You experience the ordering of your mind, and then goosebumps that radiate out over your body from your arm. You become aware that if you wish, you can absorb a physical aspect of a freshly-dead creature, or a freshly-broken robotic form. The thought of hurting anything is... unusual, but your mind adjusts very quickly to this new understanding. Like when you learned how to swim or the first time you slept with someone you loved: it just feels right.

Spoiler: "Burt Smith" (click to show/hide)

Description: A regular looking dude with a mustache
Favourite sci-fi movie: Alien
Worst way to die: Probably being set on fire.

"What a strange place."

Plug my self into the thing, and I'll take a number three and a number five.

You do just that, sending shivers through your body and rapid-fire memories flickering through your mind. When it is done, you glance at the blond-haired woman next to you and notice that the same options are selected on her panel.

Spoiler: "Douglas Fir" (click to show/hide)

Description: A regular looking dude with glasses
Favourite sci-fi movie: They Live
Worst way to die: Buried in a tank of industrial desiccant

Examine the northern evergreen trees further. Do they happen to be fir trees? Maybe even Douglas Fir trees?

You can recognize your name-sake, and these are indeed Douglas Fir trees. One strange thing about them, however, is that they are largely uniform in size: as though they were all planted at the same time.


(By the by, if it wasn't clear, the idea with the enhancements is that they are basically single-use powers. So that, for example, if you select "Reset", then it means that at any time you can activate it to reset back to your original position. Similarly, Bio-rejuv will wait dormant until you activate it, at which point all your hurts will be healed.)

[NJW2000]

Examine the northern evergreen trees further. Do they happen to be fir trees? Maybe even Douglas Fir trees?

"Guys.... We probably shouldn't just mess with the alien technology yet... or go wandering off into the forest. We should try to stick together and have a plan first."

"You're approaching this with the wrong mindset. The alien technology has already messed with us, we're playing by its rules now."

Choose option 8, then go into the cave mouth. Drink some of the water dripping from the ceiling.

[Egan_BW]

"Playing by the rules? But which rules are they? I know a few different sets."

Punch tree to acquire wood.