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theafflicted2022-05-21 07:30 am
afflictionmods) wrote in theafflicted2022-05-21 07:30 am
00 - prologue
PROLOGUE
It doesn't matter where you are or what you're doing – something strange begins to happen. There's a sudden burning sensation that wraps around your right wrist and part of your forearm. If you glance at the affected area, you'll find that it's...glowing. The glow is pale blue, and it's so bright that it hurts to look at. The burn itself isn't so painful that you feel like keeling over just yet, but it does hurt nevertheless.
But before you have time to try to soothe the pain, you start to feel lightheaded, dizzy. Perhaps some of you may attribute this to any injuries you may currently be sustaining. For those who were previously unscathed, however, there's quite possibly no explanation for this other than the sudden appearance of the mysterious burn on your arm.
There is no time to mull it over, though, because it is the last thing that you see before the world suddenly fades to black.
When you regain your senses, your vision is blurry; but when it starts to even out and you survey your surroundings, you find yourself sitting in a rather uncomfortable chair. Looking around you’ll see rows and rows of chairs, all facing the same way towards a desk, a podium, and an empty wall. A projector hangs from the ceiling and the lighting is bright and artificial... For some of you, it might be reminiscent of a college lecture hall. For others, you might have never seen anything like this before.
Your wrist, by the way, feels perfectly fine...though there’s now some kind of strange marking on it. It looks like a scar of some sort, and if you choose to touch it, it doesn’t feel inflamed or damaged in any way...but that doesn’t mean you don’t experience any pain. Perhaps the last thing some of you remember is a hard-fought battle, and the aches from your injuries still linger; some of you might not even remember getting hurt, and yet, your body aches like it has; for the lucky ones who feel fine, well. Pray that it lasts for a little while longer.
Because the moment someone gets hurt – emotionally or physically – there’s a small chance you’ll feel it, too. Where and who and what it’s coming from, though, is on you to figure out.
In front of you on the desk is some kind of device – a tablet, for those of you who are familiar. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be capable of doing much of anything right now, other than take photos and videos with the Camera app. There's also a translating app for those of you who need help reading some of the text around campus, as it is all in English. (Verbally, however, you can understand everyone in your own language. Tablets are also in characters' native languages.) It seems to be incredibly durable and hard to break, but you may want to be careful with it regardless.
Something shifts in your pocket (or...in your socks/shoe/what have you, if pockets aren't a thing) as you move around. Should you reach in and feel for it, you’ll find some kind of card – those who are familiar with modern technology will recognize that this is some kind of card you need to swipe. It has your name and a photo of you on one side, and the back of the card has the word "KEYCARD" on it.
There are also other people here, scattered throughout this mysterious classroom you’re in. In fact, there’re a bunch of you — 29 others, to be exact.
And now... you’re free to do whatever you want. Mostly anything, at least, given that once you step outside and explore, you’ll notice an ominous fog behind the various buildings within view. Still, this is a good time to get your bearings, check on what you have - and don’t have - and talk to the people around you until orientation starts.
( OOC: Welcome to your Intro Log! The partner system is in effect for the Intro Log, meaning that yes, pain share is happening! For some notes regarding the partner system, your character will not know who their partner is upon arrival. It’s entirely possible that they find out now if their partner gets or is already injured, or if they can pick up on their mood. Otherwise, they’ll find out later today...!
Anyone who tries to leave campus grounds will have to enter through the fog, but no matter what, they will mysteriously wind up back onto campus grounds. And for clarification, the keycards are what characters need to gain access to their dorms!
Finally, we will have an NPC Reveal at 6pm EST today! )
no subject
[............... wait, despite everything, there is a more shocking statement in that paragraph!]
Wizard slaughterhouse?!
[He's like a synonym away from a wizard! It's unclear if there's a difference! Either way, it's enough to be scary, scary! Imagine coming from a world where mages are the upper-class citizens and suddenly hearing about something so casually as a wizard slaughterhouse!]
Are you just trying to give me a taste of my own medicine, going on so quickly about such strange things!? S- S- Slow! Slowra! Slowga!
no subject
[Electricity? Never even heard of it.
Even if he's well-acquainted with lightning...]
Unless the wizards in your world don't have mana stones.
[He doesn't even know if magic does exist in Idia's world, but, like. It has to, right? Otherwise why does he look like that?]
no subject
[Idia has looked scared quite a lot during this conversation, sure, but there's something about how he trails off there that attests it would be something even the bravest person in his world should be scared of.]
A- Anyways, not everyone can use magic, and even mages can see the benefits of things like cell phones and PCs.
no subject
[Please he wants to know the lore. He wants to know about the horrible things that happens to mages.
But if Idia doesn't seem keen on explaining this, he'll continue on.]
Anyways, everything gets power from somewhere. My world doesn't have any of that stuff, but the magic technology we have... Well, it's powered by mana stones, isn't it? Who knows how many wizards have died in the name of the West's technological advances.
[...This also doesn't explain basically anything.]
no subject
... magic and technology can accomplish more by working together, so... why would one be undiscovered...?
[He closes his eyes, like looking for a solution underneath his eyelids. There's nothing obvious, though.]
I- I can't imagine that mages- wizards- go quietly...
no subject
There's a lot he wouldn't know.]
Most people don't want to die.
[Shrug!]
That's the only way to get a mana stone, though. Once you run out of magical beasts, you'll need to start getting mana stones from wizards. If you get enough humans, or if the humans have the right weapons... A lot of wizards wouldn't stand a chance.
[Not him, though. Obviously.]
no subject
... even if they did, then the blot accumulation would be...
Ah. You... ... you never said, did you... ... if you were a wizard...
no subject
I am.
[He doesn't bother to make any boastful claims - Owen already knows he's not the strongest wizard out there, even if that knowledge burns him, but there also isn't much more to say.
Without his magic, it doesn't matter. He's just as much of a threat as Idia is.]
no subject
[he knits his fingers together in a nervous gesture, he looks up from where he's sitting, from where he's hunched over,]
You're... safe, at least.
[Wouldn't that be something to worry about? The idea that anyone might be looking at you and seeing a battery instead of a human.]
no subject
[But Owen caught that mumbling this time, at least, which...
It's almost enough to make him laugh.]
But don't lump me in with those weaker wizards. There's no human on earth who could best me.
[Don't go and insult the guy by implying he can't fight off some lousy humans...!]
no subject
[... he does try, he tries to speak up a little bit:]
Every boss has a weak point. And it doesn't matter how many NPCs they kill before they meet the hero.
[He glances away, grumbling a bit,]
Not a hero, I guess.
no subject
[Hopefully Idia will get the picture that Owen wants him to see - that he's just not very nice.
Which.
It's not even like that's the wrong picture to get.]
That's not going to happen, though. Humans couldn't even arrest a wizard much weaker than me on their own.
[Which, sure, that was a century ago, but still.]
no subject
[And it was very, very, very hard to win forever.]
[but, some part of Idia reassures himself, that moment probably wasn't going to be here and he wasn't going to watch anyone hubris themselves to death]
[probably]
Eh, yeah... so cool. [a faint, nervous... praise?]