Link Up! Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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linkingup2024-08-08 07:00 pm
linkupmods) wrote in linkingup2024-08-08 07:00 pm
Week 2
WEEK 2
WAKE UP, GET UP, GET OUT THERE.
- Saturday rolls around and characters may see that there are notices from Mina, saying that everyone will be taking a trip at noon sharp on Saturday, and to have their weapons. Whether characters pay this heed or not, they will in fact hear a ding from their phones at noon, their screens glowing a sunset red with the word "TRANSFERRING..." the only thing to be seen. And then, just like that –
You all enter.
The new world before you can be described in one word: twisted. It doesn't feel great, but it doesn't feel extremely awful, either, depending on how you look at it – it's a distorted version of the already grim city that you've been brought to, and you are specifically in the shopping district. Everything seems to be darker shades of red, yellow, and purple, if you can see it through the haze ominously floating about.
That feeling of something stirring in your chest seems to grow stronger, more potent, burning with the desire to be let free…
…and you, all of you, are surrounded. Various monsters and demons are threatening to attack you, looking at you like you are their prey. That's because you are…but you don't have to be for long. The moment that you engage in battle with them, no matter who strikes first, is the moment your emancipation begins.
Welcome to your awakening.
You feel a surge of energy rush to your palm – for some, it burns like a fiery blaze. For others, it sparks with electricity; perhaps wind circles around it, or a mysterious frost begins to blanket it. Maybe you have a mysterious pink aura around it, or a bright turquoise light; a dark, sinister glow or a calming light. Whatever the case may be, it drives you to place your hand over your heart.
You latch onto something. It is not your chest, it's not your heart, but it's something deeper than that, something from your being. You pull, you drag it out, and there is no bloodshed or any sort of pain, only a very bright light and some struggle as you unearth what is within. You finally, finally feel free as a new part of you literally stands before you. Say hello to your new friend: Your Persona.
Your new skills feel intuitive, and you feel like you can navigate them well enough to at least try to survive. You don't need to question how or why you understand them just yet; all you need to do is let yourself experience your power, and you'll stand a chance.
And with that, it's time to fight.
(Note: Weapon attacks will always deal Phys damage, but Phys spells will naturally do more than just whacking enemies with your weapons. Go wild, dodge, parry – combat is more freeform here than it is in Persona, so play this out however you'd like.
Furthermore, you'll be able to see everyone's cool Personas! You just won't be able to really interact with them directly.)
???
- (Picrew by ~danidoninha!)
After the battle, there's the sound of a whistle. Turn your heads towards the source, and…huh? A cat?
"Alright, newbies, it's time to roll out."
…And it talks???
She says it with a scowl on her face, and soon, she leaps up – poof, and suddenly, there is a cat train in front of you. Weirdly enough, this cat is the one driving it. How did she summon the train…who knows.
"Get in, unless you wanna get your asses kicked!"
And sure enough, she's right, because there seem to be more enemies flocking towards you. She will drag you all in whether you like it or not.
SAFE AREA.
- And, after a quick ride on the cat train, you find yourselves back at the dorms! ...Kind of. Much like the rest of this alternate world, it’s distorted in shape, though there’s none of the haze you saw when you first arrived. It seems this area, at least, is safe - characters would be wise to note it as a location to base any Nekyia operations out of in the future.
Mina is also here! She looks, quite frankly, relieved to see everyone show up alive in the train. The train, by the way, is gone, because it seems like your mysterious cat friend is now back to her…first…form? And seems to be on her way out. Back to Mina, though:
“Thank goodness... Okay, um, app hiccups aside...
Welcome to the Nekyia - the world of the unconscious. As you can see, the unconscious version of the city is, um... Very, very messed up. The more commissions you complete, the more connections you forge, the more bonds you repair, and the more Shadows you take out will help return the Nekyia to normal - and with it, the real world!
The people of this world don’t have the power to summon Personas... You’re the only ones who can save this city from the influence now. So please...
Help me fix this city from the inside-out!”
Mina has also set up a folding table set up with divinity cookies and water bottles from “Ambrosial Water Co”, judging by the labels. Characters who partake in these proffered snacks will find them rejuvenating - literally. Using a Persona’s abilities takes spiritual energy, but these snacks replenish one’s energy to full again with a single bite or sip. Any characters who want to try venturing back into the thick of the Nekyia today are free to take some with them, but do take care! Mina is only providing snacks for today, and after this characters will need to monitor their energy levels on their own.
Characters with further questions may ask Mina and she will do her best to answer! You can also try to catch the mysterious cat from earlier, too.
To go back to the real world, all characters need to do is press the "RETURN?" button on their phones. Much like the "TRANSFERRING..." message, this is the only thing on their screen.
All phones will now have a Nekyia app that will enable them to come in and out of the Nekyia at will.
OOC
READ ME!!!!
- Welcome to your Week 2 event log!
- Here is your promised Persona debut. Fighting is very flexible, so please just thread the fights in whatever format you'd like.
- A reminder for those of you who have gotten their Level 10 skills: These do not unlock ICly until Week 3, starting on 8/17.
- As always, please let us know if you have any questions! Enjoy!
cw: stalking
...There's this guy I know back home. He acts like we're friends, and I play along with it too, but the truth is that he kinda freaks me out. I only go along with it because I get the feeling he'll do something awful if I don't.
cw mentioned illness & violence
Jeno's eye turns to Céleste, the only one of them who hasn't shared anything yet. He feels like he's not qualified to comment on Sou and Mafuyu's confessions, as empty platitudes won't change whatever made Mafuyu feel like a slow, agonizing death would be preferable, and there's no call an outside can make over Sou's "friend".
It does make him feel like his truth wasn't enough, in some ridiculous way, and he mulls his options over. The vulnerability behind the truth is likely more important than the truth itself, but he didn't share anything that really... mattered. It was just the facts, separate from anything emotional.
He lets out a slow breath, eye closing.]
I wanted to forgive my oldest, dearest friend even after he had nearly killed me and destroyed the Emerald.
[The name won't be familiar to Sou and Mafuyu, but he recalls mentioning the circus to Céleste. Not how it was his home, he thinks, so maybe the importance of the ship won't come across.]
Because I believed him when he said it was with good intentions, to help protect the people of our hometown. Even though he had lied to me before, I still wanted to believe in him more than anyone else. I still felt like... we could see our old, childhood promises through. And he... was dying, from Modali Syndrome, so he had no reason to lie to me. Or that's what I thought.
[He lets out a small, annoyed noise.]
I'm a weak person, and too nostalgic for my own good. In the end he lied to me again, and I failed to protect him. He... still hasn't woken up.
cw: violence, murder
There was always going to be someone left to go last, and while Celeste was fairly sure his slight goading wouldn't work, Sou reveals his secret... and then Jeno shares a second. This time, more damning, more... personal.
Whether or not the circus was his literal home, the importance does still come across - because he can uniquely recognize that it was a home.
Still, with two secrets shared from him, He can't stop himself from pushing at the barrier idly, checking to see if the number is what mattered more than the participants.
No dice.]
I've killed before, to survive. I don't feel bad about that, and I believe others would do the same, if put in the same situation I was in at the time, but... that wasn't the last time I took life. Once my situation improved, I killed several others who didn't need to die, out of... revenge, I think, or weakness.
It was easy enough that I found myself thinking I should have done it sooner, or tried to, instead of hiding in an armoire and watching them take the life of the last person I've allowed to truly know me.
Worse, I left them to rot and didn't even make use of their final moments.
[Not that this group knows his vampiric status, but - he's saying he didn't eat them.]
Re: cw: violence, murder
...
...
...
but he was kind to her.
after a moment, mafuyu reaches out quietly, gently hooking her fingers into his. with how she gravitates to him it might be easier to hide. or if he decides against this gesture, he could. no scene. no impact. just a quiet acceptance that maybe isn't hers to give, or his to accept. )
...
Was it enough?
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Instead, he turns his attention to the barriers, reaching out a hand to test them.]
Ah.
[Well...]
The walls have come down.
[Both literally and metaphorically! But he keeps that second part to himself.]
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Mafuyu's quiet acceptance is a bit of a surprise, though, all told, and he lets his fingers curl around hers.]
So. Back to the dorms?
[Any enthusiasm for chasing the hooligans is definitely gone.]
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( since it lead to this. )
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