Week 2

[linkupmods]

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!
  

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Comments

[cleansewithfire]

I could tell you mine, but I am not sure if you would want to know when Mr. Eli said it is "the most fucked up truth".

[ Is this bullying when she says it so plainly... ]

[fullmoonmutt]

You already know mine...

[ It had mostly been out of being a not-completely-shitty-roommate that he had. The last thing he needed was to accidentally maul Arven for deciding to check up on him or something. ]

[imperiosity]

[Technically they probably haven't even been here for that long, but Aaron is tired of this already. He's also not looking to give Arven any excuses to hold out on them, so sure. Why not.

But, he is also too lazy to explain everything again, so this is what we get:]

I tried to kill a bunch of shitheads who didn't actually deserve it.

cw parent death

[supherb]

[Arven goes through such a journey of reactions to everyone's responses.]

The most...messed up...?

[He's not legally allowed to say "fuck", okay.]

Y-You told them that?

[Damn, the werewolf lore drop.

And then Aaron just gets a stare.]

I dunno if I'm even surprised.

[But his stalling only gets him so far, and the pressure to hurry up and say his truth gets to be too overpowering: both from those around him and the weird feeling in the back of his mind.]

Ugh... Man. Okay, okay!

[He lets out a sigh...then speaks.]

I barely saw my dad growing up, and all I ever wanted was to actually get to be a family with him. Well, turns out that was never gonna happen because all he cared about was his stupid science project that ended up killing him.

[cleansewithfire]

[ Arven's is arguably the least awful if only because the bar is maybe only an inch above the ground in comparison, but it being a "terrible truth" probably says some things in of itself, huh. ]

...I am sorry.

[ It just sounds kind of sad? ]

[fullmoonmutt]

[ Oh.

Eli isn't sure what to say to that. "I'm sorry" is one option but it feels wrong in a way. Is he sorry? Actually? Maybe sorry that Arven didn't get the dad he wanted, but... ]

Guys like that don't deserve their kids. Mabosstiff did a better job.

[imperiosity]

[...]

Shit like that's just universal, I guess.

[Aaron turns to check out the barrier, but really, with the haze dissipating around them, it's obvious enough even without actually reaching out with a hand to test it.]

Anyway, looks like we're free. Got an assload of questions about that voice, but I doubt we're gonna get any answers standing around here. As far as I see it, we can either try tracking that guy that ran off, or just head back and grill the priestess girl.

[He's not optimistic that there's much merit in pursuing the former, but he can speak to Mina at any time, so...]

Or, we can all split up and each do our own thing.

[supherb]

[At least he can crack a small smile at Eli bringing up Mabosstiff.]

Heh. Yeah. Even before I found out he'd been dead for a while, I'd pretty much made up my mind that Mabosstiff is the only family I really need. [He rubs at his arm.] Still... I wish I didn't find out the way I did.

[But hey, the barrier's down now so he doesn't need to elaborate.]

Don't you think he's probably long gone by now?

[cleansewithfire]

[ Oh, so this is the guy with the dog-

Wait, there are more important things to address first. ]

Unless we have something to track him down with, finding him will probably be difficult by now. I do want to check on Ms. Mina and see exactly what they were doing.

[fullmoonmutt]

[ There, there, Arven. Have a way too forceful pat on the shoulder from Eli, who is about as delicate as a rampaging bull. ]

If ya want to talk about it sometime, I can listen. [ Pause. Well. ] I won't have any good advice, though. Pretty sure my own parents got eaten by a wolf.

[ This is aid so matter-of-factly like there's nothing at all fucking tragic about that. Anyway. ]

Anyway, I figure the guy talking at us probably wasn't even here in the first place. It was into our heads, right? That's, like, psychic bullshit.

[imperiosity]

[Everyone is doing fine on the parent side of things, I see

Arven and Sunrise's points are both valid, although he'll look at Eli as he clarifies.]

Wasn't talking about the voice. That barrier came right as we were about to corner that guy with the yellow sneakers. I'd find it pretty hard to believe they weren't connected with that kinda timing.

[And yes, the trail is probably pretty cold by now, but.]

I was thinking of checking in with the locals in case they saw anything. If there was a group of 'em, they had to have come in from somewhere.

[supherb]

Hgh—! [He stumbles slightly and gives Eli a look that says, “seriously?” But it easily fades.] I mean…I guess we could talk about it later— Wait, what?

[Eli can’t just drop that so casually and then move on?! But moving on is important, so he’ll just have to ask about it when they have their talk later. If they do. He still feels like he agreed to talking way easier than he’d like. Darn truth urges!!

He turns to listen to Aaron.]

That makes sense… I think it’d be the only way to get back on their trail.

RA lady’s doing fine, by the way. [Mina has a name…] Looked like they gave her a nasty bruise, though.

[cleansewithfire]

[ Amazing how it seems so few people actually use Mina's name, is what Sunrise is noticing. ]

I see. Then I will speak with her later. At very least, I do not think asking the townspeople would hurt.

[fullmoonmutt]

Oh.

[ Right, the other guy. Clearly a minion, yeah? That's got to be it. ]

I mean, I could try sniffing him out... [ Wait. ] Or. Not. Shit, I keep forgetting... and I don't see the Boss with Arven, so we can't ask him to try sniffing him out, either. I guess we could ask around.

[ But even on that note, he looks between everyone here. ]

Is anyone even good at talking to folks?

[imperiosity]

[Good 2 kno about Mina, even if he wasn't all that concerned given that the vandals had scattered. But on second thought, they probably should've left someone to guard her in case one of them circled back?? Oh well, seems like she's doing fine so meh!!]

'Boss'? [No, wait, that's not the point here.]

Are you for real? You just go up to 'em and ask if they've seen anything. It's not like we're trying to pry out their life story.

[supherb]

Mabosstiff's here. He's just in his Poke ball.

[Arven fishes a small red and white ball out of his pocket. He's never actually shown it off before so he doesn't realize how confusing of a sentence that probably is.]

Maybe some of us could try the sniff search while the others ask around?

[cleansewithfire]

That is a reasonable plan. Two for each task, then?

[ She's peering at the Poke all curiously, and despite how her expression changes only slightly, she is, in fact, confused because how does that even work??? ]

...He is inside that...?

[fullmoonmutt]

Nearly everyone here is rude as fuck, mate. You really want me trying to question them?

[ Do you, A-A-Ron? Do you?! Honestly, all four of them seem to have enough people skills to fill a thimble combined. In any case, he turns back to eyeball Arven with some (aka a lot) confusion. ]

Poke-ball?

[ Yes, pronounced "poke" and "ball" like they're two words. ]

The hell? You can't put a dog that big into something that small, Arven. C'mon.

[imperiosity]

[Okay, the Pokeball looks like a toy, so Arven definitely gets a quizzical look for that, and maybe he really should be questioning more of this when Eli specifies that it’s a dog, but first:]

Then go sniff around with the chef kid and his pet. I’m not interested in sticking around and bein’ a third wheel anyway.

[Given that they seemed to want to continue their conversation earlier and all.]

Me and Miss Ray of Sunshine over here will handle the talking. Any complaints?

[supherb]

I guess that works...

[But what about it would make Aaron a third wheel?! Arven would be scandalized over the implications if he didn't have a Poke ball demonstration to do.]

He is, and I can. Poke balls are super common and helpful for getting Pokemon around. Here, watch: C'mon out, Mabosstiff.

[He taps the button in the middle of the device. When it opens, a bright flash of light emerges and materializes into the familiar big dog.]

[cleansewithfire]

[ Sunrise has no complaints about the arrangement (and while Aaron's implication also flew over her head, she does agree that it sounds like those two want to continue their earlier conversation). She's about to voice her agreement until Arven demonstrates, and...

...She actually seems kind of starry-eyed? In her weird, quiet way where it'd probably be more obvious if it were someone else, but there's no mistaking that air of awe either. Whether it's because of the tech or the dog is a ~mystery~ (Both. It's both.) ]

Oh...

[fullmoonmutt]

Well, yeah, who wants to be a third wheel? You ain't getting anywhere on just three wheels.

[ Eli, that isn't what he meant... but just as Aaron's jab goes over Arven's head, it, too, goes a mile by right past Eli. Still, he's immediately in a better mood because he gets to go tracking with Mabosstiff.

And Arven.

He guesses. ]

But I like that plan. We can backtrack and use the spray paint cans to try and pick up a scent. [ Cue Eli dropping down into a crouch next to Mabosstiff to ruffle his ears. ] That sound good? You're okay in that stupid little ball, right? It's not cramped in there, right?

[imperiosity]

[Sunrise and Arven not reacting is one thing, but Eli's interpretation aligns more with what he'd expect from a thirteen-year old he knows??]

Sunday School would love to have you back, just saying.

[This is almost certainly not the type of knowledge that would be provided at Sunday School but let him be snide!!

Anyways, once Arven does the reveal, even Aaron can't help but blink at it all. He likes dogs well enough, but considering Eli is already packbonding with Mabosstiff, he'll just turn to Arven.]

But man, that's one hell of a magic trick you've got there. That thing carry more than the pooch?

[supherb]

[The hell is a "Sunday School"--]

Nah, they only carry Pokemon, and one per ball. Don't ask me the science behind it. [Shooting a pointed look at Eli as he adds:] And they're not stupid. They're safe for Pokemon to rest in. 'Specially when they're weak or hurt...

[In support of his Trainer, Mabosstiff's woof in Arven's direction seems to indicate that he doesn't have a problem with Poke balls. He then turns to Eli with a tip of his head. He's not sure what the sniff search is for, but he'll do it.]

[cleansewithfire]

[ The slightly crestfallen look of someone who was about to ask about the science behind it before Arven said not to. ]

Oh.

[ She also wants to ask if she can pet Mabosstiff, but 1) other tasks need to be done first, and 2) she's not very confident it'll go well, if only because every other time she's tried to pet something has...not gone well. ]

Then, we shall meet up later. [ Sunrise looks to Aaron with a nod, signalling she's ready to go when he is. ]