songerein | { GAME OPENING LOG }

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{ GAME OPENING LOG }

✵ GAME OPENING LOG ✵
Normally our TDMs serve as intro logs, but we have prepared a special character intro log for game opening! It is a massive, chaotic feast that can only be found in a dreamworld like Songerein. You can also use this to continue ongoing TDM threads, especially as it nears captcha. Reminder that any thread from the TDM can be carried over. Players are also welcome to make their own logs for things if they would rather skip this part. Be sure to read the Mod Announcement for other information and you can ask any questions regarding the log here.

I. THE FEAST

As the sleepy looking sun begins to set, the small little tapir fairies will buzz around to find all the new inhabitants and usher them to the plaza. There everyone will find several tables of various lengths, sizes, and shapes. Yes, that is a star shaped table along with a moon one. A special feast has been made just for them to welcome and celebrate their arrival. Some may even recognize decorations: leaves mottled and changing to an assortment of colors, festive streamers, popcorn strings, glittering garlands and bows, string lanterns, and maybe a few small gravestones here and there. Some areas might look a bit brown and withered while some of the trees take on a more cherry blossom look. It's a bit of a strange mashup, and yet the chaos seems to have a sense of harmony as well—especially when considering everything else that the feast has to offer. This is one divine feast that is going to be completely topsy turvy.

A. What's Your Sign? Everyone will find themselves mysteriously "tagged" with a special sticker and will suddenly gain special characteristics based off the animal: ears, tails, behavioral traits. They're mostly mild and to add flavor, but they may also feel different compatibility towards another, such as more attracted or opposed. The sticker will be hard to remove, but it is possible to swap with someone if they want to try a different experience.

B. Special Bowls. There are many tables and anyone can sit wherever they want. Just don't forget to pick up the special dinner bowl already personalized with their name on it. Of course there are some extra paints and decorations that can be added to it if one desires.

C. Wild Food. Every table has the same kind of food, and there is plenty to go around. Of course, that's only if the food can be caught and if one can keep an appetite for some of them. The boar's head is a bit talkative and might settle down if someone stuffs an apple in its mouth or tells it a joke. However, it might just get several laughs by the barrel of monkeys funnel cake nearby, monkey shaped pastries hiding within it to chuck out various candies and fruits. Not even the candy is safe, at least not the stringed ones. Licorice, chocolate coated taffy, and others will start slithering around and even hiss, sometimes wrapping around the arm of those who try to eat them. Playing some music might calm these sweet serpents so they can be eaten properly. How about that special carousel cake stand with the horse cookies prancing about?

D. Spice Up Your Li—Meal. However fear not. There is normal food around so it is possible to have a proper meal. However, some helpful little dragons may fly by to add a few herbs and spices to the dishes. They are quite friendly and will listen to requests, however if one is rude or too demanding, they may just dump a bunch of a hot pepper and other unsavory seasoning instead. Make a good enough impression and they might make house calls, even follow someone home. They live to spice up food, after all.

E. Drink Tea. Although there is an assortment of beverages, the prevalent one will be tea. They are similar to the ones found in the cafe and all will help bring out festive dreams and restful sleep later for everyone. However, someone is clearly making mischief as they have slipped in some rodentia tea. Drinking it will cause the drinker to shrink to the size of a rat. The only way to return to normal is to find the elusive cat cookies, which can be strangely hard to find; they seem to vanish and reappear at random, but only the ones with wide grins and “Eat Me” written on them can be eaten.

II. FUN & GAMES

Perhaps the food isn't up to one's tastes, or they just would rather have some fun. There are a few games around the plaza that everyone is welcome to participate in and they are encouraged to play to their heart's content. Just beware of the geese as they are being a menace not only at the tables but disrupting games as well.

A. Playing Chicken. A simple game, really, one that will test one's creativity and taste buds. There is a goat cheese fondue fountain surrounded with various platters of cooked chicken: grilled, steamed, boiled, baked, fried. This fondue fountain, however, is special. The flavor of the fondue can be altered depending on the kinds of emotions near it. Joy and love make it sugary sweet, anger and jealousy spicy hot, despair and distrust salty sour. And of course everything in-between including a chaotic mix. The challenge is one person will try and alter the flavor of the fondue, lather it on a piece of chicken, and then hand it to their opponent. The chicken must then be consumed. If not, the one who "cooked" it wins. If it is consumed, then the second person can now do the same to the other. This continues until one forfeits. It should be noted that the emotions of the one eating can also affect the fondue. (It is of course possible to take either the fondue or chicken without playing this stomach churning game.)

B. Gravity of Luck. There is a special wheel lottery set on a table decorated with rabbits. In fact there are a lot of rabbits congregating here and would love a few carrots. Anyone is free to spin the wheel one time per round to determine what kind of special "gravity" effect they receive. Each time the wheel is spun, a ball will drop and the color will indicate the type. A gold ball will cause them to lose all sense of gravity, their bodies starting to float away and although they can fly and float around, they'll need help being tethered down. White balls allow them to jump higher, small mushrooms appearing at their feet so others can follow. A black ball will cause them to be stuck in place, even fall flat all the way to the ground and need help standing up. Those imbued with the power of the different balls can help balance each other out until the effect wears off in half an hour.

C. Ox Go-Kart. For those who really want some speed and action, there are ox driven carts stationed by various streets. Two people can partner up with one driving and the other serving to help try to slow the other cart down. In this race, all non-lethal, non-destructive abilities are allowed to try and disrupt the other racer. Perhaps utilizing dreamotion based abilities may fare better. Just beware of other obstacles, especially any random crying dodos that create giant pools of tears as water hazards.

D. Tiger Fishing. There are special colorful ponds filled with sparkly gummy koi fish. At each one there is a little round tiger(?) with a pair of tiger mittens. In the same vein of fish scooping games, players must wear the tiger mittens and catch the gummy fish with them. It won't be easy as the gummy fish are even more slippery than normal. Perhaps some other skills could be used...but the little tiger will be watching and will latch onto anyone's heads who try to cheat. But if caught, they will make for a delectable treat—or interesting pet.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

It's not the kind of luxury I've ever been able to afford. Think I'll be just fine without.

[Her voice is bordering on a sneer; she's just had better things to do, and if she's being honest with herself, it's been a long, long time since sleep was anything even close to restorative.

At least the last part, she can agree with.]

You're right about one thing, though. Don't see why we should lift a finger for anyone in this place.

[Not until she has a better read on the situation and sees a goal worth pursuing. It's been awhile, now, since her purpose has been her own.]

[Hm. She sounds like someone he knows, but he keeps that to himself. Actually, there's little he could infer from what she's said so far, but he doesn't quite like making those observations, and she seems... prickly. Nor would he care to have similar observations made about him.

Just sounds like a lot of work to be honest, and he's just not up for thinking too hard. It'll only make him sleepy.

... Speaking of pain, though, his back hurts from being in this position, so he finally pulls himself up, dragging his chair to the table she's at, his former napping place. Instead of sitting directly across from her, he moves over a few spaces, giving them both some room.]

So you're not the do-gooder type, huh? [he says with a mild tease, not calling out whether she is or isn't. doesn't really matter. but they might actually have something in common- a frightening thought.] Actually, do you know why we're here? I vaguely recall some weird animal talking to me, but then my partner violently beat me up, and now I can't remember anything from that day.

[And he just admits that so casually. Like it happens so often. Just another day ending in ~~whhhhy~~ 'Y.' Not that the answer matters too much, either, because he's pretty sure he'll never know peace with Ferris here.]

[She'd almost been tempted to concede that maybe not everything that came out of his mouth was total horseshit—

But no, there he goes. Nope. Idiot garbage, through and through.]

I'd tell you to get your head out of your ass and start pretending like you give a damn about your situation, but to be honest, I don't think it fucking matters what those little assholes say.

[She's met a couple of the squirrels. Tapirs. Whatever.

She's not impressed.]

Don't trust 'em for a minute. You shouldn't, either. [A pause.] ... I can see why you get beat up a lot.

[Like that's a thing you just say to people.]

[Oh, has she finally come around? Has she finally noticed how unfair his life is, being treated like a human punching bag? He does give a damn about his situation, but this particular situation has to do with the number of bruises he's acquired in the last few days and all the sleep he's lost.]

Right? I think it's my laid-back nature that makes it easy for others to take advantage of me. On that note, if this is all a dream world and we're not actually real, then how come all these beatings still hurt? Like, I remember something about that, because I distinctly recall thinking, 'then why does it feel like I'm dying' as she was mercilessly beating me.

[That weird animal barely started talking before Ferris laid into him. He hadn't even woken up as it was, then, suddenly, the silver flash of that telltale sword and that dango demon screaming in his ear enveloped him. Fragments of the animal's words made it to his ears. But it's just crap about being stuck in a dream world and not having their real bodies, their current bodies being dream-selves, something, something...

Ah. It's confusing even without the concussion.

His observation, while ridiculous, makes some logical sense. For a dream world, this place feels a little too real.

But there are other things that bother him, even if they aren't as important as losing his precious nap time.]

That aside... I typically don't trust anything that has this level of power to spirit others into another world.

[Especially someone as dangerous as him. And Ferris, while not a monster in the literal sense, like he is, is a high-caliber swordperson. It makes him wonder about the others brought here.]

Oh my god, do you ever stop whining?

[Here she is, trying to meet him halfway and have a conversation about their current circumstances, and all she can do is roll her eyes at him in response as she roughly tears a dinner roll in half.

Well. Maybe she's not meeting him halfway. She took a couple of steps, at least. It's about as fair as she's going to be, unfortunately for him.]

If 'laid-back' is another way of saying 'lazy pissbaby,' sure.

[She is... uncharitable. However, they do agree on one thing.]

Those little rodents have a lot more power than it looks like, too. I saw it firsthand.

['Lazy' he'll take, but all these other names are kind of rude!

But. Eh.

Now, especially, he lacks the energy to argue. Besides, it's not like she's calling him even a fraction of the horrible things Ferris accuses him of. And even then he lacks the energy to respond to most of that nonsense.

Anyway, she says something that gets his attention, which is only just a shred of his attention since he still doesn't care about this place. That would require more energy than he cares to expend. But he'd already been thinking about why certain people might be here. Him and Ferris are one thing, and while he hasn't really engaged with anyone else... this nap-hating, belligerent woman, he can feel, is quite powerful.]

Wait, seriously?

[Wow, only kind of? She'll have to try harder.

She continues filling her plate without missing a beat, though she does give a rigid shrug in response to his question, giving him a quick, sidelong glance bordering on a glare before stuffing half of that dinner roll in her mouth and proceeding to answer with her mouth full.]

Little shit was trying to keep me from seeing what's beyond the town borders. Obviously wasn't gonna take "no" for an answer, especially not from a goddamn rat, and it used some kind of magic to throw me and the guy I was with all the way back to the town square.

[She looks annoyed, to say the least, and scowls as she swallows down that first enormous bite of bread after what can't possibly have been enough chewing.]

Had to have been at least half a mile.

[Ryner doesn't catch her glaring at him as he's tiredly slouched forward, arms resting on the table like he might faceplant at any moment and go to sleep. It's hard to tell with him as he stares ahead, like he's deeply lost in thought.

His first thought is... why is he still awake? Then he proceeds to have that exact thought a few more times, all with varying degrees of mental anguish.

His tenth or so thought is that she inhales that bread like Ferris inhales her dango.

But his eleventh thought is... he had no idea those weird animals could use magic. And from the sounds of it, pretty powerful magic. Wonder if the alpha stigma would have any read on them?]

Huh. So, is there something beyond the town borders they don't want us seeing? Like a way out. Hmm...

[He asks himself that, actually contemplating what she said. Sure, this place is odd, but it's quiet and he doesn't have to deal with all the crap he did back home, especially that stupid king.

But it's that stupid king that has him a little worried, all things considered. He never did get to apologize...

Ugh, see? That's how terrible of a person Sion is. Here he is, on some impromptu vacation where nothing is happening, and he's actually thinking of how to get back home to a life of frequent abuse where he's robbed of naps and his sanity. Sion has clearly poisoned his mind! It's all his fault. Though it's not like he's had better luck at rest here, and it's only a matter of time before the lack of dango takes hold of Ferris and turns her into a demon.

Yes. That would be a problem.

Back to the matter... how would his own magic and alpha stigma hold up verses these animals, he wonders.]

Who the hell knows.

[And while her words themselves are dismissive, her attitude is anything but. She spears part of a carrot on a fork with more force than is necessary, causing metal to screech against the glass of the plate.]

Kept feeding me some bullshit line about it being "dangerous."

[Why the hell else would she want to go out there? It's more than the fact that she can handle herself. She was actively, desperately in need of something to let loose on after a day that had just been a fucking carnival of shit.]

Like running into some kind of monster would be enough to slow me down. The way I see it at this point, if I get to kill something, it's a win. Find a way out? Even better, although I did enough searching for that in the last place to figure it's not gonna get very far.

[It doesn't mean she'll stop looking here, either, but she's not the optimistic sort.]

[The more she talks, the more he becomes casually curious about her- despite her being crass, rude, and a huge bully. She's on the small side, like Ferris, and yet he can sense a great power from her. Call it a hunch at this point. But he takes note of her wrapped arm and leg. Has she been injured? He quietly speculates but doesn't let on to that, it's just a side glance and him recalling her appearance when he did get a look at her earlier.

Well, she says something else peculiar, since he's been quietly contemplating analyzing one of those animals himself, that catches his attention.]

Last place? Have you been trapped in some other weird world before this one?

[Almost doesn't sound believable. What are the odds? And yet she could be referring to a situation at home, but then the comparison to this place wouldn't make sense.

He continues to look tired and almost somewhat disinterested, since that's usually how he looks, but this situation has him a little concerned. Namely the earlier thought he had about why he's here, why seemingly powerful people are here, and it just doesn't sit right with him. Knowing full well his own power could easily turn this place to dust. He doesn't like the thought that this might be a situation similar to that in Gastark where they're trying to harness the power of those hero relics and other cursed eye bearers for some insidious purpose.

Ah... if that's the case then perhaps this place is more trouble for him to stay in than back home. Sounds like a lot of work, and he's allergic to work. Nope. This place won't do at all. What a pain!!]

Yeah— out of one goddamn prison and into another, although they definitely feed us better here.

[It's not like they were left to starve in the last place, but there sure as hell weren't any welcome feasts. Her gaze slides sideways to eye him curiously, trying to see if she can pick up on any tells in his expression, his body language.

Nothing. Guess even an idiot can pick up on things and ask the right questions now and then.]

I'm not the only one, either. Haven't run into anyone who's come from the same place, but people have been yanked through other worlds before coming to this one, some of 'em with their memories all fucked up.

[One person she would have expected to remember her from the Castle in the Thorns didn't. Worse, she's been put in that same position with someone from home, not remembering what she seemingly should.

It's bullshit, if you ask her.]

[This is all sounding very complicated. And he'd call bullshit about other words existing that are pulling people into it... if it weren't for the fact that he's experiencing it first hand. And even still it sounds so unbelievable. How do you stop something like this? How do you find out what the intention is behind everything? It still doesn't sit right with him.]

Mm, yeah, not sure I'm liking how this place is able to pull from other worlds that are doing the exact same thing that it's doing.

[Even stringing that sentence together is hard. And something tells him that finding any answers won't be easy. And that getting back home won't be easy. Or stopping this place from kidnapping people won't be easy. It's just... a lot.

It's an overwhelming task.

And he's not the least bit qualified because he'd rather be in bed.

This sounds like a job for some other person. Let them do all the hard work.]

But, you know, after careful consideration, I've decided that all this sounds like a huge pain and it's only made me even more tired. Ah, I can barely keep my eyes open anymore.

[And he just folds his arms over the table and leans forward, resting his forehead against them.]

Wake me up when they're ready to send us home.

[He mumbles, his voice drained and sounding as if he's barely awake.

To be honest, he's still concerned. But he's also tired and overworked. So maybe he will think about all this complicated stuff later after some much needed rest.]

[She shouldn't be surprised. She's known this asshole for about five minutes and this seems absolutely on brand for him, but she still stares at him in disbelief as he lays his head down on the table.]

Are you fucking kidding me?

[How could anyone sleep in the middle of all of this— the bigger picture, yes, but also given that they're in a pretty rowdy public place, it's not like it's quiet, either.]

Your response to all that is to goddamn go to sleep?

[Why are you like this, Ryner.]

[As if to answer her question, he begins snoring. Because, yes, he actually went straight to sleep. The noise doesn't bother him, the fact that he has a very pissed off woman across from him doesn't bother him, that they were mid-conversation doesn't bother him. And while their current predicament is, actually, bothersome, that only makes it easier for him to check out.

He will think about it more, later. Maybe. But right now all that thinking and the prospect of complicated reasons existing for them being brought here only make him want to shut down.

And if there's one thing he's truly talented in, it's being able to fall asleep almost instantly amidst chaos. And the fact that he doesn't get enough sleep, according to him, means he will take it where ever and whenever he can. For however long. Because it's usually inevitable that he will be rudely roused from his sleep at any given moment.

And so... he continues snoring away, the slight concern that had plagued him only a moment ago becomes but a distant memory.]

[Is there any response more insulting than none at all? Kainé frowns, grabbing a roll and aiming at Ryner's head from across the table. It bounces off of him without incident, rolling across the tablecloth only to be scooped up by a passing pastry monkey in the process.

She withers slightly, spearing a glazed carrot from her plate with her fork.]

Fucking hate it here.

[And him, specifically.

Whenever he wakes up later on, Kainé will be long gone, but she'll have left him with a the parting gift of having heaped a bunch of mashed potatoes into his open hand. If they end up in his hair somehow, all the better.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

{ GAME OPENING LOG }

look at this narration going DARK hell yeah

PLENTY MORE WHERE THAT CAME FROM just not in this tag because he's ridiculous

crying again

so is he, on the inside

wheezes more

kaine just has to learn the secret to get him to stop whining

that's her new quest

a multi-part sidequest spanning the whole game, good luck!

joke's on you I'm always in it for the long haul

but it hardly gives any EXP

do I at least get a glamour accessory

yes, one of many you'll collect along the way!

cool I am IN

atp Kaine has been awarded 700 exp for dealing with this shit

this was such a ride