Imaginary Island Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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imaginarynetwork2020-10-16 10:12 pm
imaginarymods) wrote in imaginarynetwork2020-10-16 10:12 pm
Entry tags:
new message from user: UN
[A window pops up on everyone's bracers, forcefully installing the System Update that Sans and Sayori developed.
After it's finished loading, the messaging system pops back up, and a new message arrives. It opens without prompting, and a holographic figure projects onto the ground in front of everyone using a bracer.
The hologram is of what appears to be just a regular guy, some ambiguous schmuck. He's not particularly tall looking, wears a pair of big, black-framed glasses, his hair is mousey brown and trimmed short, and he doesn't even wear Faerun clothes.
He stands straight and confident with a smile on his face and his hands behind his back as he addresses the Reclaimers as if looking each of them in the eye.]
Hey! Hi! Hello there. Uh, wow, I gotta say, I wasn't expecting you to get through to me this way, but here we are!
That was pretty amazing.
Well, it's nice to finally meet you face to face! Or... face-to-hologram-projection-of-a-physical-manifestation. Hey! I'm your universe. That's right, the one you're living in right now! The one with uh, Faerun, and all the little folks running around there in places like Thay and Vista Virs.
You might know me as the Story. Some friends of mine like to call me Greg. It's kind of a little joke.
Uh, anyway, I know you're wondering why this conversation is so one-sided, and I'll try to field some questions at the end, but we kinda gotta make this quick, so, storytime! We've got— [he checks his wrist, which definitely does not have a watch.] — Just enough time for that.
Once upon a time, a small group of individuals got pulled throughout time and space, trying to fend off a pretty spooky-lookin' calamity. I'm talkin' end-of-all-worlds big. But saving worlds isn't easy, and more and more folks got pulled into a story and a struggle that was never theirs in the first place.
Those individuals found common ground and worked together to try and stop the calamity, and to reverse the damage it had done.
But despite their best efforts, it looked like they were destined to lose. Though they fought as hard as they could, a cult that sought to stop them from the beginning thwarted their plans and all of a sudden, magic, the hope they'd relied on all along, was snuffed out.
Cut off from magic and cut off from the planes, the heroes turned to each other and gave each other everything they had. They exchanged gifts of weapons, trinkets, armor; all in the effort of strengthening each other against the coming hardships.
As the nights grew colder, the calamity came upon them from the inside. The cult had found a way to plant a seed of doubt in their leader, and that doubt in herself consumed her, threatening to combine with the calamity that already chased the heroes.
None of them were counting on the fact that those heroes had made quite a few friends, notably detective Angus McDonald, a little boy of a particular kind. Those heroes were so kind to him, he'd do anything for them— even make a wish that could have been the end of him.
And so he did. He made a wish on a book that had captured a Relic's light, and that wish met up with all the other wishes those heroes made. Because you see, there's magic in hope. There's magic in love. And there's magic in a wish; Angus the dragon's wish; Lucretia, the cursed crewmate's wish; and yours, the wishes of stolen heroes. When the Relic amplified those wishes, I woke up.
[The hologram man grins even wider.]
I heard it.
I heard the hope in his voice and in yours and it reminded me of something really, really important.
It reminded me... that I really don't want to get eaten!
[The hologram man laughs, eyes crinkling behind his comical specs.]
I don't wanna end!
But see, the thing is, I'm just the story. I can't do anything myself. I had to figure out a way to get you guys all your power back. I realized that when Lucretia brought you here, pieces of your universes came with you. Those pieces became a part of me, including all of the magic that existed in you. With that magic, I was able to stitch the Weave back together.
In other words, we were able to fix the very fabric of magic's existence because of the magic that existed in you.
So I gave us more time by changing what time meant and brought you all here. If I stretched out time, it meant I could not only fix magic, but also take away Angus's entire memory of the thrall of the relic. I just... kind of took your memories of Candlenights, too.
Hey, uh, sorry, Angus, by the way.
The only problem with the whole idea was that in scanning some of the parts of your home, I downloaded parts that were eaten by the Hunger. They became like... vacant information, somehow, and the Islanders here called them "The Cursed." Since all those Hunger-copies really knew was searching for those Relics, they all gathered around the north side of the island, around the Relic that Angus used.
Now, I know that this still probably all seems like a lot of things that weren't your fault, but they sure are our problem. And like I said, I don't wanna get eaten. I'm sure none of you do either.
But I can't stop the Hunger without you.
You are the only ones that can turn this whole thing around. You are the little stars in my skies, the seams in the fabric that sews all your worlds together. You... are everything that makes me me, and I'm everything you bring.
Without you, I'm just... one big swath of space, a page that has yet to be written on.
So... are you ready to take the first step to stopping the Hunger?
((Greg will be open to receive tags (and answer questions) on this post/threadjack until Monday, but not all replies to this post are guaranteed to receive a response from him. You may use this post to speak amongst yourselves as usual, and may even be lucky enough to get responses from other NPCs!
On Monday evening, we will move forward with the CTA portion, starting with signups!))
After it's finished loading, the messaging system pops back up, and a new message arrives. It opens without prompting, and a holographic figure projects onto the ground in front of everyone using a bracer.
The hologram is of what appears to be just a regular guy, some ambiguous schmuck. He's not particularly tall looking, wears a pair of big, black-framed glasses, his hair is mousey brown and trimmed short, and he doesn't even wear Faerun clothes.
He stands straight and confident with a smile on his face and his hands behind his back as he addresses the Reclaimers as if looking each of them in the eye.]
Hey! Hi! Hello there. Uh, wow, I gotta say, I wasn't expecting you to get through to me this way, but here we are!
That was pretty amazing.
Well, it's nice to finally meet you face to face! Or... face-to-hologram-projection-of-a-physical-manifestation. Hey! I'm your universe. That's right, the one you're living in right now! The one with uh, Faerun, and all the little folks running around there in places like Thay and Vista Virs.
You might know me as the Story. Some friends of mine like to call me Greg. It's kind of a little joke.
Uh, anyway, I know you're wondering why this conversation is so one-sided, and I'll try to field some questions at the end, but we kinda gotta make this quick, so, storytime! We've got— [he checks his wrist, which definitely does not have a watch.] — Just enough time for that.
Once upon a time, a small group of individuals got pulled throughout time and space, trying to fend off a pretty spooky-lookin' calamity. I'm talkin' end-of-all-worlds big. But saving worlds isn't easy, and more and more folks got pulled into a story and a struggle that was never theirs in the first place.
Those individuals found common ground and worked together to try and stop the calamity, and to reverse the damage it had done.
But despite their best efforts, it looked like they were destined to lose. Though they fought as hard as they could, a cult that sought to stop them from the beginning thwarted their plans and all of a sudden, magic, the hope they'd relied on all along, was snuffed out.
Cut off from magic and cut off from the planes, the heroes turned to each other and gave each other everything they had. They exchanged gifts of weapons, trinkets, armor; all in the effort of strengthening each other against the coming hardships.
As the nights grew colder, the calamity came upon them from the inside. The cult had found a way to plant a seed of doubt in their leader, and that doubt in herself consumed her, threatening to combine with the calamity that already chased the heroes.
None of them were counting on the fact that those heroes had made quite a few friends, notably detective Angus McDonald, a little boy of a particular kind. Those heroes were so kind to him, he'd do anything for them— even make a wish that could have been the end of him.
And so he did. He made a wish on a book that had captured a Relic's light, and that wish met up with all the other wishes those heroes made. Because you see, there's magic in hope. There's magic in love. And there's magic in a wish; Angus the dragon's wish; Lucretia, the cursed crewmate's wish; and yours, the wishes of stolen heroes. When the Relic amplified those wishes, I woke up.
[The hologram man grins even wider.]
I heard it.
I heard the hope in his voice and in yours and it reminded me of something really, really important.
It reminded me... that I really don't want to get eaten!
[The hologram man laughs, eyes crinkling behind his comical specs.]
I don't wanna end!
But see, the thing is, I'm just the story. I can't do anything myself. I had to figure out a way to get you guys all your power back. I realized that when Lucretia brought you here, pieces of your universes came with you. Those pieces became a part of me, including all of the magic that existed in you. With that magic, I was able to stitch the Weave back together.
In other words, we were able to fix the very fabric of magic's existence because of the magic that existed in you.
So I gave us more time by changing what time meant and brought you all here. If I stretched out time, it meant I could not only fix magic, but also take away Angus's entire memory of the thrall of the relic. I just... kind of took your memories of Candlenights, too.
Hey, uh, sorry, Angus, by the way.
The only problem with the whole idea was that in scanning some of the parts of your home, I downloaded parts that were eaten by the Hunger. They became like... vacant information, somehow, and the Islanders here called them "The Cursed." Since all those Hunger-copies really knew was searching for those Relics, they all gathered around the north side of the island, around the Relic that Angus used.
Now, I know that this still probably all seems like a lot of things that weren't your fault, but they sure are our problem. And like I said, I don't wanna get eaten. I'm sure none of you do either.
But I can't stop the Hunger without you.
You are the only ones that can turn this whole thing around. You are the little stars in my skies, the seams in the fabric that sews all your worlds together. You... are everything that makes me me, and I'm everything you bring.
Without you, I'm just... one big swath of space, a page that has yet to be written on.
So... are you ready to take the first step to stopping the Hunger?
((Greg will be open to receive tags (and answer questions) on this post/threadjack until Monday, but not all replies to this post are guaranteed to receive a response from him. You may use this post to speak amongst yourselves as usual, and may even be lucky enough to get responses from other NPCs!
On Monday evening, we will move forward with the CTA portion, starting with signups!))
no subject
Do you want us to solve a mystery, or do you want us to be prepared?
[It's not the first time he's rained on someone's parade in the interests of disaster preparedness, and it won't be the last.]
...does Angus know? I mean - he probably does now - but...y'know.
[He's just...not going to address the nonexistent version of the universe that he seems to remember. He's had enough memory bullshit in his life to know that he's going to need time and privacy to come to terms with that. Instead:]
You said you took our memories of Candlenights; what about the people missing other memories? What happened to those?
no subject
I want you to try.
I know you have to want this, I'm a part of you. And I know you can do this, if you work together.
What do you think you need to do first?
[He puts his hand up, as if to stop Wash from answering.]
And, just so you know... I didn't take those other memories.
There's a lot more ways to get amnesia without magic than with it. Trauma and stress do a lot to a mortal mind.
I thought the vacation might help fix that.
no subject
[And is forestalled. Okay. Fine. He'll wait.
[Except-]
[Greg had said that part of their stories were part of him, and that he's a part of all of them.]
[Which means he knows Wash's story.]
[Which means he probably knows why commentary about the effects of trauma and stress on the mortal mind may not be the best thing to say to Agent "Memory Is the Key" Washington. Not a whole lot of excuses there.]
...fuck you, Greg.
[It's not a conversation ender, but God damn is Wash frustrated right about now.]
no subject
But he doesn't grow scolding or bark back.
He laughs, as if Wash has just told a joke.]
Oh, if only! Major stress relief, right?
[He shakes his head and puts his hands in his projected pockets, posture relaxed.]
Don't get yourself thinkin' I want you to figure this out alone just cos of what I said. You're on a team, and I'm part of it now.
Hey, you ever play the game Mastermind?
[To demonstrate, Greg projects a game board in front of him.]
The Mastermind— that's me, in this case— has a secret message in code that they arrange with four pegs. Then you, the challenger, guess what order and color those pegs go in. The Mastermind can only tell you when you've arranged a color right, never if you've arranged it wrong, and can't describe the code itself.
[The game board lights up with different combinations of colored lights to demonstrate someone guessing the color order until it matches up.]
That's the rules we're working under. And you, my skeptical friend, seem to have a knack for coming up with theories, am I right?
no subject
I'm not volunteering.
[He's not terribly fond of Greg, but...well, he doesn't have to be to work together. Wouldn't be the first time. He raises an eyebrow at the game board and watches the demonstration. Okay, then.]
You would know, wouldn't you?
[He couldn't resist. Still, he recognizes an invitation when he hears one.]
Okay. So we need Lucretia back. We saw the curse, we saw the thorns, and if she's not on the volcano, or in it, then she's probably pretty close to it. We need to- I don't know, break the curse, wake her up, something - but we need to get there first.
[...hang on.] But Mira said she'd found a tunnel that bypassed the Cursed and got close. That's probably the best way to go, because the other side of the wall looks like a zombie apocalypse.
Speaking of the Cursed...you said they gravitate towards Relics. They're on the north side of the island... [Wait. Wait. Something doesn't quite click, but he feels like he might have hit something here. Maybe.] ...you said near the relic Angus used. But Papyrus found the book underwater, in the caves. Either those caves span really far north, or...
[...or...]
[They'd seen it in the videos - the group from the Starblaster - including Lucretia - had divided the Light of Creation, whatever that was, into the Relics. It sounded a hell of a lot like they'd made them.]
[Lucretia was a chronicler - a historian - according to the hazy post-Candlenights memories. Sure, he wouldn't put it past her to have made her Relic a book, but...one of a series of pulp detective novels for kids? When one of the Relic-related disasters he'd described to her so long ago had involved a Relic falling into the hands of a child? The specifics didn't fit. And if the job of the Reclaimers was to bring back Relics that had fallen into the wrong hands, why would she ever let hers leave her sight?]
[And Angus had thought she was hiding something - that she wasn't destroying the Relics as they were being brought in. And the existence of the baby Voidfish in this universe had been confirmed - by the physical manifestation of the universe, who had also spoken static to people who should have been able to hear the words behind it, goddammit Greg - so she's definitely hiding something-]
[And Greg had described the book as having captured the Relic's light. That didn't make it a goddamn Relic itself-]
[Fuck Greg's aversion to direct questions; he has to know.]
The book - Caleb Cleveland and the Imaginary Island - is it a relic?
no subject
Score one for Washing-ton.
[Greg gives a little arm pump.]
Score two, actually, you hit two points there. There's nowhere else for Lucretia to be, really, nowhere safe anyway.
[Then, Greg puts his hand to his chin.]
Funny you should mention Mira. Do you remember what happened to the Relic back in Thay, the one that Mira and Spike were trying to Reclaim?
no subject
[(It's also hard not to feel a little like he's having a very informative conversation with Donut at this point, but...well, you take what you can get.)]
[He furrows his brow.]
Yeah, it shattered.
[An uncontrolled release of energy acting as a beacon for the Hunger-]
[hang the fuck on]
Wait. Wait. Is that why the book's a Relic? It absorbed the energy from the lamp? How does that even work?