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Entry tags:
- * event,
- a3!: juza hyodo,
- a3!: omi fushimi,
- ace attorney: trucy wright,
- attack on titan: eren jaeger,
- attack on titan: mikasa ackerman,
- beastars: louis,
- bloodborne: eileen the crow,
- castlevania: alucard,
- castlevania: hector,
- castlevania: sypha belnades,
- critical role: percy de rollo iii,
- da: myrobalan shivana,
- dbh: connor,
- death note: l lawliet,
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- dragon prince: viren,
- elfen lied: kaede,
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- fe: hubert von vestra,
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- fe: soren,
- fextraccc: hakuno kishinami,
- ffvii: cloud strife,
- ffxiv: crystal exarch,
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- ffxiv: irhya pendhula,
- ffxiv: k'rihnn tia,
- ffxiv: mira chambers,
- ffxiv: rose,
- ffxiv: tataru taru,
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- ffxv: noctis lucis caelum,
- ffxv: prompto argentum,
- fgo: cu chulainn alter,
- fgo: enkidu,
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- fha: caren ortensia,
- food fantasy: red wine,
- food fantasy: steak,
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- fruits basket: momiji sohma,
- fsf: flat escardos,
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- haikyuu!!: tendou satori,
- harry potter: theseus scamander,
- idolish7: momo,
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- kh: demyx,
- kh: kairi,
- kh: roxas,
- kh: sora,
- kh: vanitas,
- loz botw: zelda,
- lwa: atsuko kagari,
- lwa: ursula callistis,
- magi: judar,
- mdzs: lan xichen,
- monster duchess: leslie,
- monstrumologist: will henry,
- original: bishop,
- original: everett vaughan,
- original: gwenaelle wynne-york,
- original: iramaat,
- original: saori nakagawa,
- original: sokie undertown,
- p3: shinjiro aragaki,
- p5: akira kurusu,
- planescape: fall-from-grace,
- promare: lio fotia,
- rwby: qrow branwen,
- srr: yuma ilvern,
- ssss: emil vasterstrom,
- ssss: reynir arnason,
- tales of hearts r: kor meteor,
- teen wolf: derek hale,
- teen wolf: stiles stillinski,
- the arcana: julian devorak,
- the untamed: wei wuxian,
- trails: elliot craig,
- trails: fie claussell,
- transformers: soundwave,
- undertale: alphys,
- undertale: mettaton,
- undertale: papyrus,
- voltron: lance
Event Log: April, Dream a Little Dream
I. The Looking-Glass House
The Looking-Glass House, from the outside, seems no different from how it looks in the waking world. Each cobblestone still glows as you step upon it, drawing your attention toward the entryway of the two-story cottage that sits at the edge of the Coven's courtyard. You can still wander the Coven grounds if you'd like, but nothing is different from how it will be when you wake, save the lack of bustling Witches and Monsters going about their business. Areas that are normally inaccessible are still inaccessible. Whatever secrets this dream may hold, they all lie within the hall of mirrors. Perhaps you haven't had reason to step into this building in some time, or maybe you're here often, checking for new arrivals. Maybe you only recently arrived here and the sight of these mirror-lined hallways is fresh in your mind. Something has changed, however... Many of the hundreds of mirrors on the walls remain the same: dull, dusty, undecorated, some cracked or broken. As lifeless as a mirror can get. Yours, if you seek it out, looks the same as it did to you on your arrival - the frame covered in reminders of your home, your life, the surface of it clear and shiny-new. But this time, in this dream, yours is not the only one you can see signs of life in. Other mirrors also have the clear, silvery glass within their frames that yours does, indicating a connection to someone currently in Aefenglom. Maybe you can pick out the mirrors of people you know by the few carvings in the frames you can pick out; the closer you are to someone, the more of their mirror's decoration you're able to see, though the frames of strangers' mirrors remain unadorned to your gaze. You might feel yourself compelled to lay your hand on one of these silvery-bright mirrors, and when you do, the glass ripples like movement on a still pond. Like water, it allows you entry to another time, another place, another world - or at least, the memory of such. Who knows what you'll witness there, something beautiful or something terrible, but you only have to slip back through the mirror into the Looking Glass House to end it. |
Welcome to April's event log, Dream a Little Dream! This event is a little more 'make your own fun' than others (since we are not currently in a place to be able to run a plot-heavy event this month), so feel free to play with the dream mechanics generally as you will. The main things to keep in mind are: memories are from the character's point of view however you choose to interpret that; memories cannot be altered or show a character something they could not have witnessed; please be considerate when using other people's characters in a memory, and visitors cannot directly interact with people/NPCs within a memory. Interacting with creatures/environment of a memory is fine. Otherwise, have fun! As always, feel free to use this log or make your own, and direct event-related questions here.
no subject
It does earn Connor an idle laugh.]
YES! I HAVE. HONESTLY, THE TROUBLES I'VE SEEN IN THESE MIRRORS. [His... monitor turns red. But it's a peculiar pattern. Red, dimmer red, then green, yellow, red, then an unlit red. He crosses his arms.] THE MIRRORBOUND ARE A DEEPLY TROUBLED SORT. I'VE... NEVER BEFORE CONSIDERED SUCH HARROWING EXISTENCES. SO MANY... DEAD PEOPLE. NIGHTMARES. VIOLENCE.
[Indicative of the kind of life MTT led, perhaps. He wonders what kind of life Connor leads. Does his life involve dead people? He said he was a detective... Mettaton's screen remains dim, but it at least yellows in his thought.]
no subject
Many of the people here have had... troubling lives, yes.
[For what it's worth, Connor is always straightforward in his answers about his own life. There's not much that he's truly ashamed of, besides the first mission he undertook, and even then he has a genuine excuse for his actions. If Mettaton wanted to ask about what Connor had been through, he'd answer.]
I take it yours was quite comfortable?
no subject
[All of his robotic years were this, yes, and he throws his hands up in a sort of gesture to indicate the breadth of its excitement. His Puca ears... are neutral. Pulled tall, but slightly back. One of them folds down into something of anxiousness for but a moment.
The ears betray more than his expressive screen, at times. It's a double giveaway, and Mettaton's never been good at lying, unless it's part of a grand scheme. His monitor, by the way, displays the letter M now. Not much of a feeling.]
I'M A TV STAR, SO IT SHOULD BE EXCITING! BUT SCARCELY ANYTHING UNPLEASANT... I'D SAY THE MOST INSIDIOUS THING ON MY CONSCIENCE... MIGHT BE THE TIME I ATTEMPTED TO TAKE A HUMAN'S SOUL. [That could sound like confession enough. He waves it off with a hand and quickly shifts into a question.] DO YOU NOT CONCERN YOURSELF WITH ACCESS TO YOUR MIRROR, BEAUTIFUL? WAS YOUR PAST AS TROUBLING AS YOU UNDERSTAND HE LOT OF US?
no subject
[Connor notes the ears but he's honestly more taken aback by the confession. Mettaton didn't seem like the type.]
My past is short. I was only three months old before I came to Aefenglom, and I'd spent most of that in standby mode. I've done things I'm not proud of, but I've always been quite honest about them.
[Though he does suppose seeing things happen is different to being told a watered down version.]
no subject
OH, IT'S COMPLICATED. [Another wave of his hand.] SOME RESTRICTIONS, ABOUT MY WORLD... THOSE WHO LIVED UNDERGROUND COULDN'T MAKE IT TO THE SURFACE WITHOUT A HUMAN SOUL. HOWEVER. DON'T DOUBT THAT I LOVE HUMANITY, DESPITE MY ACTIONS.
THAT'S IN THE PAST.
[Dismissive wave of his hand, again. Mettaton isn't actually as ashamed of this as his emotion might let on; that flattening of his ear was for an entirely different reason, unsaid. This is a cover-up.]
BUT REALLY? YOU WERE ONLY THREE MONTHS OLD?! I'M SHOCKED. YET YOU'RE NOT PROUD OF ALL YOU'VE DONE...
[Three months and already regretting. Mettaton can scarcely imagine what he means.]
WOULD YOU... BE WILLING TO TELL? TO SHOW?
[Whether he's willing to show or not, Mettaton is definitely coming around to check out his mirror, now. He can't resist temptation.]
no subject
I... okay. I'll show you.
[He hopes it isn't the first mission he went on... he was a different man back then.]
It'll mean leaving your mirror, though.
no subject
...REALLY? JUST LIKE THAT? WELL. YOU DID SAY YOU'RE HONEST.
[Mettaton waves a hand at his mirror.]
MANY CAN'T EVEN SEE THE SHEER BRILLIANCE OF MY MIRROR... AND I HAVEN'T MET WITH MANY MIRRORBOUND OVER THE PAST WHO-KNOWS-HOW-LONG, BESIDES! YOU YOURSELF ARE THE EXCEPTION, DARLING. ALMOST AS THOUGH YOU CAME STRAIGHT FOR ME...
[Think whatever you want, Mettaton. He disengages from his mirror, and motions with his hand for Connor to lead the way.]
I CAN'T HELP BUT TAKE THE INVITATION... TO INDULGE MY BOUNDLESS CURIOSITY.
no subject
He leads Mettaton to his own mirror, and this time he doesn't hesitate as he steps in. The scene before him is familiar; a red pool of water, with two androids relaxing and talking in it. Kamski himself is doing laps, and every so often the memory Connor scans the room, made obvious by the way everything seems to freeze as he takes it in, his objectives flashing in front of him.
Past Connor is very obviously distracted by his surroundings as Kamski pulls himself out of the pool, another android offering him his robe. As he turns to face them, Hank introduces himself and Connor and explains that they're investigating deviants.
The current Connor, assuming Mettaton is following him, frowns a little as he recalls what happened here. Well, it's nothing he can be ashamed of, at least. He points to Kamski.]
That man created androids. Elijah Kamski.
no subject
It's tamer than what he's seen thus far, at first glance. A welcome change, but still absurd in its appearance. He's not by Connor's side for long, taking full initiative in straying somewhat with a finger pressed to his metal body in curiosity at the sights set before him. A rather upscale-looking room with an indoor pool, juxtaposed against the wintry outdoors beyond expansive mirror. That much, he appreciates. But the water... is red?
(Is it blood? ...Mettaton can't start thinking about blood right now. He turns away from it, to follow Connor along. ...He steals a look at the pool again, his display rapidly swapping between yellow and red.)
His attention is deserved elsewhere. He hears Hank, and it's a voice only slightly familiar to him, insofar as he's heard it before — though a lot less calm. The idol stops at Connor's side to behold the man with his hair tied in a bun — Elijah Kamski. He doesn't have one of the little... nodes, on his temple, like Connor does. ...A quick survey: others in this room do have it.]
HE CREATED... THE CONCEPT ITSELF? OR THE CONCEPTUALIZED RENDITION OF IT AS YOU ALL APPEAR TO BE? THAT IS, ADVANCED, AND... CONVINCINGLY HUMAN.
[Oh, his envy on how human they appear will never dissolve. It's a thing Mettaton covets... but nothing close to self-pity over it.]
no subject
[And he clearly is proud of his work. "Deviants... perfect beings with infinite intelligence, and now they have free will. Machines are so superior to us. Confrontation was inevitable."
The memory Connor doesn't look particularly moved. He asks for help on how to understand the way androids become deviants. Connor looks to Mettaton, and then nods towards his past self.]
This was before I had truly gained free will. I was still working for humans to overcome the android uprising. I still thought of myself as just a machine.
no subject
...SO YOUR FREE WILL WAS SOMETHING GAINED, NOT SOMETHING YOU INHERENTLY HAD.
[He still remembers Connor wondering if he had a soul, and at the time, Mettaton wasn't sure if he had an answer for him. He feels he has an answer now, but he came into this with a different perspective completely. It's merely a reminder.]
ARE YOU A DEVIANT? IF YOU HAVE FREE WILL...
[Maybe you should let the memory play out, Mettaton!]
no subject
[He watches as Kamski disregards Hank and approaches his memory self. "What about you, Connor? Whose side are you on?" Of course, that Connor responds neutrally. And Kamski seems to find that amusing, before pressing the question. "Well that's what you're programmed to say... but you. What do you really want?"
Memory Connor seems to be having trouble comprehending the question, at first. And he remembers, it had confused him somewhat. But then- "What I want is... not important."
Machines aren't supposed to want anything. Connor remembers having that opinion. He was designed to accomplish a task, not to want or feel. But somewhere along the line, he had shifted from "I want nothing" to "what I want doesn't matter". He doesn't quite know where it happened.
Kamski calls over Chloe and explains the Turing test, before then going on to explain the "Kamski test" and what it entails. He seems to get distracted by his own creation again first, though. "Young... and beautiful forever. A flower that will never wither... but what is it really? A piece of plastic imitating a human? Or a living being... with a soul?"
He pulls a gun out of the drawer behind Chloe, before making her kneel in front of Connor.
"It's up to you to answer that fascinating question, Connor."]
no subject
It reminds him a bit of the way some people seem to regard Mettaton upon first glance. He should've known before coming here that people would view him as less sentient, less human from time to time. Movies he'd ever seen with robots in it might have suggested as much, but he never truly aligned his own identity with being a robot, even if that's what he considers himself now. (Does he, though? What is he?)
Connor's life is defined by this. He's being handed a gun and given an order, told that he's but a machine, just like Chloe before him. Questioned whether he possesses a soul, and the test is in this Kamski test.
Mettaton knows that the answer for possessing a soul is not shooting her at any cost. But it's not something he feels would prove that anybody has a soul, realistically. A person with a soul is just as capable of pulling that trigger.
But Mettaton's still involved in the scene playing out before him, and his fingers are laced together in plea, on the edge of his seat.]
... PLEASE TELL ME YOU DON'T SHOOT HER!
[His screen is pale yellow, but very bright, engrossed and animated as he is.]
no subject
[Kamski takes Connor's hand and aims the gun at Chloe. "Destroy this machine and I'll tell you all I know. Or spare it, if you feel it's alive... but you'll leave here without having learnt anything from me."
Hank, obviously disgusted with what is happening in front of him, tries to get Connor to leave. Kamski continues to talk to Connor as if Hank had said nothing. "Decide who you are... an obedient machine... or a living being, endowed with free will."
You can see the way Connor's LED flashes yellow, the expression on his face one of confusion as he's caught between Hank and Kamski while he tries to process a difficult question. It shouldn't have been difficult, he remembers thinking that. He remembers thinking that the choice should have been easy. But when he looked at that Chloe...
He visibly exhales, LED flashing red, as he hands the gun back to Kamski.]
no subject
... DEACTIVATED. YOUR VERY PURPOSE HANGS IN THE BALANCE.
[So it would only make the most sense to follow through and shoot, if it meant that he could fulfill the information-seeking portion of his investigation. The idol's monitor turns red in turn with Connor's LED, crossing his arms.]
BUT, YOU KNOW. A PERSON WITH FREE WILL... COULD ALSO CHOOSE TO SHOOT. A PERSON WITH A SOUL COULD DO THAT. THIS TEST IS FLAWED.