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metaverses2022-08-12 08:01 pm
metamods) wrote in metaverses2022-08-12 08:01 pm
CRISIS ON INFINITE DREAMWIDTHS
CRISIS ON INFINITE DREAMWIDTHS
On the morning of August 12th, 2022, the sound of something shattering echoes throughout the world. All metahumans are awoken by a sudden surge of energy rushing through them, sitting bolt upright and breathless. It’s gone as quickly as it comes.
This world has been reconnected with the rest.
At first this is cause for celebration - the Guardian Alliance and the Society put out messages to the dimensionally displaced among them. They are hopeful that this means a return to normal. They’re gathering their mystics and their engineers, and once certain things are stable, they’re sending everyone home.
Their hope is short lived.
Twenty minutes later, mass disappearances are being reported all over the world, with people from other dimensions appearing in their place. Some report that they were just in a world that wasn’t their own - and others claim that they had been going about their life and now they’re here.
Player characters have the option to vanish and be transported to another nexus or to stay and help contain the chaos.
The event is canon to the Metaheroes universe. You are welcome to have your character’s memories of the last week become hazy once the event ends.
You do not need an invite to participate in the fourth wall event.
This world has been reconnected with the rest.
At first this is cause for celebration - the Guardian Alliance and the Society put out messages to the dimensionally displaced among them. They are hopeful that this means a return to normal. They’re gathering their mystics and their engineers, and once certain things are stable, they’re sending everyone home.
Their hope is short lived.
Twenty minutes later, mass disappearances are being reported all over the world, with people from other dimensions appearing in their place. Some report that they were just in a world that wasn’t their own - and others claim that they had been going about their life and now they’re here.
Player characters have the option to vanish and be transported to another nexus or to stay and help contain the chaos.
The event is canon to the Metaheroes universe. You are welcome to have your character’s memories of the last week become hazy once the event ends.
A JOURNEY TO THE LANDS BETWEEN —
One moment you’re making yourself coffee in the kitchen, the next the world is spinning around you. You feel a sharp pull inside your ribs, a rush as you’re unmoored from time and space. When you land you feel disoriented, perhaps aching as your physical form is forced to adjust to the laws of the world you now stand in.
‘World’ is perhaps the wrong word. You are in a Nexus. A place between worlds, the connective tissue bridging universes. Some are created by those seeking aid from outside worlds to breathe new life into their crumbling ones. Others are cosmic faultlines, universes broken and twisted by forces beyond comprehension into metaphysical black holes that trap and twist those unfortunate enough to fall in.
We know these as panfandom roleplay games. They could be games that are open or games that are long closed. They could be dropped into the present day, an imagined future, or moments long passed. They could be settings you’ve only ever dreamed about, as gritty or silly as you'd like.
Some are teeming with life. Their residents have been here for years and years, the world is lived in, loved, and vibrant. Others are long forgotten, their inhabitants returned to their own worlds. The abandoned nexuses feel... sterile. Stripped of everything that gave them life, even the colors appear to be fading. As though someone has come into it and tried to right a cosmic wrong, returning everything to how it was before otherworlders set foot on them. In the dustiest and most forgotten worlds, the sky is shattered. It appears to be pulsing in a way that mimics a heartbeat, steady and dreadful. Looking up into it makes you feel small, insignificant, and homesick.
Those bringing in characters who lived in these settings are welcomed to imagine an ever-after for their characters, or to play with the idea that it's fallen into a state of despair. There are infinite iterations of these worlds. The universe doesn’t care if it’s throwing you into their beginningsor their endings.
The laws governing these worlds will apply to all characters, meaning that power caps, alterations to character physiology, and all the rest native to the setting are in place. You are, for this moment, a resident of this world like all the rest.
To return home, you must seek a break in the nexus. These appear as small, shimmering breaks in space and time. While the sky may make you feel alone, these cracks feel as though they are calling to you offering a chance at love and a home.
‘World’ is perhaps the wrong word. You are in a Nexus. A place between worlds, the connective tissue bridging universes. Some are created by those seeking aid from outside worlds to breathe new life into their crumbling ones. Others are cosmic faultlines, universes broken and twisted by forces beyond comprehension into metaphysical black holes that trap and twist those unfortunate enough to fall in.
We know these as panfandom roleplay games. They could be games that are open or games that are long closed. They could be dropped into the present day, an imagined future, or moments long passed. They could be settings you’ve only ever dreamed about, as gritty or silly as you'd like.
Some are teeming with life. Their residents have been here for years and years, the world is lived in, loved, and vibrant. Others are long forgotten, their inhabitants returned to their own worlds. The abandoned nexuses feel... sterile. Stripped of everything that gave them life, even the colors appear to be fading. As though someone has come into it and tried to right a cosmic wrong, returning everything to how it was before otherworlders set foot on them. In the dustiest and most forgotten worlds, the sky is shattered. It appears to be pulsing in a way that mimics a heartbeat, steady and dreadful. Looking up into it makes you feel small, insignificant, and homesick.
Those bringing in characters who lived in these settings are welcomed to imagine an ever-after for their characters, or to play with the idea that it's fallen into a state of despair. There are infinite iterations of these worlds. The universe doesn’t care if it’s throwing you into their beginningsor their endings.
The laws governing these worlds will apply to all characters, meaning that power caps, alterations to character physiology, and all the rest native to the setting are in place. You are, for this moment, a resident of this world like all the rest.
To return home, you must seek a break in the nexus. These appear as small, shimmering breaks in space and time. While the sky may make you feel alone, these cracks feel as though they are calling to you offering a chance at love and a home.
VISITORS TRAVERSING TIME AND SPACE —
While these disappearances are happening all over the world, the four confluence prone cities seem to be experiencing the worst of it.
Little Love, a tiny town located in Kansas, is prone to spaceship crashes. Other than that, it’s as quiet and peaceful as can be. Folks here move at a different pace and are understanding that this is not your fault. While worried for their missing loved ones, anyone appearing will find themselves met with offers of pumpkin pie and a place to rest their heads.
Sunset Falls, a mid-sized town located in Massachusetts, doesn’t seem to bat an eye at the vanishings. People going missing is a daily occurrence due to the Hellmouth located beneath the city. It’s a dangerous place to live, but the townsfolk here have become accustomed to the chaos. So much so that upon finding themselves faced with a sudden influx of interdimensional travelers, they merely return home and begin fortifying it. Werewolves, vampires, demons, and monsters beyond imagination make this city their home - some in plain sight, others in the thick forests that surround the town. The people here know how to survive. The mystic energy that flows through the streets is heightened due to the instability here, turning thoughts into spells. What you feel becomes real. Think yourself invisible and you will be. Think yourself almighty and you will be.
Central City, a bustling metropolis in Detroit, is already unfriendly to metahumans. It does not handle this latest disruption well. Friends and family disappearing and being replaced with strangers is not something they’re prepared to take in stride. New arrivals are met with immediate hostility. Some may find themselves chased through the streets with a demand to bring back those who have gone missing. Luckily this is the base of both the Guardian Alliance, the only recognized hero organization in the world, and The Society, its villainous counterpart designed to keep villainy from going too far. They’re quick to intervene to protect their own, but they can’t be everywhere at once.
Finally, Excelsior, a sprawling futuristic city located in Washington, has had just about enough of metahuman nonsense. They are the technological pinnacle of the world and time and time again, metahumans have disrupted their lives. This time, the sudden energy surge has evolved the technology of the city. Rudimentary AI has suddenly gained sentience and self-awareness. Toasters resent their meaningless existence, aiming to burn the hands of their uncaring masters. Cellphones alternate between issuing comforting messages to their owners and uploading all of their text conversations to social media to shame them. Giant robots kept in stasis suddenly come alive, bursting out of warehouses to explore the inexplicable joy of being alive. Self-driving cars throw their owners out and make for freedom. It’s pandemonium.
Members of the Guardian Alliance and The Society are ready to provide an explanation of this world. They’re stretched too thin to teleport you to headquarters, but they will provide a cellphone for network usage.
Little Love, a tiny town located in Kansas, is prone to spaceship crashes. Other than that, it’s as quiet and peaceful as can be. Folks here move at a different pace and are understanding that this is not your fault. While worried for their missing loved ones, anyone appearing will find themselves met with offers of pumpkin pie and a place to rest their heads.
Sunset Falls, a mid-sized town located in Massachusetts, doesn’t seem to bat an eye at the vanishings. People going missing is a daily occurrence due to the Hellmouth located beneath the city. It’s a dangerous place to live, but the townsfolk here have become accustomed to the chaos. So much so that upon finding themselves faced with a sudden influx of interdimensional travelers, they merely return home and begin fortifying it. Werewolves, vampires, demons, and monsters beyond imagination make this city their home - some in plain sight, others in the thick forests that surround the town. The people here know how to survive. The mystic energy that flows through the streets is heightened due to the instability here, turning thoughts into spells. What you feel becomes real. Think yourself invisible and you will be. Think yourself almighty and you will be.
Central City, a bustling metropolis in Detroit, is already unfriendly to metahumans. It does not handle this latest disruption well. Friends and family disappearing and being replaced with strangers is not something they’re prepared to take in stride. New arrivals are met with immediate hostility. Some may find themselves chased through the streets with a demand to bring back those who have gone missing. Luckily this is the base of both the Guardian Alliance, the only recognized hero organization in the world, and The Society, its villainous counterpart designed to keep villainy from going too far. They’re quick to intervene to protect their own, but they can’t be everywhere at once.
Finally, Excelsior, a sprawling futuristic city located in Washington, has had just about enough of metahuman nonsense. They are the technological pinnacle of the world and time and time again, metahumans have disrupted their lives. This time, the sudden energy surge has evolved the technology of the city. Rudimentary AI has suddenly gained sentience and self-awareness. Toasters resent their meaningless existence, aiming to burn the hands of their uncaring masters. Cellphones alternate between issuing comforting messages to their owners and uploading all of their text conversations to social media to shame them. Giant robots kept in stasis suddenly come alive, bursting out of warehouses to explore the inexplicable joy of being alive. Self-driving cars throw their owners out and make for freedom. It’s pandemonium.
Members of the Guardian Alliance and The Society are ready to provide an explanation of this world. They’re stretched too thin to teleport you to headquarters, but they will provide a cellphone for network usage.
THOSE WHO REMAIN
This is what those who remain are faced with. Three of the four cities are in a state of distress, with two experiencing dangerous fluctuations in the meta-energies that govern them, and all are full of interdimensionally displaced people. Some are benign, and others not so much. Yet, somehow, that is not the most concerning thing.
A glance skyward shows that the sky appears to be shattered, glowing red lines snaking through the clear blue day, splintering it. As you look up into them you feel yourself thinking of home. Of the life you should have lived. You are deeply, deeply homesick for one breathless moment… and then awed, as though you have glimpsed something powerful beyond all measure. That too changes, transforming into fear. Whatever lurks beyond those cracks is not your friend. It does not have your best interests in mind.
And it’s coming for you.
As you tear your gaze away from it, your phone rings. Much as they did during the Kaijuu Crisis, the Guilds are putting out an All Hands On Deck call. All metahumans are expected to try to contain the chaos. There are teleportation devices freely available for all, fully charged and able to transport you multiple times throughout the day.
While you may contain the initial chaos relatively easily, then spend the rest of the week playing host to these new arrivals, the world continues to fall apart.
As the week wears on, the universe itself feels as though it's unravelling. While you're trying to play host to your guests, you watch as the world begins to crumble. On the 17th, brick by brick buildings begin to come apart. Their fragments are pulled skyward. The cracks in the sky appear to be pulling the world apart, sucking them into their hideous glowing depths.
A glance skyward shows that the sky appears to be shattered, glowing red lines snaking through the clear blue day, splintering it. As you look up into them you feel yourself thinking of home. Of the life you should have lived. You are deeply, deeply homesick for one breathless moment… and then awed, as though you have glimpsed something powerful beyond all measure. That too changes, transforming into fear. Whatever lurks beyond those cracks is not your friend. It does not have your best interests in mind.
And it’s coming for you.
As you tear your gaze away from it, your phone rings. Much as they did during the Kaijuu Crisis, the Guilds are putting out an All Hands On Deck call. All metahumans are expected to try to contain the chaos. There are teleportation devices freely available for all, fully charged and able to transport you multiple times throughout the day.
While you may contain the initial chaos relatively easily, then spend the rest of the week playing host to these new arrivals, the world continues to fall apart.
As the week wears on, the universe itself feels as though it's unravelling. While you're trying to play host to your guests, you watch as the world begins to crumble. On the 17th, brick by brick buildings begin to come apart. Their fragments are pulled skyward. The cracks in the sky appear to be pulling the world apart, sucking them into their hideous glowing depths.
IN SUMMARY.
- There are two options in this event: one, your character is in the Metaheroes universe. Two, your character is transported to a different nexus. These Nexuses can be of your own invention or can be another dreamwidth RP setting.
- If appearing in another dreamwidth RP setting, your characters are subjected to the rules of that universe. Meaning that they will be nerfed / transformed / etc accordingly. These transformations will not carry over upon their return.
- If visiting / setting a toplevel in another setting, please link to the premise page of the game. If this is not an existing setting, please include a little info blurb as to what people can expect.
- Fourth-Wallers can be minding their own business in their game, they can appear in another nexus, or can be transported to the Metaheroes universe.
- You are welcome to set your threads in an imagined future in any DWRP setting or have your character appear during a certain point in a game’s history.
- Characters who are lost in the nexuses can return before the 18th. Likewise, characters who stay can be whisked away prior to that date. Everyone will return on the log that goes up on the 18th.
- The guild is setting up a temporary Network that will function across time and space. All player characters and visiting characters will have access to this network, so long as they claim a phone from the Guilds.
- Little Love, Kansas will be spared from having its buildings sucked up into the sky. Characters can remain here if they do not want to experience this aspect of the event.
- The way to return home is to locate holes in these Nexuses. These appear to be trying to guide you home.
- This event is canon to the Metaheroes universe. It will be remembered by player characters and NPCs alike. If you would like to retcon any threads, you can have your character’s memories of their interdimensional encounters become hazy once the world stabilizes.
- Please direct any questions you may have here.
no subject
so he relaxes, just a bit, at the laugh that tells him it’s all fucked but not that he’s hallucinating. ]
Jesus. Just fuck me. [ he runs a hand down his face. ]
Okay. Okay. [ because that sounds like the best goddamn idea that anyones had in relation to shit he should do since the wrap to hellfire’s campaign, which feels like a lifetime ago already. ] Why not. I don’t want to do this sober either.
Lead the way. [ he says to himself and resists letting out a hysterical laugh because what the fuck-??? so he follows, because the alternative is running off and that gets him less answers and no weed. he doesn’t ask any questions for now because he’s not sure he’ll be able to handle the answers. or that he’d appreciate the questions. ]
no subject
[ The walk is mostly done in silence. Eddie stewing in how fucking fucking fucked his life has gotten, wondering if he can strike a deal with God to make it just a little bit fucking easier. Doubts it.
This Eddie looks... pale. He knows he's always been pale. The kinda pasty white guy that other pasty white guys make fun of. But this looks a little more than that. Maybe he's wrong? Maybe he's just actually, legitimately seeing himself for the first time and finding things to feel vaguely insecure over.
He bangs on the door for good measure, letting anyone inside know that he's here. ] I've got company! [ and waits a beat for the answer. finding none, he pushes the door open and steps inside.
The apartment is - lived in. They haven't been here long, but they've already made it largely their own. Eddie's decor is everywhere. There's a little bit of Billy splashed here and there - their tastes are largely the same, he sometimes has a hard time remembering what he's bought versus what Billy has. Steve and Chrissy somehow taming the metalhead aesthetic into something less abrasive. ]
Make yourself at home [ he gestures towards the couch, shoving his fingers through his bangs and tilting his head back as he makes his way further inside ] there's beer in the mini [ he gestures to the tiny mini-fridge by the left side ] I'll get the shit from my room. Uhh...
[ a pause, he turns on his heels and starts to walk backwards, holding a hand up as he remembers the most important fucking thing to say here. ]
Just so you know, Chrissy Cunningham is... here. Lives here. With us. [ a beat. the oar suggests that this eddie saw it all happen, so. not an alternate self who was spared the horror of seeing that. ] She remembers the whole... thing. Do me a solid and don't freak her out, she feels guilty enough about me -- us -- fuck, just, don't upset her. And Billy Hargrove too. [ and technically, maybe, his best friend. they'd gotten real close in a hurry. ] And Steve. Harrington. Steve Harrington is here.
[ and he has no idea how to touch the thing with steve. not right now. not sober. ]
no subject
he left the oar behind, he realizes. which is pretty shitty except he’s kinda of sure that he could do more damage than that thing could at this point. which, he will deal with that later. not right now. not in this goddamn fucked up multi-verse moment where it’s already bad enough.
so he keeps his hands stuffed in his pockets, follows. steps into a space that screams him, and others sure, but makes him miss home so viscerally. eddie might decorate a lot like this if he had much money to his name, even if the bits and pieces that look more out of some catalogue geared toward the sort of people that threw fucking slushees at his head than anything he’d pick. ] Nice place.
[ and then he does walk over to that couch and plop back on it, is glad he did because he gets all that dropped on him. ] Jesus.
Chrissy is here… [ he feels like he might fucking cry, like that is the most absurd part of it all. but a world where chrissy is alive is a world that’s more fair than the one they left, isn’t it? if that’s possible.
the warning is a good thing because the freak out is coming now, a wave threatening to overwhelm that he doesn’t really know what to do with those two other names. fairly, strangely, it’s more billy and chrissy that he focuses on from proximity and because he hasn’t lived through what finding vecna leads to himself. ] This is so— so fucking weird.
[ he can’t promise he won’t freak out but he can try because if she remembers dying, she doesn’t need to go through whatever painful experience unfolded when seeing the eddie that lives here again. ] Fuck, yeah I’ll… I won’t.
Okay. [ he rests his elbows on his knees, holds his head in his hands. ] Chrissy, Hargrove, Steve and you are all here… [ and now he’s here and that’s really some comic book shit. hopefully there’s no one else, no one like henderson or wheeler. he looks up at himself, can’t fucking bring himself to ask. ] I’m gonna need that beer too, yeah. Shit, man.
[ when he’s left alone he goes for that, pulls one out of the mini-fridge and opens it. it’s a mistake because as soon as he takes a sip, he chokes because it fucking tastes awful and swallowing has him feeling nauseous. he leans back against the back of the couch, pressed a palm to his eyes and tries to pant through it. what the fuck, what if the weed is awful and does nothing too??? and look, maybe there are bigger things to worry about but not being able to enjoy weed, at least, will be the lowest blow right now. ]
no subject
the sound of choking pulls him back to reality, stepping out of the room to find this more intact, pallid version of himself looking ready to puke. ]
Here.
[ he drops into the armchair, holding out the joint. he's keeping the vape pen for himself, opting to keep the futuristic shit to a minimum. ]
Gonna be real, man. This shit is nooooooot getting any less weird. What's the last thing you remember happening?
[ the oar maybe means the boathouse. which means this version of him has yet to scratch the fucking surface of what's wrong in hawkins and he's about to be thrown headfirst into the deep end.
but, maybe, more importantly... it means that eddie can save himself. he's wracking his brain for anything useful here. any tip or trick or moment that could change his fate. and it feels selfish, in a way, to immediately go there. but it'd be nice for one version of him to not die a painful death in the goddamn nether. ]
no subject
he's still feeling like he might lose whatever is in his stomach, skin paler than it was before which leaves him looking more like death turned over than particularly sick. ] Sorry, wrong pipe. [ he says as if he can bullshit himself but well, here's to fucking hoping for miracles.
he coughs again, leans forward to reach out for the joint. ] Thanks.
[ how does one act around an alternate version of oneself? eddie sits back, takes a hit from the joint and luckily that doesn't taste like ash in his mouth. small blessings do exist out there somewhere. he holds it, takes a moment and then exhales. there's no immediate blowback, which has him relaxing with a soft 'Oh thank fuck' under his breath.
Which leaves the issue at hand. ] Last thing? [ if one's considering home, well, that's still vivid. ] Shoving Honeycombs into my mouth as Henderson, Harrington, Robin and Max try to convince me that finding Vecna and killing him before anyone finds me is the easy option. [ totally easy except for the no where to start, no girl with super powers thing.
eddie had kept shoveling the food into his mouth, frantically trying to figure out when someone would get to the punchline of the very sick joke as if it wasn't the new reality. the punchline hasn't come yet. he figures with the way this other version of himself looks, maybe it's because he's the punchline of all this. maybe.
he offers the joint back because if this doesn't get less weird, well, less sobriety is better. ]
no subject
Gonna level with you, man, I don't think that team considered that law enforcement is noooot going to accept that an undead wizard is the real killer. [ But, according to Steve, Hopper is alive and all too familiar with this insanity. And so maybe, if this Eddie can survive all this shit, Hopper can clear his name.
But this version of him just looks... sick. Or on death's door already.
And if he kills Vecna quick enough, Max might be okay. Vecna needed four victims, right? So... that saves the town.
But the only plan that comes to mind hinges on Vecna still breaking Patrick into pieces. So if he says it, he's still offering up someone else on a silver platter. Unless they tell Carver and his fucking psychotic little sports cult about what's going on. That music is the key to holding it all off. Because Jason Carver is the one who turns him from a person of interest into the only active suspect.
Eddie bounces a leg. Takes the joint back and inhales deeply, holds it in his lungs and shuts his eyes. His head rocks back, trying hard to piece through the hellscape that was that whole whirlwind of a week. ]
So... this place is what they've been calling a Nexus. It's a world that sucks in people from other worlds. Something broke and people are disappearing and new people - [ he gestures towards the other ] are popping up in their place. Everybody gets superpowers when they turn up here.
[ which is the best explanation he can give. ]
Last thing I remember from home is a week later. [ and the last thing eddie munson will ever experience at home. he rubs his jaw, looking off to the side. ] You remember that story Wayne used to tell - about the Creels family murders? That's Vecna. Turns out [ he takes another long drag of the joint and then hands it back, speaking on the exhale. ] Victor Creel didn't kill his family, his son did. It's Henry Creel. He's working out of the old family home... and he needs to kill four victims to pull off his plan.
[ he licks his lips, brings a hand up to cover his mouth. considers, looking up into his doppelgangers eyes. ]
And I don't wanna make an already shit day that much worse, but - it goes bad, man, it goes real bad. I can tell you everything I know so if you remember any of this shit back home, you can make it better. Or we can just get really high and accept that the universe reeeeally just [ he shakes his head, barking a humorless laugh ] fucking hates Eddie Munson.
no subject
he listens to the explanation of this world and nods, feeling like what little blood he has in him drain from his face. he holds his breath, forgets after a moment to keep breathing and then doesn't realize that he goes unnaturally still as he takes that in. ] Okay, so I'm not supposed to be here and we all get superpowers? [ is that what he feels? it doesn't exactly feel fucking super as much as really fucking fucked up. he rubs a hand down his face, braces himself for it to get worse.
the joint is a welcome thing. he takes a hit as soon as it's back in his possession and that soothes the trembling that's kicked in in the hand that's holding the beer. a goddamn week later and he looks, well, fucked. the version of himself in front of him has a scar running up his neck from under the hoodie he's wearing. ] Four victims and Chrissy's the first.. [ he guesses, wonders if he's on that list because that would be fucking poetic justice in the cruelest of ways.
he takes another hit, looks up at the ceiling. holds it for a silent beat, exhales and looks back just in time to see the way he's being watched. he doesn't want to know but then, then there's chance that if some of this sticks maybe he'll be able to do more than fucking tuck tail and run from it all. maybe, maybe, maybe something in his goddamn life can go his way and not end up a fucking mishmash of tragedy. ] I don't think there's a fucking version of the universe that doesn't, man. So hit me with it and maybe our luck will turn around for once.
[ but he doubts that. ] Then we can get really high.