EVENT #12: ADVERSITY 6568654

[expiationmods]

EVENT #12: DO AIS DREAM OF ALGORITHMIC SHEEP?

THE STORY SO FAR (click to expand)

-Over time, characters have discovered that the world of Expiation is actually a large, elaborate simulation run by an AI that seems to be intent on helping them atone for their crimes. This news is well-known by the Chosen, enough so that any new character who wishes to handwave this knowledge is able to do so.

-In September 2024, that AI needed to be reset as a consequence of some catastrophic systems failures. So far, there has been no downside to this reset–but the AI has also been strangely absent since then.

-Things have been quiet in Aldrip since September, aside from the routine arrival of new Chosen. The locals seem less than happy with the Chosen, though, as if they have already branded them all criminals. As if they no longer trust them…

JANUARY 13

SLEEP MODE INITIATED.
LOADING………………….

The calming hush that falls over Aldrip is strangely comfortable, lulling all Chosen into a deep sleep…or a sleeplike state, for those who will. Whatever the case, it is a very quiet night.

The sleep that follows is anything but.

THE DREAMSCAPES

The Chosen dream of memories, in this dreamscape. They can be twisted and altered by the dream world; events can be contorted or made up; but all of these dreams have within them a kernel of truth. Whether they express an event that happened or part of a person’s past that’s gone fuzzy with age, whether it’s a real moment or just a feeling, something about the dream tells you something about the Chosen to whom it belongs. This may even express itself in multiple dreamscapes, fragments of different memories and feelings to navigate.

Fellow Chosen can travel through these dreamscapes, of course, stumbling upon dreams they were never meant to see. But their presence is not without consequence; the longer two Chosen share the same dream, the more the dream will begin to take on elements of both their dreams, drawing in elements from the Chosen who was simply meant to be watching.

They’re vivid, these dreams–the kind that are so clear, one begins to doubt whether it’s a dream at all. Could it possibly be reality? Whether it’s a good dream or a bad one, the Chosen may find it’s difficult to want to wake up. How could they possibly wake up, when this is so very real? Why would they want to, if it’s a good dream? It’s comfortable, and the idea that it may not be reality is intimidating, isn’t it?

It’s so real that you could stay here forever.

A WAKEUP CALL

Wake up.
You have to wake up.

Staying within the dreams too long is a dangerous thing, and those who don’t wake even once before morning will risk falling into a deep sleep, perhaps never to wake at all.

But how to wake them?

Only by convincing the Chosen that they are most certainly dreaming, as it turns out. Whether that’s someone realizing this on their own, or being helped along by someone else, is entirely up to you. But they must choose to wake from the dream, saying goodbye to the dreamscape without any certainty that they’ll ever see it again, and for some…that could be easier said than done.

Once they wake in Aldrip, they’ll be able to come and go from the dreams at will, helping other Chosen navigate their own waking…or perhaps sabotaging it, for those whose intentions may be less than charitable. (But none of you would do that, right? Right?)

Time becomes meaningless within the dreamscapes, allowing the Chosen to pass through as many of these dreams as they wish before dawn breaks in the morning.

The next day dawns as normal, and surprisingly, the Chosen don’t feel any less well-rested from their long and difficult night chasing after dreams. They may even–_

A sea of numbers, zeroes and ones, their combinations meaningless, their forms shifting. Digital artifacts mar the vision, as if the sequence is somehow corrupted. In those pockets of artifacts, one can see something beyond the numbers, something darker, something blurry with distance.
Query: is this what it is to “dream?”
It feels…warm.

_feel refreshed, actually, as if they’ve lifted various weights from their shoulders. Even those who haven’t may find it difficult to linger on the less happy parts of what they’ve seen. They’ve shared quite a unique experience, after all. Better take some time to process it, before they let it weigh them down.

WILDCARD

Make your own fun! Just because it’s not in the prompts doesn’t mean it’s not possible. Have at it! Go crazy! Try not to break anything (too much)!

♡

Comments

[entreats]

I wanted to try. [ She says - very slowly. Ange gazes at their surroundings. The empty hall. The bodies. Then her gaze travels back to Tsuna instead. ]

I thought I could keep on going as long as I was still.. finding out the truth. That was my one goal.. [ Even when she was stuck in this place, so far away from home. The thought of going back there and uncovering the truth helped. ] But now I don't know if I ever will.

[ At least it ties back everything Ange is saying to their current circumstances. Maybe that's why Tsuna got to see this in her dream. It's so closely tied to Ange's deepest desire, the one thing she's never been able to do. ]

[theskyaccepts]

You will! You've got to! You can keep trying!

[There's some part of Tsuna that knows this is a dream. Or at least, thinks it has to be. This can't be real. But it's a little hard to listen to that part right now. ]

I'll help you! I promise I will!

[entreats]

[ Ange breathes out. ]

.. I don't think you can.

[ The emphasis in that sentence is on the can not the you - suggesting that Ange is blaming circumstances more than Tsuna or Tsuna's own abilities. She doesn't really think anyone can help her.

As the girl starts to look weaker, she collapses onto the ground, sitting there on her knees. Like her legs are too weak to hold up the rest of her body anymore. ]

Though it's.. nice of you to want to try, I guess..

[theskyaccepts]

[Tsuna reaches out to help her, so that she can at least land a little more gracefully. He's reluctant to let go.]

We're friends...why wouldn't I?

[entreats]

[ It does help - especially since Tsuna might notice that Ange feels weirdly light. Light enough that even he shouldn't have much trouble keeping her up right now.

Ange doesn't notice it though. She hardly even seemed to notice her own near-collapse. Instead she just says: ]

You think you can do everything..? [ It doesn't really sound like an accusation. Instead it almost - almost! - founds faintly amused, though mostly just tired. ] Is that the kind of confidence being a mafia boss gives you..?

[theskyaccepts]

[Tsuna smiles, a little weakly.]

Well, not everything, but whatever I can manage.

And I've been able to manage a lot.

Dunno about confidence though.

[entreats]

[ She slowly exhales. What he says feels so-- It feels so silly, she thinks. There's something so silly about feeling like she's dying, while he's just so.. simply confident.

She wonders what it feels like to feel that way. But it also makes her realize something else. ]

This.. isn't real, huh?

[ It can't be. This entire situation feels too silly for it to be real. ]

[theskyaccepts]

It isn't? Sure feels that way.

[But, if that's the case, if it's not real, Tsuna does start to relax a bit.]

Does that mean you'll be okay?

[entreats]

[ Ange lets out a little sound. It might have been a laugh - if it wasn't for Ange's physical state, or even the fact that she usually doesn't really laugh.

But it's close. Mostly because she's having a little inside joke with herself, speaking up to Tsuna with: ]

If you die in a dream, do you die in real life..?

[theskyaccepts]

I don't think so. I think you just wake up.

I'll come find you when we do that, okay?

[He means it. He wants to know if she's alright.]

and that's a wrap! <3 thanks for the thread!

[entreats]

Probably. [ She quietly agrees.

Especially when no one can ever fully die in this place. Even if this dream would count as a death, then.. well, she'd just be right back. Either immediately, or soon enough. Just like she has witnessed happen to some of her friends here before.

And as weak as she is, she doesn't have the strength to deny Tsuna anything. So.. ]

.. see you.. then.

[ And with that, the dream ends. ]

No, thank you <3

[theskyaccepts]

Yeah...in a bit.

[He's going to be thinking about this for a while.]