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Priority Log - Part 1
Log 02 Priority (Part I)
The Mine Car
As characters enter the car, their phones will notify them of a new message…
> ▮▮▮▮▮▯▮▮
> ▮▮*
> OVERRIDE: TUTORIAL MODE DEACTIVATED.
> OBJECTIVE:
>
NAME: The Mine Car
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT: Gothic era
DANGER LEVEL: High
GENERAL STINKINESS: High
COMMON DENIZENS: Humans, ornithrops, bearkin
CUISINE: Peasant gruel, bird seed
There is no sender. Or objective?
But that's fine, probably! The car itself is completely functional, and features a fully developed society.
Passengers will arrive in this car and be immediately greeted by a fog that chills them to their core. The car around them is vast, and yet deathly silent. They'll find themselves starting off in a forest of petrified wood, the ground hard and unyielding underneath their feet, with flora and fauna in various stages of decay around them. While the fog around them is thick, the lights of a nearby village can still be seen from a distance, and as they travel, the dirt road will give way to cobblestone.
Eventually they'll be greeted with a signpost, welcoming them to the town of MINECRAFTIA.
While Minecraftia's denizens are harrowed and distressed, they're quick to warn the passengers traveling through of the ailment, a mysterious illness that is plaguing their town. It's been leaving even healthy youths bedridden, and while the town mayor has passionately declared that he will find a solution, it appears that there's no cure in sight.
Locations
Minecraftia is a foreboding little town, even in the daylight, with murky skies above and fog blanketing the roads. Still, the denizens persist through their daily routines, and won't stop the passengers from exploring.
Clinic: The town's only clinic with the town's only doctor. It's a small, rickety building that operates all hours of the day. Between the rapid spread of sickness and the steady depletion of supplies, it's a grim place to be nowadays. Anyone healthy who visits might be roped in to help, and those who look ill will be quarantined with an uncomfortable bedroll and thin blanket.
Cemetery: Located on the outskirts of town, the cemetery is home to dead bodies, even deader earth, and a deadpan gravekeeper. The exit door is here in a flower-covered plot, but cannot be opened.
Chicken House: A barnyard building home to the town's chickens. Lately they've been more worked up than usual, and taken to flying the coop and finding refuge by digging their claws into the scalps of bystanders. Agitating one chicken may cause a whole flock to descend on you!
The Dark Woods: The village is surrounded by what was once lush woods, but the trees now stand dark and eerie, an unusually thick fog rolling between them. While there are some of the usual, woodland creatures chirruping in the dense silence, they're hard to find. Monsters, meanwhile, are much more common.
The Mines: In the heart of the woods are entrances to the town's expansive system of mines. Stepping inside shows that the dirt and stone is laced with beautiful gems and minerals, but passengers will be shooed away by miners if they try to explore any deeper. It seems there's several dangerous mine shafts underfoot, as well as past attacks by what seems to be mole monsters.
Mayor's Mansion: The largest building in Minecraftia, situated on a hill. While Mayor Chadsef's staff welcomes guests, they will be cautioned not to explore past the lobby, which just smells a little like cleaning chemicals thanks to a diligent maid crew.
Denizens
Players may use denizens as convenient in threads, as well as these NPCs, except for the Mayor. He's a very busy man!
Madam Vermeer: The Madam is a human extremely afraid that she'll die before seeing her son marry. Which means that she is hunting the streets for eligible men and women, and whisking them in droves away into her mansion to be made over, trained in the art of serving, etc. before presenting them to her son.
Cassy Cassatt: Cassy is an ornithrop and the owner of the chicken house. She's shorthanded nowadays, but business-savvy enough to prey on considerate bystanders. She'll rope anyone she sees into helping out, whether it's collecting eggs, feeding or breeding.
Turner: Turner is a bearkin, and one of the nurses at the clinic. He's taken to drinking his weight in mead whenever he's off the clock, and it's not uncommon for his body to be seen unconscious on the road. He'll try to flee or swat blindly if anyone tries to help him, but he really does need help getting home.
Chadsef: The mayor of Minecraftia, who is notably wealthier than the rest of the citizens. He's young and inexperienced, but carries a Birds of Economics degree, and is determined to bring jobs to the town. He'll just need to make sure people are alive to do them first!
Other
The longer that passengers remain in the car, the more they'll learn, and soon they'll realize the following:
- They are not immune to the illness. They can't determine what it is that triggers it. At first it's a sense of fatigue, then hunger and irritability. Then, the numbness will begin, starting in their extremities and spreading up their limbs, until that numbness turns into pain. Eventually that pain will lead to madness, a state of delirium where they begin to behave erratically, endangering themselves and those around them.
- There is something in the woods. Though the passengers saw nothing when they arrived in the woods, at night they can hear growling. Venturing outside will reveal grotesque creatures emerging from the fog, rampaging into the town and tearing flesh and stone with their massive claws. These creatures appear rabid, familiar but warped, and they swarm the town with no regard for their own safety or benefit. Examples: (1) (2) (3) (4)
- Corpses are disappearing. Despite deaths, the cemetery isn't seeing any more business. Rumour has it that a certain wealthy denizen has been paying to have the corpses taken away. But to where, and why, remains unknown…
Numbers
Numbers! Everyone starts with one that glows on their bodies — as a fun thread mechanic, we suggest they're somewhere visible, but it's up to you!
Because while this is not IC knowledge yet, numbers are determined by how troubled your character is. This may be based on their past actions and crimes, but also alienating habits, regrets, personality flaws, trauma, etc — a higher number does not necessarily mean they're a bad person, but it may signify a difficult time in their life, or substantial personal issues.
As passengers enter this car, they'll notice that their numbers may begin to change in response to certain actions and decisions. The general rule is that numbers change as characters work through their issues. If they make a decision that serves to better themselves, their number will decrease. But if they make a decision that is ill-intentioned, their number will increase. Players can change their number as they see fit going forward.
OOC Notes
Exploration: Players may submit on-going threads here to get a short mod tag with further discoveries in any given location. Characters can potentially earn items or clues as to the car's objective this way. Please limit your explorations to one per player; we will let you all know if we have the capacity to do more!
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no subject
But there is also the fact that in the span of Rex's eighteen years of questionable decision making, fear, tragedy, and selfishness... He has actually yet to make a real friend his own age. For the longest time, he didn't think he needed one. Who needs friends when you're dating someone as beautiful and wonderful as Samantha Eve Wilkins?
A strong girl with a soft heart.
A heart that Rex has now broken.]
'S not like I've got anywhere else to be. Y'know, it used to be my worst nightmare? But now I hope Robot chipped me when I was passed out drunk in HQ. The guy may be a genius, but he's also a big ol' creep! Then again, maybe it's the green-eyed robo-glare. The whole not blinking thing? Weird. A. FUCKING. EFF!!!
[Rex says all of this, but-]
Still the love the guy, though. Zany-ass.
[Robot, unfortunately, is the closest thing Rex has to a best friend. And right now... The hotheaded superhero still thinks the guy is an actual Robot.]
He's also mad thirsty for a dude who's made of nuts and bolts. He's a regular ol' dickless dickhead. You know, I've been tryin' to see if he'll date the toaster? But he gets really, really mad every time I suggest it to him. I'm not kidding, okay!
Actually, that's a lie. I'm, like, totally kidding at least half of the time.
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There’s an uptick on the corners of his lips as a smile dare forms— even after everything. ]
Dating a toaster sounds like it might be easier than a person, honestly.
[ He thinks about Amber for a moment and wonders if he should talk about being dumped, but really, did Rex even know he had a girlfriend for awhile there? Yeah, he won’t talk about it for now. ]
Wow. You’re really being my hero here.. carrying me and everything.
[ It’s spoken half playful and half serious. ]
Do you see any water nearby? I think I do.. right over there.
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Okay, you say that? But, god, what would the sex even be like? It’d either be off the chain or you’d just straight up just get electrocuted.
[Invincible has girl problems too? Of course he does! Stupid head ass with more instagram followers... Even though Rex would argue he is totally the hotter one outside of the suit.]
Ew! Don’t go too soft on me, dickwad. I don’t wanna start hearin’ church bells. I’m pretty sure if I step into one of those my skin’ll just catch fire.
But uh, what water? And also, do we know that it’s not chock full of disease?!
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[ WHOA IS THIS COMING FROM MARK BOYSCOUT GRAYSON, EVERYONE.
His nose scrunches and he reels back all that soft feeling he was having just a few minutes ago. ]
I'm-- like I'm not! I'm just saying I appreciate it. It's been.. really rough for me.
[ icki did u want a stream or not ]
I mean, that's true.. but do you want to feel like this for however long it takes to find a decent shower around here?
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[To be fair, Rex absolutely enjoys sexy torture, but he's a lot more partial to verbal lashings as opposed to the physical kind.]
God, and I'm, like, almost positive we're stuck in some weird version of the medieval Europe right now? I don't even think showers have been invented yet! Not in this timeline. God, I hope we don't get stuck even further back in time! I'll take the Dank Age over the Dark Ages any day!
["Dank Age" is the terminology Rex uses to refer to the 70's. At least there were showers, a lot of fun substances to use, and everybody seemed a lot cooler about the whole nudity thing. But, also? Civil rights.]
Ugh, fine, fine, fine. I'm tired of smellin' like your blood and alien cat piss.
[Rex, Battlebeast did not pee on you. That was likely the result of you peeing on yourself when you were beat to the ground...]
I don't gotta help you strip or nothin', do I? Because I soooo do not wanna know what your junk looks like.
[It seems that after all this incessant babbling, they have reached the edge of the stream. (Also, that is a lie! Rex does want to know if his own dick is bigger. If it isn't, he would prefer to remain in the dark.)]
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Anyway, Mark squirms a little bit once they're close enough to the water. Truth be told, he probably could have walked just fine, but he's a little stinker and was just enjoying being held and coddled for a moment like a big fat baby. ]
Dude, no. You've done enough. Thanks.
[ He's on his feet and he teeters slightly but begins to strip out of his clothes once he gets his bearings straight. A small silence passes over him and it's about now he notices the blue number on his hand. ]
... What should we do about all of this? Also, what the hell is this thing on my hand?
are we allowed to be thirsty in this game idk
[A split second after he watches Mark baby walk to the water, he removes the helmet and visor first with a click, and then unzips himself out of the supersuit at lightning speed. Clearly, he's done this so many times for, um, probably indecent reasons.]
Uuuuh, as of right now? Don't know, don't care. I don't have one! So it's not my problem.
[Mark will notice that, while Rex angles himself away from the other boy to avoid any dick spillage, he's not shy about his body and jumps into the stream with ease. Rex is used to group bathing situations, especially considering the status of the showers at both the Guardian and Teen Team headquarters. In addition to just showing off, when he doesn't have to be on the go, Rex prefers being in his own skin. He isn't putting on a mask with any symbols or going to work, he is just himself, at least for those few private moments. There's a few bruises on his body, but his right shoulder looks... Oddly, a lot less out of place. There's that healing factor for you?
Rex's number glows from his lower back, a glaring {675}.
Mark is also free to observe that everything about Rex's physique looks exquisitely curated, excessively so. Any body hair is meticulously groomed or notoriously not present, and every muscle, every inch has been preened to perfection. That's quite a lot of hard edges.]
Who am I supposed to be? Your mom?
[He grumbles.]
I'm not gonna fuck Omni-man.
yea
That comment about his mom goes ignored cause he's distracted. ]
Hey, but you do! You do have a number. It's 675! Right there, on your back!
[ wow mark way to spoil things ]
no subject
[REX TAKE THIS MORE SERIOUSLY-]
I know you were just tryin' to sneak a peek at my hiney! Don't play dumb with me. Look, if you're gonna oogle, at least do it a little less obviously? Duh!
[He splashes some of the water over his shoulders, which, truth be told? Is freezing! Good thing he jumped the fuck in there.
If this were back home, he'd have been so angry. Why isn't he nearly as irritated? Maybe it's the lack of spectators and jeering onlookers. The tides don't feel nearly as uneven anymore, with Invincible having the support of so many despite coming onto the scene so much later. Rex's face doesn't burn as he attempts to defend his status as a hero while spouting whole-ass villain monologues, and Cecil isn't using either of them as bargaining chips anymore. In a way, they are free. Free to be the heroes they'd like to be.]
no subject
[ Mark shifts in the water to where his suit is and rummages through (I guess it has pockets??) to pull out the device the train gave them. Surely there's a picture feature.
Anyway, it's just funny cause now it's like.. he's just taking a picture of Rex's naked body but he's not really thinking about that, honestly! He's just trying to be helpful. ]
no subject
HOW DARE YOU TRY AND TAKE A PHOTOGRAPH OF MY ASS-
[you'd think that was the end of it butt no, now he is turning around, trying to cover the crown jewels butt admittedly that's hard without looking like a complete moron]
From that angle! It's not even flattering. TRY IT FROM THE LEFT! Just wait 'til I get over there-
[not him clamoring over to fight Invincible in the nude??? hello????]
no subject
No way, man! I'm not trying to take a picture of your ass! I'm trying to get a picture of your number, which I'm pretty sure I got!
[ A quick check on his phone, and, it's blurry and like.. feral looking.. but there is at least a glow visible with one number legible. ]
Do NOT come closer to me being naked like that!
no subject
[NO!!! MARK!!!! NOW HE IS GOING TO STAND CONFIDENTLY WITH HIS HANDS ON HIS HIPS??? HIS EYES ARE CLOSED BC OTHERWISE HE COULDN'T TAKE THE SHAME AHHH?????]
You've never seen a real man before? Actually? Duh-huh-on't answer that. I don't wanna think about you accidentally stumblin' upon some Omni-Dick.
no subject
He's also embarrassed and he can feel his cheeks tint lightly. ]
You seriously have to stop talking about my dad like that.
Actually, stop talking about him overall. I don't want to think about him right now.
spoilers for invincible issue #60
[Rex sits back down in the water, only to land his bare ass on some rocks-]
Yee-ouch! Jesus! Christ...
[If there's one thing he can understand, it's not wanting to talk about your father. He just never thought that he and Invincible would ever have any common ground at all. They could be trusted to agree on all of two things- That the killing of innocent people is bad and that Atom Eve is uh-mazing. And probably their favorite superhero? Anyway.]
Hey, Invincible?
[There is fear in Rex's voice, wondering if he should even speak this into existence.]
We don't have to talk about your old man, anymore, but...
Are there ever any memories that, when you were a kid, made ya really, really, fuckin' happy... But then when you look back at 'em now, you're just like... Oh my god, what the fuuuuuck!
[He had been jealous of the other boy since he popped onto the scene. Not only was Mark far stronger and easier to be around than Rex himself, his father was literally the strongest man on the planet. He had a family. Eve's attention. And he got to both be a superhero and go to highschool.
Invincible's life had seemed so perfect in comparison, and it had once made Rex want to almost blow up the Pentagon all over again. Now, he isn't so sure.
Rex's life has been miserable. It's a well-kept secret, as his childhood is only something he alludes to vaguely, mostly to get the hurt out all by himself. Rex remembers what it was like to be not only invisible, but looked at with disgust for all the things he couldn't change. His family's poverty. His skin color. The fact that his mother and father were so quick to give up their only child, only to have two more in his stead and live a beautiful life without him. Nevermind the violent tasks he was used for and all the people who he unknowingly killed for no goddamn reason, people who will never wake again.
And the one bright light, the one good thing in that dark tunnel... He had snuffed out on his own. Because he couldn't trust anything that made him feel so happy to last.
But that is the life he knows. For Mark, it is even worse of a nightmare.
To have the reality come later.]
'Cause... I know how that feels.
[Pretty fucking awful. The other boy is waking up from a beautiful dream.]
And I'm sorry.
la dee da more invincible spoilers probably from here on out tbh
He takes an exhale and quickly pushes whatever burning image of the older teenager out of his head as he tends to his wounds, a bit hypnotized by the way that the blood rinses off of him, flourishing over the moving water, spreading out until it disappears in the current. He's already starting to feel better. What snaps him out of it is what Rex says next, and he knows Rex isn't trying to stir any more ill feelings out of him, but it's difficult. It's difficult to think of Nolan in any sort of context right now without feeling a heat of anger bubble up inside of him, starting at his chest and surfacing to make his face hot with frustration. His teeth bare and gnash behind his lips because while Mark is generally a good-natured kid, he reaches a point where he passes his limit and is explosive with his temper (which could possibly another way they're similar.) Rex may not notice his lips and how they draw thin and how he is trying to suppress his anger besides the way his body grows stiff and still other than a tight curl of his fists.
Rex isn't trying to do this to him.
His shoulders relax ever so slightly as he tries to give Rex a steady answer and control his temper so he doesn't say something hurtful. The question was genuine and so he shouldn't act out. He shouldn't run away from it. ]
Everything about my dad made me happy, Rex. Every single memory of him up until today did. So now his whole existence is really making me go what the fuck.
[ The way he was the strongest person on Earth. His heroic actions. The way he loved his mom. The way he protected people. The way he encouraged Mark even when he could tell there were moments where Nolan seemed distant and avoidant of him. He arrived here in the middle of their battle so there is still so much about Nolan that doesn't make sense; that concerns Mark for himself and everyone else on Earth.
Mark sloshes good bit of water over him with quite the strength; some of it probably reaches Rex or around him. Rex says he's sorry and says he understands and Mark wonders if he really understands or not. Either way, it sounds like they have common ground now..
Something he never thought he'd have with Rex- the explosive guy who broke his friend's heart and Mark thought he just had issues. He doesn't say thank you, but he is appreciative, and maybe Rex will pick up on that by the next thing he says since it's kind of intimate to share between superhero colleagues: ]
... You can call me Mark if you want.
[ A pause. ]
Not only am I questioning his existence, but I'm questioning my own right now.
[ Rex at this point doesn't know that Nolan is a conqueror and it's in Mark's own blood to follow in his steps— for Viltrum. Some planet and people that he has no connection to whatsoever besides his DNA alone. ]
no subject
[Those words are spoken with an air of, "If I were you I'd run."
But would he, really? Knowing full well that Earth would be damned if he did and damned if he didn't?
People are more complex than they seem, a line that Rex has known well, in part because it applies so heavily to his own life. But it's something he has difficulty applying to others, as people have hardly stayed long enough to give Rex a chance. And just like his powers, which run hot, hot, hot-]
I don't know what's worse! Having a shitty childhood and knowin' it was shit all along? Or having an amazing one and... Wakin' up one morning to find out it was all a lie.
I really couldn't tell ya. To say that my life's been a shitshow would be puttin' it real lightly, but...
Wow.
[He's certain he'll just burn any kindness all on his own.]
Well, who do you feel like you are?
no subject
[ Mark doesn't sound too angry, just a little appalled. He didn't want to fight Nolan; he couldn't believe he was fighting Nolan. He couldn't believe Nolan used this train to impale him! ]
Trust me, what I'm going through sucks.
[ Mark doesn't respond right away as he rinses off the very last bit of blood from his body and then cups some of it to rinse off his face. He has to think for a moment. ]
I don't know the answer to that either.. there's been a lot of other things going on before all of this stuff with my dad, too. I was confused then and now he just made it even more confusing for me. But..
I feel like I'm supposed to protect Earth at least. Earth is all I've ever known. Whether I go about it like a superhero or something else, I don't know.. but right now..
I feel like.. a loser.
[ Who can't figure it all out. ]
no subject
[REX????? Get out of here with the assumptions... weren’t u just accusing the boy of stealing ur girl bitch tf]
Oh, dude! Come on.
If anyone’s the loser, it’s him. I mean, you obviously loved the guy. Hell! So did more than half the Earth!
And then he goes around and does that to your face! His own flesh and blood! I know I may not be everybody’s favorite guy, but goin’ straight up nuclear on a dude who grew right out of your own spermy-wermy shit is pretty damn low.
DIED A VIRGIN.... HKDJDH
no subject
He exhales again but this time his breath is shaky cause he's a little cold. He thinks back on their conversation a little. It sounded like Rex didn't have the best childhood either. ]
Yeah. It is.
[ A beat. ]
Is there a reason you were asking about the memories of my dad?
[ It was a little unexpected, honestly. ]
no subject
Rex does nothing of the sort.]
What do you think.
no subject
Well.. you said you understood, so.. I take it you don't have the best father either.
[ Like Rex, though, he'll hastily add: ]
Listen. We don't have to talk about it, like you said to me. But.. I'll listen if you ever do want to, okay? I also think..
[ Rex broke Eve's heart and he seems like he's got some things to sort out that Mark doesn't like, but they've been having a moment here so he's just going to further encourage that. His eyes bounce back down to the device, curious. ]
.. maybe we should stick together for awhile. Especially since we don't know if Dad is here. That's okay, right?
no subject
[It's a part of why Rex is so particular about his appearance- And why no one will ever see him sporting the slightest hint of a beard, even if it means shaving every goddamn morning.]
I haven't smoked cheap cigarettes for, oh, give or take twenty or so years like he fucking did! So there's that.
[Rex looks over his own body, eyeing how the water falls through all the muscular crevices of his calves and thighs, as if scanning for any weaknesses.]
It doesn't look like we've got too many other options so... Yeah.
Hopefully either Robot or Cecil will be able to get us outta this one. And then we don't have to play nice with each other ever again!
no subject
Even if you look like him, you aren't the same, Rex. Just like how I'm not anything like my father. Not anymore.
[ He has to keep telling himself that now. After some reading between talking to Rex, Mark decides to finally press a button on the Happy Home app. Since they aren't near civilization right now, a medival-style tent pops up before his eyes, which grow considerably at the sudden appearance of.. shelter. ]
... Whoa.
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