idolpro | Eclipse's Heart Game ☉ Session #1

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Eclipse's Heart Game ☉ Session #1

You drift like you're floating in water. It's almost relaxing, actually. As long as you don't think too hard that what you're floating in may be bottomless, because under you lies only a deep darkness that only the ocean can provide.

Then, something grabs you and drags you deeper, down, down, down into the abyssal depths. You can't breathe, but that's not on the forefront of your mind now, is it?

There is a mounting sense of anxiety and dread.

Who do you want to become? Will you even get to see tomorrow? What if all roads lead to ████████? Can you still stay '███'? If people see the ████ you, will they think less of you? Will they feel cheated?

You want to live. Even if it's a ███, even if your hands must be covered in █████, you want to live. You want to be '███'.

Finally, a voice pierces through the darkness. It's a woman's voice.

"My, how unfortunate. Your journey ends before it even begins.

"... Just kidding. That would be terribly boring! I suppose I can do the boy a favour just this once."

You feel someone grab your arm and pull you up to the surface.

...

When you come to, you are standing somewhere else.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

For AlcheME there's information for everyone on the current roster, plus information on N.

B
- Seems kind of self-conscious about being viewed as overly plain or uninteresting which, fair, but I kind of wish he was less self-deprecating about it sometimes
- Doesn't cope well with witnessing, suffering or enacting violence
- Something about anime? I don't exactly understand it but he's used the term before when describing people who are kind of 'out there', so to speak
- Interested in art

C
- Likes a lot of weird stuff. If it's weird he's probably at least curious about it.
- Was in a 'murder school', which just seems like a way of saying 'murder game' that is styled after a school
- More than willing to take on the role of being a 'nuisance' and 'villain'
- Was the leader of a gang? organisation? previously that played pranks on people
- I'm pretty sure he lied to me about not buying memories before when he had in fact been buying them at some point

L
- She cooks, she sews, she also does art Honestly she knows a lot of things?
- Extremely scrappy and resourceful, she's also been through both murder buildings and didn't die

K
- I'm pretty sure he has some kind of background involving violence See: How to garotte properly
- However, seems to have operated as someone on the fringe, i.e. His work isn't considered unsurprising for someone to end up in where he's from
- Sporty sort of person

Q
- Has occult knowledge, can summon demons with preparations
- Really likes this one book series and will extol its virtues if given the opportunity to it's...okay, I guess?
- Knowledgeable about 'social media', generally enjoys getting to be the authority on something if she can

Tea
- Dragon Not like any dragon I've heard of, though
- I actually don't know if those 'ears' are really ears? Would it be weird to ask?
- Don't talk to her about cages. Don't put her in a cage.
- Doesn't like shoes either (see: dragon)

S
- Stress cooks at least between the three of us we'll be good on the food front
- Calloused hands. Not in the same way you get callouses from manual labour. Likely experience in battle even though he doesn't really remember it.

N
- Needs (????) water. At least does not seem to do well if not soaked periodically.
- A (former?) god that grants wishes, supposedly Don't like it don't like the way people talk about it I refuse
- The cult may have had something involving cannibalism?????? I don't know how much of it is a metaphor and I hope it's a metaphor because otherwise NO

Edited 2021-01-23 07:02 (UTC)

[ she also writes some notes on what "anime" and "robots" are, actually, in as general of terms as she can manage.

"Anime" is a term for stories told through moving drawn pictures, usually in a serial format, often quite outlandish, some created toward the end of selling related merchandise.

Robots are constructed devices made to move on their own and operate along a series of (often very complicated) instructions. They can look like anything, but ones that look like people have seized the popular imagination.

There's anime about them. ]

I wonder what he needs insight on, though. It seems like he's already doing a lot of insight on his own.

[ ...ah, he was on Heart Soldier before, wasn't he? or there was something he said about their role in that trial. let's check that page. ]

If she tries to look for information about specific people on Heart Soldier Senshi, there are files on Mars, Mercury, Prim and Diva (spelled exactly in that way, apparently because 'D.va' would not occur to him naturally). It seems there might have been some other documents for other members, but those files, folders and shelves are now empty.

When Hope tries to look for information about the trial ... There is a one book about it.

The first thing you’ll notice, almost immediately, is that this book is covered in scorch marks. Despite that, it’s in otherwise perfect condition; the cover aside, the pages are pristine, to the point that the whiteness of the paper feels uncanny. Unlike the other books on this shelf, which are bound with string, this book is a stitched hardcover. It looks and feels foreign.

On the inside cover, there are several sticky notes attached.

They are written in a language and script you likely don’t recognise, the handwriting precise and clear, like one misread word will lead to the difference between someone having a very bad day or a good one. The meaning of the words defies the language barrier.

On one sticky note:
Instilled through occult means

On another:
Regular removal impossible, purification needed
~~Similar to a corruption?~~ Definitely a fucking corruption

On a third sticky note. This one is a more familiar handwriting like the ones on the unit notes:
Do not forgive do not forgive do not forgive
Principle of the matter now
Do not ever forgive them

The words inside the book itself are printed. They are uncomfortable to look at, let alone read.

You were not in the wrong to conduct the trial. It was the right thing to do.

If you hadn’t, people would have kept turning grey and disappeared. No one else would have learnt how important ‘unit identity’ is, and what it means in Hell. All that would have awaited them was a truly miserable, terrible demise.

Compared to that, a few units dying — when revival is a matter of course — is an acceptable price to pay. Isn’t that right?

[ this feels bad and wrong and alien. it feels like someone's tried to destroy it and been unable to.

what happens if she tries to make marks on the pages themselves? ]

It doesn't take.

Someone really tried to burn this with a very persistent, stubborn passion and it didn't work. A pen's not going to do anything to it.

God damn it.

[ she looks at the third sticky note, and adds her own editorial.

I understand. It's violating, right?

Think carefully, though, about who you consider to be to blame and whether it helps or hurts to hold on to that kind of bitterness. whether it inspires you to righteous action, or causes you pain and unhappiness.

Who do you want to be in response to this? Do you want to avenge yourself? Do you want to protect others from similar hurts? When you decide that, that is the principle of the matter, is it not?

she puts the book back on the shelf, though. do any of the other units stand out as being particularly interesting for purposes of investigation? ]

There's a sense of someone stewing over her words, as she closes the book.

The only other subsections that have at least a few documents are future is now, Wild City, avante en garde and BARiTONES, whether they're worthing investigating is up to her.

[ well, she thinks Amaranth is neat. let's look at avante en garde. ]

Weirdly enough, Amaranth is not listed under avante en garde. The only one there is Lancelot.

Lancelot
- Family has traditionally served as guardians of the royal family where he's from.
- Phoenix's student How many people does Phoenix know??
- Wanted to study his family's greatsword style, had to 'settle' for the dual blade techniques. It suits him more, but see below.
- Has struggled with complicated feelings about his appearance, build, strength and duty. He's been working on it, at least.
- Huge fucking sap. Seriously, how does he say the shit he does with a straight face? Gods help me.
- He says he could stand to be more open about his feelings, but honestly I think he's been more honest about them than a lot of people here tend to be.

[ wow cute. not like she can tease about that kind of attitude because of her whole... everything, but.

she puts a little note under the last comment: Is that something you aspire to, also? I suppose it's nice to have someone you feel safe with to help you grow in that regard.

anyway sorry mori i'm going to make you write all the CR books. perish. future is now is next. ]

There's information on Intensity, Duality, Sho and Angel.

Intensity
- Really, really, really likes dragons His soul is a dragon, even
- There is something up with his soul in that there's a lady who is a dragon who is also a ghost connected to it, to put it simply. It sounds ridiculous when I lay it out like this...
- Competitive, takes card games very seriously
- Owns and runs his own business back home
- Ambitious and goal-driven
- Once hurtled himself into the afterlife in the name of rivalry and, I suppose, being a bit of a sore loser For all intents and purposes he was not actually dead except in the sense of ‘if you’re in the afterlife then technically you are “dead”’.
- Is persistently uninterested in occult bullshit You know, even with all the above

Duality
- Comes from the same world as Mori, they’re classmates?
- Has abilities related to fire and ice back home
- He was training to be a ‘hero’; that seems to be an actual trade where he’s from?
- Has been through some shit, to put it mildly
- Had a crush on Mori but that didn’t work out
- His father’s an asshole

Sho
- A totally normal ‘high school’ student, he comes from a world that also has a ‘Tokyo’ and lived there
- Formerly leader of a gang, has since left to pursue the above I’m pretty glad he got out. In the end he’s not cut out for that kind of path, unless he becomes a different sort of person.
- He acts frivolous, but he’s actually pretty sharp. Considering all the above, he is not to be underestimated.
- Seems frustrated with himself over his previous actions which honestly I can’t blame him for
- Pretty bitter about what other people do during traumatic and high pressure games

Angel
- Comes from a world that is made up of labyrinths (?)
- Sunrise’s sister
- There’s something about her that’s … I don’t know how to describe it, and she’s a nice enough person I guess, but … something about her is just a bit fundamentally different. I guess that’s one way to put it.

Edited 2021-01-25 22:50 (UTC)

[ well intensity sounds like a deeply ridiculous person. she's excited to meet him.

also she notes next to Angel: She and Sunrise had a traumatic upbringing that left both of them without much support, and at some point she did something to hurt him that he remembers and she doesn't. she says, also, that she made friends and he didn't, and she hopes he makes them here.

I pass this on because they seem like they need help, to put it bluntly.

she's only got two left, so she might as well? what's there to say about WILD CITY. ]

There's this vague sense of "Well, that's gonna be awkward." after she writes that.

There's just information on Rye.

Rye
- Really, really, really likes dragons
- Interested and skilled in building and making things
- Tends to get stuck in his own head and runs his thoughts his circles. Makes him really prone to anxiety.
- Has a very hard time believing that other people believe in him.
- Grew up on an island, comes from a seafaring people? Comes from 'North', I think.
- Honestly, even though we're not from the same world, he works off pretty similar references, so he seems to understand some things more easily than others do.

[ ...doesn't get along with sunny? that wouldn't be surprising.

and god rye really does like dragons huh.

well, that seems apt, so she's just going to flip over to the last one, BARiTONES. ]

There is information on Yvette and Tequila Sunrise.

Yvette
- Seems to have a wide range of skills, and is at bare minimum fairly proficient in all of them. Intensity trusts her capabilities, I think?
- Agile and resourceful I didn’t think a water balloon fight could go a certain way but then I saw it happen with my own two eyes
- Good communication and people skills This is the kind of thing I should be aspiring towards, probably. Also probably what something you should be very, very worried about looks like.

Tequila Sunrise
- Comes from a world that is made up of labyrinths (?) Isn’t used to seeing so many buildings in one place, apparently.
- Angel’s brother
- I’m certain he actually does have memories and has been pretending rather badly to not have them, but there’s no real point to calling him out on it as of now.
- Paranoid, distrustful, does not believe people would do things for others without something to gain. Fair enough. Probably why I kind of fucked up.
- Not used to others caring about or respecting his opinions or feelings
- He makes an effort to seem polite except often the veneer is practically transparent, so really it’s not much of an effort.
- Doesn’t really have interests or any sense of preferences, or at least ones he recognises and would admit to.
- Stumps on back. Wings were removed at some point, based on the fact Angel has them.
- Says that he didn’t want a name with too much meaning, and gave the impression that he wants to say that names are meaningless here, but I don’t think he genuinely believes that entirely …? That’s just speculation on my part, though.
Note to self: Just because you’re an idiot who will pick up a feral animal even if you get scratched every single time because I don’t know, you’re an idiot, doesn’t mean that’s actually a wise approach.

...Suddenly, I have to appreciate what she put up with when it came to me a lot more.

[ she just

stares at that whole block on Tequila Sunrise.

and notes Good Lord, he has so many problems.

With that done, though, she wants to just take a little looksee at the section called "Creation." Like, what is that. ]

It’s an entire shelf of books and notes about a world known as ‘Creation’. This is pretty much the sum of everything he knows about home, so there’s a lot if she decides to peruse them.

Some things of note:
The world is understood to be flat. The celestial bodies of the sun, moon, and the planets (stars) are also deities of the highest order, known as the Unconquered Sun, Luna, and the Five Maidens. The Maidens in particular get a few extra notes, and the distinction of probably the only use of coloured pigments out of all the writings here:

Mercury, Maiden of Journeys - beginnings, travel, roads, messages
Venus, Maiden of Serenity - joy, love, the arts, worldly pleasures
Mars, Maiden of Battles - conflict, tribulations, endurance, resilience
Jupiter, Maiden of Secrets - knowledge, perception, wisdom, foresight
Saturn, Maiden of Endings - change, inevitability, death, upheaval

There are notes about Chosen, and also about the Immaculate Faith, though given how the latter is kind of just shoved into a corner of the shelf, you get the impression it isn’t something that is thought of with fondness.

There’s a whole sub-section for Wu-Jian. In fact, it takes up half of the shelf, easily.

Besides that, information about Shrike, Persephone, Amaranth, Sashay and Tatsuo can be found on the shelf.

[ ........hm.

well, admittedly, she could probably ask about some of these things in the waking world. but she does take note of all the colors in use, since that seems significant.

but all right. tell her about the Chosen. ]

This book has a tidy explanation that Chosen are people who have received blessings from the various gods of Creation.

... Then gets significantly less tidy. Man, look at all these handwritten notes.

Solars are the Chosen of the Unconquered Sun and seemed to be blessed with sheer overwhelming prowess. Most people believe they are possessed by demons; Nefora believed that the magnitude of the Sun’s blessing was so great that a mortal would be driven insane by it which may not actually be wrong. And notes about how they were once leaders in the First Age, before they were massacred for becoming insane tyrants. He has a lot to look forward to, apparently.

Lunars are the Chosen of Luna, who have shapeshifting abilities. Most people believe they are face-stealing demons, which is...also arguably not wrong, just not in the way the Immaculates think they are. Fuck. They also seem to have a bond with Solars, which you get the impression he does not like the idea of because his impressions of said bond so far have not been exactly great. Most Lunars have silver tattoos, except ones who do not get them.

The notes on whatever the hell Shrike and Persephone are boil down to ‘Chosen of dead gods from the Void’. Dead gods who also whisper to their Chosen and would like the world and all life to end. It seems certain ghosts are working towards that end and these Chosen often end up serving them…? Also, the Void can kindly fuck off.

Dragoblooded are Chosen who inherited the blood of the Elemental Dragons. Sidereals are...apparently the Chosen of the Maidens? That’s what he’s inferred, anyway. Exigents are the Chosen of other gods; Amaranth is one such Chosen.

Hm.

That's a lot, huh.

[ she taps her pen against the page, thoughtfully. eventually she writes:

Honestly, there's plenty of bad that mundane power can do in the world to turn one into a tyrant. You don't need to be especially blessed for it.

To paraphrase an author I respect, the trouble begins when one begins treating people as things. It's just the more power you have at your fingertips, the more people you can hurt with it, and the more careful you have to be.

You do not have to be a leader. What mandate you have, I think, is to use it toward the ends of a kinder and more just world, regardless of whoever bestowed it upon you meant. After all, regardless of what world we live in, and what God or gods we serve, that is what all of us owe to one another.

once she's done writing that, she's going to look at the bit on Sashay. ]

Sashay
- Lunar
- Has memories of their predecessors? Previous incarnations? I’m not sure how it works exactly but they remember the ones who came before them.
- The Silver Pact considers them too much of an unpredictable element. They hold no fondness for the Pact, either.
- Astute and cunning, though their regular behaviour may make one forget about that
- They seemed a little miffed? Baffled? When I said didn’t really remember much about being a Solar and what that entails
- Tied to a Solar who is now the same sort of thing Shrike and Persephone are.

I do not ever want to be on the receiving end of their hunt so gods help me.

[ mm...

mhm. interesting. maybe she's going to have to shake persephone down for information later, as possible as it is to shake him down for anything.

...well, she can ask the others about their own business sometime, if she meets them. What she's interested in now is principles. They're the most interesting thing about a person, after all. ]

You ever wonder who the hell tried to burn that book?

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