agogelogs | my oath shall be sped;

Entry tags:

my oath shall be sped;

WHO? Everybody!
WHAT? The January TDM.
WHEN? The mythic dimension of Vorspiel.
ANYTHING ELSE? Violence, as always. Please warn in subject lines for anything beyond physical violence, and move to a personal journal if things go beyond PG-13.

JANUARY TEST DRIVE MEME;

Vorspiel; a land of song.

arrival for new recruits

You wake up in a patch of verdant forest, with the birds chirping all around you. You're not in a clearing; your body lies between the trees. Near you, a frail woman with tired eyes rocks back and forth. You have none of your clothing, just black military-issued underwear, and none of your previous possessions beyond the one you chose (if you remember choosing) to bring with you.

When the tired woman notices you've come to, she speaks in a tongue you won't recognize, but somehow understand, in tilting tones that somehow always rhyme. Tired and sorrowful though she is, if you have questions as to what's going on, she'll answer: you are a member of COST, a paramilitary organization of time travelers fighting against the Regency, a tyrannous kingdom of the future who are trying to stamp out freedom and individuality in the name of peace.

She will provide you with the clothing necessary to fit in, and show you how to use your BCE implant to look up information on this dimension and its social and political mores. She won't let you leave until you're properly dressed to fit in, but once you are, she'll wish you luck. She thinks you'll need it.

And, she says as you depart, if you see the Gods, spit on them. They will do you no favors here.

ARRIVAL FOR VETERANS

While on BASE, you'll receive a message on your BCE.

URGENT MISSION: VORSPIEL UNDER MAJOR ATTACK. ALL POSSIBLE VOLUNTEERS NEEDED TO PROVIDE AID.

ACCEPT: Y / N ?

Selecting 'Y' will instantly teleport you to Vorspiel. Or maybe you're not the volunteering type, but your BCE glitches and signs you up anyway. Them's the breaks.

When you appear in Vorspiel, you'll find yourself in that same forest with the same woman who is ushering new recruits. She will give you clothes and wish you luck-- though luck, she says, is something true heroes have in short supply.

VORSPIEL

Regardless of how you got here, your BCE will have a short rundown of the situation once you arrive.

Vorspiel is a mythical, magical dimension rich in rare and precious resources. During the course of the war, it's been fought over by both sides. The Regency has recently allied with the leader of the misty country of Nibelheim to issue what is known as a Time Break; a sort of spell only possible in ancient dimensions such as these. Essentially, linear time has been destroyed in this dimension. Everything is happening at once, simultaneously and perpetually, a never ending cycle of lives and deaths and battles. While Vorspiel is a vast dimension, its borders have become warped; it is possible to walk from one country to another across the sea in a matter of moments, by accident. While the BCE is trying to send people to Nibelheim, it's entirely possible it misses the mark completely, or sends them to several places before they reach Nibelheim.

This chaos is meant to be a punishment: bow down before the Regency, or nothing will ever be the same again.

There is good news, though. Vorspiel is a dimension of inherent magic; singing or humming or whistling certain magical tunes will have an inherent effect upon one's surroundings. The BCE lists all the spells, though it notes that some have varying results (AKA go wild, guys, have fun), and the ones named after people will do little unless the person in question is present (a statistical unlikelihood).

As you enter different parts of Vorspiel, the BCE will sometimes give you different assignments, prompting you to take this action or that. If you have any questions about how this setting works, feel free to ask!

THE RHEIN

You come upon a giant river with clear and beautiful water. The sun shines down upon it in yellow light, and wherever the light touches it, gold floats to the surface of the water. The BCE will prompt you to fetch as much of this gold as you can-- it is an extremely powerful magical resource, rheingold-- but it will not warn you about the Rheinmaidens.

The rheinmaidens are mermaids, essentially, and at first, they are very friendly and gentle, singing nonsense songs and welcoming you to their home. But as soon as you begin to make any moves toward the gold, they will curse you, dive for you with surprising speed, and attempt to drown you. They will be vicious, and their natural element is water. You're in their territory, taking their things, as far as they are concerned. They have every right to kill you.

Killing the rhienmaidens will work... for a minute or so. And then they will rise again. Wounds will undo themselves-- whether they're inflicted by the rheinmaidens or you. Drowning doesn't seem permanent either-- you're pulled under, and all air escapes you, death befalls you... and then you wake up a moment later, standing on the shore.

Time has been fundamentally broken. Nothing done here is permanent.

WALHALL

You stand outside a fortress bathed in rainbow light atop a glorious mountain. Around you, the air is cool and still, and the roof of the sky seems terribly close. No matter how far toward the fortress you run, you can never make it inside. And thundering footsteps are coming just around the mountain pass, coming for you.

Lumbering giants wander around the fortress, searching for something they mutter and murmur is theirs. If they see anyone around, they will attempt to carry them off, kidnapping them for unknown purposes. They do not seem interested in eating their catch; they seem more interested in kidnapping it. Still, they are dangerous, brutish and sloppy with their strength. It is best to avoid them if possible, hiding in the trees.

Or perhaps you'd rather fight these fifteen-foot monstrosities on your own?

Of course, if you kill them, they just... come back. Death cannot be permanent in a place where time has been caught in an endless loop.

NIBELHEIM

The misty country of Nibelheim is located within a network of caverns dug into the side of a great mountain. It's a foggy, polluted place that brings to mind a city on the brink of the industrial revolution, not unlike Victorian London, though Nibelheim is entirely underground. There is smoke and smog everywhere, and living conditions are generally poor. The rich class is one family, ruled by a Nibelung named Alberich. He has various objects of great power that keep him enslaving his fellow Nibelung, working constantly in factories of his making. He has allied with the Regency to achieve this goal, and the time break within his home dimension is due in large part to his planning and plotting.

Human visitors to Nibelheim aren't unheard of, due to trade, though they are in a minority. Nibelungs, for the record, look and feel and act completely human, but they are ultimately alien, averaging a foot shorter in height at least, having naturally sallow skin, large eyes, hairless regardless of gender, and long, nimble fingers. They are a race of people made to live underground, and it shows; most can see in the dark, and climb nearly any surface. They are famed as smiths and metalworkers. Most just want to make a living and feed their families, though Alberich's clan keeps them in line.

Your duty here, the BCE says, is to try and befriend these people, the average Nibelung, and spark some kind of revolt. There are Regency spies everywhere, however, so be careful; you cannot call for rebellion in an open voice on every street corner. No, it's better, safer, to be subtle about it. Win the trust of a local businessman, seek out influential Nibelungs and figure out their opinions. Be tactical, be clever, be quick.

And avoid Alberich and his family at any cost.

But if you can, try and save some of the Nibelungs. Due to Alberich's machinations, Nibelheim is the only part of Vorspiel that has been untouched by the time break, but that will only stay true for so long. If you can convince any Nibelungs to join COST, they will do so willingly; you'll just have to escort them to safe places in hidden back rooms within dingy bars and forgotten libraries, the places where COST cells have been fermenting under the nose of the Regency. Don't get caught, and be careful; save as many as you can.

AT THE BASE OF A GREAT TREE

A man lays dying. He looks very much like the woman who introduced you to this place. Regardless, he lies in a pool of his own blood, a stab wound through his heart. The time break keeps him from ever truly passing into the next life; as soon as he dies, his eyes open, and he begins the process of his last painful moments once again.

Each time, he begs you to avenge him and find his love (or sometimes his sister; he seems very confused), and if you ask him his name, he will only respond that he is, "the woeful one". And then he will die again, for the hundredth time.

In the trees, warriors watch, poised to attack. They see you communing with their enemy, and they wish to defeat you as well. These warriors care little for your protest; they are locked in an endless battle that they cannot free themselves from, and you have just joined it.

IN THE FOREST

There is a serpent, larger than anything you have ever seen, sitting at the mouth of a cave. It sits upon a hoard of gold that may be familiar to you. It may not, but the BCE will inform you of what it is: rheingold, an incredibly potent and valuable magical resource.

Regardless, the serpent will attack anyone that comes near it or its hoard, even by accident. It, too, is caught in an endless loop of battle long over, for it calls you boy and foolish young man regardless of who or what you are. It speaks in a deep and sonorous voice, and will not stop until its head is cut off. The creature is obnoxiously large and highly dangerous, and battle with it will be long and painful, not least because, like everything in this place where time has been so fundamentally broken, it is very bad at staying dead.

Be careful when you fight it -- if you accidentally get some of its blood in your mouth, you will be suddenly and temporarily able to understand the language of birds. Which is cool, but also, you know, distracting.

The birds will tell you to find the Valkyries, who will bring you great fame and glory. They will also tell you to run, for Fafnir does not die so easy.

AT THE END OF THE WORLD

You are at a funeral. A golden-haired woman stands upon an unlit pyre, standing next to the man who, she sings, is her dead husband. Her song is beautiful and loud and incomprehensible, and when the pyre is lit, the fire swallows her whole. But the burning doesn't stop there; it begins to destroy the assembled mourners, the forest around it, the castle, the very river burns. The fabric of the world crackles and sets to flame.

Run from the flame all you like, but it always licks at your heels.

There is a trick, though, to saving your life. If one is truly unafraid of death, the fire cannot harm you, or anyone you touch. The BCE won't warn you of this; it doesn't know. But if you are unafraid, you can simply walk through the flames unharmed.

It will bring you to a wide field atop a mountain, where a woman lies sleeping. It's the same woman at the funeral, peaceful in sleep, unmoving, unsinged. She can be awoken by a kiss.

Of course, awakening her will begin the cycle again: the pyre, the fire, the fearlessness, the clearing. Over and over again, endlessly, until the BCE manages to pull you out.

This is the will of the Regency.

As a final note: This will not be the main mission for January. This TDM is meant as a one-off to dump characters into a setting they don't have to read a ton of infopages for, while still getting a sense of what Agoge could be (and as always, this TDM is game canon).

The main mission for January will be the Gallipoli campaign, as detailed here. Future missions for Agoge are always listed here months in advance.

NAV. NETWORK LOGS OOC MEMES PLURK

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ He doesn't recognize his face, so he naturally assumes he must be a native of these lands and that is probably his first mistake.

This guy doesn't appear too friendly when he approaches. He doesn't let it sway him. ]

I'm a hero who has been brought here to help the people of the mist country known as Nibelheim.

I was hoping you could provide me direction to this place.

[ He does keep in mind that he could be an enemy, or a spy. But Achilles is too confident to display caution when he could easily kill this puny little white... thing.

He's staring a bit, eyes dropping down to the slender column of his white throat and then to his exposed arm. His skin is practically translucent, tiny threads of blue veins visible at his forearm.

This is purely professional, by the way. He's taking note of such details in case they come in handy later. ]

[ professional my ass. go away... ]

Can't help you, sorry.

[ the apology is almost an afterthought, thrown carelessly, as Heine hunches his shoulders a little; he doesn't like all the staring that this guy is doing, much less the whole shit about being a hero. Man, how delusional can you even get? ]

Go find someone else to bother.

[ Is he getting blown off?

He blinks rapidly, like he's trying to dispel his own confusion. Do people nowadays really have no respect for heroes? ]

Ah, wait -- it couldn't be that you don't believe me!

Oh, no. [ his voice is deadpan, unimpressed, and so is the blank stare he levels at the other man. ]

Of course I believe you, big armour and all.

[ Achilles may be a jock, but he isn't dense. His wide eyes narrow a fraction upon registering the tone of his voice. ]

Are you mocking me?

[ He starts to grin, looking a bit manic. ] You're an ingrate, aren't you?

Lead me the way to Nibelheim. This is no longer a request but a demand.

[ aah, he just had to go and run into some sort of real troublesome guy, didn't he?

Heine lets out a sigh of breath, somewhat frustrated; was it just bad luck that he keeps meeting the sort of guys who just don't know when to quit? Some kind of sin from past life coming to haunt him, probably. ]

Demand all you like. You can't make me.

[ The corner of his mouth curls up, almost a sneer, provoking. It might be a dangerous idea to go around riling up a guy like this, but Heine's always been reckless. ]

[ It's both the challenge in his words and the way he casually disrespects him that unnerves the great hero. His grin remains, but the twitch in his heavy brow suggests that it promises malice rather than affable intent.

He's being toyed with, but he has to understand that this boy has no idea who he is or what his impossible feats are. It's true arrogance that he might dare provoke him. ]

I very well can. [ He'll take the opportunity to snatch him by the back of his shirt, twisting it until it is winded tight around his fist. He yanks him back.... forcefully. ] Because we'll be travelling together until I get to the place where I need to be.

Edited 2018-01-26 09:06 (UTC)

[ he hadn't expected the guy to just yank him back by the scruff of his neck like you would a small puppy... it pisses him off, to be honest. It's more also to the fact that he hadn't seen it coming; this guy is faster than he looks from the initial impression he got.

That'll teach him to not judge by first impressions. Maybe. ]

How many times do I have to say it?

[ even physically it's not really an even match, but Heine is used to it. He reaches down to his hip, where the luger is sitting tucked into the belt — the only thing that they allowed him to keep, seemingly. It's ironic how the ghosts from his past stay on even across worlds and universes. A quick motion, a flick of his hand and the chain wraps itself around the other's arm, the engraved pieces digging in tight.

He doesn't move to get away immediately; he doesn't want to get choked, after all, with how tight the other is gripping onto his clothing. The barrel of the gun rests steady against Achilles' forearm. ]

Let go.

[ His invulnerability doesn't always work, as he's come to discover since joining COST. In this case, though, he doesn't find this guy's presence that impressive and doesn't flinch as he twists in his arm and brings out the chain that had been fastened at his hip. The muscles in his arm tighten automatically, veins raising against skin, but his grip remains.

The agility he has should be impressive in its own right, but Achilles being Achilles won't acknowledge his prowess unless he proves himself as a worthy friend or opponent. For now, his attempt to threaten him is laughable.

He could laugh, but he contains the bubble low in his throat, allowing a bit of an amused lilt to slip through his voice. ]

Nice try. You're in the presence of a great hero. Need I remind you? It's gonna take a lot more than a gun to fend off the likes of me. [ He would be insulted if not for the fact that a cornered animal would likely bite despite knowing it has no chance of defending itself. This reads to him as more that than being challenged to a real fight. ]

Still, that's no weapon a merchant or farmer would be using.

[ With his free hand, he reaches around to grab at the boy's shirt and pull the collar to the side, revealing his clavicle and the piercing there. The BCE.

If he hadn't had it, he would have killed him on the spot, thinking he was with the Regency. Luckily, it seems he's an ally. ]

You're a member of COST, huh?

[ He's letting go now. ]

[ you fucker.

Heine stumbles back, regaining his balance swiftly as he runs the back of his neck, glaring daggers at the other. At least things didn't quite escalate to a point where he'd have to use more force than he was keen for; in this world where things didn't stay dead, he held no real advantage, and Heine knew that from the fight with the dragon earlier. ]

You too?

[ his tone is sullen, unimpressed, and Heine lets his gaze drift away after a few more seconds. ]

Tch...

[ Put that gun away, fucker. Achilles is partly hopeful that he'll try to fight him, if only because he's been wandering around this forest for some time now and has gotten fairly pent up. A bit of adrenaline would help. ]

I don't recognize your face, so I'm assuming you're new.

I thought you might have been a native here.

[ well, as much as he didn't agree with this whole getting roped into being time cop thing, Heine didn't believe in uselessly wasting ammo on people who didn't matter. Heine pockets the gun by his hip again with a practiced motion, still keeping a wary, disgruntled eye on Achilles. ]

You kidding?

I wouldn't be wandering around middle of fucking nowhere if I were.

[ He huffs, crossing his arms once it's apparent that he doesn't plan on making this into an unnecessary fight. They've just found out they're allies, after all, though Achilles would have been interested to see the extent of his abilities. He seems like he's quick on his feet.

He'd like to show him how much quicker he is... God, Achilles. ]

What? Do you expect that I had a reason why you'd be all the way out here in mind? You could've been hunting for all I know.

[ He steps past him, expecting him to follow. They're in this together now. ]

[ omg, shut up Achilles, it doesn't count when you're a demigod.

Also that doesn't give you any excuses for expecting Heine to follow, either. He's just going to go off in the opposite direction.. ]

[ ... ]

[ He turns immediately when he notices him wandering off in another direction. ]

Where are you going?

[ Heine just gives a vague wave over one shoulder. ]

I gotta take care of some other thing. See you around.

[ You're not escaping, Heine.

Achilles is at his feet in no time, making a disapproving clicking noise through his teeth. He could have went his own separate way, but he's been bored without company and they're supposed allies. It makes sense to stick together. ]

You were brought here for the same reason I was.

We'll look for Nibelheim together.

[ for the same reason as he was ... huh.

it may be true, but Heine is no hero; he can't save anyone, let alone an entire world that's falling apart into ruins in its own immortality, destroying itself inside out, rebuilding in a more and more twisted way.

Heine is just going to keep walking, the fact that the other person is following him again not deterring him from the path one bit. Maybe Achilles was one of those persistent types, but Heine was stubborn as well. ]

I don't really care about any of that crap.

[ Achilles has met all sorts of people with differing values, and often he comes across people who care most about their own selfish pursuits. He can't discriminate, since in a way he's also self-serving. For that reason he'll give this new agent the benefit of the doubt.

He did say he had something else in mind to take care of. ]

Then what is it you're after?

The sirens' gold? I can take you there, myself.

[ call it a selfish pursuit or what you will, if Heine's particular brand of apathy even counts as one; it would be more apt to say that it was more of a self-defence mechanism, really. ]

The gold?

[ look, he just said that to throw Achilles off... ]

Why would I need that?

[ Has he been told that money doesn't matter in COST? He'd understand his lack of interest if that were the case, but considering he's new... ]

Hah. [ A breath of laughter. ] You're saying you don't care about fortune? Then if it isn't gold you're after, or saving these people, what are you here for?

You're no hero. That much is obvious.

[ you're no hero.

Heine has to laugh at that, a cackle that's barely audible among the forest noises as he continues to cut through the shrubbery and the tall grass among the trees. He's not going to stop or slow down even through Achilles is following him... Even though he has no idea where he's going, either. He's just that sort of a guy. ]

Yeah, no shit.

[ What kind of cruel irony is it that they've pulled him here? He doesn't have any power to save anyone. ]

But threatening people for information doesn't seem very heroic either, so where the hell do you see yourself sitting on that scale?

[ The laugh doesn't come as a surprise to him, but he does raise a questioning brow. He hasn't met many who wouldn't jump at the opportunity to be labelled as a hero, but the Holy Grail has a few black sheep who have this sort of attitude. ]

You think I'm going to listen to what you have to say about what it means to be a hero? [ He barks out a laugh, himself, but it's short and clipped. ]

But you're digressing, aren't you? I'll ask again; where are you going if you don't have any intention of doing this mission?

Are you going to wander around until your legs are tired?

Probably.

[ Heine doesn't glance back to the other even with the stinging retort; his expression is dull again, eyes scanning the path ahead but it's not with any sort of interest, more borne out of habit of watching rather than any curiosity towards the new surroundings.

It might seem strange, probably, to see how little he reacts to the things around them. Giants and dragons aside, there were worse things out here. ]

You don't have to follow.

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