Anticipation falls over the laboratory, blinding lights reflecting in the glasses that a finger taps gently upon the rim of, lips pursing as she takes in the details which rest upon the screen before her. Another moment passes before a nigh pleased hum escapes her, and she settles herself into the wheeled seat not so far from the myriad of machines. Several data files read across a few monitors, all while the cursor resting behind the final calculation blinks in solemn silence.
“So you’re finally ready to begin? The stress test, as the kids would call it these days.”
"Ready as I'll ever be, I suppose. Everything's all in order, mmhm."
“Well, I suppose that’s better than some recruits in my time,” the blonde muses, fingers lifting to adjust her glasses before leaning back into her chair. “I look forward to seeing how this all pans out, mm? Oh, in regards to your lovely project in this all. And come to think of it… would you care to do the honors, Caelum?”
Swiveling her chair partway, her lips turn into a scarce smile at her fellow Star, all before green eyes turn to the keyboard with the last modifications placed in. One in particular glows an eerie red, the words sprawling across the screen reading plain as day: DISABLE Respawn_System.
"Aha, this isn't my first rodeo, not to worry!"
Although his words were strained, as if he had to lift them to sound lighter. Contrary to the grin on his companion's face, the corners of his mouth were in a tight line, and the hands that gripped his cane bore white knuckles. His greying hair almost reflects pink in the sanguine light of that one line.
Less to Pleiades, and more to the subjects beyond the veil, he murmurs.
"We're counting on you all out there. I pray you overcome this, too."
Pleiades watches as the screen flickers to life in silent agreeance, a few blips processing forth from the machine. One she has come to know well enough — the consciousness of Janus drawn in, sent away to the personal computer tucked to the wayside of Caelum’s space. The other is the sign that the machines would find the briefest respite, the final murmurs of fans as they come to a slow decline, all before the screen bleeps those final, lonely words:
REVIVAL MODE GONE. NIGHTY NIGHT... (ᴗ˳ᴗ)
"Good luck, and godspeed."
Silence, too, reaches through the streets of Spirale, with none so aware of what was to come. Those who slumber would find naught to stir them, lest it was another or the happening of coincidence. Those who take to the evenings would carry on their night as they would any other. Perhaps it was the trick of one’s eye that causes them to turn their gaze toward the perimeter of the city, where mists have long since lingered as a reminder of where they remain, only shifting whenever newfound areas were unveiled. Before long, a tendril of fog would unfurl in, breaking the barrier of the very city which most have come to find safety in.
And then another, snaking its way through the edges, creeping along the streets as it begins to pour in, as if finally freed from the confinements that kept it from finding its way to those inhabiting the city at long last. It begins to flood the streets, blanketing the buildings in a whitened haze.
But... where would one run where it cannot follow?
Only a few paths remain, a promise of sanctuary where all paths lead from Spirale toward where the murky white walls once loomed. And for those who found themselves washed over by the creeping mists, they would also be greeted with the haunting view of a never-ending eclipse stained crimson amidst the obscured skies; as if it were looming in wait, watching their every move...
welcome to isola radiale’s october 2021 event: MISTIFIED! this event will run until NOVEMBER 5TH, 11:59PM and will count toward your rankings. the event is a bit of a read due to its nature, but we hope that once you get through it, you'll be able to have fun with it in a lot of ways you can take this information. and if you have any questions that aren't answered in the following, the inbox is open for you!
we’re glad you asked! the short of it is that the two stars, pleiades and caelum, are implementing a project of sorts. this project, or “stress test” as pleiades has called it, involves activating something within the mysterious mists that's usually meant as a proximity to keep people from venturing too far out. as seen in the event premise above, this takes the form of the mists beginning to slowly flood into the city, blanketing it all to cover everything up.
while it’s overrunning the city itself, the outskirts of the city seem to have several branching areas that aren’t filled with mist, allowing people to escape out of spirale and into radial island. these paths are more focused and narrow, with some leading into dead ends, while others carry on endlessly the further along you go. one thing that should be noted is that people will find that, oddly, the locals don’t seem to be phased at all at what’s happening as they carry on with their lives, as if there’s nothing to be concerned of at all.
whether people decide to take these open paths or instead venture into the mists is entirely up to them, as there’s really no wrong way to go about it.
WILL WE FIND ANYTHING ON THE PATHS?
you will, yes! those who’ve chosen to wander the paths provided to them at various points of the city outskirts will note that the scenery is similar to most land they’d find on the island thus far. however, on their travels, some might be surprised to find that they’ll stumble upon various things from their worlds. things such as general vegetation, specific flowers, or other natural scenes might pop up and can be plucked or touched as if they were actually native to the island itself, as well as some harmless wildlife that are native to their worlds.
WHAT HAPPENS IF WE ENTER THE MIST?
wandering into, or being engulfed, by the mists will lead to a lot more complicated reactions than the trails provide, much like if someone were to do so when the mists hadn’t invaded the city. only this time it varies compared to the usual consequences you’d feel the further you venture out from the center point of spirale.
to start, there’s still the risk of the usual pain and transparency that comes with going into it the further you go, to the point that you might entirely disappear as you normally would. while that’s the case, some might come to experience something else entirely in other areas of the mist, such as their weapons manifesting at their sides, or even the entirety of their powers being returned to them despite not having been fully unlocked. likewise, people who have some, or all, of their powers returned already might find that they’re now stripped of them either fully or in various degrees. their weapons may also disappear or flicker out at a moment's notice, too.
these are all fairly alarming alongside the ominous eclipse that looms overhead in the foggy sky, but even more so are the data imprints that people may come across.
traces of “data” which can be either residual or even sometimes sentient.
RESIDUAL DATA IMPRINTS will manifest in ways such as scenes of the past being played out that others can see. these particular scenes can come from the character’s time in spirale itself or even from something that happened to them back from their own world. and just as scenes of the past can be played and seen, ones from the future are also fully possible to encounter! scenes like these can also be ones from future plots you might have that will come to pass in spirale or even characters witnessing what they’ll experience in the future of their own worlds. it’s also possible that if the series your character comes from has branching paths, they could even catch glimpses of scenes that have happened in those branching timelines that may differ from your character's own experiences and routes.
SENTIENT DATA IMPRINTS are a lot more dangerous, plainly put. rather than scenes playing out as if it were to be watched, it will manifest in the way of creatures or people your characters may know, as well as behave eerily as if they were really here and brought to the island. whether it’s a pet you haven’t seen in ages, someone you want (or don’t?) want to see, monsters you’d find roaming in your world, or even yourself, anything is possible to manifest in this state! remember that they’re just as physical as you or anyone else here, so it’s possible that they can even harm you.
WHAT CAN WE DO WITH THEM?
honestly? the sky’s the limit with this one! you can take these concepts and apply them to your muses as you see fit. if you want a sentient data imprint of your past self to show up so you can duke it out with them, go for it! want them to see a future situation they haven’t encountered yet within canon without updating your canon point just yet? absolutely fine! just be mindful of fellow writers and make sure you get permission from them if it involves a character already on the masterlist if it goes beyond just witnessing canon events.
SO UHH… THE RESPAWN SYSTEM?
gone. kaput. no longer something your character can rely on.
with the respawn system being intentionally taken down, your character will actually die without returning back to their beds like usual. the characters themselves won’t know this is in effect until they experience it or witness someone else die. needless to say, they won’t be waking up in the spirale they currently know for a long while...
THEN WHERE DO WE GO WHEN WE DIE?
anyone who dies during the event will find themselves in a new place until the end of the event, actually! don’t be fooled, though. while you’ll wake up with some pain at first, it's obvious that you're actually "dead" and you can't leave this zone. consider it like purgatory! you’re able to move around and walk just fine, but the scenery itself is very hazy and ethereal for right now. you might see distant shapes of buildings or other structures and maybe even bump into others who suffered the same fate while the respawn system is down. you can also find screens across this zone that actually relay what's going on in radial island in real time, allowing your character to see what's going on in some places while in this zone if they choose to watch! otherwise, you won't be able to contact anyone on the outside of this area nor can they make contact with you.
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