STARDOM.

at her lone fire pit, she notices someone has sat by her. perhaps they didn’t notice her presence, given how easily she blends into the rest of the scene. but upon further observation, it seems chixie DIDN’T NOTICE something as well...

CHIXIE: oh hello CHIXIE: it’s you again

CHIXIE: huge turnout / huh?

[You acknowledge that she is probably upset you are not a fan despite her words and probably forced smile. You also don’t care too much. Music wasn’t really your jam. The only things you really listened to were the soundtracks Tegs forced you to.]

not really * music can be kind of distracting i think * but i think i can tell when it doesn’t make my sponegclots shrivel up and die *|

[You can at least say that!]

but you have a nice voice * kind of like you’re always singing * it’s nice *|

you’re SUFFICIENTLY SATISFIED once again, and really, it doesn’t take a lot to do it for you. your bar has been lowered to an almost comical (and mostly pathetic) level. 

CHIXIE: music is great for that reason / and a lot of other reasons too CHIXIE: but you’re totally right! CHIXIE: and thank you for your kind words / about my voice  CHIXIE: it’s probably because i’m just so used to singing / hehe

you blush on cue. EXCELLENTLY PRACTICED. chixie roixmr, charming trolls everywhere! ( some trolls unwanted! )

[You let silence settle over you both while what you said sinks in. She’s taking it about as well as you’d expect someone to take news of their entire world being destroyed.]

[You just frown and wait for her to speak again. When she does, you consider your options.]

DO YOU W4NT TO GO SOM3WH3R3 TO S1T DOWN

4ND G3T 4 DR1NK

OR COFF33 OR SOM3TH1NG?

[You pause. You don’t really know if offering to sit will help with her anxiety.]

TH3 V3RY SHORT, NON-COMPL1C4T3D V3RS1ON 1S TH4T TH3R3 W4S 4 D3V4ST4T1NG M3T3OR STORM TH4T W1P3D 3V3RYTH1NG OUT >:[

you’re unsure why she offered a place to go and then sprang that on you; you immediately SHAKE IT out of your sponge. yes, you’d like a PROPER SIT-DOWN when being confronted with your possible IMMINENT DEATH, should you ever endeavor to RETURN.

your face is listless, mouth agape. even when you are DEVASTATED, you seem gentle and well-intentioned. your voice continues to harken to a BIRDSONG, even when it cracks.

“With a name like that it certainly does sound very interesting. Is everyone there grey skinned?” There was her first of thousands of questions already being formulated in her genius level thought process. “Yes, there are monsters where I’m from. Not all of them are as dangerous as one would believe.”

CHIXIE: yes / that’s right

you’re glad she’s catching on so fast. all you’ve gotten is THINLY VEILED SCRUTINY from most other people.

     Oh. Oh! This must be one of those LARPers Natsuki has seen and heard about every so often. The hobby, while pretty embarrassing in retrospect, is something that’s become pretty popular in the modern world. So perhaps because of that and also because of how well the stranger’s costume seems to be put together, the older teen finds herself admiring the other girl (just a little bit).

     ❝ Uh huh, ❞ she finally answers, her tone making it clear she doesn’t believe the girl at all.

     ❝ That symbol on your shirt, though… I’ve never seen it before. Does it mean something? ❞

okay, so she probably doesn’t believe you... WHATEVER. you’ll live with being the more woke of the two of you. you don’t even think you’re the WILDEST CREATURE out here ( oh look, now even you’re calling yourself a creature! ) — you’ve seen some FAR STRANGER than yourself. but again. WHATEVER.

CHIXIE: oh / this?

you tug at your sweater, straightening out the creases that cover up your symbol.

@taurras·

  The open-air theatre in the Archimedes district quickly became a favorite for Morpheus. Without his endless library and his tether to dreams, he found himself quickly drained and without purpose. At the very least, such performances gave Dream a chance to quietly take in the creative atmosphere of the denizens of this place.

          A chance, perhaps, to understand the dreams of those here. 

  The amphitheater was sparsely occupied at this time of day. The players on stage were doing some sort of musical on the subject of lost love and the plights of the common man. Concepts that Dream has heard billions of times, but it’s better than nothing.

  Looking around, he spots a sort of creature he hasn’t seen in some time. Like any concept, Dream is viewed differently according to who’s looking. In the case of his nearby company, he would be as much of a troll as she was, at least in her eyes.     Ears pointed, teeth sharpened. No sign or mention of blood color could be found anywhere. The horns, as she would see them, look something like a pair of branches with the typical horn colors. 

    He was still Morpheus, but now he was also The Abstract. 

  The players on stage fret for a moment, as it would seem one of them forgot his lines. They mumble to themselves a bit and end up running off, clearly embarrassed by the situation.

“ 𝕎𝕙𝕒𝕥 𝕒 𝕤𝕙𝕒𝕞𝕖. 𝕋𝕙𝕖𝕪 𝕨𝕖𝕣𝕖 𝕛𝕦𝕤𝕥 𝕘𝕖𝕥𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕙𝕖 𝕘𝕠𝕠𝕕 𝕡𝕒𝕣𝕥 𝕥𝕠𝕠.. “

while you’re a fan of the occasional OBSCURELY TOLD MUSICAL, you find this plot especially hard to follow. they say they’re in a ROMANTIC ENTANGLEMENT, but there’s no mention of a quadrant anywhere. such could be inferred by consistency and context clues, but the protagonist seems to fluctuate rapidly between RED and PALE with no explanation as to why... you suppose you’re not too privy to the ways of relationships, but you’re becoming more and more frustrated by this INDECIPHERABLE STORY.

and thus with your boredom, you find your eyes flitting around the mostly empty theatre. you do find the decor rather pleasing, not anything you’re visually used to. but in the wake of your admiration, your eyes rest upon...

oh my god. that’s a troll. but not just any troll... an ADULT.

you’ve never seen an adult in your life.

you can’t see any SYMBOLS or COLORS; nothing to infer your safety by. perhaps you can assume that they’re a BLUEBLOOD, as the theatre is of noble taste, but then you figure — you’re here too, a WARMBLOODED PEASANT. it’s simply of your interest. 

you’ve become a creature of IMPULSE. with the heart rate of a mouse, you scurry down the aisle, ducking behind the seats as the play goes on. and then, he raises his voice. it’s INTIMIDATING, POWERFUL, a cadence you could never perfect. 

and then you’re beside him, UNCANNILY HESITANT, slowly lowering onto your seat so it doesn’t make a peep.

@taurras

     With her arms crossed, the teen offers the stranger before her a rather scrutinizing stare. She simply stands there for a few moments in silence, pink brows occasionally furrowing together as if in thought. After a minute passes by, however, Natsuki finally opens her mouth to speak to the other now, a light frown still in place.

     ❝ Aren’t you embarrassed cosplaying in public with such an outlandish costume? What are you even cosplaying from, anyway? ❞

is your outfit really that COSTUMEY? for some artists that might be a good thing, BRANDING and all, but that’s not the aesthetic you were going for at all. then again, you suppose she’s referring to your appearance and not your clothing choices. which is still kind of rude...

CHIXIE: this is actually not a cosplay / it’s just me CHIXIE: everything here is totally real 

[You stay quiet and listen to the other, kind of considering the situation they are all in. If she’s here, then what are the odds of others coming in. A whole lot. Fuck. You were fine with handling the few that were here. Now you feel like everyone and their dancestors will be here…]

[No, hold on, lets not even think about that yet.]

SOLLUX: fine. if y0u really want t0 stick ar0und then be my guest. d0n’t expect help fr0m me. SOLLUX: n0t like i’m much help anyways. SOLLUX: th0ugh i’m sure y0u have s0mething t0 defend y0urself.

[Not like your ninja throwing stars would be that much help.]

SOLLUX: if y0u d0 i’ll put in a g00d w0rd t0 my gr0up.

[Not like they would have turned the troll down.]

CHIXIE: thank you!

you say this with CHIPPER GRATITUDE, despite the gritty weight of the kind of situation you’re in. in a sort of morbid reassurance, you hold up your rifle to show that, YES, you can defend yourself. but you’d rather not do it alone. who would?

as the two of you move along, you find yourself wondering what he means by group. oh god, is he in a CULT? no, he’s a goldblood. he probably means his gaming buddies or something... well, it can’t hurt to ask.

CHIXIE: so what do you and your group play? CHIXIE: twiceweek / globe of gorecraft / counterstrife?

Y34H!

4FT3R 4 WH1L3 YOU G3T US3D TO 1T

FOR M3, 1T GOT UNCOMFORT4BL3 WH3N 1 ST4RT3D *F33L1NG* L1K3 TH3 W31RD ON3

BUT 1 GOT US3D TO TH4T, TOO

[Might be part of why you’re so excited to see new trolls.]

[You got to Chixie pretty early, you think, if she’s only met two humans so fa–]

[Of course one of them would be John. Or was it Dave? You wouldn’t put dropping that on someone out of the blue past either of them, frankly.]

OH

UHH

[You pause for a moment.]

HOW3V3R TH1S 1SL4ND WORKS

1T 1S 4BL3 TO PULL P3OPL3 H3R3 FROM D1FF3R3NT WORLDS 4ND LOC4T1ONS

4ND FROM D1FF3R3NT PO1NTS 1N T1M3

FOR 1NST4NC3 1 H4D 4 FR13ND

WHO, ON 4LT3RN14, W3 W3R3 TH3 S4M3 4G3

BUT WH3N W3 W3R3 BROUGHT TO TH3 PL4C3 TH4T W4S L1K3 TH1S

TH3Y W3R3 MUCH YOUNG3R TH4N M3, 4ND D1D NOT KNOW SOM3 OF TH3 TH1NGS TH4T H4PP3N3D TH4T 1 R3M3MB3R3D

SO

FOR YOU, 4LT3RN14 1S PROB4BLY F1N3

4ND M4Y B3 F1N3 FOR YOUR 3NT1R3 L1F3!!!

BUT

FOR TH3 GROUP TH4T 1 K33P M3NT1ON1NG

W3 W3R3 TH3 ONLY SURV1VORS >:[

CHIXIE: oh... CHIXIE: um CHIXIE: mm

and that’s all you can say for a while. it’s hurting your POOR THINKPAN, this talk of time travel and alternate realities. but of course, you can’t ignore the ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM — the supposed apocalypse that wiped everyone out. including you, if you were there at the time.

your hopes of creating an IMPACT on the world, of having a successful career that lives longer than yourself...

you shake it. you need to know what’s happening before you start your HOPELESS NAVAL-GAZE.

[You realize you may have misled her. You almost feel bad because she looks so happy. She is probably really good, because the way she talks is almost like singing. It’s not bad. But you don’t know enough to be a fan, you don’t really take much interest in music.]

um no * i can’t say i’m a fan * although i’m sure you’re decent * since a lot of highbloods go there *|

[With their lowblood dates, but you don’t add that part. Usually it’s those lowblood dates who get culled when some violet disappears after a show.]

i’m polypa * polypa goezee *|

ugh. not only is she not actually a fan, but she thinks your worth as an artist is somehow measurable by the amount of HIGHBLOODS WITH A FETISH who come to your shows. what about the rusts and bronzes and golds that do? their opinion is as valuable as anyone else’s. you suppose OLIVEBLOODS continue to be INDIFFERENT CENTRISTS as always.

... but happy thoughts now, happy thoughts! she said your music was PROBABLY DECENT! let’s focus on that. 

⚙️ - Another planet? She had read about there being other planes, and how the Giff- anthropomorphic hippo people- were the only “space fairing” race.it seemed impossible. Were there really other planets put in the vast Far Realm of space?

“I’m from a place called the Material plane- the Forgotten Realms. In the region of Neverwinter.” Though she wouldn’t reveal that some of that region was over day going to be under her reign. “So I suppose yes, is it like earth, if this Earth has dragons, liches, beholders, and other nasty monsters. And I don’t think it’s such a shame. Your homeworld must be a very interesting place.”

okay, you’re not sure you’re familiar with this one. the MATERIAL PLANE? is that like, an EARTH CITY? apparently not, as paprika clarifies it’s likely not earth. it’s earth but with monsters. oh, wow, that sounds terrible. ( the drones are practically MONSTERS to you, but you digress. )

CHIXIE: alternia’s / interesting

you’ll leave it at that.

STOP THIS IS SO SAD?

@taurras

[You recognize this troll too, but not in the same vague way the others do. Nor really because you’re a fan. Mostly because there’s some highblood asshole hangs around her.]

[You’re pretty surprised you haven’t gotten offers to kill that guy, speaking of. Only a friend or two. Well, ‘friend’.]

you’re that lowblood performer * from outglut * right? *|

[Maybe it’s rude, but since there are so few lowblood performers, it’s a pretty good indicator that you’re right.]

you are not offended at all by this RECOGNITION BY CASTE; in fact, you’re happy to be recognized at all! from someone who probably wouldn’t be in your WARMER HUED AUDIENCE... that puts a spring in your step, and an extra beat in your bloodpusher.

( @taurras. )

     Funny how humanity didn’t change. Be it centuries into the past or up to the most advanced future, they would be always the same. Rumors of a darker nature about a certain ceremonial slash sacrificial cliff here and there reached his ears quickly, and there was no way Angra Mainyu of all people wouldn’t stop by to… To? To whatever. Not like he was driven by nostalgia, or hatred, or what-have-you. It was just a cliff that didn’t matter to him. With no connections to him.

     No matter how damn pretty the path to the cliff may be (all these flowers were killing him, honestly), the sense of dread that came from the forest and its surrounding atmosphere was pretty killer. It didn’t really affect him, but he could see how it would others. You know what did affect him? The bushes moving when he had once thought to be in complete solitude. Wasn’t this forest already creepy enough?!

     Dark hair emerged from it, followed by the brightest of horns, and Avenger could most definitely feel his blood turning cold.

     “Alright, down boy. Down, down. Uncle Angra ain’t gonna hurt you. I’m not even tasty, see? All bones no meat.” Why was he speaking to this thing as if it were an animal? Good question, but in light of fear there was no time for reason. Even if he totally thought this was the Devil or whatever. Did he even believe in that? No matter. “I probably tasty reeeeal nasty, like spoiled milk-tier, yeah? So why don’t you go lookin’ for something that won’t upset your stomach…”

you happily pack up your STATIONERY SET and start walking along on the path back to your hivestem. in retrospect, you aren’t a big fan of the FOREST — you still prefer writing on your LAPHUSK at home — but you wanted to give this more... hipster method a try. either way, you’ve got a NEW SONG in the works. one that might kickstart your career in this new and strange place of POTENTIAL OPPORTUNITY.

you come across yet another strange... HUMAN? and stop in your tracks. but before you can actually greet him, he starts backing down. are you really that intimidating? is there a CREEPY CRAWLY in your hair?! you start shaking your (already messy) hair out to ensure it doesn’t look WORN BY NATURE. frankly, you’re a bit insulted that the man thinks you’re some type of SAVAGE, but you’re also used to being treated like dirt.

CHIXIE: ummm / don’t worry about me CHIXIE: i’m just a troll CHIXIE: i am also not planning to eat you

you hold up your WRITING KIT to exemplify your point of you being an autonomous being.