ercookies | TDM 002

TDM 002: IF FOUND PLEASE RETURN TO

( 1 ) Around mid-morning, a message from the Augur appears on bracelets all across the city. "New organisms discovered. Domestication in progress."

The wark of a chocobo rises up from the outskirts of the city. Several more join in, forming a charming chorus. And, strangely, this is when new arrivals begin to show up.

Beamed in one at a time, scanned en masse, they are processed just as the first wave was. There's one major difference: whereas the old guard was given their bracelets and ushered into the City, the new folks are also given... collars.

Buckled, snapped, or otherwise fastened around their necks, a variety of colorful collars with some rather unusual novelty pet tags. (These are just a few suggestions. The typical “If found, please return to ____” is also very much acceptable.)

"You are new organisms. Domestication in progress. Compatible Eros energy will complete domestication."

No matter how hard they try, characters cannot take the collars off by themselves. They need a partner's help - but not just anyone will do. It very well might be the first person they find, or it might take several tries.

The robots grow bolder as the day grows on, targeting characters who aren't new, as well.

"Y̶o̶u̴ ̸a̷r̸e̷ ̵o̵r̵g̶a̴n̷i̷s̶m̸s̶.̶ ̶D̷o̶m̴e̴s̶t̶i̶c̵a̸t̶i̸o̴n̸ ̷i̵n̸ ̴p̸r̶o̵g̷r̵e̷s̵s̷."

Their antics die down by nightfall, but for the next day or two, the occasional malfunctioning 'bot may accost someone in the street, so stay on your toes!

( 2 ) An abandoned racetrack lights up the night. That's right: place your bets, folks, because these birds are about to run around a track while robots sell synthetic, overpriced aphro-popcorn.

...Did you say priced?

That’s right! If you participated in the orgy earlier this month, you'll find you have a stash of credits accessible in your app.

You've fucked money back into the world, so why not waste it?

(Opportunities to earn credits will come up periodically and won't always be sexual in nature, so don't worry if your character wouldn't have any yet.)

And if you don't have credits to bet with, why not get creative?

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N A V I G A T I O N

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ yang looks up from pulling at the leather of her collar with a confused blink. if rise takes the time to read the tag, she'll find that it reads "PUSSY CHASER".

yeah, it definitely could have been worse. ]

Hey, yourself, [ she responds with a smile. this girl is pulling out all the stops. yang would know. she did the same song and dance to bartenders and sleazy looking thugs during her short time at beacon, wandering from club to club in her free time while searching for information on raven.

beacon, however, feels like a lifetime ago and in this life, a pretty girl is asking her for help. best to focus on the now. ]

I'm glad to help, but.... [ she hooks a thumb underneath her own collar and gently tugs. ] Fair warning that I'm kinda stuck, too. Maybe we can help each other out?

[Oh, she's cute. Rise takes a moment to admire the other girl's long, fluffy hair. From the little she can see of Yang's roots, it's either natural or an incredible dye job. Either way, she's jealous.

Rise smiles cheerfully.] Judging from how bad it's been going for me, I can't promise any success with you, but I'll give it my best!

[She steps a little closer towards Yang. At this distance, it's apparent just how much height the other girl has on her, nearly a full head. She looks a little older, too, so she might be a good person to stick by for the moment.

Rise tilts her head to the side.] I've never had this much trouble with a choker before. Is it cute, at least?

[And after a moment, before she can respond:] Do you wanna go first, or should I?

[ 100% natural blonde, babeyyyyyyyy. big shoutouts to tai for that.

yang, confident and in control just seconds before, feels the back of her neck grow hot when rise asks if the collar looks cute, but is spared having to provide an answer. phew. crisis of embarrassment, averted. ]

We'll give it our best shot! How about I try taking off yours first? That way, we'll have a sure-fire system by the time you try mine.

[Rise's perceptive enough to notice that momentary shift in Yang's expression. Huh, that's interesting.

Nothing worth really focusing on right now, no, but something she'll file away in her mind for later. She smiles.] Sure, go right ahead!

This is the part where I'd usually ask you to make sure you don't leave a bruise or anything, but somehow I have the feeling I'm not going to be doing any shows anytime soon, so...

[She turns, standing on the tips of her toes and sticking her neck out so that Yang can easily access the clasp on the choker.]

Still, maybe be gentle if you can?

[ yang smiles although rise can't see it. ] You don't even have to ask. I'll be careful.

[ true to her word, she handles the clasp as gingerly as possible, taking care not to pull too tight. how the heck is this so hard? she spends a minute or two in silence as she's totally focused on the task, but yang is too curious about her companion to stay quiet for long. ]

So, you mentioned something about shows. Are you--ah, wait, I got...! No, I don't. [ she grumbles under her breath and continues working at the stubborn piece of metal. ] What kind of shows do you do?

[It's a little embarrassing having a hot older girl work on your neck for an extended period of time, but Rise's been dressed before, so she's good at maintaning her composure.]

You know, I kind of wanted to be all, "What sort of shows do you think I do," but it's a little mean to tease someone who's helping you out. [She says, her tone honest.] I'm a singer. And a dancer. Both, really. Idols don't do one without the other.

[ yang snorts with amusement as her fingers finally find purchase on the clasp to rise's choker. oh, this girl is feisty. she's already a fan. ]

Well, the honesty's appreciated! We have musicians and stuff back at home, but we don't think we call them idols. Kinda sounds like what we should be calling boy bands. [ a second goes by and then-- ]

Ah-ha! There we go! [ yang slips off the collar, holding it up between her thumb and index finger with pride. ] You're free to roam the rolling plains, Ms. Super Famous Idol.

We've got boy bands, too, but they're kind of a different thing? It's a little hard to describe. [Rise takes a breath, holding still, and then exhales once the collar releases.]

Jeez, I hadn't realized it was that tight! Thanks a million for helping me out.

Want me to do you, now? [She rubs at her throat with one hand, but leans a little forward, curious what her tag actually says.

And then:] --oh, come on! That's so dumb.

No thanks needed! [ she gives rise a thumbs up with her free hand. ] Being a Huntress means you help out with anything, big or small.

[ not that the title 'huntress' means anything here, but it's the principle of the thing. helping others who can't help themselves, getting paid to do cool stuff like jump out of a plane, helping a girl out of her choker...it all comes with the territory.

at rise's indignation, yang cracks up, boisterous laughter echoing off the surrounding buildings. ] At least people won't think you should be handed over to a silver-haired boy who likes cats anymore? That's gotta be a plus! Whenever you're ready to help with mine, I'm ready.

It's just... ugh. [She screws up her face in an unhappy squint.] There's literally one boy matching that description who I'd want to be "delivered" to, and I haven't seen him here, so.

[Blah.

She's not sure if she wants Yu to be here or not, really. Not that she'll say that as she steps up, her fingers deftly working at the clasp, but not to any immediate success.] So, do you want to explain "huntress" first, or, uh. "Pussy Chaser"?

[ rise should have no problem noticing the immediate blush that spreads across yang's neck at the mention of her collar tag. can she just get swallowed up by the earth and stay there until she stops turning red every other minute?

when the sweet release of being buried doesn't occur, yang pushes forward with a smile, doing her best to stay still despite her natural inclination to move around as she talks. ]

Huntress is a title! It's a job back where I'm from. We travel, fight monsters, save people from those monsters, that kinda thing. You have to go to school and do lots of training to get your license, but my friends and I got ours a few months ago. [ finally earning her huntress license hadn't felt the big accomplishment yang thought it would be, but that is a completely different story for another time. ]

The, uh, other thing, [ she continues in a much less enthusiastic grumble, ] is just the robots being stupid.

[Oh, she doesn't miss it. How could she?

She's not going to point it out because wow, rude, but Rise is just going to file that away. Talking about an ex, maybe?

Geez these collars are rough.] Hey, I can sympathize with that. [A pause.] Um, if it helps, I promise I won't judge you for anything like that!

[But, a quick change of topic seems in order, so:] That sounds like a pretty exciting job to me... are monsters really that common where you come from? You make it sound like, I don't know, the monster police.

Ha, thanks. [ yang reaches up to rub the back of her neck on instinct then hastily stuffs it back in her jacket pocket. oops. ] It's not like I care that much, but the "chase" bit is...ugh. That's weird and creepy. You shouldn't be chasing after anyone if they aren't into it.

[ right, topic change. bless you, small new friend. ] Monster police is pretty close, actually, [ she says with a laugh. these collars are rough, but yang is much more at ease speaking on a subject she knows plenty about. ]

We have monsters called Grimm. Just a few of them can take out an entire village or city. [ or an academy or a kingdom.... ] So Hunters and Huntresses are hired to track them down before things can get out of hand.

TDM 002

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