[A scruffy faced older man looks flatly at the device, clearly annoyed.]

I swear to God if I just got kidnapped to some cryptid hell, I will burn the whole damn place down. It was a few drinks. A few. I best be laying face down in a ditch somewhere drowning on my own vomit.

That seems better than this.

This, whatever this is.

I’ve never seen technology like this. It’s like something out of a bad movie.

A bad B movie, as a matter of fact. [He frowns at the video, head tilting, then snorts.]

Someone point me to the nearest bar, otherwise to the nearest bus home, because Christ, this is not how I intended to spend my weekend.

Locked to Ryuji;

[Futaba has been feeling pretty bummed since hearing about Mimi leaving. It's been pretty hard on her, but she's sure that Ryuji is taking it even harder. Glancing at the phone charm that was given to her by Mimi for her birthday, she let out a sigh. It wasn't much longer that she went to text him.]

Hey, are you busy? It's been a while since we've last hung out so, I thought we'd do something together or something.

[More-or-less because of Mimi leaving of course, but she's not going to say that.]

Locked to Ann;

[Right after texting Ryuji, she sent one to Ann next.]

Uhm, hey. So with prom coming up and... Mimi was really into it... I need something to wear. Normally I'd stay home for something like this, but... Mimi was really happy when she finally pushed me to say I'd go. I know she's gone now and there's nothing keeping me to my word, but... I feel like I should still go because of her.

So, do you think you can help me find a dress? I mean.... I... don't want to go by myself. [Her anxiety and all of that fun stuff.] I'd really appreciate it if you could.

Locked to Seth;

[And since she's going to prom in Mimi's memory -- since she literally begged her to come -- that meant she needed a date. Good thing she has a boyfriend and doesn't have to worry about finding a date, but god she didn't want to. She knew he'd tease her for it, but may as well address the elephant in the room.]

Uhm... Are you busy on the 19th? I.. uhm... I promised a friend that I'd go to her event and.... I need a date...

[She'll leave it at that; and to a text no less. She knew he was going to tease her for it, so she opted out of a video or a call and went for a text instead.]

Locked to Sombra;

[With the event a while back when Easter came around, Futaba was.... also affected. Although, her personality didn't change like some of her friends. Instead, she woke up in a different body completely one day. With some digging in her new digs as well as her new temporary room, it wasn't too hard to figure out who she was posing as.

Or rather, she didn't know their name, but rather an alias. With some hacking -- and man was it a lot more tricky -- and some digging, she eventually came to the conclusion that it was the other hacker that she knew here. It made sense once she looked into things, because quite frankly, it wasn't hard to hack into most things in particular at her skill level. This go around was much more complex and overall more protective. It was clear that whomever this was, they knew what they were doing.

Sombra. The one she spoke to about forming an alliance at one point. This was certainly a strange situation. She could have called her out ages ago, but she chose not to. More so because she was also a hacker; she knew secrecy and privacy was extremely important and she wouldn't put someone else in a tight spot when she knew what would happen. How did you call someone out from hiding while remaining inconspicuous though? She could send out a message as Alibaba...?

So soon enough, a message is sent on the comms. Hopefully she'll respond back. If not, well, Futaba knew what she looked like now.]

OPEN TO EVERYONE;

[On everyone's phones -- though normally most people would see it anyways -- will pop up a strange icon interrupting anything that you're doing at the moment. Were you in the middle of playing a phone game or calling someone? Well, doesn't matter now, because instead you're going to get a message from someone who's voice has obviously been altered.]

My, My. You all seem to be the sharing type; Not that I mind. What's that saying again?

Sharing is caring?

So let's play a little game, shall we, Genessia. [Hopefully a cue there.] How about we all share something about ourselves that you wouldn't normally say out loud. Don't worry, you can send it through anonymous text if you're not brave enough to say it.

Let me start.

I believe UFOs truly exist. [Sort of.] Now it's your turn.

You have an hour. Clocks ticking, Genessia.

[And with that, you'll return to whatever you were doing. Sorry about that game you lost though. And there's a time limit? Don't worry. She's not seriously going to do anything to you. It's just a small prank and at most, a way to call Sombra out without being obvious. What happens in that hour that you don't submit something? Nothing dire. You'll just be locked out of your phone for about 10 minutes.]

[OOC: Most of these are locked to certain characters, but I had quite a few, so I just wanted to do it in a catch-all. If anyone is interested in anything with Futaba, feel free to make your own prompt and I well go with it! <3]

For those that I have not had the pleasure of meeting yet, my name is Lioriley. And I have a request for those that care to indulge me:

Will you tell me a story? A tale from your homeland, a song, a poem, anything that you are willing to share with me and - perhaps - everyone that comes to listen to this as well.

I am also curious to know if there are heroes where you hail from. Are you one of them? Do you know them — or are their stories simply legends passed down through the ages?

If you wish for me to answer any of these questions as well, I would be more than happy to. Thank you.

[Video]

[The feed opens late at night to the view of a forest clearing. Silver beams filtering through the canopy of vegetation to paint twisted shadows on the ground below. It's silent for a moment, almost eerie, if not for the vividly striped feline perching a short distance away towards the narrower end of a branch.

The Cheshire Cat had woken up exactly one week ago in a cocoon-like structure in some unfamiliar watery setting. The notion of plants and animals being unable to speak had taken some getting use to, but on the whole he was relatively unperturbed.

His pendant was currently swinging back and forth around one paw like a pendulum. Once. Twice. Before evaporating, very literally, into thin air.]

I never really understood the appeal of collars.


[Action - Your Place]

[The fluffy intruder stretches out across the sofa, one paw reaching for a nearby magazine while the other pulls a pair of reading glasses out of seemingly nowhere. A mug you may recognise as one of your own rests on the adjacent table, filled with freshly brewed tea.

Ears twitch and a trademark grin spreads across the cat's face at the sound of someone else entering the room, aureolin eyes flickering upwards to appraise the newcomer.]

You're out of milk.

[Totally casual. As if he hadn't wandered into someone else's home uninvited and made himself a cup of tea.]

Okay! What happened this time??

[Haga's high pitched voice comes out very loudly, and his eyebrows are knitted in a clear look of pure anger.

He couldn't remember anything similar to Orichalcos or a Shadow Realm ban happening. Heck, he had been avoiding Yugi and his friends like the plague for the past two months, but now he found himself in another weird place, after sleeping for a long time.]

Look, I was here trying to be an upstanding citizen! I wasn't even bothering that loser Yugi anymore, so why am I sucked into some weird alternate dimension again? Am in a hospital bed again?? Ugh... and Ryuzaki isn't here so I guess I'm the only one who messed up this time? [But really, for the life of him, he couldn't remember doing anything that could put his very existence at risk, again.]

Can I just spend a full year with my parents for a change??? Or is that too much to ask for?

Video

[The feed opens to a shot of the Bay area, hologram fading having delivered its message with the racks of maps and literature clearly visible. It then tracks as the person broadcasting gives up on the Bay area and heads out into Genessia proper, and soon enough a young woman's voice provides the soundtrack alongside the general sounds of the city.]

Congratulations, Genessia. I can honestly, one hundred percent, truly say that I did not see this one coming. Denying me my own death, that takes some pretty incredible skills and I'd just love to know exactly who I have to thank for that.

[It's here that the woman stops in her stride, shop window in front of her - and thus is reflected the face of one Junko Enoshima, indistinct for the way the light hits but she either doesn't notice or doesn't care.]

And don't worry. I promise I won't waste this second chance I've been given. That really would be a waste, right?

Action

[Junko's found her way to one of Genessia's parks, and now stretches out on a bench that lets her watch the goings-on around her. Nothing like learning the people to learn a city, after all, and in a place where she doesn't know anyone it's all the more important that she figure out who might be useful to her sooner rather than later.

Of course, she can't just sit and watch, that would be boring. So occasionally, when people are walking past while seemingly not paying attention, Junko will stretch and extend her leg to try to trip them, curious to see if they'll notice in time or pay the price for their lack of attention. Or if she spots someone with a pet that has the energy, Junko will find a stick or something nearby to throw to see how pet and owner will react.

And should anyone just happen to notice the young woman sitting by herself and come over to talk, regardless of intentions? She'll lean forward, deliberately tugging down her shirt to best display her cleavage while simultaneously putting on the most innocent face and tone she can muster.]

Well, I am new around here. Did you notice and come to see if I needed help?

[All the while, the way she moves implies they came over for less savoury reasons, regardless of who they are.]

[Action - Honnoji Academy Gym, Closed]

( Suit yourself )

[Action - All over, morning, OTA]

[Ted's been feeling funny these past few weeks, like one in the eye of a storm. A presentiment of peril that crept nearer and nearer; a call for action loomed that was both as exciting as it was frightening. It was like death as the Trumps knew it: an end and a beginning. And if it is an end, he had better make the most of whatever time he has left. Perhaps he's just being silly and melodramatic, like usual.

Perhaps not. It's morning, and like most Sunday mornings, it starts with him walking out of church, thinking out loud on what the sermon contained. These and other discursive, verbal meditations overpower his mind and mouth as he airs them into the ether, wandering aimlessly.]

"'Made sin'. Made sin? For all the injunctions to imitation, that one's impossible; none could know such a sensation, if sensory it was. A man can be crucified, killed, hated and torn by men. But made sin--only the perfectly pure can do that. Or...goodness, so much is possible in Genessia. Certainly more than I dreamed. If one could become sin...should they?"

"Aheh, the world plucks so many saviors, no doubt hoping that their heroics might transfer. Well, the world's unsaved still. What's taking them so long, I wonder? Is Genessia very difficult? Has destiny removed her favor, leaving them lost? Or does the world...dampen, somehow. Cast a pall. Lessen? Heroes of myth and legend take nine-to-fives, here. Good for them; no doubt it's saner. Yet for others, men more mundane, it seems to be working the other way. Hah, maybe it wants to give the ordinary the opportunity to be extraordinary? God help them; how are the conventionally sane to handle insane adventure?

"To be loved is good, and feels so. But suppose one were loved by a villain; what then? Treated well themselves and yet knowing the one who treats them so well holds others in unholy contempt. Does not one become complicit in the wickedness directed towards others? An accessory to the crime? How could one stand it? How is it possible to bear a love so unjustly preferential? Does being cared for so well obliterate the utter spite shown towards the stranger? Should woe be warned for the apple of the eye of the evildoer?"

[Ted will never mind being interrupted in these musings; always more fun to talk to others rather than himself. Speaking of others, he has a few to call.]

( Private Audio calls for Koishi, Sync, and Sonico )

[Anon Text]
Where could a nuclear weapon, say for testing purposes, be most safely deployed? And how might the radiation from such an explosion be mitigated, if it came to that?

[Y'know. Hypothetically]

[As usual, Lydia is being a terrible shitlord and just chilling... outside this time, it seems, if the fact her aurorus is happily nuzzling her shoulder like the giant dork he is. Lovely, that.

She's grinning at the camera for a moment before leaning back, here we go.]

I have a question for you, darlings, a hypothetical if you will. Mostly was thinking about recent going-ons and the interesting differences I've noticed between this place and home, cultural things, I guess.

What's everyone's opinions on necromancers? Yes, I mean the people that raise the dead or whatever they tend to do where you're from, they're a legitimate school of magic back home along with the major ones but even then there's still stigma there. Are they living humans or are they undead like liches or something? And if it can be either, is there a difference between them? Do people specialize in more than one school or type of magic?

Color me curious, if you will. Mind, I'm an illusionist, have been since I was way young, so I can't say I know much about other schools other than what I've heard in books and seen from wizards that specialize in that sort of thing~

[No longer split into two halves of his awful whole, Uai has a touch more clarity. He's actually been childishly avoiding the network since things normalized, but even Uai knows he can't hide away forever.

With some level of reluctance, he appears on the feed.]

So, uh... Rough week, huh? Hope that's not the new normal.

[ ... ] I got approved for my jobs, so that's good. Now that I'm making some stable income, I thought I might look into moving. Are there any good places in Fayren?  Ah, and... I'll be composing freelance for a while. I don't know if anyone has any use for music, but it's an option now? Someone already asked to learn to compose themselves, so I guess I'm not opposed to teaching someone else... if you want.

[Okay, he needs to get to the actual point of this video:]

Also. I'm sorry for threatening to burn down this world and drop you all into hell. That was... extreme. And uncalled for.

Pretend it never happened. Thanks.

WHO: Graverobber & Robert the Doll
WHAT: Graverobber really did try to avoid the eggs. Really. But then one falls on his head and he & Robert wind up in a hell of a weird situation.
WHEN: April 5th - Afternoon
WHERE: Genessia City

( So if there had been one specific thing that had really gotten drilled into him when he arrived in Genessia, it was: do not touch the eggs. No, really. Seriously. Don't touch the fucking eggs. )

[So... this was different. As much as he was more or less used to dealing with other-dimensional weirdness, Dick Grayson had never actually woken up in another dimension with no memory of how he got there, with a box on his chest. He took his time going through the things in the box and the cavern in general, as much as he could, once he had verified that he was alone there; He was grateful for the information, even if the situation was bizarre enough to ramp up his anxiety in a very different way from, say, fighting a super-villain.

According to the holographic woman, there was no way home from here, at least not that they knew of. At least I'm not in costume, he thought, though he was relieved to have it on him at least, just in case. He didn't know what kind of world this was, and whether they would know who he was, or who Nightwing was, after all. He'd just have to sit tight, try to find a way out, and trust that, if he couldn't find a way out, someone from his dimension would find a way to get to him. Easier said than done, sure, but it could have been worse.

Sort of.

Getting out of the cavern helped, at least. The bright sunlight warmed his hands and face, where he had gone cold as the initial adrenaline of waking up in a new place had begun to fade. He knew he had to keep moving, or else he was going to start worrying, and that wasn't productive. So he got out the phone and started a public video, angling the camera for a decent view.

Viewers would see a handsome young man with an ambiguous skintone, bright blue eyes and black hair that's just long enough to get unruly. He smiled uncertainly, trying to look non-threatening.]

I don't know how often people end up here, but.. hi. I'm new. [Did he just wave at the camera with his free hand? Yes, he did.] I'm Dick. Anybody have any pointers for where to go from here, besides the free lodging?

[Okay, as far as Natsuki knew, it was time for them to get ready for the school festival. She was pretty confused when she woke up in a strange cocoon coffin thing. Just what the heck is going on here? Did she blank out on her walk to school that she ended up in a strange location after all? No. None of this was logical.

Checking her uniform pockets, she looked around for her poem for the festival, but that was gone; guess she forgot to bring it with her. But instead of her phone being here, she found a different one near her upon waking up. She didn't use it immediately; Instead, she seemed to be a little... distracted with her thoughts. They weren't even entirely because of waking up in a strange location though. So after a good few minutes, she finally clicked on the phone after figuring out how to use it for the most part.]

Uhm... So I don't suppose anyone here knows about the school festival going on, do they? If I'm not there for it, Monika is going to be really angry with me and I really don't need to deal with that right now.

[At least she'd heard the hologram before turning it on but it's still... concerning either way.]

I know that girl in the hologram said that we're in a strange new world called.... [What was it called again? Gen... Whatever.] Well, just in a new world, but that can't be true, can it? That kind of stuff only happens in mangas...

I'm not sure what to think about all of this, but I could really use some answers.

... Oh! And by chance does anyone know if any of my friend would be here? Their names are Monika, Sayori, and Yuri.

[And the player, but we'll pretend she said that as well since the name is chosen by each person.]

[OOC: I have an Opt-out post for Natsuki regarding anyone interested in playing DDLC, but doesn't want spoilers. Be warned that there will probably be a decent amount of spoilers in the comments since DDLC is a pretty intense game with sensitive topics. Also if anyone would rather their manga characters not to be noticed by Natsuki, let me know that as well.]

[action]
[Another egg victim, who really thought he had outsmarted this system. But when he thought he heard one of the eggs chirp, Uai felt it was his obligated to look after it--

False alarm. It's just another mean egg, out to cause trouble. It slips out of his hands and cracks on the ground, creating a cloudy puff of magic. When it settles, Uai's worst qualities have taken physical form. Before his 'good side' has fully processed what's going on, the evil Uai has already cast a spell. In causes a nearby tree to grow alarmingly fast and grab "Good Uai" with its roots. What little good Uai had in him is now tied in place by roots from a tree. Welp. This sucks.]

W-Wait! Hang on! Can't we talk this out? A, ahhh... S-someoooone! How am I going to get free? Waaah, I don't want to hurt the treee! O-or hurt anyone else, for that matter...!

[video]

[It's the evil side of Uai that has the device. He's being moderately well behaved right now, but that isn't likely to last. His shadowy aura is fully visible and it occasionally causes his form to flicker on screen, like a computer glitch.]

Alright, enough playing around. Maybe the rest of you can afford to lay your roots here, with jobs and material comforts, but I'm done with that. What am I going to have to do to get you all to work harder to find a way out of here? Make this place a living hell? I'd be happy to fulfill that role. It seems to be all I do across the times and spaces anyway, so I've become quite skilled at it. You're all between Hana and I, so it's your fault... I'll count to three and then get started, hm?

(( fun fact: he won't be actually destroying anything or causing wide area chaos. please don't worry! ))

So, this place sure seems...clean.

[Have a grungy-looking guy peering at his smart phone, holding all of the new-arrival gear he got at the bay, looking a little bewildered at his surroundings but making the best of it. He also appears to have taken way more brochures than necessary.]

Though, then again, I guess I might be a little biased on that. Considering my old place is, quite literally, a dumpster fire. So, you know, this could be considered an upgrade.

[He shrugs slightly.]

Still not a fan of waking up up strange places, but eh, what can you do? I ain't entirely convinced I'm not hallucinating off some weird shit, but, you know, most of the time people don't seem to hallucinate stuff that ain't spiders or rainbow explosions or something else a little more terrifying.

So, what's a guy new to this place need to know to live and let live around here?

[He pauses, then vaguely gestures at the street behind him.]

Also, there is a surprising amount of kids running around without parents here. I'd try to look after them except, uh, I am probably the last person alive who should be in charge of not letting little kids get hurt or anything. But I figured somebody should know about that.

Uhh... hey. Hi!

I'm Randy and so... how is everybody today? It looks like somebody lost some chocolate eggs?

Let me know if they're yours.

[Some may recognise Randall, except he looks younger and he's wearing glasses. His attitude is also much more upbeat, if also a little shy.]

[Video]

[It's been a little while since she's arrived in Genessia - taking to herself for the most part and learning what she can from others. She's kept a low presence on the network due to the situation she'd just gotten out of - but it seemed like this world was not anything like she feared it might be.

Plus, eggs! People seemed pretty happy with the sudden abundance of eggs. Maybe a proper introduction was in order.

She waves from her end.]

Hi, Genessia City! And... the other cities! I'm... sorta new here, it's not my first day or anything... but hi! My name is Aoi Asahina, and I'm the Super High School Level Swimmer. [... A monochrome bear isn't going to pop up now that she's said that, right???] It's nice to meet you all!

Um, I know it's a long shot... but anyone from home happen to be here? Anyone with... well, a title like mine, I guess. [She doesn't remember anyone outside of her class, whoops.] If not, well, don't worry about what the title means too much.

While I'm thinking about it, though, I wanna know more about you all. Tell me one thing about yourself! A hobby you like to do, a nickname you had as a kid, or your favorite food!

Well, ciao! [She shuts off the feed.]

--

[Action]

[It's not hard to spot Asahina, who's taken to getting some of the eggs, but only a few! She knows she shouldn't be eating a lot of chocolate. Half the time she seems to be trying to help others get eggs and offloading some of her eggs into others' piles so she doesn't feel so guilty about hoarding them.

Poke her?]