heckinooc | TDM 005: Ch-ch-changes!

TDM 005: Ch-ch-changes!

[ SEE GAME NAVIGATION TO READ UP ON HECK GAME BEFORE PLAYING IF YOU SO DESIRE ]

A, Garden Level - Autumn Celebrations!
[It may be November in the real world but when you're dead time is fake! So this week/month GARDENFEST is happening...........aka a bootleg mishmash of Oktoberfest and an Xmas Market. In general: PARTY TIME.

Drinks! Foods! Bad singing!! Drunkenly built gingerbread houses! You're thrown in a festive identity clash of imps and cherubs in the garden playing music that doesn't match or shoving drinks at you. Don't worry, if you don't want a mug of beer, it might just be gingerale! Anyway sorry you died but PARTY PARTY JOIN US JOIN US--]

B, Hell Level: ICE to meet you!
[Down at the HellRaiser hotel, the hellish amenities await your every need, but spooky season is over. Aside from the usual, er, allure of Hell, it also seems to be slowly freezing over. Ruh roh. It's not much now, but occasionally you may be hit by a teeny tiny icicle as you explore, awww. Other times it's a whole fucking STALACTITE crashes down on you. Better dodge or hope someone pushes you out the way!! Look out for slick sidewalks too!

Otherwise, hey have some fun in Hell!! Go to a club, get some drugs, go to a casino, win and get mugged!! Ever have a drink made out of literal MAGMA? Go on, try it!! Slaps hell's cobbled brimstone you can fit so much chaos down here!]

C, Heaven Level: Spice, spice, baby.
[Heaven-side, the cherubs are ready to welcome you and give you the VIP treatment!! Massages! Manipedis! Lavish outfits and attention! You can raise your hand and just get a fucking cat sat on your lap! Truly, this is bliss!!

Oh, but it's also cozy season in Heaven! So along with the best fits for the chillier weather, There are an assortment of beverages being offered by angels for you to sample (CW Mind Manipulation):

Apple Spiced Latte- Tasty and earthy! But you suddenly feel more subservient.
Cranberry Spiced Latte- A bit tart but it works. This might make you sassier than usual.
Stuffing Spiced Latte- There is no effect. Why would you drink this you monster.

For the TDM you can find small cherub-run kiosks with these drinks on any level you prefer! If that's not your cuppa joe, feel free to explore the beauty of Heaven per usual! The beach! Boardwalk! All the cafes!! Whatever heaven should have, you can likely find it.]

OOC NOTES:
-I KNOW THIS TDM IS BIT LACKING SO TBH FEEL FREE TO PULL PROMPTS FROM OLDER ONES TOO, DO WHATEVS
-This TDM is open to all! You do NOT need to join the comm to play in it!
-As a reminder, THIRD CHARACTER APPS are now street legal!
-Post questions for the mods here
-Remember, playing in the TDM does NOT guarantee your entry or app being accepted into the game proper later down the line!
-Apps open!! Be sure to read the rules linked there and check the current taken list!
-For current players: TDMs count as game canon AND threads may be used for AC if you wish!
-Remember regardless of your alignment, you are free to travel to whatever level you wish!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Garden: I'm Just A Holy Fool ]

Dead? No. No, that's not possible. That's not acceptable.

[ One of the cherubs is being followed around by a young man with a brilliant golden sheen to his skin. And his hair. And his. Uh.

Look, is this guy made of liquid metal? ]

I don't care if you claim it's a "clerical error", I'm not allowed to be dead yet! Fetch me your master. This instant.

[ This guy sure is intent, in the middle of a party, on talking to the manager. ]

I didn't crawl my way into the light on my hands and knees only for you to shove me back into the dark! You can't even throw a thematically-cohesive party - [ He gestures to a table on which a turkey with a halo looped around its neck sits next to a snowman holding a pitchfork. ] - how am I supposed to believe this is the Afterlife?!

[ "Hey, unwind, buddy, try the cider - " ]

I don't WANT cider!

[ And as he says "want", wings pop (glop?) out of the young man's back, spreading in an impressive span of golden metallic feathers. He is noble! He is shining!

He definitely just knocked somebody over with those! ]

[ Hell: Oh Baby It's So Cruel ]

[ Marik hadn't wanted to go to Hell.

Marik hadn't wanted to go to Hell, he feels he's already spent his childhood there, but Hell seemed a more promising place to meet....the sort of people with the kinds of connections he needs in order to get to the bottom of his predicament. So, with a queasy feeling in his stomach and a wobbling in his knees he's telling himself is just him getting used to his new form, Marik has Descended.

It's not as dark here as he'd expected. That's helping.

It's much colder here than he'd expected. That's not.

In fact, it's helping so very little that right smack dab in the middle of the road there is a new ice(?) sculpture, of a guy with great abs and icicles hanging off his arms! It's almost like the guy was made of liquid and then went down into subzero temperatures only to freeze solid.

Marvel at his chiseled physique. Gaze upon the perfect eyeliner adorning his oddly wide eyes. Behold their expression, caught between terrified and pissed!

....Listen faintly and you can kind of hear....screaming? Maybe thaw him out. Or dare somebody to stick their tongue on his bellybutton, I'm not your mom. ]

[ Heaven: But I'm Still In Love With Judas, Baby (cw mind manipulation) ]

[ After that horrible ordeal, Heaven is....well, what it says on the tin.

Thawed and thoroughly mellowed - a spa day will do that - Marik is seated in a lounge, relaxing in a plush robe with a nice apple latte. His circumstances no longer seem so dire. In fact, he feels rather drowsily pleasant. Heaven. He's....he's in Heaven. He belongs in Heaven. He's not supposed to be dead yet, that part is wrong, but when he does finally die, he will belong in Heaven. He has repaid his debts. It's almost hard to believe, when you consider the terrible sin he committed, but he's - He's free!

This is the interpretation of the situation he is going with and he refuses to consider any others.

Marik takes a deep sip of his latte and sighs, euphoric and as close to satisfied as he'll ever get. He belongs in Heaven. He's a good person after all. He was a good Tombkeeper. He did his duty, his dark half is gone, and he's in Heaven! This justifies everything! ]

Keh keh keh....Aahhhh.

[ His lower extremities are puddling a bit as his thoughts fuzz with happiness, but he doesn't mind that; he can just reform them later. Marik finds it hard to be upset, right now. He is filled with goodwill towards all mankind. As well he should be, for he is in Heaven. Where he belongs. Because he is a Good Person.

Gosh, he'd like to do things for others right now, because that's what Good People do.

So he waves to the first person whose eyes he catches, and lifts his drink to them. Grinning like they're a friend he hasn't seen in ages, whether or not he's ever met them before in his life. Fake it till you make it! Never failed him before. ]

Hello there! Isn't the world wonderful?

[ This Is What Marik Ishtar, In This Moment, Actually Believes. ]

[Kaiba just got out of the elevator from Heaven, and he's got a cup of piping hot coffee that he's nursing, along with a cupholder containing four more. He's making his way down the street when he catches sight of a familiar face--

--well sort of--

Frozen in the streets.

And to be honest, he was having a half-decent day today. He was about to start breaking down a cellphone someone had sold him for basically nothing so he can get viable parts.

When he comes to the conclusion that the frozen slime looks like Marik Ishtar because it is Marik Ishtar, the first thing he does, in all his Blue-Eyes White glory, is to sip from his coffee cup for an unfairly long time while said blue eyes take in Marik's form from head to toe.

Then...]

So. What am I going to do about you?

[That sounds ominous.

He can hear you making noise, by the way. He knows it's really you Marik, and not some tacky statue.]

[ Kaiba Seto?!

Well. It could be worse, but it could also be a heck of a lot better. Marik strains his nonexistent vocal cords, willing his voice to generate....however it does, in his new glutinous (or frozen) form. Help him! Let him out! Kaiba....!!

No. Don't panic. Think. There are advantages to it being someone he knows who's found him. What are Kaiba Seto's weaknesses....?

The Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Marik's sister (somehow). A lack of good coffee in Hell, if the man's beverage order is anything to go by. And....

Kaiba Mokuba. Kaiba Seto has a little brother. Kaiba Seto is weak to Little Brothers.

Marik's not too proud, therefore, to desperately attempt to contort his face into as pathetic and youthful and Pleadingly Poignant an expression as he can, though the end result is mostly "some creaking and then an eyebrow moves a little maybe". But he wills his eyes to do the talking. His big, wide, doe eyes. Marik's baby face had been a disadvantage when leading the Ghouls, but here? Here, perhaps he can turn even his youthful charm to the service of Marik Ishtar.

Help him, Kaiba Seto. He is someone's little brother, and he is so, so cold! ]

Edited 2024-12-16 21:32 (UTC)

"Oh, that's a nice try isn't it?"

He's maybe having a little too much fun there, watching Marik try to pull a face and, perhaps, appeal to his good nature. What a shame, Kaiba's fresh out of good nature. The only eyes he'd truly give into are Mokuba's.

Though...he can already hear Ishizu in his head, honestly. He can hear her lecturing. Of course she would advocate for her brother, but there's one big problem about that.

"You know, you made my tournament a circus act, right? I suppose you think I've forgotten."

A sip of coffee, then he gets up in Marik's face. There's an odd glow lighting up his parted jaws, a flash of light that soon sustains itself, and a crackle of electrical current that dances along his lips and fangs.

"If I fired on you, do you suppose that'd be warm enough to thaw you out?"

....He'd do it.

Marik suffers not a moment's doubt. This is Seto Kaiba, who gladly risks any lives necessary (including his own) to defend the honor of his beloved cards and pride. And the dragon-man's far too stubborn to admit Battle City was little more than the result of Kaiba's dancing on Marik's sister's strings. He'd be all too happy to vent his frustration.

So the question immediately becomes: does Marik want him to fire? If he thaws from it, that's a win. But if he takes too much damage - Pain.....

Marik hates pain. He's had enough for several lifetimes.

But that's why it's good he's a slime, right? Marik has always admired slime for its flexibility, how it can be wielded both offensively and defensively. His slime monsters can take a beating and be none the worse for wear. Surely a world that would grant a Blue-Eyes White Kaiba the ability to fire off a Burst Stream of Destruction would also grant Marik the slime's excellent defensive and regenerative abilities. Surely. So this is a. This is a good thing.

And it's also a good thing that he whimpers a little when he sees that shot building, because he knows that will only make Kaiba want to hit him more in this mood. Yes! This is going....exactly according to plan......including his reaction. He is in Absolute Control!

(oh, Gods, fire, not fire, please, not fire, not pain, not -)

[The whole 'commute to hell to bug Kaiba' is really good for getting Jonouchi to actually go down to the Garden level. Heaven's just nice, go figure, and contrary to popular belief he's a good boy who doesn't go into fucking casinos.

Or maybe that's not contrary to anything? He has enough luck and chance cards that he feels like it's a contrary to belief thing.

That fun train of thought (how the hell did he get there) doesn't matter though, because soon the dulcet tones of Loud Screaming are meeting his ears.

...

There's only one dramatic lil bitch capable of that level of sound-]

Oh- Oi! Oi! Marik!!

[Running! Running! Running over to say hello-

Why did he just get a flash-vision of a fuck load of gold??]

OiiiII MARIK, WHAT'S U-

[CLONK]

OUGH-

[Fuck load of gold -> Marik's plopping wings slamming this ash-Ra in the face. His sundisk halo even falters a bit (though fortunately, ain't nothing putting the fire for his hair out), and Jonouchi rubs his head.]

AhHHHHGH. Th' hell man!

Edited (FUCK THATS RIGHT YOU USE THE R VERSION-) 2024-12-17 03:12 (UTC)

[ AUGH! Not only are these cretins refusing to listen to him (Marik's inner monologue increases in camp villainy when he's irritated), but now something's hit him! He turns, scowling. ]

Watch it-

[ Wait. He knows that voice. Even if that.....form..... ]

.........Jonouchi?

[ Jonouchi Katsuya? He's also here? And he's - why's he look like---The sight ruffles Marik's feathers!

......MARIK HAS FEATHERS. His brain is now half divided between flexing his new appendages, with an errant wonder whether he can fly, and impatiently awaiting an Explanation for Jonouchi's presence, appearance, and rudeness in running right into Marik's wingspan that he just this instant discovered he'd sprouted. Because really, the nerve. ]

Augggh....you watch it man, where th' hell did those wings even come from..!!

[You were goo!!! Innocent, harmless goo!!! This is betrayal!

Still rubbing his beak (that's a beak right, everything blends in with Jonouchi's colors), Jonouchi just scowls.] Yeah, it's me..!

I was gonna say 'great t' see yah' but then y' beaned me in th' damn face..!

[THE

NERVE]

It's not my fault! [ Marik is Affronted. ] I didn't realize I could do that, and you snuck up on me!

[ He huffs. Retracts the wings - schlorp. Interesting. So it seems he's obtained some of the most...flexible....properties of slimes, in both a literal and figurative sense. As much as he dislikes the idea of anyone messing with his body after certain past experiences, he can't deny that might be ~~fun~~ useful. Experimentation is merited.

Later. ]

What are you even supposed to be? That card belongs to

[ me ]

the Pharaoh! You have no right to resemble it.

[ The NPC he'd been berating starts to look around. Is it....is it safe to start sneaking away? Verrrrry sloooooowly.....Stealth..... ]

[During the single moment Jonouchi has to nod at the cherub before Marik turns back to the griffon, Jonouchi is, well, nodding at the cherub.

Go little buddy. Be free. Be free.]

I came at y' from th' side! Yellin'! [Jonouchi protests in the meantime, half whining.

The half-whine doesn't disappear when Ra comes up though, and in fact he just dramatically puts a hand over his heart.] An' I got torched two times, an' ended up dead f'r half an' hour! I'd say, Ra owes me, at leas' a little, [Jonouchi huffs. His wings, and tail for that matter, even give a slight shake. He's firm in this thought!]

That's blasphemy.

[ But it's also not the most important element of this situation. Marik, switching gears, simmers down. He'll deal with Jonouchi's gall at resembling the Winged Dragon of Ra - or at the gall of whoever decided that'd be clever - later. When he has a better sense of the situation. Right now, he needs Jonouchi cooperative.

He needs information. He needs a plan. Jonouchi, as a friendly(?) face, can help with that. ]

If you're here, though, I suppose we really aren't dead. As you say, not even God can kill you....

[ This is a compliment. Probably. ]

He c'n take it up w' me if he feels tha' bad.

[That's also blasphemy,

But so far so good! Jonouchi is ~Cooperating~. And he Does have a friendly face! Look at that face. It doesn't get much more friendly than jet black beak with a head of fire for hair right???]

Hehe! Well hey, thanks! Been kinda weird so far but considerin' I was in a group b'fore comin' here, knowin' it's all clerk errors or whatever has been a real load off!

Bet you'll be back t'...uh...

[No wait hold that thought.] Y'know, come t' think, what were you actually doin' in Egypt after charges got cleared...

[What does one do, after crimes are over??? Mysteries...]

[ Marik tilts his head, slightly. ] What charges?

[ You can't be charged if no one knows it was you, because you hid behind your shadow, a robe, and a magical mind control stick! He's seen in the paper that many of the Ghouls have since been apprehended, but what business of that is his anymore....? Just puts a further end to that period of his life, and good riddance. Marik may eternally bear the guilt of his patricide like the scars on his back, but he lives in the light now. ]

Mnnn...well I mean, they had yer name, so stands t' reason somethin' got dropped righ'?

[Understandably, in Jonouchi's reality, they were all dropped because no one saw his face and couldn't connect a damn thing.

Rishid was more difficult, but they figured it out.]

But like, tha' was kinda th' most we heard, which stinks, kinda wanted t' hear more about the 'havin' fun livin' part.

Really? You did?

[ That feels - surprisingly good, actually! Both because it means Jonouchi will definitely be more amenable to helping him out here, if his opinion of Marik was that good after all, and....

Well. Marik had meant it when he'd said, at the end of Battle City, that he'd wanted to be friends. But all his interactions with the Domino City group since have focused on getting the Pharaoh to his eternal rest. Is this an opportunity to lay groundwork for more, even once they have managed to return to Earth....?

Marik has been enjoying the surface. But "friends" are one thing he's yet to fully get the knack of. Is this his in? ]

I'd love to tell you all about it. [ True. ] But my head's spinning from everything that's happening here, I don't know how good a job I'd do....

[ Not....entirely true. Orientation, please.

What is "asking for things like a normal person instead of playing 4d chess"? Marik is an Ishtar. We don't DO that. ]

Well yeah man! I mean, sure phones exist 'n all tha', but catchin' up ain't th' same on a phone!

[What do you mean they only saw you a month later, and then dipped after the Pharaoh moved on, and did not in fact have to just rely on emails and texts for a half year while said Pharaoh floated about like a dingus???

This is absolutely an in. Probably.]

Ahhhh yeah... [Still, Marik's excuse works! Jonouchi hums, nods, and crosses his arms in apparent understanding.] 's pretty overwhelmin', which is weird since they don' tell us anythin' when y' think abou' it...

I'm still sortin' shit out myself honestly, 's been weird. And like, Heaven's great, but Heaven also sucks..?

[Before he can be asked how that can be possible in any way, Jonouchi clarifies.] I gotta come down here t' swear man. They bleep yer swears like it's a TV special it's creepy..!

[ They what?

Also, that's Jonouchi's priorities? Rishid, does he have to talk to you about your taste in friends....? But Marik can work with this. He lets his concern show. ]

They're really serious about being "good", then....

[ ....Though. He has obtained something akin to a halo, if his glimpse of himself in one of the ponds here can be believed. He's got a Ra solar disc. Does that mean that this place, even with such a strict rubric....Have they....

.....But that can't be. Marik needs more information. He's committed the most terrible sin ever. Even if he isn't getting his heart weighed in this fake Afterlife, shouldn't that....? Or.....

....More information. He needs more information. ]

[Swears are important Marik. How will he express himself!]

Super serious. Also apparently they got all th' coffee..? I don' drink th' stuff, but people complain abou' it enough...

....anyway I dunno tha' act'lly doin' somethin' bad gets y' smote or whatever, I think a cherub jus' shows up an' like...frowns.

[He's been surprisingly good on account of being in hell when he beat the living shit out of Kaiba (and had the shit kicked out of him in turn), so.]

But, y'know, lookin' at you, seems t' me like we could jus' go upstairs and you see for yerself?

We can go down too, they jus' get prickly about it.

Edited 2024-12-19 12:33 (UTC)

[ Marik does remember that injecting Jonouchi full of his own erstwhile hatred of the Pharaoh, and then of Yuugi, unlocked a potty mouth on this young man, yes....

Anyway. Heaven tour! So long as he's not ACTUALLY dead, Marik's outlook has brightened considerably. What is this if not a new place to explore, new things to see....? He even, it seems, has new, useful powers in his Heavenly body. And if it's true that he's paid for his crimes, then this is his reward. He'll make the most of being here, then return home when he's ready. ]

Up. Definitely up.

[ He starts moving, nudging Jonouchi along simply by example. You know where we're going. Lead the way. He wants to go! Come on! ]

Do you know who's working on getting us back home?

[ After all, he can't leave something as important as "returning to his family" up to just anybody. He must make their acquaintance. Offer them his assistance, in fact. Surely the likes of Marik Ishtar will be able to straighten out this error in no time. ]

[Yeah yeah, he's going he's going!

And good lord are they in for a wild ride if the topic of That duel ever somehow comes up, but anyway.

Jonouchi, fortunately, is skilled in the art of walking and also talking, and does that while leading the way to the lift he just finished coming down in. Bugging Kaiba can come later.]

From what I got, it's basically every cherub an' imp available, but given how they don' know what's goin' on, I ain't confident in it goin' fast.

[A beat- because that's like, the worst thing to say, good job self- and he adds,] But th' part where they can definitely get us to th' Exact time we were at kinda fixes that at least. I mean, there's people who've been t' space here! Like, full on captains in space stuff, imagine!!

[IT'S AMAZING MARIK ISN'T IT AMAZING??]

Space, huh? Incredible....

[ What a waste. What an absolute waste, that this place - whatever it is - should have the ability to touch other dimensions like that, yet its power is held by the hapless likes of the cherubs and imps. Is no one organizing them? Is no one thinking about what they could do with that power? All the places they could see, could go.....

Marik is free now. Free means free to pursue any avenue he chooses. Without losing a moment of his life at home, with his family.... ]

Keh keh keh keh keh......

[ Wow who's making that devious-sounding laughter can't be the angeldragonchickenslime nope he's been told he belongs in Heaven. ]

Space!!

[And he has this weird feeling of unease crawling over, super weird, why is-

Annnnnd Marik's laughing,]

Oh y' actually laugh like tha' huh...

[What was that?] Uh, anyway here's th' elevator...

[Alright in they go, time to go to happy peace cloudland...] ...Hey, you like cats?

Cats?

[ We're on the way to Heaven, which Marik definitely isn't in the middle of contemplating taking over (if for its own good). Why are we talking about cats? ]

Heaven's got cat cafes, [he says like that explains it.]

Like...Everywhere, more than home.

[Not that Domino really had any animal cafes, but, y'know.

...Right???]

[ Why would there be -

Ah. Marik nods, as if this is a perfectly obvious deduction that you'd have to be an idiot not to make. ] As rewards. I see.

[ He ponders this. ] It's an oversight that fact hasn't made it into any religion's scriptures - they'd get more adherents. Heaven really doesn't have any kind of centralized government, does it?

[ the line from "many cat cafes" to "marik ishtar should rule heaven" is a straight line what u talkin bout ]

Marik Ishtar | Yu-Gi-Oh! | Heavenbound

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just a holy fool I see...

real talk the r is at least 50% so i can also use "warik"

ok but thats so legit, i love that pun with all my heart

it's the most elegant (?) way of noting the distinction

definitely, just like everything (?) marik does,

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Me like 'ive forgotten whats canon or skein, works out'

canon never directly addresses it! no one is in a coma and that's all that matters! :D what mafia?

im so amused that the f[jou voice] 'DUDE THE WORLD DOESNT IGNORE CRIME WTF IS WITH THE 90s'

don't you live in domino, sir

Bold of anyone to assume he thinks his arguments thru

oh right this is yugioh. however could i forget

i read that in marik's voice. somehow it feels like a thing he'd say, 4th wall be darned,

KEH KEH KEH (i type, and then realize he's going to start chuckling in the tag. MARIK,)

Treat it like a doubled vision- oh wait lmao

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