anonymous text post

[peerlesscucumber]

Chroma, Moonlacing, and You

a breakdown by Anonymous for the Moonblessed
Congratulations! You're now on the planet Prismatica, in the city of Lunatia, population: Prismals and Moonblessed. (That's you!) What do you want to know about Chroma, Moonlacing, and your survival in this place?

What is Chroma?

To recap what the Lunar Scientia should have said when you were processed, Chroma is a form of energy that we, the Moonblessed, generate. In Prismatica's history, Chroma was also produced through various means on world, but since the Calamity, Prismatica has only been processing energy crystals for demichroma to keep things working. Demichroma is both a less powerful form of energy and the standard currency throughout Lunatia, and is what any person working in the city will be paid in. Weird enough yet? It gets weirder.

Why should I care about Chroma?

You should care because if your body's Chroma levels fall too low, you'll begin crystalising. You need direct infusions of Chroma to reverse the process, and the only way of getting that Chroma is through moonlacing.

If your body loses all Chroma, you will completely crystalise and die. This should be difficult. Should be! If you're feeling horrible, take at least one hand held out to you so you don't get to this point. See What happens when we die? for more information.

What the fuck?! Why do I lose Chroma?

Chroma is a form of energy. It seems like it may be linked with your life energy here on Prismatica. Living your life means burning energy, and now you don't only use the energy of food or whatever the fuck usually keeps you functioning, but also use Chroma in order to stay functional on this world.

You lose Chroma because you burn it up like any other energy source by existing. Which is why you need to moonlace for more Chroma to stay active and healthy.

Be warned, Moonblessed! You can burn through Chroma faster by doing any of the following:

• participating in any non-moonlacing related physical activities that take a lot of normal energy;
• using any special or advanced abilities you may have (magic, superpowers, energy manipulation, psychic abilities, any and everything, even whatever you're thinking about now, probably);
• or being under the influence of outside forces. Are you influenced by the Cordis moon? Sorry, Moonblessed, but you may find your Chroma consumption goes up whenever your moon's in phase! Have you been drugged with Glow? Welcome to your new energy vampire urges!

It's fucked, we know.

Then what is Moonlacing?

When one Moonblessed and another Moonblessed come into physical contact, they generate Chroma. Think of it as a reaction that naturally occurs when two Moonblessed come into contact and maintain that contact, though it does not appear to work well or at all in instances of senseless violence or force. Sparring is a different matter, but punching someone for no reason or choking them for Chroma if they're not into breath-play and haven't given consent is not going to work.

Moonlacing is the name for this process of Chroma generation between two Moonblessed. No one knows what the fuck is up with it, only that it happens, and can be measured for how much Chroma-energy is generated at a time. Chroma is weird, because you need it to live, and yet it also is credited as "energy" you've added to Prismatica... and since energy is money here, it's money you've earned.

Now, Chroma that you naturally lose seems like it's absorbed by the world around us, or by some technology the Prismals in Lunar Scientia use, or maybe both or something else, which is how it's out there getting measured by Lunatia. Chroma you consume directly to use any abilities you have does not get released out into the world, but still appears to be counted as currency "earned" at time of moonlacing. This Anon doesn't understand it either. Financial records are visible and yet still mysterious.

How do you Moonlace?

Any way you can imagine that isn't rejected by one or more people involved. Two things of importance to note:

1. Moonlacing does not require direct skin contact.
2. Moonlacing will always feel good, but that does not mean all moonlacing will feel arousing. (Arousing can be of any associated emotion, okay! Any emotion! Any emotion!)

Addendum: While moonlacing is necessary, we advise you only moonlace with people you find tolerable. We advise against forcing yourself to moonlace with people you can't stand.

Forms of moonlacing contact can include, but are not limited to:

• Napping on or in physical contact with someone. (Also ideal when you have a full animal moonphase form.)
• Clasping a shoulder or upper arm.
• Holding hands.
• Brushing each other's hair.
• Shoulder massages.
• Wrestling.
• Supporting your drunk friend home. Or at least out of the bar.
• Carrying someone.
• Hugging.
• Cuddling.
• Snuggling. (Is there a difference between this and cuddling? This Anon just does not know.)
• Leaning shoulder to shoulder.
• Kissing foreheads, cheeks, hands, anywhere really.
• Everything remotely sexual does too. I'm not making that list for you. Sexy Anons out there can make that list for you!

The take away point is this: moonlacing is necessary to keep your chroma levels high enough so that you don't crystalise and die. So don't be a fool: moonlace. Survive. Those who want to go home under their own choice are only going to have that chance if they don't kill themselves along the way.

Can Moonlacing help heal?

For those who participated in recent tournament events, the answer appears to point toward "yes." However, it should be noted that increasingly more intimate levels of moonlacing were better at helping bodies recover quickly: kissing provided more than hands held over wounds, but massaging helped muscle aches, embraces helped generate enough Chroma for people's natural abilities to take control, and so on.

Short of something incredibly ill advised with someone suffering fatal injuries, moonlacing is not enough to save you when you're already dying. Talk to Prismals, and they'll tell you even in their general knowledge, "healing" was for minor injuries. It's what all those kisses exchanged before people swaggered out onto the arena were about, and all the hugs from Daddy Dearest before we went down. Moonblessed seem to be able to heal more than minor injuries with enough moonlacing, but it is not! Enough! To prevent you from dying if you've lost all your chroma already. Understood?! Don't go testing this out!

What happens when we die?

When you die, either because you used all your Chroma or because you managed to kill yourself or get yourself killed... your corpse is encased in crystal. Just your corpse. You're movable by anyone who can manipulate the crystal sculpture you've turned into, and as this Anon has been assured, the Prismals will take care of the crystal body if your friends don't want to.

But wait! There's more! Like everything else here, it gets weirder. After enough chroma has slowly seeped back into your body... you resurrect. Not entirely okay, but at least you're not fucking dead because you fucking died.

Prismals find nothing weird about this. Crystalising when you die is normal here. The not normal part is coming back out of the crystal, which if you remember waking up on the moon? Sounds like the same fucking process.

What happens when we disappear?

Great question. No idea. Does anyone have an answer from Lunar Scientia about this?

---

This is "as accurate as it can be right now," which means if you have information to add, comment for Anon to update. If you have questions, ask and this Anon or any of the other people reading can speak up and try to answer.

A question for anyone who knows: is there any noted increase in overall moonlacing if more than two people are involved in an act of moonlacing?

[ What follows is an audio version of this post with a big, green play arrow for anyone who doesn't read; it will narrate this post and replies in a voice oddly similar to Samuel L. Jackson. ]

Comments

[peerlesscucumber]

Didn't the English hate their dragons? Strange. Are you English too?

[witchwithoutacause]

Some of em but witches have always followed different rules.

I'm irish-american. The irish part is important i guess?

[peerlesscucumber]

Irish meaning... from which country, again?

[ HE CAN'T REMEMBER HIS EARTH GEOGRAPHY AS WELL AS HE ONCE KNEW and who knows there's all those small countries in Europe is he supposed to remember them?!?! cries ]

I know it's not Irishland but my European nations aren't as good as they once were...

[ Selling... his anon identity... like this............ ]

[witchwithoutacause]

Ireland's where a lot of my family is from. united states of america is where i'm born.

you chinese, korean, japanese? somewhere on there right?

[peerlesscucumber]

There it is, Ireland! Tracking family lineage but not birthplace, right, I understand.

Yes, somewhere on there. From one version of Earth or another. A much less magical one, probably.

[witchwithoutacause]

okay narrowed you down to a super densely populated couple of countries. nailed it.

[peerlesscucumber]

Ah, but only one both densely populated and immensely large.

[ finger guns, there's your hint, witch from america with irish family origins! ]

[witchwithoutacause]

Still a bunch of other people from china here i bet right?

[peerlesscucumber]

Not really? More people from Japan than anywhere else from what I've seen so far... it's strange to me, but undeniable.

[witchwithoutacause]

Yeah kinda weird coincidence huh? No one from like Brazil or Australia I've found meanwhile

[peerlesscucumber]

Have you run into anyone from India? African countries?

[witchwithoutacause]

Not that I know of. Just throw a whole southern hemisphere under the bus, moons.

[peerlesscucumber]

Strange. Has to be even stranger for those from other worlds. Is there any planet outside of Earth getting this many Moonblessed pulled in from it or its alternates? I don't think there is.

[ ignoring that he's from a non-Earth world himself ]

[witchwithoutacause]

I haven't been polling everyone and that seems like it'd be more your speed

[peerlesscucumber]

Polls are tricky if you can't get everyone to reply, results would be skewed. Too many people don't use or understand this tech or talk like this so what about all of them? Etc.

[witchwithoutacause]

see what i mean

more your speed lol

[peerlesscucumber]

Yes, yes, I see what you mean.

In other words, we're not likely to know right now.

[witchwithoutacause]

not like its all that important.

[peerlesscucumber]

Only if the number of worlds we can open return paths to ends up limited.

[witchwithoutacause]

If they got us here and can't us all exactly back then who or whatever did it probably deserves to lose

[peerlesscucumber]

A problem if we have to lose along with who or what did this.

[witchwithoutacause]

We have a bunch of hero types here right? we can just pull off a miracle.

[peerlesscucumber]

Okay but are they all protagonist levels of hero and does logic bend in the face of their presence because if there are enough of those you may be right.

[witchwithoutacause]

There's definitely a few of them i should know i'm friends with one back home

[peerlesscucumber]

Then that's not impossible, maybe not even improbable. Your optimism is acceptably realistic!