#chiaroscuro reflections

[dreamnants]

I keep forgetting I draw stuff and they stay in my folders until I remember it again.

Anyway, a mix of (mostly) old doodles with one new one ft. my Zuke design from Chiaroscuro Reflections because I felt a bit guilty.

[dreamnants]

So what does the Ghost Haze district look like in the swap AU? Is it different from Eve's Dream Fever District?

Yep, very different from Dream Fever.

So it took me ages to figure out the general aesthetics, but Ghost Haze is inspired by Kuala Lampur (the capital city of Malaysia) in the 1950s-1960s. In-universe, Ghost Haze is based on Vinyl City from decades ago (likely around the time of the Border Wars?). Some call the district a living time capsule, and with its main focus being on antique shops and museums, it kinda adds to it.

It's a bit of a strange thing to commercialize, but companies have pandered to nostalgia before, so I don't think it's too much of a stretch for this case.

[dreamnants]

How do Mayday and Nadia react to the objects in the Ghost Haze District in your swap au?

Oh, this is a fun one!

Unfortunately, I have to admit I haven't really developed Ghost Haze as much as I should, let alone the objects in it. I feel ashamed for this.

Something to note is though Ghost Haze has heavy NSR presence, the presence of Han (Zuke's stage alias) is quite low-key, especially compared to the other districts (DJSS in particular). There are some adverts that include Han, sure, but it's not like, in your face about it.

But to answer the question of how each would generally react to the objects as whole, Mayday finds them neat, while Nadia is just pretty sullen looking at them and drudging up past memories.

To make up for my lack of content for Ghost Haze, take a few of Nadia's commentaries on the in-game objects with this ask.

NSR Siren

Nadia: I do have to agree with Mayday these towers are quite irritating, especially when I want to work in relative peace. At least those noise-cancelling headphones I bought were worth the investment.

DJ Sub-Brand Headphones

Nadia: I prefer the wireless headphones I currently use when I'm working on projects in terms of performance quality. But I do admit the aesthetics of this design is quite pleasing.

Sayu Photobooth

Nadia: I used to hate being photographed growing up because it meant my face was always subjected to scrutiny in those moments. This does look rather fun though. Perhaps we could take one together when things are less hectic.

[dreamnants]

So what happens during the Sayu boss fight in the Chiascuro Reflections AU?

I've actually answered this before ages ago!

But I'm in the mood to think about stuff for this AU again, so I put together this quick little thing for this based on the pre-fight banter. It's very rushed, sorry about that!

"Wow. What a dreamy place."

Nadia made a content hum behind her, likely her taking in the aesthetics of the place. Of course she would, considering her love for her weird mind tricks. Even Mayday despite not being an art appreciator like her had to agree about how well the blend of technology and design did to make a fantasy world a reality, a place straight out of a dream.

As much as Mayday - and Nadia, knowing her - wanted to take the time to admire the place, they had immediate business to take care of.

"Oh my! Welcome, friends!"

Business which involved a giant, cute pink mermaid floating - or swimming, from what she noticed - above them.

"Are you here to receive the sweet honey bubbles of my angelic voice?"

"What? Sweet honey bubbles! No way! We're here to bring rock back to Vinyl City and..." Mayday trailed off, registering what exactly she was doing, talking to a virtual pop mermaid idol."Wait, this is ridiculous."

She turned to her friend, who was still half-focused on dissecting the style involved in making the virtual coral reefs rather than the mermaid or the fact they were here to take over Akusuka. "I can't believe I'm talking to this thing! She's not even real!"

At that, Nadia finally turned away from the scenery to frown at her.

"Mayday! Don't say that!" She said in a chiding tone, fiddling with her drumsticks by tapping a soft but erratic beat on each other.

"Say what?"

"Saying Sayu is not real!" Nadia shuffled one of her drumsticks to her other hand to wave the free one toward Sayu - who seemed to just be observing them banter between themselves with a nonchalant smile."It is quite rude considering she's right in front of us."

Mayday looked at Nadia, blinking as she drew her mouth into a line. Really, Mayday wasn't sure why she was even remotely surprised by Nadia's acceptance of a virtual idol being real considering Nadia marched to the beat of her own drum - no pun intended - and was an illusionist at that. Not that knowing that make her any less incredulous about it.

"Are we seriously having this conversation right now about hurting the feelings of something that isn't real?"

Nadia huffed, crossing her arms. "I say you simply lack the willing suspension of disbelief to ignore the fact she is fiction brought to life."

[dreamnants]

How does the DJ Subatomic Supernova fight go in the chiascuro reflections au?

In some way, it's pretty close to how it plays out in the original verse. But there are some changes in the context leading up to it, of course.

Nadia is actually pissed about the audition results as much as Mayday is, but the changes in this universe has her try to reign her anger in for the sake of the band because Nadia knows how dangerous both of them losing it can get.

In an effort to calm Mayday (and herself) down, Nadia treats Mayday to burgers and a milkshake. Here is where they discover they actually powered the Qwasa to near full capacity. And then Tatiana's ban of rock comes.

Nadia looses her patience at this point and the floodgates open.

And then the blackout happens, and Mayday runs out, Nadia following.

(I actually wrote the above scene ages ago and posted it on here.)

Mayday reaches the edge of Vinyl City, and Nadia catches up. Seeing the NSR landscape, Mayday declares a revolution and Nadia agrees to help her in whatever way possible.

They start with DJSS, naturally.

TBH, I can't really imagine the interactions changing much in the DJSS fight. Save this one.

(Pluto line)

Mayday: Nadia, what he said about us was bad, right?

Nadia: Well, depending on your feelings on being associated with a god of death, then -

(Also, Nadia is very nonchalant about his second to last transformation.)

If you were wondering the aftermath of the fight, then there is another change because Nadia is more vocal compared to Zuke. She makes her own comments about Tatiana's biases in the most passive aggressive way.

Also, the pose awkwardness changes from Zuke not understanding May's instructions to May trying to figure out how to pose cool with your band mate who is significantly taller.

[dreamnants]

I like my traditional doodles paired with random pens and cheap Crayola colored pencils for pops of color.

Sorry for the poor light quality.

[dreamnants]

Realized I’ve never really drawn Zuke interacting with NSR artists for my AU, so I did something.

[dreamnants]

These are snippets from pieces I wrote set in the Chiaroscuro Reflections AU that I couldn’t ever finish, but liked some parts enough to share.

(Each 3 periods is a different snippet!)

"Ugh...so bored..." Mayday groaned, slouching forward on the bench as the background noise of talking droned on. Currently, she was at a gallery Nadia was attending as an exhibitor and Mayday had tagged along.

Mayday would admit she found stuff like visual art boring, like classical music. She only attended art exhibits and galleries because of Nadia, either to support her creative endeavors or just a weekend away from practicing. Unfortunately, Nadia was currently being held up by various individuals wishing to talk to her about her pieces, so now Mayday was left to her own devices. Which considering her lack of 'artistic perception' as Nadia had put it, meant she was completely bored out of her mind. Mayday didn't deny that observation from her friend; she was a straight-forward person that took things at face value. She could appreciate the colors and the techniques involved, sure, but grasping symbolism and meaning from some painting or sculpture? Way beyond her. That fact was a huge reason for dispute back when she first met Nadia among other reasons - and why Nadia disparagingly called her pedestrian and Mayday countered calling her snobby. But nowadays, Nadia accepted that about Mayday. Instead, Nadia would tell Mayday her interpretations of the art in front of them whenever they visited galleries together. Mayday still couldn't fully get the pieces even with Nadia's commentary, but she wouldn't deny that Nadia's explanations made something that would normally bore her to tears into something she'd consider fun, even if it wasn't to her usual taste. Plus, something about how excited Nadia could get when giving her interpretations of other people's artwork, jade eyes sparkling with a joy that was both foreign and yet fitting for her made Mayday think it was worth hours of her time to make her best friend happy. Nadia always seemed appreciative of Mayday just listening to her talk without judgement and Mayday preferred it that way; early in their friendship, Nadia was self conscious about her thoughts because her perception of things were unique. So she would never talk about things like the ‘hazy gaze of Pluto in the gray’ or ‘the coupling of the sky and the ocean’ as she did now.

The current Nadia was far better simply because she was more herself. Of course, the current lack of Nadia and her Master's degree in Fine Arts and Music mind meant Mayday was stuck in a building full of people's art in an environment that didn't suit her and having no imagination with art interpretation to make her own ideas. 

...Maybe she really should try to figure out how to do this art stuff on her own. . . . She wondered what happened between Han and his brother. Han didn't seem to hate his brother, but there was something she couldn't put her finger on. An unspoken frustration mixed with other things hard to say or articulate in a way that made sense. Yinu wondered if it was like herself with her mother. She loved her mother, playing her piano to make her happy. But sometimes, Yinu wondered if it was making her mother happy. Yinu often dreamed of the days gone of her father's piano lessons, back before BAKAT and NSR and filming in a forest backdrop. Back when she wasn't doubtful that her mother loved her whenever she listened to her play. At times, Yinu hated the piano that she and her father loved so much because of those doubts. But in the end, she loved it more than she hated it. Because Yinu simply loved music, the language she used to communicate with her parents before she could even speak properly. Perhaps that was why Yinu felt at ease around Han. And maybe that was why Han felt the same around her to show the slightest hint of vulnerability, some truth behind the artist known as Han. Han's real reason for playing was out of a genuine love for it and the memories associated with it. Both the good and the bad. .

.

.

"Excuse me, you two."

It was one of the judges.

"I thought you made your rejection of us clear?"

"Yes, but...I wished to have a few words with both of you."

"Your styles are incompatible."

There was nothing harsh about the words. Only a blunt honesty without any ambiguity behind it meant as good intention critique. Not that it lessened the sting.

Nadia's eyes were unreadable, but her clenched fists spoke enough for her silence.

"If I judged you both independently, you perform well on your own merits. But together, your styles clash and it cheapens your playing."

"Miss Nadia plays in a style like an earthquake; unpredictable and strong. The young man here...is akin to the ocean's surface, still and constant. But instead of accenting the strengths of both, your disconnect brings out the flaws behind both. The earthquake drowns out the sounds and depths of the drums. The ocean is silenced by the earthquake of the bass."

"Your point being?" Nadia asked through gritted teeth and a forced neutrality.

"Unfortunately, I don't think either of you will get far together."

"We can always try to-"

The disappointed look on the old man's face said enough as he shook his head.

"While I believe that's one solution to this issue, I'm afraid that's not an option for you."

Though he'd been looking at Nadia the whole time, Zuke noticed the man briefly casted his eyes at him as he spoke the words, staring straight at his soul.

"What?!"

He sighed, his tired eyes looking away from them as he turned back toward where he came.

"...If you're confused by that, then you've only proven my point."

With that, the old man departed, leaving the two in an awkward silent contemplation.

Looking back on that day in retrospect, the judge's comments was the calm before the storm, a warning omen his relationship with Nadia would not last.

Only a month after that audition, Nadia set his hair on fire and the rest was history.

(That judge had saw the truth long before Zuke ever consciously admitted it despite having known all along.)