Test Drive Meme #3

[seasonsmods]

Test Drive Meme #3
LOGS | NETWORK | OOC | MEMES | NAVIGATION

Arrival

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Part 1

You arrive in an unknown space, dressed in white clothes (player choice what kind of clothes, as long as they cover everything). Whatever was happening to you before no longer happens. It's like everything was put on a pause and you were transferred away from the situation without you realizing it happened.

The space that you find yourself in is one of these four options:

An empty landscape filled with snow and ice, almost like a blank canvas.
A field with cherry blossom trees and spring flowers.
A sunny beach near an ocean that seems never ending.
A quiet forest with falling autumn leaves.

All of the spaces seem to continue endlessly. No matter where or how far you walk it almost seems like you're not moving at all. There are no animals here - just those who happened to wake up there at the same time, in the same place. Everyone is wearing the same kind of plain, white clothes.

Despite the possible rollercoaster of emotions you might be feeling, the place somehow feels familiar. Like somehow you belong there.

And it looks like you're not alone.


Part 2

After half an hour has passed the surroundings change as everyone is teleported into a room with all the other new arrivals, no matter what space they woke up in. It's a large place with plenty of seats to sit in and beverages to enjoy. Medical attention is offered to those who need it and the doctors here are very prepared for any challenging situations.

Here, in this room, everyone gets an answer to where they are and why. A hologram of a man appears at the center of the room, waiting to be heard. He brings a message on behalf of the leaders of Ellipsa.

The Message [ Click to Expand ]

Hello, my name is Olwen. I'm one of the leaders of Ellipsa as it currently is. I'm also one of the four who summoned you here.

Our world is in trouble and we need your help. I apologize for tearing you away from your world and forcing you to come here but I hope you understand. The magic we used doesn't let us ask in advance, nor does it let us choose who we bring here.

This world is composed of four Seasonal Segments. All of them represent one of the seasons. They were the places we used to get our resources from, but now they're dangerous places no one should go into unless they have the power to fight back. All of them have their own sets of powerful monsters and natural catastrophes.

We used to have plenty of people here who could control the powers of the four Seasons. We called them Seasonal Power Holders. Unfortunately, due to a tragedy you can read about later, we lost almost all of them. Now only four of us remain and the world is in chaos. We have done our best to protect the world, but we need more power holders to do that.

That's where you come in.

All of you have been assigned to one of the seasons. Whatever space you were in just now is what season you represent. You will learn different skills based on the season and those skills are going to help you save this world.

These powers don't interfere with your own natural powers. They use a new energy that has formed inside of you. It's harmless to your health, but it's vital to your seasonal powers. Your own powers should still work, even if the dark energy outside the city might interfere with them.

Unfortunately bringing you here wasn't as simple as it sounds. We couldn't do anything about how to keep you anchored to this world other than making a simple spell that helps with it. That is, you need to touch someone else who is not from this world ideally at least once a day. It will help you stay in control of your powers and boost your magical energy. If you don't, the consequences aren't very good. But as long as you hold someone's hand or give someone a handshake, you should be fine.

That's all I have to say about the situation. The staff of the Research Center will give you more information about housing and other necessary things. I will, however, promise that you will be sent home once the situation becomes better. That's the least we can do.

The hologram can be viewed in private in a separate room later, should someone wish to look at it again. For now, the staff of the Research Center hands everyone their new smartphones with their small flower lucky charms (the flower is anything the player decides). They're also told that the building next door is where everyone can find a room assigned to them with some of their belongings there and possibly even any animal companions. Those concerned about their mount-sizes companions are welcomed to the stables downstairs to see if their friends are there. The mounts are allowed to stay there until you find a place more suitable for them.

In the Arrival's hall there are also several stands with information pamphlets.

First type of stand is for the local Guilds and about the benefits or joining one.

Second type of stands is for the Welcoming Committee that aim to show otherworlders what the world is like and help guide people in the beginning of the journey and helps in getting settled into the new world. They even have people to help if you're unfamiliar with the new phones.

Third type of the stands is for The In Touch Support Group that is led by the Otherwordly Ambassador, Kamisato Ayato. The pamphlets have contact information for businesses looking to help Otherworlders. They also focus more on the lore of the World and what they have discovered so far, as well as a guide on what to think about when preparing to venture out to the Segments.

Once you get your smartphone and necessary information, you're urged to go out and find your apartment. After that whatever you want to do is up to you.

Part 3

The building next door is where everyone can find their new apartments. As you enter, you're told by a friendly native that for the first two months you can live anywhere rent-free and five meals a day are paid for you. After that they get a monthly payment that helps with some of their living expenses, but otherwise they have to have a job to support themselves.

All of the apartments are comfortable, two bedroom apartments with all necessary utilities. They are also completely soundproof. Sometimes the magic system, however, does glitch and you might find yourself rooming with a stranger. This is not the intention and the staff will immediately prepare you your own room if you ask them. But maybe having a roommate isn't all that bad?

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Party in the Underground

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Part 1

The center of Nightwake never sleeps and there's always something happening, but today there's a lot of excitement in the air all around the center and every district! Locals and those who want to help them (for 100 Moon Coins or a gift card of their choosing), are walking to everyone to offer colorful fliers along with free vending machine tokens. There's also colorful advertisement on billboards and posters everywhere around the city advertising all sorts of things like items, clothes, drinks and more.

Local businesses, stores and restaurants are also going pretty crazy with their celebrations of anyone walking in being their 50th, 100th or whatever customer of the day and the prize among other things are gift cards and more free vending machine tokens but they aren't even for that same shop or restaurant? They also offer people to spin all kinds of different prize wheels, spin roulettes, buying a certain amount of things from them, and taking part in eating and drinking competitions for a surprise prize. Someone even put these surprise prizes into the Gacha Restaurant's randomizer, so for a week, you can choose it as a total surprise there too. (The surprises can be even more vending machine tokens and silly things like cute keychains or a 5-in-1 avocado tool as some examples.)

You can't find any of these shops, restaurants and other places, that they are advertising, in the whole city. The locals, posters and billboards will tell you where you can find them. There's a new entrance in every district, where locals welcome everyone to the grand opening of the Underground Mall!

Some may even drop into a sudden hole in the ground on their way and fall (or slide) somewhere far away. Don't worry, there will be very soft and huge pillows for landing in your destination.


Part 2

The Underground Mall's upper floors give the vibe of a joyous mall with several restaurants and shops you won't see on the surface. The mall is definitely a must visit place for those who appreciate different fashion and exciting food choices. The party from the surface continues down here with various sales around the area. A good day for shopping!

For those who like games, there's a futuristic VR Arcade for you! This Arcade focuses on games that are played with VR goggles on. Even your regular DDR machine will now take you to dance in different environments and feel like you're dancing for your life or for an actual audience.

There are all sorts of vending machines lined up in their own, huge corner. You can find the usual ones with all sorts of different snacks, food and drinks, but there are also some with cake, cookies, mayonnaise, cream, flowers, engagement rings and other less usual but normal things. Nothing here is randomized, unless you choose the random option from the machine, otherwise you get exactly what you want. So pick your favorites or try something new, that sounds more or less good! You can find a machine that turns moon coins on your phone into vending machine tokens (or you can pay straight with your phone).

And, yes, you can find vending machines full of snacks and drinks all around the area too.

Then there's also an area for ufo catchers with all kinds of prizes like pokemon plushies and lots of other plushies, items themed to different season, plushies and other items themed to any fauna and flora from all around Ellipsa, puzzles, food themed items etc etc.

Moving inside the mall is done by escalators and elevators, but there are also regular stairs for those who prefer them.

The fastest way of traveling from floor to floor in the mall is by quick teleport nodes. You choose a floor you want to go to from the list of choices, much like an elevator and then you're transported into that floor's node within seconds. Unfortunately, they're still working out on the bugs in the system, so you may end up in the wrong place - including places that aren't on the list of choices.

Part 3

There's also a Poké Ball Vending Machine, so anyone who recognizes poké balls may have some idea what they could get here. The vending machine somehow has enough balls for everyone in Ellipsa but everyone can only buy one ball! The balls don't have names in them and no one can see through them, so even those, who know Pokémon will NOT know what they'll be getting from this vending machine as it is entirely randomized!

Are you ready to get your first Pokémon? What about being ready to see how you two get along? Everyone, who plays this vending machine, gets either a Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Pikachu, Eevee, Chikorita, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Treecko, Torchic, Mudkip, Turtwig, Chimchar, Piplup, Snivy, Tepig, Oshawott, Chespin, Fennekin, Froakie, Rowlet, Litten, Poplio, Grookey, Scorbunny, Sobble, Spirigatito, Fuecoco or Quaxly.

(And yes, ICly it is entirely randomized but OOCly you can decide which one you want your character to get... Of course you can rng the result too. More about Pokémon guidelines in the OOC Tips of this TDM.)

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Welcome to Our Dark Side

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The third part of the TDM is under this details cut as it has Content Warnings, including Cursed things, Organized Crime, Illegal Activities, Monster Forms/Body Horror, Attempted Murder, Experimenting on People

The Third Part of the TDM [ Click to Expand ]

Part 1

The lowest levels of the mall are only accessible by random quick teleport nodes around the mall (if you know you know is the motto with these). You can run into them on accident (they're usually hidden, but with so much traffic, the hiding place becomes visible) and they sometimes immediately just teleport people without any warning. The arrival can be in various places. A random shady hallway, in the middle of the floor, in a shady establishment and so on.

Anything that seems shady can be found from these floors. Even the local diners here are very weird and likely have illegal things on the menu. Clothing stores sell all kinds of clothes fit for thieves and assassins and the amount of weapons shops here is twice the amount than on the surface. Rumor has it there are also people trying to summon the devil somewhere around here, but that's still just a rumor.

One of the teleport node locations can take you to the front of a cursed vending machine corner. At first they look like ordinary vending machines, but upon closer inspection one may notice they are anything but ordinary.

The food vending machines are full of different "eatable" bugs with half-hearted warnings that they may or may not be poisonous (they didn't really check before putting them in the packaging), Mystery Food boxes (includes some very suspicious foods that don't look edible, but are actually alright in taste? But may contain some side effects like growing mushrooms out of your hair if you eat the mushroom ones), ones that is labeled Energy Drinks but all of them look more like creepy potions (they provide energy but at the cost of poisoning someone for 24 hours) and hyper realistic cakes that look like various body parts (the cake part is intentionally written in small print).

Other vending machines have various shark eggs (hatching them will provide a magical shark with little hands and legs that invades the first watery surface it finds and bites whoever comes too close - it does not belong as a pet, but one may try to tame one), Mystery Boxes (with anything from highly cursed jewelry to books that suck your soul if written into) and Cheat Slips (it's said these slips will let you master a skill immediately, but all it does is cause one's powers to go berserk for 2 hours).

Part 2

The lowest levels are also a place for a large Casino. While they do exist on the surface, this one is a little different.

The Casino (named just that, "The Casino") is divided into four different sections; All of them are dominated by an organized crime group. This is the only area of the underground they work together in peace and sometimes come to relax. They don't cause trouble for each other here, but they definitely can try to cause trouble for everyone who is visiting the place.

Losing in this Casino can mean being taken to the back rooms by whichever group's area you ended up losing in. They will offer to let you go if you can pay off your debt you made in the Casino, but they have other options of compensation.

Name: Diamonds
Game Area: Card Games (Poker, Black Jack, Craps)
Compensation: They will send characters on a criminal quest to either steal or sabotage something or even smuggle a (cursed) item into important places.

Name: Spades
Game Area: Roulette
Compensation: They will attempt to kill the character that lost in the quietness of the backrooms.

Name: Clubs
Game Area: Pool, Darts
Compensation: They will just make characters clean their casino area.

Name: Hearts
Game Area: Slot Games
Compensation: They will drag characters into experiments in a different facility.

You may also end up taken to the back rooms for getting caught cheating, although it may also end up in a congratulatory meeting for an impressive sleight of hand instead or an invitation to join one of the groups. How would you feel about a life of crime?

Part 3

Those caught in Hearts Group's Experiments will be subjected to series of tests. Mostly they're to check the characters' physical condition before proceeding. Once the tests are concluded, the character will be given a medicine (either via shot or a pill). This medicine will not show any signs of working for a while and characters are let go afterwards.

The same medicine can, however, later be consumed by anyone else in various foods and drinks (free samples, some restaurants, even some grocery store items), even in the higher levels of the Mall. The experiments were the final test before distributing the medicine secretly to the public. So your character may accidentally end up getting the medicine in other ways.

What are the medicine? Monster Form activators. They will awaken a monster form inside a character that will trigger under one of the (player) selected conditions: strong emotional reaction, full moon, near death situation or bleeding.

The form can be returned from by calming down and focusing on their sense of self, but there's a chance to go berserk, making this difficult. If characters go berserk, their powers will be a lot stronger, but they won't know who's a friend and who's a foe. Their form may also be a lot scarier than it normally is. They will likely only want to cause destruction around them or want to feed on humans.

Monster	Description	Powers
Alraune	Plant monsters with a humanoid shape. They may have changes as simple as flowers growing in their hair or have complex body modifications such as roots for legs and long vines as hands.	Pollen with status effects like sleep/poison/paralysis, control over plants, poisonous kisses, etc
Gargoyle	Monstrous humanoid winged creatures with horns on their head and stony hides.	Super strength, tough skin, flight
Harpy	Human-bird hybrids. Anything part can be replaced with bird bodyparts, although the most common configuration is arms turned to wings and legs into talons.	Flight, sonic scream, hypnotizing voice, ability to whip up whirlwinds
Kelpie	Aquatic horses with a man made of seaweed and algae, covered in a sticky fur that makes it nearly impossible to get off if one is to ride them. Some may get a fish tail when underwater, although when out of water they have legs like any horse.	Water breathing, illusions
Lich	Undead humanoids, they may look skeletal or simply corpselike.	Raising the dead (into zombies/skeletons), necrotic touch
Manticore	Beastlike creatures with the head of a human, the body of a lion, and the tail of a scorpion or dragon. They vary greatly, some sporting horns on their heads, or resembling a Chimera or Sphinx.	Super strength, flight if wings.
Minotaur	Animalistic monsters with the head of a bull and the body of a human, although some variations exist in which there are different animal heads. Some sport hooves and a tail in place of legs.	Super strength, overall size, super defense.
Taur	This refers to any number of creatures with a humanoid upper body and a lower body that resembles a non-anthropomorphic animal in the same sort of style as a centaur. This category includes things like Arachne and Naga, and other variations of such monsters.	Varies depending on animal the taur is based on
Werecreatures	Monstrous, bipedal animals, the transformation of which is often (but not always) triggered by the full moon. Common variants are wolves and bears, although they can be about any animal. The Pooka would be one of the variations in the werecreature category.	Depends on the animal the form is based on, but usually super strong/fast etc

This effect can either be permanent or temporary, depending on how the players want it. Temporary can be up to just one transformation under the conditions or several.

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OOC TIPS

- Ask your questions related to the TDM here.

- The TDM is available only to friends of the mods and their friends. If you want to play in the TDM, please leave a note here to inform us who invited you over. We will get to you as soon as possible.

- Test Drive is open for current characters to make a top level as well. New characters can add TDM (or "New" or anything else) on their subject line to indicate they're new!

- Current characters cannot access the starting area again to meet new arrivals. They can, however, be at the Research Center when the newbies are teleported in.

- The TDM is game canon so anything in the TDM can happen for your character(s) in the game as well.

- Remember to add Content Warnings wherever needed!

- Smut is not allowed on the TDM. You can play situations leading to it, but if the thread is turning into smut, please move it to a private space such a post in your character's journal, or a locked post in the game's log community if you decide to app!

- Pokémon Guidelines:
• Anything mindblowing crazy that the pokedex has to offer for any of the evolutions doesn't carry over to Seasons. They're closer to anime variants where people can get flamethrower at their face and live (we still do not recommend getting a flamethrower at face)
• Pokémon gain experience points much slower, even if they battle one another.
• You may be able to find a vending machine with weird stones mixed in for stone evolutions. Strange.
• All start at level 5.
• More Pokémon may appear later in the game but for now it's just the ones mentioned.
• More on all the available Pokémon here!

- Check Locations: City to find more areas to explore inside the city. Every place in the districts are open. The Underground Mall has been added to the locations page at the very end of it.

- Similarly, Locations: Segments is useful for outdoors adventures. You can find monsters to encounter on Beastiary.

- Minor NPCs page has been updated with the criminal organizations.

- FAQ has information on characters' smartphones as well as general things about the world that might be handy.

- Feel free to check and use out Questboard for additional prompts.

code bases by tricklet

Comments

Vero Demetrious | Original | Winter | player in game

[sickandtired]

Arrival

[Save the world? Stay tethered to said world by touching people? Woof, yeah, Vero is having none of that, thank you. It’s not like he has pressing matters elsewhere, but just. No. No way? He can’t take that kind of pressure, even if he’s not on his own in it.

Especially not when Olwen glossed over a whole tragedy that cost this world a lot of their previous Seasonal Power Holders. Is he the only one who has a problem with that? Hello??

As soon as he and the group he arrived with are released, Vero walks right past all the helpful stands in order to get himself somewhere secluded. Quiet. He needs to gather his thoughts, breathe, and choose his next step.

His next step just so happens to be to try to get home. If he was able to go to the human world to the monster world he currently resides in simply by stepping through some shadows (not so simply. He had another monster with him at the time that probably helped. But details.) then it should be the same here, right?

So, Vero begins very deliberately stepping on shadows. He looks for big shadows cast by signs or trees or whatever, and steps once. Then steps again, as if he’s expecting to melt right through it. He does similarly with large shadows cast against vertical surfaces. He gives the surface a good slap, then another, and then looks entirely too frustrated when nothing seems to happen.]

Underground Mall

[The last time Vero set foot in a mall was probably when he was around four or five years old. He’s 24 now and, sure, his mama ran an outdoor mall, and he helped her with it a lot of the time, but it pales in comparison to the underground mall he steps into. Her outdoor mall was more like a human farmer’s or flea market, not this. There’s so much noise, so many lights, and just - everything is so much. Vero is both starry-eyed and also terrified.

He ends up drawn to the ufo catchers which he is... surprisingly good at. It doesn’t take him long to figure out the trick to most of them because it’s easy for him to calculate the space and the angles needed to wedge the plushie or whatever he’s after into the right position.

Using his head for this sort of thing is already one of his favorite things to do, and now it's able to keep his mind off the ridiculousness of this situation, so he’s ending up with quite a haul... More than he knows what to do with.

Vero turns to whoever is closest to him as the claw drops another plush trophy into the drop slot.]

Um. Do you want this one?

Pocket Monsters

[Another part of the mall that has caught Vero’s eye are the massive array of vending machines. And Pokemon? Pocket Monsters? Monsters!

Vero jumps at the chance to hold something even vaguely similar to his home in his hands.

What comes out of his Pokeball is a small blue lizard-like creature.




One that promptly begins to cry upon locking eyes with him.]

H-HUH?!

[HELP?!]

Wildcard

[You know the drill. Hit me up at LUCK33 . Brief information on Vero here.]

arrival-ish

[tsumtsuki]

[ One of the many (but hopefully not too many? Vero sweetie think about your palms) vertical surfaces he slaps happens to be one of Moondrop's walls. It's not a hard enough slap to disturb anything inside, thankfully, or even be heard over the usual hustle and bustle inside. ... but unfortunately, Tsumugi's cleaning one of the shop front windows, which means he sees at least a part of Vero's attempt to make his way back home.

Tsumugi steps outside, curious. ] Um... are you alright? [ sir please stop smacking my store? ]

tsumugi puts up with so much

[sickandtired]

Huh? [Vero was so focused on his smacking that he stopped paying attention to where he was smacking and didn't even realize he had wandered into a commercial area. He blinks fast at Tsumugi and then flinches.]

Oh my god, I'm so sorry! I'm okay, I'm not trying to break in or anything!

[That... makes it sound like he was trying to break in, actually. It makes Vero sound super suspicious.]

he doesn't pay himself enough to deal with this

[tsumtsuki]

[ ... Yeah, that does make him sound suspicious. But luckily for Vero, Tsumugi's 1. willing to overlook that, and 2. observant enough to pick up on all that anxiety.

He smiles gently, in a way he hopes is soothing. ] It's okay. I didn't think you were trying to break in.

[ But he does gesture toward the front door. ] Would you like to come inside for a bit?

pays him in kisses

[sickandtired]

Y-yeah. Thank you. [Taking a moment to sit down and breathe again would probably benefit him. So, Vero agrees and follows Tsumugi back into his shop.]

Sorry, again. [Great! First! Impression!] I was trying to get home.

underground mall (time 2 make up more shit lmao)

[fiorello]

[ The person who happens to be closest in the moment is Kenta, who... to his credit, is trying really, really hard to win one of the puzzles inside this ufo catcher. He's just had no luck with the angles, or whatever it takes to win a prize.

He's coming off another failure when Vero makes his offer - and he turns toward him, his uncertainty made clear. Not because of any suspicion or general Bad Vibes™, but rather ] - Me? [ or is there someone else he's trying to offer this incredibly soft looking plush to? ]

[sickandtired]

[Obligatory "that's a baby" reaction.

But, Vero nods sheepishly and offers the soft plush to this soft, pink boy.]

Yeah. I, uh, have more than I know what to do with. [And, from the corner of his eye, he could see just how hard Kenta was trying to catch one. Vero changes to handle the plush with one hand, so he can bring the shopping bag full of all the other prizes he has into view.] Honestly, if there's any other you want in here, please take it!

[fiorello]

[ Kenta takes the soft plush, but starts to shake his head when the shopping bag's brought into view. ]

Is it really okay? You're- [ "- already being so nice to me", is how he would've finished the sentence, but then he looks up at the other properly and just. gapes, instead of finishing that thought.

He's only seen him a handful of times, so it's hard to get a sense of how differently he's dressed, but that face. Doesn't he know that face? Isn't this- ] - Vero? [ ??????????????? ]

[sickandtired]

Huh?

[He's Vero, for sure. That's his name. But unfortunately, this Vero doesn't recognize Kenta.]

My name is Vero?

[Had he said his name at some point?]

Underground Mall

[mysophobic]

[ Shigeru's also been eying the ufo game but it's actually really cool to just watch Vero do his thing. He doesn't interject or even try to give pointers because this guy is really good. He does, once he's noticed and perceived, he flusters a bit and almost drops his device, good job Shigeru. ]

You mean me?! [ Just pointing to himself with a gloved hand as he looks around, confused. ]

Are you...sure? You worked so hard to get all this stuff.

[sickandtired]

[This is a first for Vero. There are a lot of monsters that don't talk, for sure, but they usually don't make the effort to communicate by other means. And those are monsters. Shigeru, as far as Vero can tell, is wholly human.]

Not really? [As in, he didn't work that hard.] I'm kinda just trying not to have a mental break-down in public, so I got super focused --

[Vero.]

W-what I mean, is - !! You've been watching for a while, right? So I really don't mind!

[mysophobic]

[ Wait...what?! Mental breakdown?! This guy really isn't okay... ] More importantly than any of that...do you want to go someplace quiet to sit down?

[ Shigeru looks so very worried right now?! ] I'm not very good in public places either, so I actually found a decent spot. If you wanted to! Please don't push yourself with these types of things, okay?!

[ He's known Vero for 5 minutes and he is already mother henning!! ]

[sickandtired]

[He is sooo not used to being fussed over since he is usually the one mother henning!]

Ack, no, no, sorry, that was super overdramatic! [Not untrue, but...] I'm okay, really! I'm just - !

[Heat crawls up Vero's neck, suddenly aware of how much he's been raising his voice at this cute guy who hasn't said an actual word to him, and how that might look to any onlookers.

He deflates.] Actually, maybe going to a quiet spot isn't such a bad idea.

[mysophobic]

[ Shigeru is all understanding and warm smiles as he nods. ]

You don't have to explain anything to me. I definitely get it and I have a friend back home who is much the same. But follow me! Do you need help carrying any of that?

[ Before Shigeru just heads off he'll offer to carry some of those prizes. ] I'm Shigeru by the way. It's nice to meet you.

[sickandtired]

[Ough, blinding...]

I can carry it! Though, now I'll have to insist you take some with you. [Since he's helping Vero and being such a peach...]

It-it's nice to meet you too, Shigeru. I'm Vero. [He takes a breath.] I've only been here a couple of days, so it's... a lot to take in.

[mysophobic]

[ That is just how Shigeru rolls. His smile gets brighter as he nods. ]

Well if you insist!
And it's really nice to meet you too, Vero! I had a hard time during my first few weeks here. But if you need anything let me know! I'm always happy to help people who need it, so.

[ And here Shigeru will turn down a little walkway and make his way towards a small seating area next to a fountain. It's off the beaten path which is probably why there aren't many people seated there. After all, it was nestled behind some shops but ultimately out of the way. ]

See? It's pretty empty in this part of the mall.

[sickandtired]

Thank you... you’re so kind. [He could cry. But he won’t. He won’t. Vero sits and closes his eyes, taking a moment to just listen to the fountain. The sound of running water is soothing.]

They don’t expect us to do anything crazy, right? Even with... powers [Powers!!] I’m just a guy. There’s really nothing special about me.

[Besides being cracked at claw machines. And the living with monsters thing but that’s just his circumstances rather than something he can do.

Arrival

[kazakhstanshero]

[Otabek had seen some really upset people. He had seen people yelling at their phones, people storming off in a huff, and even some that wanted to find a place to party. As Otabek sits down though Vero catches his attention from the bench he was currently settled on.

He's judging him just a little bit as he seems to be stomping and hitting...shadows??

Otabek just watches him carry on. Who is he to really interfere anyway.]

[sickandtired]

[Vero remains oblivious to Otabeks watchful eyes... up until he takes a misstep while trying to step through a shadow and ends up stumbling. He doesn't completely beef it, but he does make quite a show of it by tipping forward and then waving his arms frantically to regain his balance. Vero then sighs a huge sigh of relief and glances around to make sure no one saw that catastrophe.

And that's when he spots Otabek.

Ha ha hahaha?? Bury him in the ground, bury him in the ground!!!?]

You. You didn't see anything.

[kazakhstanshero]

[Otabek quietly continues to watch him until he stumbles. He had just been able to to stand up and help him, but he regains his balance and then he just raises an eyebrow at him.]

Are you good?

[sickandtired]

[Is he good?


Absolutely not.]

Definitely yes.

[A beat.]

I uh, we travel through shadows where I'm from. Thought I'd give it a shot.

[kazakhstanshero]

[Well, he's in good company. Otabek won't even tease him about what he saw, he just looks to him and tips his head to the side watching Vero for a few moments.]

Have you found your apartment yet?

[sickandtired]

Not yet... I got a little distracted.

[...]

Or focused, rather.

[On beating shadows.]

[kazakhstanshero]

[Is this guy going to be okay? Otabek studies him for a moment, before he slowly stands up and motions in the direction of the apartments.]

Let's go.

[He won't hold your odd behavior against you. After all, there are plenty of weird ice skaters he's friends with anyway.]

[sickandtired]

[He'll be okay, he just needs a minute to adjust. Also, technically Vero is Canadian so that should say everything re: weird ice skater friends.]

Eh? Are you sure?! I'll be fine on my own - I don't want to be a bother.

I don't even know your name!

[Pien.]