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seasonsgreetings2023-06-16 10:01 am
Test Drive Meme #3
Test Drive Meme #3
LOGS | NETWORK | OOC | MEMES | NAVIGATION
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.
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.
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.
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?
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.
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.
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.)
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 ]
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).
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?
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.
- 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.
(new) Epel Felmier | Twisted Wonderland | Autumn
[Frazzled. That's the best way that Epel can describe his current state of mind as he stands by the building, clutching his new smartphone in one hand and trying to not look too awkward as he steps away from the friendly native who explained the apartment situation.
It's all a bit much. Just a bit.
Okay, he actually wants to scream a little. But that would not go over well. But it would be understandable, right? He can't have been here longer than an hour or two.
Haven't things been rough enough already, with the campus attacked? He would have liked time to breathe before this whole world-saving business was dumped on him!
It doesn't help matters that he's absolutely drowning in what looks like a white long-sleeved nightgown. As if he didn't already look small and helpless already. He needs to find his clothes. Which means finding his room. And the person he had just talked to was now helping someone else.
So he does the sensible thing: approach the closest other person and try to be polite.]
Um. Excuse me. Would you happen to know how where I can find my room assignment?
underground mall ~ free stuff is always good, right?
[Epel is feeling a lot better now that he's more suitably dressed, even if all he seems to have are his school clothes. Better a jacket and (bow)tie than what he'd arrived in. If he forgets the confusing, harrowing news for a moment, he can almost enjoy being somewhere other than Sages' Island.
He already has a few of those colorful ad pamphlets and tokens that he's managed to stuff into his coat pocket. It's free and other people are taking the freebies, right? As long as everyone else is receiving them, he can't get in trouble! He can be found roaming and sometimes stopping to actually read the various fliers he's been given, trying to figure out how to redeem things for more tokens or "gifts."
It's as he's popping his head into a restaurant to look at the menu that he hears a little congratulatory poppers and rachety sounds as the worker by door hands a gift card to the person directly behind him. Bemused, he offers a small smile.]
...Wow, even free stuff in the restaurants? Congrats?
pocket monsters ~ a beautiful relationship
[He stands off to the side watching several people open the "Pokéball" they receive from the vending machine, fascinated by the fact that little creatures can apparently fit inside of those handheld spheres. Is it some sort of technomancy? They'd have to keep the creatures alive in those things somehow, right? Some of them look kinda cool and others look painfully cute.
While he does eventually go to the vending machine to try his luck, he can be caught just people (and Pokémon)-watching for awhile.
He can't help but hope for a kinda cool creature. All of them were cute, but he'd seen something that looked like a blue crocodile and others that had fire coming off of their backs or tails. (Did this somehow mean that Grim was kinda cool with fire coming out of his ears? Ehh...)
Of course, what he gets instead is an Oshawott. Not that he knows its name. He tries not to voice his disappointment, though it's obvious on his face; it's not the little guy's fault that he'd gotten other ideas--
And Epel immediately squawks in pain when the Oshawott throws its scallop shell right at his face.]
wildcard
[Feel free to ping me if you want to plan out something different with Epel, or just come at him with a different scenario! I'm available by journal PM or at
underground mall
Congratulations? Far from it, Epel.
[ not that riddle's here to discipline epel or anything as that would be someone else's job, but... ]
You're here too.
[ though as soon the employees realize they might've come together, they're whisked towards a booth in the corner of the restaurant. ]
Tch... well, as long as we're here...
[ he slides in, somewhat nonplussed. ]
no subject
Wait. Housew--
[They're ushered away from the entrance of the restaurant before he can complete his thought, and he sputters his bewilderment as he braces himself in the booth across from Riddle. He's further delayed in addressing more important matters by the fact that the waiter offers them laminated menus and he gingerly takes it before the waiter heads off to get them water.
And then they're alone. Sorta. As much as they can be in public.]
I, uh. What're you doin' here?
no subject
[ right? the hustle and bustle of the newly opened underground mall was alluring, and the positives outweighing the negatives of dealing with crowds of people... that's the real reason why riddle ended up leaving the comfort and safety of his mostly empty apartment. to look for more students. ]
Which is why I followed you here. I wasn't sure if it was you, but...
[ two glasses of water are placed down while they look over the menus. riddle spots what should be something easy for him to eat: a salad. a regular, garden variety salad. ]
... well, I suppose I'm glad that I was right in my assumptions. Have you run into anyone else from the school?
no subject
Though he really should have.]
I haven't. I suppose I might if I go back to where I was welcomed and got my housing assignment...
[But that's not exactly important right now, is it?]
But you're here. Instead of-- kidnapped.
no subject
but as he reaches out to grab that glass to take a sip, he freezes in place.
kidnapped.
...
technically again, if he counts this. ]
Yes. Though I will be honest... this situation is much safer than the one I was previously in. You agree with that assessment, right?
no subject
I-- guess? I'll take this over weird guys showing up and attacking us.
[Not to mention knocking out and carrying off Vil and Jamil before his eyes.]
But if you're here, does that mean...? Were all of you taken here?
[That doesn't explain why he got separated from Rook or the Prefect, but he'd at least feel relieved to know that everyone else was okay.]
no subject
Strong and weird ones, yes.
[ a slight correction. the slightest. ]
I can't say for sure when it comes to the others who were affected by blot like we were. As far as I know, I am the only one.
[ until he meets the others, and then he won't feel so lonely in that regard. ]
In the meantime? I will act as your temporary leader in Vil's place.
no subject
And Riddle was his upperclassman. Regardless of other aspects, Riddle was just a little bit older and more experienced, so he can agree on leaning on that at least somewhat.]
Sure, that makes sense. Then I'm in your care, Riddle.
[This place doesn't seem so bad at least, other than the whole saving the world aspect. If he doesn't think too hard about getting plucked right out of a distressing situation, it's almost like a break from school.
Which means he is definitely getting a burger instead of a salad.]
Did you see the drink menu? They've got so many sodas and juices.
[Considering the sheer amount of vending machines he's seen around, he probably shouldn't be surprised. But he's loving the variety.]
no subject
As I am in yours.
[ because taking trust means giving trust. he knows what equity is when he sees it.
but speaking of the menu? ]
I figure it would be safe to consume things that we are already familiar with. Juices of fruits that we know of over mixes such as 'fruit punch'. Though, I do think there are probably some teas that should be acceptable.
[ frowns. they're probably all ultra-processed. ]
What looks good to you? I know you have a discerning taste, so I would be more than glad to defer to you.
no subject
Discerning? Aw, I don't know about that. I just like a lot of things.
[He even likes the things served during Pomefiore multiple-course dinners, mostly hating how confining it is to pay attention to table etiquette at all times and not simply being able to dig in.]
I'm looking at the burgers! You know how some different families or shops have special recipes? That's kinda the case with burgers and some other foods. You can get somethin' that's standard, or you can get whatever's their specialty.
no subject
[ he should trust epel. it does make sense; something as simple as a burger can be dressed up in a way that's unique to whoever may be making it. perhaps he should splurge a little? it doesn't hurt to enjoy himself now and then. it's that he's very bad at it. nutrition and efficiency over flavor, except for when it comes to desserts... ]
Yes, well. Maybe I will join you in having one.
[ riddle's eyes go lower, falling on the options. making his own might be the best way to go about things. ]
... I suppose if I have one wrapped in lettuce and include as many vegetables as I can, I can reduce the impact it'll have on my system. What do you think?
arrival
Of course. If you'll show me your key, I can take you. You'll find a change of clothes there, and some items that were yours on your home world.
no subject
Um... Key...
[He hadn't been given that many things. Prying his phone out of his hand, he grimaces at the key and indent it's left in his palm. He presents it to the lady with an uncomfortable frown.]
Is there only one building? I guess this is supposed to be the room number on it?