Test Drive Meme #5

[seasonsmods]

Test Drive Meme #5
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 Welcome Center 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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Light a Candle For You

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Part 1

All throughout the city, a festival is taking place. It's the festival to honor the dead. The areas are decorated with aesthetically appropriate lights and different flowers. Upon a closer look it becomes clear that all the flowers are bundles of flowers, based on the otherworlders' flower charms. Where a characters' flower is depends on their Season, but all of the appear in the Nightwake Center district.

The main part of the festivities is to light candles in various places. There are even floating lanterns, that can be either launched to the skies or put on surfaces of water. Those who have lost (= to death) someone at any point in their life will receive a message from them in their dreams and otherwise pleasant dreams about them if they light up a candle during the festivities.

Those who have died before (back in their world or on Ellipsa) will receive a protective light around them if they light up a candle. This light will also let the natives know to treat them with kindness and respect during the festivities. They will even receive special bonuses at some of the shops and restaurants, like discounts or extra items. The light itself will decrease any damage done to them for the rest of the month. The light will dim "when needed", but even as it's not easily noticeable, it will continue to protect.

Characters may receive both of these effects.

Part 2

The second part of the festivities involves making small ghosts made out of paper or cloth. These crafts are for the local ghosts to possess so they can be seen by everyone. Once the ghosts have possessed the crafts they will hover around the place, experiencing the festivities better than in their ethereal form. Only ghosts that wish to move on to the afterlife will possess the crafts.

Some of the ghosts gather at the Blossomcrown Park where magical crests have been set on various tables there. These ghosts are those who have been waiting for this moment to pass onto afterlife. Everyone visiting the bonfire will be given a special flower wreath. The goal is to wait for one of the ghosts to move and take hold of the wreath (literally holding onto it with their craft ghost forms) before placing it on the crests together with another person. This will help the ghosts to cross the border into afterlife. The wreath disappears after the ghost has passed on. This ritual can only be done at this time of the year, as the air is filled with a mysterious essence that helps with passing on. The scientists have yet to properly determine what the essence truly is, but it seems to concentrate on the park and at least it's not dangerous for the living.

The park also has some places to just sit down and enjoy the atmosphere at the park. There are also some food and drink stalls.

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We All Become What We Pretend To Be

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Part 1

The final part of the festivities is the multi-day Costume Party Masquerade happening in the largest airship of the city. The ship circles around the whole city of Nightwake, occasionally stopping at the dock and taking new passengers (or letting old ones out) before continuing on again. The airship is special, as it has a giant ballroom in the middle. There are also cabins, some more private and some more communal for those who just want a quick place to crash rather than a proper room.

Everyone who boards the airship must wear some sort of a mask, but they also have to be in a costume of some sort. Those who don't have either or both will be guided to a dressing room where the magic will pick them whatever they are missing at random (= of player's choosing) and dress them (their current clothes will be waiting for them at the airship station later). No one escapes the rule of a costume and a mask around here!

A magic is also applied to everyone's mask, making it harder for anyone to recognize the person wearing it (possibly even those who know them very well). This is said to add some level of mystery to the evening. Of course the spell will pause whenever someone takes off their mask and that may reveal a secret to someone. No one will just automatically forget if they saw someone take off their mask.

The music encourages people to dance and be brave in asking a stranger to dance with them. Thanks to the atmosphere of the masquerade, touch energy will feel even better than usual, even if you'd be "fully loaded".

Part 2

Another sort of magic sneaks into the party, as people's costumes start to take over their personalities. Someone dressed up as a king might start acting all regal, while a vampire look-a-like might try to bite someone in their neck. Some might even lose the sight of who they really are and completely take on their new roles for the time they're in the airship and in the costume.

Fairies will start trying to bomb people gone weird with water balloons, as a splash of water on their faces will wake them up from the trance (even if the said person is wearing a mask). They're even teleporting water balloons for others to toss - especially if it looks like someone is acting a bit too dangerously.

Another way is to strip them out of their clothes, but that might be something reserved for the privacy of a cabin, rather than the ballroom.

Even once someone has been freed from the spell they can unfortunately be spellbound again later on - but it's just less likely.

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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 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.

- 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!

- Check Locations: City to find more areas to explore inside the city. Every place in the districts are open.

- Similarly, Locations: Segments is useful for outdoors adventures.

- You can find monsters to encounter on Beastiary.

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

code bases by tricklet

Comments

[offeredhearts]

[ Erwin waits patiently for Levi to make up his mind; he's always had plenty of it, and plenty of practice with his Captain.

His smile widens, and while perhaps he should pull the mask back down, he doesn't find it important enough to break contact with Levi to do it. ]

Perhaps I was trying to impress a new acquaintance before?

[ Does that mean he doesn't feel the need to impress Levi?

Hands on the waist seem to work well enough. Erwin keeps them on the periphery of the dance floor - there's no need to rejoin the crowd and risk knocking into people again, or making Levi potentially agitated at the throng. Besides which, it's easier to just talk at a distance away.

It really is a shame, though, missing an arm at a time like this. They manage, but it isn't the same when he could be guiding Levi much more elegantly with both hands instead of one. ]

[heartofmetal]

Of course! Normally this process would require a transmutation circle and the materials for the item you want to create. It's the art of manipulating and altering matter by using natural energy.

[He could have been more subtle and drawn a circle, but he did not.]

To be able to use it you need to study quite a bit.

they were doomed the moment Ed joined the game

[heartofmetal]

[He's right, sort of!! But Ed refuses to knowledge that! (Another very brat-like behaviour.]

You try to remain calm when people keep referring you to miniscule plankton sized shrimps all the time! I don't need to hear it!

handwaving basic explanations of technology and blabla

[heartofmetal]

[Ed's definitely curious about all the technology and things here, so he asks about them from her when he can, even as they eat something Ed's never really tasted before - but it had looked something really interesting and Winry even recommended it, so new things straight from the beginning.

After the meal, Ed sighs in content.]

You were right. That was really good. Al would need to add it to his list of food to try.

[heartofmetal]

[Ed looks at the guy who walked up to him before returning his gaze back into the sky.]

I'm fine. I was just mostly thinking about home. But I don't need to talk my feelings through or anything.

Festival- Flowers B

[mayoninofukucho]

Thank you.

[Hijikata is distracted when he accepts the blue iris from Somnus. The festivities have put him in a solemn, yet wistful mood. For once he, too, can see the ghosts of this world, and it reminds him of Avalon... and when he looks up and beholds such a familiar face, for a moment he feels like he's back on that magical island.

The Somnus before him, of course, may not have arrived from the same timeline as the Somnus who was such a good companion and (if he's honest with himself) friend to him there, but it doesn't matter to Hijikata. He only sees a man who never failed to encourage him in his own quiet way, who was observant and patient and respectful of the living and the dead alike.

Why, then, is he now a spectre himself? This isn't the glow the once-dead living have around them; he truly is a semi-translucent ghost. Hijikata has seen him like this before - after the wraiths from beyond the veil besieged Camelot -, but he needs to know.]

What happened to you?

[offeredhearts]

"I'd like that." It would be very good to see them; Levi isn't the only one he needs to ask forgiveness of, even if their answer is much the same - it won't change his sins against them.

Erwin is reluctant to let go - their prolonged touch is comforting in a way that is both new and familiar, but unfortunately whatever powers that exist here didn't see fit to return his right arm to him, and so he releases Levi's hand to reach for the tea once it's been poured. He raises the cup to his lips, inhaling the scent before taking a sip, and it smells better, tastes better than he remembers - every sense seems just a little bit sharper after so long a ghost.

"Mm," he returns the cup to its saucer with a gentle clink. "Yes, they did. Is that what we've been feeling?"

Surely not just that...but Erwin would rather know if that is the case.

[tethered_roamer]

Fair. I just wanted to offer in case.

[He's glad that's the case actually. He's quiet for awhile.]

What's your world like? Your home.

okok

[nickotine]

( hey, there's room enough out here for two — so long as you don't mind a little bit of cigarette smoke wafting in your general direction every once in a while. at the very least, he tries to exhale away from her, both out of some measure of general respect and not wanting to like. aggravate her sinuses or anything.

( since when are you so mindful of where your smoke goes, good sir. sometimes you'd blow it directly into meryl's face if she complained about the smell too much.

at least it always got a laugh out of the old man. )

he watches her again as she makes her way over, observant of the careful way she places her steps — someone used to not wanting to leave traces of where she's been, he thinks, and that makes him curious about her — and he waits until she's answered his question to think about speaking up again, because smalltalk might be just that, but that doesn't mean it has to be meaningless.

not that he's ever cared for it himself, or even been very good at it, but something about her makes him want to try. ) Sounds like you're not really used to that kinda thing. ( another pull from his cigarette, long and slow, and an equally slow exhale. ) Looks like it, too. ( hey, sir. those powers of observation don't have to be on point all the time, do they? )

[saltofthesea]

[ Tmw no one actually told either of them it's not immediate. ]

...Maybe you'll see them later or something...?

[noodleboi]

Her hand jerked away but not fast enough. Teeth found flesh and she was bleeding. He glared at Red Son and clenched her hurt hand into a fist. She watched him and this wasn't the reaction she wanted. Again, why could she not get under his skin. She couldn't find that vulnerability again. He was defensive and lashing out. Sure, it meant something but wasn't what she wanted. She didn't respond at first.

"This is a waste of time and so are you," She said finally. MK pulled away from Red Son and tried to simply walk away.

[forgingfires]

Red Son has insecurities a mile deep. Neurosis and anxiety and self doubts that loved to play on a loop hours at a time. But he was also someone who failed thousands upon thousands of times and dragged himself to the next experiment even as he doubted his own ability.

He was more than affected.

But he knew who was talking to him and it wasn't someone who could get the knife into his heart even as it manages to graze his ribs and that made all the difference between frozen, unable to dodge a fist, and ready to try and outrun Wukong. It was better to be angry than frozen.

Red Son moved to step in front of her again. "Oh, don't know how to get under the skin of a child, My Lady?" He said, the smirk more teeth and a mix of anger and danger. "You'll have to do better than that, I'm not letting you walk away with what's mine." He growled, arm going around her waist again.

[dreamsofwings]

Erwin might be surprised to learn how good Eren has become at keeping things off his face. (Spoilers: it's the dissociation.) His cultivated mask of blankness has melted like ice over the past few months, though. Eren was never actually how he pretended to be for so long: emotionless and uncaring. He's always cared too much. That's part of why he felt he had to smother that, leaving only his rage.

He's thought, too, about how many other worlds must exist. He's not as curious as Erwin, but he learned about space? Other planets? He still isn't sure he know what a "country" really means but he does understand planet, more or less. He's just not sure how there could be others or what it means, but that's a discussion he should really have with Erwin and Hange sometime because they'd be fascinated.

For now, he just shakes his head.

"No. I'd rather be here. Mikasa, Jean, Armin, they weren't there in Folkmore. I wanna be with everyone." This is a shockingly honest thing for him to say, but he doesn't have any reason to lie or obfuscate that question. "I'd do anything to stay here," he continues, words he's said to the higher ups and to Reiner. He never wants to leave. He wants to hold this as long as he can, even if he doesn't deserve to.

"Folkmore was…weirder than this. Time didn't seem to matter as much. You could think about a place and end up there; you didn't always have to just go there on purpose. And Thirteen, she…was kind of a dick, actually." Should he say things like that to the Commander? Oh well! "She had this thing about true potential but I never really understood it. I knew what mine was anyway, so…"

Ah, that's a step too far. He clams up a little again, shoulders tightening.

"Sometimes she played tricks that didn't make sense. Making people watch each other's memories, but we couldn't control it. Cutting us off from our powers. I got…uh…kidnapped by a dragon one time…"

That sounds insane out loud, but it is the truth!

[castaside]

I wasn't trying to correct you. [ At least not to that extent. ]

Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to brand her as a joke. But she wasn't, and neither will the next one be. More than half of winning a battle is between the ears.

Her cunning is the reason I could only help you indirectly before the fire. In ways that probably didn't feel very helpful. But I had to look like I was trying to capture you and kill your friends.

you're getting the default icon and you're going to like it. (Arrival)

[ughh]

Bitey isn't aggressive, no. But he's also no stranger to Fenris, which may be why the beast has currently been spending the last few minutes giving a now seated on the floor Fenris a thorough slobbering. Fenris, to his credit, isn't complaining, but he's about to. Mabari aren't exactly elegant pups, and he hadn't been planning on spending time getting drooled to death.

"Easy." He very carefully pries himself from the jaws of the proverbial beast, shoving one hand down to ruffle at the dog's fur once his feet are solidly on the ground again. "Now. Where one is, the other isn't far behind..."

Wow I thought you loved me

[hawkeblock]

He was right, Hawke wasn't far behind. He had just heard the spiel about where his other belongings and his dog might be, and headed in that direction at a near sprint, not wanting his poor Bitey to be left alone for long lest he tear the place up in a panicked fury.

"Don't worry, pal, daddy's home--" he announced upon entering, his sentence cut off when his gaze shifted from the slobbering mutt to the elf beside him. For Hawke, it had been a long time since he had seen Fenris - having purposefully kept his whereabouts unknown for the sake of the elf and everyone they might come across while Hawke (naturally) went to do something stupid. So imagine his surprise to find him here. Bitey looked between them, his head cocked curiously while Hawke seemed to bluescreen for a few seconds.

"Fenris." He finally breathed. "They weren't kidding when they said the important stuff was in here."

[knowsvinewhip]

Hakkai pauses, thoughtfully. There's really no danger - if he feels threatened at all, Jeep could just fly away. Or, if he really felt afraid, transform. So, in that case: "Would you like to ride with him while we walk, Jeep?"

That earns an agreeable trill, and Hakkai extends his arm towards Erwin's shoulder. So Jeep can hop over if Erwin agrees.

"Yes, I believe I did. It isn't far to walk." He inclines his head in the appropriate direction. "Shall we?"

[krat]

[ the laugh that bubbles up is soft and a little stilted, like she surprised even herself to hear it. he’s seen through her immediately, of course, not that sophia has attempted to hide it in any way. but it still feels a little like she’s being perceived too soon, her gaze flickering down briefly to her hands resting along the railing as she gathers herself. ]

Mm, it’s… [ there’s an ache in her chest; the phantom pain of being held in that room for so long, trapped within her own body and blind to the passage of time. ] It’s been a while.

[ so yes, she’s not really used to that kind of thing: the quietness that comes from a peaceful night rather than a desolate one; of sharing space with another and interacting, not for any specific reason, but simply for the sake of it. she didn’t realize how lonely she’d been, unseen and unheard, until this very moment. ]

And you, mister Wolf? [ an attempt to shift the focus from her, or maybe she’s just that curious. the latter may be more accurate than the former. ] Has it been some time for you?

[smh]

[ Completely misunderstanding the other person's message, Squall takes this as a sign that he should turn off his device and never use it again. That would be great too, if he were to be honest, but he does need this thing to communicate with a certain someone from time to time. ]

I would if I could. You should call someone instead if you can't make it work

There's probably some person assigned to be customer support for this thing

[offeredhearts]

His eyes widen briefly, almost like a child they're going to get something they've always wanted and not quite believing it, gaze shifting between man and dragon, and it's difficult to keep the extent of his eagerness out of his voice.

"I'd be honored," Erwin says to the dragon, and gives a short, delighted laugh as Jeep hops over to alight on his shoulder. He gives the little one a few more strokes on his neck, and starts to follow Hakkai.

"Yes, thank you."

[offeredhearts]

[ It sounds about as pleasant as getting eaten, Erwin thinks. He resists the urge to scratch at the stump of his truncated right arm. ]

Is this a job that people agree to do willingly?

[showbaka]

[Minstrels...

He's starting to suspect Yenni is from a different era.

But ✩~theatre~✩ transcends time and space! Tsukasa is simply happy that Yenni has had the chance to experience it.]

Yes, exactly like that. [He takes one step to the left. Hope you're ready to spin Yenni, because that's what Tsukasa guides him to do.] You must have seen a troupe. Was it the same one you saw each time?

[sunspotted]

"Couch would be nice, honestly." Galliard is turning out to be a great room mate so far, but Marco would rather be around people he knows after this kind of outburst. He manages to give Jean a slight smile.

"If it's not a bother."

[sunspotted]

Just you wait until Marco expertly argues that if he cooked he's exempt from dish dusty, Galliard. The addition of 'field' has Marco tilting his head a little - even where he's from, the earliest you could sign up was twelve - but he moves past it.

"We had KP duty as part of our training. Though, of course, we didn't cook usually, but I was on good terms with the officers who handled that." Which meant he was recruited to help out, since he could be trusted not to poison the other kids.

He leaves the kitchen to come look at the tv, though, ever the responsible soldier, he picks up the (frankly large) stack of manuals that was left on the kitchen table.

"Well, it's not a window..." He flips through the covers, setting each one he disregards it to be down on the stand below it. "... a 'teevee'?"

[bigporkenergy]

The way his face blanches when she asks if he's a titan should be clue enough.

"Who do you know that's a titan?" He's going to need some names here, before he spirals into panic.