seasonsgreetings | Test Drive Meme #5

Test Drive Meme #5
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Arrival

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?

Light a Candle For You

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.

We All Become What We Pretend To Be

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.

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

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ 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?

Well, kind of... They don't tell you all the details when you sign on, and of course if you try to quit they kill you. Can't have people spilling company secrets and all that.

[Evangeline says it like it's to be expected. To her, it is - no one's ever just allowed to leave a Wing unless the company has totally dissolved.]

...those must be quite some secrets, considering how dangerous it must be to attempt such things in the first place.

[ Erwin is getting the feeling that there is quite a lot more to what she's saying.

It only then occurs to him-- ]

Forgive me, I don't believe I caught your name?

Oh! Sorry, I'm Evangeline. I've been here for half a year now, so if you have any questions about Ellipsa, feel free to ask?

[They'll probably be less depressing than questions about her world!]

Evangeline, what a lovely name. I'm Erwin. Pleased to meet you.

Might you have any recommendations of places to experience for a new arrival?

I'm a big fan of the Amberfall library! There's so many books there, way more than I've seen in one place before. You can find pretty much anything there.

[Evangeline, being a Big Nerd, spends a lot of her free time checking out anything and everything in the library.]

Dayrise's baths are nice for relaxing, too.

[ Erwin visibly brightens with interest at the mention of the library and so many books - he looks very keen indeed. ]

Amazing - libraries and information were very controlled in my home. I'll be certain to visit very soon. What are some of your favorite subjects to read about?

[!! Fellow nerd, excellent.]

For nonfiction, I really enjoy books on science, and on the magic system here - it's fascinating the kinds of things people have learned about how the world works through study. I can recommend you some books if you want.

[ The nerdiest, next to Hange. ]

I'd be delighted, in fact. Magic of this sort is not something we have in my home, nor is this level of technology.

No problem. For magic, you'll probably want to pick up-

[Blah blah blah, list of books and authors for learning about seasonal magic.]

What season did you get assigned? That'll decide what abilities you can learn. It's good to have a handle on them, you never know when they'll be useful.

[ Erwin makes a mental note of all those things - he has a good memory, thankfully. ]

Thank you, I'll be sure to track them down.

Autumn, I believe. I understand I'll have to do some practice with it. And yourself?

Summer! So fire stuff and shapeshifting, mostly.

Autumn's a fun one, you get telepathy and that's super handy in a lot of situations.

I see, fascinating. What sort of things can you turn into?

[ He looks actually surprised at that. The word isn't terribly familiar, though it was likely mentioned the overview...but then, a lot of things were. And we're making executive decisions on whether or not someone from AoT world even knows what that is so: nope. ]

Telepathy?

Telepathy is talking to people with your mind. That's useful if you have a secret message for only one person, or if it's loud and hard to hear you, or if you're shapeshifted into something that can't talk normally like a titan...

[As for her own shapeshifting, well, she's mostly done tentacles for fun reasons so-] I've been working on squid mostly?

I see...that is- very interesting, thank you. I'll have to work on that.

[ A dozen more questions come to mind - how far away, how long, how does one control not letting inadvertent thoughts get through to someone else? But he'll save that for his own research and experimentation.

His expression shifts into surprise. ]

You are familiar with our titans, then?

...and pardon my asking, but what is a squid?

Yeah! There's a lot of people from that world here, I'm good friends with a couple. You're lucky to have so many people from home here.

[Evangeline is the only person from her world in Ellipsa, at least at the moment.]

A squid is an ocean animal with tentacles. Like this? [It's easier to show than to tell, so she transforms her arm into a tentacle and wiggles it at him to demonstrate.]

[ His gaze goes softer with fondness. ]

Yes, I am. May I ask which ones?

[ Oh well-- that is very surprising, and blue eyes go wide again. Even after hearing it, it's still a bit strange to see someone transform their limbs into something unhuman. Titans still more or less kept human-like qualities, but this is quite different. ]

That is--- remarkable!

Isn't it just? It's taken a while to learn, but I'm definitely pleased I can do it now.

[How many people does she know from his world, though.]

I met Jean first, then Reiner - then Eren, and then Hange - no, I think Hange a little before that... Armin, Galliard, Historia... There's a lot.

[ He's definitely impressed, but also more than a little pleased. It's good to hear they're finding their places in this world, so to speak. ]

There are, and a few more, too. I hope they're taking good care of you as a friend.

They really are. I'm the only one from my world here right now, but it helps to have people who understand how hard it is to adjust from a dangerous life to someplace so peaceful like this. It makes me feel a little bit less alone.

[ That makes him smile, genuine and warm. ]

I'm very glad to hear that.

I hope it hasn't been to difficult, even so.

Overall it's been nice! Very weird, but nice. Like a vacation I didn't expect to go on. I might never be completely used to it, but I'm enjoying my time here.

[However long or brief that ends up being, she'll make the most of it.]

Test Drive Meme #5

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