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

Speaking as someone who is still losing my everything...you'll find that even trying to have nothing more to lose, you'll end up with something. But you already know that.

But I've also found that just going with it is easier, maybe better, than trying to keep it out to protect yourself.

And you learn things about yourself as a result...even with the pain.

[He becomes a bit more sober, his hand stilling and just resting on Macaque's arm.]

Or you might find that you didn't lose everything...even if you can't go back to how it was, something remains.

I know something remains. The question being, how much of that something is worth having at all? If we're just going to hurt each other, it's not worth it.

[ And yet he can't seem to stop. ]

--What do you mean "still"? [ He can make a few guesses, but that seems counterproductive. ]

Personal experience says that it usually is worth it in these kinds of somethings. And it usually means a big consideration for what to do with it.

[He goes quiet, seriously considering whether to tell him and how much. But Macaque did open up a lot to him, so he could respond in kind. Maybe it would help them understand each other.]

Before I got here, and in the course of about two weeks...I lost 12 years of memories, the person I cared about most, an ally, the home of a friend, the little bit of happiness not having those memories came with because I got them back, my entire family, the parents of a little girl we were trying to save, my life, my brother figure's life, the rest of my friends, and my freedom by being put in cold storage. And that's not including being ripped away from everything I knew as a child 12 years ago.

Edited 2023-11-09 04:41 (UTC)

...That's a lot.

[ He's not even sure he followed all that fully. ]

You sure you're okay?

I'm as okay as I can be. Things here have been a cakewalk.

[He wouldn't be surprised to hear that.]

And...even though I had to send my family away, my mom had known I had been taken after it happened. She had been looking for me, and knew me on sight. So...I have that.

Things here being easier, or quieter, doesn't mean all that isn't still grabbing you by the throat sometimes.

[ His hold on Cole tightens just a hint. Barely perceptible. ]

The parent thing is a little outside my wheelhouse, but I'm pretty sure that expecting your mother to know you and care about you is supposed to be the bare minimum.

True, but being able to know that I'm not constantly looking over my shoulder here makes it easier to deal with.

[He notices, but doesn't really react. He's safe after all. At least right now.]

It is, but my dad didn't notice that the me that came home wasn't the real me. He is now, since he grew up in my life, but mom saw right away that he wasn't me.

[ ...yeah, that doesn't bring anything up at all. But we're not dwelling on that mess, for one thing he comes off terrible in that story. ]

That's rough, kiddo.

[He shrugs after a moment.]

He found out at the same time I found out about mom, so he knows now. And they're safe wherever they've taken Cole to hide. So it's fine. Something was still there for me to carry.

...How old are you? [ Macaque sometimes can't tell, and "under drinking age" could mean a lot. ]

I'm 20, why?

[He's not annoyed or anything, but nobody ever asks that question normally...and the one time someone did he ended up in jail.]

[ He tries to calculate that into immortal terms for a second, decides it's not relevant. ]

It took millennia to have racked up the list of painful things I have. [ Which is a compliment if you squint. ]

...oh.

[He does get that sense.]

I guess it helps me have a good perspective of the way I want to be at least. And it helps me try to help others.

Saying "you're too young to have all that happen to you" is condescending, but that doesn't make it untrue. I'm glad you find good in it, but...

I hope you got some time in your life where all that wasn't going on.

Thanks. That means a lot.

A few minutes here and there, yeah. And one time when someone who had no good reason to just offered me an ear and comfort, even though she was still grieving herself.

[ One time, huh. ]

Well... you're here now. Best enjoy the relaxation while you can.

...MK should help, he'll drag you into fun things whether you like it or not.

I am...and he is. We're actually working on a project, and he was fine helping by hand instead of magic.

You got the famously impatient Monkie Kid to do something the slow way? Impressive.

There's a first time for everything, right?

Yes, well. He'll always find a way if it's for someone he cares about.

He does. He's like a few people I knew. It's a pleasant familiarity.

I'm glad you have him. I'm glad he has you, too.

[ He and Red Son and Wukong are all messes, and while Cole might have a messy past he wouldn't let it get in the way of supporting MK like the rest of them sometimes do. ]

...I think it's safe to say...for what it's worth right now, you have me too. If you need. This is...it's nice.

[ --That. Is not what he expected. And he's really not sure if he should argue because Cole... you can do better. ]

[ He goes still and quiet for a couple of beats. ]

...It's worth a lot.

[ He's not agreeing to anything here, but the sentiment is. Not something he wants to brush off like it's meaningless. ]

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tethered_roamer - 2023-11-10 03:22 (UTC) - Expand

Test Drive Meme #5

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