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seasonsgreetings2023-10-13 12:35 am
seasonsmods) wrote in seasonsgreetings2023-10-13 12:35 am
Entry tags:
Test Drive Meme #5
Test Drive Meme #5
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.
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?
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.
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?
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.
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.
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".
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.
- 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.
Re: Arrival Part 3 Oh this'll be FINE! What could go wrong?!
"My name's Nine. And you weren't the first person I was hoping to recognize," he says bluntly, looking Sonic up and down. Not wearing the regulators he made, so absolutely not the Sonic he knows.
"They weren't lying about the rooming mistakes..."
Re: Arrival Part 3 absolutely nothing it's gonna be smooth as silk
"...Two sentences in and you've already lost me, now that's fast. Not Tails, then, okay. I can roll with that. Nine, was it?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 Definitely! Also I'm sorry for him.
"Let me guess, Tails is your best friend?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 He is as he should be; kind of a turd
Sonic crosses his arms and casually leans against his doorway. See, we're chill here. Welcome to the Chill Zone.
"My best friend and my little bro. That was a little too on the nose for just a guess, y'know."
Re: Arrival Part 3 Nine is always on the station 'People Suck'
Sorry, Sonic, Nine's just going to take that dial and turn this from the Chill Zone to Ice Cap. But at least he's not a wrong word away from wanting to punch you in the face.
"Sounds like if the two of you exist together in a universe it's very likely you're friends."
Re: Arrival Part 3 in meeeeean he's not wrong
Oh yeah no, this kid is basically Frosty the Snow Fox over here. That's not likely to stop Sonic from attempting to Power of Friendship this whole thing, but still. Feels weird, man.
Re: Arrival Part 3 I'd agree, but I'm a people person~
Good luck there, Sonic. Nine is firmly in in the hidden zone called No Benefit to Friends, with the goal post teleporting around. Though, supposedly his gear is here somewhere, so he makes a beeline for the bedrooms.
"It probably won't take long before you feel the same if you're like him."
Re: Arrival Part 3 i can person people when i have to lol
"You know I have no context for any of this, right? What is it he wanted you to go along with, anyway?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 i can person people when i have to lol
"I'll explain it as simply as possible then. He wants me to bring back his old home by fixing something that was broken. That thing breaking is the whole reason that I and his other new friends exist at all. He didn't think through what will happen to me or any of us if I do it, assuming everything will be fine and I'll just love a bunch of people and a place I don't know, the way he does."
Does this look like the face of a fox who feels like friends are worth it? Because it's not the face of such a fox. This is a fox who thinks a lot and values himself.
"And while I was helping him, I was his best friend, his little buddy. But he didn't care what I wanted or what could happen to me. He just expected that I'm like the real Tails."
Re: Arrival Part 3
Nine buddy that's not 'explaining it simply', all that does is raise a million more questions?? Sorry, kiddo. He's too confused to drop this yet.
"So some thing broke and... What, destroyed this other Sonic's home? How whole world? How did that create you?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 - Nine's just like, Sonic noooooo... And I'm here for it
Sure it is. Something big broke, world shenanigans happened, Sonic wants Nine to fix world shenanigans, Nine really doesn't want to because he wants to live. Simple.
"You can't take a hint, can you? I don't really want to go into it. But fine. You'll probably want to sit down though. If you really want me to go over the fact that Sonic destroyed his reality and created mine by not thinking things through. It's a bad habit he seems to have, the not thinking part."
He disappeared back into the room for a moment, then reappeared with his multi-tool pistol. His attention was mostly on making sure that it hadn't been tampered with instead of on Sonic's reaction to the bombshell he'd casually dropped on the spiky blue head. But only mostly.
Re: Arrival Part 3 - I too am here for it, sorry Nine lol
Maybe he's picking up some of Nine's 'tude, or maybe he's just not as much of an airhead as the Sonic Nine knows. Either way he's not in the mood to wade through a bunch of angsty BS, especially not after hearing that there's a Sonic out there destroying realities.
As for his reaction, he definitely looks bothered, maybe borderline horrified, but he's not freaking out or anything. He's crossed his arms and started staring absently out a window while he tries to process all of this fun new information, turning his attention back to Nine when he emerges from his room again.
"I guess my concern was 'what if this is something that happens in the future' rather than just an alternate universe thing. I don't think I've ever beefed it that bad though. It wasn't on purpose, right? He just screwed up real bad?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 - Maybe Sonic will succeed in growing on him by the end of the century. Faster ev
But it does say something about this Sonic. He can almost respect the bluntness. Almost. Being a perpetual sourpuss makes true respect so hard. The fact he's not trying to punch Sonic in the face is a start though, right?
"Differences in time wouldn't be surprising, all things considered." Satisfied that everything was in order, Nine holstered the gun and used his tails as a chair and turned his attention back to Sonic. Might as well explain it fully then.
"From what I understand, His friends tried to warn him about something around a power source called the Paradox Prism. But he said that he was so focused on winning that he didn't listen. Given the fact that there are five shards in five similar but different worlds, plus the fact that he's now channeling Prism energy and isn't a part of any of them, it's pretty obvious that he broke it and that somehow wiped out Green Hill...which created the Shatterverse in its place. So yeah, screwed up real bad is the word for it, especially because he doesn't have what it takes to fix it."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"And you said he doesn't know what'll happen if someone tries to put the Shatterverse back together. Putting the Shatterverse back together to fix Green Hill makes sense, but what happens to the people? And what happened to everyone else from Green Hill? "
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"That's not really my problem to figure out. But if the dopplegangers I've seen are anything to go off of, then each world has a different version of every person who lived in Green Hill. Well, three of the worlds. They're taken the original Green Hill and everyone from it as a sort of template to build new worlds and people with their own histories and personalities. So the originals are gone, but left three times as many of us behind."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"Huh. Yeah, I can definitely see the originals being gone as a huge problem, I can't blame your Sonic for wanting to set it right. The problem is... yeah, like you said. There's a lot more people to consider now. Not gonna lie, this is one of the most complicated situations I've ever heard of."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"Well I won't say I can't imagine wanting to fight for something you lost. Maybe I would if I had something like that." That's as far as Nine was willing to go for empathy. "But when his argument is entirely why do we need a clean slate? I liked the old one and I thought after everything we've been through I thought you'd see things the way I do it's pretty selfish. At least I was upfront about looking out for myself before I tried to include him."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
Maaan this feels weird and gross all around, Sonic visibly shudders and rubs at his arms awkwardly. "Eugh, is this what second hand embarrassment feels like? Yeah, I mean, that does sound selfish, or at the very least it sounds like he's bad at reading people. You can't just assume what people are thinking!"
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"Probably? Never really felt it myself. Bad at reading people, bad at listening. They're both the same problem. And it just reminded me where my priorities are. I'm fine on my own. I always have been. So, are you satisfied?"
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
Really there's a lot of things he could ask about, but he figures he's annoyed this kid for long enough (for now).
"Welp, I know you've got the whole lone wolf thing going on, I can respect that. But look, if you ever do need anything, just give me a shout, okay? I just want you to know that it's an option."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"I'll keep that in mind. Still changing rooms, but I won't forget you said that."
Settling back onto his feet, Nine was quiet a moment. He could warn Sonic about Shadow. Or he could mind his own business. "I'm planning to figure out what the tech maintenance around here. So I guess if you end up needing something fixed, we can talk about it."
Sonic would find out about Shadow at some point.
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
"Whatever works best for you! And thanks, I'll keep that in mind."
See this is part of the Power of Friendship strategy. Don't smother the kid, just be available if he needs something.
"Once you're settled in I can show you the best food places! Or just tell you how to get to them if you're more a solo adventure kind of guy, heh."
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
He might be slightly banking that Sonic won't be able to completely, for touch energy reasons, but he's not ready to admit that out loud. This Sonic's different, but if he's as similar to the one Nine knows as he thinks, then the hedgehog is going to be at least a little hands on.
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
No promises, though. He needs to make sure Nine makes his high five quota! Y'know, for like survival and stuff.
Re: Arrival Part 3 -
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