TEST DRIVE MEME #8

[expiationmods]

Test Drive Meme #8

Welcome to Expiation, a pan-fandom adventure game with elements of fantasy, science fiction, and some subtle horror.

TDM top-levels are open to all, whether you are already in-game or not. New characters, please put TDM in your subject header so we’ll know you’re trying things out! You can also put your top-level in the TDM DIRECTORY at the bottom of the post. New folks are welcome and encouraged to use TDM threads as samples in their application. Current players may use TDM threads as part of their AC proofs.

April's TDM is forward-dated to the end of Gogol, Dara, and Seimei's player plot on April 20th.

You can view our CALENDAR to keep important dates in mind. RESERVES open on April 20 and APPLICATIONS will open on April 23 After this, applications will next open in June 2024.

NEW FOR APRIL 2024: there is now a top level for everyone to post their TDM top levels into! This is for new characters only. Thank you!

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Arrival

You remember a room of blinding white light—so bright that you couldn't make out any details. You heard voices, speaking in muffled tones. It sounded an awful lot like they were talking about you. You were just on the verge of figuring out what they’re saying, you were so close...but what happened after that?

Ah–that's right. You fell into blackness.

New characters are most likely to wake in one of the following locations:

THE DOCKS
You wake to the gentle sound of waves, your body rocking with the movement of the water. Wait—water? Since when was there water beneath you?

Since now, apparently. You appear to be in the lower rooms of a boat…and you might not be alone. There are several of these crafts in the harbor, ranging from larger cruising vessels to small sailboats. The one thing they all have in common is this: they are all half-built, as if someone realized very recently that there is a whole ocean to explore. Wonder where they might be going? Either way, you’d better get out of here, before the construction crew finds you and brands you as a stowaway.

ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT
When you come to, the first thing you hear is the commotion of distant voices and running feet. You feel a warm light on your face…it’s too bright to look at directly, so when you open your eyes, you have to look away. It’s probably for the best. Those stage lights can’t be good for your eyes.

… Stage lights?

That’s right, you seem to be just offstage in an entertainment venue. Someone is fussing with you, powdering your face with some last-minute touch-up makeup, vaguely coaching you on. “You’ll be great! Just get out there and have fun!”

With little room to argue or ask questions, you are immediately shoved out on stage, and find yourself in front of a sold-out crowd. What you find on the stage to help you perform is up to you: a microphone, musical instruments, magician’s tools, a full-blown play, the sky’s the limit.

Break a leg…?

CITY CENTER
“These new statues are so lifelike!” Click.
“I wonder which artist installed all of this? It’s almost eerie, isn’t it?”
“I feel like they could move at any second!” Click click.

You wake in a garden. Not just in a garden—amongst the flowers, almost as if you’re an installed piece of artwork. Are you alone, or posed with someone else? Up to you. You may even find yourself entwined with vines, half-buried in the ground, or subtly hidden beneath a large bush. A few hapless locals stand in front of you, taking pictures. Do they really believe you’re a statue? They’re in for a rude awakening whenever you finally move…

Well. Better dig yourself out of here and figure out what’s going on.

However you awaken, the next time you’re able to stand still and take in your surroundings, you’re approached by a small mechanical creature, which reveals a handheld tablet with a rolled-up parchment within it. Booting up the tablet for the first time brings you the following message:

WELCOME, CHOSEN.
WE ARE SO GLAD YOU ARE HERE.

So…now what?

These new familiar streets

The unexpected expansion of Aldrip means that there's suddenly a vast uptick in things to do. The locals don't seem to find any of this unusual or surprising at all, but the Chosen seem to remember that Aldrip wasn't always like this...how unusual! Well, whatever the case, the city is abuzz with activity…and wildlife, apparently. Thanks to some recent events, there seems to be a surplus of poisonous snakes slithering haplessly through the city, as well as, perhaps, a few lingering pockets of miasma. Best to watch your step…

i. This smells like a sidequest
Businesses and individuals all over town will be giving out quests ranging in size, scope, and request. Any of these will net you a prize from the right requestor. These prizes are mostly just silly little knick knacks, and they don’t seem to have any value, but the locals are adamant that they are quite important! At the same time, some locals may offer more useful rewards, such as money, clothing, food, or even a month’s rent at the local inn, especially for newcomers. Either way, you might have to team up to complete some of these challenges. Grab a partner!

Quests and requests can include, but are not limited to, ideas such as:

A local art collector looking for striking photographs of local flora and fauna
The neighborhood food cart owner on the hunt for new and interesting ingredients and recipes
Your neighbor’s search for their missing cat
Requests to clear monsters out of certain areas
Scavenger hunts to find local landmarks, such as murals on the side of buildings, a specific statue, or a hole-in-the-wall business

You're free to use your imagination, the setting, and local NPCs to come up with whatever ideas your heart desires.

ii. Should’ve waited for the patch
This sudden change is going fairly well, but it could be better. Some areas of town will be subject to something that seems like glitches. These effects could range from things going missing or suddenly changing (your favorite lipstick just changed from red to blue?? how odd!) to streets and doorways going into places they logically shouldn’t go to. Your front door isn’t supposed to be at the end of the dock, is it? Better watch your step, because strange things seem to be afoot.

Day and night life

While it’s not an official festival by any means, the beginning of spring is the cherished start of the planting season for the farmers outside of Aldrip, and the entire city comes together to promote it! Chosen are encouraged to take part in the planting process if they desire, but there’s plenty more to do, for those who don’t have a green thumb. Flyers can be found all over town for various competitions, shows, businesses, and events. Just be careful—the city has grown rapidly in a short period of time, and that means crime rates have grown as well. It’s unwise to linger alone after dark. Who knows what someone may find down a dark alleyway…or who knows, maybe they should be more afraid of you.

iii. Iron Chef: Aldrip
Fire up those pots and pans! The highlight of the town center is a huge cooking competition, where locals and Chosen alike are encouraged to bring their finest culinary skills to the table and create a spectacular dish. Those who would rather cheer from the sidelines, or even act as judges for the competition, are encouraged to do so as well. Anyone may enter—and we do mean anyone, so judge at your own risk.

iv. This is not Aldrip’s Best Friends Race
Many local businesses in the Commercial and Entertainment Districts are putting on all sorts of shows and competitions: talent contests, arm-wrestling competitions, fashion shows, dance exhibitions, the sky's the limit. Local business owners will tempt the Chosen into participating by offering rewards: free items, the option to keep costumes they put you in, trophies, all manner of comforts that could entice wary newcomers into volunteering.

Chosen who own or work at local businesses are also encouraged to participate by starting their own shows or contests. They’ll be rewarded with an uptick in business and free advertisement.

The Events Center will be hosting a lavish and well-advertised drag show and competition, and some locals will encourage participation from Chosen of all genders. Most of them will lay off if the Chosen are really not interested (they’re not putting their lives at risk for this!) but some of the more determined and charismatic ones might not take “no” for an answer.

Wildcard

Just because it’s not in the prompts doesn’t mean it can’t happen. We encourage you to look at our new setting page for Aldrip, as well as the world map. Anything that looks interesting there is fair game, so have fun with it!

♡

Comments

[luneminary]

[Oh, thank goodness — it’s reinvigorating, to have someone believe in you. It helps that she’s way calmer than him about this. Ryoji closes his eyes, deep in thought, trying to remember exactly the order of events that came before him.]

I didn’t feel anything weird, it was just the glitches and the sound of static…I thought I was just imagining things at first, but at the next moment I felt a tug, and the wall just magically appeared behind me!

[entreats]

.. okay.

[ It's a carefully neutral word, making it hard to figure out whether she does or doesn't believe the explanation.

Though, after a moment of thought, she says: ] And it's likely too much to hope for the wall to magically disappear again, right?

[ It'd sure be nice. The world's easiest explanation. It'd mean she could just walk away and not have to deal with a social situation, and that always sounds like the best solution to Ange.

She raises a hand, putting it on the wall almost experimentally, moving it around a little. ]

It feels very solid to me. [ Not like a wall that magically appeared and could magically disappear again. ]

[luneminary]

[It’s not like Ryoji is an expert in any of this. His eyebrows wrinkle, trying to summon any kind of magical knowledge he could have picked up on pop culture. Not that there’s a guarantee that it applies to what we have here, though.]

Maybe? It did magically appear, so the reverse could also be true.

[But there’s no guarantee on that. He could be stuck here for days!]

Is there a way you could make it disappear? With magic, that is?

[entreats]

[ She huffs. ]

What do I look like, a witch?

[ Despite the way that sounded very dry - kind of sarcastic, really - when she looks back at him after glancing at the wall, Ange adds: ] Well, lucky for you, I am.

[ She says it so casually though. At this point it might be kind of hard to tell whether or not she's even serious about it to begin with.. ]

But this sort of magic isn't really my speciality. [ Ange frowns, glancing over at him again. ] Don't you have any sort of ability?

[luneminary]

I've never met any witches before, so I wouldn't have the slightest idea of what they look like!

[At least he's very accepting of the fact - being a witch sounds cool in the first place, anyway.]

Not that I know of! [Emphasis on "know."] If I did, I would have used that to get out of here already.

[entreats]

.. you know, point taken. [ As to that last part. Ange can't imagine Ryoji actually enjoys being stuck in a wall like this. Who would?

She pauses, because there is something that does nag at her mind a little. ]

It's just.. [ .. hm. She pauses for a moment, aware this might make her sound kind of weird.

But it's standing out just enough for her to not be able to just ignore it. ]

There's something about you.

[ Please do not mistake this as flirting, Ryoji. ]

[luneminary]

Is it? Maybe I styled my hair right today!

[The weak chuckle is a clear indicator that he's trying to lighten up the mood more than anything - but it has been a while, and the uncertainty of how much longer he'd have to wait is feeding onto his nerves. Perhaps in a less awkward situation he would have taken it as flirting - but right now, he's more surprised at the admittance than anything.]

It's a time like this where I wish Aigis-san was right about me being dangerous. At least, I'd be able to get out of here!

[entreats]

[ Wait.

Someone said he's dangerous?

That definitely registers with Ange. Not even necessarily as a bad thing, since it's just one person's opinion, so it could mean anything. But at least it does lend a little bit more credit to the fact that she can sense something from this random guy, even if she isn't even close to sure what it is.

.. It's momentarily filed away though, because Ange realises something else. ]

You know, couldn't you just take off your scarf?

[ That would solve the problem, at least.. Even if it'd mean Ryoji would lose his scarf to this wall forever. A terrible loss. ]

[luneminary]

[The suggestion is immediately met with resistance: Ryoji's pout is a sure sign that he is not going to leave his scarf behind!]

I can't, it's important to me!

[And perhaps he might sound childish, but it's the one thing he has that he can associate with himself. Ryoji...doesn't want to lose that at all, especially that he has found himself in a strange new world.]

I'd like to try other ways first, at the very least.

[entreats]

[ Ange opens her mouth, tempted to say it's just a scarf, surely it doesn't mean enough for Ryoji to actually want to spend his entire life stuck in this stupid wall over.

.. but despite how rough the girl seems at times, it's not like she doesn't know that sometimes random things are just important to people. It's like her own hair accessoires. She wouldn't want to give them up either, right? Not even if it meant an easy escape from a dire situation.

So she doesn't remark anything about it out loud. Instead the girl lets out an annoyed sigh, and then pulls back her foot to kick the wall. Not too hard, since she's not an idiot who's going to injure her foot, but at least enough to determine-- ]

Feels pretty solid.

[ Just saying! ]

Maybe it only stops being solid at specific moments. That means you might have to wait until the wall goes weird again. [ A pause, then added: ] Whenever that is.

[ Sorry, Ryoji. It's not the best news in the world, but Ange is just being realistic! Especially when she does have magic, but she's pretty sure none of that could help make an entire wall disappear.. ]