TEST DRIVE MEME #9

[expiationmods]

Test Drive Meme #9

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.

June's's TDM is forward-dated to June 20th.

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

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?

Summer Solstice (June 20th)

The summer solstice, also known as the longest day of the year. Aldrip may have received a big upgrade in size recently, but this special day still calls for celebration amongst the locals, who have a long tradition of celebrating various celestial phenomena. For this occasion, the entire city will be throwing a Midsummer celebration! The festival itself takes place from June 20-24, with the solstice happening the evening of June 20. There will be celebrations before, during, and after the festival as well!

On the shortest day of the year in December, the Chosen were told to stay indoors until sunrise. The opposite holds true for the summer solstice: all are encouraged to remain outside from dusk until dawn, and locals throw a festival to keep everyone entertained through the wee hours of the morning!

The streets of the commercial district are lined with sun-painted lanterns, lit as dusk starts to fall and kept glowing until sunrise the next day. Those lanterns illuminate a lively street bazaar featuring exotic food and drink, curious wares, and lawn/party games of all kinds. The Chosen are encouraged to either participate, or occasionally wager bets on other people who may be competing against one another. May the odds be ever in your favor?

As the sun begins to set, locals light large bonfires. There will be music and dancing—Chosen are encouraged to participate in whatever way they’d like, whether they want to perform or lead a line dance. If they’re not inclined to join in, the fires and music still provide a perfect backdrop for a little relaxing conversation and meeting new friends.

After dark, a large fireworks show begins. All in attendance are encouraged to bring (or find!) blankets to lay out so they can watch the show. Clinking glasses with good friends at the height of the show is considered good luck, so it’s not uncommon to see some folks having a drink during this time. As Aldrip is so close to the ocean, some locals even offer discounted boat rides to get a different view of these fireworks.

At dawn, the locals finally tuck in for a few hours of rest. But don’t worry—the Midsummer festival continues even after the solstice is done!

Midsummer Festival (june 20-june 24)

Locals begin prepping for the festival days in advance, and while they won’t drag others in to help the same way they have in the past, they still won’t turn down an extra set of hands. You’ll even get paid for your troubles, either in money or in favors (free meal vouchers, rent at the inn, etc). There’s no shortage of work to be done, from dragging tables around to stringing lanterns or even collecting sticks for bonfires. Just be careful, locals tell of strange whispers coming from Pessiria Forest at odd times of day and night…

The festival itself has different activities and happenings depending on what area you visit. Most of these activities can be done on any day of the festival. Most of the games and contests outlined here are examples—you’re free to make up others if you feel so inclined!

BEACH EPISODE!!
The beach is a prime location in the month of June, and locals really go all out for this particular occasion, setting up a large beach party with food, drink, and brightly-colored umbrellas to provide some shade.

There are various sporting activities such as beach volleyball, windboarding, surfing, and a large, built-up dune for sand surfing. Most of these are just for fun, but if locals see some really good contenders, they might urge a competition between them.

For those less sporting, there are all sorts of activities and challenges. Kite flying, sandcastle building, and scavenger hunts are particularly popular with the locals. Maybe they’ll ask you to bring back a certain number of round seashells, or to make friends with someone sitting under a pink umbrella…the possibilities are endless, really. There will also be official competitions for kite flying and sandcastle building, so put your best foot (or shovel) forward!

Some enterprising locals have also set up boat tours to take locals and Chosen through the nearby waves. In some places, the light makes it seem almost like you can see something in the distance…but it’s not on the map, right? Maybe it’s just your imagination. Hmm.

HAVE A FIELD DAY
The rolling hills outside of the city make a perfect place for various races and games. Bring your competitive spirit, because there will be medals awarded for winning races! Some common games include: bag races, “wife” carrying (gender, spousehood, and pre-existing relationship not required, of course!), three-legged races, relays, baton passes, and foot races.

It’s not all sporty competitions, though! Some older locals will lead more relaxing activities, such as stretching, meditation, and recreational group dances. These are volunteer-led groups, of course, so if those volunteers have to sit down or step away for a bit…well, they’ll have to ask someone to take over for them.

Those with good animal handling stats are not forgotten either, of course! There will be animal races, as well, on horses or even chocobos. There may or may not even be a petting zoo, pony rides, or other fun, relaxing activities with animals. Sometimes you just need to sit in a pen full of bunnies, okay.

Please do be careful, though: increased activity could make some of the monsters roaming outside the city a little bit curious about what’s going on this close to town…

WHEN YOU’RE DOWNTOWN
The green spaces of Aldrip have been decked out in their very finest, and floral season is in full bloom. Some enterprising gardeners will be unveiling new garden designs in honor of the festival: hedge mazes, giant sculpted topiaries, and elaborate fountains.

While it doesn’t hold a candle to the Ketsoran diplomatic masquerade, the event center will also be hosting several nights of dining and dancing during the festival. It may be a little less lavish, but it’ll nonetheless be quite glamorous—and the food will probably be good, too.

The bazaar from the day of the solstice continues throughout the festival. Additionally, various shops and businesses may choose to provide specials, discounts, and other offers to entice new and current Chosen alike.

THE SPIRE
One of the taller buildings in town has installed a large spire near one of the garden squares. They claim that, as the sun rises to its midday point, light passing through the spire will create an incredible light show. They’re right, as a matter of fact: the light reflects and refracts, scattering rainbows across the square. It’s a dazzling display. When the sun passes its midday point, however, the beautiful color show suddenly turns into white light. Anyone looking at this light will find that they are no longer able to keep track of how long they’re watching it. Your mind may begin to go blank, almost as if it refuses to accept something, some deep truth that the world is trying to tell you…

…

No, that must be your imagination. The light vanishes shortly thereafter—or was it ever there to begin with? The unsettling feeling may remain, but it’ll be harder and harder to be certain of what caused it.

This is fine and also normal.

Wildcard

Make your own fun! Just because it’s not in the prompts doesn’t mean it’s not possible. Have at it! Go crazy! Try not to break anything (too much)!

♡

Comments

[howyouseit]

Agree to disagree, I guess.

[A light hearted chuckle following along with his open proclamation as they put aside their disputes on who was in the wrong. What she says next has Ekko quite baffled by comparison, blinking wide in disbelief as she explains the nature of her 'gift'. She could not only see people's souls but heard them sung out whimsically like music? How very curious; He's heard of people possessing arcane arts back home but most societies either dismissed such arts as nothing but farce or shunned the use of them entirely from their lands.]

You can see my soul...With magic?

[Still a bit confused by it all the boy savior tried his best to understand her situation but what really gets his attention is the last bit she says confidentally. "Has an Undercity zing to it." A slack jawed expression with shock and awe quickly washing over his features as he takes a step forward to close what little distance was between them already.]

Wait...You know of the Undercity...of Zaun? Does that mean you are from Runeterra as well?!

[So many questions racked his brain now, could she possibly see what emotions laid dormant within him and read him like an open book so easily with these strange powers? Arcane users were said to hold abilities that were not humanly possible by most, capable of magical skills both brilliant and fearful depending on its user. Perhaps this was a conversation best discussed somewhere more privately, after all she did say she was getting a bit overwhelmed by all this 'music'.]

What say we get out of here and find somewhere more quiet to talk so you can relax a bit more.

[empatheticsong]

Fair enough.

[She giggles, not at all serious about disagreeing with him. After all, it didn't really matter who was in the wrong in this situation. And it's not like either of them were seriously hurt.]

Something like that. Yeah.

[Her eyes widen in surprise, but also excitement that mirrors his own. So it wasn't a coincidence? There's very little space between them now, but she doesn't care. More focused on this new connection they apparently share.]

Yeah! Of course I do. I'm from Zaun! Well....kind of? My parents moved up to Piltover right before I was born, but these days I spend just as much time down in Zaun. So I'd say it still technically counts as my home.

[She holds just as many concerts in Zaun as she does Piltover, when not holding concerts somewhere in the inbetween so everyone can attend together. Part of her attempts to unify the two cities. Among other things. So she's spent almost as much time in the undercity as she has Piltover above it.]

You're probably right. It sounds amazing here, but it's starting to give me a bit of a headache. It's going to take me a while to adjust I think. But... I don't really know where anything is just yet.

[howyouseit]

[Ekko is the first to notice the close proximity between them, color flushing his cheeks upon realization as he takes a few steps back to give her some space. A further bit of shock rattled through him when she mentions not only is she from Runeterra but a fellow Zaunite herself but then moved top side? How was something like that even possible? Never in his lifetime had he heard of one of their own being widely accepted by Piltover besides a select few who were still looked down upon by their superiors. A slack jawed expression strikes over his features as he takes in everything she saying in strife, a long pause as he finds the right words before finally speaking up again.]

So let me get this straight...Your parents were Zaunites that somehow moved top side?

[Gritting his teeth he shakes his head at the thought of ever wanting to become one of them after everything they had done to Zaun, all the pain and suffering endured by not only the corrupt Enforcers but the fat-cat politicians who did nothing to rectify the stranglehold of the vile scum Silco who oppressed their people at every turn.]

Why would they ever want to become a damn Piltie though?! They've done nothing but screw us over...And they willingly became one of them?!

[Her answers would gauge whether or not he truly wanted to go anywhere with her after all for now Ekko did not know if he could trust wholly trust this girl.]

[empatheticsong]

[There's a subtle sour tinge to his instrumental that tells her this pause isn't necessarily going to be a pleasant one, but she's never run from unpleasant situations in the past. So she's not about to now with this stranger from her hometown that she's happened to run into in this... wherever this place even is. Since honestly, she's not sure. Certainly nowhere on Runeterra she's ever heard about. But what he says next, honestly surprises her, but also doesn't at the same time.]

That's right. My dad doesn't like talking about it. It's like he doesn't want me to know just how much he must have given up to make it happen. And my mom left a while ago... so its' not like I can ask her about it.

[Not that it really matters, her mother's departure isn't really that important in the grand scheme of things. Not really. Though it does sting, it's something she doesn't typically talk about. Because Riot hasn't really talked about it.]

I know how hard it is in Zaun, I've felt it in their songs. And I want to help! They're my people too.

[Maybe trying to coax people to peaceful coexistence through music isn't the most straightforward of approaches, but she's only just approaching adulthood. There's not really a lot she can do just yet, especially since her magic is still so new and untested. So... her big flaw is that she's entirely too naive and optimistic, which tracks given her upbringing.]

I've seen people from the two cities living in harmony on the borders before. I want that to be a reality for everyone. Piltover, Zaun, at the end of the day we're all just people. The things that have happened, it's not right.

[howyouseit]

[She at the very least holds sympathy for their people's plight though he still does not understand how or why her parents would chose to leave their fellow Zaunites instead of aid them. Perhaps there were extenuating circumstances at play where they had no choice but to abandon their home and join Piltover above. In any case he should not have faulted the other for her parent's decisions, a solemn sigh falling off his parted lips with a shake of his head.

Ekko has been burned by the top siders at almost every turn save for a lone soul who'd proved him wrong after having befriended his headstrong big sister Vi who hated them more than anyone so that said something in itself. From what he'd gathered thus far about his newfound counterpart she seemed like a vitreous person and shouldn't have been so cruel. Rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly the boy savior tries his best to make amends after acting out rashly without forward thinking.]

You seem like an honest enough person and I want to believe you...I shouldn't have judged you so harshly based on your parents decisions when I don't even know why they left in the first place.

[Sometimes his impulsive frustrations towards Piltover's citizens got the better of him but he tried not to lump them all together as bad apples anymore after seeing what Caitlyn tried to do for him and his people. It's not often he apologies for his mistakes given his headstrong demeanor at the best of times but this situation definitely warranted it.]

Its just...I don't trust many Piltie's after everything they've done to me and the people I care about.