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

A pair of nonsensical languages!

[digthefuzz]

[He couldn't believe it himself when it was first given to him! But then it became normal for him, especially as the Danger Room also employed holograms for simulations.

Kurt's still processing this Rogue who seems different but is still family. It's a more dramatic departure than Scott, who has only seemed different from his Scott in less obvious ways.]

Th-thanks. It means a lot to hear you say that. [On multiple levels. This could have easily turned out to be a case where she was from a world where they weren't family - but she knows him as her brother. It warms his heart that they're still family across different worlds or timelines.]

It's good to see some family here! But you're right, it is real confusing. It's like we're from different timelines or different versions of Earth? Some real sci-fi stuff going on here!

[southernchere]

[ his statement puzzles her only slightly, but she shows no signs of it on her face. did he believe there might have been a chance she would deny him as family?

could he be from a time frame where he reached out to mystique at some point, and things went sour, so he feared the worst? did a version of her dismiss him? right now, her imagination is running wild and free with all sorts of possibilities or scenarios of what his life could have been like before stumbling here, but one step at a time.

rogue gives her brother one more ginger caress of his cheeks before lowering her hands back to her sides, and working her lips in thought. so far, it's her, morph, and now him... so she wonders — ]

Have you seen anyone else here, Kurt? Wolverine, Jean, Cyclops, Storm?

[ that is, she is hoping her brother knows who the listed people are, anyway. ]

[digthefuzz]

[It did take his Rogue some time to accept the idea of them being family. Considering the tensions that came from recent events with Mystique, he could see things going differently in another world. Or, considering how different things could theoretically be between worlds, there could be versions of them who aren't connected by Mystique. The possibilities are endless! But in any case, he's relieved to have found one of the good possibilities.

A soft smile remains on his face as she pulls back. Then he looks more thoughtful as she brings up those names. They are all names he recognizes and knows as fellow X-Men, so none of them take him off guard, at least.]

Just Cyclops. That's actually how I first found out how weird things can be around here! He's my age, but he's way back from the 80s. Still the cool friend I always knew back home! Just, different at the same time.

[southernchere]

[ if it wasn't for bishop and his time traveling shenanigans, this would be a lot harder to swallow and she would have thought kurt is currently experiencing some sort of concession. but despite knowing someone who have seen many futures and outcomes, it doesn't make this news any less... bizarre. the woman quirks an eyebrow as she repeats her brother's words slowly to confirm her hearing didn't fail her. ]

Cyclops is a teenager.

[ at least with scott being from the eighties make a lot more sense than kurt being a teenager, yet somehow have high-tech devices than her timeline. rogue inhales a deep breath while pinching the bridge of her nose.

so much for counting on the leader of the x-men to... well, lead. between morph, her, kurt, and now scott, it appears she'll need to be the commander for the time being. she doesn't have any experience on that front, but shoes need to be filled. ]

Alright, alright. That's honkey-dorkey.

[ it's not. ]

He's in good health, though, right? I'll need to get crackin' and find him whenever I can.

[digthefuzz]

[It's kind of weird to hear Cyclops as a teenager being treated as unusual fact. After all, Scott's been a teenager the whole time he's known him! Things must be really different for this Rogue. She must have a Cyclops who really is an old man!

Kurt smiles and nods as he answers his question.]

As far as I can tell, he's fit as a fiddle! You know Scott, he knows how to take care of himself. Most of the time! [He jokes with a slight smirk.] I'm sure you'll come across him sooner or later. And he's been here a while, too, so he's real helpful when it comes to getting used to life around here!

[southernchere]

Well, Sugah, don't get too comfy here.

[ she says in a weighty tone, and then looking onward to the locals celebrating amongst themselves through dancing, laughter, and beverages. it's a shame, though, this aldrip island seems like a wonderful vacation spot to bathe in, and enjoy. after the events she's been through, rogue could use some rest and relaxation. but she can't stay idling around here when her team could be in grave danger. ]

I got some important business to handle, and I reckon you're about the same as me on that.

[ when she faces her brother again, the warm smile returns, and she ruffles his hair lovingly. ]

But one day of fun with my fur ball won't hurt any. Right?

[digthefuzz]

[Kurt is definitely very eager to take part in some rest and relaxation! Even though the looming threat of Apocalypse, he does feel convinced this has to be somewhere outside of normal time and space. So they might not even miss him back home! Rogue's urgency does both make him worry for her own situation and remind him of the serious responsibility awaiting back home.]

There has been some big stuff going on...

[His smile fades for the moment, but returning as she ruffles his hair.]

Right! I think some of us really need a good day off. It's like the say: fun in the sun!

[southernchere]

[ so his world really isn't all flowers and sunshine, after all. rogue assumed much, given the fact they are mutants and there's prejudice amongst them. but she still wanted to be optimistic and hoped he lived a peaceful and loving life. for now, dwelling on it won't do either of them good, and the mutant stretches her muscles by levitating. ]

Well then! Let's not be bumps on a log. Show me your favorite spots around here. And maybe later, you can introduce me to some of your friends.

[digthefuzz]

[Oh he wishes he was from a world where it's all flowers and sunshine! He really does.]

Sounds cool to me! I mean, one of my favorite spots is an arcade, but I don't know if you're down with the video games. [He says with a smirk.] Otherwise, I do know some rooftops with lovely views of the city!