TEST DRIVE MEME #11

[expiationmods]

Test Drive Meme #11

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

THE STORY SO FAR (click to expand!)

Characters have arrived in Expiation, a seemingly idyllic fantasy world where they have been told they will be judged and sentenced for crimes they were charged with upon arrival.

Every two months, several characters are chosen for sentencing, where they’re brought to City Hall and told to perform a task related to their assigned crime.

Their only contact at City Hall is a mysterious and long-suffering man called Jerry.

Over time, characters have begun to realize that not all is as it seems in Expiation: as it turns out, the entire world is a simulation that seems to be run by an artificial intelligence.
This AI claims that its purpose, and thus the purpose of Expiation, is rehabilitating the Chosen after their crimes.

In March 2024, after the destruction of City Hall, the city of Aldrip was forced into an upgrade status. While this upgrade was being implemented, characters were pulled into a false reality where they believed they were natives to the city of Aldrip.

Aldrip has been a bit of a glitchy place for many, many months. However, in Summer 2024, these glitches became difficult to ignore, and pointed at evidence of a catastrophic systems failure. For several months, characters experienced chaotic effects as elements from their worlds and many others were thrown into the setting without warning, even going so far as to import a Gnosia infection.

The AI in charge of Expiation believed that performing a system reset might be the only way to stop the glitches before they could impact the world as a whole.

In September 2024, characters complied with the AI’s request and performed a reset. Although this set the AI back to a default state where it felt more neutral–rather than affectionate–toward the Chosen, several people created a system backup that they hope will return some of the data that has made the AI more sympathetic toward the Chosen.

When Aldrip was reset, City Hall became a Courthouse, and this is the new building where Chosen are now sent for sentencing.

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.

October's TDM takes place on October 21st.

You can view our CALENDAR to keep important dates in mind. RESERVES open on October 21 and APPLICATIONS will open on October 24. After this, applications will next open in December 2024.

Full Navigation

Arrival

Spooky season has come to Aldrip in full force! City and outskirts gardens are full of pumpkins to harvest, trees begin turning red and orange, and there’s a chill in the air that’d have anyone reaching for a cozy sweater. The wind picks up occasionally, howling through the trees, especially near the forest… While the seasonal weather is welcoming, the locals are anything but: they send disapproving glances and keep a wide distance. Unfortunately, this may only be heightened by the new arrivals to the city…

Newcomers to Aldrip face a rude awakening this month. Strange iron cages have appeared on surfaces all over town, short and tall alike, and this is where new Chosen find themselves upon arrival. The cages themselves aren’t terribly hard to open, honestly; the latch is on the outside, and it’s a bit finicky, but it’s not locked or anything. That said, some of these cages are quite high up. They’re sometimes near ledges and windows, but not always, and some new Chosen might need a helping hand to get down.

Yeah. The optics aren’t great. No wonder the locals are a little nervous!

The fall carnival

On the morning of October 21st, a Fall carnival pops up, seemingly out of nowhere. It hasn’t been well-advertised–maybe a flyer or two around town–but luckily for the Chosen, those who work there don’t seem to have the same opinion of them as the locals do. Costumes are not required for the carnival, but they’re definitely encouraged! There is a large tent near the entrance with lots of costumes to choose from, and changing rooms as well, should the Chosen decide they’d like to give it a try. The tent workers will be so excited to help with this process–but they might find some very unexpected choices for the Chosen!

There are plenty of rides, games, and food stalls, so come on down! Some special attractions the Chosen may take note of include:

The Funhouse
Billed as a standard house of mirrors, the Chosen are encouraged to try to get through the maze as quickly as they can. Push your limits! Test yourself!

Inside the mirror maze, the Chosen will find more of a test than they might have expected, at first. As they go deeper into the maze, the mirror reflections seem to change. At first, it’s just little things: your reflection might look in a different direction, or move when you stand still. But deeper within the maze, these mirrors begin to show things about the Chosen that they might not be ready to admit just yet. Some reflections may try to confess to the character’s crime to anyone who may be in the funhouse, even going into detail about it. Some may even show the crime as it happened, or a warped version of that crime. Anyone present can see and hear these reflections.

The reflections will follow Chosen until they find their way out of the funhouse. Unfortunately, that could take quite a bit longer, since those reflections are so very vocal and distracting.

Pumpkin Pick-up
You know those duck games at a fair where you pick up a rubber duck and the bottom of the toy has a prize written on it? Well, we know better than to pick up a duck in a dungeon carnival here in Expiation, so for extra spooky flair, these are small pumpkins instead, with painted jack-o-lantern faces! Picking up a pumpkin should reveal a prize…but what’s this? It’s a challenge instead? Interesting.

Written on the underside of each pumpkin is a truth-or-dare style directive. Players are free to make up any challenge they want, here! If you’re looking for some ideas, we’ve provided some examples in the details cut below.

Click here for a list of example challenges!

Tell someone your biggest regret
Tell someone about the scariest moment you’ve ever had
Confess your deepest shame to a stranger
Take someone’s shoes
Attempt to pickpocket someone without them noticing
Find a stranger and show off a secret talent
Tell someone about the thing you hate most, deep down
Kiss or hug a stranger
Eat something that doesn’t look like food
Tell someone about the cruelest thing you have ever done
Start dancing in the middle of a crowd, but only if there’s no music playing
Tell a stranger about the worst lie you ever told
Ask a stranger out on a date
Set off a small firework without warning
Give away your shirt and do not replace it
Confess your greatest weakness
Put on an extra silly costume
Exchange clothes with a stranger

You get the idea! Feel free to use these as a jumping off point and make up your own–there are no limits to what the pumpkins might say. Once the task has been completed, Chosen may turn the pumpkins in at one of the prize booths for whatever prize they would like. There’s no visible indication on the pumpkin as to whether the task is done or not, so you’re welcome to try bluffing, if you don’t want to complete it…but somehow, the booth worker always seems to know.

Dueling Potions
One of the stalls is a game of chance: two identical potions sit before you on a table. The carnie claims that one is a luck potion, and that choosing that potion will give you excellent luck for the whole day…but how do you tell which is which? By drinking the potion, of course!

There’s a 50% chance of victory, here. One vial does indeed contain a good luck potion, and if you choose that vial, your luck will be incredible for the next 24 hours. Unfortunately, the other bottle contains a bad luck potion, and that will have the opposite effect: for 24 hours, you’ll be plagued by disaster, bad happenstance, and maybe even some extra clumsiness. Does it seem a bit like you need to have good luck to get good luck, here? What, is this a commentary on something? Hmm.

Fortune Teller
Want some woo in your spooky season? A midnight-blue tent covered in stars seems to invite you in. You’ll find a bonafide fortune teller within, complete with crystal ball and heady incense. How fun! They’ll give you a cursory reading, either by palm or with strange-looking cards. You get the feeling that this reading is fairly accurate, but strangely…it’s hard to recite details later, if you try to tell someone else about what they told you. How odd. Maybe it was the incense.

It’s not just a hazy fortune and a nose full of frankincense that Chosen leave this booth with: they also feel a compulsion to speak their minds more than they might otherwise. Whether this is telling secrets usually kept close to the vest, expressing their opinions more readily, readily admitting to crimes they’ve been charged with or other wrongdoings, or some other manifestation of this effect is up to players!

There are plenty of other games, rides, and booths to explore, many of which have perfectly standard fare for events like these. Characters can use these booths to win tickets and get prizes: many booths offer cute stuffies and kitschy toys, of course, but Chosen can also find useful items like weapons, food, clothing, accessories, and things like that.

Witch hunt

Last year’s Witch Hunt was metaphorical in nature–this year, it’s much more literal. A limited number of witch hats are placed on a table in front of the carnival. As soon as the clock strikes noon, the Chosen may grab one and try to keep it out of the hands of fellow competitors. These hats are first-come, first-served, but it really doesn’t matter who starts out with one–it’s who ends the hunt with one that counts!

It seems to be like a city-wide game of tag. The Chosen’s job is simple: obtain and keep a witch hat on their head until the clock strikes midnight. If a “witch” is caught by another Chosen (by way of being tagged), they must hand over their hat, or they’ll be disqualified.

There’s no official sign-up for the hunt, so characters can join in whenever they’d like, or may decide not to join at all. So, what’s this all for? Anyone who manages to have a witch hat on by the time the clock strikes midnight is guaranteed a prize! OOCly, this prize is any small non-magical item from home, either personal or not; ICly, Chosen will not know what this prize is before entering. How do you obtain this prize? There’s an RNG for those who would like a chance to sign up to win an item. Sign-up is optional, and TDMers are welcome to join in! New items will be delivered at the start of November, so any new applicants who win the hunt will be able to obtain their items as well.

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

[laserguy]

Putting this out there, but you suddenly got taken from your home world to a place that you've probably never seen before. So, it doesn't sound entirely impossible, right?

[He manages to keep that calm, even if it's clear that the older man doesn't really believe him. It's fine-- well, maybe not fine, but it really won't help if he gets defensive in return. When has that ever helped anyone? It never helped Scott, that's for sure. He can almost feel himself just slipping into that mindset, that person that's supposed to be 'Cyclops' in the future. It's becoming more and more natural lately.

At least it will stop him from snarking that Zekarion sure is a dramatic bitch.]

We're supposedly here for 'rehabilitation,' but I wouldn't put much stock into it. [He frowns a little, but it's clear that Scott isn't lying.] It's... just a lot of things don't make sense here.

[chimericalclaw]

[He's a magical villain, Scott. Drama comes with the territory.]

Hallucinations are far more likely than any of this being genuine.

[And yet here he is, arguing with what may very well be just that. But somehow he doesn't sound like he's in distress when he says it, as unhappy as he is; it's like it's a possibility he's had to take into account before.

His eyes return to Scott at the mention of their apparent purpose here. A hint of that desperate strain from before becomes clear in his expression again—the same as when Altius was speaking of that injured him.]

There'd clearly be no point. [He turns away.] What I've been accused of is unforgivable...

[laserguy]

[He holds back from saying that Zekarion probably wouldn't have the imagination to hallucinate someone like him. You know, because he's really cool and everything. Look at that character development.

...

So, he's already read his parchment, huh? At least he doesn't have to go and tell him that bit, but seeing his reaction, it's obvious that Zekarion was slammed with a particularly nasty one. He... yeah, that's a common feeling and Scott almost instinctively reaches for the paper that he still keeps on him. The words written there have haunted him since they changed from his original crime, not wanting to believe that he'd do such a horrible thing.

But he did do that terrible thing. At least one version of him has.

Scott visibly fidgets, momentarily catching a faraway look, before he reverts his attention back on him.]

Those crimes aren't necessarily true. You wouldn't be the first person with a false accusation. [...] As I've said, a lot of things don't make sense.

[chimericalclaw]

[The question of the crimes attributed to all of them being true or false never crossed his mind, mostly because he'd refused to acknowledge them specifically at all in these few hours. Everyone has or will commit some harm in the world, whatever world they come from. The fact that this place has chosen any particular individuals over others was merely by its whims rather than any logic, he was sure.

But when the words on his parchment were what had changed his life entirely...]

If I don't return in time, it won't—

[Finally, some semblance of willpower returns to him before he finishes the sentence—or perhaps the realization of his crime is hitting him hard enough to silence his thoughts entirely. He shoves a hand over his face again, fingers threaded through his hair, tense enough that Scott might worry he's about to pull it out.]

Shut up, [he hisses to himself through his teeth.] Get a hold of yourself, Altius.

[laserguy]

[Oh great, back to square one. Maybe even... square zero or negative one, because he looks even more upset. Those fingers are visibly clenching his hair tightly and he's telling himself to shut up, so not great. If he-- Altius was around Scott's age, he'd probably feel a little more comfortable with maybe placing a hand on his shoulder or something, but dude's an adult.

So, he's just going to give him space by standing a few feet away with a half worried and half uncertain look.]

I'd tell you how to leave, but none of us have really figured out that part yet.

[The world reset and he hoped that they would be able to talk to the AI, but no dice. And Scott's not going to mention how there was an idea of just letting this place break apart on its own, nope.] We haven't given up though.

[chimericalclaw]

[He is trying very hard to follow his previous order to himself, but by god, he will achieve some semblance of his composure. For the moment, however, his hand remains where it is, the opposite curled into a fist tight enough his nails threaten to draw blood. Perhaps he's hoping the mild pain might give him some clarity to cut through whatever this is.]

There is always a way forward, no matter what I have to do.

[It... sounds a bit darker than the sort of determination Scott is referring to, but there's something desperate to it, too. He can recognize it in his own voice, and neither of these are things he'd put on display quite so easily. There's the addition of some notable anger, another typically restrained emotion, in his following words:]

What has been done to me?

[laserguy]

[Yeah, that's not ominous at all or anything.]

What do you mean by that? [Scott decides to focus on that, because that's slightly less common. People usually arrive here feeling like themselves, right? He did. Unless Altius is just referring to the fact that he's in a brand new 'world' and hasn't moved past that first hurdle. Yeah, he's trying to regain some composure, but it's obvious to even Scott that he's struggling.

It's a big hurdle, granted. He's probably more familiar with like... taxes than any of this crap.] Do you feel different?

[He wonders if new arrivals have been altered by the reset at all. It's important to check.]

[chimericalclaw]

I never behave this way. [In front of people.] I was handling it.

[Even if he weren't magically worn down by whatever this is, he wouldn't bother trying to say he was fine, but he'd like to think he was doing as well as anyone could expect! Then the realization hits him, and he whips around to look back towards the tent—now barely in sight, as he'd pointedly moved as far from it as he could before having his little breakdown.]

—the fortune teller. [He grits his teeth, a clear glare on his face.] Damn them—as though obscuring my memory wasn't enough...!

[His head is going to need to clear up real soon or he may not be able to stop himself from committing some targeted violence.]

[laserguy]

[So, the crazy laughter was caused by something else entirely, right. Uh-huh.

Although, Scott turns his head to look in the direction Altius is now facing and ah, right. The fortune teller. He hasn't tried his hand at a fortune yet and from the looks of things, it's a good thing he avoided it. It really doesn't surprise him that it put some weird influence on the man in front of him. That's how things tend to be around here.

Of course, this could still very well be copium on Altius' end--]

Alright, how about we just... find a place to sit down or something? [Scott asks, trying to not feel as awkward as he sounds.] Might be easier to fight of those effects.

[chimericalclaw]

[ The tension in him does not abate as he turns to look at the young man out of the corner of his eye. It's not a kind look. ]

Sitting down will help me fight it off.

[ He's giving Scott approximately five seconds to convince him. It might be a miracle if he manages, judging by his tone and how he's still turned towards that tent, but the fact that he's giving that much is... something. ]

[laserguy]

[That sure is a look he's getting. Scott doesn't flinch though, in fact, a part of him wanting to just double down as if rising to a challenge. Helps him to feel less awkward anyway.]

You know, easier to deal with outside influences if you have control over your own feelings and everything. [Repressing shit is the way to go. Scott's learning.] Getting upset at stuff has only made things worse for me.

[chimericalclaw]

[Zekarion barks out an incredulous laugh. As he places a hand over his chest, it's followed by several more which do nothing to paint the man as stable.]

You're telling me to calm down.

[He takes a step towards Scott, his voice quiet enough to only reach the two of them.]

Let me give you a bit of life advice. [The smile fades from his lips, leaving a sharp focus in his eyes.] Telling people to calm down never works.

[laserguy]

[Why does he always bump into the unstable people??

Despite all the shit he gives others sometimes, it's not often that he feels like he's actually in danger or that someone sincerely wants to hurt him. That's changed now with this guy, the mutant tensing as Altius comes closer to him until they're definitely in striking distance. He instinctively wants to reach up for his glasses, but even now, he's not going to fire off his beams at someone. At least not directly.

Maybe it won't come to that and that would be ideal. However he's not going to back down either and so Scott stares back at him.]

Sorry, must've tuned that lesson out. Habit of mine.

[chimericalclaw]

[Thankfully even at his most unhinged, Zekarion doesn't want to hurt this kid who's apparently trying to help. Even if it helps him regain some sense of control to see that tension in response to his approach—don't worry about it, it's a healthy coping mechanism, threatening teenagers is his job—the unspoken threat is an empty one.]

Maybe this time the thought will stick.

[But hey: good news! Scott has distracted him enough from thoughts of violence for him to consider another path forward. Though he turns his gaze back to the distant tent over his shoulder briefly, and the bitterness is still clear in his expression, there's a cooler sense to it. He's not about to go burn it down.]

There's some merit in the idea of putting space between us.

[laserguy]

[There's some wariness that Scott's unable to hide as he continues to stare at Zekarion. He doesn't particularly like the fact that he keeps on glancing over at the tent. Look, even if they are assholes and everything, he'd rather not have this new dude try and hurt them. It just won't turn out well for anyone, especially him. The locals have been acting cold towards the Chosen since the reset and while Scott's all about telling them off, he's not a proponent of causing harm either.

So, there's a small exhale from Scott when Zekarion mentions about putting space between them. Yeah, good.]

Something we can finally agree on. [Then a little quieter.] Besides, they're not worth your attention.

[chimericalclaw]

[Zekarion turns his eye back to the young man, his anger faded enough for his exhaustion to start to come through—between the energy expended on healing magic and being awake for almost a full day, it would be difficult to hide. It's still clear he's wound up, though; he's not letting himself rest because he can't afford to.]

Explain what you mean by that.

[laserguy]

[He lifts one shoulder in a half shrug, but despite how nonchalant the mutant appears to be, he isn't really joking around. This is just one of the more tense interactions he's had in a while, especially with a new Chosen. It's like a struggle between being serious and not really wanting to deal with this guy.

The clear exhaustion doesn't go unnoticed by Scott, which helps with making the mutant stay for a bit longer. Yeah. It's hard being here, especially at first. And there's that guy he mentioned that's dying at home.]

They're just assholes messing with you. [...] They don't really matter in the long run.

[chimericalclaw]

[Altius tilts his head as he scrutinizes the boy and thinks over the information he's gathered thus far, apparently unimpressed with the answer. His affect is flat, but not aggressive.]

Unless you or the other Chosen are willing and able to manipulate my mind on a whim, I'd consider them to matter far more.

[He's going to be paying very close attention to the locals, honestly. They'll probably tell him just as much about this place as the criminals brought here can, even if not in the same fashion.]

Just because you've decided against "getting upset" with the violation of your free will doesn't mean it's the correct decision.

[laserguy]

[Scott decides to not mention the fact that one of his friends is a telepath. Not the point anyway. Probably?? He finds himself sighing, trying just one more time to get his point across. After this, he's getting food. Find one of his friends because he doesn't want to spend his evening with this dude.]

Look, I'm just saying it's more trouble than it's worth trying to kill them or anything. [He wonders how he would've fared during the glitches or the infection, but he's not going to bring it up right now. Seems bad.]

But if you aren't going to, then I'll leave you alone.

[chimericalclaw]

[He at least has the presence of mind to look offended at the implication that he was going to murder somebody!]

That would be awfully drastic.

[And it wouldn't guarantee he'd get his memory or self control back! He was just going to have some strong words. Maybe a little magic manipulation. A threat or two. Killing would be a last resort! He's more subtle than that.]

You're not going to lead me to a "place to sit down"?

[The truth is that he's starting to feel the need for it. But the incense smoke has worn off enough to only only unlock one (1) level of his fake personality, leaving the more unpleasant side of him at the forefront. It's not strong enough anymore to get him to honestly express weakness again.]

[laserguy]

You seem like the type that would do something drastic.

[Scott flatly responds, but color him surprised-- what?? The dude was laughing kind of crazily earlier! And he implied that his crime was really bad, not to mention all the looks he kept on sending over to the tent. If not murder, he imagined that arson would be on the table at least.

But fine, okay. Guess he's not leaving him alone after all. If he's willing to follow along and sit somewhere, then that's probably good, even if it means that Scott is spending more time with this crabby old man. A crabby old man that's gone through shit, a stupid voice reminds him, and ugh.

Scott looks at Zekarion and nods, before gesturing for him to follow.]

Yeah, follow me. [He walks, away from the tent, and towards the busier parts of the carnival once more. The area with people actually walking around and grabbing food from the local stalls. Luckily, there's a bench nearby that's open and Scott points directly at it.]

There, a seat.

[chimericalclaw]

As I said— [he reminds Scott with a momentary look of annoyance,] —I never behave this way.

[The fact that he cannot currently display that is a continued source of aggravation. But he follows as he implied he would nonetheless, doing nothing to combat the crabby impression he's given off so far; he's mostly got a suspicious frown on his face.

He's not terribly pleased to be headed back into the thick of it. Crowds... he's never liked crowds. He's always stood out too much.]

I was hoping for somewhere a bit more quiet.

[But even as he mutters this and shoots Scott a look that says Wow, really? Never could have found this one, he does actually drag his tired self over to it to sit. And sit he does, slumped forward enough to rest his elbows on his legs.]

[laserguy]

[Press x to doubt--

Scott has a hard time picturing this guy as anything but a little unhinged and grumpy. First impressions, man. He doesn't comment about it, at the very least, only sending him a slightly unimpressed look of his own when he complains about the new area.]

Beggars can't be choosers. [The mutant responds flatly, once again half-tempted to just leave him now so that he can do his own thing. But no, he's sticking around because he feels just slightly sympathetic still. Maybe just double checking and making sure that he doesn't snap suddenly and cause a scene. Yeah, that's probably it.

Although, he looks really tired right now...]

Just sit tight for a second. I'll be back.

[If Zek looks up, he'll notice Scott going to a food stall not too far away. The teen's intentions are probably pretty clear.]

[chimericalclaw]

[Altius lets out a reluctant mmph at the response. Even he can't argue against his status as a beggar at this point, given the circumstances. He'll have to make his way out of the carnival and somewhere better, wherever that might be, himself. After a few moments of regaining himself and gathering what else he can from this companion.

But he doesn't relax by any means, still following the surroundings with sharp amber eyes—including Scott's path towards the stall.

Having people help him unprompted isn't unfamiliar; in fact, he's come to basically expect it thanks to honing his charismatic magic for that purpose. In all honesty he doesn't know if he can turn it off—so to him, Scott's apparent intent doesn't come across as the sort of kindness as it might actually be.

Still, he won't reject it. And later when he sees the effect the young man has has on other Chosen, he'll recognize it to be genuine enough. When Scott returns with whatever he's picking up, Zekarion's eyes are on him again.]

[laserguy]

[When Scott returns to Zekarion's side, he's carrying a couple of corndogs and a couple cups of lemonade for them to have. How is he managing to carry everything? Skill, obviously, and experience because he has a girlfriend that he often buys food for. Zekarion is unfortunately not his girlfriend, but he'll still have a corndog getting offered almost directly to his face.]

You know, you can do more than just stare grumpily at me. Here, I'll help you.

[He lowers his voice just a little, like he's trying to mimic the older man's voice and when he speaks, that exasperation is still clear in his voice.] 'Thank you very much, Scott, for not only the food but putting up with my ass.'