TEST DRIVE MEME #14

[expiationmods]

Test Drive Meme #14

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 the Courthouse (formerly City Hall) and told to perform a task related to their assigned crime. Their only contact at the Courthouse 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 September 2024, that AI needed to be reset as a consequence of some catastrophic systems failures. So far, there has been no downside to this reset–but the AI has also been strangely absent since then.

-In November 2024, a strange event overtook Aldrip and turned it into a week-long eternal night where technology ceased to work. During this time, the simulation that generates Expiation seemed to malfunction, causing a strange crack to appear in the surroundings. Through this crack, characters were able to see some sort of metal enclosure. They could reach a hand in, but little more than that. This crack has disappeared, for now, but what it means for Aldrip's future remains to be seen.

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. Current players may use TDM threads as part of their AC proofs. Applications are open to all this cycle!

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

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A TRANQUIL BEACH VACATION... ?

Hmmm… the sun is shining, there’s the sound of waves–

Wait, the sound of waves?

This new batch of Chosen find themselves waking up in what looks like a fishing village. Some of them wake up outside, some of them wake up with their faces in the sand. Others wake up in what seems like an inn? They might not be the only ones in the bed with them, though. There’s not that many spaces! They may find themselves waking up next to another Chosen – or one of the locals, the Naga. They seem like there’s nothing wrong with this though, and even welcome them into their home. Do they want anything to eat? Drink? They can leave the bed even, if they’d like to continue to rest. Whatever the Chosen ask, they’ll give it to them without hesitation. See? Isn’t it so great here? You don’t even want to go to Aldrip right now! Those guys are awful. See what they did to those poor little welcome bots? Some of those Chosen had tried to dismantle or beat them! They’d run to Rumpitur and the Naga – who aren’t amazing with technology, but had been able to patch them up. But they’re very much still just second-rate patched. They can still see where they’ve been taken apart, and some wheels might even be lopsided as they roll around and give out the parchments and tablets.

Those poor, poor, bots.

But! Spring means rebirth, and that means that the Naga are celebrating. They've even been inviting Chosen from Aldrip to come visit! Those merchants they sent over there were inviting them while trying to sell their wares. Watch out though - they may get dragged into helping set up for the party, or help cook and run errands for the festivities to come.

XOXO GOSSIP GIRL

While the appearance of the Chosen in Rumpitur was not expected, the locals seem to take it in stride - and welcome the new arrivals warmly. The small town may not have much to spare, but they will happily share what they have: a bed at the inn, a meal at the restaurant, a couple of fish from the recent haul. The snake people are more than willing to engage in conversation, too, though don't count on them to answer all your questions - they can't tell you what they don't know, after all. Instead, they're likely to steer the conversation in the direction of the other Chosen. They shudder as they speak of them, sighing dramatically as they recount all the reasons why they're not so keen on the newcomers' Aldrip counterparts.

"Have you heard? They've blown up their own city hall three times! How barbaric!"

"I don't understand how the people there put up with them… they have no respect for anything! They even erected statues of themselves without asking for permission!"

"Now I'm not saying they're all like this, but when my neighbor's friend went over to visit, she swore up and down they were sleeping in coffins!"

"I know this might sound crazy, but my mother has seen them wear socks with sandals!"

"Apparently some of them go missing on a regular basis. I'm not saying they're responsible, but one has to wonder what happens to them…"

… And so on and so forth. The Rumpitur residents are eager to share all the gossip, no matter how ridiculous or improbable, and will continue to do so even after the aforementioned Chosen from Aldrip arrive at their town. They advise the newcomers should stay on guard around them, and don't believe what they say easily. The question is, do you believe them?

Oh, and there is one more topic that seems prevalent among the rumors - the villagers whisper about the visitors from faraway lands finally deciding to end their isolation and reestablish friendly relations with the mainland. What could that be about…?



OOC:
Is there any specific gossip you'd like the people of Rumpitur to spread, real or fake? Feel free to comment here, so the players can use it in their threads if they want! If you'd like to submit a gossip about another character, please make sure the player is okay with it first!

AREN'T YOU EGG-STATIC?

It’s Spring time! It’s time to celebrate the new budding leaves in the trees, many with their blossoms on full display. There are birds singing in the trees, an energy in the little animals that inhabited around and in this fair city.

The merchants of Rumpitur are also here to not only sell their resources for a steep price, but as a show of good faith and to attempt to build bonds, they have offered to celebrate the annual tradition of egg hunting within and around the village! There are eggs that are very particular with chromic shells scattered around town, and they are meant to start off the Spring hope of a good year for commerce, friendship, and prosperity.

Never mind that pesky stereotype that snakes eat eggs. These are traditional and celebratory events only!

Everyone is encouraged to celebrate this fun and light-hearted tradition of find and seek! When the event kicks off, the Rumpitur merchants explain that the eggs are meant to be cracked open to reveal a prize inside! Their chromic shells can be cracked and then peeled or they can be smashed (you heathens) to reveal their contents. The chromic egg shell colours do not correspond to a particular prize either, so it’s all fun and games until someone turns into a snake. What? No, nevermind.

Run free and have fun, Chosen! Share your eggs or horde them for yourself!

Edible Effects:(click to expand!)

Milk Chocolate Egg - Nothing! It’s just delicious! Or is it…?


White Chocolate Egg - Characters will manifest angelic qualities such as wings or a halo or white clothing. They are compelled to help others in need and to avoid causing crime! They will even go so far as to stop a crime from happening at all costs… even self sacrifice! These effects will last 24 hours; this effect can be prolonged with repeatedly consuming this type of egg.


Dark Chocolate Egg - Characters will manifest demonic qualities such as horns, barbed tail, red skin, sharp teeth and even leathery wings. They are compelled to encourage and entice other characters to commit crime (do the Chosen really need help with this? No.). These effects will last 24 hours; this effect can have a prolonged duration with repeatedly consuming this type of egg.


Chocolate Peanut Butter-filled Egg - Characters will suddenly be attached to the first person that they see. They are tethered to within 3 feet from this other person. Your new partner for the next 8 hours? Yeah, they can walk away from you, and you have to follow or be dragged along. And yes, if multiple Chosen eat one of these, there can be multiple teethers. What a great bonding experience!


Chocolate and Caramel Egg - Characters can only tell the truth; alternatively, characters can only tell lies. This is not a compulsion so much as their words will change and warp as they leave their mouths depending on the effect they are under. They can resist, but to no avail. Give in and speak your truth/untruths! This effect will last 6 hours.


White Chocolate with Strawberry-filling Egg - Characters under this effect face an escalating compulsion to share a secret, a crime, or a regret about their lives. The longer they hold out, the more painful the experience becomes. They must tell another Chosen; talking to the trees or the Rumpitur natives doesn’t count. This compulsion lasts for 4 hours or dissipates after the compulsion has been fulfilled.


Chocolate with Lemon-filling Egg - Characters experience aphrodisiac effects. They are overcome with the urge to cuddle anyone around them or… you know. On this effect, characters can either be charming or sassy, so they are ready and able to lay down some smooth moves or encourage a little rough play. This effect lasts 12 hours and can be prolonged with repeated consumption.


Chocolate Nougat Egg - Characters are suddenly very drunk or high or hyper-active. They will probably make a nuisance of themselves or at least need help to find somewhere safe. Let all your drunk/high/hyper dreams come true and try not to puke in someone’s flower pots, okay? This effect will last for 8 hours; it can have its effects prolonged or stacked with repeated consumption.


Rotten egg - Seems like you got pranked. Not only does it taste bad but it seems like it will plague a character who eats it with the worst luck possible.

Non-Edible Effects:(click to expand!)

Small useful item - Use is all in the eye of the beholder of course, but these items are something that can find a place. Examples: mini-binoculars, compass, swiss-army knife, engagement ring (looking at you Vi/Cait & Scott/Kotone), etc. Player discretion encouraged.


Small useless item - This is a small item like a toy, a part, or something that may be fun but have little to no use. Examples are glitter, a mini-puzzle, toy car, magic 8-ball, chinese finger-trap, etc. Player discretion encouraged.


Pet - It can be any kind of animal and not just ones born out of eggs. It can only grow to the size of a medium-sized dog, so no horses or elephants unless they are very miniature. Mystical or animals from a Chosen’s home are fine.


Fuzzy hand-cuffs - Do you need more explanation? The fur can be any colour or pattern that a player wishes. These make great gifts for people you like or don’t.


Magical Bullshit McGuffin - Effects unknown. Only one egg has this ominously glowing orb. Leave a comment if your character wants this and it will be RNG, with the results in the next SOTG. No world-ending skybeams will be included.

IS THAT A SIDEQUEST?

The Naga will also offer quests in exchange for food, and favors. Veteran Chosen may find that if they complete them, the attitudes towards them will soften. New Chosen will find the same thing, that the attitudes seem to cool down towards the old ones the more they’re completed.

There’s a snake in a tree!

A baby Naga is stuck in a tree… somehow? It isn’t sure how to get down though, and is screaming and crying. The parents are at the base of it, pleading for the child to come down, and unable to go up there themselves. Help?

Time to fish!

There’s a fish caught in a net off the docks that the Naga just can’t seem to pull up and onto it. This will require a small group of two or more characters to pull it up and onto the dock. But watch out! The more they tug, the more the fish thrashes. While it won’t hurt Chosen that fall into the water, it might be very likely that they get pulled in.

Fetch!

Could you help some of the cooks around the town? They’re kind of busy cooking for all of these newcomers, so they’re going to ask some groups of Chosen to go gather food from the forest. Be careful though, because there’s monsters out there.

Hey, you!

A Naga might try to get the attention of the Chosen and wave them over, saying that they need help building their new home. They’ll teach Chosen how to use the tools, and hopefully you get someone else with the building. Some of this stuff’s heavy.

OOC:
For old and new players (pending acceptance into the game), there will be a reward for helping out these guys in the SOTG. Quests are not limited to these four, and some may be made up by you if you wish! Just remember that they’re supposed to be positive in spirit, and contribute to Rumpitur in some way. Also, feel free to assume that the player submissions on the bestiary portion do show up in the game as we start to overhaul that page again!

ALL GOOD (?) THINGS COME TO AN END

After about a week, it seems like all the festivities are winding down. The older Chosen are starting to get shooed out of the village, and while they won’t completely kick out the newer ones… they’re going to heavily imply that they don’t have enough space for them all to live with them. Some can stay if they really want to, but they may be told they’re going to end up in Aldrip eventually. They all do, at one time or another, end up in the “home city” of the cycle.

Whatever that means!

But that’s just fine though, it’s not like they haven’t been subject to hearing gossip for a week straight. Just fine.

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

[laidtocrest]

Yep. [He pops the p as he says it.] Pretty sure if I've been here longer than a week I'd know better than to shove food in my mouth if it does that sort of thing regularly, even if it did taste pretty good.

[...it was pretty good peanut butter and chocolate.]

[nilhilistic]

[ rafal does love chocolate. so he can understand. ]

Hm. Well, I'm going to the beach for a swim. You should survive that, I think.

[babilun]

[ The Lance of Ruin is kind of ugly, though. Who would want that? Too boney.

Well, keep on trying Sylvain! Your efforts will not be in vain! Who knows? Maybe you can impress some city lass here with your strength!?]

I'm watching your struggle. So I'm quite busy.

[laidtocrest]

That's not a bad idea given this weather. [Listen, he's from a half-frozen strip of land and has really fucked up standards as to what constitutes hot and cold.]

So...

[Here they are. Heading to the beach. Completely and totally normal.] I shouldn't put strange food in my mouth no matter how good it looks. [Such good chocolate.] What else should I watch out for?

[nilhilistic]

[ rafal pauses. he's never been in this position so he really has to consider his words. ]

This place is watching us, so be careful in regards to your actions. And often, in some months, there'll be effects or strange things happening. So it helps to be on your guard or stick close to someone. Learn how to use the technology.

Beyond that . . . I'm not sure. I've been here for a year, but I've kept my distance.

[followyourstar]

< Right. Sorry, that was a silly question. Maybe I am more affected than I thought. >

[Or maybe it makes for a nice excuse. It's not like they haven't had moments of doubt before either. It all just seems to blur together, the question of what they feel vs what they're being made to feel. It should bother them more.]

< But thanks all the same. >

[They turn to face him and try to sound more confident than they feel.]

< I'll try and keep my chin up. Or, uh, whatever the equivalent is for me. >

[laidtocrest]

[Also rattles in the middle of the night, so that gets weird.]

Gee, thanks.

[(Weirdly nice to hear snark, though.) Whatever, he's climbing a tree to get the last of those peaches so the nagas won't be sad.] You got something to put these in? [He's climbing, he knows how to wrangle a tree.] Like an idiot, I brought the axe and forgot a basket.

[laidtocrest]

[It's a learning experience! Sylvain nods as he's told this place is watching them. Seems reasonable. Makes a little bit of a face about strange things but that also tracks. He's in a strange place getting fruit for nagas and eating chocolate that makes weird things happen to him and around him.

And then-]

A year. [Hold on.] A year. Anyone been here longer or...?

[nilhilistic]

A few. Not many, I think.

Are you looking for someone?

[chimericalclaw]

[He smiles slightly in an attempt to reassure them, and it's made a little brighter by their attempt to brush past it. With a faint chuckle:]

Alright—but you don't have to apologize. I'm glad you felt like you could ask me. [He puts a hand on their shoulder for a moment—a longer moment than usual, perhaps—before offering two encouraging pats and shifting back to rest against the tree trunk.]

For now I think we've earned some rest, hm...?

[laidtocrest]

[...]

I.

[...]

I'd hope not given the entire crime thing - some places are better avoided, you know? I'd feel terrible if I knew Ingrid was running around or Felix causing trouble, or, worse, I just missed them.

[nilhilistic]

I wouldn't take that too seriously.

The "crimes" people have committed tend to be minor. Or made up. I know only a handful of people with real crimes to atone for.

[theskyaccepts]

Could you go deeper, if you wanted?

[laidtocrest]

I got convicted of 'grand theft auto', so...

[Shrug!]

I don't even know what that means.

[individualized]

[While nothing about her could be described as being excited or enthused, it is clear that Echo remains interested, and that still says something.]

As in, it's a custom related to some sort of festival?

[She went to one of those once. It was that one time she had fun in her world! And she learned about this thing called "happy" and everything. She also remembers things can get a little awkward if you just do something without necessarily knowing the meaning coughOzcough, so she'll keep asking her questions.]

Is the act of seeking an egg meaningful in some way?

a.

[melnik]

[ The longer one lives in this city, the more they begin to realize that any new offering or experience should be looked upon with severe prejudice. Free food? Definitely not to be trusted. And now of all times, when their actual food supplies are running scarce, a bunch of chocolate eggs looks all the more suspicious. Miller avoids the situation completely.

Or so he'd planned to, but he did hear that the people of Rumpitur were having a festival and he wasn't one to miss out on the opportunity to attempt strengthening relations. There was clearly a lot they stood to learn from the Rumpiturians. So he's here... just in time to feel his wrist get yanked by this random man who is passing him by. Sorry, what?!

Miller spins around and starts walking in step with him, since he doesn't exactly have the choice to do anything else. ]

That's what I should be asking you! You ate one of those eggs, didn't you?

[laidtocrest]

[Okay, they're going to have to have a conversation. Not a bad conversation, but still a conversation.]

Yeah, I did. [And it was really good, too. It was so tasty. Almost worth this. Almost.] Look, I was stuck in a war back home. The food got terrible. I got tired of turnips. You ever had a turnip- uh.

[Names.] Name's Sylvain.

[nilhilistic]

[ rafal huffs. ]

Possibly? But why?

[nilhilistic]

Auto stands for . . . automaton or automobile. Which I'm assuming you do not know of.

[ very weird. hm. ]

My crime was true, but yours seems more arbitrary than others.

[chimericalclaw]

That's right.

[Festival, holiday, whatever it might be. Close enough. Either way, he's glad to offer what knowledge he can—but in this particular case he brings a hand to his chin with a thoughtful look. As someone who largely avoids religion, he has no idea.]

I couldn't say for sure... I'd think the eggs themselves are a symbol of spring and the renewal it brings. Perhaps the game reflects going out to forage and such?

[melnik]

[ Oh, it's as he feared. He's new. As much as it excuses him from his curiosity, it's unfortunately still landed them in this bind. If it's as simple as finding themselves stuck together for a little while, that's not so bad, but... ]

Sylvain. I'm Miller. Let us hope this will be an easy lesson for you. Losing our free will in the most stupid way imaginable is something that happens here all the time.

[ So it's either get used to it or get good! ]

You were at war, were you? You'll fit right in. It seems many of us share that experience.

[individualized]

Ah, I see.

[She crosses her arms and thinks silently for a few moments. Echo doesn't want to talk about why she even cares about festivals or finding ways to participate, especially since he actually "met" Oz.]

You said I should look in a place a child might check? I have little experience with children. I'm not familiar with their typical thoughts.

[She's misremembering what he said just a bit. There's a lot to figure out, okay?]

[capturingmemories]

Huh? It’s that time again?

[Maybe March hasn’t kept up with the date or its this place. Whichever it is, there’s no reason to avoid it. Still, she smiles at the thought despite the circumstances.]

It’s too bad Dan Heng and the others aren’t here to celebrate, but we’ll make the most of it. You know, I could use a soda for long stories. Are they selling one nearby?

b

[entreats]

[ Sylvain is clearly not having a great day here.

And it's apparently not about to get better, because there's a startled noise coming from somewhere nearby. Ange thankfully wasn't close enough to be completely drenched with the paint, but she definitely got a few splashes onto her outfit all the same - and she's staring down at it, horrified.

Her face snaps up, looking at the source of the paint, only to find Sylvain as the one thing covered in it.. So her eyes narrow, looking angry as the young woman asks: ]

What did you do?

[entreats]

[ .. sheesh, talk about attitude, Ange thinks. ]

Do you really think I have any reason to help you if you're going to act like that? [ Sure, she may have trouble with people who are overly cheery and nice, but that's an entirely different problem than this one. ] With that attitude I think you're going to have to get that thing out of there all by yourself.