TEST DRIVE MEME ( 006 )

[lifeaftr_mods]

Test Drive Meme #6

Hello, and welcome to LifeAftr! We’re pleased that you’re expressing an interest in the game. Here, you can test the waters, gauge how your character may fare in the world of LifeAftr, and even gain some in-game incentives, if you so choose.

Remember that Reserves will open on December 17th! Due to the holiday season, Applications will be opening on December 26th, with an app period shifted to end on January 2nd instead of the usual timeframe!

Two important notes:

1. LifeAftr's test drives take place on the island of Mu, which exists apart from the real world and possesses a dream-like quality that characters are innately aware of from the moment they appear on its shores. No need to panic or fret. Dreams are odd things, after all - and anything can happen in them. Why would anyone question where their mind chooses to wander in its sleep?

2. Due to the nature of Mu, threads in our test drive can not only be accepted as thread samples in your application, but can be accepted as game canon as well. In fact, certain choices your character makes in Mu have the potential to bear in-game consequences, largely in the form of test drive reward items.

United We Stand
This particular month, Mu has seen fit to recreate the strange, dichotomous island of Monsun. Most of the information regarding this peculiar land can be found in the informational post linked, but as a quick rundown: Monsun's western side is a hot wasteland of a desert prone of disasters and mishaps, but will affect your character's emotional and psychological state in a positive sense, while its eastern side is a verdant forest filled with endless resources...as well as a tendency to bring out the absolute worst of your character.

The western region blazes with a vengeance, the imaginary sun roasting overhead. The psychological effects of this area of island will shine far more kindly upon you than the sun does; your character's best qualities have been brought to light, and the longer they remain here, the more profound those qualities will become.

This is probably a good thing, too. Because those cactus plants on the horizon seem to be moving closer...and closer...

In fact, they aren't really plants at all. Those who squint may find themselves thinking of another, cuter version of sentient cacti found on other worlds, but the mutual relation to a certain desert plant is where the similarities come to an end. Walking cacti are silent predators who prefer to slowly approach their prey, avoiding being noticed by their targets until it is too late.

Luckily, these creatures do not rely on projectiles to attack. Rather, their needle thin spikes can extend up to one foot out of their bodies in a fast, powerful motion - more than enough to puncture flesh and muscle. If you've ever wanted to try death by acupuncture, these are your kind of monster... but if not, a sharp weapon or fire will certainly help whittle down their numbers.

Regardless, all of your best qualities will come to light quickly in a fight, whether it be courage, diplomacy, compassion, earnest hope, or whatever other positive traits you might bear. Such is Monsun's boon to you.

Divided We Fall
The east, on the other hand, is the polar opposite to that desert wasteland. The sun shines evenly through the thick spread of deciduous canopies, which shade you from the worst of that unforgiving heat. The verdant greenery is perfectly temperate and even tranquil.

A pity that you'll soon find your worst qualities manifesting at a rather rapid rate. The proper Monsun generally gives you a twenty-four hour window before your most despicable traits start to flourish, but Mu, it seems, has sped up the clock significantly.

Scattered across the rich landscape, a herd of deer can be found prancing eagerly about, seemingly oblivious to their potentiality as a food source. In fact, they hardly seem to react to the approach of foreign entities at all. They're quite placid, and content to sit idly back until attacked - at which point they'll do little more than flee at a brisk pace. What an ideal set of circumstances, truly. But should anyone else impose upon your peace, you'd better hope they don't mind encountering you at your absolute worst.

Don't Fear the Succ
You wake on a boat. It's a very nice boat, make no mistake, weatherbeaten and worn as it may seem, but it's still a boat, and you're still surrounded with lapping waves, as far as the eye can see. Or as far as the eye can sea.

Still, no reason not to make the best of this, right? Just sit back, relax, and let the wind take you wherever it may. You hardly need to eat or sleep in the regular sense in dreams, and this might be a good deal more picturesque than many of the dreams you're probably used to. All told, this is really quite a nice diversion -

Hold on. Did something just bump up against the hull?

Yes, in fact. Something did. Something with long, long, reaching tentacles that will soon snake over the deck to try and grasp your vessel in a death grip much like that of a boa constrictor: designed to crush and destroy.

It seems you've run afoul of that legendary creature of the depths; the one that every sailor most fears.

A kraken. Hope you're not averse to a little hentai.

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LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[lightlessfuture]

[ They sit at the water's edge, content to...drink? They seem to be drinking, of a sort. Cupping the water in their hands and bringing it to somewhere near their mouth.

You can read my mind? The little bug seems more curious than shocked. I can do that too. If I want.

They sound...young, or at least younger than their combat prowess suggests. They shake their head at the mention of a name, though.

No name. We weren't named. You can call me anything. ]

[mindread_it_all]

[A fellow mindreader and one that can do it at will instead of having no off switch, huh. It's not the first time she's met another mindreader (she went to a whole school full of psychics after all), but this is still a mild surprise to see that this child is one.

She switches to telepathically projecting her thought. It's more comfortable for her than speaking. Don't mind this, I'm sending my words to your mind instead of using spoken words. If you'd rather, I can go back to speaking. And, hmm, I'll have to think up a good nickname for you.

She rejects out of hand names like Bug, Kid, and the like. It'll take a while to think up a suitable name. But, really, this kid's apparently younger than her and that good at fighting? What kind of life must've they led?]

[lightlessfuture]

[ They can mind-read with the right tool in hand, to be more accurate, but they don't really think to clarify that at this point in time. It's enough for the moment to explain that they can do it, if they need to.

Not that they really want to. It seems rude??

I don't mind.
I have no voice. I write or listen instead. So this is new. They sound happy enough, at least. It's apparently a novel method of communication for them. ]

[mindread_it_all]

[Well, at least that's nice that they have a good way to communicate now. Mute, huh? And they seem happy enough to communicate in this way. Guess her mindreading has a positive side right now.

I communicate like this with my friends at the school I go with. It's full of people with similar abilities. It's a pretty convenient way to have conversations.

As for the name thing, how about Taylor as a nickname?

A nice and gender-neutral name, since they feel neutralish to her.]

[lightlessfuture]

[ Taylor is fine. They're content with whatever people want to call them. They have no name themselves; like a mask, it constrains them into one form, and they don't feel attached enough to a form to want to be called one thing over another.

What is a school? They tilt their head, looking at their new traveling companion. That seems to be a foreign concept to them. ]

[mindread_it_all]

[Oh geezus. Okay, how to explain it. It's basically a place where teachers teach a bunch of students. In this case, they teach a bunch of things about the world, how it works, its history, things like that. The school I go to also teachs psychics like me how to use our powers.

That probably only confused Taylor (as she's thinking of the Knight now) more. Well, she'll just field any further questions. But her curiosity's too much for her and she asks:

So, what's it like where you come from? Did you have someone who taught you how to fight?
And what else did you get taught?]

[lightlessfuture]

[ They seem to be able to grasp the concept of "a place that teaches things to other people". That seems fair enough. It's like if Nailmasters had classes instead of one pupil at a time, and they didn't live in inaccessible places.

They're trying.

I had to defend myself, so I fought. Nobody taught me. I was not taught anything else. They kick their feet as they contemplate the questions that are being given to them. Is this what it would be like to speak all the time?

The world is very large. And dangerous. But people are nice and it is pretty so I don't mind. There's always peace to be found, always small things to do and to treasure, if you look for it. And there is adventure, too. ]