TEST DRIVE MEME ( 010 )

[lifeaftr_mods]

Test Drive Meme #10

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 April 17th, and Applications on April 24th!

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.

Friends on the Other Side
When you open your eyes, it is to a shadow-tinted cityscape. The buildings are clay-built and colorless, plunging seemingly infinitely onward into the sky before disappearing into a dense pool of foglike sky. The silence weighs heavily like a mantle across every inch of this place, and no matter how you squint at them, every structure seems strangely blurred, as though being viewed through distorted telescope lens, or in the reflection of a pool of water.

All told, it's probably obvious from the start that all is not well here. From the moment you arrive in this strange nether-place, your eyelids have begun to grow heavy. Something about this city and its perpetual, misted darkness leaves you inexplicably drowsy, ready to curl up and fall asleep on the spot.

That wouldn't be a problem, perhaps, if you were alone. Mu does not boast a great deal of flora and fauna, but what it does have is a creature capable of inflicting much in the way of misfortune - clockroach. They occupy this city in swarms of wraith-like wisps, both intangible and curiously amorphous. But when they draw close, they instill a sense of terror like no other, usually igniting one's fight-or-flight response as a result. Sure, they might not be capable of actually hurting you, but why should that matter, when they have a skill for inducing a sense of utter dread in their targets?

Ever try to get some sleep with fresh adrenaline pumping in your veins?

Pretty Fly for a...Fire Guy
With indigo-blue skies, lush fields of green, and miles of rippling grass hills for as far as the eye can see, Mu has cast you into the perfect and picturesque evening. As the imaginary sun lips the very edge of the horizon and the last glow of orange fades to the purple of dusk, the fields come to life with a smattering of bright, wavering lights. LifeAftr has its fair share of fireflies native to its many regions, but this particular kind is special. They're the size of quarters, very pretty to look at...and incredibly volatile besides. It's hard to interpret what these wondrous little glow-bugs might view as a threat or not, but at least it's remarkably easy to discern as much based on the sight of them alone: they're handily color-coded depending on their moods.

While they glow a contented amber by default, those that fireflies warm to will find themselves bathed in a green-blue glow as those bulbous, organic lanterns tint with a soft, cool turquoise. A few of them might even settle across your arms and in your hair, if they take that much of a shine to you.

Of course, those the fireflies don't warm to will be able to note as such when they light up a blazing crimson, mere seconds before the insects spit a stream of glowing orange, molten-colored acid. It stings and burns in equal measure, just as likely to scald you as it is to set the surrounding fields aflame.

Flower You Doing That?
Adventurers were both wary and relieved to discover that the next island on the horizon, known as Ziziphus, appeared to be a rather vegetation-rich paradise. They were considerably less relieved to learn that this island contained predators just like all the rest of them, despite the rich green backdrop of its meadows and the promise of lush woodland at its heart.

So it is that you, too, will learn that sometimes tufts of ferns are not tufts of ferns at all...but dangerous creatures called spindlanks. What might initially appear to be a leafy hillock will very quickly prove to be something far more...mobile, if you get close enough. That clump of grass and red ferns will abruptly hoist itself up on six vine-like tendrils, crawling for its prey like a very large, mossy spider. While it's fully capable of swiping at its foes with its massive, leafy arms, the spindlank's favored method of dispatching its prey is simply to scuttle forth until it's positioned directly above you and drop down. If its weight does not crush you and choking on the clods of earth doesn't smother you, don't worry; the spindlank intends to eat you alive with a set of fleshy jaws set deep in its center.

For despite their leafy appearance, spindlanks are very much carnivorous. Their size can vary from anywhere between six and ten feet tall when their appendages unfurl entirely. They burn as easily as any plant matter would, but the size of them can make them quite difficult to topple alone.

And they are almost always hungry.

---

LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

Comments

Noctis Lucis Caelum | FFXV | Airlocked CRAU

[nightcure]

friends on the other side
[ It'd been nice to feel relaxed, for once. To not have to worry about anything like the void or a crazy television network. It'd been nice to just... hang out with the people Noctis has grown to consider family, and especially Luna and Prompto. It'd been nice to not have to deal with a steadily growing sense of dread, of wrongness.

... Which explains why Noctis is running. Maybe you'll join him... or maybe you'll find him doubled over, hands on his knees, breathing a bit hard. ]

some kind of horrible drop...plant
[ It's really a beautiful place. Noctis finds himself almost distracted by it, but at least he's not fool enough to let his guard down completely. He's in a new place, after all; as far as he knows, he's pretty alone.

That is, until something drops on him.

Noctis gives a yell and a sword appears in his hand. He swings at the thing and somehow, he manages to get the thing off, but it's coming at him again, and-- ]

Damnit!

i'm so sorry for everything

[scourgingstars]

[The sound of someone snapping their fingers was the only warning before the air around the plant burst into flame, unmistakably a base Fire spell from someone who knew exactly how to wield it.]

[Unfortunately, the low chuckle from behind Noctis and the general disregard for telling him to get clear of the spell itself was a sign that it hadn't come from the expected source.]

My...it has been some time, hasn't it?

[Ardyn Izunia--unchanging as ever and in the ornate collection of layers guarding him from the sunlight--tilted his hat back with an empty smile that didn't reach emotionless yellow eyes.]

Your Majesty.

friends on the other side

[shatteredlenses]

[It's been some time since Mu has drug Ignis to its hazy shores. Before, it's always been with a purpose, but considering recent events, he's not certain if this is purposeful or merely another reminder of his failures. As usual, he can see nothing of the form the island has taken so he wastes no time reaching out with his other senses, only to draw them back in around himself like a blanket after a few moments. Never has the land been so still. So dead. It reminds him far too much of the Water and all that was said to lay below.

Despite the fact that something about Mu's current form makes his weariness and fears for the future--for a specific someone's future--all the heavier, Ignis forces himself into motion. There are possible new arrivals here and they are likely in danger. A tropical paradise this never has been and never will be.

It's hard to keep track of time in such a silent place, but after a little while, the sound of panting catches Ignis' hearing. The harsh rhythm suggests someone who was running from something, not exactly unexpected in this place. Quickly, Ignis makes his way toward the sound, stopping when he judges himself to be a few paces away, turning his back to them so he can more accurately focus on whatever danger might be approaching.]

What's chasing you? Tell me what you can and I'll have your back while we drive it away.

friends on the other side

[want_to_belong]

[Guessing where he was pretty quickly, Prompto didn't waste any time exploring his surroundings. Kind of dull... but the area might make some wicked shots for a horror movie. Not usually his style.

He was trotting about when he spotted someone running the other way from him and he knew. He knew Noct's build, his hair, the way he ran - everything about the figure struck him as familiar immediately and he took off after him. Despite not having been fed as well as normal for a long time, he was still a good runner, and when he put his mind to it - and Noct wasn't warping around like a dirty cheater - it didn't seem too hard to catch up.]

Noct!

[His voice drowned in excitement. He and Iggy had been concerned about their missing buddy for a while now, wondering where he'd gone. This meant he was back! Again.

He slowed as he caught up to him, bright smile fading into confusion when he first got a good look.]

Dude. You're old.

[And who else could get away with saying that but him? And probably Iggy. He was honestly baffled, though. Noct had never come back much different before, and when Iggy had disappeared there's was only a few days difference. This looked like way more than that.]

slides into your DMs---I mean comments

[covertizer]

[ When Akira sees someone running through the gloom and mist, he ends up falling into step. The creeping sense of dread wasn't lost on him - but it wasn't overwhelming right now, just... there. Going to get worse, absolutely, but manageable right now. ]

Where are we going?

[ Clearly talking will either help calm his new running companion, or terrifying him completely. 50/50 seems like good odds, honestly. ]

drop plant

[quadjumps]

[ you thought that you were free from airlocked, but guess who else is here, noctis. yuri spots him immediately while running from the spindlank terrorizing him. ]

Hey, Noctis! Kill this thing for me, will you?!

breathes idk what im doing / drop plant ig leggo

[marshalcy]

[ the thing about getting the drop on someone is that you never know when someone's getting the drop on you.

the next swing of the spindlank's arm is interrupted, the limb sliced cleanly off in a burst of leaves and vines. it stumbles back a few steps in pain and confusion, clearly attempting to look for the source, who casually drops down next to noctis. ]

You know, [ there's a lot of things she should probably address, such as his sudden aged appearance (no offense, noct, buy a shaving kit my dude), but it's easier to focus on other things in this moment. like driving off some six foot tall plant monster. ] I'm pretty sure I remember telling you to watch your kingly ass the last time I saw you. Guess that didn't work out so well, huh.

merle highchurch ( the adventure zone ) ota ; will match format!

[thornyonmain]

FRIENDS ON THE OTHER SIDE

[Oh, huh. Weird place you've got here. Pretty little wisps, though. Merle is approached by one quickly, and he smiles at it for a second, moving to greet it. That's when he's hit with the type of terror he hasn't felt since his century on the run.]

Aw, shit.

[He pulls out his warhammer and swings wildly at the wisp of a Clockroach, but it doesn't succeed in doing much more than waving around its form. It's not like he can use magic against it and see if that works, after all.]

PRETTY FLY FOR JOSS WHEDON'S CULT HIT SERIES

[Merle has his shirt off for some reason(????) and is leaning back in the grass, letting giant fireflies swirl overhead and occasionally land on him, taking off from the hair on his chest intermittently. He can get used to dreams like this. Nothing awful, just some nice grassy fields with some pleasant bugs.

His shirt is folded up and laid out on the grass next to him, and he closes his eyes, resting his head back on the grass and his arms. He takes a deep breath, not really noticing anyone's around with him when he talks out loud.]

Just a nice, chill night's rest... Nothing jumping at my ass for once. Yeah, I could party with this.

[He chuckles to himself. Restful sleep, who'd have thought?

No one tell him about the acid spit.]

COME ON, FLOWERS. COME ON, OTHER TYPE OF FLOWERS

I cast Charm Person!

[Merle shouts this at no one in particular, waving his arms at a shambling mass of dirt and flora, the hottest piece of ass this side of heaven he's seen in a while.

Only he doesn't have his magic, without Pan's ear any longer. At least it's theoretically a spell he has. For once.

Merle ineffectually directs his energies at the spindlank wandering around outside his reach for a few more moments before realizing his mistake.]

Right. Dammit, Pan. Couldn't give me a break for once, huh? What are you good for, anyway!?

[He folds his arms, annoyed, muttering to himself.]

Didn't want a plant boyfriend anyway...

Oh jesus, the Flowers I guess

[proficienciesouttheass]

[ Oh, there's something weird about this place. Is it a dream? Magnus has been in this field before, but it didn't feel quite like...you know what? It doesn't even matter. He's just gonna have a walk around.

But he notices one of those enormous plant monsters in the distance, and he takes no time grabbing Railsplitter and hunkering down. He fought one of those when Kravitz showed up, they're not that tough!

But, the closer he gets, he notices a short figure near the creature. Magnus squints, trying to get a better view, since they don't particularly look scared or nervous or-]

What the fuck-- Merle?!

[ Shouted down the field, which is real smart when you're trying to be sneaky.]

That you?!

pretty fly for fantasy william shatner

[youfoundher]

[Merle is home here and also his shirt is off swoon??? Seems reasonable. Totally reasonable, since he'd-- well, the coin, past!Barry through the coin, had said to trust him. Just seems like something the dwarf'd do, despite having never met him before in his life.

Buddy if this is your dream you need to consider your taste in company, ngl.]

So you're- you're not even slightly interested in where we are, then?

[Strange, foreign place, weird (but thankfully docile) bugs? Just a place for a chill night's sleep?]

Pyrrha Nikos | RWBY | Airlocked CRAU

[tokencanadian]

[Friends on the Other Side]

[This is all frighteningly familiar to Pyrrha; waking up somewhere she doesn't recognize, without memory of how she got there in the first place. The encroaching dread was almost palpable, not help at all by the creatures that were hounding her as she tried to make her way through the city. Maybe this was a nightmare.

Or maybe it wasn't. After all, Pyrrha had a weapon.

You'll probably find her as she's backed herself into a wall, raising some sort of... shining blue blade at one of the Clockroaches. For such an imposing weapon, she looks... worried, increasingly so.]

Stay back! I will protect myself if I have to!

[Pretty Fly for a...Fire Guy]

[The dark field stretching out before Pyrrha now was a more welcoming sight. It reminded her of those hills back on the planet she stayed at, or the plans of Vale she saw on the flight to Beacon. Nice. content. But more alone than either of those times.

But not entirely, because there's fireflies all over this place. In the air, settled in the grass. Some had taken a shine to Pyrrha, it seemed. From where she sat on a hill, several had decided to land on her, mostly in that bright red hair of hers.

It's a sweet gesture, and Pyrrha's just content to sit and watch the rest of the bugs continue their dance.... blissfully unaware of how much of a fire hazard she suddenly was.]

friends on the other side

[nightcure]

[ He hears her shout, and that's all he needs. Noctis comes running, and he throws at an arm in front of her. He knows Pyrrha can handle herself, but his instinct to protect is so intense that he can't help it. ]

And you'll have to go through me to get to her!

Futaba Sakura | Persona 5

[promiselisting]

The Other Side

[ Normally she can fall asleep... pretty at the drop of a hat. But there's something about here that just... feels wrong. Both the weirdly indistinct buildings, and the near-absolute silence. She's grown up in Tokyo, pretty much constantly surrounded by a white noise of urban and human sounds.

Although there are some sounds, one supposes. Only those sounds? Are of things creeping and skittering, shuffling and scrambling, just enough to leave a lot to the imagination. Combined with the aura of terror that clockroaches exude? She's jumpy. Really jumpy. She's tried running. Tried hiding. Nothing really does much good.

At the sound of something - perhaps you? - moving nearby she turns and shouts, her voice shaking. ]

W-will you stop hiding and show yourself already!?

Pretty Fly

[ This is... pretty weird, for one of her dreams, to tell the truth. She's not exactly a nature-y person?

Nature, as it happens, seems to be liking her. At first it's just one firefly landing on her hand. Which... is kinda cool? Even if feels weird and kind of tickly. But then there's another. And then a couple on her sleeve, and before she knows it, she has what feels like a small swarm crawling on her. Which is decidedly less cool.

But uh, when she reaches to flick one off it darts out of the way, flaring red and then- ]

O-ow, hey!

[ That's a singed hole on her sleeve and a couple of tiny burn spots on her face. Ow. Maybe she'll just... hold her arms out and try not to disturb any of the others. ]

Flower You Doing That?

[More nature. What did a girl have to do to find some (not weird, panic-inducing) city around here?

Not that it's something she can think about for long when this bit of nature decides it doesn't like her that much. Almost instinctively, as soon as she's on the defensive, her outfit changes. Unfortunately there's a small problem. Calling Necronomicon isn't... exactly going to do much good. She doesn't have any way of going on the offensive.

Ugh she hates running.]

[covertizer]

[ When she's done being spat at by angry firebugs, and gets a chance to stop mourning her poor sleeve in favour of looking around the area again, Futaba might see...

... a big pile of happily glowing fireflies. They appear to be swarming someone - I mean, one part of it is moving like someone's trying to wave at her. ]

Careful, if they get mad th--[ Oh. Oh no, bugs. Everywhere. Hang up, he's gonna close his mouth again, pronto. But given the snippets of dark hair, and the voice that she got to hear for a moment might give her a clue that she's talking to someone who is definitely friend shaped.

Under all those bugs. ]

donn | original | bring me all your goat puns

[venesection]

friends on the other side » put that thing back where it came from or so help me

[Donn has never considered himself a violent person. He likes the discipline of training with his staff, of course, enjoys learning new ways to shape the world around him with his hands: neat rows of tilled soil, paths charted out with flat stones, tiny cairins gathered together in private places. But the actual violence of combat isn't something he enjoys. It's simply a chore like any other, undertaken when necessary but otherwise avoided.

Strange how such a central truth that had stood firm all his life could shatter like spun-glass while he was asleep.

The clockroaches are at once terrifying and somehow fascinating, a thing that Should Not Be even in the most wild and outlandish of dreams. And while there is no question at all that he is dreaming, Donn is distracted from thinking too deeply about anything else when he catches his first glimpse of the swarms through the swirling darkness and drowsy haze.

He wants to run from them. He wants to crush them. Not to protect someone else, not even to protect himself, only because his nerves are shrieking at him in the wordless tongue of primal instinct to smash them apart. His hooves, his staff, a rock clutched in a white-knuckled grip — it didn't matter.

He also wants to catch one.

Wants to hold it, touch it, stare at it for hours until he was finally satisfied. Because it is new and interesting and impossible, a wisp of not-quite color and changing shape that breaks every rule of natural law, and he's never seen anything like it before. Will not be stopped from figuring out how they worked.

Breathing hard, hands shaking — though from terror or exertion, he has no idea — Donn chases after a swarm that's smaller than the others, wondering how on this green earth he was supposed to cut a single one off from the rest (can they even be separated? they look like so much shimmering mist) and not doing a very good job of thinking clearly through his fear.]

pretty fly for a fire guy » i am the bug whisperer

[Accustomed to holding still while nature moved around him, Donn sits with goat-legs crossed and head bowed just slightly, breathing slow and deep and clear as dozens upon dozens of fireflies settle on his arms and shoulders, along the curve of his spine, in his unruly dark hair. They crawl over his nubby horns and through his fur, tickling him with faint sensation, green-blue glow highlighting his myriad of scars like strange tribal tattoos. Donn is careful to keep his hands open and balanced just so on his knees, fingers spread and palms upturned to allow the tiny incandescent bugs total access.

It almost looks like he's making an offering of himself to them.

Eyes closed, helpless and vulnerable, Donn's only thought is that this dream was far more pleasant than the last had been, not what might happen if someone came along to startle the fireflies with an indelicate touch.]

flower you doing that? » bad idea island

[Crouched just behind a rolling hilltop, Donn peers over the edge on hands and knees, observing a lone spindlank prowling around the edge of a meadow. Not looking for prey, the movement is all wrong for it, but searching for a suitable hiding or resting place, maybe? His brown eyes are wide and curious, fluffy ears perked up as though there might be something to hear besides the soft hush of shifting grass. Even his tail is wagging, betraying an eagerness that Donn probably should not have.

He wishes he could get closer.]

Wow! What a strange creature....it looks like a plant, but it moves like a spider. That's incredible! [Is he talking to himself or to you? Does he even notice that you're nearby? Who knows, but at least he's keeping his voice down to a whisper, rattling off question after question not unlike a chittering squirrel.] What does it eat? Are there more of them? Do they come from buds or seeds or something else? Can they get even bigger? I wonder—

[And on and on and on.]

wildcard » just fuck me up fam

[DO IT COWARDS]

flower you doing that?

[exbarathris]

[Frankly she has no idea about the talking, but his mind sure is busy. The Liberator slips up beside Donn, so close as to be almost touching as she crouches beside him in the grass. Wordlessly, she taps his shoulder and indicates one of the many teeth.... are those teeth tied into a necklace so large it's basically a mantle? Yes they are. It's easier to tell it's fresher than the others, too, a bit of still-white stringy root used to attach it to the rest.

She then flashes the mental image at him of a spindlank maw filled with sharp teeth.

Really, that's the most important part to know, in her opinion.]

leonardo // tmnt 2003

[duelkatana]

i. they broke the walls we guarded.

The lucky thing is, he's been through this whole song and dance before.]

[It's different, he supposes, when the demons you face are of your own making; when the faceless horrors have faces, carved into bloody templates, with unseeing eyes and the hiss of your failure leaving one final time through their teeth. Those fears are intelligent. They claw their way out from a disturbed soul, an unsettled one; a soul with the capacity to lose things.]

[This fear that runs in his heartbeat now is a primal thing. Hindbrain instinct, blowing his pupils wide and transforming his insides into white noise. It's the fight-or-flight response of his body attempting to dominate his mind. Frankly, he's insulted. As Donatello would probably say, they didn't mutate from a byproduct of the multiverse's most advanced scientific community just so they could submit to hindbrain.]

[Either way, Leonardo's response to fear has always been the exact same.]

[The cityscape is unfamiliar, but it's still a city. The soporific effect is powerful, but he's weathered worse exhaustions. Tranquil, guarded, Leonardo can be found gliding through a kata on the rooftops; moving through the fog-colored shadows of buildings; maybe he suddenly freezes and looks off in a direction, pelting away without another word.]

[Or maybe he finds several moments when the swarm finds him, in all of his dogged calmness, and he's forced to draw his sword through a rapidly clouding mind.]

ii. but we don't care about it.

Whoa!

[Okay, New York City bugs can be pretty impressive, but none of them spit acid at him before. Well, they did, but not the un-mutated ones at least. Leonardo snatches his arm back abruptly from the arc of caustic spit, blinking owlishly and backing up a pace or two, fireflies scattering from across his shell.]

Okay, note to self... Raph might be onto something.

["I hate bugs," Raph's voice complains loudly and helpfully in his head. Thanks, Raph. Leo sighs and brushes it away, gently sweeping his fingers over his arm to shoo away some of the buzzing fireflies settled there.]

Guess I'd better find him before he finds these little guys.

iii we'll finish what we started.

[He doesn't have to think too hard about this one.]

[Some giant creature wants to eat him? It must be Tuesday. Slashing at a vine that curls around his ankle, Leonardo wonders if this is some sort of karmic punishment for always badgering his brothers to eat more vegetables. Ha ha, Mikey. You can come out of the costume now, and leave his ankles alone.]

[No such luck. Gritting his teeth, Leo dives behind a tree and ducks just as a root comes whipping over his head, crashing into the trunk. He springs up, using the root as a foothold to launch himself into the branches of the tree and scurry for higher ground. If he can get a better angle on this thing, all the more helpful in not becoming its dinner.]

[He's never eating another salad again.]

ii.

[sisinisawa]

[It's not Raphael he'll find, as the bushes rustle just a few feet away from where Leonardo is. As a cloud of fireflies emerges from where they were a moment ago, so does a slightly singed, dusty snout. Looks like someone got a little too close to the peculiar bugs herself, though Jasiri was just curious about them. She's never seen anything quite like them - the Outlands didn't have insects like this, and hyenas aren't exactly welcome in the Pridelands when they're not picking up after other predators...

She rubs her nose with a paw after giving it a good lick, ears folded flat against her skull and tail tucked between her legs. Honestly? Getting lost and burned by a bug in the same day? Talk about bad luck. Nothing here smells or looks familiar, either. She can't find any trails to follow and the stars even seem different. It's like the circle up life became a triangle or something and man, oh man, she is DONE with it.]

Ugh, the sooner I get back home, the better...

Nari Nishitani | OC | Airlocked CRAU

[everylittlesecret]

[OOC note: Nari is an elementalist who is capable, through a mutation and a love for science, of harnessing the elements and sub-elements to various levels. This also translates to an immunity to some of them, such as fire or being unable to drown.]

Friends on the Other Side
[The problem with these clockroaches isn't that they are terrifying, but the target they've chosen to harass finds them utterly fascinating as well. A scientific mind will push past fear for discovery even if it kills them. Nari does her best to try and keep some distance to try and figure them out. To keep them back she sends little sparks of flame to chase them off while frantically writing in a journal.]

Come on... are you feathered or scaled...

Pretty Fly
[Despite a temper, Nari has a gift of calm. She's sitting down in the grass and rewriting her clockroach notes to the glow of fireflies in her hair and hands. It's a bit whimsical. Of course anyone who gets close will likely scare her glowing friends off which will earn them a glare before she goes back to writing, hoping her little glowing friends return to light the night again so she doesn't have to do it herself.]

Wildcard
[Hit me with your best shot!!]

friends on the other side

[encircling]

W-what in the world are you doing?!

[ Ah. That's a pretty familiar voice, ain't it, Nari? Mira's been trying to get away from the feelings they've so graciously bestowed upon her, and here this girl is, willingly spending time around them. ]

Are you mad?!

Gladiolus Amicitia | Final Fantasy XV

[piercetheheart]

Other Side

[This was not terribly different from what Gladio was used to. Darkness and shadows and a looming sense of dread. The city was strange though, not the burning ruins of Insomnia he'd have expected.

What was most unsettling, though, was the silence. He spun on his heel, sword drawn and straining for any sign of daemons. They had to be there, they were always there.]

Come on!!

Fire guy
[This is when he knows there's something off, something wrong, because he'd swear he just saw the sun. For a moment he stands breathless in the middle of the plush field, squinting at the horizon, hoping against hope. Then he huffs out a breath, pushes his hair back from his face and allows himself a moment to laugh at his own foolishness.]

Sunlight. yeah... right [Muttered under his breath as he turns to survey his surroundings. The bugs set him on edge and they respond in kind, flickering brighter in warning but not quite attacking him... yet.]

Other Side

[shatteredlenses]

[Ignis is exhausted after his meeting with Noctis. Physically and emotionally. Quite honestly, he would still be at his King's side if it wasn't for the best that they part for a little while to process everything they've discussed. The blasted cockroaches' influence still makes him fear Noctis will vanish like smoke when they leave this place, but they've had a much needed talk. Nothing can take that away from them.

Exhausted as he is, when he hears that familiar taunt, he can't help but smile.]

Gladiolus Amicitia. You certainly took your sweet time getting here, didn't you? Do you know how long we've been waiting? What good are those vaulted survival skills if you can't find us with them?

[Astrals, he's missed you, you big lug. Please put the sword away. Thanks.]

Shirogane Tsumugi | Dangan Ronpa

[cosplots]

Pretty Fly

[ Shirogane casts her eyes up towards the sky, following the fireflies movements with a curious gleam. ]

Is this an Isekai? Hmmm. That is one of the most prevalent genes right now...but kind of overdone. [She lays a head in her hands, oddly calm. She's not really sure whats going on...but thats not any reason to panic! She's not a protagonist after all, screaming her head off wouldn't trigger any fun events. ] Well, the setting is pretty at least.

Flower You Doing That?

Hiiieeeeeee!! [She just wanted to explore this next island and now she's got...Big...giant..spidery things? Chasing her? Shirogane crashes through the woods, running at fulls sprint until she runs into someone. ] H-help! What is this third impact level monster? I p-plainly can't deal with this!

Pretty Fly

[despairing_hope]

It's more than overdone, it's boring.

But then, I can't enjoy that sort of self indulgent wish fulfilment.

[Pretending to be the protagonist just enhanced all the flaws in the story. Of course even if he tried to see them as their own the flaws were still too obvious.]

But yes, you've awoken in another world, but it's less have fun and adventures and more Lord of the Flies collides with Wonderland.

Zenjirou Kasai | Majin Tantei Nougami Neuro

[prettyhotstuff]

Pretty fly for Kasai.

Hee hee hee...

[What is Kasai doing? Trying to trap the fireflies in a broken bit of glassware that had washed up ashore -- then tap the glass until they fire off. He's pretty focused on this, since he has a few ideas for the acid if he can get a good amount of it stored up. But trying to do this with broken glassware means a few angry angry insects slipped out of a crack... and are a now a very getting more and more orange heading for red...]

...aw, shit!

[He'd rather watch a fire, not actually be on fire. Or in the middle of a grass fire. Put down the jar and let the rest escape though? Tough call. Others in the surrounding area are definitely getting yellower as well.]

[nopeeking]

[She's all too aware this is a dream-one probably induced by the amount of work she's done this week to make her feel like she needs to remain on call for the unfamiliar faces littering it like this.

And even if he was asking for it by shaking those bugs up, she can't ignore someone that might get injured.]

Back away slowly. If they don't see you as a threat, you may be able to slip away.

Naomi Mikano / Original Character

[serenesuccessor]

Friends on the Other Side

[Naomi Mikano was not one to be afraid of things that went bump in the night. Even if the sixteen-year-old was considered by most to be a scardey cat, choosing to cling to her big brothers' or anyone else's' arm when the lights went out, she was not afraid of what was in the darkness...

At least that's what she was telling herself as she walked through a colorless cityscape, using the flashlight of her iPhone to see a bit better. The steady mantra of 'I'm not scared', while whispered, echoed in the still air.

She didn't like that. She also didn't like that she was sleepy.

She didn't like how similar this felt to the Mirror World.]

If this is some stupid Markel-related thing I'm gonna be so ticked.

[Her muttering is punctuated by her cheeks puffing out in a chipmunk-like fashion. Of course, she knew this place wasn't the Mirror World and couldn't have anything to do with Markel because he was gone.

It was during her musings and pouting that her flashlight caught a glimpse of a cloakroach... Or well, several of them.

The silence of the city was quickly broken by a scream as Naomi turned tail and began running, nearly dropping her phone in the process. Was the swam following? She wasn't going to look back and find out. She was doing everything in her power not to trip over her own feet as frightened tears began forming in the corner of her eyes.]

Pretty Fly for a... Fire Guy

[Now this was more her speed. Naomi had found her way to the lush fields with wide, gleeful eyes. She'd even let out an excited yell as she began running through the grass, cartwheeling a few times, and spreading her arms to either side. The color changing fireflies was just an added bonus.

After running around excitedly she'd come to take a seat cross-legged in the grass. She had learned the hard way not to startle or upset the fireflies, her left hand now sporting a few burn marks. Now though she sat quietly, her knitted gloves lying on the ground beside her, hands outstretched.

She smiled as a few of the fireflies landed on her hand. The glow the bugs gave off almost made her forget about the teal gems seemingly embedded in the back of her hands. At least for a little while.

Flower You Doing That?

This. Is. So. Stupid!

[The frustrated shout echoed in the air as Naomi made her way through the high grass of the hillock, using a stick she had picked up earlier to whack away some of the foliage and lean against. Her sandals dangled from her left hand, one of the straps having snapped earlier in her hike. As a result, her poor feet were scratched to hell and back, though she was doing her best to ignore the sting from each step.

She was, of course, incredibly lost.

Blowing her bangs from her face Naomi paused, setting her sandals down so that she could fix her messy bun. She was mid hair fixing when she saw something move, but shrugged it off, assuming it to be an animal. As she bent down to pick up her sandals a spindlank rose.

There was a second where all she could do was stare at the leafy monster stared back down at her. Then she screamed, dropping her sandals and scrambling back with her stick. The spidlank followed and it didn't take the monster long to get itself directly overhead. Naomi could only hold her breath, bracing herself as she flung her hands up as the thing dropped down.

And then there was a 'thud', the monster hitting a teal crystal-like forcefield that encompassed Naomi. She cracked an eye open - having shut them tight - to see this and let out a slow breath. The next few seconds were tense, the spindlank seeming confused.

Then its vines began to wraps around the small forcefield, squeezing it. Naomi, in turn, winced, focusing with all her might as the gems on the back of her hands glowed softly. This wasn't going to last long. She could already see cracks forming.

And so. For the third time in the last ten minutes she screamed.]

HELP!!

Flower You Doing That?

[want_to_belong]

[Prompto heard the scream and was on the run. At least he had learned to be conservative with his bullets so he hadn't tried to shoot anything yet, so he at least had ammo. He fumbled his way through the overgrown grass to find a girl using some sort of magical barrier. It reminded him a bit of the wall, so while he wasn't too used to the idea of random people having their own magic he wasn't completely foreign to the concept of people outside the royal family using it.

The shots were quick. He took aim at the top of the spindlank trying to crush her and sank one, two, three bullets into it in rapid succession.]

Barry Bluejeans | The Adventure Zone (pre-regaining the Stolen Century)

[youfoundher]

i. Friends on the Other Side

[He's...

Tired. It's to be expected after waking up for the who-knows-what time with no recollection of how he came to be there; no recollection of... anything at all, really. His face never seems to age, but the world- it's always moving. He stays the same. The coin, stays the same.

Your name, is Barry Bluejeans.

And he is afraid of the dark. Adjusting his glasses for the umpteenth time, he squints up at the closest building, not quite ready to just- give up, on that front. His eyes have never been great, but surely, surely, his vision hasn't become that much more poorly in-- however long it's been, now. What he does know for sure is that he is a man who knows how to examine things; that he has, and can, put the pieces of this mess together, into something reasonably more logical.

If only he stopped hearing those odd rustling sounds behind him. Maybe then he could focus just a little more, on something past the cold sweat forming on the back of his neck.]


ii. Pretty Fly for a... Fire Guy

Your- your father Gregor died when you were too young to know him.

The coin stopped speaking when he arrived here. There's no Taako, no Merle, no Magnus. The cave he'd awoken in is also, by all accounts, gone. It hardly seems like the time to worry about that. He has, and will, continue to find himself waking in strange places with no memory of how he got there. He told himself that.

He didn't tell himself anything about this place. A breeze winds through the tall grass, billowing like waves under a steadily darkening sky. Fireflies bob slowly through the air about him in a soft turquoise, lighting up the world with an unearthly hue. It's alien, and fascinating-- and a part of him is aware that this is the type of thing he should be paying attention to. This-this unprecedented, foreign location, not the silent coin turning over and over between his fingers.

Barry isn't concentrating. Which is why, as one of the softly humming bugs makes itself at home on the bridge of his nose, he jerks back as if he's been burned, blinking at the creature rather stubbornly settled right between his eyes... or, blinking at it best he can.

"Er, hello." It sure would be nice if this bug knew the secrets of the universe.

But it doesn't answer, leaving Barry to slowly relax as he chuckles quietly to himself. How silly.


iii. Suprise Me Bitches-- wildcard.

pretty cry for a cry guy i'm already crying

[hellawrath]

Sometimes, it's alright to dream. Like when you're seeing the love of your life, the man you've been missing like air for the past months, for years, being absolutely fucking adorable with some bugs. His laughter is soft, like the fading light and the glow of the insects touching him, like his arms that she's dying to nestle into again.

Lup almost rushes forward, but stops herself just long enough to pluck a few wildflowers and tuck them into her hair. He's gonna like that, right? All these years and he can still make her feel a bit nervous, giddy with the thrill of showing off just for him. She steps out of the shadows of the forest into the meadow, dropping one hand to brush over the tall grass gracefully as she walks over and smiles at him.

"Hey, you."

Janja | The Lion Guard (OTA)

[furbrain]

i. Who Needs a Nightlight?

[Darkness isn't exactly a problem for a predator. Though hyenas are scavengers by nature, picking up the scraps left behind by other animals, Janja never really played by the rules - preferring to make his own and follow his own way. Fresh meat is always tastier than the leftovers. But even so, there's nothing to eat here...wherever here even is. Janja woke up in a strange, new place and everything was unfamiliar. No scent he recognized, and no gang to beat up and blame.

Worst of it? He's still licking his wounds from when he was blasted by Kion's stupid roar. So he's hungry, lost, and irritated. ...And surrounded by bugs. Which, to be perfectly honest, are starting to frustrate him further. As he shake his head to get them to buzz off, he growls and bares his teeth at the blinking insects.]

Bug off!! I can't even see my own snout in front'a my face! [Wrinkling said snout, he snorts a puff of air from his nostrils, making more of the fireflies scatter before he goes on the offensive, snapping his teeth at the fireflies.] Get back here and lemme chow down, bugbrains! Ya may be small, but there's a lotta ya!

[Leaping at a bush, he snaps his teeth at them and...well, what else was going to happen? The swarm doesn't take kindly to a hyena trying to chomp on them, and eventually decides to go on the offensive themselves. Janja, jaws wide, gets only so far before a burst of boiling hot acid spritzes him on the corner of his lips and he yelps and backs off. But not before another jet splashes across his right eye.

Yeah, that does it. He whimpers, then turns tail and dashes off with a nervous whoop, licking his lip furiously where the acid burns, and begins rubbing his face into the dirt and sand to ease his poor face. Man, that smarts!]

Aww...c'mon, can't a guy get a break for one day?! [He licks his paw, rubbing at his face as he lays in the sand and seems to just. Give up.]
---

ii. Vine and Dine

[Now, Janja can understand being hungry and wanting to eat - he always is on the lookout for a good meal - but when the meal is him...well. He has a bit of an issue with that. The leafy plant life of Ziziphus would suit a herbivore like a giraffe or zebra, but not a carnivorous hyena. So of course, once again, his bad attitude and short temper got the better of him after a failed trek for something to nibble on landed him in hot water. A knocked aside rock with his paw just managed to smack into a mossy bundle, and when he turned round.

Yeah. The horrified whoop of laughter isn't because he's having a dandy ol' time. No, this poor hyena is petrified, and makes a swift break for it. He's not a brave soul without his clan to back him up, and that...thing is a big as a giraffe, but as tough as a hippo. Not to mention bizarre as heck. If he actually ate anything, he'd chalk this up to one hell of a fever dream from bad elephant meat or something.]

HEY, C-CAN'T WE CHAT ABOUT THIS?! I SAID I WAS SORRY!! Q-QUIT CHASING ME, I GIVE UP ALREADY!! [What the heck is with this thing?! It doesn't give up, and he's not about to become someone else's lunch! It's other's job to be his lunch!! His cackles and whoops become a bit more higher in hitch and volume - a cry for help, but he hasn't seen hide nor hair of any of his clan.] So..Somethin' tells me I-I was way b-better off with the Lion Guard...

nightlight can't BITE REN NOW BUTTHEAD

[nopeeking]

[A talking hyena doesn't register too far up her personal weird scale. Demons take various shapes and forms and a majority manage to speak the human language with no issue. The problem is that he's reacting to the pain caused by these weird dreamflies in a way that triggers her desire to offer him aid, though she's not sure whether to rely on her own demon's power or her skills as a doctor. More than likely, she'll have to use Kazfiel for this type of minor wound, but she better confirm what he is first.

Cautiously, she approaches the wounded animal-demon-whatever, standing to the side to avoid encroaching on his personal space and asks-]

Pardon me, did those bugs injure you? I could take a look.

Lucas Miller / The Adventure Zone

[crystallying]

Friends on the Other Side
[ Lucas Miller is a Man of Science, and if he were thinking properly through the haze of exhaustion and sheer terror, he'd be pausing to study the weird little insects (or... whatever they are), and the strange, wavering buildings, trying to get a read on his surroundings, trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

Instead, he's running for his life, because when given the choice between fight or flight, Lucas will usually choose 'flight'. Every few blocks he stops to catch his breath, doubled over and wheezing a constant stream of "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!" to himself before he takes off running again.

He keeps glancing over his shoulder just to make sure that he isn't being pursued, so apologies in advance if a skinny nerd in a labcoat crashes into you! ]


Pretty Fly for a Fire Guy
[ This... this is pretty nice, actually. Lucas isn't an outdoorsy kind of guy, more at home in his floating laboratory than anywhere else, but he can see the appeal of scenically rolling fields and dusky sunsets once in a while. It's even kind of peaceful, and the last few months have not been very peaceful at all for Lucas. He sits himself down at the top of a grassy hill, awkward and a bit stiff with his knees drawn up around his chin, but after a few quiet minutes, he relaxes enough to kick his legs out and lean back on his elbows.

A couple of fireflies gently bob around his head, and the whole scene is so picturesque that it's almost cliche... right up until one of the fireflies lands on Lucas's glasses and he swats it away, prompting the bug to flare up, spit acid at him, and melt a good-sized hole in the sleeve of his labcoat. Lucas bolts upright with an indignant screech. ]

Oh come on!

Pretty Fly

[sevelev]

[ Michael learned very early in this bizarro dream experience that these fireflies are whack. So he's basically resigned himself to laying on the ground, literally covered in them, until he wakes up or something.

At least that was the plan. Now he's kind of freaking a little. Because as soon as Lucas shouted, the bugs on Michael started getting antsy. Which can't bode well. Michael hisses through gritted teeth; ]

Dude, calm down or they'll just get angrier.

[ BE CALM AND COOL AND CHILL, LUCAS. ]

wander; shadow of the colossus

[ruere]

friends on the other side:


[ It's disorienting, exhausting. He's not sure if this is death, or perhaps some form of banishment to a realm meant for the sinners like himself. His memory is vague, the images all clouded and distorted - he remembers reaching out for her, trying his best to fight back and reach for her as a greater force dragged him away, down, down into the inky depths. When he landed the impact took his breath away, but even that was confusing in itself.

His steps are awkward and clumsy, a hand held out in front of him and trying to find something to grab ahold of, to regain his balance and gather some semblance of his surroundings. Where is he? Why did it have to happen this way? If he completed his assigned task, is she alive? Well? All alone?

He trips, collapsing down onto the ground, and it's a struggle to get back up on his feet. There's something (several somethings?) approaching, and he swings an arm at them, a pitiful attempt to keep whatever it is at bay. Did he drop his weapons? Where's the sword, his bow?

It's dark enough that he can't see the greyish tint to his skin, nor can he feel the new additions at either side of his head. He can barely see much of anything. The most he can do his feel his way around, swat at the strange things swarming around him, and try not to trip over his own feet again.

... that last part doesn't always go so well, though. ]

hello c:

[hyperlit]

[The city's ghost-dark is unsettling in the same way the shadows at the other side of the Water were. The flitting of...things flickering just beyond the scope of their vision does not help, particularly when a swarm of them seem to home in on one shape in particular.]

[The Drifter's blade ignites with a hum of cerulean, their shape cresting into a blur of violet. The light scatters the shades, whatever they might be, but they do not disperse utterly.]

[The victim looks as though he almost might pass for one of them, though perhaps it is the cyan glow of their hard light blade that lends his skin that unhealthy, grayish pallor. Or perhaps, like the case with the elves, this is simply what is considered normal, for him.]

[First things first.]

[The Drifter advances with one hand extended, to ensure that he is real and therefore solid.]

Michael Mell | Be More Chill

[sevelev]

Acquaintances on the other side

[ Given the miserable mood Michael was in before he fell asleep, it tracks that he'd dream up some spooky goddamn city. Because of course! Why would he get any reprieve in his dreams! He supposes it could be worse. He could be having an honest to god nightmare, with like...ax murderers or something? So he's not gonna complain. He'll take a dark, empty city over being dream murdered any day.

Being so tired sucks, though. And as much as he wants to take a second to rest, he finds himself being chased off by something every time he tries. It's not even something he can really describe. He just knows that it's somehow simultaneously horrifying and unknowable. It's annoying, and he's kind of over it.

After running for a while, he stops to catch his breath. He doesn't know if he lost the clockroaches or not, but he doesn't care. Because he's going to take this brief rest to shake an angry fist at the sky. ]

Thanks a lot, subconscious! Just what I needed. [ Ugh. ] I'm ready to wake up any time!

Pretty Fly for a fire...guy

[ Michael thinks the fireflies are pretty cool at first. They're pretty, their soft glow making the already peaceful scenery even more relaxing. He thinks that maybe he'll have the chance to chill a little. To take some quality Michael time and think about...literally anything other than the current state of affairs. Of course, that's when he discovers that these bugs are temperamental little demons that can shoot acid.

Cool.

Hell just lay on the ground covered in them, it's fine. ]

Anyone...there? Help?

Alphonse | Owlboy

[owlphonse]

A: Fireflies!

[ Alphonse is a bit fuzzy on how he ended up here, which is concerning considering he's a robot. But a lot of things seem a bit fuzzy, so perhaps something fell on him after...everything. Or perhaps he fell on something. Who knows.

But it's fine. For the moment, he's content to rest, though he knows he'll have to go and look for the others soon. Especially Otus.

He is a little tired, though. It's been a long...day? Day is one word for it. Even if he is a robot, there's such a thing as mechanical fatigue, and it's so peaceful here...

Yeah, he's dozed off. He can be found with his hat sort of askew on his head, asleep against a tree, with fireflies using him as a perch. It might be sort of comical. ]

B: Literal, Actual Fire

[ Several loud bangs shatter any stillness in the air. There's a lengthy delay after each one, for reasons that will become apparent as the source is revealed.

Alphonse doesn't get angry, but he does get miffed, and miffed is his current state as he waves his musket at the Spindlank trying to attack him. ]

What kind of dishonorable attack is this? [ He reloads his musket with a clack. There's a burst of flame and another loud bang; the Spindlank flails at the force of the attack, and more importantly the fact that it's now on fire. ] Away with you, creature! I'm looking for my friends, and I'll not be stopped by the likes of you!

[ There's another one pulling itself up behind him. You could help him, or just watch to see what happens. ]

a)

[pallidscops]

[ imagine how startled one would be if they happened upon the great robot, garbed in a pirate's attire, resting (?) against a nearby tree.

Well...as long as they didn't immediately recognize that hat. Or those clothes. Otus could cry-- and he just would have in that instant if he wasn't making his way over to Alphonse with urgency-- the last time he saw the robot seems so long ago. So long ago and so far away. A quick warning, plummeting toward the islands beneath, and...

...an explosion. The city being ripped apart. Geddy, left aboard the ship. Alphonse, nowhere to be seen. Just Otus. Alone with an explosion that has haunted his dreams and kept him on edge. Seeing Alphonse reminds him of the fiery shower of stone and rubble, joining him in his descent. Run, his muscles tell him. Run away, Otus.

Before he knows what he's doing, he's wrapped his very small arms around the larger robot-- not even covering Alphonse's whole belly, but close enough. Homesickness washes over him like the tide of the nearby ocean. He feels sick and wants to cry, and is not sure if it is relief that floods him so fiercely. Maybe it's worry for the robot who peacefully dozes before him.

Is it wrong to be happy in a situation like this?

Is it? ]