TEST DRIVE MEME ( 019 )

[lifeaftr_mods]

Test Drive Meme #19

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 January 17th, and Applications on January 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.

Let's Be Heroes
Back in December on the recent island of Maati, the Trial of the Brave was intended to challenge those who approached life with hesitation; the timid, the uncertain, and those who trend too easily toward inaction. Mu, of course, has a habit of neglecting the finer details. And thus...here you are, whether you need the intended lesson or not.

Armed with nothing more than a torch, a short sword, and the clothes on your back, you're sure to enjoy the scenic view of labyrinthine stone walls, low-hanging ceilings, sharp corners hiding all sorts of secrets, and a thick, foreboding darkness. Your light, and the torches of others making their way through the dark, are the only breaks in the seemingly uniform dark.

Those and the lights of the eyes of the other things down here with you, of course. Hidden throughout the maze are scattered innumerable creatures, all of them happy to take advantage of those wandering about on their own. Nighthooks are fiendish, shadowy monsters that appear in the shape of a long-fingered hand. While they cannot physically hurt anything, they specialize in slinking out of the darkness to snuff out any light source they can find...like your torch, for example. Also abundand are the grimlings, hulking, dog-like creatures composed of a seaweed-like blackness and glowing coals for eyes. Should you come across one, several more are bound to be nearby, as they travel in packs. And they are always hungry.

For those lucky enough not to stumble across these creatures? Enjoy your stumble through the dark. There's an exit around here somewhere, if you look hard enough. Probably.

The Waiting Game
The second trial Mu has appropriated is the Trial of the Patient. This test was named for those who exhibit the very antithesis of patience, initially intended to draw in the brash, the reckless, those easily incited into action, and so on. Instead of a dark and lengthy maze, Mu has instead concocted a brightly lit room to test your patience, and lack thereof.

So you should have no trouble at all seeing the entirety of the expansive, gaping void that stretches between you and the only way out.

Stranded on a singular ledge, the space in which you wake is white and seemingly infinite. No ceilings or walls are visible, and peering over the edge of the small platform reveals no flooring below to catch you. The only distinct characteristics to this room are the door opposite you, positioned some couple hundred feet away. There's nothing for you to grab or cling to in order to make your way over there faster. In fact, nothing else seems to help, either. Flight, teleportation, gadgets, you name it - each attempt will inevitably fail, and give you just enough time to contemplate all the ways you went wrong as you go plummeting down (or is it up?) into that endless void. What a shame. Luckily for you, this dream is happy to give you a second chance! And a third, and a fourth...and however many it takes, really. Those who fall will, just as the initial adrenaline shock starts to run out, abruptly find themselves standing right back on the platform where they started. Once again, they'll find themselves staring at that infuriating, impossible-to-reach door. Seems like you may be stuck where you are, for the time being.

We say "for the time being," because the other distinct attribute of this loosely defined room is a second platform, drifting steadily from the doorway to your position. Once it reaches you, you'll be able to climb aboard, and be safely ferried across the room to the exit you so greatly desire. Once it reaches you. Once it...well, it seems to be taking some time. A few minutes. An hour. Something in that ballpark, maybe. Got a good book on you? No? Guess you'll have to find some other way to wile away the time.

You, and whoever else you happen to be stuck with.

Water Rising
The island of Ensō is a relatively flat island, aside from a lone, steep mountain to the north. Mu is less so. It tends to mold itself to whatever shape best suits it, and in this case? It has chosen Ensō. And so that is where you find yourself - positioned at the base of its mountain, no less, only several feet up the beginnings of its slope. Unfortunately, there's not much time to take in the new scenery. Stretched out along the island's coast is a beach of glittering white sand. Further inland, the green sprawl of a jungle blots the horizon. But there's also plenty of ocean. And therein lies the problem.

Creeping through the treelines and rapidly pooling about the mountain's base, said ocean levels are rising quickly. Very quickly. Those who wish to stay and enjoy the view of an island underwater are welcome to it. For everyone else, the only other option is the obvious one: to climb.

To climb very, very quickly. As luck would have it, the rising waters aren't the only danger present. Those too slow to escape its wrath will surely drown, but the higher up you go, the thinner the air becomes, and the more searing the heat. To the west, a crop of dangerous creatures known as lungblossoms claim the wooded thickets that offer reprieve from the intense and unrelenting rays of dream-sun. A confrontation with these living plants may expose you to hallucinogenic spores fit to fill your senses with horrific, nightmarish visions, so tread lightly...but not slowly.

At the mountain's very peak, an empty temple awaits those who can make it to the end of this terrible and impromptu gauntlet. It will provide shade and a space for the exhausted survivors to congregate. Tend to yourself and others, if you like- or head back out to locate those who haven't had such luck in reaching this haven.

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LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[hyperlit]

[New, relative to everything else. Old, relative to this stranger. It's good that they're talkative, given that the Drifter is the complete opposite. By necessity, if nothing else. There's a familiarity there, regardless; allowing another party to stack the words into the silence, as they listen.]

[This stranger seems to be taking it well. It's always easiest when they do.]

been here longer
> year

[jagarico]

[He just looks at her with a bizarre look. What else could he have been talking about? What else is more beautiful than what he just described?!

Whatever she was talking about, he's happy to change the subject from it. Trying to explain his artistic vision sometimes isn't easy.]

No, I'm afraid I am as lost as you are. But there is a saying that there is safety in numbers.

[suzui]

[ Shiho stiffens--then relaxes a touch when she turns to him. She knows this guy--maybe not well, but she knows his voice. She'd just seen him not that long ago, on the rooftop with Ann...

Shiho swallows hard and nods slowly. ]

Yeah, I am. [ She shivers. ] You're... Akira Kurusu, aren't you?

[suzui]

[ As if she'd been summoned by Shiho herself, Ann is there. She's here, next to Shiho, vibrant and strong as ever. She wishes she could stand as tall as Ann, but right now, she can only lean on her. ]

Alright--!

[ Her voice doesn't shake, at least. Being around Ann... it makes her stronger. Shiho musters up all her strength and climbs onto Ann's back, clinging. ]

[stormblooded]

[Lyse nods. And conversely, it's dangerous to go alone! Wise words for the aspiring adventurer.]

Took the words right out of my mouth.

[So they're party members now, right? That's probably how that works.]

I'm Lyse. What's your name?

i'm going to cry

[exdeus]

[That... was... odd.

As far as he can tell, nothing was placed in his own hand. Is it malfunctioning? Is that why it's not talking, not even in beeps? Horatio looks at his palm briefly (just in case) before standing back up.

Direct approach can't hurt.]

Are you trying to show me something?

[He wishes he still had the transmitter.]

[exdeus]

[On what thing? Still, he understands the spirit of the question.]

No.

[And that, apparently, is that. Horatio turns on his heel and moves to continue down the corridor, the same direction he was going before Wash interrupted his train of thought.]

It looks like we'll have to do it the hard way.

[counterblows]

[Wash sighs, blowing out a gust of angry breath. It's irritation toward the situation at large rather than any one person init, but that doesn't mean he's not going to make that readily apparent.]

I hope you know how to fight.

[A low snarl peels out from the dark, distinctly canid - and also distinctly very close by.]

[Wash tenses, and swaps the torch to his right hand so he can draw his sword with his left.]

Three o' clock.

[exdeus]

[Horatio does not fight. It doesn't matter that he doesn't have anything resembling a weapon on him--the sword he left behind as soon as he became conscious of where he was, and he doesn't regret it--it doesn't matter that he has no defenses to speak of, that he wouldn't be able to do any damage even if critically necessary.

Horatio patently refuses to fight.

There's a lot of reasons why. The beliefs he holds, or his rejection of the purpose he was made for, the purpose he'd had, in some way, for far longer than he'd ever been devout. All those reasons are part of it.

But mostly he's just tired. Tired of struggling, tired of losing, tired of destroying.

He turns toward the sound at the same time Wash does, but he doesn't move to defend himself, nor does he he move to hide. Instead, he steps between Wash and the creature, whatever it is, and brandishes the torch like a shield.

Or maybe it's him that's the shield.]

THEY'RE...TRYING....

[lightlessfuture]

[ Oh. Apparently that didn't come out right, either. They pace in a circle for a little bit, trying to figure out a way to communicate their intentions, before sticking the torch in the ground and resorting to something more understandable.

They draw the sword and use it to scratch busily on the floor. They have to work hard to get it to stick, because this is a far cry from the easy sharpness of their nail, but they're determined.

Then, they step back, letting the flame illuminate their words. ]

sorry
cannot talk
nice to meet you though

[phantomtrick]

Yeah I am....and you must be Shiho Suzui? [He scratches his chin nervously. Akira knows that his reputation at school isn't all that great. People probably think he's gross.

Shiho isn't like the rest of their classmates though. She's just minding herself and he knows how hard it is for her. ]

Ann talks about you sometimes. She told me that you're best friends.

[thermalwind]

[It takes a moment to think back over everything he experienced recently. Keith taps his right hand.]

We woke up inside these trials...it was written in the stone on the floor. Our names and a counter. It seemed harmless at first. My group was the trial of the patient. [He pauses and glances around.]

This kind of feels like it. The first room was a group of pressure pads facing a gap too big to jump and the exit beyond it. We had to sit there for five minutes and not move. That fit a bridge in place so we could cross. If we got up or moved before it connected?

Had to sit there for another five minutes. That wasn't too bad. But the counter was for our deaths. [He adds with a touch of irritation.] Every time one of us died? All of us had to sit there and do that room over.

Again.

[thermalwind]

[Keith frowns right back at him, and sighs, head dropping. His dark hair falls into his face.]

I can't either. The only greater being that I trust is called Storyteller. They're trying to help us...as much as they can. They seem to have gaps in their memory. From what little I've found it. I think all of them do.

Whatever happened to their reality broke something in it. That might be why we first show up here in Mu. Then wake up on the islands.

[smallra]

[Lotor doesn't particularly mind her reaction, although he noted it; suspicion only makes sense to him.]

So you know nothing about this place?

[That puts her in the same situation as he's in, if true. So did she show up here like he did?]

A feeling—? You mean an emotion?

[She could mean a physical sensation, although he hasn't felt anything like that. He doesn't have as much faith in emotions as in facts. He feels uneasy himself. Meanwhile, the cat repositions itself around his neck, lashing its tail.]

Kova also dislikes it here.

[What she says about the torch is more concerning. He looks at his own torch thoughtfully.]

There must be an explanation for the torch.

[jagarico]

Yusuke. Yusuke Kitagawa.

[He turns back to the flame and putting it near the wall, watching the light play off of the surface. Yeah, you became party members but he doesn't want to leave right now. This is inspiring.

Danger schmanger.]

[counterblows]

[You've got to be fucking kidding him.]

[No sword. No weapon. No seeming...strategy, aside from just placing himself in the line of fire and hoping that works? The torch might spook the damn thing off, but that's a stopgap measure at best, and Wash's look of absolute incredulity is utterly wasted on the back of Horatio's head.]

[The lean, canine shape of a grimling gradually outlines itself with a flash of pale teeth and the glistening of coal-bright eyes. It snarls, apparently unwilling to simply charge the torchlight.]

[It gives Wash time to react, at least.]

Are you serious?

B

[devilstongue]

[ At first he thinks it's another monster down here - Molly's one of the Nein that hasn't actually met a tortle, after all. The fact that it was wearing gear and had dropped a torch clues him in fairly quickly, though, and the tiefling hurries over to see what he can do.

...with a measly 10 in strength, he's not moving Eska any time soon, but at least he can give it a try. This fucking place was a nightmare enough for anyone, and he's not the kind of person to just leave someone here.]

This is a bit of a pickle, isn't it?

[stormblooded]

Yusuke? Good to meet you.

[All right! The party is formed, now it's time to roll out! Only as Lyse resumes walking, she gets about two steps before she realizes he's not following. He's just... standing there, staring at the fire.

Ooooooookay. Dude, it's time to get a move on. She comes up a little closer, more interested in keeping an eye on the darkness than in the interplay of light between their torches.]

So, uh, have you got that image now? Great! Listen, we really ought to get going.

[They might not have a choice in a second. She's looking the other way, but the shadows on the wall are starting to act very strangely. Almost like long-fingered hands, reaching slowly for the light... to the point where they suddenly peel away from the wall, trying to snuff out Yusuke's torch.]

[jagarico]

[Waiting for five minutes definitely doesn't sound bad. The rest, though? Yeah, that sounds...absolutely horrible.]

You died? And then were brought back? Hmm. Like reincarnation? Except this sounds much more like a punishment...

[He's silent for a few moments, trying to go over this in his mind. This is a lot to take in.] The symbolism behind this could mean new beginnings...

[ninjatortle]

You know, it's weird how many people assume weird stuff like that. I'm on two legs, I'm upright, my thumbs are fully opposable, I'm talking the same language as you... what part of that says "animal" to you, Yusuke?

I got dreams! I got lots of dreams! I got, like... feelings, and stuff.

[phantomtrick]

I'll think and decide who should I trust on my own. This seems shady to me, but alright.

[ He doesn't think that Keith is just trying to scare him and it's really something to be worried about. ]

We can do one thing at a time and start from there. Does that seem reasonable?

oh no i hadn't made any 'grr fight' icons because. Eska.

[ninjatortle]

[Eska looks puzzled as this good-natured wolf suddenly zips past them, hackles raised, but it doesn't take long for them to also lock eyes with the hulking beast lurking in the dark.]

Oh! Oh no, puppy, you don't have to - you should get behind me! I'm a trained monk! I can protect you!

[As they speak, they slide into a ready stance. The sword this place had supplied them is nowhere in sight - better left behind for someone who needed it - but the way they shift onto the balls of those wide, scaly feet and raise their open palms makes it clear that they're more than prepared to defend themself.

The grimling, seeing that the element of surprise is lost, bares its teeth at these two strange bits of prey. It doesn't much like the look of the radiance coming from that hound, but grimlings? Grimlings rarely hunt alone. The beast raises its maw, letting loose with an unearthly howl.

Echoing from deep within the dark labyrinth, more howls join in. Seems like it's invited its friends along for the fun.]

[ninjatortle]

Then you must know all about this place! I'm lucky I stumbled into the company of an expert!

[They settle down on the floor within the abandoned temple, right near the door. Lots of wall for a weary companion to lean again, a good view to spot if anyone else shows up in need of help, and enough space that this nice blue person has a clear avenue of exit, if that should reassure them.]

Does this island usually, um... get swallowed by the ocean?

[ninjatortle]

[To be fair, this tortle is a long way from stacking up to the likes of Orly Skiffback.

They recognize a tiefling easily enough, even from their upside-down perspective, and it's definitely a welcome encounter. Can't be too far from home if they can at least identify the species of its inhabitants, right? Life is full of silver linings!]

It's not easy being round, friend. Don't worry, though, I'll have this sorted out soon enough! Just gotta... kick a little...

[Another fresh round of futile wobbling and rocking, limbs desperately trying and failing to make contact with the ground.]

Well... more than a little. But still, could be worse! Last time this happened, it was in a sewer gutter. Really don't recommend falling in one of those.

A!

[stormblooded]

[It was pretty rough getting up here for Lyse, too. Helping people to shore was unfortunately cut short by the realization that she can't breathe underwater indefinitely anymore, and the need to get out of the churning waters herself. And then there was the lungblossom patch, and that was a bad trip on its own... But she's here now, albeit scuffed and harried and soaking wet and probably headed for a nasty sunburn.

She pulls herself up over the edge and takes a moment there to catch her breath, bent over with her hands on her knees.]

Phew... Finally! [She may be athletic as hell, but Frantic Peyote Triathlon is not the event she trained for, and she is 200% done with it.]

[Noticing someone nearby, she waves them off at first.] Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Did anyone else - [It's only then that she glances up and realizes what sort of person she's talking to.] Oh! You're a kojin!