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

b. you know i had to do it em

[hyperlit]

[Escaping a rising tide is not exactly what they'd planned on doing with their time, but it is at least an instinct they can well act upon: fleeing an inexorable force of nature before it swallows them whole. They're more talented at streaking along flat surfaces than they are at scaling vertical ones, but they're keeping reasonably ahead of the spray and seafoam - right up until they see a flash of red and, most alarmingly, blue skin.]

[The Drifter nearly loses their handholds and slips into the flotsam on the spot.]

[Their new goal becomes pursuing this other blue-skinned creature. They can't be - they can't be another one, can they? There can't be another one here, can there?]

[There's no other explanation.]

[accellerate]

[ This isn't the worst place I've seen. And rising water? Easy. Unless you're stuck in a prison cell...

Whatever happened to that prisoner, anyway?

They ask the question to themselves like they don't already know what happened anyway, which is what happens to most people on the island sooner or later.

Monsters following them isn't an uncommon occurrence. Everything that succumbs to the Miasma has a nasty habit of locking onto them whenever they run past. But this isn't a monster, this is a person - and another blue-skinned person at that.

Well, that's not too weird, they've seen blue-skinned people before. Perfectly ordinary.

So, eventually, they stop. The water isn't moving that fast, and they're pretty sure they can outrun it, so you know what? It's fine. They can wait for this person to catch up.

It's admittedly a new feeling to see someone running after them that's a living, breathing person...for a given value of real, anyway. They're dreaming, but they don't know how or why, so they stop questioning it, because questions are boring if you pursue them too much. ]

[hyperlit]

[It takes about ten seconds for the Drifter to register the first hurdle in this endeavor. Namely: that this other blue-skinned traveler is obviously not the same species. Or at least, if it is, there's something wrong with them. They don't have a head.]

[But they're running and jumping and climbing just the same, so...]

[The Drifter raises a hand, and tries for a wave. Is this person...they seem sentient. Are they?]

[accellerate]

[ They wave back enthusiastically, their reaction almost immediate. Looks like that's a yes.

And being without a head doesn't seem to have slowed them down much; it seems to have done the opposite. They're constantly making small movements, even when they're standing still; the light in the otherwise featureless swirl of smoke(?) that seems to serve them for a face moves constantly, and they bounce and fidget almost impatiently.

They're not a creature accustomed to standing still, it seems. ]

[hyperlit]

[Clearly a creature with sapience, then. It's not clear to them what species they are, specifically, if they are...anything at all. Their head looks less like a head and more like a candleflame of exhaust, breezing trails behind it with every movement.]

[Impatience is something the Drifter recognizes. They've learned, the hard way, when it is best to stand still - but now is not one of those times.]

[They start moving again.]

[It is atypical for them to stop and check to ensure they are being followed - but this is precisely what they do. This is the first blue-skinned being they've run into, even if they're not exactly the same. They're not about to let this one out of their sight.]

[accellerate]

[ It's a new feeling, having someone actually want their company, looking for them in some small way beyond amusement or vague acknowledgement (or fear). They're pretty sure they can figure out a little bit of why, but honestly? They're not going to question this, either.

Even with the flooding problem, this island's way less of a dump.

So, they follow. More than that, they try to keep up, because if there's one thing they're good at besides picking up weapons and smacking people with them, it's running.

They're not as fast as the Drifter, but they're making good time, at least. And when they're looked back at, they give the stranger another friendly wave and a thumbs-up.

Yep, they're following. ]

[hyperlit]

[They're capable of making progress and exchanging significant looks simultaneously. The brunt of their concern, devoted to the climb as it is, does not wholly steal away the urge to - ensure that what they're seeing has any bearing, whatsoever. It is real. They know it is.]

[They cannot wait any longer. They have been forced to cultivate their patience, to an extent, but only for so long.]

[Eventually, their sprite chimes quietly, projecting text mid-climb:]

you
like me?

[It lacks eloquence or specificity. It lacks...most things. Like clarity.]

[accellerate]

[ Handy, if unspecific.

Nobody's ever really listened to them, so they don't talk. Why bother wasting the only language they know on people who only care about voicing their own opinions? Talk, talk, talk, that's all anyone ever seems to do back where they come from.

But hey, they're being asked a question, so they might as well go for it. And the words, at least, are in a language the Drifter is familiar with, that ability to speak in hands. ]

Depends what you mean.

I'm guessing you're not much of a talker, so we've got that in common.

[hyperlit]

[That is - ]

[Unexpected. And also a relief. Coordinating both hands and feet is a difficult task, so they stick to text. But based on the way they rapidly interpret and relay a response, it's clear that they've understood.]

your skin
like mine

[What follows is probably obvious. But it bears mentioning.]

but you have no head

[accellerate]

[ Running and talking at the same time is no easy task, but they lack any other way of communicating, so. They'll make do with what they have.

At least it means they can't get out of breath. ]

Never seen someone like you before, exactly, so you're out of luck there.

[ They really can't tell if the little helmet points are ears or what. If they're ears, they might have seen someone like them, just...taller?

They give the Drifter another little shrug, and to their credit, it's sort of apologetic this time. They've never really concerned themselves about species, but sometimes it's odd, knowing you're the only one of..yourself.

As for the other thing... ]

I know, right? It's my most distinctive feature, missing a head, but it suits me just fine.

[hyperlit]

[That makes no sense at all. Is their...have they never met another blue-skin, in their entire life? Were they the only one of their kind? It makes no sense. None of it. None of it. They're laboring to make some sense of the point - when a spiked spore abruptly smashes into the rock they were planning to use as a handhole, sending chunks of stone pinwheeling toward them.]

[The Drifter ducks. Conversation, it seems, will have to wait.]

above

[The Lungblossom's waving tendrils are unmistakable.]