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

[somedummiesarecute]

[ she stands there, exhausted, hand over her arm, gulping down air that won't-- won't stay put in her lungs. It dispels too quickly and leaves her gasping for another addictive breath, and another--

Her vision shakes. Lungblossom spores still working out of her system, the spiders crawl across her arms. Goosebumps rise and spread across her exposed arms. Closing her eyes invites the darkness in. A cold darkness that tries to keep her eyes shut. Not the sleepy drifting of sleep, but the type that silences the quaking ocean and scares the birds away.

Arceus, she hates this place.

The song is familiar, but it's that voice- low and smoother than he ever gave himself credit for. He always reminded her of a broken window in how he worked and moved and operated. Sharp, and pointy. Can hurt you-- and will, if you touch it...but lets in the sun after a day of rain.

A boss. A friend.

It's Team Skull's boy. Guzma. ]

You look good, for being stuck in another dimension.

[ obviously, though, she's dreaming. She didn't enter the negaverse-- he did. She couldn't follow him. There's a flute, and you need two songs, and...she had neither. And she could play neither.

The powerlessness was so strong, she asked a little girl for help. A girl that could help.

Look where it got her. ]

[yallstupid]

[It's Golisopod who notices Plumeria first, and his head lifts up, antennae twitching with the familiar scent of her perfume and hairspray. He gives his trainer a gently tap tap with a few of his thin, spindly arms and Guzma swats them away as he scowls up at the Pokemon. His sunglasses of course are over his eyes to blot out the glaring blaze of the sun, but they don't hide everything from him.

He didn't hear Plumeria, given the music from the headphones, but those are off in seconds, much like with his shades, staring at the girl before him with shock and surprise. He's siting up in the same breath, looking at her wide-eyed and he reaches out, seeing the injury--

Before he stops, curls his fingers into a tight fist as his expression slowly transition from shock to a muted glower. Disbelief mixed with something below the surface. Anger? Maybe something similar, but he doesn't look happy. Oh, he remembers...remembers well that this is the same specter that connived him into throwing himself head first to his death. The same hallucination that resulted in the POkemon behind him barely listening to a word he said for months afterward. It was only a few weeks ago now that his "punishment" for dying was...removed. Golisopod approached him for the first time in so long...affectionate and regretful for his actions prior. It was the first time in a long, long while Guzma actually had tears to cry.

He's not losing his best friend again, because of you.]

Back again, huh? What you gonna make me do this time, huh? Swanna dive off the mountainside? Once isn't good enough for you, Plum? [He narrows his eyes with a sneer, accentuating her name with a scoff. It takes all his willpower not to spit at her feet.]

[somedummiesarecute]

[ Swan dive off the mountain? Her eyebrow quirks up. What the hell? ]

What are you talking about, Guzma? [ she narrows her eyes. What a welcome party. Yeesh. ] You jumped into a portal. The princess and that girl came in here looking for you. Are they around?

[ she spares another glance around them. He's acting weird, and her arm hurts, and this is a pretty realistic dream...for a dream, anyway. He keeps glaring at her, and the ice in her eyes hardens. She wasn't going to grovel to him for something she didn't do-- and she doesn't grovel. Not in the vocabulary. You want Plumeria, you get the genuine article, always. Her voice is as well-practiced and normal as ever. ]

What happened? [ "To you? How'd you get here? Why am I here? Why are you glaring at me like that?"

The longer he glares and sneers, the darker her expression becomes. His number two in number and skill...only. She was used to directing his rage and helping him focus his emotions, but not on herself...and that isn't going to start now. ]

[yallstupid]

[There's a flash to his eyes, and a tension to his muscles that only people who know him well can pinpoint. Jumped into a portal? Haha...hahahaa...that's what she told him it was, isn't it? In reality, it's a black hole he jumped into, then twisted and pulled him apart, sucked the very air from his lungs and crushed every part of him until there was nothing left. The pain was suffocating in the few seconds he was alive to feel it. And yet...the fury is more pressing when the woman mentions the two girls.

No you don't. You're not getting to Lillie. He'll fight shadows, ghosts or otherwise, until he's purple in the face. No one's getting to Lillie, she has enough skeletons in her closet...she doesn't need another one grabbing at her ankles.]

Her name is Lillie. [Guzma stands, and he looks down at Plumeria like a giant looking down at an anthill. Plumeria was never on the receiving end of those looks, not like she is now, and it's easy to see why people avoid him - even the other grunts. He has a certain presence to him. And as if to detail that aura Guzma exudes, a word echoes ominously from the discarded headphones, still playing the song from earlier--

Danger.]

Why you wanna know where she is?

[somedummiesarecute]

[ he’s giving off a dangerous vibe. It’s...unsettling. More so when that look— that look, falls onto her like asking where Lillie was is as taboo as asking about his past.

She stiffens under that look. He’s gonna lose it. He might actually lose it, and she’s not sure why, or how, or when...her foot takes an apprehensive step back, as if his encroaching prescience would lead to her escaping off the side of the cliff. Cliche, but...tempting. He practically growls at her, and while her mind says to fall into line, she won’t move. Can’t move. ]

Okay. [ it’d be a lie to say she wasn’t irritated, but...she’s used to this. Even after him being gone a week. She can handle this. Like she’s always handled it. Calmly. Carefully.

...but normally, she has an ear on the inside. Normally, she can gauge how hard or soft to be based on things that were said. Bad dreams. Adults who...didn’t understand. They didn’t bother her, but Guzma? She was always ready for a violent episode. She had to be. She was the wall between Guzma and his grunts on most occasions. He loved them, but anger left him with little patience at times. He’d never hurt them...and that’s always where Plumeria stepped in with a cup of hot chocolate and a quiet ear. With a shoulder, and a pillow, and comforting words...or even blissful silence.

He’s angry and she doesn’t have hot chocolate. Just a messy arm and the memories of rainy nights, and the dumbest, biggest brother that slept restlessly, or not at all. ]

Nice boombox. [ she releases the idea of Lillie and....what was her name? The little one, with the weird hat. Whatever. ] Does the ocean normally chase people up the cliff?

[ she isn’t sure what crawled up his asshole and died, but if he was that protective of the little princess, she doesn’t even consider looking at Goli...though she wants to. Guzma’s Trusted right hand Pokémon was always a trusted friend to her, as well. She looks at the boombox, and then down at the cliff, pink wisps of hair escaping her tightly bound pigtails. ]

[yallstupid]

[Golisopod doesn't move much, only to stand himself and keep his antennae shifting and slowly twitching. He knows his trainer better than anyone, and is anticipating a fight, but even the large insect isn't sure what to make of this. He's glancing between the two humans - two people he knows and care deeply for - but can't make a proper move toward either, for what good or bad it would do. He's just as stuck as Plumeria is in this situation, it seems.

On the other hand, Guzma hasn't taken his eyes off Plumeria, and his nose wrinkles, brows knitting together. Oh, he knows this game. It's worked plenty when he was on the verge of scrubbing someone's pace off onto the concrete. It's worked plenty when he was still an idiot that thought only with his fists. When his fury would guide his strength, and be justified by nothing more than primal lust for a fight. No, he's changed beyond that bull-headed fool. He can at least think a little better on the straight and narrow, focus on a target, then strike when the iron is hot.

He nods nods his head, but doesn't glance at the boombox as a slow and crooked smile curls on his lips.]

Answer the question, Plumeria. [That's an order.]

[somedummiesarecute]

[ she’s....not sure what he’s waiting for her to say. And the tone behind his voice demands an answer, something...anything. He’s searching for a reason to be upset with her. Plumeria glances down at her arm, then out at the ocean. Still angry, crashing against the cliff side, inspired to follow the skull admin onto flat land. ]

I cornered them on their way to rescue Lusamine. [ she doesn’t sugar coat it— she’s no ones hero, and she didn’t do anything to save anyone. Driven by a desire to reunite the team. By a desire to have her friend and boss back.

She speaks without remorse or regret, but her eyes look directly past Guzma. He wants this truth. ] In Poni Canyon. The dummies challenged blondie’s friend to a battle. She beat them all pretty soundly. [ the corner of one of her lips twitches into a smirk. ] I just made sure bringing you back was also part of their plans. She told me that they would bring you back, too. Then they left, and now I’m here, and you’re here, and... hmmph.

[ they left to bring him back. But Guzma is here, and Lillie and the tough little trainer who was with her aren’t. Plumeria furrows her brow and defiantly tucks a strand of hair behind her ear with her free hand. Being bossed around ordered to speak isn’t up there on her list of Favorite Things to Do. ]

[yallstupid]

[Oh, he's not searching at all. He has a reason to be angry with her - a plenty good reason at that. What he's searching for...is incentive. Truth? Lies? Something to prove his accusations are either unfounded or entirely accurate. A reason to justify his future actions, because Guzma only knows one thing:

How to beat you down, and beat you down, and never let up.

His eyes do, briefly, glance at the damaged arm, but any concern he may have had vanishes in a puff of smoke at the mention of the Aether President. He bristles, teeth exposing slightly like a wild animal, and his knuckles pop as his fists clench at his sides. A reminder, of his false trust in a woman who held no care for his wellbeing at all. Just a tool, a means to an end. Something to step on so as not to muddy her shoes. He has less forgiveness for Lusamine than he does even this supposed specter of his friend.]

Lillie. And Luna. [He interjects, casting a very hard glare at Plumeria before allowing her to continue. He won't correct her again. Listening to it all, Guzma sighs, bowing his head with a sigh as he raises one and and wriggles his fingers to the pokemon behind him, who stands to attention very suddenly, and steps instead to his side and a step forward.] ...You're real convincing, Plumeria. Really. Prob'ly would'a had me fooled if'n this was our first rodeo, yeah?

But I could be wrong, and y'all could be telling the truth - could be 'xactly who you say you are - and I'll look like the uglier side of a Mudsdale. Only one way to find out, mm? How 'bout it? One on one with me. Don't expect special treatment.

[Because he's going to strike and he's going to strike hard. There's no way she'll win against him, she's only ever come close, but he needs to see her sweat. Guzma needs to see this is really his friend, and hidden thoughts, hidden emotions...they're laid on display during the intensity of a true challenge. He's felt it before, after all. Experienced it.]

[somedummiesarecute]

Lillie. Luna. [ she repeats the words with a hard edge to her normally bored voice. She's getting tired of being corrected. Her brow rises when he mentions her looking "convincing," and she narrows her eyes, releasing her aching arm. She'd keep the weakness from her eyes, and the groan from her dry throat.

A pokemon battle...here? Here. On the top of a cliff. The sting of cool air on her arm keeps her wits in order, barely. ]

Fine. [ a small trickle of red rolls down her arm slowly. ] I didn't earn my place by batting my eyelashes. [ it isnt a threat-- she's more irritated that he would even suggest that she would be the one who Guzma goes easy on. No. She would actually lose her temper if she thought for even a moment that Guzma would go easy on her. ]

[yallstupid]

[And the curl of Guzma's lips seems to twist and contort as his eyes squint with delight at her very present discomfort. It's a look Plumeria will recognize, since it's basically what Guzma does - revel in the discomfort of the people he's about to crush. He'll strip them down, make them bend...knock away piece by piece, until they break. And he delights in the whole journey, the whole ride. It's sinister, a part he left behind over a year ago, but it's not a part of him easily forgotten. A dark part of him will forever be the Big Bad Boss of Team Skull.

There's no sympathy in him right now. No friendliness. No joy.

Just a desire to fight, to battle, to find something buried beneath the surface. A truth that he expects not to find, but maybe...hopes for? Maybe, behind the careless grin and the glint of the scorching sun off his sunglasses as he lowers them over his eyes and takes his position, squatting down a ways back from his Pokemon, who breathes deeply and tenses its long claws.]

Funny...neither did I. [And he extends a hand for her. Ladies first, after all.]