TEST DRIVE MEME ( 020 )

[lifeaftr_mods]

Test Drive Meme #20

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.

Due to the shortness of the month, both Reserves AND Applications will open on February 17th!

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.

Hell's Fury Burns the Heart
Back in December, the island of Maati treated travelers to unique Trials, tailored to their own unique sins and vices. Of the seven possible trials for adventurers to undergo, the Trial of the Forgiving, the trial laser-focused to exploit those most predisposed to be wrathful and violent, was among the simplest. Unlike the other trials, there were very few puzzles and mazes. The Trial of the Forgiving was largely, in essence, a trial of temptation.

This Trial takes the shape of a stone-walled spiral, with trial-goers starting at the outermost point and working their way steadily to the exit at the center. The torches lining the hall as it stretches infinitely onward paints the walls with a warm amber tint, giving the entire place a much more welcoming ambiance than will eventually become evident.

Your task is simple: make it to the end in one piece. All you have to do is withstand the constant harassment from the very, very familiar faces that will stalk you throughout the entirety of this gauntlet. Each specter that appears will be one with which you hold a significant grievance - be it a personal antagonist, a long-standing nemesis, a foe you once faced, or even yourself, if your self-hatred runs that deep. All the while, they'll be doing their utmost to incite you to strike at them. Taunting you, acting out, threatening you or the ones you love; while they cannot physically harm you, they don't necessarily need to, in order to strike a nerve.

They want you to attack them. They want you to lash out. In part because all damage you attempt to deal to them will be rebounded back onto you - and whoever might be accompanying you - instead. A poorly-timed attack or well-placed insult might very well be enough to one-shot you, or your companions, into oblivion.

It's a good thing you have, potentially, innumerable chances. Every time you're struck down, you'll simply reappear at the very start of the Trial...and have to start making your way to the end all over again.

The Weakest Link
Once again, Mu has reformatted one of Maati's Trials for its own purposes. This one is based off of the Trial of the Trusting, which focused on building bonds and connections between its victi - er, between its trial-goers. For those prone to paranoia, distrust, or simply being emotionally closed off, this would be the challenge laid out to them: a sequence of puzzles and traps requiring teamwork and faith in one another, at least in the situational sense.

Fortunately - or, perhaps, unfortunately - things here are going to be a little simpler, though you'll still be waking in a tunnel lined with dark green stone, intermittently lit by the odd, irregularly spaced torch. This Trial will make its intentions quite clear from the beginning, for, you see, you're going to be waking up with a friend.

One that happens to be chained, that is. To you. A length of about two feet of chain links the cuffs that bind you, one wrist to another, with whatever other unlucky soul has woken up here beside you. No matter what you do to said chain, it remains stubbornly indestructible. Though you could always try breaking your wrists, or severing your hands instead, or...actually, you know what? Why don't you just try to get through the Trial with your new friend, instead? It's probably going to be at least marginally less painful!

The path that is open to the pair of you is fairly linear. Its difficulty largely stems from the back that you'll be traversing it as a permanently linked pair. Obstacles present will always be surmountable as a team - switches and levers that might involve two people to reach, doors that require dual switches or buttons to be held down, puzzles that require passing of information between the both of you to expedite progress, and so on. There's also the matter of the Rarriers - ogre-like creatures of large stature and a territorial nature. Those under the keen gaze of a Rarrier will find them impossible to attack; their front hide is as tough as steel, and attacks tend to simply glance off. Their backs and sides are of a much more vulnerable nature, however. If only you could reach...or get someone else to do it for you.

Assuming you're not both sick of each other by the time you reach the exit, you'll be rewarded with the breaking of the cuffs that connect you, symbolizing that a friendship forged is stronger than any iron! Though, by the end...maybe "friendship" isn't the word we'd use.

Well Met
This place is hot, dry, and arid - but at least it's brightly lit! The peach-colored swell of dunes seems to be limitless, in nearly every direction, with the stretch of sand fading seemingly infinitely into the dark, purple line of the horizon. The sun overhead is relentless and sweltering; if you're the sort of person who needs to self-regulate, temperature wise, you might be in for a bit of a problem the longer you're stuck out here. Could be a rough time.

Fortunately for you, there's water. Very nearby, in fact. It's the only deviation from the sea of sand: a dark, circular blot that looks very, very much like a water well. As the only landmark in the vicinity, it seems at the very least worth checking out, right? The closer you get, the less it seems like it might be a mirage, or some other elaborate ruse. It looks like a perfectly normal, unassuming well. Which is why, of course, it isn't one at all.

Well mimics are native to the island of Monsun, and they're...well, they're exactly what they sound like. They favor dry, desert-like environments, and hunt by luring travelers and animals alike to the temptingly fresh waters they hold. Mu has been helpful enough to recreate one in vivid detail, just for you.

These creatures are largely tube-shaped animals, buried deep in the sandy earth. They suction fresh water from deep within the earth and hold it in the lowermost parts of themselves. The simple construct that travelers see - the circular, stone shape with the rope and bucket for hauling water - is, in fact, their mouth, carefully adapted to camouflage itself into something that seems perfectly serviceable. Once travelers attempt to grab hold of the rope or bucket, or even the rim of the well itself, they'll discover that the surfaces have all been slicked with a sticky substance that may very well take off a layer of your skin if you attempt to tear away without taking great care.

Once the well mimic has entrapped its prey, the "well" sprouts teeth around its stone rim, lining its rocky gullet all the way to the bottom, as well as a fat red tongue. Rope-like tentacles whip out to seize whatever poor soul has found themselves ensnared. If you don't manage to get free in time, you'll learn just how it feels to be digested over a period of twenty-four hours while your body is broken down into a squishy, delicious mulch for the mimic's consumption.

The best way to kill these creatures is by tricking it into swallowing something lethal - fire, poison, sharp weapons, whatever you have on hand. Well mimics are quite blind and hunt purely by touch, and will seize whatever touches them without any knowledge of what it is. And once it has one victim in hand, it's quite incapable of grabbing hold of another.

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LOGS ● OOC ● STORIES ● MAIN NAVIGATION

( CODED BY BOOTYCALL )

Comments

[atailoftwoworlds]

Over......a year? [A year in this place? He could end up being stuck in this place for over a year? A year until he is able to go back to where he belongs? A year until he sees his Tantalus family and friends? A year until he sees Dagger? Add to the time it could take to trek across Gaia without an airship?

Oh boy. This a massive bummer.

But then wait. He doesn't necessarily know that he'll be here that long. And he promised himself that he will go back home, no matter how long it takes. Being here a long time doesn't mean he won't be able to go home.

Also....there's one thing that Prompto says that catches his attention.]

Hang on. You said dream-ish world......what do you mean by that? Are you saying that I'm asleep?

[want_to_belong]

Sort of? Maybe. People show up here, first, and sometimes they show up on the islands with the rest of us after.

[He waved a hand towards the desert.]

This place kinda looks like Monsun, but it's like a dream version of it. We don't know how it all works. We've just been told that if you do end up here, your world back at home is kinda... paused? It doesn't keep moving on without you. I don't really know what to think, I can only tell you that I've met my friends here and some of them were ten years older than I remember them being. So there's some weird time stuff going on.

[atailoftwoworlds]

Okay, that is seriously weird. [And sounds like a headache as well. Showing up in one place then another? And meeting friends ten years older? Just uh....]

Then again, if time in your world stops, I guess it's not so bad. [As bizarre as it is. At least Dagger and the others won't have to wait as long for him to come back, even if it won't be the same for him. He can at least have that thought for comfort.] Besides, that doesn't make it impossible to find the exit. It just means it might take a little while. [Gotta be positive!]

[want_to_belong]

[He smiled softly back. At least this one was pretty easy to deal with.]

Yeah. We're working on it. Gotta be honest, I'm not sure anyone knows exactly what to look for, but we're trying.

And hey, if you do show up, there's plenty of us around now. So you'll be fine. I can even show you around when you get there if you want. ...You like photography?

[atailoftwoworlds]

Heh. I'll keep that in mind. Thanks, Prompto! [The place he's currently woken up on isn't fun anyway. And there will be a familiarish face around. Prompto seems like a pretty nice guy.]

And uh.....photography? What's that?

[want_to_belong]

You haven't heard of it?

Dude. I have to show you.

[Holstering his gun, he dug out his camera to give it a go.]

Okay okay, do your best pose and say cheese!

[It was always interesting to see how people from other worlds reacted to his magical technology. He held the camera in front of him and waited eagerly.]

[atailoftwoworlds]

Whoah what's that? [It's nothing he's seen on Gaia. Or Terra for that matter.] And best pose? Uh....okay. [And because he likes showing off, Zidane does a little somersault in the air before landing on his feet, throwing one of his knives in the air, catching it and keeping that arm in the air.] ......Cheese? [Look, that's a cool enough pose, right?]

[want_to_belong]

[Whoa, lots of movement! He snapped away, trying to get as much as he could, before quickly flipping to his newest pics. The first two didn't turn out - nothing but a mess of static, but the last three he got. The landing, a knife high in the air, and the catch.

Good enough. He bounced back over, flipping the camera around to show Zidane the screen.]

See? This is my camera, it takes pics of whatever I see. It broke a little bit when I got here, but I can still use it.

[atailoftwoworlds]

[Well Prompto your new friend is a 16-year-old boy.

Zidane peered at the screen. The first few pictures looked a little weird but.]......Whoaaaaaaaah. Your machine actually does that? [His mouth was open in sheer awe and amazement and he tried to touch it and get a closer look.] It's even more real than a portrait. I don't think I've even seen this stuff in Lindblum. That is so cool! [And he laughs.]

[want_to_belong]

[He might as well be a 16 year old boy, so that worked out well enough.]

Yeah, it's pretty awesome! I've been taking pics since I was a ki... Ah, hold on.

[As Zidane tried to touch it, he attempted to show him how to hold it properly.]

Here, hold it here and here, and when you want to take a pic you press that. Oh, you can see on the screen what it'll take a pic of, too.

[atailoftwoworlds]

So like this? [And he randomly pressed the button, probably resulting in a massively awkward picture like idk Prompto's foot. It wasn't intentional but he'd probably get the hang of it soon enough. At the moment he was trying to figure out how it worked.]

[want_to_belong]

[He laughed, but quickly swiped to the end to show Zidane his amazing photo skills.]

Yeah, like that. But you wanna point it at something a little better.

[atailoftwoworlds]

A little better? Hmmm...[He glances around the area. There's nothing but.....more desert. It's pretty dull actually.] I think I might wait until we get a change in scenery. [Find something a little more memorable. Man-eating well monsters don't count.]

[want_to_belong]

Well, no need to feel too bad about it. When I first got here and was trying to get it to work, my first pic was a crotch shot of my bud.

Forgot to delete it, so he had some questions about why I had that when he saw it some months later.

[Water under the bridge now and just a silly tale to tell. He carefully packed the camera away.]

If you show up on the islands I'll teach you how to take a good pic. If you do any art stuff, it's pretty closely related.

[He nodded his headed towards the endless desert.]

Wanna go for a walk and see if we find anyone who needs some help?

[atailoftwoworlds]

[That prompts a snort from Zidane.] Yeah, it could have been that bad!

Hmmm.....I haven't done much art stuff, no. Acting and charming the ladies are more my forte. [Oh boy.] But I see your point, I think? [Both need a good eye for detail? He thinks]

Great idea! There's a chance we'll run into more guys who don't know about those monsters we've just fought, anyway. We should probably lend them a hand.

[want_to_belong]

Oh, so you're into the ladies?

[He started walking. Randomly. Anywhere away from the mimic was fine, it's not like Mu made sense.] There's been pretty girls on the islands. Some are gone now... but you'll probably be happy.

[atailoftwoworlds]

[Smug look.] I'm popular with all the ladies back home! [Huge exaggeration but hey.] I've only got my eye for one particular girl though. Unfortunately, she's back home. [He hopes he won't have to be stuck for a year here. That long before he sees Dagger again? That would be a real bummer.] But I'll see her again. [No matter how long it takes.]

However, if you've got any friends who are beautiful women then I'd love to meet them!