dankmemes | test drive meme #20

Welcome to Hadriel's test drive, and thank you again for your interest in the game! As always, our reserves page is here, and our applications page is here! Reserves open May 25th, and apps are open June 1st. Please remember that there is an app cap of 20 apps.

Two quick points here as well:
1. Any thread made in Hadriel's test drive will be accepted as the sole Action Log sample in the application.
2. All threads made in the test drive can be considered game canon, either through handwaving or through a shared mental experience while coming through the Door!

Test drives will be broken up into specific god mini-events, during which your characters can see how well they fare under the watchful eye of one of the gods. Choose wisely or just simply pick 'em all, and have fun!

F E A R

SCENARIO ONE: BURN BABY BURN
[The Door brings in all that is chaotic and evil in the world. This may include you, may include the person next to you... and may include the monster behind you.

Or that... bonfire behind you? That's sure what it looks like, but if you get a little closer - which you probably shouldn't - you'll see a face in those flames This time, the Door has brought in some Doomers, from the Baten Kaitos video game.

Doomers are creatures made of flame that sure would like it if you were on fire too. It works for them, right? What do you mean you don't want to be engulfed in flames? These Doomers will send clouds of sparks in the direction of anyone that might be a threat (or anyone they don't like), searing them with the heat and trying to catch them on fire. Hot damn!]

SCENARIO TWO: IT'S JUST A CAT
[Why does it always have to be like this? There you were, going about your day, when you turned a corner and something jumped out at you. Maybe a monster with sharp teeth and claws, maybe a snake striking at your feet, maybe just a terrifying dark shape - whatever it was, it scared the shit out of you.

And then it disappeared in a puff of brightly-colored smoke and glitter, because that's just how Hadriel rolls. Awesome. And maybe if it just happened once it would be a big deal, but it's happening all the time. Practically every other corner you turn, half the doors you open, even just when you look over your shoulder. Careful about getting too jumpy, though - what are you gonna do if your friend taps you on the shoulder and you freak out? How embarrassing.

This is a mini version of our Jumpscares event this month!]

H O P E

SCENARIO THREE: I LIKE YOUR HAIR
[Everything seems normal today. No monsters, no weird shapes jumping out at you. Maybe it'll just be a normal day. Maybe it'll even be nice. No - it'll definitely be nice.

How can we be sure of that? Easy! Every time you touch someone today - whether it's an accidental bump or an intentional touch - you'll blurt out a genuine compliment. If you don't know them well, it could be something as simple as saying they look nice today, or that their eyes are a lovely shade of green. If you do know them, it'll be more specific. Maybe you're impressed by their work ethic, or you love the sound of their singing voice. Maybe you actually hate them but you really appreciate the way they always remember to put the toilet seat down (because that's the only good thing about them).

Whatever it is, you'll find yourself saying it out loud. Don't worry - nothing too personal will be blurted out, and you can stop yourself if you really want to. But isn't it great to be nice to people for once?]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Hannah may get an average to above-average number of compliments in her life, but they're always surprising, somehow. Such is the life of someone with self-esteem as low as hers. Today, though, she finds herself giving compliments, compelled by a sort of chipper, bubbly feeling that is entirely foreign and almost definitely the influence of one of the gods. Delight, maybe?

Does it matter?

"Um - " She begins, stopping a stranger on the street, still hesitating with a shy pause in spite of her confidence in the next thing she says: "I... love your hair. I just had to tell you. I've always wanted to be blonde..."

And this woman has such a cute haircut, too! Hannah sighs wistfully, admiring it openly.

"I'm sorry if that's weird," she adds quickly, snapping out of it and laughing lightly, almost nervously.

Leslie stops when the teenager addresses her, offering her a polite smile that grows into a genuine grin at the compliment.

"Oh, thank you!" she says, looking at Hannah with surprise and gratitute, and reaches out to touch her arm. "That's so sweet! And I love your hair. And your glasses! They make you look so smart!" She shakes her head, reassuringly. The girl looks a little nervous, and it's up to Leslie, as a role model, to help her feel more confident in herself. "Don't worry, it's not weird at all. It's super nice! I'm Leslie. What's your name?"

What a friendly person. Hannah blinks, somehow surprised.

"I'm not... that smart," she mutters, embarrassed. "It's nice to meet you, though. I'm Hannah."

Leslie. This woman seems vastly different from all the other people in Hadriel, or... at least, she seems much, much more chipper, given their situation.

"Are you looking for something?" she asks, curious.

"I'm sure that's not true," Leslie reassures her immediately. How could anyone with glasses that thick not be smart? She beams. "It's nice to meet you too, Hannah!"

The introductions over, she hesitates, glancing around at Hannah's question. Is she looking for something? Well...

"Actually, I'm...a little lost," she admits. It should be impossible. Leslie's lived in Pawnee her whole life, and she knows every inch of this town. Maybe she'd stepped through an evil wormhole to Eagleton? It would explain the way the sun had disappeared, leaving behind a strange, ominous light with no visible source. She smiles brightly at Hannah, who hopefully is as nice and sincere as she seems, and not a malicious Eagletonian hell-bent on the destruction of all that is good in the world. "I'm on my way to Pawnee City Hall. Think you could point me in the right direction?"

"Um - Pawnee?" Hannah blinks, developing the sinking feeling that comes with having to tell someone that they've somehow been brought through into another universe, a hellish cave dimension full of monsters and without real Wifi. "I've never heard of it... I'm sorry."

She chews on her lips, taking a little bit before admitting: "You're actually in Hadriel. It's... a city, but that's all anybody knows. Like, there's no state or country attached, and I'm pretty sure it's nowhere near the U.S."

Definitely not Canada, either. Maybe Russia, though.

"I don't think there's a City Hall, here, either..."

"There's no City Hall!?"

No. No, wait, that is not - that isn't the main problem here. Leslie makes herself stop, take a breath, and focus. Even if the idea of a city without a City Hall is ridiculous, horrifying, and a threat to democracy itself -

Focus.

"What do you mean, we're not in Pawnee?" Somehow, she manages to keep her tone even. And then her eyes widen in shock. "It is Eagleton, isn't it? Those evil Eagletonians kidnapped us and - and they brainwashed you! They made you forget Pawnee, and they made you think we're in - what did you call it?" She keeps talking, though it's less to Hannah now and more to herself. "But why would they do that? What are they - ohhh, it's an experiment! They're experimenting on us!"

Okay, so this woman is... a little hyper. It's okay, though, because she has a right to be confused... and afraid.

"Hang on, it's not that," Hannah begins, holding her hands up defensively. "I don't know anything about Pawnee or, um... Eagleton, but this is Hadriel, and it's like... a cave city, and we're all kind of stuck here."

That doesn't sound different enough from Leslie's kidnapping theory, though.

"It's okay," she insists, even though it's not. "I've been here for a while, I can help - try and explain some stuff. If you want."

She listens patiently to Hannah's explanation, her expression the picture of patient sympathy. Once Hannah finishes speaking, though, Leslie steps forward, putting a reassuring hand on the girl's shoulder.

"It's all right," she says quietly. And sighs, her own train of thought interrupted by the sudden impulse to compliment Hannah again, in the way that only Leslie Knope can. "Hannah, you are a precious naive butterfly who deserves better in life, but it's all right now. I'm here. And we are going to take those Eagletonians down!" She pauses, taking a breath.

"Just tell me where they are."

It doesn't seem as if this enthused, nice-smelling woman is going to believe her. Hannah shrinks a little, disappointed, even as Leslie grasps her shoulders and insists that everything will be fine.

"If you want to talk to the, um... the gods, then you can probably go to one of their temples and just start yelling," she advises, trying to be helpful. "But they could get mad, and you could be in danger."

Maybe not with Delight or Hope, though? She sighs, anxiety curling in her stomach.

"I'm still not sure what an Eagletonian is," Hannah adds.

Leslie just studies Hannah silently. The gods. The gods? Boy, she's in deeper than she'd thought.

"Hmm. Well, I do like the idea of yelling," she muses, and then straightens with sudden conviction. "And you know what? I'm a Pawnee Goddess. I laugh in the face of danger." Especially danger from Eagletonians pretending to be gods and taking advantage of poor, innocent teenage girls full of potential and with their whole lives ahead of them!

"Come on, Hannah. Let's go yell at some gods."

test drive meme #20

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omfg "BUTTERFLY" god dammit

:)