dankmemes | test drive meme #21

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!test drive

test drive meme #21

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 June 24th, and apps are open July 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: A LITTLE FRENZIED
[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.

Do you hear something weird? Some kind of strange, constant humming? Hopefully by now you know enough to know that it's probably not nothing, and maybe you should run. If you don't, well- the Door has brought in some Winter Lanterns, from the Bloodborne video game.

Winter Lanterns are rather hideous creatures that hum constantly and glow orange when they detect someone's presence. They can grab you with their tentacles and take a nice bite out of you, which is super fun, or they can mess you up just by looking at you too long. Yep, hanging out in the gaze of a Winter Lantern for too long will end with you being afflicted by Frenzy - blood shooting out all over the place. Not great for the health, really, so maybe don't get into a staring contest. Maybe just run.]

S O R R O W / L O V E

SCENARIO TWO: HAUNTED
[You thought you might never see them again, but now they're here. That person you loved - that person you miss terribly. Except that you seem to be the only person who can see them, and you also seem to be getting steadily weaker.

So that's what it comes down to, then. This ghost that's haunting you will take your life so it can live, even if it doesn't mean to. Do you have the ability to stop them? You'll have to kill them to do it, and you love them so much. Now's the time to make your choice - but be careful. They're strong enough to be visible now, and one of your friends or even a passing stranger might have something to say about your decision.

This is a mini version of our Ghosts That You Know event this month!]

T R A N Q U I L I T Y

SCENARIO THREE: SLEEPING SICKNESS
[For some reason you can't quite put your finger on, you're tired. Like really tired. Like slurring your words, stumbling over your own feet, nodding off if you stop for a second tired. You can't seem to get enough rest no matter what you try - because it's always a light sleep. The slightest sound or movement will wake you up, leaving you just as tired and irritable as before.

What are you going to do? Try to find a quiet place to nap? Good luck. It seems like a lot of other people have the same idea as you - it might be hard to find a truly empty place. Or maybe you just can't take it anymore, and you're going to lay down and take a nap right in the middle of the street. Or maybe you actually feel fine, but everyone around you is falling asleep - and they glare at you when you make the slightest sound.

Maybe you should wake them up? Sleeping in the middle of the street isn't exactly safe. But then, maybe you just want to join them and argue over who gets the most comfortable bit of road.]

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[Oh, Lup had definitely noticed the floating, white mask hovering around her and Barry, but with her attention so heavily focused on finding a solution to her current dilemma that doesn't involve murdering her damn boyfriend, it was easy enough to pay Malkus no mind.

--Until he was suddenly standing right behind Barry.

The elven woman's eyes flick to the rock in Malkus' hand hovering over Barry's semi-translucent head and all she sees is red. Her hand snaps up instinctively, shooting a trio of glowing, magical darts straight at Malkus' face to avoid hitting Barry, who visibly flinches as the spell shoots over him. Naturally, her shot is right on the mark.]

What the hell do you think you're doing? [Better move fast Malkus or she is going to stomp all over your face.]

[ Naturally Malkus didn't make any motion to move out of the line of sight. It was partly that he rarely dealt in the living, much less the aggressive, but MOSTLY that he didn't... often have magic battering his mask and face. Despite the hard cloth absorbing some (barely any) of the energy, his face was lit with beautifully colored pain. He felt his body carried back, reeling, until his back hit the ground with a loud howling cuss. ]

CHRIST ALIVE, ASSAULT!

[ He clutched at his mask and screamed, rolling onto one side before twisting and turning onto the other. Each movement accompanied by a cramped sounding groan. ]

What is wrong with you?! MY EYES! Fiend! Madwoman!

[Judging by the genuine 100% honest tone of surprise and anguish, Malkus believed he was the wronged party in this kerfuffle. There he was, doing his civic duty and getting ready to brain a fragile looking ghost for the good of the living, and the very target of his service cracks him in the face! Some nerve- seriously- he can't even FOCUS right now, this situation has gone in such a horrid and unpredictable direction. ]

Lup! [the ghost exclaims as the elven woman purposely places herself between Barry and the writhing figure on the ground, both of her hands moving to rest at the gentle slope of her hips as she glared down at Malkus. He continues to scream and roll around, whining about his eyes when really that was the nicer of spells she could have shot at him.

At least it hadn't been a fireball to the face, right?]

C'mon, you're fine. [Lup gives the man a gentle kick in the side, prodding him with her boot.] But you won't be if you don't tell me what the hell you were thinking.

[ Malkus writhed at the small kick and quickly rolled back a few paces. After getting onto his stomach, the man pulled his arms in and slowly, wobbly, pushed himself up. ]

You c-could have killed me. What if I had a weaker constitution than others? I may be of a medically frail state!

[ He rose to his knees and eventually to his feet with a grunt and a raspy sigh. It didn't help that the ghostly figure was able to speak. That always dredged up that nagging guilt. Ruined work, sometimes. ]

I was going to humanely bring about the end of your predicament, before you attacked me. I was thinking I would be nice and do you that service as no one had done for me.

[Luckily for Malkus, Lup doesn't pursue him in his retreat. She just stands there, hands on her hips, glaring across the short distance between them. A bit of the red-hot fire behind her eyes has dimmed, at least, but she doesn't look at all ready to forgive the man just yet.]

Puh-lease, [She drags the word out with an exaggerated roll of her eyes.] I know what I'm doing. [She jerks a thumb up at herself, hip cocking out to the side.] Level twelve, homie.

[Behind her, Barry just shrugs at Malkus. He's smart enough to stay out of it when Lup is like this. Better to let her temper burn out quickly than to keep feeding the flames.]

Being 'nice' isn't killing my boyfriend, so keep your hands to yourself! [A beat passes. Though now that Lup can get a good look at the stranger, she finds him to look utterly harmless, a skinny man flapping around awkwardly in a too-big robe, peering out of a mask he probably couldn't properly see out of. Some of the defensiveness in her posture drops, but she remains standing between him and Barry. Just in case.] This is....This is my thing, okay? I'm dealing with it.

[ The longer she stares, the more she might find that the doctor's proportions are a bit off. His movements had the occasional fidget to them, like it hurt to maintain his posture. The birdman returned that glare, his eyes visible just enough through the colored glass lens. ]

And this is my thing. I'd be holding a rock if you hadn't bombarded me with your witchery!

[ He held a hand up, miming a large rock in his fist. He wanted to ask about that level twelve bit, but the conversation had moved far past that. Eventually the doctor gave a small sigh and lowered the hostility in his tone. ]

I feel... I feel as though we may have begun this whole thing on the wrong footing. I've much experience in this field of... whatever this is. Pain.

[ Tugging at his gloves, he thought some more. ]

He seems to be making you unwell. Not that he seems to want to, 'course.

You think? [That seems like quite the understatement, Lup unable to help but snap the words out, before the ghostly apparition behind her places a calming hand at her shoulder. Ugh, stop playing as her conscience, Barry.] Fine, I'm listening. [Her arms move to cross over her chest, still just as defensive, but at least with her hands tucked away she wasn't as likely to blast him unexpectedly again.]

So you have experience in this or something? What kind of experience? [Her sharp eyes narrow, judging him.] And what even are you? A doctor? [Certainly not a man of science if his solution to her problem was to hit Barry in the head with a rock, but maybe a medic from a less civilized plane?]

It's nothing I can't handle. [The exhaustion in her posture and face says otherwise, but Lup was trying to keep it together. To out-stubborn whatever this was.] We just have to figure out how it's happening and we can work to fix it.

[ He went silent at her questions. All of this really sent home the fact that Malkus hadn't spoken outside of his flock in so many years. He honestly didn't think he'd have such a hard time with socializing, but he's finding himself at a loss for proper words more than he'd like. The man's voice softens in response. Almost to a low whisper. ]

I might have been. I may still be, yes. I helped people. [ He lowered his head, letting the brim of his hat cover the top of his face. ] I handle epidemics. So one can imagine that I have to do a lot of things that people do not like. Despise even.

[ He aimed his beak towards the stone on the ground beside them. Mercy killings just kind of became the norm after it was clear that their plague worked too quickly to ever hope to find a solution. ]

I "handled" my problem too quickly to really understand what was happening to me. So I cannot really understand what's happening to you. But I know what dying looks like, and you are not in luck.

[Epidemics. Now that sounded like a total bummer of a profession to have. Lup can't imagine ever choosing to study something so goddamn bleak. But the thought reminds her of the mushroom plane they landed on so many years before, a world covered in fungus that was wholly uninhabitable without the use of masks to filter the air. Maybe this stranger comes from a place similar to that, where learning about infectious disease was more of a necessity than anything.

She'd always been fairly quick to judge, a skill she'd long valued growing up around distrustful adults, but Lup was finally learning that not everything could be taken at face value. She was trying, but it was a process.]

It wouldn't be the first time I've died. Pretty sure my count is up to nine right now. May as well make it a solid ten and call it a day, right? [Though when she inclines her head to shoot a joking grin back Barry's way, the ghostly figure behind her doesn't look nearly as amused. He's just frowning sadly at her, which leaves Lup sighing back, exhaustion seeping into her tone.] Look, I know it's different. This place, wherever we are, is different. For one, you're...whatever you are. And two... [Their friends and their ship were missing. And there was no leaving this place without either.

She turns her frown back on Malkus.] So what are you proposing? You have some kind of experience with this shit, so can you, I dunno, look him over and fix it? [a beat passes] At least try?

[ That was a pretty spot on assessment. Malkus raised his eyebrows at such a morbid joke. Was it some sort of cat bit? Those only had nine lives, right? He regards Barry, then Lup again. There were so many questions he wished he could ask. Had the situation permitted, he'd have loved to scream and gawk on about her magic and ghosts and all sorts of paranormal occurrences. But unfortunately there was a very serious problem at hand. ]

I-I'm very much human, mind... mind you. [ He felt a migraine coming on at the thought of being mistaken as anything else, for some reason. ]

I can try, but I'm more classed in the blight- ah- more physical- locust and leeches sort of ailment. Hm... Well I suppose, to start.

[ Malkus held his hand up in a pacifying manner as he approached the ghost, moving partway between them. With Lup's permission of course. ]

I can barely smell a thing through the potpurri, so I'll need a bit of assistance. Can you smell anything? Anything at all? Sulphur? Blood?

[Whatever tension and distrust remain, Lup clenches her fists and steps aside to let Malkus near Barry for this brief examination, her sharp gaze never once leaving the newcomer. If he so much as reaches for another weapon, she'll really bring the pain down on him this time. But as long as he brings no harm to her ghostly half, Lup would do whatever was needed to assist him.

Barry shifts awkwardly where he stands, not quite sure if he should stand or sit or what. He shoots Malkus an apologetic shrug as the doctor approaches him, nervously watching the other man through his glasses.

Lup frowns at the question, eyes narrowing, but she answers honestly.] Smell? No, there's nothing like that.

[ Malkus leaned closer and closer to Barry, almost to the point that the tip of his mask poked his eye. Immediately forgetting any slow caution, the doctor poked and prodded the ghostly figure.]

Hhh-hm... Not a demon. Not-... human.

[ The gloved hand ran up Barry's face, stopping at the edge of his mouth. Though at this point it's just as likely that the doctor'd be shooed back at this point. In a loud whisper, almost a hissing voice, he murmured: ]

If I could just take some blood... See inside- But no. Maybe... distance? Perhaps you are dying because of some proximity?

[If Barry had looked uncomfortable before, getting poked and prodded by a weird bird-masked stranger wasn't helping, especially when that sharp beak came perilously close to jabbing out his eye. He leaned back a little, though was obedient enough to not move too much during the examination.]

I am too a human, [He held up his hands, still semi-translucent, and frowned. At least he felt human for the most part.]

[But Lup was a little too focused on Malkus' murmurings to reassure her beau of his humanness, the elf moving to stand beside Malkus as he ran a hand up Barry's face.] Are you examining him or checking his teeth like livestock? So what? You need some blood? I'm not letting you cut him up to see what's inside, but a little blood is do-able. [The suggestion of distance has her slender eyebrows arching up curiously. Could the solution be that simple?]

Well, I'm not leaving him with you to get stoned, so you'll just have to come with me to find out if that works.

Edited 2017-07-09 22:13 (UTC)

Maybe at one point, friend, b-but I'm afraid you're- ah- well not anymore.

[ He frowned and furrowed his brow at Lup. ]

I'm examining him. It just so happens to... look a lot like the latter as well. It's been some time. Most people are dead in my lands. As for the distance, fine I'll join but your friend here must stay in place! No ghostly haunting or any of that. We need to see if perhaps the debilitation lessens the further you are.

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test drive meme #21

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