dankmemes | 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.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

He's tired enough that though he startles awake, eyes open wide, he doesn't actually sit up... and that voice is familiar. The woman he'd been paraded past on the way to the holding cells, the one who had her own quarters in the lab. Important enough to be separate from the cattle, but still imprisoned. Drake blinks the water from his eyes and rolls onto his back, giving her a winning smile.

"Didn't expect to see you here. I figured you were someone special."

Oh for fuck's sake she just wants him out of her bed before he gets his Liv-loving smell all over it. Gross.

"And I figured you were a moron." Rita sets the cup on the nightstand, crosses her arms, and smirks at him. "You're not wrong, though. I am special. So get the hell out of my bed and find yourself a standard issue cot to pass out on."

Drake does sit up at that, holding up his hands innocently. He'd just picked a place at random after all, it's not like he intentionally took her bed.

"Where are the standard cots for normal schmucks like me? And I never got your name. I'm Drake."

If they're the only two zombies in the place they should probably stick together.

Finally, some progress. Now is about the time when she would direct him out of her shitty apartment here, but the fact that he's from home changes things. He'll figure out sooner or later who she is, which will give him leverage over her. And hey, maybe he's as much of an idiot as Liv -- must be, if they were ~lovers -- but he's an idiot who it's best to have on her side.

So Rita makes a quick change of plans as she takes a deep breath. Allies are important to have. Vaughn taught her that. A goodie-goodie will have your back -- another lesson from Vaughn. And hey, it'll be easy to play the victim when the truth comes out. Thanks, Dad. Your asshole ways are helpful here.

"Rita." She gestures with her head to the living room. "My couch is unoccupied. It's slightly better than your standard issue cot." By virtue of being hers, or as much hers as anything here can be. "Since you're the only other zombie here, I think it's good form to offer it up."

Also, he's kind of hot, and he's Liv's, which means she has another chance to stick it to the girl who punched her. Things are looking up despite how fucking exhausted she is.

When she tilts her head to the other room, Drake stands. A couch, huh? He can work with that. Rita gets another smile.

"Thanks, Rita. And are we? The only zombies... I figured zombiedom had something to do with how we got here." He'd read the welcome message on his phone, after all. The Door bringing in chaos seemed like an open invitation to zombies. Among other types... he'd have to keep his cover in Hadriel. "Or maybe we're just both trouble."

"For now." She shrugs. "More could get pulled in here."

They are trouble, though. Especially Rita. It's like the Door has some sort of morality meter set to "decent human being" which of course Rita falls short of. Not that she cares, but yeah, that's why she's here.

"As far as I've been able to gather, the zombie virus, utopium, and Max Rager have nothing to do with this place." Though Fear does remind her a little of her dad, in how he doesn't care what he has to do to gain power. Actually, all the gods are like that.

"So we were just pulled in at random?" He knows way worse people than himself, after all. And probably than Rita. But she's brought up another question. Utopium and Max Rager.

"Were you at the boat party, too? That's how you got turned?"

He wasn't up on the science of it, how utopium and Max Rager combined to start outbreaks -- most of the people in the cell with him reported being scratched -- but Rita seems to know more than he does.

"Everyone is agreed on that much, if nothing else." Having shit enough luck to get pulled in here is kind of your baseline bonding point.

Hahaha. Her favorite topic. How she got turned.

Rita laughs a little, a dark, sardonic sound, and walks to sit on the bed, as if she's settling in to tell a story. Maybe she'll go into detail. It depends on how into it she gets this time around.

"I got turned a few weeks ago. My dad and I ran into a Romero." She pauses. Amazing how she's still able to feel so angry over this. The horror of those wild minutes is so fresh. "He escaped. Locked me in a room with it. I fought for my life. It's anyone's guess if I won or lost, if this is how I wound up. But I did kill it."

A sneaky, slim human woman with nothing but a stiletto for a weapon. Is it any wonder Vaughn had her locked up as soon as possible?

"You?"

Drake stares at Rita for a moment, so knocked sideways by her story. Finally he breathes out, "Holy shit."

What kind of a father sacrifices his daughter to an attacking zombie? It's almost impossible to wrap his mind around, he wouldn't even leave a total stranger to fight a Romero alone. He's actually getting angry on her behalf, brow knitting together and hands tightening into fists. "You won. You're alive."

As for him... Drake sighs, then shrugs. "I was dying of a gunshot wound. Someone scratched me to save my life."

Somehow, that wasn't the reaction she'd been expecting. The equivalent of "that's rough, buddy" tends to be as good as it gets, but Drake gives her enough to make her comfortable with the idea that he'll be on her side for a good long while based on that story alone. But rather than bask in this victory, Rita reins her anger in. If he is horrified, then she'll play it a little vulnerable, glancing away briefly and giving a sligjt shrug. "Yeah. I guess."

His story screams goodie-goodie. A zombie savior. But who would do that out of the goodness of their heart? Who would look at someone and think immortality at the price of eating human brains for the rest of your life is merciful?

"You must've meant a lot to someone." Where clearly Rita did not. She's not jealous or anything, though, why would anyone ever think that!

"Nah." His expression lightens back up, though, even as he implies he didn't mean a thing. "She didn't know me from Adam, just thought I had information for her."

"Nothing is ever free, is it." Poor, stupid fuck. "At least someone wanted you around for something. All I have left to live for is petty revenge."

Shrugging, Rita grabs the wet pillow and tosses it to the foot of the bed. Being as tired as she is, she could sleep on gravel and be comfortable. One less pillow won't be a problem.

Edited (slight typo) 2017-07-04 13:57 (UTC)

"You've got more to live for than that. They're working on a cure." A beat, then he clarifies. "Not the assholes testing on us, somebody else."

He takes a step back -- does she want to sleep now? Should he retreat to the couch?

That would be the best way to stick it to her dad, wouldn't it? Live, be cured, inherit the proceeds from the sale of the company.

Rita gives Drake a little smile. "You're sweet. Thanks." And when she sees him step back, she says, "Here's to dreaming of being human again," and climbs into bed, tossing the damp pillow aside.

Drake smiles back -- nobody really calls him sweet except his Ma, who now he's worried about. But that won't do any good. Rest, and they can figure out everything else in the morning.

"Goodnight, Rita. Thanks for the couch."

test drive meme #21

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