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.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ There's an irony there, considering this guy was about to kill him. Drake grins. ]

I guess some things are universal. How'd you find out there were aliens? Did they come to invade like in the movies?

[ He extends a hand. In case they're doing that. ]

Drake Holloway.

Pretty much. Things went to shit for a while.

[Then they won and things went to shit in a whole new way. Way of the universe, he figures.

He shakes Drake's hand briefly. He'd already gotten out of his gauntlets by the time a stranger popped up in his bed, so his tattoos and scars are bared for the world to see. Most of them need to be touched up, obscured by plasma burns and knife slashes. There hasn't been time.]

Shit. Your world doesn't have space travel at all? Weird.

[ The tattoos are interesting, the scars more so -- Drake has no idea what could have caused that kind of scarring and left Ephemera alive. Weaponry his world doesn't have yet, most likely. ]

Well we've been to the moon and have a space station in orbit, but that's about it. It's only unmanned trips farther out. Give us another ... maybe twenty years? It's hard to say.

What's your ink mean?

[Goddamn. Sharkface rocks back on his heels, trying to think. History was never his strong suit and he semi flunked out of high school anyway.] I think you're -- I dunno, maybe two hundred years behind me? Count yourself lucky, I guess. The Covenant fucks shit up.

[But now they're pushed back, scattered, and the enemy is human again. So it goes.

He shrugs, glancing at his bare hands. The back of his right has a barcode and series of rings around his knuckles. The left has a date, though the numbers are mostly gone under a burn.]

That? [He taps the date.] First time I jumped out of a pelican. These are for my brothers and sisters.

[One ring for each one who died. He hasn't updated the count, is going to run out of skin to remember them with.

He runs his thumb along the barcode fondly.]

And that's a photo cache. I got more, but I'm not stripping for you. Sorry, buddy.

...you think you're from my world's future? Well. At least I'll be dead by the time we're invaded by aliens.

[ Probably. Do zombies age? It's too soon to know things like that. Drake shakes his head and follows along with Ephemera's explanation of his tattoos. ]

Big family, or your unit?

[ The barcode is a curious thing. ] How's that work? Data in a tattoo?

Maybe I'll see the rest eventually. I've got some too but you're right, we're not up to the striptease part of our friendship.

No idea. Maybe.

[It makes as much sense as anything else. Sharkface feels his smile fade a bit and drops his hands.]

My unit.

[All gone now. He never had a family until them.]

But, yeah. Scan it and you've got some stored data. In case my helmet gets busted.

[He does laugh at that, a little. It hurts his face to smile. He hasn't quite gotten used to that yet.]

I like you, dude. Even if you did try to steal my pillows.

[ It doesn't take a rocket scientist to put together that Ephemera lost his unit. Probably he was the only one left, maybe in whatever event caused his scarring. Drake doesn't ask; too much too soon. He just glances at the helmet still on the bed. ]

You'll have to show me the future sometime, if there are pics in there.

[ He smiles back, eyes sparkling with good humor. ]

And you're not so bad yourself now that we've moved on from the gun in my face.

Not in that one. [It's his now, because he painted it and made it so, but it started as stolen Freelancer tech. Sharkface huffs out a laugh. It's been a while since he's met someone - anyone - who doesn't immediately put him on edge.] You really wanna give me a hand, I won't say no. I can show you how the armor works.

[And he could use the help, honestly. His knee is pretty much shot, enough that moving hurts. The rest of the damage will have to wait until he can get a good look at it.

At least he's still got all his teeth. That's something.]

Too bad. [ More for Ephemera than him, he's just curious. The other man would probably really like to have those images back.

At his new friend's acceptance of help Drake nods, gesturing for him to sit down. ]

Take your weight off that leg, first thing. What happened, anyway? Those monsters in the arena?

[Normally this would be an awful idea, the kind that invites a stabbing or some other, more creative murder attempt. Sharkface - though he feels like being Ephemera for a while - hasn't known many good people, let alone any who might be called trustworthy. The Tartarus had dragged murderers and deserters out of their hidey holes and things hadn't improved much since Felix and co had taken over.

Felix, possibly, is the worst person he's ever met.

He doesn't say any of that. Doesn't even flinch when Drake accepts and moves in closer.

He sits, carefully. Tries not to bend his knee too much, because that might involve crying and he'd rather not do that with his helmet off.]

Nah. Freelancer bitch kicked me out a window. Landed bad.

[He makes a face.]

Probably broke some ribs too.

'Freelancer bitch'? Someone I should look out for?

[ Drake kneels in front of Ephemera, looking for how the armor on his leg is secured so he can take it off -- very carefully. ]

Hopefully they're just cracked -- I'll take a look at those too. [ Suddenly he looks up, grinning. ] Hey, we just hit the striptease stage.

Bitch in blue armor. Calls herself Carolina.

[He doesn't bother hiding the venom, tone gone soft and sharp. She's one of many on the list he's made, important only because she's lingering at the top. One day - one day very soon - Sharkface is going to corner her and beat her to death. Set her corpse on fire and watch it burn, watch her armor smolder and melt. She'll die for what she's done and she'll die knowing why. He can't abide the thought of her not knowing.

But that's another day.

Sharkface laughs. He helps with the armor clasps on his legs, so it won't get complicated.]

I take credits and dollars, just so you know. Covering my bases here.

[Better not to take it so seriously. He's probably not in great shape under the armor. Sharkface knows that pretty well. He doesn't feel everything these days, shrugs off more than he should. The pins and staples holding him together have killed more than their fare share of nerves.

Besides, he's hardly the type anyone would pay to take their clothes off. He knows that, has known it for a long time, even before his face got fucked up.]

[ Drake just nods, filing the information away. Obviously they've got history... he certainly wouldn't want to get between them, the way Ephemera's tone drips with loathing. It must be reciprocated, to throw someone off a building. ]

Shit, I left my wallet back on earth. I'm good for it, though, really.

[ His tone's light and playful, keeping things casual as he examines Ephemera's knee. It's pretty wrecked, already swollen to the point Drake's amazed the armor fit on him. ]

I wouldn't be surprised if you tore a bunch of shit in here, man. Do you have anything to spare I could wrap it with, just to keep things in place?

[One good thing about the armor is that it tends to keep everything in one place, if you wear it right. Now that it's coming off, the damage is hitting the air.

Ow. Ow.

Sharkface tips his head back and counts to five. Takes a breath. Lets it out.

All right. He's definitely not going to cry in front of Drake.]

Not really.

[At least he doesn't have any exposed bone poking through his survival suit. So that's something.]

I'm prepared to sacrifice the sheets. Not the pillows. I like those.

Sheets it is.

[ He straightens up a little, pulling the top sheet off the bed and tearing it into strips efficiently. Wrapping the knee is going to hurt but hopefully it'll feel a bit better once it's held still. He considers the suit for a moment, then: ]

I think you should actually take this off. I'll help you.

Easy, tiger. I'm getting there.

[It feels better to be sitting, not have weight on his knee. He was halfway out of his armor before Drake even showed up, gauntlets and pauldrons already unbuckled and set aside. There isn't too much left, just the remainder of his grieves and chest plate. The chest plate takes a bit longer, dented in a few places where Carolina landed hits, where he connected with the sidewalk too hard at the wrong angle.

He doesn't bother with modesty once the armor's off, just unzips his survival suit to the waist and asses the damage, prodding at his ribs.]

Huh.

[The bruises are rising purple already, red and hot to the touch. And there's a cut following the line of his ribs that bleeds sluggishly when he prods it. Armor caught the worst of it. At least the damage missed his tattoos this time.]

Awesome, I'm still in one piece. Sort of.

Take as deep a breath as you can.

[ Drake does an excellent job of not staring at the scarring as he prods Ephemera's ribs himself, his touch exceedingly gentle. The ribs on this side are broken, definitely, but not in so many pieces that they grate against one another, or are in danger of puncturing a lung. He leans in and starts wrapping, tying the sheet off on the good side. ]

Here, let me help you stand.

[ He rises to his feet and reaches out to help his new friend balance on just the good leg. It's going to hurt easing the suit over that knee, but it's gotta be done. ]

I'm no doctor but we're going to need to get you some kind of crutch at least.

[He complies, cursing when the hurt goes suddenly sharp. Somehow it's always worse once the armor's off.]

Motherfucker---

[That's happening. Yep.

He lets it happen for a moment. Breathes through it. Rides out the pain until it crests. Without the adrenaline to dull things, it's harder to shove it away. But he does, because it doesn't matter in the end. It's only sensation. Neurons firing in his brain. Nerves reacting to stimuli. If he focuses hard enough, he can ignore it long enough to stand, bracing against Drake for balance.]

I'll live. If you wrap it, it should be fine. Armor will stabilize it.

[Apparently he really is stripping. That's a thing that's happening. Sharkface snorts.]

I should be charging you for this.

Credits or dollars, I got it. You'd give a shit lap dance right now, though.

[ He eases Ephemera back down to the bed, then kneels again and works the legs of the suit off for him. If his ribs looked angry the knee is furious, way worse off than Drake knows how to deal with... he's almost certain that the ACL or PCL or LMNO-all-of-the-ligaments are torn and Ephemera needs an actual doctor, but he doesn't think this place has a hospital. Or that the suggestion will fly anyway. For now he just wraps the knee as tight as he dares without cutting off circulation, hopefully immobilizing it. ]

How's that feel?

Is that a challenge?

[Because he will go there. Maybe not right this second because ow, but in general. Eventually. He's already down to his skivvies anyway. And it's easier to tease and grin than think about the horror show his body seems keen on turning into. He's already got too much metal holding him together.

He tests it briefly, wincing.]

I'll live. Seriously, though. Thanks.

Maybe, maybe. Don't prove yourself 'til you're healed up, though.

[ He straightens up again, gently lifting Ephemera's leg for him and helping him to lie down. One of those nice soft pillows he's so fond of is going under his knee, raising it a little. ]

It's no big, but you're welcome. I just wish we had ice. Or painkillers.

[ While his new friend rests a little he picks up the damaged chest plate, examining the metal. ]

What's this made of?

[He laughs a little. Decides he's going to be Ephemera for a while and not Sharkface. Just for a bit.]

Won't lie, ice would be awesome.

[Or some good drugs. Oh well. He'll settle for real pillows. Jesus these things are fluffy.]

The armor? Some alloy with too many syllables. Takes a hit pretty well, though.

[He twists, lifting his hair a bit to show the implant site at the base of his neck.]

Hooks up with my implants, see.

[ Drake lowers the armor and leans in to look, blinking when he realizes that the implant is angled to go into Ephemera's brain. ]

That looks painful. What's it for?

Hurt like a bitch when I got them, yeah.

[Sharkface blinks. He can't remember the last time he met someone who didn't have implants, civilian or otherwise. There were a few bastards on the Tartarus who'd had theirs ripped out, but that was bad luck. Grudges and someone with a scalpel and battery acid going nuts on their spinal cords.]

Everything. Full tactical package. Hooks up to GPS, radio, weapons calibration, automatic targeting.

[He makes a face.]

Also migraines. Gotta pay to play.

That's amazing. And kind of terrifying... people in my time are worried about the government watching us through phones and computers and they went and jacked one straight into your head.

[ He gestures to the base of his own neck, a little awkwardly. ]

Can I?

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