dankmemes | test drive meme # 26

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!test drive

test drive meme # 26

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 November 24th, and apps are open December 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: SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL
[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.

This time, the monsters are a bit more transparent, as the Door will bring in a few skeletons! Skeletons often accompany the fear of death and can such be found as entry-level monsters in many different stories and games of all kinds.

Skeletons are well... skeletons.... but they move around like they're still alive. Some of them use weapons to make you fear death by killing you, which is cool for them I suppose. They're not particularly smart and they can be tricked very easily, but once they hone in on a victim they won't rest until they make everyone else just as dead as they are.]

D E L I G H T / L O V E

SCENARIO TWO: SQUAD GOALS
[Hey, look to the guy or gal to the left or right side of you. Did you guys just become best friends?
I think you did! For the next little while, you find yourself entering into these odd platonic relationships you'd never considered before. That guy who you kind of awkwardly made eye contact with at the grocery store last week? Best friends! The lady who's friends with your roommate's sister? Inseparable pals!

This event, based off of our recent event of the same name inspires you and all your weird facebook acquaintances to suddenly feel like you're best buds. You guys will share everything together, do everything together, and just generally think the world of one another. Enjoy your new and beautiful friendship!]

S O R R O W

SCENARIO THREE: INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS
[You know that voice deep in the back of your head that you generally ignore? You know, the one that tells you that you're stupid or worthless or that you should push that old lady into traffic? Well, usually you ignore them- we know you do, because you're a decent person who doesn't experience that kind of self doubt.

Now, though, all those little voices seem to have some merit. You're not sure why, but suddenly just giving into your weirdest impulses sounds like a good idea. You'll have to fight even harder to ignore them, particularly the ones that tell you to do something. What would that guy do if you just up and punched him in the face? What about if you just broke that chick's window? You'll have to find out!

Alternatively, all those thoughts about how lame you are and how you'll never succeed at anything are a bit more believable too. Hopefully you don't have too many of those- but hey, if you do then you can always drown your sorrows away at the local bar!]

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Fear

[It's not the skeletons that put off Justice. Oh, no, he's dealt with skeletons before. It's the fact that he's suddenly in a body of his own. He had been in a corpse a second ago, and now he's not. He's in a warm body... and there's nothing else in it with him. No dead memories, no mind, nothing.

What just happened?]

Begone! [He punches one of the skeletons in the face, sending its skull flying before he grabs its sword. An uncharacteristic wave of fear hits him--fear of death, fear of nonexistence, and it sends a shudder through this new physical form.

There's a demon of fear here. That's the only explanation. He stomps the skeleton's rib cage and brandishes the sword at the approaching others.] Reveal yourself, demon!

Sorrow

[What is wrong with this place? First it's a mysteriously untrackable demon of fear, and now it's a mysteriously untrackable demon of despair. Justice is walking on the street, glaring at his hands as he struggles to find the source of the sudden wave of hopelessness that's washing over him.

You will never see the Fade again.

You will become a demon.

Give in.

This isn't the first time Justice has dealt with a demon of despair, but this one is very powerful, digging its icy claws into his head. He will stand strong. He will find the source, and he will kill it.]

Forget. Forget. Forget.

[It's a mantra he murmurs under his breath, forgetting each intrusive thought as it comes, though they come back mere minutes later. It keeps him from dwelling, and it keeps corruption at bay while he searches for the demon.]

[ Finna has dealt with wild foreign magic before. She's dealt with demons, bears, and dark gods. She's fought against sorcerers and werewolves, hags and assassins, and she's fought against emotion as well. A Nord, a True Nord, mourns only after the battle is hard fought, won or lost.

But now, a sorrow has invaded her. It reminds her of the bear attack that took down a caravan, along with her lover. It reminds her of the moment seconds before her executioner was going to sever her head from her torso. It hurts and it's not a wound she can use a spell on to heal or wrap and bandage.

When she hears Justice, she pauses. Forget. He wants to forget but she steps in his path. ]

Don't forget: use. [ Because sorrow can bring rage and rage can change the tidal of war. ]

[Justice pauses in his walking and murmuring to look up at the mortal woman who has stood in his way. He stares at her, which comes out looking like a glare because he always looks like he's glaring. Use the sorrow?

That has to be the dumbest idea he has ever heard.

He takes a breath to tell her so, then remembers that this is a mortal, and mortals don't know much about spirits. Chances are she doesn't even know what he is. So instead of snapping at her, he keeps his voice calm and smooth when he says,] You mortals may be capable of finding something worthwhile in grief. My kind is not.

It can cause corruption, and it must be controlled. [That's a simple way of putting it, but honestly, Justice doesn't really understand it all. He just knows that spirits that give in to despair will become demons, and the spirits that forget it remain spirits. Better to erase any trace of corruption than to take a risk on becoming a demon.]

[And then there's a loud, obnoxious dwarf with a face brand, two swords and a mabari at her side. She doesn't recognize the form of her old friend in a new body; in her eyes, it's a newcomer and he might not need the help, but she's offering it anyway.]

Hey, assholes! That's right, over here! Come get some! [Aren's not immune to the fear, not really, but the best way for her to fight it is to get angry and stay that way. So, here comes help in the form of whirlwind swords and strong canine jaws.]

[Justice knows that voice. More importantly, he knows that presence. He feels her, humming so much more brightly in the flesh than the fingerprints she leaves behind on objects do. He keeps his attention on the battle, but having someone he knows and trusts there helps fight the unnatural fear that spills from these creatures' weapons. They must be enchanted, because Justice cannot feel a fear demon close by. It must be elsewhere, feeding off of the fear its work inspires.

Luckily, dwarves are resistant to spirits and demons' power, so Justice isn't too worried about the Warden Commander. Justice is without his shield, but he has a sword, and he can make good use of it. It's a familiar thing, falling into rhythm with the Warden Commander, and he moves to push against their enemies, instinctively making himself the larger target so that her blades can find their backs. Luckily, whatever sorcery that has brought him here saw fit to allow him to keep his armor, so taking blows for now is only a matter of pain, not of death.]

[Aren's busy but she's not unobservant. When her new companion's battle style easily adjusts to her own, she gets a moment of deja vu. But that's silly, isn't it? He doesn't have a face she knows, but...eh, they can figure it out when the skeletons are gone. Speaking of which, while Barkspawn bowls one over with his charge and pounce, she activates the tainted blood within her, dripping forth to coat her blades. It won't last, she can't keep it up for too long, but while Aren is still hale enough, she'll make it count, and focuses on the next with a flurry of attacks.]

[Justice shudders when her blood costs her blades, sending her a brief grimace before he focuses his attention back on the skeletons. Has he mentioned that he hates it when she does that? Because he does. It feels too much like blood magic for comfort, though admittedly he understands it’s not literal blood magic because Aren isn’t a mage.

He cuts down more skeletons, but he focuses more on drawing attention to himself than landing killing blows. That’s for the Commander, who takes them down just as expertly as always.

After the last skull is crushed and the skeletons seem to have abated for a moment, Justice examines one of the enchanted blades, frowning as he struggles to track the demon that enchanted it.]

It is good to see you, Aren.

[To an outsider, this could easily be taken as an afterthought, since he doesn’t look at her, smile, or change his tone, but he is being absolutely sincere. He is happy to see her, genuinely, but he just hasn’t nailed how mortals express these kinds of things.]

[Aren doesn't especially like it either -it hurts, after all- but she's all about getting things done. Whatever the quickest, most efficient end to a path, she'll take it, however gross or underhanded. That's why she's a rogue and not a warrior, after all. She soon ends it after the skeletons are downed, searching for a poultice to restore some of the energy lost from that. Though she abruptly stops upon hearing her name, and her head jerks up as her eyes widen.]

Uh-how do you know my name? Were you one of my soldiers at--no, they wouldn't just call me by my first name--

[Barkspawn pads over and sniffs at him, curious. He was busy replenishing mabari numbers while Aren was fighting the Mother, so he never met her other companions. But that doesn't stop him from saying hello now, barking and wagging his tail.]

[Justice stares down at her, eyes slightly narrowing as if he’s trying to gauge whether or not she’s just had a concussion. Aren, he fought with you for months. You told him your name, even if he didn’t actually use it until after you gave him his ring.

He takes a breath to carefully remind her of this—and then he remembers that mortals can’t just feel who a person is, but need to see it. And he isn’t stuck in a rotting corpse anymore. His eyes soften immediately in understanding.]

Yes, I must look different, now. I almost forgot. Perhaps this will serve as proof of my identity?

[Maybe she would believe him if he just said who he is, but he doesn’t want to leave room for doubt. He presents his right hand, his lyrium ring glimmering on his finger, where he has never removed it since she was kind enough to find it for him.]

Edited 2017-11-27 00:33 (UTC)

[Aren wonders if they're about to have a staring contest and is about to ask just that, when the lyrium ring is noted. Her eyes widen instantly, perking up as her gaze shifts from it to his face, a smile soon splitting her own.]

Justice?!? Andraste's ass, it's good to see you again! You have no idea, it's been one weird trip in here and not one person is familiar except--hey, you never met Barkspawn! Justice, Barkspawn. He's the mabari I'm always bragging about.

[For good reason, not every mabari can claim to have been at the final battle with an archdemon. The mabari perks up and wags his tail, closing in to sniff at the new person.]

[The corners of Justice's mouth twitch. He doesn't smile--he never smiles--but for a brief moment, it's like he might be approaching a smile if one tilted their head and squinted. He's very happy to see her.

He inclines his head at Barkspawn.] Well met, dog. I have heard much about you. [No offense for not using a name. Justice never uses anyone's name until he's spent at least a month with them.

He looks to Aren again, frown deepening in thought.] I have only just arrived. Tell me about this place.

[Aren still counts it as a smile, remembering his habits from before. She grins as Barkspawn licks Justice's hand before sitting and watching the two of them. Right, to business. She crosses her arms, pacing.]

It's a place called Hadriel that has a lot of people from a lot of different worlds. Most of them don't even know about Thedas, let alone the Fade. There are powerful beings around that people call gods, but they have names like Rage, Fear, Sorrow, and they feed off of the specific emotions relating to their names. Sound familiar? They even created these dreamscapes to leech them from us, not long ago; I was in the Deep Roads all over again, facing a damned broodmother. [She shudders, as that first encounter was more terrifying to her than the one in Kal'Hirol.]

[None of this sounds good to Justice, and his expression darkens to mirror his shift in mood. Although to be fair, his dark expression doesn't look that much different from his usual glare.]

Powerful demons will create large domains designed to elicit vice from mortals so that they can feed off of that vice. It is unusual for multiple demons of equal power to work together like this, but if they all have different vices, then they could plausibly split their prey amongst themselves and maintain peace that way.

But we are not in the Fade. I do not understand how such power works here.

[Perhaps by the same power that gives him a physical form. That's not a good thing.]

[It's a relief to explain this to Justice and not have to define every other word she means. Living among non-Thedosians can be such a hassle in that respect. She shakes her head, expression grim.]

Fuck if I know. It's not like I was an expert in Fade-stuff before, anyway. I was just the dwarf who kept getting tossed into it.

We're not entirely alone, though. Most of the people here are from other worlds and have no idea what I'm talking about, but there are two who aren't. Cecily Trevelyan is some Marcher noble who's from a decade ahead of us. Same with Cole. He's like you, a spirit in a human body, only he's all about compassion instead of justice but that's not his name? I dunno, I don't pretend to get it.

It's not a demon, trust me.

[ A voice, and then an arrow, one that shoots straight through the nearest skeleton's skull. The Inquisitor steps up near Justice, expression... almost resigned. ]

The demons were here, once, but these are just... well, bones, I think. Enchanted, maybe.

[ By the gods, of course. Cecily fires another arrow, after which an enormous mabari - Pup - crashes through the skeleton, sending its pieces flying in every direction. ]

I can help you get to town, if you like.

If the demon is not here, then it is not far. Those weapons are enchanted with fear.

[And it's not some dwarven or Tranquil enchantment, either. Justice does not like this one bit, but luckily, the skeletons are relatively easy to cut down.]

Guidance would be appreciated.

Because of another... er, entity, actually. The god called 'Fear.'

[ Who is. Literally fer incarnate, unfortunately. ]

Of course. Follow me. [ Cecily nods in one direction and starts off, carefully knocking down skeletons as they go. As far as coliseum monsters, these are actually fairly mild. ]

All right? [ The Inquisitor asks over her shoulder of the stranger. ]

[Cole is confused at first--he have felt this close to anything from the Fade for a long time and he's not really sure what to make of it or if it's real. It certainly seems like something the place would do to him. And it isn't until he tracks down the source that he actually realized what's happened--that they've brought someone else.

Someone like him.]

They don't like you to forget. Then it doesn't hurt like they need. They make us smaller so they can be bigger, fears and falls and fades. It hurts to hear sometimes.

[Justice feels another spirit long before he sees it. When it speaks, he pauses briefly in his forgetting to turn his attention on it. It's not like spirits make friends with each other very often, but he's still inexplicably relieved to see something familiar, a piece of his own kind in a confusing crush between the mortal realm and demonic influence.]

I have no desire to allow these demons to fatten themselves on my emotions, and I intend to do everything in my power to thwart them. [And also, of course, to avoid corruption himself. He's not going to let these demons twist him if he has anything to say about it.] I did not realize there were more of our kind. This is not the Fade.

[Though given the way the space behaves, perhaps they're somewhere in between the Fade and the mortal world. Justice knows that those types of spaces exist, but he doesn't remember wandering them before.]

No, it isn't. It isn't the Fade, so it can't be a dream, but... it must be a dream, so it must be the Fade. It's... a between-place. They keep people and play with them. Us too. [He does not like that at all, but what can he do about it? He's one spirit and the gods holding them here are stronger than he is--than any of them are.]

I can't tell where it is. The hearing hurts too much.

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test drive meme # 26

Justice | Dragon Age: Awakening

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Fear

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Sorrow

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