Test Drive Meme #33

[hadrielmods]

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: WEARS HIGH HEELS WHEN SHE EXERCISES
[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.

And this one is, well, particularly creepy. Especially if you dislike body horror, or spiders, or being eaten. This time, the Door has brought in Virginias, from the video game The Forest.

Virginias are rather disturbing-looking monsters, looking a bit like multiple bodies all squished together. They move quickly, they can charge and leap at you, and those creepy arms and legs hurt like hell. They also make skittering noises, if you want to be even more creeped out. So have fun with that!]

L O V E

SCENARIO TWO: YES, LIKE THAT
[Today, it's you time. You woke up this morning and you knew it was the perfect day to practice a little self-care. To put yourself first. To treat yourself. And that's what you're going to do!

Whether that means drinking too much, skipping out on unwanted obligations, telling people what you really think of them, or eating that last donut - you're looking after you now, and it doesn't matter what anybody else thinks! All that matters is that you're happy. So party on, and let's hope your fun doesn't get in the way of anyone else's life.

This is a mini version of our Love Yourself event this month.]

R A G E

SCENARIO THREE: JUST ONE OF THOSE DAYS
[This morning you didn't wake up wanting to treat yourself. Oh, no. You woke up wanting to show your anger - to the world, to yourself, to anyone watching. You want to break shit, start fights, get into pointless internet arguments. They're wrong, after all.

So why not? Find a stray piece of wood and start smashing windows. Tell someone you don't like the way they're looking at you. Post something incendiary on Twitter Hadriel's network. And wait for the responding anger. That's what you want, right? Someone to face off against?

Let's just hope you don't go too far.]

Comments

[tenuousmorality]

Hardly. I'm not a weapons dealer, you know.

[Jade doesn't miss a beat. He sees the expression on Luke's face, if even from the side, and he is amused--Luke was always a sentimental child, one who imprinted so thoroughly on those who he oughtn't.

Honestly now.

Even so...and Jade may be loathe to admit it...it's almost relieving to see Luke here. To see Luke anywhere at this point, given how things had played out.

No time for sentimentality though, there's a hot mess strange enemy afoot. Literally all foot, if he's honest.]

You're doing perfectly fine though. Please, continue.

[He begins to cast a stronger fonic arte than before, which should translate fairly easily into "Keep it busy, you're my favorite monster bait! ♥"

The smile is, as always, plastered on his face as he inhumanly uses Luke as a quick distraction. Come on, kid, you can handle it!]

[dupelicate]

[He huffs, but it's more from habit and humor than any actual indignation. Regardless of the bizarre scenario they seemed to be in, the banter was, at the least, comfortingly familiar. And if Jade was being "nice"...]

Yeah, I get it. Just make it quick!

[Bait. Fine. Gripping the makeshift weapon in his hand, he directs his attention to the monster, and begins waving the stick toward what he hoped might be eyes.]

Hey! Ugly long legs!

[The Virginia is up before he's finished, moving towards the sound of his voice—but Luke is already rendering the arte. They hit at the same time, the crackle of lightning arcing off his makeshift weapon.]

Lightning blade!

[tenuousmorality]

[Good, Luke's playing along. Jade is fairly certain that the stick isn't going to bear many more artes, but he doesn't need that kind of time anyway.

There's an almost tangible build in the air as Fifth Fonons coalesce near the Virginia while it's stunned, overtaking the crackling Third Fonons that Luke had drawn up. It continues to build, a fair warning to Luke when he should back off until at last...Jade has drawn in enough to end things.

After all, he's a very good soldier, isn't he?]

Grant mine enemies a final rest!

[The fon verse is one he's familiar with, one that rolls off the tongue and lends power to the strength of fire he's gathered, directing and focusing. Streaks of fire immediately gather in a searing circle, catching the enemy aflame.]

Flame Burst!

[If the creature survives the following combustive explosion, then Jade might even color himself impressed...shortly before casting something much more painful.

He rather doubts he'll have to do that.]

[dupelicate]

[It's impossible to miss the build-up of pressure in the air as Jade channels the fifth fonons into his arte, and Luke instinctively pulls back, away from the invisible wall. Friendly fonic marking or not, it never paid off to get in Jade's way.

With the final incantation, the heat explodes out, upwards, engulfing the Virginia completely. Weapon (or, at least, stick) at the ready, Luke watches mindfully, looking to see if their target attempts to move out of the angry flames. Instead, it simply retches out an unholy noise—and slowly collapses, folding up on its own pile of legs.

It's another solid beat before Luke lets his breath escape out in one long, slow sigh. Then:]

Any idea what that was?

[And after a jerk of his neck, left, right-]

And where's everybody else? Didn't I--

[There's another glance, down at his hands, which close into fists, before his line of sight jerks back to Jade.]

Jade, what happened

[There's something in his voice, something beyond just a childish demand for an explanation. It's almost desperate, fighting back a rising tide of panic.]

[tenuousmorality]

[Oh boy. It's time for the decidedly un-fun part of this situation.

Now that the monster was appropriately taken care of and Jade could finally relax a little...here was Luke asking him to explain things. Well...in this case, it couldn't really be helped, could it? There was no Guy to explain it for him, and even if there was, he was the only one of them here to explain Hadriel.

Which, by the way, he hadn't gotten to know everything about yet. In fact he was quite a long way from it.

Jade didn't express how aggravating the situation was to him past a noncommittal shrug as he drew nearer to Luke. He definitely doesn't make it obvious how he feels about Luke being here; not that he has to. Luke clearly needs to be assuaged in an uncertain situation.

Again, something Jade's not great at, even after everything that had happened.]

What is the last thing you remember doing, Luke?

[And not for a second did he miss Luke's reactions and motions. It's not just him being selfish. He's...past that.]

[dupelicate]

Huh?

[The question sidelines him, giving pause to his concerns as he focuses on the strangeness of its specificity. Reaching up, he pushes his hair behind his ear as he recounts the most recent events of minutes prior, ticking them off on his hand like a grocery list.

It seemed so long ago.]

We were on Eldrant.

We fought--we defeated Master Van.

Then I stayed behind to free Lorelei.

[It's short, stunted, and lacking in detail—and he doesn't expand on it. When he meets Jade's eyes again, the brief spell of respite seems to break, concern rushing back in to the cracks of his expression.

What did I do wrong?]

Why? What's going on?

[tenuousmorality]

Indeed.

[Hm. So it's as he had speculated...give or take some revisions. Luke remembers staying behind, and nothing else. Functionally, what else should he remember?

After all, by all accounts, he should be nothing more than dissipated fonons, and Jade didn't dare to hope too hard for any statistical improbabilities in that. Still...despite that, Luke continues to defy his expectations in more ways than he could ever expect.

At any rate...he can't just let the boy hang on a single word that confirmed absolutely nothing. That would be unduly cruel, and Jade had quite grown out of such habits. At least...maybe a little.

He smiles, as ever. Perhaps it's a way to help Luke feel a sense of normalcy, because Jade doesn't particularly find the expression appropriate.]

Welcome to Hadriel, Luke. It's not home, and we certainly do not belong here...but here we are, and here we shall stay until such a time as an appropriate solution presents itself.

[Oh, and while they were on the subject, because Luke was terribly predictable at the best of times, never mind the worst...]

It's nothing you've done. If it were, our time here would not have been separated by such a large margin. If anything, perhaps it is my fault. Like attracts like.

[With the last part, there's a little bit of humor, even if it skews a bit dark. Jade is aware this situation is, surprisingly...

...refreshingly, even!

Not his fault.]