Test Drive Meme # 2

[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 October 25th, and apps are open November 1st.

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!

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: THE LAUGHTER OF A CHILD
[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.

Watch out as you explore the streets of Hadriel, because you're not alone, and there's always something on the rooftops watching and waiting for the perfect opportunity to separate you from your group and tear you into pieces. This time, the Door has brought in some little friends for you to play with.

Grey Children are enemies in the video game Silent Hill. They usually move in pairs or groups of three, clinging to your legs and pulling you down so that they can laugh as they stab you to death. They're not particularly sturdy, but since they hunt in packs, they can kill you just the same. Let's hope your group is bigger - or that you can get away before they get ahold of you. But don't be too mean. They're just children, after all.]


SCENARIO TWO: FEAR ITSELF
[You turn a corner, and there it is. The one thing that terrifies you more than anything, that turns you into a frightened child, that makes you want to run or scream or fight wildly. It could be anything. That person you trusted, who betrayed you. A monster that haunts your dreams. Spiders, maybe? Whatever it is, it's exactly what you fear the most.

And then there are footsteps next to you, and someone else is there. Maybe they can help you. Maybe they can save you. But everyone's afraid of something, and the moment your savior gets close, their fear will manifest as well - and if you're really unlucky, combine with yours to make something even worse.

It's not real. It can't hurt you. Not unless you let it. But if you let it, it will destroy you.

This is a simpler version of October's Fear Event.]


H O P E

SCENARIO THREE: THIS IS NOT MY BEAUTIFUL HOUSE
[A moment ago, you were making dinner. Not alone, but with someone you care about nearby - your beautiful spouse, or your amazing child, or your beloved sibling. Then, in an instant, you look at them and you know: this isn't real.

This perfect house, this perfect family, it's not yours. You can remember your real life now, and that person you care for? You might not even know them. A moment ago they were your world, and now you know this isn't actually your life. Your life is something else, somewhere else.

Above the fireplace sits a painting of you and your happy family. You know that if you destroy it, you'll return to your life. But do you really want to, when you've never felt this contentment, this happiness before? You could have it all, if you wanted. And what about your companion? This is a decision you should make together - if you want to.]

Comments

[americanclassic]

"No, it's not. I don't know where are or how we got here, but there's a group of us here. People brought in by this... we don't really know. But they can get in your head, Buck. It's not you. It's them." That panic in his voice squeezed at him. He hadn't been through an iota of what Bucky had, but he knew that fear of not knowing... not being sure what was real and what wasn't. He'd just gotten a taste of it when he'd woken, and again when Wanda sunk her magic into him. Even then, he knew it wasn't the same.

"Mind putting that away? We're a little short on docs here." He gestured to the knife, hoping that small move wouldn't set him off. He was staying back, giving him his space, but he had no idea what would trigger another illusion.

[onlytheremains]

He nods slowly, taking in the information and trying to let it be a comfort but it only serves to make him uneasy. Things were getting in his head. Again. He was so tired of this. Out of all the things he's feeling right now, tired is starting to quickly overwhelm everything else.

The request makes him blink, pulls him out of his head for a moment and he nods, putting it away but keeping one hand close nonetheless. He's not going unarmed at this point, the illusion put his head on hard alert and there was little he could do to make that stop until he managed to get somewhere he could pretend he was safe (because he never really feels safe anywhere.).

"What happens now?" he asks, voice heavy with the weight of knowing there's little he can do to change this.

[americanclassic]

"That's up to you." He wanted to step forward and close that distance, look his best friend in the eye and see if there was still a semblance of that man there, someone he could coax back to him. But this Bucky was jagged, sharp, broken and with all the edges pointed outward. He had to be careful. Even if he'd been searching for him, here wasn't exactly the best place for a reunion. "I'm bunking down somewhere. You can stay there if you like. Or pick somewhere close by. We're kind of stuck here and I'd advise against going off into the tunnels. They keep bringing you back here, and that's without having to deal with the damn bears."

[onlytheremains]

He has no idea what to do, whether he should go with him or avoid him like he was the plague. On the one hand, he knew he had to face him at some point. memories had been chasing him down, crawling under his skin and trying to remind him of all the things he lost.

On the other hand, he had really hoped the reunion would have been on his terms and nothing like...this.

And even though he knows that he is a capable fighter, he knows just as well that someone to work with, even if that someone happened to be Steve, wouldn't hurt. At least until has more information on what the hell is going on and what he can do to survive.

"I'll go with you." he says, voice almost cautions. Because even though he was given the choice and he thought he made the right decision, he knows when he makes the wrong one, a consequence.

[americanclassic]

"Okay. We're this way," he gestured off back towards the abandoned road, pointing off towards a section of the city that seemed to be the housing district.

He'd give the other man a minute, let him catch up with being here and what that meant. Not that Steve himself had a clue. He'd been on the road, then he'd been here. With bears. It just didn't make too much sense. "I mentioned other people here. A couple of them are kids. Most seem to be civilians, but some also seem to have some sort of training." Information was the best thing he could give him, both to fill the silence and to help him get his feet under him more quickly.

[onlytheremains]

He keeps a little more than an arm's length between them and walking slowly as he takes in his surroundings. There's a small voice in his head telling him he can do this, that he can survive. The rest of him points out not so quietly that he's been surviving and whether that was a good thing or not remained to be seen.

But Steve is filling the silence outside of his head and he knows he should pay attention so he lets the dialog fade to the back of his brain and focuses on the words actually being spoken.

"How many with actual training? What kind? Are they willing to take orders?"

[americanclassic]

"Most people here seem to be independent. I'll offer help if they want it and come up with ideas, but I don't expect to just bark orders and have them listen. This isn't boot camp. There's a girl about ten years old with a sword who seems to have used it before. Another girl that age or a bit older. Couple young men and women. Banner's here." Yeah, he should maybe mention that the green ticking time bomb was a resident of the underground city as well.

[onlytheremains]

"Better than nothing." It's said more to himself than to Steve. At least it wasn't just the two of them with any skill. And even though the addition of Dr. Banner made him mildly concerned, he didn't think too much about it just yet.

"You mentioned bears." this time more loudly. "What else is there?"

[americanclassic]

"Not much, to be honest. Just other people brought here against their will. Half of the place seems to be close to shambles, the other half's just empty, like it's waiting for us." Which was creepy in its own way.

[onlytheremains]

He nods, unsure what to say at that. Not a single bit of him would be surprised if this place was waiting for them. If it's stealing them from their own worlds and keeping them here, who's to say a little more planning didn't go into it?

He stays silent after that, pace even and eyes focusing ahead of them as he processes everything he's learned so far. Honestly, he's not sure what to do with any of it but he's also not panicking, not yet.

He's a strange sort of numb to the whole idea. Like it was inevitable and there's no point in fighting it. He knows it's probably not the right reaction but it's all he has to give after the illusion and running into Steve again.

[americanclassic]

"We've been through worse. No one's actively trying to kill us at the moment. That's always a plus." His attempt at the bright side, trying to get Bucky to agree with him and do more than just nod and take stock. To try to find the personality buried under layers of orders and missions.

[onlytheremains]

"Give it time." he says grimly. "I doubt it's a streak we'll hold up for very long." He has a wide variety of skill sets but being an optimist is not in his arsenal.

With how he was greeted, he hardly thinks this place is going to be kind to them. It strikes him as rather stupid and blind to expect anything else.


((OOC: Sorry, stuff came up this week and I kind of fell behind.))

[americanclassic]

Steve rarely gave in to despair. It just wasn't in his makeup, even before his little experiment. Insurmountable odds? He was gonna try anyway, dammit. "We'll hold it up as long as we need to, Buck. We're not alone here and we have to keep the others as safe as we can. If we don't..." Well, who else would?

[onlytheremains]

"IF we don't, what happens?" It's an honest question, vaguely curious and somewhat daring all at once. What will happen if they let others die? Is it their mission? Their responsibility? The way he sees it, if he can keep himself alive in all this, that's what matters unless parameters are stretched in some way.

[americanclassic]

"There's no if, Bucky. We do what we can until we can't do anything at all. By that time, I don't think we'll care much." Death, Bucky. He was talking about death. Steve always had been a do or die kinda guy.

[onlytheremains]

He looks at him with a careful expression, almost confused in it's way. "But does it matter? If we keep trying, does it mater? Why are we putting our lives down for people. I hardly know who you are, nonetheless anyone else. Why does it matter if something happens to them?"

He's clearly missing something here.

[americanclassic]

"It always matters, Bucky. It matters if you stand up and try or if you stand aside and do nothing. It matters in the end. They don't deserve to be here. Neither do we. We have... We can protect them. That's something we can do." It was hard, hearing Bucky talk like this when the older version of his friend might have just given him an eye roll, then clapped him on the back and agreed. But this wasn't his Bucky anymore. Not really. But he was in there somewhere. Steve believed that.

[onlytheremains]

He shrugs, not choosing to say anything one way or the other. It seemed like the best option at this point, as they were hardly going to see eye to eye on the matter.

Finally though, he says with a simple, soft tone "I'll do what needs to be done."

[americanclassic]

Steve's quiet for a moment, lost in his own thoughts, his own memories. Then he gives Bucky a crooked smile and a pat on the shoulder. "That's all I can ask."

[onlytheremains]

He flinches at the touch, automatically tensing and pulling away. Touch is something he's far from ready for and even with him, with the man who riles up so many half-formed memories in his head, he can't even begin to think of touching him in such a casual way.

"Anyone else going to be asking anything of me?" He side-eyes Steve for a moment, cautious and a little cagey. "Who else wants something?"

[americanclassic]

He feels the tension, the tug away and he reminds himself, again, that he needs to go slower with him. At least he wasn't trying to kill him. Steve called that a win.

A half grin, then a shrug. "You'll have to wait and see, Bucky. I'm not the only one here. I mentioned Banner. But there's others here and you might get to know them. They might leave you alone, or maybe they'll need help with something. It's up to you what you do. I won't make you do something. But I... I kind of hope you want to try on your own."

[onlytheremains]

He shrugs again, choosing silence and letting that weigh heavy around them. It feels easier than arguing. Besides arguments were never something he was skilled at. No one let him argue about much of anything.

"You keep using it." he says quietly after a few more paces. "That name. You keep using it even though--..." And it's like a light gets switched on inside his head.

"Your optimism is going to get you killed one day."

[americanclassic]

"Hasn't so far. You're still him. You, I mean. You're still there somewhere. It's just... buried. If you want, I can try to help you find yourself again. If not... maybe I can help you figure out who you are now." And he believed that. Somewhere, way down maybe, but somewhere in there, his best friend lingered. And with that face, Steve wasn't going to just walk away from him. If there was a chance, he'd stick it through.

[onlytheremains]

Silence blooms again and he just keeps walking because the words just aren't there. He knows that the man is chasing ghosts, that he's not going to find what he thinks is within him. But He needs to find that out for himself, have all that optimism crushed on his own terms rather than listen to someone who is trying to spare him the heartache.

(And when did it matter? When did seeing this man disappointed ever become a thing that is a point of register in his mind?)

"You're digging in empty graves," he mutters to Rogers. "But if you think there's treasure there somewhere, by all means. have at. It's not as if no one's been inside my head before." The last part comes out nasty, almost spit out rather than spoken.

[americanclassic]

"I'm not going to try to pry into your head, Bucky. But... if you have questions, you can come ask me. If you want to talk, I've got time to listen." He was doing the only thing he could in this situation -- offer himself up for whatever Bucky needed. He didn't believe there was any sort of trick HYDRA could come up with to completely wipe out the man he'd known. He was there. Somewhere.

He felt a bitter sort of resentment towards their hosts since Hope was getting exactly what he wanted from Steve right now. Hope that his friend was still in there somewhere.