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October 2022 Test Drive Meme
OCTOBER 2022 TDM
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly Test Drive Meme! Please feel free to test drive any and all characters regardless of your intent to apply or whether you have an invite or not.
All TDMs are game canon. You can choose to have your TDM thread be your introduction thread upon acceptance or start fresh. Each TDM will provide a scenario for how characters arrive in-game that particular month.
Playing TDMs will allow characters to immediately obtain canon items from homes especially weapons or other things they may have had on their person when they were pulled from their worlds! There will always be a prompt that provides some sort of "reward" to characters who complete certain tasks.
Current players are allowed to have in-game characters react to TDMs via the Network or make a log with the prompts. Current players are always encouraged to tag new people on the TDM!
TDM threads can be used for spoon spending at any time by characters accepted into the game.
Content Warnings: Possible insanity via freezing. Temporary nullification of abilities.
COLD AS YOU
KEEP YOUR BRITTLE HEART WARM
COLD AS YOU
You were falling...
The world snaps into place all at once; you are laying on the ground, surrounded on all sides by towering bushes that stretch up towards a beautiful sunset sky. The bushes were clearly flowered at one point, but now the flowers have died and all that remains are browning leaves that are beginning to fall. On the chill air you can sometimes hear the sound of music, too faint to completely determine.
As you stand, you are filled with an intense desire to find someone. You might have an idea of who, but chances are you do not - you just know that somewhere ahead of you is someone that you need to reach. Whether they are friend or lover or enemy remains to be seen.
You wander the maze. If you're the impatient type and you have the ability, you might try to fly out but you will simply be vaulted right back down if you do. Something clearly expects you to play by rules which were never actually explained. As you move through the twisting passages of nature, you will notice that there is a frost creeping along the branches on either side of you. This frost brings a deep chill with it, and it encourages you to move faster, to find that nameless person now now now! If you take a very long time to wander the maze you may very well be on the verge of freezing and half mad with the desire to find someone. If you try to force your way through the bushes, the frost will crawl over your limbs and inspire both the freezing and near madness at once.
When you find your Person, the cold evaporates. The air suddenly feels merely crisp, and the leaves on the bushes seem more vibrant. The two of you now can focus on finding the way out - so much easier now - but any sense of urgency will have passed and you may just walk for hours, talking and sharing things about yourselves.
It is possible to solve the maze alone, but it is much easier (and more pleasant!) with someone else.
KEEP YOUR BRITTLE HEART WARM
When you exit the hedge maze you will find a stunning display of lights: hundreds of candles and lanterns decorate the ground and hang from trees, illuminating a clear path over a gently sloping hill. When you crest the hill you can look down and see a beautiful hot spring sprawled out below. It too is lit up by hundreds of lights, all of them glowing under the late autumn sky as it darkens towards night. There are changing rooms where you can stash your clothes (yes, there are bathing suits for the very shy) and bathing stations to ensure that you are clean before entering.
The water of the springs soothes madness and heals physical injuries or any frostbite that may have been sustained in the maze. It also relaxes you, making you perhaps more likely to open up to anybody else present.
The hot spring is staffed by many mice. They don't speak, but they squeak to one another in such a way that it sounds like they are singing - high lilting chants that seem to promise that everything will be okay. They are happy enough to band together to bring you towels or hot tea. The spring is open 24/7, always with lights to fight the cold and darkness of winter.
Content Warnings: Monster sighting, optional violence.
GLITCH
BAD OMEN
GLITCH
Folkmore has trains and of course the cat bus, but it also has roads, mostly utilized by horses and bicycles. Maybe you're looking for the convivence store, or maybe you just like walking. However it happens, you find yourself on a lonely road at dusk. It is unusually quiet, almost as if the world is holding its breath.
Suddenly you hear the sound of wings. A man-sized creature soars above you, something with huge red glowing eyes. It drops something at your feet: a walkie-talkie. The creature lands some distance away, staring at you, and a thought arises unbidden in your mind:
Help them.
The walkie crackles and you can hear someone speaking, asking if anyone is there. It is another Star Child, brought into this trial as well. They are in danger somewhere nearby; maybe stuck on the edge of a cliff, or trapped on a rope bridge - whatever it is, they need someone else to help them get to safety. If they have any powers, they have been temporarily nullified, but if the rescuer has powers they remain intact. That's where you come in! Using the walkie you must communicate with one another so that the rescuer can reach the person in trouble in time!
But what if you don't make it in time? Or decide that you're not the hero type? Well. The rescue-ee will suffer a terrible fate... for a few seconds. Then the entire world fuzzes and resets, but this time the roles have been reversed. Both parties will remember what has already happened, so if you just ran off into the woods with no intent of helping the first time you miiiight get your just desserts! This process will repeat over and over, people switching sides every time, until someone is finally rescued or the sun rises. Whichever comes first!
If you do succeed at a rescue, you will hear the rustle of huge wings once more. This time you don't see the mysterious creature, but you will find a mystery trunk. Inside you will each find some of your canon clothes and a canon item. Looks like teamwork is rewarded! Nearby, there will also be some unenchanted weapons sticking out of the ground: basic swords, guns, shields, etc.
BAD OMEN
You don't necessarily have to have completed the rescue trial to get some goodies, though! Those aforementioned weapons are scattered all over Folkmore. But if you just go to grab any of them you'd better be prepared to fight; after all, nothing comes for free!
As soon as you have pulled a weapon out of the ground, a tall, man in a black suit and hat will appear from seemingly nowhere and attack you. He has no weapons but he is extremely strong. He's also just really creepy - his face looks like it might be fake, somehow. The only way he can be killed is with a wound to the heart - any other supposedly mortal injury will result in another man in black appearing. It is possible for someone with no combat training to beat these creatures, but they really might appreciate a little help from someone with more experience!
The good news is that they won't mess up your clothes any, as none of these creatures bleed. Because that is totally normal.
Good luck!
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find who?
he doesn't know. cyno only knows that his heart and mind are bent on it, that he has no choice but to find this person, and time is running short. gritting his teeth, cyno turns a corner, expecting to find yet another empty corridor branching off into more empty corridors, but instead he finds.. ]
Tighnari?
[ all at once, the terrible chill begins to fade, melting away, along with the urgent desire to search. cyno is dumbstruck for a moment, quiet and considering, before he casts a critical eye over tighnari. he's shivering, chilled to the bone, and cyno can't help the swell of protectiveness that surges in his breast. he starts forward. ]
Are you all right?
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The cold seems to matter far less now, or perhaps it's simply not as cold?]
All the better for seeing you, I think. [Strange to think he's missed him. The spans of time they might go without seeing one another in Sumeru were usual and there was always a way to get hold of Cyno if he truly needed him. Here though, the gulf that separated them had been entirely insurmountable.
Tighnari touches Cyno's upper arm as they draw close and then pulls his hand back with a soft hiss of surprise. Even through the gloves--!]
You're freezing. [No thought for himself. He frowns and pulls his gloves off, then chafes slim, faintly plant-stained fingers up and down Cyno's arms.] This is no place for either of us.
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hmm. cyno frowns, a crease in his brow. ]
So are you.
[ tighnari is already fussing, rubbing his hands down cyno's bare arms, even as the frost melts away, chilly water running in rivulets down his gauntlets, dripping into the grass. tighnari is just as cold as he is - if only cyno had his cloak to offer. ]
Do you know the way out?
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[Tighnari is frowning too as he lightly warms the other man's arms, pausing when his palms grow damp with the melting frost. He sighs and looks up, shaking his head.]
It feels as if I've been wandering around in here for hours. [Not quite close to giving up hope and yet closer to it than he would have liked by the time he came across Cyno. Now he can feel the way that the air around them is lighter, warmer, and the uncomfortable puffing of the fur on his tail slowly smooths down. It feels like hours, though it could just as much have only been a few minutes.]
I had been trying to find the exit, but I kept running into dead ends... And then I found you. It doesn't sound like you were having any better luck.
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[ it's a thoughtful, unhappy hum that rolls in his throat, and cyno's lips press tightly together. he doesn't like the sound of that, but.. at the very least it's easier to think, now that the frigid chill is ebbing, and the madness that licked at his mind has all but evaporated. he's as comfortable as he ever is, in tighnari's presence. ]
The same was happening to me. We should get moving, it'll warm us up.
[ but first, he's plucking up tighnari's discarded gloves, and taking his hands gently by the wrists, pulling them back from his own bared arms. ]
Put these back on, first. Your hands are freezing.
[ tighnari isn't the only one capable of being fussy. ]
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[It's a weak protest, and to settle his friend's mind he quickly rubs his hands against his clothes to dry them off and acquiesces to pulling his gloves back on again. He smiles, wiggling his fingers at the man as if to say 'see?' before he drops his hands back down to his sides. A moment later, he's planting one against his hip and puffing out a half-agitated sigh.]
It's as good a time as any to tell you that this isn't new to me. [He tilts his head faintly, an indication for them to start walking.] The maze is, granted, but... you had a dream about a fox, correct?
[And followed her... something he might not have expected of Cyno if Thirteen was not so clever in her abduction tactics.]
I had the same dream, only it was over a month ago. I've been in this place since then.
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[ and he'd been ready to ask tighnari if he, too, had seen her, but his query is answered before he's even able to posit his question.
so it's all true, then. it's all real. walking with the fox had felt like a dream, a sensation that cyno was not at all familiar with, all things considered, for how those in sumeru do not dream. it felt more like a hallucination, a fevered mirage, but at the time it had felt so real that he had not questioned it. in hindsight, he feels like a fool. cyno is not so easily tricked, nor convinced.
satisfied that tighnari's hands won't freeze to the bone, cyno nods his head, and they begin to move, picking their way through the hedge maze again. it feels much better, now that cyno is no longer nursing that sense of urgency, nor suffering that bone-cracking chill. he's still cold, it penetrates deep, but his heart is at ease. ]
A month's time.. so it's true, then. Everything she said.
[ he might not trust the fox, but he does trust tighnari. ]
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It was a mistake, but Tighnari is not one to shy away from mistakes even if they are his own. He looks to the other man with a warm and gentle smile.]
I would not put too much faith in her words overall, but what she said when she brought you here was true enough. At least, she believes the truth of it.
[And yet the idea of reaching one's full potential is so frustratingly vague as to be almost unattainable. Full potential according to whom?]
Thirteen is a capricious creature who seems easily slighted. If you have misgivings about her, I would not be too vocal about them if I were you.
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for now, he'll need to let that thread drop, whether he likes it or not. he would like to take solace in the fact that he is not alone here, but to see tighnari trapped, the same as he is, brings him no joy, despite how selfishly he wants to enjoy the company of his dearest friend. ]
I see..
[ cyno grunts his displeasure, his molten eyes narrowing. he's not the sort to easily keep his opinions to himself. cyno is nothing if not bold and brutally honest. with any hope, he won't see himself tested at all. his next remark sounds almost.. testy. ]
At the very least, she could have left me my polearm.
[ he feels absolutely naked without it!! ]
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The young man cannot help but laugh at Cyno's disgruntled tone and he pats one hand against the middle of his friend's shoulders.]
Don't look so dour, Cyno. I expect you'll come across it sooner than you think.
[His bow, slung across his back, had been picked up fairly quickly after all and would no doubt have already been recognised by the other man. His smile turns a little cheeky at the corners and his tail waves from side to side, gently patting at the backs of Cyno's legs as they walk.]
But until then, you don't need to worry. I'm here to protect you.
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not quite. not entirely. the general mahamatra does not pout. but he's clearly displeased, especially when that treacherous tail wags against the back of his legs. yeah, yeah, laugh it up, tighnari. is he a joke to you?? ]
Very funny.
[ not that he doesn't trust tighnari's strength, of course. he absolutely does. but the idea of anyone protecting him chafes him right down to the core. cyno certainly isn't powerless without his staff of the scarlet sands, he'll hold his own with teeth and claws if need be, but for many years it has been an extension of himself; losing it feels like losing an arm. his carmine gaze flits to the bow on tighnari's back. ]
How do I get it back?
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He's trying to lighten the conversation, but clearly his friend is in no state for it. So instead, Tighnari subsides and shakes his head.]
I can't tell you. I located mine with relative ease, but it took Aether over a week before he came across his own. [Cyno's polearm could be waiting for them outside of this maze, or... it might not be. He does not think the lack of certainty in the matter is going to do anything to improve his companion's mood.
He doesn't say more. Instead he simply gently places his hand on Cyno's arm while they walk. Maybe that will be more reassuring than words.]
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I see.
[ he doesn't sound pleased. taking his weapon from him feels like tearing the teeth and claws off of a wild wolf. vulnerability is a new color on him, and one he doesn't like.
but tighnari's hand settles against his arm, and it serves to soothe the savage beast of his heart well enough to calm his dour mood. cyno grunts his displeasure, but says nothing more, and they fall into silence as they walk, but it is not an uncomfortable silence. they've known one another so long, their relationship is close enough that there can be no awkwardness between them, only easy quiet. at last, the maze seems to thin, and cyno sees what might be an exit ahead. ]
There.
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But the hand on his arm works as he hoped it would and Tighnari gives another of those small and gentle smiles as they continue moving. He drops his hand, but he stays close enough that occasionally their arms will brush together while they walk. Talking isn't needed. The silence says enough, and Tighnari has always appreciated quiet.
His attention perks up as he spots the exit almost at the same time as Cyno does. The bone-deep chill of earlier feels almost forgotten now save for some minor tingling at the tips of his ears, and he slips his hand into Cyno's without thinking about it at all as he quickens his pace to close in swiftly on the way out of this dratted labyrinth.]
Finally. [Tighnari exclaims as they step out of the high hedge walls. His fingers slip free of Cyno's as he stretches his arms above his head, all too pleased to be back out in the open air. Enclosed spaces simply do not suit him.]
Now, shall we look for your polearm?
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before he knows it, tighnari's hand is in his own, tugging him toward the exit, and cyno offers no argument, allowing himself to be pulled along at tighnari's pace, until at last they come upon an open space. cyno breathes a low, slow exhale of muted relief, though he's soon distracted by the impressive display of candles and lanterns scattered through the trees and across the ground. he's not the sort to be swayed by pretty things, but even cyno must admit it's lovely to behold. ]
Yes. I'd like that.
[ even if.. he has no idea where to start. casting his gaze across the lantern-lit grounds, he frowns. ]
You know this place better than I do. Where should we start?
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He knows his value to the other man. It has never been in any doubt.
Their closeness and Tighnari's comfort in being around him is how he grabs his hand so easily, and how he lets go without a comment as to why he felt it necessary to grasp onto him to begin with. He feels settled at Cyno's side in a way he hasn't since he arrived here and he is all too happy to assist in locating the missing polearm.]
Hmm... [He brings his hand up to his chin in thought, one of his ears swivelling as he catches the sound of the bustle at the hot springs not too far down the hill, beyond the fantastic display of candles and lanterns.] If you feel like exploring, we can take a look around. But I think I might appreciate being able to warm up a little more first. What do you think?
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I don't see why not.
[ though he's substantially warmer than he was when tighnari came upon him, there's still a chill in his bones, in his hands and his bare feet, and the look of those distant springs is appealing. though he's quite itchy without his polearm, he supposes he can make the time to warm up a bit, especially if that's what tighnari wants.
he'd be in more of a hurry, but something about this place is.. soothing. it's quiet, serene, lit by endless flickering lights; even cyno can appreciate a scene like this, despite his rather artless approach to life. he nudges tighnari's shoulder affectionately with his own, and starts forward. ]
Let's go.
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Unfortunately things like that maze are fairly commonplace here, and we are often not given a choice of whether or not we want to participate. [Tighnari doesn't really like that. He can't make himself trust Thirteen even if he understands, to some extent, what drives her... and there is the very real concern that that mistrust will eventually lead to ill befalling him in one of her trials.
And... he does not think that Cyno will be able to trust her, either.
While they walk he looks sidelong at his companion. Despite knowing full well that the General Mahamatra is more than capable of taking care of himself, polearm or no, he still feels a not too unfamiliar stirring in his chest.
I will protect you.
As the noise from the hot spring begins to reach them more clearly - at least where human ears would be concerned - Tighnari starts to feel the warmth on the air as well.]
... Tea does sound good.
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of course, cyno is still cyno, regardless. beneath it all, he knows what he is - an attack dog, through and through - but tighnari has a way about him that naturally calms cyno's nascent wildness. he would be far more on edge right now were it not for the presence of his friend, more likely to aggressively chew into this place to force his way out. tighnari balances him. ]
I don't like the sound of that.
[ he says, darkly, his mouth pulling down into a deep frown. cyno doesn't particularly enjoy being jerked around, straightforward as he is. what's the point of such inane puzzles? what was the point of that frigid madness? he grunts, displeased, as they draw closer to the springs. ]
Mm. Tea sounds better.
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It does, doesn't it. [Better than brooding about what might be to come, certainly. Cyno does excel at such things and though Tighnari himself is not without his tendency to drift into darker thoughts at times he does tend to view himself as being more without troubles than otherwise. In that way, they can certainly balance each other out.
They reach the edge of the springs, lightly bustling as they are, and the forest watcher shoots his friend another warm smile. Already, he feels far more at ease.]
You can take your helmet off, General. [He says gently, teasing. Always one to tease the stiff mannerisms of the desert-dweller.] And won't you smile for me?
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when they arrive at the springs, cyno can feel the warmth drifting off the water, enticing him. he can't wait to dip his chilly feet into it. ]
Smile for you, hmm?
[ cyno grunts his response, one brow arched high, but he does remove his heavy jackal-eared helm, resting it beneath one arm. one corner of his mouth twitches upward, his expression softening just a little, just enough. cyno doesn't smile often, it isn't his way, he's simply never been a particularly effusive person, even in his youth, before he became a matra.
but for tighnari.. ]
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We might have to ask someone to hold on to that for you. My bow, too. [Tighnari muses. It doesn't look like the cabinets for clothing are going to be big enough to fit Cyno's helmet and it wouldn't do for it to start going rusty. With Cyno in tow he heads over to the changing area and unwinds his scarf from his neck, setting it aside before he starts to work on unfastening the front of his clothes.
He'll leave the cubicles for those who are more bashful about their appearance.]
Come on, you can put your clothes with mine. Over here.
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[ cyno feels a bit like a dog being led around by the nose, but there's no helping it, really. he's in an entirely new environment, one that tighnari knows far better than he does, so he has no choice but to let him take the lead. thankfully, ego isn't among cyno's issues, and he doesn't seem to mind it. he'll learn, in time. for now, it's better to let tighnari show him the ropes.
not that there's.. much to explain about bathing in a spring.
anyway, tighnari isn't ashamed of his body, and neither is cyno; he has no problem beginning to strip down, kicking off his legbands. he doesn't love the idea of someone holding onto his helm for him.. it's not as if he needs it, but - well, maybe it's simple sentimentality. this helmet means a lot to him, it's a symbol of the position he worked so hard for. but.. he'll trust tighnari's call. for now, he lifts it off of his head and sets it at his feet.
after that, he wears far less than tighnari, so it doesn't take him long to strip down.
his bolero top and golden mantle come off over his head, followed by his belt and shendyt, and at last his shorts, all of it folded up neatly and slotted into a cubby with tighnari's. ]
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Once they're ready, clothes and equipment safely stashed and towels around their hips, Tighnari's tail gives a little wag as he tilts his head towards the pools. His long ears tip in that direction as well, and his eyes are bright and gently eager.]
I'm getting more excited about it the longer we wait.
[He still feels oddly chilly and even more so now that he's undressed. Tighnari is fit under his clothes - defined muscles from drawing a bow and the walking and climbing that he does from day to day. His pale skin is marked with a few scars and his fingers are faintly stained with colour.]
I haven't had the opportunity to do anything like this here yet.
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at any rate, however uncomfortable cyno might be with this situation, he softens in the face of tighnari's excitement and joy, at the sight of his smile, and his bushy tail wagging beneath his towel. it's good to see him so happy. ]
You'll have to tell me what you've been up to.
[ he's certainly curious. cyno has quite a lot to learn, an entire new realm at his disposal that needs unraveling and understanding, but there will be time enough for that, later. for now, he wants to spend his time with tighnari; they don't see one another enough, have seen one another even less since cyno exiled himself to the desert. together they move toward the pools, and once they reach the edge, cyno removes his towel and folds it neatly, setting it aside, before he's stepping into the blessedly warm water. ]
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