October 2022 Test Drive Meme

[folkie]

OCTOBER 2022 TDM

INTRODUCTION

[ TDM Questions ★ Jump to Comments ★ Full Navigation ]
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.

[ Prompt One ★ Prompt Two]

SHINING

Content Warnings: Possible insanity via freezing. Temporary nullification of abilities.

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.

HIGH STRANGENESS

Content Warnings: Monster sighting, optional violence.

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!

Comments

[cashewlater]

If you're sure..

[ 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. ]

[forestwatcher]

[He does realise to some extent that he leading the General Mahamatra around like a wayward pup, but given he's the one who knows what's going on here it seems only correct that he take the lead in the situation. Besides, Cyno is not so proud that he won't accept that kind of thing. Tighnari knows him well enough to know that.

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.

[cashewlater]

[ tighnari would be absolutely right; cyno isn't so prideful a creature as to find himself put out by being led around. it's sensible. tighnari knows this place far better than cyno does, after all, and before cyno donned the mantle of mahamatra, he was an ordinary matra, used to following the orders handed down by his superiors.

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. ]

[forestwatcher]

[It has been some time since they were able to spend time together and they have never spent time together like this. That definitely plays into Tighnari's enjoyment of the whole thing, and he mirrors the other man in neatly folding his towel before he steps down into the water and immediately sinks in half way up his chest. His tail is instantly sodden, but that is a problem for future Tighnari to deal with.]

Ah... that feels good. [He sighs, sinking a little deeper and tipping his head back against the edge of the pool. His ears dip slightly.]

I've heard that they have places like this in Natlan.

[But, what has he been up to? He opens one eye and looks over to Cyno, aware that he hasn't yet answered his question.] I'm a Familiar here, so... I can transform into animals. I spent a while as a large nine-tailed fox before I could work out how to turn back.

[cashewlater]

It does.

[ cyno is quick to follow suit, sinking deep into the water and allowing his body to mold to the stone beneath. the heat feels absolutely exquisite, quickly chasing away the chill that's settled into his bones. cyno sighs, resting his head back as well, though he turns it partway toward tighnari, settling his gaze upon him. ]

A Familiar?

[ he recalls some of what the fox told him, about how things work here, how the people are arranged into groups. she'd called him a.. legend, though he doesn't entirely understand what that means, just yet. still, at tighnari's explanation, his brows lift high. ]

That's incredible. It sounds so.. freeing.

[ instinctual of a creature as cyno is, he thinks he would very much enjoy stepping into the skin of an animal. ]

[forestwatcher]

Mm... it was disconcerting at first.

[Though only because he couldn't figure out how to turn back. He knew that he could, having seen the ease with which Kaeya accomplished his shapeshifting, so it had only been a matter of time before he had been able to figure it out. After that, it had simply come down to practice.]

I'll show you later on.

[He has a feeling that Cyno would like to see it, and truth be told he's looking forward to showing it off. Though he doesn't mention it he is aware of the fact that sometimes people will shift from one alignment to another... though he isn't sure if he could see a time when Cyno could ever be anything but a Legend.]

Are you feeling better? I think could almost fall asleep here.

[cashewlater]

Mm. I'd love to see it.

[ tighnari is probably quite cute as a fox, cyno thinks, and it certainly suits him, all things considered, and tighnari's assumption that he would like to see it is, in fact, quite right. he's already imagining the possibilities in his mind. stretching his arms back over the warm stones, cyno exhales hard through his nose. ]

I am.

[ he'd feel better if he had his weapon, naturally, but.. he'll have to survive without it, for now. a low sound moves in his throat, reminiscent of a chuckle, though far more muted. ]

Falling asleep here is probably inadvisable, but I think I could, too.

[forestwatcher]

[He will definitely show him later, but right now he's more interested in chasing the chill out of his bones and he half closes his eyes as he sinks low enough into the water that the ends of his hair dip into it.]

Mm. Just don't drown, that would complicate matters.

[Tighnari cracks one eye open and looks Cyno's way with a small half-smile.]

But I'm sure I can manage until I get back to a bed. Speaking of which, you'll be coming back to my house, of course.

[cashewlater]

[ watching tighnari relax feels like a privilege, and cyno's mouth twists into a gently smile, the lines around his eyes softening. it puts him at ease to see tighnari at ease, and slowly but surely cyno feels his muscles beginning to relax, his body easing back against the warm stone.

he's not entirely boneless, that would be a miracle, but all things considered, he's looking relatively serene. ]

Thanks for your concern.

[ a chuckle rumbles in his chest, before his smooth, warm expression tightens into something more puzzled. ]

Your house? Are you sure?

[ it's.. well, not as if he has anywhere to go, per se, but he doesn't want to disturb tighnari's private life, either. ]

[forestwatcher]

Mm? Of course I'm sure. Where else would you go?

[He cracks one eye open to look over at Cyno with an expression of indulgent amusement. If his friend thought for even a moment that he was going to let him go wandering off to figure things out for himself he had another thing coming, and they were comfortable enough with one another that Tighnari does not mind sharing space with him.

The young botanist shuffles slightly in the water then sighs and closes his eyes again, his long ears dropping slightly.

Besides that... he already knows that it's going to be difficult for Cyno to settle here. The man is too used to his way of life, and Folkmore could not be anything less like Sumeru when it came to needing someone like the General Mahamatra.]

We'll look for your polearm tomorrow, when it's light.

[cashewlater]

Well..

[ he doesn't elaborate, but his answer should be obvious enough. cyno would manage. he's slept many nights on the desert's cold sands, and the rainforest's humid grasses, it's not as if finding a place to rest his head here would be all that difficult.

but he won't argue it. were their situations reversed, cyno would surely insist that tighnari stay with him, rather than out in the wilderness, but cyno has never been particularly good at accepting help. still, he doesn't argue further. he won't say no to a soft bed, and the company of his dearest friend.

tighnari looks so relaxed, cyno can't help but feel its contagion. resting his head back, he closes his eyes, damp hair clinging to his shoulders. ]

All right. Tomorrow, then.