February 2023 Test Drive Meme

[folkie]

FEBRUARY 2023 TDM

INTRODUCTION

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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]

SPRING BREAKS LOOSE

Content Warnings: extreme weather

the time is near

The earth is awakening.

You are aware of this fact before consciousness truly returns. One minute you were a falling star but as your body reforms you can sense the freshness of spring just around the corner. In your minds eye you can see circling birds in the sky, feel the first warm breeze of the season, and hear icicles melting into crystal puddles.

But something isn't right.

The moment you are truly awake you find yourself in what could generously be described as a shack built in the snowy wasteland of Wintermute. You and another Star Child are at least being kept warm by an electric heater, but there really isn't much in the way of amenities otherwise. More disturbingly, the entire shack has a deeply oppressive aura to it, encouraging the pair of you to leave as soon as you can.

But where can you possibly go?

Stepping outside reveals the answer, as parked not far from the shed is a dogsled, complete with warm winter gear to protect you from the cold.

The dogs themselves are the real marvels; not flesh and blood, the sled dogs are in fact automatons. The winter sun reflects off of their silver and copper bodies and the steady tick of their inner workings breaks the chilly silence. Each dog has a key sticking out of its back, turning slowly.

The oppressive sense you felt in the shack continues to grow. Your thoughts begin to turn negative: sad, paranoid, fearful. It is quite unbearable... until your eye falls on a delicate splash of purple against the snow.

Close to the dogsled, a single crocus pokes out of the ground.

The very sight of it calms you down. Picking it will make you feel happy, and you will find yourself blurting out the first pleasant memory that comes to mind.

The robodogs bark, delighted, encouraging you to climb aboard the sled and look for more of those flowers!

Every crocus you collect will make you feel positive emotions and the urge to share good personal moments with your companion. The more you find, the happier you will be... and you might get quite close to a total stranger as a result as well!

in from the snow

While you are out and about, you'll want to keep an eye on your team of dogs - they can and will lose power after a point. Your job as a good dog driver is to keep them wound up! Yes, you'll have to stop and physically wind the dogs back up when they lose steam.

You are likely to discover weapons jutting up from the snow. These are all unenchanted items, basic swords, guns, shields, etc., but the second you pull them from the snow the weather will take a turn for the worse. You may even be subject to a sudden avalanche! Hopefully you got the dogs wound up enough that they can get you out of there without any damage!

Eventually the dogs will choose to take you to Akhlut Station in Wintermute where you can catch the train somewhere a little warmer.

BUT SO DOES FEAR

Content Warnings: Fungus, spores, live burial, mental confusion and hallucinations.

putting roots in my dreamland

Willow is definitely warmer than Wintermute. The tail end of winter means that while much of the farmland is still blanketed in snow, the more wooded areas have large clear patches beneath the conifers. The ground here is damp and rich smelling. Poking out of the soil are tiny white mushrooms. These fungi glisten wetly, strangely compelling in their little rings of earth. You just want to take a closer look... maybe have a seat under the conifers and listen to the snow melt...

The mushrooms enchant anyone who gets close to them into simply staying put. They cloud the mind, leaving you in a dimly pleasant haze, while your body sinks slowly into the earth. The longer you stay, the more you sink - maybe a passerby can come and pull you out! If you don't wind up suffocated by dirt you will find that your head clears on its own once night falls. You will probably still need a hand pulling yourself out of the ground, but at least now you know what's going on.

The woods at night are not still - there are mice and owls and the usual nocturnal critters. There is also something else, something that moves slowly beneath the trees checking the mushroom traps. About eight feet tall, this lanky creature resembles a human skeleton held together by muscles and tendons of moss and fungus. Its head is a huge mushroom cap, underneath from which glitter a pair of bright blue eyes. If it finds any unfortunates stuck in the traps without anyone to help them, it will push their heads beneath the soil and hold them there until they die.

The sight of this creature inspires feelings of disorientation and hopelessness. These feelings are lessened when you are in close physical proximity with another Star Child, so it is to your advantage to stick together. The mushroom creature's objective remains the same: to feed the living earth with your body.

The creature is not particularly tough - its flesh is soft and gives way easily. You can defeat it easily with weapons or even your fists provided you can get close enough without succumbing to the disorientation and hopeless feelings. Oh, and you may not want to hit it on the head...

The mushroom cap, when struck, showers spores everywhere. These spores burn if they land on your skin, and if they get in your eyes they cause vivid hallucinations of ghostly figures reaching for you, trying to immobilize you. These hallucinations are so real that it is likely you will act as if they are real, standing still as if you are restrained.

If you defeat the mushroom creature, it will dissolve into the ground and leave in its place a wooden chest. Inside each of you will find some canon clothes and/or an item from your homeworlds.

coast is clear

Not far from the forest treeline, a bonfire burns merrily in the center of a circle of light green tents. The tents are kept warm by portable heaters, with some containing food and drink, and others offering small packs of seeds as gifts. These seeds are for common earth flowers and vegetables. One of the tents provides first aid supplies, in case you got roughed up fighting a giant mushroom or something.

The tents are staffed by squirrels and chipmunks. Just plain old ordinary squirrels and chipmunks. They don't speak - only chitter and occasionally screech - but they will help as best as their tiny paws allow.

This is a good time to recover, and also to talk to any other Star Children you may see.

Comments

[crowneddragon]

The mouthfull of pine needles gets spat out, and Esteban rubs what he can off with the back of his hand. When the monster turns eerie eyes at him, fear claws, looking for a crack, but his name called out steadies him. There's a crooked smile, faith in every line of his body that the monster is now doomed-- whatever it is.

There's hardly any thought into its movements, jerky and slow; rotten, but clinging to the last vestiges of life. Long bony claws reach, from arms that almost drag on the ground. Esteban is ready this time-- the wing sheltering Daia digs into the soft earth, keeping him half hidden from the creature.

With a snap, Esteban jerks it forwards, tosses clumps of dirt and moss at the creature and slams his talon into its shoulder, throwing it off-balance. A sweep of his tail makes it stumble, two, three feet back and the creature's back hits the bark of a tree. He backs away, leaving the area clear for Seto to aim at.

"Mmm~ Never tried lightnin'-zapped mushrooms. We sh'ld see what it tastes like!" he teases, although he has no intention to eat whatever that creature is. It would give them all indigestion.

But there is relief. There is so much relief. He can hardly wait for the monster to be defeated.

[blue_ice]

Seto has never been so grateful that the strange elemental power from the illusory world stayed with him. He's better at hand to hand combat than he used to be as well...but he's not eager to get close to this thing.

He draws on the wish to protect his friends, stretches his fist in the air, and swings his arm down to conjure a stronger bolt. It strikes from the top down, and he jumps back as spores go flying. Hopefully they're far away enough.

"Ugh...don't hit the head!" Something grazes his arm and burns. He grits his teeth and fires another bolt at the chest.

[diamondsfortears]

Watching the others fight, it's clear that Daia can't contribute much. When Esteban attacks the mushroom monster with his wing, Daia makes an effort to get out of the way, getting closer to Kaiba and lingering behind. He still wants to make proper contact so badly. To throw his arms around his friend, his brother, and be happy in their reunion. Not one, but two. He has two people from the Train with him now. He'd never imagined it happening the first time, let alone now. He's happy to see Kaiba here.

But when the strike it's the mushroom-thing's head, spores fly about and hit Kaiba. Are those burns? Daia's eyes widen. And the monster is struck in the chest, next. And that's when Daia breaks into a run, towards Kaiba, coming to check on him.

"Are you okay? Does it hurt?" He's inspecting where those spores grazed him. But his head will flick occasionally in the direction of the mushroom skeleton; he has to make sure he's not being in the way, either. He tries to push down that feeling of uselessness pulling at him. It's not the time for it.

[crowneddragon]

The puff of spores makes Esteban leap back, a snarl on his face as he studies the monster. It's damnably resistant. Daia darts away from him and towards Seto, and to safety-- Esteban knows he needs room to move when he's fighting. But something like cold manages to cling to his mind as soon as his lover moves away, crawls along his throat and leaves lead in his veins. It's difficult to brush it off.

The monster groans, like the click of a thousand insects, as it shakes its head, letting the spores seep the area around it, neither hurried nor threatened. Death comes to all. Whether now or later. Esteban feels its thin claws gain purchase, and itch along his mind. He darts, comes closer to his companions-- and there is relief there, there is hope there-- and beats his wings as best he can between the trees. It's not perfect, but it keeps them into cleaner air.

"D'you wanna run?" he asks Seto, because with him safe, they don't really have a reason to fight it. "Or d'you need a better shot at it?"

It would be better. The monster is clearly dangerous, and even half-dissolving-- there are chunks of it just falling, like a broken stem-- it could cause a lot more chaos if they leave it be.

"Whatcha need from me?" he asks, and there is a familiarity into this. An echo of an older fight. 'Dians, he's missed Seto.

[blue_ice]

Seto flashes his best reassuring smile for Daia. It's slightly pained at the edges, but he can bear this. It's not doing anything worse to him right now. He watches as Esteban falters, and feels it when their connection weakens...but as soon as he's closer, his strength returns in full.

"No, just---stay with me, both of you. Having you close seems to help. Not that that makes any sense."

Oh, wait. One more thing. "Can you beat your wings to blow spores back at it if it shoots more?"

Seto's aiming lower this time, but he can't be too careful. With his course decided, he takes a sharp breath and fires the strongest bolt he can at its core, down at its legs. It falls to the ground and howls, and Seto holds his breath...is this it?

[diamondsfortears]

There's a smile, and Esteban is blowing back the spores. And with another shot, the creature seems to have met its end, collapsing to the ground with sounds of pain.

Perhaps he should know better from the adventures on the Train, but he can't hold back anymore. He throws his arms around Kaiba, and motions for Esteban to come hug, too. They're all back together. He can't believe it. He's got so much to catch Seto up on. Especially now that Daia and Esteban have started dating.

"Welcome home." It's not the Train, and it's not the world that Kaiba is from. But he's here, next to him, when he wasn't sure if and when Kaiba could ever come back to the VoidTrecker. And yet, somehow, he ended up here. The Fox thought they all belonged here, and he's grateful. To him, Kaiba is home.

[crowneddragon]

His wings still flick through the air twice more. The monster crumbles on the grounds, bits of its strange mushroomy limbs tumbling down into the moss and pines, breaking apart and sinking beneath the earth. From between its ribs of wood, something thumps onto the ground, somewhat heavy. When the rest of the mushroom peels off, a treasure chest is left behind, innocently waiting to be opened. The tip of Esteban's tail flicks, but there are deeper concerns first.

He turns, blue eyes straying until they meet Seto's own, his head shifting to the side. There is a breath, a quick hesitation, rooted on the spot for just one more second-- before his grin rips away any fear, joy filling his lungs and Esteban launches himself at them both.

He joins the cuddles with a noticable push, both his wings wrapped around them as Esteban cheers.

"Seto! 'Dians-- y'r okay! Y'r here!--" he switches, from delight to obvious worry as he backs off in the same breath, just a bit, to make sure everything is fine. "Are you okay? Silver? No one's hurt?" he checks, in obvious worry-- but there's no oddly held limbs, or bruises that he can see right away, so Esteban returns into the hug, barely giving them both a time to breathe before they are wrapped once again in the cocoon.

"Trust you t' get aim that good." He beams, a snicker caught in his lungs. "Zapped mushroom for supper?" That's something he'd never tasted at least. "Y've gotta come with us. Our house's not too far, an' we c'n get patched up." He pauses, mirth still in his eyes. "And, well, cleaned at least."

If he doesn't make too much sense, between his bouncing thoughts, well, it's to be expected. But he'd rather not stray too long under the great pines stretching across the grounds; not after what they'd just encountered. At least their home would be safe and warm for the night. And Seto is not getting out of his line of sight anytime soon, thank you.

He's here! He's really here! Esteban can barely believe it!

[blue_ice]

"Hey---" He's cut off with being tackled from both sides, and it gives way to startled laughter. He's sandwiched between his two very good friends, and it's absolutely a better place to be than being menaced by the smoldering pile at their feet. They're safe, they're together...

"I promised you both that we'd see each other again, didn't I?" Seto whispers, stretching his arms to squeeze them both for a few moments. It's fine. He can be sappy for a few moments in the dark.

After confirming that no one's too injured, he shakes his head with another chuckle. "That was a joke, I wouldn't eat that thing. But if we need to hunt, I can manage."

He's not a skilled hunter or anything, but survival...well. He's better at it than he used to be. And it does help to have friends, as he's reluctantly learned over the years.

[diamondsfortears]

Daia nods when asked if he's alright. When Esteban mentions getting Kaiba patched up, he manages to find words.

"I'll patch him up! I want to help!"

He looks both determined and sad. He knows he's too small and weak to help anywhere else. And now Seto has powers. He's envious. And he wants to at least be able to help here. Even if his medical knowledge isn't that strong, either. He promises himself he'll learn. He wants to help somehow.

He looks over at Esteban, as well.

"Did you get hurt? Are you okay? I can help, too."

As far as what Kaiba says.

"We don't need to hunt." Actually, that's not entirely true, is it? "Well, uhm... normal people don't have to hunt. There's lots of food you can easily get through stores and restaurants."

Occasionally, Daia has to hunt. But Esteban's been kind enough to be helpful that daia doesn't have to do it all on his own. He misses the Train, in that regard. There was always blood when he needed it.

[crowneddragon]

Relief floods him to see them both alright, and Esteban doesn't push back the tiny nuzzle that he loses in Daia's hair, a reassurance in itself.

"I'm okay. Just dirty." They can take care of that back home. A snicker escapes him, and Esteban rolls his eyes. Trust him to get in that kind of trouble. "An' kinda glad this wasn't my fav'rite shirt." He'll have to get another one now. Once more. 'Dians, he's going through his wardrobe fast. Again.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Seto," he grins, mischief laced into his smile again. "We got plenty 'f food back home. Y' gotta come with us!"

It might have been voiced as a cheerful statement, but, well. Esteban is reluctant to let Seto out of his sights right away, hardly believing it still. He'd think it's a dream, but he's been thinking that from the moment he'd found Daia here, and the opportunities he's offered fill his heart. He tugs at them both, a quick gesture that quickly stops when he notices the burn on Seto's arm.

Right. The spores.

"C'mon. You guide him first, Silver!" he invites, pushing the two of them a bit on their way. Esteban himself tugs his hood and now-ruined shirt to the chest that had been dropped, not trusting it to lack the spores that had hit Seto. He wraps it in his shirt before following along, his feet carrying him much quicker than his companions. Unfair height advantage and all.

The path really isn't all that far; moonlight shimmering between the trees and onto the snow that still clings in icy fingers across the grounds. It only takes them a few minutes from there to reach Talaria's raised walkways, leaving the snow and mud behind, where they can step along the clean and steady wood. And from there, the small huddle of houses is easy to spot, their raised roofs peeking between the feathery pine trees that prop some intimacy between each little lot.

The house they guide their friend to is a bit bigger than most other houses here, though not by much. A second floor seems to provide extra rooms, and the triangular shape helps keep the snow and ice away, so that the weight won't ever grow too much.

The first floor is almost entirely open, with only a bit of the back providing some privacy for the bathroom and what Esteban and Daia had to figure out was a private laundry room. At the front, most of the space is occupied by a joint kitchen and living room, surrounding a great hearth that Esteban is quick to shuffle up to and light from the last embers still in the beds of ashes.

Two couches provide ample cushy seats in an L-shape beyond the small entrance, and a single table with two chairs is their main dining area, though they'll have to manage now that they are three here. There should be a spare chair in the house somewhere. To their left, a short staircase rises to a level, before another climbs to the second floor above their heads, pinching the area between the kitchen and the bathroom to a short and squished hallway.

It's a simple home; but it's been a lovely place to get their bearings together while Esteban and Daia had explored the strange new world they'd found themselves in.

[blue_ice]

"Thanks. Could use the help, let's just hurry."

Seto is eager to get out of the cold and get this treated, so he hurries along and follows them to safety. Hopefully travel isn't always this dangerous. He'll have to ask them about that later, to be prepared. But for now they need shelter from the storms, and to regroup and eat. And heal, as the stinging on his arms reminds him.

It's not a bad little house, but he'd gladly take any shelter right about now. Once they're inside, he takes to one of the couches and starts the tedious work of peeling his singed and hole-laced shirt off. All those bracers and belts weren't really helpful, were they...? At least the coat and bracers were sturdy enough to avoid damage and shield him.

They're small round burns dotting his shoulders, upper arms, and chest, but nothing too serious. He exhales sharply and leans back, still getting his bearings here.

"Are your afternoon walks usually that dangerous?" he asks. And he still wonders what was in that odd treasure chest.