avalaughs | TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 10

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TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 10

{ QUICK NAV }
Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Reserves ⚔️️ Apply ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary

⚔️️ Top-Levels Only ⚔️️

SUMMARY: New arrivals drop into the lake and have to climb up a cliff to the Rent a Ride, where they are given their device and some headphones and can retrieve their personal materials. They travel to Camelot, which is a multiple day journey, so they stop at the Red Springs along the way and stay at an inn there.

A ⦿ Soaking in Your Arrival

KERPLUNK, SPLASH!

Regardless of what you were in the middle of, you and your familiar have been magically pulled into the world of Avalon just above the Bay's waters. After a brief plunge into the Bay, the rush of water filling your ears and soaking up into every creak and crevice of your body, you may need to cough to clear your airways when you rise above the surface. It's still chilly, but not enough that you can't manage on your own. The Lady of the Lake is swimming around under the water, helping to rescue any wayward travelers who look like they're struggling in the water. This month's helpers are giant pillow jellies, a species of jellyfish that is capable of ballooning itself at the surface to create bouncy pads for characters to hop across to the shore, should they choose or not be able to swim. They come in a variety of bioluminescent colors, but do not seem to be very talkative even to animal magic users. Those who try may find themselves being ignored, even if they hear the jellies talking amongst themselves about this and that.

If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. The shores themselves are littered with new arrivals complaining their way up a staircase carved into the walls of the White Cliffs. There is no railing, so be careful, but if you do fall, be prepared for a mysterious sand hand to reach out of the side of the cliffs to catch you. The hand will pat you atop the head twice before retreating back into the wall. This is the Cliff Beast; despite the name, he is quite friendly. (Though.. given how hot and muggy the weather is this first week, maybe you might want to ask him to toss you right back into the lake where the waters are still cool.)

*Reminder: Your character's familiar may or may not be with your character in their initial plunge. If the familiar isn't partial to water, it may meet your character on the beach or sit atop their head while they swim. Or if they are, they might splash about and swim alongside your character. Familiars have different personalities and body specs and we leave those up to the players.

B ⦿ The Caravan to Camelot

Once everyone is wrangled up to the top of the White Cliffs, the handsome owner of the Rent-a-Ride, Archimedes, will distribute smart phones and a pair of ear buds and tell them to "Check the Shit Box." The "Shit Box" refers to wardrobe more formally known as the Wardrobe of Finding, a hammerspace-like wardrobe that opens to each person's items and pets when the person touches the handle. It was recently enchanted by Merlin to prevent people from having to fish their waterlogged possessions and pets out of the water with them. From there, Archimedes directs everyone to settle in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and gives them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: The rest of the universe is frozen in time and your character has been brought here by a familiar that was able to bond with them. They'll have to learn magic to help save their own world from destruction, but first they've got to get them to Camelot. It is here that you have the first opportunity to decide who they will be in their new home. You'll have about an hour to wander around here, meet and greet, and pet the horses before it's time to go.

These carriages use fae technology that combats weight, so your character will be able to get in regardless of whether they're light as a feather or weigh two tons. The carts have air conditioning when it's hot, heating when it's cold, and a mystical shield to protect from bugs. There is also a mini-bar that pops out of the console with whole coconuts filled with tropical drinks and topped with tiny umbrellas. Strawberry daiquiris, pina coladas, margaritas, mai tais, and more... all frosty and in the spirit of keeping you cool during the sunny month of August. (Naturally, virgin editions are available for the underaged.) Characters can use their smartphones to connect to Camelot's internet service,

avalononline (AOL), to chat with other characters, watch dumb videos, learn about the world, contact Camelot Support (they'll answer any questions they can for you, from how to use a smart phone to where to find quests and resources to learn more about your magic). Be careful if you decide to use your phones while in the caravan-- if you don't use those earbuds and start forcing everyone to listen to your nonsense, Archimedes may make you walk.

C ⦿ The Red Spring

The journey from the White Cliffs to the City of Camelot is a long one, and the first evening you arrive you'll end up spending at the Red Spring, a booming resort town. Because of the volume of new arrivals and vacationers, inn rooms are assigned two-to-a-room. The rooms have two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and a few free movies.

If you don't want to relax in the room, try taking a dip in the spring for another chance to meet your fellow travelers. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly when drunk. It is known to relieve stress, improve energy levels, and mildly accelerate healing. It may be a little chilly when you get out though, so make sure you don't slip rushing back indoors when you get out!

The springs are also home to a large training grounds just outside town limits, where there are teachers who will teach basic magic safety and help you discover what kind of magic you have together with other new arrivals. Try target practice, obstacle courses, meditation circles, and other ways to try to figure out just what you can do... if you didn't already have an accidental discovery on the ride there.

SUMMARY: The first attempt at using the mounts to travel en-masse up to fae territory is filled with problems: mandrake sprouts caused by recent murders drumming up requests to dig them up, two titanic creatures face off in the lake and catch characters in a maelstrom, and a mysterious underwater town with a strange curse being good neighbors with a last minute save... at a slight risk: becoming a merperson, naga, or cecaelian for a little while.

With communications with Elphame in Celliwig disrupted by specters and Arthur temporarily decommissioned, the Hall of Mirrors is temporarily off limits for cleansing rituals. Celliwig has encouraged people to return to Camelot for the time being, which is just as well with all the newcomers flooding in. Last month's new arrivals through the old guard got an introduction to the new aquatic mounts and there are now plenty of people versed in how to handle and work with the magical alpacapies, mossatees, and deinosuchus. As scout parties head out further, there are a few problems that they've run into that need a helping hand from Camelot's otherworldly population.

A ⦿ A Mandraconian Task

"Not-So-Good Morning"

mandrake root

pulled aside and asked to help harvest the mandrake roots

B ⦿ Clash of the Titans

a maelstrom forms in their path

C ⦿ Fresh Waters

heading back

An underwater town

seeking out someone to break a curse

SUMMARY:After the recent event, people need to recover and heal. So Camelot's castle opens its doors for an open house, a swap meet and poetry battle auction, and a healing circle ritual.

Arthur is injured and recovering, and news has spread on social media about it. There are lots of well-wishers and gifts being sent to the castle... enough that there's just too much for Arthur to do anything with it. He needs time to recover and rest and not be bothered, and as such declares that all those who need it shall share in the wealth and generosity of those wishing him well. The abundance (Especially from guilty Celliwigians who didn't realize what was happening right under their own noses) results in a few things happening...

A ⦿ Open House

new foods made from recipes from all around the different worlds

royal public baths

old architecture mixing with jacuzzi jets

waterfall shower rooms

glowing colors by their mood

live show with a magician

rose gardens

B ⦿ Swap Meet

open-market bazaar

swindled

to win art, you must first prove yourself worthy of art

C ⦿ Healing Circle After Party

It's good to take care of yourself with a little fun, but if you're still stressed, hurt, traumatized, mildly upset, hung over, or just want to feel better about yourself, consider joining in some of the local witches and wizards in a meditative healing ritual. Step one: Gather herbs from the castle gardens. They've got all kinds, but you're looking for things like yarrow, apple blossoms, cinnamon, and lemon balm. Once you've gathered your herbs, join in the silent meditation circle with an available partner. Anyone is fine, but once you've entered the circle with someone, it's very important that you do not make any noise. Silence is important, and as you burn each of your herbs with your partner, you'll find that the smoke forms a barrier that surrounds the two of you. Put your hands together, and focus on the source of your pain. You will share your emotions with the person you're performing the spell with. They will feel everything you feel in that moment, and be able to share the burden without having to speak of or share what caused this pain. With the pain lightened, you will find that the smoke lights up and dissipates up at the top. Whether or not you choose to share with your newfound partner... well, that's up to you, but they sure are going to know how you're feeling right now, and that definitely wasn't warned about when you were asked to join the healing circle.

MOD NOTES:
• All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, but this post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads, but should not top-level comment on this post.
• If your application is accepted, you may accept TDM threads as game canon as long as both players consent. Characters may begin threading as soon as their journal is accepted to the communities.
•If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt.
• The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM, but contain seasonal tweaks for flavor. All other prompts will change monthly.
• Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here! If you have a question about the game at-large, please head over to the FAQ.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

What~ Don't you want to see the sea monster village?

[ He says it with some subtle shade, as if it should be obvious, looking over his shoulder at Tsuna with a cocked brow. But he doesn't let go of his wrist just yet, pulling him down with him. The town is within eyesight but it's a decent way off yet. And if Tsuna's not great at swimming even in shallow waters... it's only a matter of time until Alberto will insist on an impromptu swimming lesson, already noting the awkward way the boy moves even as he's in tow. ]

[Alberto doesn't really get an answer.

There's a lot to process in a short amount of time. A combination of sea monster village (focus on sea monster rather than village there) along with being dragged into the ocean and trying to protest that he can't swim, followed by the realization that he's got a tail.

The best he can manage right now is some frenzied flailing as he tries to get his bearings.

One moment please, Tsuna.exe is rebooting.]

[ Alberto lets his wrist go, turning round to face him fully, floating comfortably with an incredulous, amused, yet incredibly judgmental face on. His tone is thick and wry, cocking a brow at the boy. ]

Yikes.

[ Need he say more? He just lets him flail for a second... ]

[Eventually, eventually, Tsuna calms down. Logic and reasoning kicking in that he's not going to drown and that some sort of magic has been enacted upon him to allow him to breathe and swim. He's still plenty confused though and looks at Alberto with a mix of confusion and exasperation.

Kind of a default setting really]

What did you do?

Scared the scales off you, apparently.

[ He can tell this boy's getting his bearings more, but something tells him distinctly this is someone making the Change for the first time... He's never heard of a sea monster living on the surface and being shocked to make the Change once they get wet; it's never backwards like that that he's heard of. But, uh, not impossible? Unless he's just some really weird human under some even weirder magic spell or something, but uh, Alberto's no expert at magic, and he really doesn't have much interest in fine details like that. He's in the here and now. ]

First time below the surface?

You pulled me into the water and I can't really swim, so yeah.

[To say nothing of the whole sea monster deal, which is apparently still processing in his brain. He starts looking around nervously. This might be his first proper time under the water.]

Yeah, it is.

Pssh— you were already in the water. You'd already made the change. It's not like I dragged some human in off the shore and — prrfft! — sea monster!

[ This strange noise he makes is as if to mimic the sounds of scales growing, as much as scales fading away. He says it with a nonchalance that makes it seem he doesn't care at all about Tsuna's plight here, but after a beat, arms crossed over his chest, Alberto glances back Tsuna's way. ]

...Don't worry. I practically invented swimming. I'll teach you.

You could have given me some warning though.

[It's a half-hearted protest since he's, unfortunately, extremely used to this kind of situation by now. Still, that last comment manages to get a skeptical look.

He's a lost cause when it comes to swimming really.]

I'm fine. I'll just float the surface or something.

Nah, nah, nah, you're fine, I got this— Just... sink.

[ Alberto does something unclear with his body and his posture, scrunching himself up into a loose ball, and starts descending very slowly, smirking at Tsuna as he drifts down. ]

Ehh~?

[ Like that's supposed to help... ]

[Tsuna just stares back, blinking. He needs a bit more than that and all he can really remember is Yamamoto's teach by feeling method.]

I'd still rather float.

[Is all Tsuna can say before he tries to pull himself into a ball. It's a little difficult with a tail though.]

[ Alberto groans dramatically at that comment, rolling his eyes as he straightens himself once more, and zips back up the couple feet he'd dropped to be at Tsuna's side again. ]

Ugh, you're thinking about floating — you need to be thinking about sinking! You've gotta want it!

[ He swims in front to face the other boy head-on and extends both blue, scaly arms to place two webbed hands firmly on Tsuna's shoulders, and forcibly pushes the boy down slowly, gently, keeping him at arms' length until he's sank just out of reach. If Tsuna bobs back up, Alberto will just... push him back down. This is a silly start, but it's a start. ]

[There's a part of Tsuna that doesn't really want to do this at all, but it is a part that is kind of used to being shouted down these days. He's never been good with pushy.]

Does it really matter that much?

[He says as he bobs in the water with Alberto pushing him.]

Yes!

[ No, it doesn't. Alberto just doesn't want to be alone to explore this sea monster village. He drags a webbed hand across the length of his own face in exasperation with a weak groan, keeping the other now pressed against the top of Tsuna's head as he bobs back up. ]

Okay, okay... How's this— You know how to walk, right? I've taught someone how to walk before! I can teach you how to swim. It's, like, practically the same thing! Except you don't have legs — and there's no gravity. But, but! At least there's no gravity! So you can't fall if you mess up!

[ Ehhhh~? He releases Tsuna with a smile, as if he's found some primo selling point here with this anti-gravity spin. Nothing can go wrong! ]

A lot of people have tried to teach me how to swim. It's not that easy.

[He swears his body is made out some non-swimming material or something.]

And having a tail is a lot different from legs.

[He's just spiralling down right now. Looking for reasons why he shouldn't do this.]

Yeah, but none of them were me — I'm an expert. I practically invented swimming. And I'm an expert at walking, too, so— we've got both covered.

[ Who the fuck brags about walking...

He swims to float by Tsuna's side, a lazy smile on his face. ]

Okay, so, your tail is different than mine, but I've seen plenty of fish with tails like that, so... It can't be that different. First of all, forget about gravity. When you're walking, you've gotta stack yourself on top of yourself, right? But when you're swimming...! [ He flips sideways onto his back suddenly, resting his arms uselessly behind his head as if he were lounging on land, tail whipping beneath him. ] You can go in any direction! C'mon, you try! Swim lying down!

[ He's... not the teacher he thinks he of himself as, but hey, confidence is key half the time in life, right? ]

[Alberto is getting so many skeptical looks right now. Like who even is this kid? Not that Tsuna has any legs to stand on. And right now, that's quite literal.

But, once again, he doesn't think he's getting out of this one any time soon so he does as instructed, lying flat like he's going to attempt a frontstroke.

And he's a little surprised that he's floating that he tries to sit up again.]

I...I was floating!

Yeah, you were!

[ He responds laughingly, an air of encouragement in his voice as his smirk widens a bit. He moves on eagerly, sitting up again himself. ]

Okay, okay— now try moving...~! Loosen up, but not like, too loose, so you can propel yourself — you wanna wiggle your butt side-to-side, but your tail kind of— up-and-down? But keep your top still. [ Too complicated, grisjknf ]

Pretend like—... Like you're a piece of pasta in the pot! But you wanna swim al dente~ Got it?

[ Oh, boy... Swim al dente, Tsuna, you heard the guy. ~~what the hell does that mean~~ ]

[It's definitely an awkward movement as Tsuna tries to parse out all the instructions. It mostly results in him moving his hips in kind of a square like motion, trying to compensate for the side to side, up and down movement.

Who knows where al dente figures into all that.

There's movement but not by much.]

I don't think I get it. That's a lot of instructions.

Hrmm, okay, okay! Just— follow your intuition — what’s your first instinct? Just move forward without thinking about it! No, no, don’t think about it!

[ That’s… also not exactly helpful, is it? But still encouraging? Vaguely? ]

[But that's Tsuna's default setting. If he's not thinking, then who is?

But he can follow intuition. Though, it's hard to say if the Vongola intuition ever had to deal with being a mermaid.

So without really thinking, he starts flailing his arms in something that could be called a front stroke, if you were really liberal with the definition. But it seems to be adding some propulsion, and the tail starts to move as if he were kicking.]

[ Alberto grins as soon as he sees Tsuna move forward, but after a beat disguises it with that characteristic nonchalance again. ]

Great! I mean— fine, whatever. Now stop that weird human thing with your arms. Just move. Let your arms hang at your side and rely on your tail. Watch me.

[ Alberto zips in front of Tsuna, doing figure eights around and before him, but he's purposefully drawing attention to his ~~butt~~ tail and hips as he moves, keeping all four of his limbs straight but loose, his tail swishing side-to-side, but he starts to mimic how he imagines Tsuna must have to move with his weird fish tail, and takes a short dive, kicking his lower back up and down with legs pressed together, as if they were they same shape. And actually... it's a fairly good demonstration, finally, perhaps. He descends not far at all, but he's got his own intuition on how a mermaid might move, not having met one, but having met lots of kinds of fish and other sea animals. The standstill kicking in his descent is on point, even if his tail is still swishing side-to-side to keep himself moving forward. He's glancing over his shoulder after a second, before finally flipping back onto his back to observe Tsuna following him, hopefully. ]

Think like a fish, ragazzo! You've got this!

[ His instruction is slightly improving with each moment... At least he's as encouraging as he is snide and odd. ]

[Tsuna wants to say that he is a human so he doesn't have much choice but he supposes that he isn't really a human right now. And he could try thinking like a fish. Not that he imagines fish think a whole lot.

But he watches Alberto. And after a few moments tries to mimic his movements, and steadily slowing his arms. And eventually, he's following Alberto, and starting to catch up. It's still not quite graceful, definitely more jerky, but it's an improvement?

When in Rome, right?]

[ Alberto keeps on his back for a moment, and as Tsuna starts to successfully wiggle his way over, however stiff, it brings a big grin to Alberto's face as he calls out to the boy, cheering him on. ]

Yes...! Yes! That's it! Almost!

[ Genuinely encouraging and excited about his progress. He swims more upright, doing a little ~~unnecessary~~ twist in the water to get there, but it's all one nice fluid motion, as he faces Tsuna more attentively, calling out again. ]

Remember, pretend you're pasta— loosen up! Al dente!

I'm trying. I can only do so much at one time!

[The combination of techniques can only go so far. But as he gets used to the motions the jerkiness goes away.]

Ha! You're not trying — you're doing it! Yeah-hah! Keep going, try diving — like this, follow me! Via, via!

[ And he twists his body slightly, descending deeper in a dash, a bit quicker than he'd been before, which hopefully is encouraging of Tsuna all the same that he's upping the ante now, satisfied with his fast (albeit awkward) progress. He does flip over again effortlessly after a beat, though, to make sure Tsuna's actually lowering himself and following, since... Alberto didn't really give much instruction about diving. But he wants to show he trusts this guy to figure it out.

...And he wants to hurry down to the sea monster village, too, eheh— he's not a shining pillar of patience. ]

what kind of creature is tsuna? naga, octopus, mermaid...?

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