TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ 15

[avalonmods]

	QUICK NAV: ⚔️️ Premise  ⚔️️ Rules  ⚔️️ FAQ  ⚔️️ Taken  ⚔️️ Reserves  ⚔️️ Apply  ⚔️️ Locations  ⚔️️ Bestiary
⚔️️ View Top-Levels Only ⚔️️

 

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 chilly 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 paralyzingly cold for a few seconds before you're approached by the Lady of the Lake beneath the water's surface. She puts a vial of a vibrant, glowing red Everwarm* potion to your character's lips.
The icy water doesn't feel so icy once consumed and you'll be able to move your limbs enough to swim to shore on your own. She can't stick around to explain, she's got to get this to all the new arrivals! Many of which you'll see plopping in around you. If you can't swim, a handful of helpful ice turtles will scoop you up from beneath and drop you off at the shore. It's a fast process, though they do take their time as they need to go around hitting the ice that keeps forming on the surface with their shells to keep the surface open for the falling arrivals. If anyone tries to ask the Lady of the Lake for directions, she will direct you to Archimedes at the Rent-a-Ride. If anyone with Animal Magic asks the turtles, they will give the full spiel, but very slowly, and they like to get off topic and gossip about other turtles you've never heard of. 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.

---

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 a special feature for warm winter drinks like hot apple toddy and butter beer. 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. Newcomers get free inn rooms for their one night stay on the way to Camelot, containing two twin beds, a bathroom, a mini-fridge and microwave, and a TV equipped with a couple of entertaining video games and movies.   Don't want to relax in the room? Take a dip in the communal hot spring. The waters have restorative properties that help horses and travelers recover quickly. 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.

 

---

 

 

Last month, players were invited into the fae territories in Elphame for the first time for the Winter Solstice celebrations while King Arthur and Queen Elphame enter talks regarding the next steps toward saving the multiverse. In the meantime, a special camp hosted King Arthur's knights has been created on the riverbank just inside of the Forest of the Felled to act as a midway point for travelers going between the two points.

 

A ⦿ Snow More Cold
	The Forest Camp is quite a stunning outpost for Camelot. Given the snowy, cold weather, the campsites have been built with the knowledge of some of the snowier fae in mind and have resulted in what some are referring to as "Igloo Glamping." Artfully carved out group rooms, dining halls, and storage for supplies, and more have been carved out of snow to create a surprisingly warm solution to keeping safe as a Forest halfway point. Admittedly, it's not the your standard glamp-- but there are TVs, board games, and long fur-lined beds to keep you and four other people warm cuddled up together at night! There's also a snow port-a-potty that you probably don't want to face, but sometimes we face challenges in life. There are also a number of planned activities to keep people out of trouble while they stay.
...Or if they do get themselves into trouble, they can also end up in snow jail, a special igloo built with extremely tough ice stalagmites that will be hard to break out of until authorities can come pick you up and take you back to Camelot.

 

---

 

B ⦿ The Great Avalon Bake-Off
One of these activities is inspired by a surprising store of buried baking supplies like flour, sugar, butter, yeast, and eggs that was found in the forest. It's been there a long while, but it seems to have been protected through magical preservation, so there's really only one thing to do about it: a bake-off! It's a little tricky out in the snow, so outside of the igloos, a trench has been dug and all contestants have been given a campfire. Alchemists have helped by creating clay ovens in the snow for contestants to bake their culinary creations in. The most impressive confections (not just the top scorer) will earn a copy of (Spell) Thirst. This spell can make someone feel thirsty, even if they aren't.

 

---

 

C ⦿ Ingredient Hunt 2022
	The real trick is finding ingredients to make your confection something to stand out and come up on top of the contest, which you may need to wander into the Forest of the Felled to look for. There are a variety of winter berries able to be found, herbs and flowers buried under the snow if you can find them, and most importantly, a couple of truffle bushes from which chocolate and vanilla truffles can be harvested. There are quite a few tasty flavors to be found throughout the forest, and since it hasn't been repopulated yet due to the harsh winter, it's relatively safe to wander around no matter who you are. If you feel like you need protection though, maybe ask around camp to find someone who can fight for you.
Just be wary as there are a few ingredients you can find in the forest that may cause a few unintended side-effects to your taste-testers: Cider Berries: These berries appear to have a fiery glow coming from within. That is because they will temporary cause anyone who consumes them to breathe fire when they exhale for about 10 minutes straight... definitely a problem when you're living in an igloo. They have a great apple-y smell though! Strangler Figs: These fig trees grow around other plants and strangling them as if they were anacondas around prey. They produce the most brilliant looking and tasting figs, even in the winter time. Unfortunately, having been in Avalon long enough, they have absorbed magic into their roots and are now able to defend their fruit by creeping up anyone who touches them and trapping them in their grip. They cannot move while you are looking at them, so don't blink and hope you can outrun them. Little Leeks: These are very, very small leaks that seem to be hanging out in small vials found about an inch beneath the surface of the snow. They all seem to have different faces painted on the front of the vials, though the vials do seem to be a part of their body. The simple faces match the effect you'll get-- a crying face will result in your character having an uncontrollable sob fest, a happy face may make it seem like nothing phases them, some angry eyebrows on a frown could result in your character wanting to fight everyone in a fit of anger, and so on. The most tragic part is that these will continue effecting you until they are fully digested-- so it could take hours to stop bawling.

 

---

 

 

Back in Camelot and Elphame, trouble is brewing of a different variety.

 

A ⦿ Calls You Daddy
Strange eggs with even stranger tiny legs have started wandering into the city and making their way into peoples' homes. Inn rooms, houses, apartments, tents, tree trunks, igloos, even townships have found residents waking up with a tiny little egg snuggled up to their side to keep warm in the morning.  These eggs act just like babies too-- they cry when they need to be fed (they'll roll around in the food to absorb it), are extremely picky about their food (and each egg has its own unique palette), need to be cleaned after eating, and they need to be kept warm or they will perish.
One touch of an egg to direct skin will result in a parental instinct being imprinted upon whoever touches them, so you may find yourself wanting to care for this egg as much as it wants you to care for it. Eggs come in a variety of colors and designs and will seek out at least two parents, so you may find yourself in an unlikely relationship for the next week or so until they hatch...

 

---

 

 

B ⦿ Aurora Bearealis
	After about a week, the eggs all seem to be antsier than before. Many of their legs disappear and their colors start to glow gently at night, as if some kind of strange nightlight. Eventually, the top of the egg will burst open and out of it will hatch a slightly oddly shaped bear creature, which looks almost like a living teddy bear. The bears themselves have strange glowing markings that match the outside of the egg that they used to be in, and when they step out, a mysterious flow of light comes out of them- like an aurora borealis. At this point, there are two real problems that have started: Touching the aurora borealis lights will also make you glow with aurora borealis lights for 48 hours. They are bears and they act like bears and they get into everything and fight everyone like bears, except their perceived parents.

 

---

 

 

C ⦿ Go on, Git. CW: Mentions of poaching, beheading in last paragraph.
	These fierce little aurora bears are causing destruction and pain in both Elphame and Camelot alike, so a decision has to be made: the bears need to be led by their parents and some fighters out to the nearest forest and set free to live in the wild, as they probably were intended to. Those in Camelot who release their bears there will find a heart-wrenching goodbye interrupted by a rather dramatic battle. The natural predator of aurora bears, the flaming lions known as Fogueria, have come out of the Land of Rot to hunt them down. I hope you brought someone with you to help save both you and your beary good friend from this flaming enemy. Fogueria cannot be defeated without using magic, so you've got your battle set out for you!
For those who have taken to Elphame, they are not faring much better. As it turns out, these little eggs have made quite the impression on some goblin poachers released from prison last month. These goblins are hunting down the newly released bears for capture to sell them as circus side-shows, food, and more to more devilish creatures. They love gold much more than they love anything else, except perhaps the fierce beast that accompanies their party to help them devour anyone who would try to stop them: a gashadokuro, a fierce skeletal demon formed of the bones of fallen travelers. It is known to bite off the heads of travelers and drinks blood. You'll have to defeat the whole party to ensure your newly released bears remain safe.

 

---

 

 

• All test drive prompts are open to anyone in the game at any time to create your own logs with, as the events within are considered game canon. • This post should have top-levels by potential new characters only. Current characters may reply to any threads and may start their own logs off-post, 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 usually 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.

 

Comments

[dienw]

[ she couldn't imagine what might have been going through gareth's mind at that moment, of course. how could she? she had no inkling of a proper human history gareth, or of one being present at chaldea.

artoria's voice and bearing were a bit younger than saber's, despite everything. despite the exhaustion she carried from all of her experiences, she was still young in a way that gareth had likely never known her king to be. if anything, gareth's a bit older herself. that initial relief starts to give way to confusion, with an unmistakable shade of grief. ]

Good. But... I don't... how? How are you here? When we got back to Londinium, Aurora's people had already... you were...

[beaumains]

[ Gareth, despite the mire of confusion clouding her thoughts, didn't miss the way this girl was reacting. She pulled herself up further, wincing heavily as she did so, reaching to peel away more of her armor and toss it aside for the moment... She felt pain pretty much all over. But she couldn't let it distract her. This conversation... ]

My lady, I... cannot give you the answers you seek. In truth... I don't know a word of what you say.

[ Stoirm, for her part, shifted around Gareth to help keep her supported, letting out a low, worried whine. ]

[dienw]

[ it was... a difficult answer to hear. how could gareth just...not know...? but artoria nodded, forcing that down. if she was good at anything, it was placing her own feelings aside when things were especially bad. ]

Hold on, I have... [ she patted herself down, finally retrieving a small bottle from a pouch at her hip and offering it. ] Here. It should help until we can get you looked at.

[ gareth was lucid enough, and not badly hurt even if she ached as things were. her brows knitted. ]

You've never called me that. I don't think I've heard you call anyone that. I... [ she let out a breath. she hadn't corrected her when she had called her gareth, and there was obviously some kind of recognition. ]

... My name is Artoria Caster. They called me the Child of Prophecy... the Avalon le Fae. I was supposed to be the sword that would save Britain and end the Fairy Kingdom.

[beaumains]

[ Gareth was reaching for the bottle when, finally, some recognition shined in her eyes. What she was describing, it had to be... ]

A Lostbelt... the British Lostbelt.

[ Her words came as a hushed whisper. She knew it existed. Of course she had to. Maybe it hadn't been her business to know, but how could her ears not burn, specifically, at the mention of a Lostbelt of her own home? She didn't know many other details beyond that, but... ]

I... I am Sir Gareth of Orkney, Knight of the Round Table, In Service of His Majesty, Arthur, King if Britain...

[ And yet, she knew... that those words meant something completely different to this girl. But it was the only truth she could offer... ]

[dienw]

[ gareth, a knight of the round table? it was an exciting thought, but... orkney was about the only thing that made sense there. the lake district was close enough, after all. reality's idea of a joke?

even so, artoria nodded at gareth's understanding of the situation. ]

The Gareth I knew would be happy to hear that. She swore herself to me too... she was one of the first people who really believed in me, even when no other fairies did. Even when I didn't, haha... [ she forced a somewhat awkward laugh, averting her eyes for a moment. ]

Being a knight was all she wanted.

[beaumains]

[ She didn't miss that use of past tense, either...

She rolled the vial in her hand for a moment... almost sitting with her discomfort as if it would help make any of this make any more sense, but... No clarity came. Just more questions, ones she felt herself... not really having any right to ask. ]

In that, we are alike... My entire life has been focused on the knighthood, on living a just and chivalrous life, protecting the weak...

In truth, I'm not quite the one used to others protection, yet still... I feel I owe you my life, my lady...

[ She couldn't... quite bring herself to use her name. It felt wrong, like she didn't deserve to, not just because of her deference to her uncle, but also... She hadn't earned it, like that other Gareth had. ]

[dienw]

... I know that you're not her. Not really, but... [ artoria shook her head, ever so slightly, expression showing her exhaustion. it was bone-deep, her resting state much of the time due to all that had happened. ]

They would've killed me, too, if I hadn't fought back. And... I already couldn't save my Gareth. I didn't even know it had happened until it was too late. But... you were right there, and... I wasn't just going to run and let them take you, too. I couldn't...

[ she swallowed, heavily. this wasn't her, but all the same: ]

I couldn't let it happen again.

[beaumains]

[ ...

It was strangely... refreshing, wasn't it? That through the incertitude, something felt remarkably clear, to Gareth, in that moment. Two existences that did not belong within the same space, but could not deny that they were bonded, was almost too tremendous to feel through, but...

She could feel that no matter what the facts were, the "truth" was that she, Gareth, could not simply let the other, Artoria, feel that burden of her feelings alone.

Gareth set the vial aside, ignoring what pain their was before leaning forward and wrapping an arm, weakly, about Artoria's shoulder, holding her as best she could. ]

It didn't... I'm here... I won't be leaving any time soon, either...

[ This... this she felt right in doing, no matter the circumstances. ]

[dienw]

[ it really was that simple, wasn't it? artoria felt her eyes widen as gareth pulled her close that way, but relaxed into the touch after a moment even as her face warmed.

she wasn't sure what she had felt towards the fairy gareth, really. it wasn't as if there had been time for anything like that between the constant fighting, politicking and traveling. gareth was her friend, her vassal, her knight, and... well, that had been all they were ever able to call it, she supposed. it wasn't the same as it had been with knocknarea, but... ]

You got more formal, but this is still the same, huh...? [ artoria laughed quietly, slipping an arm loosely around gareth and trying to take care not to put pressure on one of her new bruises.

she could help her get onto stoirm and head back to elphame before long. for now, she just wanted to enjoy this. ]

[beaumains]

[ Speaking of Stoirm...

... The dire wolf plopped her head down on them both, huffing. Take the medicine, Gareth. ]

Fine, fine, I'll take the potion, geeze!

[ Way to ruin a beautiful moment, wolf-mom! But still... that hug, no matter how brief, helped illuminate a lot of things. The details of things could be set aside, left for another time to sort through. What mattered is Gareth was... Gareth. And Artoria was Artoria. They'd figure out the rest later.

Gareth took the vial and uncorked it, drinking its contents down with a small wince. Nasty tasting stuff, but hey, it worked, right? She'd feel herself start to set back together eventually.

Stoirm, satisfied, slumped herself down beside them both, letting her fur act as source of warmth for them in the winter-stilled forest. ]

I suppose I don't really have to be so formal around you, but... That kind of training gets drilled into you, as a knight, you know?

[dienw]

[ now that was more like it. artoria smiled when gareth sounded so put-upon by stoirm's reminder, glad to see past the courtly behavior. ]

I wouldn't know, really? I just grew up in Tintagel, so... [ not a lie, as far as her direct experience goes. those dreams are...something else. ] I guess proper human history's Tristan was that way, but... Morgan's Fairy Knights weren't like that. [ some of them tried, though. barghest and melusine most of all. ]

[beaumains]

[ She'd just been about to ask if she meant the parish in Cornwall when... a name came out that couldn't help but inspire a reaction from Gareth. A stalled stare, and a slight... shift in her tone. ]

Morgan... [ She had to mean the Morgan of the Lostbelt, yes? ]

I-I see... She's formed a knighthood of her own, in that world?

[dienw]

She... she did, yes. She reassigned three fairies' true names to Gawain, Lancelot, and Tristan. She was Fairy Britain's queen for the past two thousand years... and my predecessor, as the Avalon le Fae. [ she closed her eyes, leaning against stoirm. comfy. ] I was only born because she abandoned her mission.

[beaumains]

[ Well that was... a whole lot of nonsense, by her reckoning. She felt her brain twist in her skull trying to parse it. ]

W-wait, but they were not... the actual knights of those names? Was Morgan also not her true name?

[dienw]

[ she closed her eyes and shook her head. ]

She went by Tonelico, once... but her true name was always Morgan. As well as I understand it... Beryl Gut arrived in the British Lostbelt, summoned proper human history's Morgan as his Servant, and then she... shattered herself. She sent her memories back in time thousands of years to the Morgan of the Lostbelt. I... don't know why, but it led to everything that happened next.

Fairy Knight Tristan was Baobhan Sith. Morgan's adopted daughter. Gawain was Barghest, the Black Dog. And Lancelot was Melusine... born from Albion's corpse.

[beaumains]

[ Beryl Gut she knew, at least. One of Kadoc's associates, a former member of Chaldea, who in turn for life granted him by the Alien God, decided to forsake humanity... She'd never really asked Kadoc about him, but the impression she got was he was bad news, all around. And to know that Morgan, the one of her own world, was involved somehow... ]

... Morgan of proper human history...

[ A breath. ]

She's my mother.

[ Exhale. ]

I... I cannot apologize enough for whatever hand she has had in the trials you've faced...

[dienw]

[ well, that was... a surprise. artoria opened her eyes to look at gareth, wanting to dispel that. ]

You don't have anything to apologize for, Gareth. That Morgan isn't the one I had to stop. And even if she were, that isn't...! [ she shook her head. ]

... Her actions are hers.

[beaumains]

Even so... [ Gareth sighed. ]

Whether it's proper human history, or a lostbelt, it seems she was determined to make her legacy the ruin of Artoria, regardless of which... It's been a truth of her that I have had difficulty accepting, before...

[ So much of the last stretch of her life was drenched in tragedy and bloodshed caused by her mother's machinations. To think even when summoned to a Lostbelt, she found a way... ]

But the Gareth you know... she's not related to Morgan? Or of the House of Lot in Orkney?

[dienw]

[ she shook her head at that. ]

She was of the Mirror Clan of fairies. In the Lake District. Morgan came from Orkney, but... the other clans wiped out the Rain Clan there for protecting her, when she was still young.

[beaumains]

[ The ways of the Fae sounded just as chaotic as she'd always been told.... warned of, even. Mostly of those stories, even, ironically, had come from her mother. But of Gareth wasn't of Orkney, then, and the House of Lot didn't seem to exist... ]

And of her brothers?

[dienw]

[ she shook her head. it had been strange, when morgan had called her her sister, but... honestly, it hadn't seemed off, either. ]

We don't... really have family by birth? We aren't that sort of creature. [ she knew that wasn't quite what gareth meant to ask, given what she remembered from her dreams, so: ]

... If versions of your brothers emerged in Britain, I never knew about it. [ barghest... didn't count. she had liked bageko, but still. ]

[beaumains]

That Gareth... she must have had a fairly lonesome life, if that's true.

[ She couldn't... even imagine where she'd be, who she would be, without her brothers, without Gawain especially. So much of the essence of herself, what she knew herself to be, was formed in the bond she held with him... ]

But all the same...

She had you. [ She still had a worthwhile life, then. ]

[dienw]

For all of the good it did her. [ she pulls her knees up closer to her chest. ] There was never any saving Britain. Just setting things right and letting it end. She put all of her faith in me, so many of them did, and then...

[beaumains]

[ They hadn't been speaking long, but Gareth could already tell how much felt different here, between this girl and her uncle. Not just how she spoke, but... speaking about what was expected of her, like that... ]

In truth, my faith in my king, surely as Gareth's faith in you, was not seated in any greater destiny. This... this I have to believe is true, if she was truly a reflection of myself...

[ Gareth drew in a breath, turning her gaze to the sky above. It was so clear, now... the clouds had drifted away, leaving them with the canopy of the heavens, full and bright. ]

But instead just... admiration for who you are. Perhaps someone they aspired to be like...

[dienw]

[ artoria's face reddened again, and she glanced away and toed at the snow with her boot, chuckling awkwardly. ]

I wasn't anything that impressive when we met... but you're probably right. She... really saw something in me, even then. Plus, she'd been dreaming of helping the Child of Prophecy, and she wanted to be a knight...

[ finally, though, she turned her attention skyward too. no walls of light at the edge of the horizon, no withered husk of a fantasy tree, just... open sky. ]