avalaughs | test drive meme ⚔️️ 23

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test drive meme ⚔️️ 23 | FINAL

	QUICK NAV: ⚔️️ Premise ⚔️️ Rules ⚔️️ FAQ ⚔️️ Taken ⚔️️ Locations ⚔️️ Bestiary
⚔️️ View Top-Levels Only ⚔️ IMPORTANT NOTE: The sun and moon have returned to normal, but the Calamity is still visible in the sky.

ARRIVAL

The re-arrival of characters who were previously not here does not occur in the Bay this month. Instead, re-arrivals can appear at any time or place on the map as long as there is water. The Lady of the Lake is busy dealing with the situation in Atlantis (see the QuestBoard), so her magic isn’t very directed right now. Want to show up in the Red Spring? In someone’s shower? Stuck in the well the minotaur pissed in? Go for it! It’s time to get wet and wild. In fact, you could even show up underwater…

DARLING, IT’S BETTER

After the success at Dinas Emrys, the people of the cursed underwater town return to Camelot’s shores to offer a unique opportunity - to visit the town itself. It has only been seen in the distance before and this is the first time in many years that they have opened their gates to strangers, but all the hard work that the otherworlders have been putting in to fix the Calamity had not gone unnoticed even by them.

A few of the merfolk arrive at Camelot and ask people to put up notices for them. The following day they will be waiting for anyone who wants to make the trip down to the town, which they reveal is called Apkallun, and they will utilise the crown used to get everyone to Dinas Emrys to transform them into merfolk.

Merperson (fish bottom) - Merpeople’s singing voices are able to put people and creatures into a trance.

Cecaelia (octopus bottom) - Cecaelia can normally grant vengeance wishes, but per previous events, wish magic is not currently functioning as it should- so their primary features are the ability to ink and use their tentacles as additional controllable appendages.

Naga (serpent or eel bottom) - Naga have advanced strength and can extend their nails as claws.

The trip to the town is fairly uneventful, unless someone decides to wander off and gets stuck in some kelp or kidnapped by mischievous nymphs hiding along the route. Once there, it’s clear that the arrival of outsiders has been much anticipated by the town. They have put on a grand welcoming for their visitors and although many of the townspeople seem nervous to make eye contact with the strangers the atmosphere is not an unwelcoming one. Everyone is told that they may tour the town at their leisure and move about as they wish, and there is plenty to see.

OUTSKIRTS

It isn’t advised to linger around the areas outside the town, where the light of the lanterns quickly fades out through the water and leaves anyone straying wandering about in a murky darkness. For those more intrepid explorers, though, quick investigation of a noticeboard near the centre of the town will reveal a faded ‘dead or alive’ poster for something called The Wispmera, with a reward of twenty lavender pearls. Enquiring about it will draw laughs and puzzled looks from the townspeople, who will inform the enquirer that no one has ever gone after the creature in all the time the notice has been up. Further pressing will reveal, as they grow quiet and avert their gazes, that this beast will swiftly snatch up children who stray too far outside of the town unaccompanied.

However, all is not as it seems…

Hunting down the creature is no easy task and the descriptions of it are vague. It’s described as a barely-mer shaped thing that haunts the area around half a mile outside of town, occasionally drawing close only to be chased off by the town guard. Some people describe it as glowing, or having a massive head, and of being able to paralyse people from several metres away.

Even reaching the area where the creature is usually seen is fraught with dangers, including carnivorous fish and strong water currents, but persistent hunters will eventually come across the ‘beast’. It has the appearance of a huge jellyfish with poison tendrils wafting delicately though the water around it, but a moment of inspection will allow one to note that this creature also has a mer’s tail, and is simply sitting on a rock in the dark. If one can sneak up on it, it would be easy to kill. This first option would be the easy route to getting the reward and no one in town would fail to be grateful. The second, more risky option would be to engage it in combat, however those tendrils are able to paralyse a person within minutes should they hit. Anyone who is stunned by the creature will find themselves on the edge of the town after they black out, as if someone carefully brought them there.

There is a third option, however. Approaching the creature with no weapons will startle it, but it will not attack. This beast is far from the terrible child-stealing monster that those in the town would paint it as. In fact it has never stolen any children at all! All this poor thing desires is to be left alone, having never done any harm to anybody, and all of the stories about it have simply been passed down over time by frightened people who did not know what they were seeing out in the dark. If the hunter agrees to not kill the creature it will give them five pale blue-coloured pearls in thanks, but this will forgo the reward from the town. Unfortunately, no one is going to believe that you saw the creature at all.

DOWNTOWN

In downtown, around something that looks like it used to be a fountain, a bustling market has been set up with various stands and stalls selling local produce and items. Even the native townsfolk seem to be excited about this as it isn’t a regular occurrence and was thrown together in quite the rush after it was announced that strangers from the land would be coming to visit.

The stalls are offering food and drink, as well as handmade wares. The food is mostly fish-based, but some care has been taken to make choices available for those people who don’t eat fish (though that selection is somewhat limited). Locally made items are made mostly of shells, stones and driftwood as well as glass, and the stall-runners will eagerly push things into people’s hands if they show the slightest interest.

There is one large stall supplying most of the drinks on offer. Rather than being in glasses or bottles, they come in small magical bubbles that you pop into your mouth and break with your teeth and boast a variety of interesting and ‘enlightening’ effects.

BLUE - a cool flavour almost like plain water, but uniquely fresh. Consuming it will cause the person’s skin to glow faintly for several hours.
RED - tart with a faintly spicy kick. Drinking this will make you hiccup multi-coloured bubbles when you try to speak and lasts for around ten minutes.
PURPLE - unexpectedly citrus-flavoured. This one causes the water being ‘exhaled’ from the gills as the person breathes to be dyed several different colours and will last for half an hour.
ORANGE - tastes like honey and ginger. This one will cause the drinker to speak in rhyming couplets for around an hour.
GREEN - tastes very much like absinthe. Also acts very much like absinthe. This will just get you very drunk very fast. Good luck.

UPTOWN

Part of the town is clearly far more… ‘polished’ than the rest. The homes are fronted with shining opals and nacre, and although the people there seem friendly enough there is a certain aloofness to them that isn’t found in the bustling marketplace or the streets around it.

But no matter, that isn’t why people have been directed there. The reason for any outsider to be shown the way to this area (unless they found their own way there) is to attend a concert being put on at the theatre in honour of their esteemed guests. There is a buzz about this show, with the performer clearly being someone of some note, and though there are no posters or pictures on the front of the building everyone is urged that they ‘wouldn’t want to miss it’.

The lights go up, and the performer is an ethereal oceanid of exceptional beauty who has been living in the town since she was brought to Avalon as an outsider herself many years ago. Though she doesn’t sing in a language anyone would be able to comprehend the emotion that she sings with could be enough to drive those in the audience to tears. Indeed, several people are seen to be leaving before the show is even finished and once it is over the entire room erupts into raucous applause.

Those otherworlders who attended the performance will be able to see beauty in everything and may find their emotions to be somewhat off-balance, making them more prone to outbursts and also to blurting out the truth to those around them. This effect should wear off after a few days, but any dreams that they have in the meantime will feature the oceanid’s singing in the background.

—-----------

THE RING OF DISP(HELL)

Part 1: Hot in Herre

As the otherworlders passed the test of nobility, the dragons reveal the location of the ring: it is hidden deep in a volcano. They are able to provide a map, but not much information about what can be expected once people get there.

The volcano itself is not one that the otherworlders would be entirely unfamiliar with, but it is not one that many would have had reason to approach before: the northernmost Ash Mountain, a volcano with plume-hidden bluffs nestled between Mab’s Cavern and the Perilous Desert. Though the Elphame traders are not around to offer much in the way of gear or protection this time around the dragons themselves offer to teach people a special spell (Spell: Dragonscale) which they say will protect from the heat and fumes that will need to be dealt with to reach the ring.

It’s recommended to give this spell some practice due to how valuable it will be when going up towards the volcano’s summit and for the trials beyond, but be warned that overuse can cause stiff joints, inability to regulate body temperature, and chronic burping that makes it feel like you just ate a dozen ghost peppers.

There will be plenty of time to gather supplies and kit, though some of the more unscrupulous merchants in Avalon are taking advantage of the rush as well as the lack of traders from Elphame, and are raising their prices. Some of the gear being sold may not quite be up to the task, either…

Part 2: Feeling Magmanimous

Arriving at the volcano is a trial in itself. The dragons will take those willing to go most of the way, but will drop them near the foot of the mountain to let them make their way up on foot. Their reasoning for this, they say, is to ensure that everyone is able to acclimate to the environment on their way up… but it might just be that they have better things to be doing.

With everyone loaded up it doesn’t take long for things to start becoming difficult. The heat rises swiftly around the travelers and there is very little movement in the air to offset it. Foul-smelling gasses rise up from vents and deep, narrow chasms along the edges of what appears to be a lightly-trodden path, if one could say it is a path at all, between slow-moving lava flows. What vegetation there is at the base of the volcano quickly gives way to the occasional tuft of dry grass and sickly-looking tree that has dared try to grow in this location. There is the constant, unsettling sensation of being watched despite the land around them appearing utterly bereft of any fauna.

Going too near to the edge of the path, woefully under-marked as it is, will put all but the most sure-footed in danger of slipping on the loose, shale-like ground beyond and sliding off down towards one of the oozing rivers of molten rock snaking their way down the side of the volcano. ‘Dragonscale’ won’t be enough to keep anyone from injury if they hit it, so watch out for each other!

A half day’s journey is what it takes to reach a mark on the map which seems to show the entrance to a large tunnel system, and though the entrance itself will be a tight squeeze for some it opens up initially into a spacious cavern that is somehow several degrees cooler than outside.

No doubt a few people will want to make up a camp and get some rest here. That’s probably a good idea. Beyond the cavern itself are several dark tunnels, shown on the map as Labrinth y Brenin, and some preparation is advised before heading into those passageways…

Part 3: Turnkey Toasted

When everyone is prepared, the final and most vital part of the expedition can begin. It is advised to take some kind of light source into the tunnels, as once the glow of the base camp is left behind the darkness is almost absolute. It quickly becomes hot and stuffy as progress is made through the winding passages and anyone who decides to lean on one of the walls to take a breather will quickly realize why - the tunnel walls are warm, almost hot, as if molten rock flows not too far behind them.

Occasionally the tunnel opens into small open spaces, like pockets in the mountain, where lava flows slowly in lazy rivers below the path as it precariously bridges over and edges around it. It might be tempting to linger in these spaces, where the pressing sensation of several hundred feet of rock above and around you is not so keen, but lingering for too long will have an unpleasant side-effect.

The fumes rising from the lava in these small caverns can cause powerful hallucinations, driving people to see their worst fears - real or perceived. It will be up to those who remain unaffected to make sure that their companions make it to safer ground, where the effects will wear off after a few minutes. Until then, it will be up to friends and strangers alike to make sure that those who are under the influence of the toxic gasses don’t cause harm to themselves or others.

Finally, hopefully without too much incident, the final cavern is arrived at. This is a large space, refreshingly cool despite several waterfalls of molten rock rolling slowly down the walls, and the ceiling glitters with geode clusters. In the centre of the cavern is a transparent, locked box inside which a simple ring can be seen. Underneath the box is an inscription.

You cannot prove, but you always know:

The apple falls, the wasp stings, a friend comes, the keys turn.

But what does this mean? The number of lava-falls in the cavern match the number of required keys to open the box, but surely the instructions can’t mean what they seem to?

Close examination of the falls will reveal the faint glint of gold behind them - the pieces are indeed behind the molten rock. Though it seems impossible, those who put their hands through the lava with faith that they will not be harmed will find that rather than burning, they only feel a pleasant warmth as the lava-fall parts around their hand and arm and allows them to pluck the key piece from behind it. Without faith… well, why would you stick your hand in lava if you really think your hand will melt off?

Once all the pieces are gathered by the faithful (and brave), the box can be opened and the simple ring is no longer quite so simple-looking. It can be taken without further trial, and the only task that remains is to make it back to base camp without accidentally falling off a bridge.

With the final item retrieved those who ventured out are free to return to Camelot, where they will need to hand the ring over to Merlin so the final preparations can be made to end the Calamity once and for all.

• This is the final "test drive meme," to welcome returning characters and wrap up the journey to get Lancelot's Ring of Dispell.
• Anyone may reply to any threads or start top-levels. Whichever you prefer!
• If nothing here tickles your fancy, try one of this month's Quests for your TDM prompt.
• Questions about this TDM's content? Comment here!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

arrival.
first-come, first-serve entry

GADS-!!

[turn left and all of a sudden...you're here? where's here? this is not her office, this is...

someone's residence? whose? what???]

...

[she inhales sharply, holds it, and exhales slowly to vent out the shock. right...magic nonsense against her will. what is it this time? while her ears burn to listen for sounds of life nearby, she clears her throat and raises her voice, speaking in a pleasant lilt:]

Was it someone's wish I appear here? If so, I'd appreciate the host to make themselves known.

outside, camelot, what the fuck did you guys do to the sky.
ota

[it's... it's right there. high overhead, plain as the view it had been through the eye of a telescope. but then, when she was Ambassador, it was still necessary to use that lens to see it well - now it's...

this isn't good.

keep it together, Ardenbury.]

Pardon-- [with her chin lifted and her demeanor curt-yet-professional, she turns toward someone on the street with an outworlder look about them.] Yes, excuse me. I have questions. Do you have time? If not, guide me to the Ambassador, if you please?

rings of disp(hell).
ota

[Lady Ardenbury is not particularly dressed for an expedition, but she's hardly let that stop her before (and it's hardly the time to be shopping, is it??). once she's gotten the skinny from perusing the network, speaking to people, doing her damndest in all manner of dealing with people, Cecelia finds herself at the foot of Ash Mountain like many others.

could there be anyone looking more vexed and grim about this whole thing? possibly. most likely - she is one to seal away her emotions behind a flint-set expression, but her brow is knit as she reviews the Dragonscale spell yet again. no more laments about her missing catalog of spells - it's business time.

...and it's frustrating. being so stripped of her full potential makes this bitter work, and it conveys more plainly through the familiar at her feet - a fawn-sized unicorn flinching and flickering with each attempt to master the spell.

she likely needs a break, but far be it from her to decide.]

[the climb is not kind, and while Cecelia's in no state to make demands of the mountain, she does rather wish the ground itself would be reliable.]

Ah-!

[the loose, shifty stones give way under her foot and pitch her sideways, threatening to throw her down the side of the mountain completely if she's not caught.]

Here.

[at the encampment outside the tunnel system, Cecelia approaches someone looking rather worse for wear, holding out a waterskin.]

There's plenty. Drink up.

[Cecelia's lineage boasts the might of red dragons, yet her bloodline means next to nothing in the face of Avalon's furnace: all that power and immunity to the heat and poisons of the earth was stripped from her, and so she can only struggle, just as the others do.

it's hard. she's not built for endurance tests like this, short and delicate as she is. maybe she shouldn't be here, maybe she should've stayed back and made a bid to support the king and his council directly. but her pride, her fear of rejection from her worthy posts...it dragged her this far, didn't it? it'll have to drag her the rest of the way.

she wavers, hugging her arms to herself as her pace slows, likely interrupting the pace of those behind her. glimpsing at the singed, frayed edges of her skirts gives her pause and...almost cause to laugh, but she can't waste the breath.]

[Cecelia barely bats an eyelash at the unpleasant suggestion. hand? in lava? this was child's play before Avalon, and she's decided it shall be likewise today. as an elemental mage here it's only fair! she gives her familiar a sharp look before lifting her chin defiantly and stepping forward, steeling herself in the face of obscene heat.]

Let this be my last test, then. Should I have any merit here in this land at all, it may as well be for this.

[because if she's to be a failure of an ambassador, she may as well succeed as a fool who melts her hands off...

...but she doesn't. she finds, after holding a breath with a note of fear, that there's nothing to fear of this heat. it's...almost like home. she exhales and proceeds to grab the golden key, withdrawing it from the falls and turning back to the party with a triumphant glint in her eye that she can't hide even in wanting to.

still, we have to keep it professional here:] Shall I gather the others, or are you quite capable of doing likewise?

Edited 2022-09-02 14:11 (UTC)

[Jean's on his patrol, but he definitely has time with how slow things are. Besides, what else is a Knight than a walking fancy info board, really?]

Sure. Ask away.

[good, no resistance. prepare to be interrogated, weird-haircut-lad.]

Thank you. Please, can you tell me just how long the calamity's been visible from here with the naked eye? Is this a recent occurrence?

[Well, she's obviously someone who has been here before. She did look familiar, probably from the network.]

Since March. So half a year.

[her ear twitches. that long?! where the hell is the King and his magical entourage.]

Mn. And...no dire effects have befallen this place since? Even while getting swamped up in the politics of the various regions.

cecelia ardenbury is back baybee - ota

wtf sky prompt

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Don't fall please

c:!!!

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just keep movin'... just keep movin'...

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Rings of Disp(Hell), Campsite - Welcome back!! I missed her!

wah toshi Q_Q I MISSED HIM TOO!!!

♡♡♡

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Dis(Hell)

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arrival

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wtf happened to the sky

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