avalaughs | TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ I

Entry tags:

TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ I

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

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. You'll definitely see other new arrivals plopping in. If you can't swim, a red-headed woman known only as the Lady of the Lake will drag you to the shore if she doesn't spot someone else near you helping so no one ends up drowning. She's a little busy casting directive magic to make sure everyone lands safely and playing lifeguard, so if anyone attempts to talk to her, she'll tell them to head up to 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.

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 earbuds to everyone before getting them settled in groups into modernized carriages pulled by horses and give them a basic explanation of why and how they've been brought to Avalon: 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 nip bottles. 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.

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.

A ⦿ Get Fresh

Upon arrival in Camelot travelers are ushered to a large set of wash rooms where they can clean up and make themselves presentable for the Welcome Feast. They are informed that once the feast concludes there will be an announcement on where they can seek lodging and how to begin their magic studies.

B ⦿ Be Merry

After they freshen up, travelers are led into the main dining hall. The decorations range from simplistic to a little more grandiose, it is likely everyone will find something familiar. A modern mash up with a medieval flair. The jester makes his rounds, perhaps he has a joke or two to tell, go ahead, give him a listen or perhaps volunteer to participate in one of the jester's shows, like knife-throwing or hypnotism. Within the crowd of staff there are mummers, a juggler, here and there dabbled through small troupes perform mini skits, perhaps they’ll perform a well known verse from a traveler’s world or tell a tale of fancy from this realm.

C ⦿ Eat Well

A banquet is prepared with food that while all “rustic” in appearance are usually a version of modern dishes ranging from basic roast chicken and veggies to Korean-Mexican fusion and French patisserie. The drinks are much the same; while served in old fashioned goblets, they are drinks modern travelers will be familiar with.

Have a seat, meet a new neighbor, find a roommate, maybe a new or old friend? Talk to the person to your left, your right, across from you. Mingle, enjoy the food, the music, it shouldn’t be long before the information promised is provided. Till then take your fill and get to know your fellow travelers.

You've been here a few days now and have gotten a chance to settle in, find a place to stay, and Camelot's citizens have decided that you've been here long enough to start living your life again. Well, your new life.

A group of citizens have decided to give everyone their first quest.

"Hear ye, hear ye!" a man in chain mail with a tablet with his statement typed up on it declares to a crowd from atop a pedestal. There are two other citizens around him with phones to post the video to AOL later to make sure the word gets heard ye all around.

"Those with magic, we beseech thee! Findeth us a grail most holy hidden in the depths of the Brocéliande! This holy grail is known to grant thine wishes three, a most noble quest for noble souls! Great reward will come to those who find it and proclaim at least one of their wishes to find the great Excalibur for King Arthur!"

This is the first you've heard about King Arthur, and it seems curious that he hasn't yet shown his face around town. It also seems strange that this guy is speaking like he's stepped out of a bad period piece, and probably should be the clue that this is more or less an attempt to haze some of the newcomers by sending them into the forest... but no one is telling newcomers this. It's better to get them out there and start praciticing, after all.

A ⦿ Lost, and Lost, and Lost Again

The Brocéliande is well-known around Camelot for being a forest that's both bountiful and mysterious. Oddities are known to happen that may never happen again to the point that even if something weird happens and you can't prove it, most citizens will assume you're telling the truth.

Which is what makes it peculiar when you keep passing the exact same locations over and over again, as if you've been traveling in circles or reaching the end of the map in a video game and coming out the other end. You're stuck in a space loop. The only way out is to successfully find the one difference in each loop five times in a row and collect it. Maybe it's a strange frog, a crystal that wasn't there before, a small wooden step that doesn't lead anywhere, or some other singular item, you've got to find what stands out... pick the wrong item, and you'll have to start your five count over again, and again, and again...

B ⦿ Grail, and Grail, and Grail Again!?

If you either missed the space loop or managed to get out of it, eventually you'll come to find one of... quite a few copies of a grail with holes in the side placed throughout the forest. They look like they might be good for draining noodles, but that's about it. Though they're spread out, it's entirely possible you'll find more than one, but each of them are placed in situations where it's impossible to get to by normal means. You'll have to use magic! It may be hidden in a bird's nest at the top of the tallest tree, inside of a hole in a rock with bars that prevent you from reaching in (perhaps an animal friend could reach it), inside a boiling pond, or inside the body of a bear fir... there are a load of possibilities, and now's a chance for you to try out your brand new magics! Use one of those samples, find something from the bestiary, or come up with your own adventure to get your hands on that less-than-holy grail.

C ⦿ A Quest Completeish

Or it would be, if you could ever find the guy who announced it... The AOL posts have since been deleted. You may end up spending a lot of time trying to find the guy. At this point, citizens will start telling you that you shouldn't take quests unless they're on the quest board or else you're going to get scammed... that's definitely an olden times themed noodle strainer. If that doesn't make you give up, or perhaps motivates you to find the guy to kick his ass, you'll have to head out to the farmland and chase them through a cornfield. (Be careful not to get lost, it's a maize in there.) If one of the boys are caught, they'll explain they were just testing you-- and hey, you got a free addition to your kitchen! If pressed, they'll apologize and give you a bit of money for your trouble. It's not much, but it'll get you at least a meal.

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. This is the first one, ignore this note today!
• 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.
• For the first month only, there will not be a quest board. Starting in December, quests will be posted on the 1st of each month for current players. After that point, quests may be used as TDM prompts in addition to the presented TDM prompts. A link will be provided as a bonus prompt option at the end of the post.
• The first "Arrival" prompts are present on every TDM. 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

[Takao is a talkative sort, but with her, it is pretty hard to get a word in edgewise, not that it's bothering him. He is just watching her sparkle and explode in joy and confusion over it while she does. He sees the rabbit squirm and winces one eye closed.]

First, we don't choke the bunny, yeah? [Then he flashes her a grin and points out toward the training grounds.]

You practice; it looks like you've got light magic, I know Kise's familiar can create illusions, and he said something about making a small shield; none of us are real good at it yet.

[Then he snickers.]

It's exactly like some weird wizard manga; I have a friend who would love it.

[ Indeed, she's exploding in pink, sparkly joy and confusion, but Takao's remark about the bunny snaps her back down to "Earth" a little, and she gasps softly, holding it out to check on it. It just stares back and twitches its nose. She turns her attention back to the boy, carefully resting the rabbit on her shoulder again, which finds a comfortable position it likes. ]

Ah? Do you have friends from home here, then? Who is Kise? Does he have a rabbit, too?

[ Worth a shot. She's still processing the words "light magic" and "illusions" and all. It's a lot to register at once, now that it's revealed itself. She's frankly still just hung up on the rabbit, cuz that's normal and familiar-ish. Magic sparkly powers? A lot more surreal. Focusing on the familiar — and the familiar — feels more grounding. ]

[The confusion is definitely understandable. It is all a lot to take in and this is not even his first time in a strange world. Lucky for him, he has several people from home, who seem to be traversing the multi-verse with him. Primary among them his best friend. ]

I do, a couple of them, but we actually came from another world before this one. None of us have been home in at least several months, some over a year. Kise's a good friend of mine, he has a Villa I think he called her, she looks human but isn't, she can cast illusions and likes messing with people.

[Never mind his pink ear tips here because she totally got him the night before and he is a bit embarrassed by it.]

[ Miwako notes Takao’s soft flush at the mention of the villa, but thinks nothing of it, so says nothing of it, either. She’s more distracted by his other comments, which elicit so many of her own. She’s really not overbearing — just over-excited. ]

Ehh?! Really?! This is not your first time being kidnapped by aliens?! All your friends stay together, too? That’s amazing! And scary! Are you scared? You seem so brave about it! Do you like living in outer space now? Are these worlds really different from yours? How long has it been since you’ve seen your home? That’s crazy!

[He is going to be very grateful for that. Awkward enough that his first experience seeing a naked woman was an illusion. Worse still to have to explain to a girl he just met or any girl for that matter.]

Yup, there are four of us who all remember the place we were before, our other friend seems to have forgotten all about it. I think there might be more, we were supposed to save that world, guess maybe we did it so they sent us on to the next. They are way different than mine, I just live in normal, every day Japan in my world. No magic or aliens. I miss it, but Ace-sama needs me, can't abandon him now. [He thinks about it for a moment, counting in his head.]

Almost five months, but two of my friends were there for a year or about before I showed up.

Five months... a year...!

[ She pauses, stunned, processing. ]

So you saved that world... and now you have to come to this world to save our world?! Miwako is Japanese too, I don’t want Tokyo to disappear! But I don’t know how to save the world. I’ve never met any aliens until now, either. I mean — possibly one, but that’s neither here nor there...

Yup, timelines were really weird because for those of us at home it was like they never left.

[It's a lot, he knows, he had months to adjust and his best friend to help him through it. It definitely made a difference and he knows he was lucky.]

I guess, honestly it was like we were there one day and then we were here, I don't know for sure what happened. But now it looks like we're trying to save our world which is pretty important. I don't think these are aliens, more like fairies and stuff.

Ehh? Fairies and stuff? I suppose so, huh... But it’s another world — not Earth, obviously... Alien fairies?

[ This is the detail to get hung up on, Miwako, really? It’s an important distinction to make, clearly... ]

So... in this case... we’ll both be saving Japan together, then, nee~? Ganbatte~!

[ She smiles brightly at him, finally prying her attention fully away from her glowing hands, which she splays out cheerfully, palms open. She’s at least found a compatriot! More or less. Normal, non-magic Japan(s)... ]

I think this more like a realm than a world, that's how all the old legends word it. [He snickers at the alien fairies.] If aliens start turning into fairies, I think my inter-dimensional travel days are officially over.

[Clearly, though he is pretty sure there are no aliens, Prismaticans looked alien, these creatures do not, the people look like people to him.]

Thank you, it seems that way. [He is not sure about playing super-hero, he'll do his best but he will stay out of harm's way, he and his friend made a promise. And Kise is important to him.] Let's work hard together.

[He pauses, then adds] But stay safe, there seem to be actual fighters, might want to let them be the big guns and just learn magic and have fun.

Ehhh, it makes sense, different realms, but at the same time it’s so confusing... I think aliens would make more sense. Fff...

[ Of all the things to get put out by in this situation... She thinks like an alien, herself, oy! ]

Miwako’s never gotten in a fight before even once. Although I did kinda wanna beat up George when he broke Caroline’s heart... Ugh. I don’t know what pink glitter magic and a sparkling bunny can do for fighting, but I wanna help however I can!

You know, I never thought I'd say it but the aliens probably did make more sense, unless then I knew I was kidnapped and by who, for what. Here it's kind of like learn magic and good luck.

[It's okay if they are rolling with the alien thing he will roll with it.]

I learned some hand to hand stuff back on the other planet, but I am not fighter. Hey if nothing else maybe you can distract them with glitter while I make them swallow a leaf?

[He snickers, cause it sounds so ridiculous.]

[ All that gets a good giggle from the girl in turn. Funny guy, not just calm and helpful; she's liking him already. How right that her first acquaintance in this realm should be some nice, normal Japanese boy; clearly more lighthearted than Hiro, still something vaguely reminded her of her lost-and-then-found childhood friend, and it draws her to him naturally. She needs someone fun but even-keel like him in her life. ]

Hehe, I think that sounds like a battle plan~ Disorienting surprise attack! We'd be a good team, nee? This world better watch out!

[Takao gets along with most everyone, she'll see that when she meets the two guys he is dating, they are similar, yet opposite in a lot of ways and one is most definitely not the easiest personality to get along with. Lunatia definitely made his life a little weird but even out of that Takao made the best of what he had and ended up finding happiness. He never expected to be in open relationships but even with it not being necessary here, his heart is already invested in both of them and they all seem content to continue as they have. at the end of the day, it just comes down to he is going to make the best of whatever hand he is dealt.

Plsu she reminds him of Usagi and he misses her a great deal, so it's nice to stand here talking with her. At her enthusiasm he gives another snicker, it filters into a full belly laugh that ends with a grin.]

We'll take them by storm, they won't know what hit them! Though, maybe we should practice first?

Mmn! Let's practice! So... Can I glow— where I want? Or another color or something? What are you gonna try?

[ She looks to her hands, still in awe that she has a magic power at all, let alone one she's so enchanted by. But she looks back up at the boy cheerfully, somehow expectant. ]

No idea, the only thing you can do is to try it out! Maybe moving two leave?

[He grins, then he get an idea.]

Or...

[Takao raises a hand, sliding his fingers to the left he concentrates and slowly brushes her bangs along her forehead, all without touching her.]

I did it!

[ This gets way more of a reaction than he was probably expecting. She has a look of complete shock, a hint of glee, but really just impressed and thrilled to the point of awe. She gasps sharply, eyes shooting upward as if she could see her bangs, as she throws her hands up over her mouth dramatically. ]

Ohmygod you moved my hair!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ I

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

omg this is ancient so i understand if you wanna drop it but hi ten years later i'm back lol