avalaughs | TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ I

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TEST DRIVE MEME ⚔️️ I

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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

[ If it had been anyone other than Kise, Midorima would've made much more of a fuss about a knee on his hand. As it stands, he doesn't even know if this is his Kise or not yet, so he doesn't know exactly how to react to it, and instead just gives him a firm look and a scolding. Regardless, it's still Kise, and Kise is scoldable. ]

If you had been doing what you're supposed to you wouldn't need to be manhandled by that woman.

[ He doesn't know who she is. (Or.. what.)

Also please ignore the tanuki with a hat and a blanket in its lap sitting on the seat across from Midorima. ]

[He didn't pay attention! There were dots dancing in front of his eyes from how much his nose is hurting. All he wanted was just to get up and sit wherever and just be done and over with this.

But the voice is way, WAY too familiar and, despite the fact that it is scolding him, it's comforting.]

Midorimacchi! You're here! [Not knowing whether this is Midorima (...his Midorima) is the only thing stopping him from fully jumping at him and hugging him.

The lady joins them and sits on the opposite sides, ignoring both of them, and from what appears that her dress and hair would cover the tanuki sitting there it just doesn't happen, as if those parts just disappear and leave behind wispy trails of air.]

Where is this carriage taking us? [If anyone mentioned it, he didn't pay attention. One of the main reasons he didn't want to board it.]

[ The tanuki is reaching out with little paws to see if it can grab her hair and it's just invisible or if she's intangible.

Midorima, meanwhile, is focused on Kise more than the familiars. They're strange on their own. ]

Camelot, apparently.

[ If Midorima sounds skeptical, it's because he is. And yet, probably not as skeptical as he could sound because this still isn't the strangest thing he's experienced... But it should be Sanguis now, and Kise doesn't have any animal features. So maybe it isn't his Kise, or the moon is too far to influence him? How does he figure it out without asking? ]

[She is indeed intangible. But she figures that making part of her dress invisible is enough for fellow familiar. It is a curious thing so she'll stare at him and his attempts. But she'll swish her finger to close the door of the carriage when Kise tries to peer outside, making him jump back onto the seat.

Kise grumbles as the carriage takes off and he ends up being in a similar situation of staring at Midorima. He wants to ask if he's sure but at this point, nothing surprises him. The lack of his animal feature is something he doesn't notice though. Too busy trying to comprehend what's going on.]

No rest for the wicked I guess. Are you- [he starts to ask, looking at Midorima, but bites his lip-] alright? My back still stings from how I splashed into that lake. [Midorima's extremely composed despite the situation and it helps. It really does (if the yelling outside wasn't proof enough).]

Edited (grammar) 2020-11-05 10:40 (UTC)

[ The tanuki is just a curious, playful sort. There are all kinds of familiars with different magics, so he just wanted to see. ]

Yes. Takao is somewhere around here, too.

[ Where he got off to, who knows. ]

You're handling this well.

[ Too well for a first timer, maybe? He's still trying to pry it out of him. ]

Edited 2020-11-05 11:06 (UTC)

[She'll entertain him a little- after all, she's the playful type. They'll be busy while they travel.]

Really? I didn't see him. Maybe we should've waited for him. [He gives his familiar a 'look' and sighs.]

I... kinda saw worse. Maybe? I don't know how bad this place is yet. Sorry if it sounds weird. I am REALLY doing my best to not freak out.

[There's definitively a painful expression on his face and he turns to look through the window at the road. He's certainly more composed that some of the people that were at the beach.]

[ He doesn't think Kise's gone through anything unreasonable enough back home to qualify as worse than getting grabbed to another universe. He has to remember, then. Unless he remembers another place, but.. Midorima thinks that's confirmation enough. ]

Having the best boyfriend in the world was worse than this, was it? It's a good thing you don't have one anymore.

[ He's dumping him just to be rude. He'll think about forgiving him if he fesses up. And if he has no idea what he's on about, Kise won't know he means him anyway. ]

[And he's completely right. The memory of being sliced up is still fresh though, even if it's been a few months (he has a small scar that still itches). His head snaps back to him, one would think it neck was about to crack, eyes wide with both disbelief and hope and million other things, brain refusing to acknowledge the "you don't have one anymore".]

No... Having him was the single best thing in my life...

[The answer was soft and almost quiet- ending up here, with Midorima, his Midorima, is a bigger surprise and relief that he needs a few moments to get himself together.

...And he's very tempted to throw himself at him to hug him with everything he can.]

[ God, way to make it embarrassing Kise. Midorima's expression pinkens just slightly and he looks to the side, letting out a huff of air. He pushes up his glasses by the bridge. ]

Then stop complaining.

[Usually he pays attention to what he says because he knows that Midorima goes into complete tsun mode whenever there's touchy-feely stuff going around.

Today is not that day.

All decorum is out of the window and Kise's almost throwing at him to hug him as tightly as he can. Kicking and screaming won't help, Midorimacchi. He'll just bury his face in your neck and mutter incoherently.

Vila, however, will give Midorima a smirk because she can see that blush.]

Kise--!

[ The flustered yelling is unavoidable when Kise launches himself at him, and he works to get his right hand between Kise's face and his neck to try to push him back. ]

Get off!

[ :( They're in public.. even if he, too, is relieved more than he can say. ]

[Kise is undeterred even when Midorima pushes at his face to get him off. He just slides a bit lower, face buried into his shirt.]

No! I was so afraid... [-that he wouldn't see him again. He just got dumped into weird lake with no one familiar around. And it's not that public- the carriage is on the move by now and there is no one else but their familiars (with Vila giggling herself in and out of existence).

He told you that you won't be getting rid of him so easily, Midorima. It was a promise.]

[ Midorima manages to work an elbow underneath Kise's chin to try to push him back. He's not trying to get rid of him, he's just not comfortable being glommed onto here! ]

You were separated from me for less than a day, calm down!

[ Admittedly, Midorima isn't happy about this new situation- the stakes appear to be much higher, but he was lucky to have at least crash landed here with people he knows instead of starting off alone like he did in Prismatica. There's a brief little tug at the corner of his lips before he renews his efforts to pry the blonde off. ]

[Unstoppable force, please meet immovable object.]

How do you know that!? It could've been days, weeks, months! All that weird magical bullshit I can't do anything about- [he takes a shaky breath-] -I'm so relieved...

[His hands are still clutching onto Midorima's shirt, as if afraid the guy will turn into dust or mist or disappear the same way familiars do. So- just in case. Also, he's refusing to make eye contact because his eyes are stinging. Let him hide his face against you dammit!]

[ Okay, away isn't working, maybe he'll push him down onto his waist so he's at least less visible and constricting. ]

How long was it then?

[ If it's really been longer than a day for Kise, he'll show some mercy. Some. But he's pretty sure it hasn't. ]

[ Kise's hands eventually let up on their grip even more as he starts composing himself and thinking about the situation they are in. He is not making visible movement to pull away completely though. Being next to Midorima like this is calming him a little.]

I... I don't know. I arrived here today, yes but... I have a feeling like I haven't seen you in ages. As if there's something missing. [ Kise shakes his head]

I can't really explain it. Sorry... [ He looks genuinely sorry and somewhat upset that he can't explain the feeling to him.]

[ Midorima stops pushing the less clingy he gets, almost like the human version of a finger trap. ]

I have memories of going home and playing against Jabberwock now, but you were there. Our time in Lunatia seems more distant because you're exhausted and stressed, that's all it is.

[ That's Midorima's roundabout way of him saying 'me too.' ]

[That basically sums up how to handle Kise right now. He was too distressed with the thought that he'd never see Midorima again and not knowing what happened to him. But now, with him by his side, some of those worries are dissipating away.]

I was? It's seriously so blurry. I do remember Lunatia. Some parts better than the others, [like turning into a merman for the first time, Midorima's birthday, sports center opening, the moments when they were injured respectively.]

I know it will sound selfish but- I'm glad to see you, to see that you're alright.

[ Midorima considers what to say to that, and instead settles on falling quiet, allowing his eyes to stare ahead of him at nothing in particular. Instead, he simply puts a hand atop Kise's head and gives him a little massage with his fingers. It gets the point across wordlessly, he thinks. ]

[It is; words would've eased the worries away faster but it's Midorima, Kise's learned by now that he speaks more with actions than with words. So when the fingers tangle into his hair he sighs and leans against Midorima's side, not clutching at him anymore, but soaking up the warmth he can.]

[ Midorima knows too that Kise just needs someone to show they have support for him and that he cares, it's mostly his own stubbornness that takes him this long to get there despite caring about the fool. ]

We can't simply make money by touching anymore. We should figure out our living situation frugally.

[ Midorima speak for it's ok to live with him because they'll save on rent. Kise can take comfort in not having to be separated. Midorima will insist on separate rooms though, in case they need personal space. ]

[Kise had learned the tells of Midorima, especially after the injury. He'll take this- it's familiar to that day when he came over to comfort him and help him out.

And, as always, Kise will be the one to openly ask because what is subtlety with him.]

Right. Damn, I didn't think about it. What are we going to do? Do you- wanna share? Space, I mean.

[Midorima can't see it but Kise has a thinking frown, trying to come up with some idea, something they can do to earn money here.]

We'll need constant income eventually, we can't jump from job to job. [And Kise doubts this place needs models or something like that- they have magic! They can do whatever they want.]

On a trial basis. We'll see how you behave.

[ Being around someone and living with someone are two very different things. It's one thing to live with Takao, who already exists in his space by sheer virtue of being on the same planet, Kise is a relative unknown beyond a sleepover or two or three. ]

We can discuss it with Takao. If we leave him on his own he'll get eaten by a magic bear.

Oh, well, [Kise sits up a little,] if you'd prefer to stay with Takao, I can find a place for myself. [That's how things used to be back in Lunatia. They never really discussed living together because of the, well, circumstances of the planet and their agreement.

He chuckles,] Well, if there are any magic bears, I'm staying within the city, thank you! I'm not gonna go chase it. [...] City has defenses, right? [It better have!]

I said we'll discuss it with him. It may be cheapest to get a three bedroom and split rent of you two can both behave yourself. All three of us will need jobs.

[ As a matter of safety, actually. This place seems much more dangerous than Lunatia if the fact that they were plunged into an ocean and tossed into caravans and given magic is anything to go by. ]

How should I know? I've never been before, but Arthurian legends involve a lot of violence.

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