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expiationmeme2023-05-29 10:59 am
TEST DRIVE MEME #3
Welcome to the TDM for Expiation, a pan-fandom adventure game with fantasy, science fiction, and some horror elements. We ask that top-level comments are reserved for new characters and players looking to experience a taste of the world and overarching storyline. Characters already in the game, however, are free to use TDM prompts in their own catch-alls and logs. Feel free to submit any TDM / prompt-related questions to the corresponding comment below.
New players / characters looking to app are free to use TDM threads as samples in their application. Preexisting players / characters may use TDM threads as part of their AC proofs (with the stated limitations).
You may find the below links helpful in getting to know themes of the world, locations, the people, and so on.
IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN...
BRAVE NEW WORLD (ARRIVALS)
After receiving the paper with your sentence, the whole world quickly becomes dark and you find yourself falling through what seems to be an infinite void. You lose track of time after a while, but as soon as your focus seems to waver, your vision clears and you find yourself resting rather unceremoniously in a pile of seeds used for chicken feed.
Once you make your way out of the grain silo (and we of the moderator team wish you good luck in finding a fun way out of it), you may find that several other people have been dropped into the world just like you have. Some are disoriented, others are panicked, and others yet are simply angry about being brought somewhere against their will. Amidst the chaos of new arrivals to the world of Expiation, the newcomers will find that there are some people in the crowd who seem a little more familiar with what’s going on.
These people will tell you that you find yourself in a strange new world, and that it’s best to make your way to a nearby town called Aldrip to get settled down there. It’s a few hours by foot away from this area, but it’s the only place in the nearby area that can accommodate newcomers like you.
WE LIKE TO PARTY (WE LIKE, WE LIKE TO PARTY)
Recently, many Chosen have emerged victorious from a hard-fought battle, taking out a gargantuan creature that threatened to suck the energy from the whole area surrounding Aldrip if it had not been stopped. Such efforts do not go unrecognised, and in the aftermath, the locals all decided to band together to celebrate their saviours’ heroics. Nothing less than a village-wide party and parade would be fitting for such an occasion.
This is an undertaking that will likely take a significant amount of effort. While the locals wanted to make this into a surprise, many of them lack skills to put the thing together properly. Chosen who want to get involved in the preparation process can put their organisation and culinary skills to the test to create fixtures and food for the event. Better yet, your efforts over the past months have improved supply routes into Aldrip, meaning that the food shortage has passed, and you’ll have just about anything your heart desires for the occasion.
Alternatively, you can choose to enjoy the spoils of your efforts! Once the day of the party arrives, Aldrip will erupt into a full-scale celebration, and all Chosen are encouraged to party as hard as possible. Good food, good drinks and good times will be in no short supply for the occasion. Additionally, those who took to the front lines in the previous event will be revered as heroes and likely spoiled rotten.
THIS IS HOW YOU GET ANTS
PLEASE PARTY RESPONSIBLY
It’s no understatement to say that some of the Chosen like to party hard- and that’s quite alright! A few days ago, the people of Aldrip had already set aside a few rooms in the inn to act as an infirmary for those who had been injured during the battle with the Branded. It took little effort for them to expand this project into a full medical wing for those who would undoubtedly be acting irresponsibly during the festivities.
It’s up to you to decide what circumstances brought you here. Perhaps you were injured in the previous battle, and have been stuck in bed as you recover from your wounds. Maybe you had just a little too much to drink, and you decided to come by while you collect yourself. Regardless of what your reason for being there may be, the people of Aldrip have guaranteed that you will receive the best of care.
With that said, the place is terminally understaffed. Aldrip’s locals will certainly appreciate any assistance they can get- even if your character might not have the best training or bedside manner. Medicine can’t be that hard- what’s the worst that can happen?
MR. MAGNIFI'S MAGNIFICENT MIXTURES
Once word of the upcoming celebration spread, several individuals from outside town came in to offer their services or goods in Aldrip. One such individual came into town riding on a rickety cart with the words “Miraculous Magnifi’s Medicine! Guaranteed to heal what ails ye!” emblazoned in gold on its side. The thing smells a bit off, with a strong chemical scent coming from the back, but the moustachioed man who emerges from the back assures you that all of his “mixes are made with meticulous ministrations!”
Those who buy and consume the potion might find themselves feeling strange over the next few days as symptoms emerge. Some people wake up to find that their hair has taken on a rainbow of colours during the night, that rats cuddle up to them for no reason, or that their irises have been replaced with strange spiral shapes. Feel free to come up with inventive but harmless side effects for the miracle elixir- it’s meant for some good fun.
They’re strange symptoms for sure, and certainly not the advertised cure-all. However, Magnifi is already gone by the next dawn, meaning that no one can get a refund. Thankfully, the symptoms will go away after a few days, but the chaos that ensues in the meanwhile will certainly make for some fun stories.
IT'S NOT OVER
♪♫ LET IT GROW ♫♪ ► (FUTURE EVENT TIE-IN)
The party celebrating the dread beast’s defeat can be heard from miles outside of Aldrip, but the situation is not quite yet resolved. Much of the once-lush forest outside of Aldrip had its life force absorbed from it, leaving little more than profaned ground and an overwhelming scent of rot. Worse yet, there are reports that some of the beast’s severed golden tendrils have taken on a life of their own, creating snake-monsters that threaten the local wildlife.
However, the monsters are not the only new arrivals in Pessiria Forest. Those who go to investigate the area will find that fairy-like creatures have gathered in the profaned land and are trying their best to help bring the area back to its former glory. At first, they seem to keep their distance or ignore you entirely, but after determining that you mean well, they inform you that they can temporarily bless the Chosen with the power to make full-sized plants burst forth from the seeds they plant into the ground.
It’s still going to be hard work. Even with the power to bring plants to life, planting seeds in the miles of dead forest will likely take a very long time. Still, these strange fairies could use the help, and tough jobs can be better if you bring a little help from your own friends. (Or enemies. No one’s going to judge you for who you bring.)
WHAT'S THAT MYSTERIOUS LAUGHING SOUND?
The process of regrowing the devastated part of Pessiria forest is well underway, but the process does not go entirely smoothly. Partway through the process, locals start to report that they can hear a strange girl laughing in the forest in the middle of the night, but no one seems able to track down its source. Curious Chosen can patrol around the forest at night to try and figure out the mystery.
Those who are particularly sharp-eyed might see a faint spectre of a little girl wearing a straw hat dancing about, but she never seems to stay in sight for more than a few seconds. One blink is all it takes for her to vanish.
You probably won’t be able to catch this strange spectre, but it’s become something of a game among the villagers to go looking for her anyways. Some say that seeing her is a sign of good luck, and wave to her before she disappears. Others say that if you see her while holding hands, it will bless you with a lifetime of good love. Almost all of these assertions are probably nonsense- but what will you do about it?
no subject
I'm just not sure why a ghost would bring luck.
[Of all things, luck? Really? Don't ghosts usually curse people?]
Distracted? By me?
[Oh that lilt in Chuuya's voice is very amused, alright.]
no subject
Either way, it can't really hurt to look--it's not like ghosts are harmful. [ fragments of the dead can't frighten him so and if they do turn out harmful what could they possibly do? yeah, he's not being very wise about this.
no hesitation: ] Yes, distracted by you. Everything about you is sharp, dangerous, I really did pick a magnificent tool to help me achieve a goal.
[ ....sigh, this man ]
no subject
[When will Fyodor learn that Chuuya is not enthused about being called a 'tool' by anyone. It rubs him the wrong way, especially after recent events where he'd been used by some mind altering thing that preyed on his homesickness.] You have such a way with words, and then you say shit like that last bit and it makes me want to punch you.
[Said with a deadpan, but Chuuya makes no move to enact the threat.]
no subject
Ah, my apologies, you have objections to being referred to as mine. [ ...no fyodor, it's the objectification part ] Have we spoken a lot before, you and me? I find that to be odd, given that—[ well he does look healthily wary despite the fact chuuya has made no move to punch him. ]
I took a lot from you, this is for the greater good but I suspect that is of little comfort, even to a god.
no subject
And they were having such a decent conversation, too.]
We spoke some, yeah. And trust me, I was ready to maul you the first time around. But if we're going to get by here and get home, we need to not be at each other's throats 24/7. I'm not gonna forgive you for all the shit you pulled, but you're decent enough to talk to, when you're not saying stupid shit.
[He crosses his arms, scowling.] I should probably just give up on arguing the god thing at this point, huh?
[Sigh!!!]
no subject
An ancient kami without a proper name who supposedly ruled over the domain of pants and iron— [ oops, did he just give away that he didn't really need chuuya's explanation before and just simply wanted to hear him talk? oh well. ] It's not as God is from the East Orthodox texts I grew up with, except for one detail: the wrath, the destruction. That seems to link most deities before mankind decided to rewrite history and instead paint them as beings to be curtailed for favours like power and wealth.
[ something in the conversation seems to strike a nerve, he drops the placid, calm facade for a moment: ] I neither want nor need your forgiveness. You trust Dazai's plans and follow his orders, I'm not arrogant enough to expect your trust but you will need to follow my orders.
As long as you do that, the rest is irrelevant. [ he steps back, clearly moving away and with intentions to continue his, perhaps fruitless, search for a laughing, good-luck ghost. ]
no subject
[Mori could use him however he wished, the man has had his loyalty for years. If he wanted to call him his weapon, the Port Mafia's weapon, he could.
But that was Mori.
He quirks a brow at Fyodor's explanation, but the mention of the hazy historical guessings regarding Arahabaki makes him go red in the face, scowl growing sharp with fuming anger. Wait a second-- He knew?!?!
Oh you dick!! And he can't even yell at Fyodor about it because the man didn't fucking remember!!! It takes him a second, because he is very pointedly trying to behave and not yell over getting tricked, but after a few moments of his jaw working he growls a reply.] Fuck... whatever, fine. If it's just destruction that's your criteria, then I suppose you've got a fucking point, since that's all it is.
[A force of nature, rather than anything else. It seems they've both struck a nerve in this conversation, and Chuuya can't quite complain about the retreat given that.] One last thing: I follow orders because I agree to them, Fyodor. Choice means something to me, and I'm sure you understand why. Think about that a little, will yha?
no subject
Arahabaki may be considered by you to be a lesser God but it is, undoubtedly more than a force of nature. There are abilities akin to natural disasters and yours is more— [ fyodor stops himself having taken a step back towards chuuya. his hand lifts to touch his own shoulder, the gunshot wound aching beneath. had his confrontation with sigma left him this unsettled? what are you? ]
If I have to depend on your choice and loyalty in order to execute my orders, then I might as well slit my own throat.
[ ...which, dramatic much??? but fyodor has never held loyalty from anyone, not by free choice. and if at some point he had or had given his, it clearly hadn't ended well. ]
no subject
It's pure? How is it pure? He wants to ask, but Chuuya's looking as off balance as Fyodor does now. And he suddenly feels like he's lost a great deal of ground, in this conversation.
He dusts off his gloves, fingers clenching in a creak of leather, focusing on that task rather than Fyodor's face.]
...Stop underestimating me, then. While we're here I'm willin' to work with you, that's the deal we made. But I'm not an unthinking attack dog or robot.
no subject
why would they even make a deal and trust him to uphold it? because it is logical? sure, but that has never stopped people from acting in illogical ways despite knowing better. right now he considers chuuya's decision not to go against fyodor to be simply a product of dazai and dazai's manipulations. that's hardly something that needs to be acknowledged.
his hand over his injured shoulder tightens reflexively, the flash of discomfort helping to quell the anger of before. ]
If you're not those things, then what are you?