expiationmeme | TEST DRIVE MEME #3

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TEST DRIVE MEME #3

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.

info | world

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?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Are manners still polite when performed with condescension? That's how Sigma reads it, at least, and god he wants to be angrier than this for it but this one thing being off on an otherwise perfectly understandable night is too surreal.

Mentioning the casino is a good way to help it along, though.

His fists clench into the fabric of his sleeves, voice firm with a simple answer. ]

Meursault.

[ meursault. then sigma is an active participant in the game and possibly a threat— but he must not remember shooting fyodor. he would've said something otherwise, of that fyodor is certain. he watches the clenched fists of the other. ] I see.

Caught up in the Prison Game must be very upsetting for you, especially after losing the Casino. [ he pauses ] I did tell you to run.

Run and throw away everything I had, everything that actually meant something--!?

[ The shift is sudden, fire erupting from his eyes and his voice. Of course. Of course, of course, of course it would be that simple to just toss something away and accept that it's gone. Just like that. No matter what it is, who it is-- ]

[ He takes a long, deep breath in, and lets a long, shaky one out. The fire's still there, still shaking his hands that he's now clasping behind his back to try and give some illusion of control, but now isn't the time or place to be having this conversation. It's back where they were, where they should be, debts to be repaid and a pistol hidden in his coat pocket.

Save that fury for when he can actually do something about it. ]

Dazai has an agreement in place with most everyone else here. I assume you've spoken to him?

Is your life not worth something then? [ fyodor begins but stops; he can read the angry shift in the other's stance. the way the rage is barely held back, it helps fyodor situate him. they're clearly deep in the prison game but no, sigma hasn't cornered him yet. or else he would be asking the important question, demanding things.

what are you? fyodor feels his expression flatten, softened by the sparkles that mask his dangerous nature. ]

I see. That's what is currently holding you back.

[ It's. A little more complicated than that, truthfully. Back home he was more than capable of honoring both deals he'd made, paying back both men who'd saved his life, but here...here he's running the very real risk of having to choose between them. Should Dazai's genius indeed prevail and send them back where they belong none of it will matter, but if Gogol's inspiration is what ends up working faster...

Technically speaking, he hadn't agreed to help Gogol along, only to ensure one of his game pieces is still there when it's needed. Dazai on the other hand he can report to if anything's found, get that going, maybe ensure he doesn't need to decide. Which is. A big, big maybe.

But he is a betting man.

Waving a hand as if to shoo the thought, ] Part of what's holding me back, yes.

[ were he from a different point in time dostoevsky would have dismissed sigma without second thought; what can an ordinary, mediocre man do? even if desperate in this place, however he knows well what sigma can do with a little push and pull from dazai. bets are not something fyodor puts faith in, he carves his plans out meticulously and carefully as he is tasked to do. chaos he indulges in, now and again. but betting is always full of risk; that storm in which those outside scream—

no. he's never been part of humanity in that way.

but sigma is not the first person to want him dead and he surely won't be the last (in this place at least).

fyodor thinks he can almost see this moment unfold, a thousand possibilities all coming together before falling apart. ] Two binds keeping you from acting of your own accord? My, my you must really be upset with me.

Oh, I am. But it's a celebration tonight, Dostoevsky. It would be a shame to stain these people's joy with a murder.

[ That's true enough, at least. They're guests here, and one doesn't make a mess in someone else's home. ]

...That, and letting you deal with your mysterious "this" a little longer.

You've developed quite a bite, little one. [ because, of course he will find some nickname to bestow that is almost, almost rude and yet also terribly easy to ascribe as being affectionate. those who know dostoevsky know even the sweet words hide something underneath, that the promises made have clauses and loopholes, and that the politeness is true enough but it won't keep him from stabbing you in the back.

fyodor pinches a lock of his own hair, watching the tip sparkle; ] This you mean? Do you not think it suits me?

[ because he refuses to be embarrassed by sparkling. ] In fact, are you not curious to see whether you could have this happen to you as well?

[ U g h, silent prayer that doesn't stick. He is not a toddler.

But that sure is an odd question. He resists the urge to step back, cautious if this is something that Dostoevsky could just do to him, somehow? ]

Beg your pardon?

[ oh no, sigma.

fyodor drops the strand of hair and turns his full attention on sigma; he's smiling serenely as if he's offering money or gold or something worthwhile instead of...sparkles. ]

Aren't you? [ he repeats ] I must say the effects would be rather interesting with hair like yours.

[ oh, and he has the vial that caused his sparkles in his pocket. ]

[ Sigma never did read much of the bible, but he's sure there's a description of the devil somewhere in it that looks oddly like this. ]

...Don't tell me it's contagious.

Contagious? Is that how you see this lovely state of mine? This.[ he takes a step forward towards sigma, arms by his sides.

is he planning to trick sigma into drinking sparklepotion? yes. how? well... he's figuring that out. ]

If it's contagious it's contagious, "lovely" or not.

[ Tick tock, genius boy, he's not convinced. ]

[ the decision is taken in a split instance, fyodor stops with his hand sliding into his pocket. in his case, the potion was ingested but would it work if he just—

—think fast sigma, fyodor is about to dump the contents of a sparklepotion bottle on you to see if it works or not. ]

[ --HELLO!?!? An ordinary man has pretty ordinary reflexes so oops, splooshed.

No immediate sparkling, though, just lots of indignant sputtering. ]

What the hell, Dostoevsky, are you serious!?

[ malevolent gremlin giggling activated—a direct result from prolonged exposure to nikolai gogol; not that anyone except gogol would recognize his influence on fyodor so directly.

admittedly, gogol's pranks are more ingenious and tricky but he also has a whole-ass ability with which to cause them. fyodor is improvising, normally his tricks are lethal rather than just an attempt at testing boundaries. ]

[ Hey, that's an unexpectedly terrifying sound! Quit it!! Sigma just has to say it through aggravated mumbling and grumbling as he tries to assess just what's suddenly in his hair, if it's goopy, sticky, if he needs to rush back right away for a wash, ugh ugh ugh...

Still no sparkles, though. No changes at all, none that can be seen in the low evening light anyway, maybe it only works when ingested?

Except a particularly loud noise happens at the party behind them, like someone setting off a bunch of poppers at once, and something swivels up to point in its direction. ]

[ fyodor absolutely perks up when he notices those ears. oh this is not as satisfying as having the other put in his place after shooting him but he'll take it. oh boy, did this mean the effects were also exclusive to a person?

what a sight they make: sparkles and bunny ears. enough of a theme for a party. ] There is your answer about how THIS happened to me. I have to say I prefer the effects you got.

[ no actually not really. ]

Someone dumped a drink on you out of nowhere? Fascinating. And what do you mean effects I--

[ Finger-combing through his hair as he talks, he can at least tell it's something that should wash out easy, which is good. Something that takes a second is finding what's normally just hair on one side but is...much fuzzier. And actually seems to have nerve endings??

He notices when the upright ear swivels forward this time, grabbing at both of the things to try and confirm they're there, and attached. Congratulations, Sigma, they are! ]

What did you throw on me!?

[ he's not wheezing in laughter but the with the way his shoulders shake he might as well be. after a moment he says, with flourish that would make gogol proud: ] Miraculous Magnifi’s Medicine!

Though I had no idea that simply touching it would also have an effect, that is...fascinating.

[ yup, still an asshole. now and forever. sorry sigma. ]

[ Yeah the Gogol influence is showing. Heaven help him, he cannot deal with two of you!! ]

Please tell me there's an antidote and you were walking around like that just for fun?

No antidote. [ he adds with a beatific smile. ] We're both just going to have to wait and see what happens.

Your ears are rather suitable, Sigma-kun.

So you could potentially be sparkling forever now, and you're...fine with that? [ It would make Dostoevsky a little less threatening, granted, but Sigma can only take so much absurdity at once. ]

And what does that mean?

There are many things in this world that are out of my control. It is important to learn which ones to focus on and which ones to accept.

Do you mean to imply I look bad sparkling? [ he tilts his head, smiling sinisterly despite the sparkling. ] I mean rabbits are usually prey animals, they're rather...innocent.

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