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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?
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Either way, he's glad for the company. He nods at the observation, extending a hand for Scott to shake. Because...just because. Don't ask.]
I just arrived. I'm Yu Narukami -- nice to meet you.
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[Scott replies with no small amount of sarcasm. The other teen doesn't deserve it at all, but someone has to be the target of his moodiness!! He hasn't felt this way in a while, not since he got here, but recent events have reminded him that he still needs to work on his powers. At least he did one good thing with Alphen and it's sort of the only thing that's stopping him from being entirely anti-social.
He looks at the offered hand for a second, his face stoic, before finally relenting and extending his own to shake. Okay, guess he should try a little more with this guy-- Yu. ]
Scott. Scott Summers. And sure, nice to meet you.
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[If he can't get to the bottom of the prickly attitude, he can at least get some more information on what's been going on in town. He's curious to see how things have been. And, speaking of curious--]
Nice sunglasses, by the way.
[He's interested, but he doesn't sound sarcastic about that by any means.]
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Violence and death and people running for their lives.
[He's... not exaggerating all that much, but given the teen's tone, it may be hard to tell. Scott doesn't bother to clarify, just taking a large drink from his cup, although he grimaces slightly from the taste. Ugh, no wonder most people just chug this crap.
At the compliment, Scott reaches up to adjust his glasses, before letting out a small grunt and glancing to the side.]
Thanks. [...] They're holding back my deadly lasers.
[More deadpan words from him.]
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Ah. Fun.
[Well, at least it'll be...familiar? Yu is the curious sort, but even so, he's not sure he wants to know. It sounds like he'll find out sooner or later, anyway -- in that case, he'll just have to do his best to be prepared. Maybe see about finding a sword...especially since he's not sure he'll be able to use any of his Personas.
Scott says these things with such impeccable deadpan that Yu can't help wanting to know more.]
Deadly lasers? Wow. They must be powerful glasses.
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[With the way Scott says that, it almost seems like he's being a little more serious. He still carries that grumpy exterior, even as he coughs slightly from drinking a little too much of the piss water that he's still holding in his hand. When is the point he starts to feel buzzed? It's not coming soon enough.
...
Ugh, what are they talking about again?]
So, what's your deal? [They're all here for a crime or some shit, something Scott's still a little sour about, so if Yu doesn't want to talk about it, he gets it. They can talk about how much it sucks to be here instead and can go... well, he doesn't really want to blow something up right now.]
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[It's not exactly a revelation -- whatever has Scott feeling so gloomy, he's certainly not making it any secret how he feels. He's clearly going through something, being here. Yu supposes it makes sense, since none of them really consented to being here.
His eyebrows lift at the question, and he pauses to think about it, taking a sip of his drink to stall for time. He gets the feeling Scott is really trying to find something to converse over, at least.]
I got here this morning. In the grain silo. [As if to prove the point, he pulls a few pieces of grain from the pocket of his jacket.] Whoever's in charge, they're pretty bold, aren't they? Jerking us around like that.
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[Scott almost scoffs into his drink, but he holds back, just staring down at the half-drained liquid in his cup, before looking back up at Yu because they're still holding a conversation and all that.
And geez, the grain silo? That sucks. Scott actually feels kind of bad for him, even his arrival wasn't as bad as getting stuck in something like that.]
Bold. [He parrots back at him in an almost sarcastic manner, but something in the mutant seems to loosen up just slightly, or at least, trying a little harder to sympathize with the other teen.]
Just call them dicks, man, for pulling us from our lives. [And slapping them with a crime that they somehow know about.] I'm sure you had shit going on.
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[He can't help but feel for Scott, in a way. Not everyone takes this sort of thing in stride -- or should, even. Yu thinks on that for a second, how --strangely enough-- he probably has his family to thank for how easily he deals with being thrust into something new. As for how he feels about it...? ... Hm. Jury's still out.
His eyebrows lift at the rest of it, a quiet chuckle serving as his initial response.]
What dicks, [he concedes with a small smile. It's refreshing, to find someone this ready to just lay into them. Scott doesn't seem to be holding much back, right now. As for the rest?] I was on a train, but-- it wasn't that important. [... Harsh, but true. After everything that happened during the school year, he's got complicated feelings about going home. "Home?" Hmm.]
Are you eager to get back?
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[Scott repeats, a small smile finally twitching upward from the sullen teen, because hey, Yu's getting into it. But a train, huh? Guess he was going somewhere then. That's cool, probably. Scott honestly doesn't put much thought into it, because trains are super normal and crap.]
Yeah, you could say that. [Not that he's eager to go back to school and everything, but Xavier and the other professors are probably the best people to help out with his power. And he misses Jean and the other mutants, mostly Jean--]
Mostly, this place just sucks, even compared to back home. Doesn't even have a movie theater or an arcade.
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Really? That's a shame. What do you do for fun?
[He asks, but he has a feeling he knows the vibe Scott's going to answer with.]
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I don't know, throw rocks into the river? [He presses his finger against the top of his cup, tilting it slightly, but not to the point where any of the liquid spills out.] Try to get drunk?
[Maybe form a club with other teenagers? It's an idea that popped in his mind before, and now he's taking it a little more seriously. Be nice to hang out with other teens, especially in a place like this.]
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So, make our own fun. Got it.
[Hopefully without another incident like back home. Though it did help him forge some unbreakable bonds...ah, speaking of that.]
Preferably without any more "violence and death and running for our lives," right?
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[There's probably some weirdo that gets off from stuff like that, but Scott's going to give it a hard pass. It may seem fun at first, until you almost kill two other people while almost dying yourself like three times. Yeah, he wants to avoid that situation if he can.
Thinking about that again sours the mutant's mood once more, and he picks up his cup to down the rest of his drink with a grimace.] Ugh, why is it hard getting drunk?