TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER

[empevents]

— TEST DRIVE: NOVEMBER —

Welcome to empatheias' test drive meme. This test drive is to help interested players test their characters in the game's environment. We've included a few prompts that incorporate specific elements of the game, though you'll find all of them have a lot of leeway for players to get as creative as necessary. Before diving in, here are a few things we'd like to remind everyone about the game in general:

• Date reminders. Reserves open Tuesday, October 25 and Applications (Canon | OC) open Tuesday, November 1st.
  
  
• OC Reminder! Just a quick reminder that original characters are allowed. Those interested can also use the test drive. OCs do not need to be reserved.
  
  
• Emotions are key! Empatheias' premise focuses on how anyone's emotions can affect their environment, be it big or small. While not every emotion will cause a reaction, significant ones definitely will. How much effect a character will have will ultimately be up to you, the player. Also, while we're giving a lot of leeway for the test drive, keep in mind that there will be some limits in the actual game.
  
  
• Everyone has an amulet. All characters have a unique amulet that is specialized for them. It will contain all of their emotion drops and it serves as the network device. Remember, communication is telepathic. Otherwise, it works basically the same.
  
  
• Assume the character is already in the game. Because "OMG WHERE AM I IS THIS REAL LIFE" threads aren't going to be very helpful in this test drive! Plus those are going to happen in-game, anyway. So to make things easier, just assume that they've been around at least a week or so. Still learning the ropes, but not a complete "first day" experience.
  
  
• First or third person allowed. Your threads can be in either first or third, but we'd advise being flexible about it. Remember, these threads can also be used in your application for samples! Reminder: We only require one sample and it can be done in either format. We have also made a change to our sample requirements, so look over the Applications page!

Now with that out of the way, here are some prompts you guys can work from!


PROMPTS

• Prompt A: How about giving the emotions a try?

• Prompt B: Refer to the Task Board and choose a task your character may be interested in taking up. For this prompt, you could have your character ask for help, already be in the middle of the job, or react to it in some way. Perhaps they were an unfortunate victim or want to create a job countering an existing one. You could even have a prompt making a job request. Creating jobs for the purpose of the test drive is absolutely doable.

• Prompt C: How about giving the amulets a go? Start a telepathic conversation and see how it works. Remember, the amulets are sending out the owner's thoughts so might want to be careful about how the stream of consciousness goes...

• Prompt D: The Boreas Harvest Festival is fast approaching, and the farmers are trying hard to work through the bleak weather conditions to get their crops in before they go bad from all the apathy. All hands on deck—but there may be too many unwanted hands roaming around.

1. Scarecrows. The scarecrows that have been set up as a festive reminder of the time of year have unfortunately come under the influence of some errant strong emotions from the farm hands that work in the fields. Unfortunately that includes trying to ward off anyone who enters the fields with pitchforks and is one of them carrying a torch? Maybe if they can be convinced that you are trustworthy they will calm down.
   
   
2. Invading rabbits. There are ton of rabbits ravaging the carrot patches. They're easily frightened, but some are more tenacious than others. Beware of the white rabbit with red eyes.
   
   
3. Save the crops! Several batches are already starting to spoil! The only thing that can save them is dumping as much positive emotions into them. Joy of good food, hope for a bountiful meal, love of eating—whatever will work. Just be careful. Too much and those things might grow and explode…

• Prompt E: Aiada, the Arehtei of appreciation and jealousy, has sent a personal request for those who are interested. There is a small island just beneath Empatheias that she has been cultivating over the many centuries. She wishes to contribute to the Harvest Festival with some seeds and spores. However, the recent atmosphere has also reached down there, and now it's all a mess! Giant mushrooms replaced the trees and there's slime and mold everywhere. The cure? Aside from getting a lot of heavy duty cleaners and pushing it off, appreciation will go a long way to help.

1. Goop brigade. Grab that bucket and shovel and clear the goop out! Just be careful not to have too much get on you—jealousy might take over.
   
   
2. Appreciation balls. To help hasten the effort, Aiada has given several tubs filled with light, green orbs. Once channeled with enough appreciation, they can be used as mini-grenades to help explode and wash the area with more positive energy. Those caught in the blast won't be harmed. If anything, they'll just be very thankful.
   
   
3. Watch the ledges. Careful, it's a fairly small island and the goop and slime has made things slick. If you fall… That's not a good way to go, let's just say that.

• Prompt F: Various parties are interested in the emotion shards scattered all over Thera. But this time around, the focus is on the medical laboratory as the equipment and potential research there is also of interest. For three days those who volunteer are sent back to try and gather as much as possible—but of course this won't be easy.

1. Skeletal Scientists. The remains of the scientists who once worked in these rooms are still lurking, ready to protect their work. Fortunately they're relatively weak nerds, so not too difficult to dispatch. Just be careful.
   
   
2. Flying equipment. The various medical equipment has also taken life, scalpels and needles flying everywhere and stethoscopes ready to strangle.
   
   
3. Questionable liquid. Most of the easy shards have already been taken, leaving the more difficult to retrieve ones left. In particular they're found in strange, dark pink liquid. It's mostly harmless—except that upon contact intense waves of grief and suffering will course through. The longer the exposure, the worse it is. So hopefully a bucket full of it doesn't fall on you…

• Prompt G: Make your own! It could include feathers and/or confetti.

For your threads, put the Character Name and the Canon in the subject line to help readily identify them. You're also welcome to use more than one prompt for respondents to choose from. If you have any questions or want to brush up on the game information, refer to the Game Information entry. Otherwise, tag around and have fun!

Comments

[romanticlove]

Ah - sorry. Zero.

[It sounded weird to him to even say that, as opposed to calling him 'father'. Still, he begins to move through the awkwardness by falling into step beside his father, trying to bite back the swell of sadness that accompanied him whenever he was near one or both of his parents.]

What sort of jobs have you been taking up?

[If he had to guess - he's older than his mother but not old enough to know Ai. Was he still a student? He wants to ask.]

[invigorates]

[ She suddenly seems significantly more interested in this particular line of work. ]

Oh? That is a very noble thing to do. Are there many prosecutors in your homeland, or are you a special breed?

[gardenboxed]

[The outburst is unexpected when it comes. A wave washes over the area, and everything wilts. The shock of it temporarily freezes her and she stares up at him, wide-eyed and blinking. Even after he readjusts the boxes and his face disappears from view, she feels at a temporary loss for words.

What had just happened?

Ren has always been kind toward her, doting even. But, she hadn't expected him to defend her against herself so passionately. To start, she doesn't know what to say. There's an awkward, prolonged silence. A question hangs in the back of her throat, spinning through her head.

Why? Why does he care so much? But in the end, she doesn't ask. Gaze shifting from him she faces forward again, but similar to him, she buries her head against the boxes she carries.]

Thank you. [Her voice is quiet and soft, a gentle reassurance.] No one has ever said something like that to me before. So thank you. [For worrying. And for caring. For thinking that she's special. She doesn't have any friends at home. Only Zero and the chairman, and Kaname who comes to visit her. She can't remember her past, or if her parents had wanted her at all. She doesn't feel sad about her life. She's grateful to have the chairman and Kaname. And she likes Zero, too. But she's never had someone passionately defend her before, either.]

I still... don't feel differently about Kaname-sama. Even if Ren-san dislikes Kaname-sama... [She can't change her heart. Though curiosity lingers over why he seems to dislike him, it doesn't change how she feels. But it does have her take into consideration his feelings.]

But... [She blushes a little, and ducks her head further, the cool air around her warming just slightly.] It makes me happy. That you think those nice things about me. Thank you.

[ephemerous]

There are many, though not all work in the High Courts as I do. And until recently, I was personally answerable to the Queen, unlike others. Thus I would prosecute cases for her that were more... sensitive in nature.

[He's omitting a lot of details, but he feels that's for the best. Someone he just met doesn't need to get bogged down in state politics.]

I also prosecute cases internationally, thus my work takes me overseas.

G

[oratorical]

[Leia considers it something worth noting, that's who. Because it's something out of the ordinary, even by Verens' standards, and anything standing out from normal is still something that she's almost conditioned to notice.

She pauses right under the tree, frowning at the pile of glitter. She looks up, scanning the bushes for anything out of the ordinary, before her attention is drawn to the tree. She doesn't notice Ezra up there just yet, and while she does back off from the tree, she's still in glitter bomb range.]

Who's there?

agreed ugh

[magicpanchira]

Well, I mean, it could happen! Hey... uh, are we murdering these guys by knocking their heads off? Like, can we be prosecuted for this?

[ Literally, this is something she hadn't thought about before until right now. If that's the case, she's got a LOT of evidence to forge to make damn sure they aren't caught and prosecuted to the highest extend of Verens law... which she's not even sure how high that goes. They won't be held accountable, though. She'll make sure of it...

She chuckles at his words, looping her free arm around his even as their hands remain tightly held together, as though they're making their way through the mall or a carnival or something fun other than this lab of horrors. ]

Aw, but it's not that bad, is it? Then again, if we've just committed murder, it's probably best not to come back. Well, I mean, I'll have to come back later tonight to make sure we don't get caught...

[ ...She's thinking about this seriously, Apollo. Better stop this train of thought right now. ]

[hadthehighground]

[And that sadness returns to his eyes as Ezra asks for clarification.]

Surely you must know the fate of the Jedi.

[He can't imagine anyone wouldn't. While he had held out hope for survivors, the future that he's been told about is quite a grim one.]

Actually, he is. Luke is Anakin's son.

[lothrat]

[Ezra's still frowning here, brows furrowing down.]

Well, yeah, but we're not all gone. [We. He counts. He's Kanan's padawan. Maybe he wasn't a survivor from the initial Jedi purge, but he's still surviving it now.] There's you and me and Kanan and Ahsoka, and I think Master Yoda might still be alive, too. Maybe there are others?

[He stops then, and stares, caught flatfooted for a moment.]

Wait, his son? I thought Jedi didn't have children.

[bloodyrose]

[He kind of wonders if Ren realizes that he's able to read him rather well. He can tell that there's something that's off, and has been able to practically since they met. But something keeps him from asking.]

Ones involving hard labor here and there. [As they're effortless.] I wouldn't mind finding something dealing with security, though. There seems to be a lot of options in general.

Is there anything you're interested in, or will you continue being a delivery boy?

[Teasing.]

[lothrat]

[Qui-Gon might not be his master, technically, but a master he still is. His opinion still carries a lot of weight - if not just because of his title, but because he's Qui-Gon. Something about him has struck a chord with Ezra from almost the moment they met.

Which means that gentle non-admonishment makes Ezra want to wince. Crap... The curling grass droops completely now.]

Of course... Master Jinn...

[No, no he doesn't, but he doesn't need to have it spelled out that there's no other right answer here. Reluctantly, he falls into step with him, leaving both the wilted grass and the cracked ground behind. Mostly. The grass is still wilting along with his steps.]

Where are we going?

[lothrat]

[If Ezra was trying not to draw attention before, he goes absolutely still now. With the way her eyes are darting, she can't have seen him yet. She's just guessing there's someone here. No need to confirm it.

He'll wait a moment to see, watching for a chance, for a moment when her back is turned, or even just not looking in his direction. In the mean time, he tries to study her as best he can through the leaves. Something about her looks a little familiar.

But that's probably just coincidence.

Come on, just turn already. Or- wait. Maybe he doesn't need to wait. He can provide his own distraction. Concentrating, he reaches out and just stirs the Force a little on the ground. It's hard to do it without mimicking the motion with his hand, but it's just glitter. All it needs is the slightest current.

At Leia's feet, the glitter swirls in a lazy pattern.]

[sithkabobed]

[Thankfully, Qui-Gon is merciful and he doesn't dare hamper Ezra's dignity further by mentioning the way the grass continues to wilt away in his path, but it's a note to keep in mind for later. If he's feeling guilty, then that means he understands the potential gravity of his actions.]

[That means they can have a good talk.]

[He speaks while he strides along, his steps taking on a steady gait free of any rush. It's a leisure walk, minus any trepidation Ezra may feel.]

I never liked the provided meditation rooms in the Temple. The Room of a Thousand Fountains was far preferable.

[There's a reason behind his exposition, Ezra. Promise.]

So I've found that the local woodland has made for a decent substitute. There's a spot by a brook that's particularly relaxing.

[hadthehighground]

"Ahsoka..."

That was something that caught him a little by surprise, though perhaps it shouldn't. The fact that she had left the Order could very easily have been a reason that saved her life. He's glad to hear she's still alive. At least for a time. Because from what he's heard it's pretty much certain that Luke would be the last Jedi. And what that means he can't bring himself to tell this child. So he decides to tip toe around that.

"Yes, well. Anakin always had a knack for not following rules."

[lothrat]

[Kanan doesn't really like to talk about the past all that much, and knowing how painful it has to be, Ezra's never really pressed for details on his master's time in the Temple. He's got his own stories he doesn't like talking about. He can respect Kanan's privacy there.

But Qui-Gon's mention of the Temple opens up an opportunity to be curious without necessarily intruding on Kanan's past.]

There was a room with a thousand fountains? Literally?

[Around him, the grass stops wilting as he's temporarily distracted from his guilt.]

What did the Temple need it for?

[lothrat]

Ezra tilts his head at the way Obi-Wan said that, but he can't quite pin the tone in Jedi's tone down, other than to catch the recognition of Ahsoka's name. Which makes sense, if he thinks about it. If Obi-Wan knew Anakin, and if Anakin was Ahsoka's teacher, then he'd probably know Ahsoka, too.

Whatever the tone of Obi-Wan's voice means, though, Ezra's distracted from it in light of the actual answer he got.

"Huh. And he gave you his kid to hide him? Sounds like you don't follow rules, either."

In hindsight, maybe he shouldn't cheek a Jedi Master.

G

[lukeim_yurlin]

[At some point, along comes a potential victim. A tall fellow dressed mostly in black and green with a small knapsack slung over one shoulder. Dezel has just come from a local bakery where he managed to purchase some sweets, a bit of a feat for someone who's invisible to all the locals and a good number of Otherworlders. A resourceful spirit has his ways, though, and Dezel's come up with methods to get what he wants from shops here and there while still making sure an adequate amount of sylvs are left behind for payment. Currently, he's looking for a place to sit and get into the contents of his knapsack, and that tree right there? Well, that would provide a nice bit of shade while he eats.]

[Something is amiss, though, and it's not just the scattering of glitter in the grass and dirt. Dezel eyes the sparkly mess with disdain, having recently gone through a less than pleasant experience involving glitter at a party. Meanwhile, the breeze picks up, ruffling the tree leaves and causing some of the smaller branches to sway just a bit. Dezel's gaze shifts upward, the wind seraph aware that he's not alone. What he's not sure of, however, is whether the kid perched in the branches just ahead and several feet up can perceive him or not. Well, there's one way to find out...]

I know you're there.

[Dezel's voice rings out telepathically, seeking to connect to the potential prankster above.]

Think you can get the drop on just anyone walking by?

[Little does the seraph know that he's dealing with someone who's Force-sensitive... Just as with Obi-Wan, he's visible to this individual as well.]

[lothrat]

[The telepathic voice startles Ezra just a bit. Jedi-in-training or not, it's not a method of communication he's used to dealing with. To be honest, he's still getting used to even sensing other people's presence in the Force, let alone sending and receiving any thoughts. The amulets have really been Something Else. He hasn't decided yet if he likes how easy they are to use. On the one hand, they're convenient. On the other hand, though, he's leery of accidentally exposing his thoughts.

Too late to choose another form of communication, though, because between the amulets and Ezra's own half-trained abilities, the connection forms easily. Ezra eyes the man on the ground cautiously, unaware that he shouldn't be able to see him at all.]

I have no idea what you're talking about. Can't a guy sit in a tree if he wants?

[No point denying where he is. Not with the guy looking right at him. Time to play nonchalant and innocent.]

[lukeim_yurlin]

[Dezel lowers his gaze again, frowning at all the glitter strewn about. The air currents push at it, causing all the tiny shiny bits to swirl into a tighter, neater pile.]

So you have nothing to do with all this glitter down here?

[All this just seems a bit too coincidental, especially to someone who can be rather suspicious of others. Plus having already been pranked by two women wielding buckets of glitter some weeks before, Dezel is all too aware of how effective the stuff is for having fun at someone else's expense. (His earth seraph friend wasn't kidding when she compared it to herpes... The stuff is almost impossible to get rid of once it's on you. Talk about pure evil. Who comes up with this kind of crap, anyway?)]

Huh... Not sure I buy that.

[Meanwhile, Dezel is taking note of how the kid is positioned and the direction he's looking based on information from the wind, itself. On that alone, he must be able to see something of the wind seraph. Hmm. Interesting.]

[sithkabobed]

[Okay, that earns a chuckle from Qui-Gon.]

Despite the name, no, not literally.

It was a large garden area at the base of the Temple used as a retreat for Jedi of all ages and ranks. Some sought it when they wanted to enjoy some time to themselves, sometimes the Council would meet there to discuss issues outside of their quarters, and others would walk its paths to quiet trouble minds and hopefully approach their problems with renewed clarity.

[The smile on his face takes on a hint of sadness and the wind around Qui-Gon picks up just enough to ruffle his cloak.]

It was truly beautiful.

[lothrat]

What, just because I'm sitting here means I'm responsible for whatever's on the ground?

[Ezra's aware that his eyeroll is probably lost on the man, invisible through the leaves and branches, but he does it anyway. A good act spares nothing on the details.]

By that logic, shouldn't I be suspicious of you? How do I know you didn't have something to do with it? You're sitting there with it, aren't you?

[hadthehighground]

Gave? ... Well that's not really how it happened. But then, Ezra didn't need to know that, at least not now.

Instead the Jedi just chuckled. Cheeky younglings were not a thing he wasn't accustomed to.

"Sometimes, what's right doesn't always align with the rules."

[lukeim_yurlin]

Remaining alert and questioning the out of place is part of a functional survival instinct.

[Five Lords, Dezel. It's glitter, not a godsdamned bear trap.]

And I just got here. Fairly sure you were here ahead of me.

[A beat passes as he glances up again, looking directly in the kid's direction.]

Though I'm starting to think the more interesting part of this is how you can even see me at all...

[lothrat]

Oh, so it wasn't actually a room.

[That's easier for him to picture, actually, than trying to wrap his mind around the idea of a Jedi Temple so huge that just one of its rooms was big enough to hold a thousand different fountains.]

It sounds like it was nice. I wish I could have seen it.

[In contrast to Qui-Gon's mood, Ezra's is a little more wistful. It's not a strong enough emotion to affect his surroundings, though, leaving him open to notice when there is a change - a wind that touches Qui-Gon, but not him. A glance at the master is all it takes to see that hint of sadness.

Doesn't mean he knows what to do about it, though.

Maybe offer a distraction?]

...you know, that wasn't what it looked like, back there. I wasn't using the Force.

[lothrat]

"Sounds like a rule I could live by."

Ezra's definitely been living outside of the rules for the past eight years of his life.

"So you adopted Luke and lived with him on Tattoine. And now you're here with him, too. That's pretty lucky, having your family. How old is he?"

Can anyone blame him for the conclusions he just drew?

[hadthehighground]

There's something to be said for one so confident, if not a bit presumptuous.

"I didn't raise him," Obi-Wan clarifies.

"I gave him to his relatives, and will watch over him from a distance. I will also train him."

As far as his age though he pauses at that. He wasn't exactly sure on Luke's age but he has a good idea.

"In his early twenties if I'm not mistaken."