empatheias_ooc | TEST DRIVE MEME: JULY

Entry tags:

!mod,
*test drive

TEST DRIVE MEME: JULY

— TEST DRIVE: JULY —

Welcome to

empatheias' first ever 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 Friday, July 18th and Applications open Friday, July 25th. Game will begin Friday, August 1st.
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!

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

PROMPTS

• Prompt A: Create any scenario that could cause your character to display some kind of emotion, be it big or small, and write out how it changes the immediate area. Are there literal sparkles everywhere because they're so happy? Or is the ground starting to twist and warp due to their anger or frustration? Things exploding? Rain clouds? Since this is a test drive, don't worry about any limitations on effects—just write whatever comes to mind!

• Prompt B: The following are generic task board prompts that characters could have taken up as a job.

You have to collect X number of materials. Find a partner to make it easier!
There's a hostile creature attacking some of the neighboring farms. If you got a weapon, they could definitely use your help!
How about helping around the town? Delivering something, helping patch up a sign, cleaning out some of those rusted gears—the locals would definitely warm up to everyone.
Make up your own task/quest!

• 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: With the influx of people suddenly appearing, the locals are a bit on edge. So rather than having your character’s emotions affecting the environment, someone else's is affecting them! Maybe they were just passing by and someone had an emotional outbreak of sorts. Now they have to figure out how to deal with the aftermath—or will their own emotions make it worse? Needless to say, NPC godmodding granted 100%.

• Prompt E: Make your own! It can even involve booze and/or cats.

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ She can tell all of that sunk in, but she doesn't hesitate on her answer, even as she sees those shadows growing. The eyes the inside of her hat even seem to be looking closed and pleased. ]

What kind of sword do you usually wield? I've been meaning to practice up on my creation spells anyway, just making anchors is kind of boring, so I was practicing swords recently...

[ Specifically, attempting to replicate the one that protected her home, once upon a time. ]

One with no creepy magic in it.

[Let's just get that part out of the way right now. Congratulations, Red Witch Girl; you've inspired him to say a sentence that has seven whole words to it. This might be a record, since he's been here.]

[ Joke's on you, bub, she's nothing but creepy sea magic now. :V ]

No, no, no, I mean what style? Katana? Claymore? That kinda thing!

[ Did that go over her head--you know what, nobody will ever know. ]

Cut-and-thrust. Light, but heavier than a rapier.

[Something he can actually block with, with no weenie little tip that'll snap off on him. He goes unarmored and spends time amongst civilians, but dammit, he fights, he doesn't waste his time on formal duels.

But.]

What do you want?

[ ... She'll tilt her head for a moment, concentrating in front of her, but that concentration is broken when he asks that. What does she want? ]

Huh? What do you mean? I'd like to be friends, of course!

...why?

[The last time he made a deal with a magical girl, he promised her the eyeball she hadn't already yanked out. Surely this one wants something more than that, too. Surely there's some sort of catch. Like -- "being friends" is actually some sort of creepy magical girl code for "you get to be my slave for a year and a day" or some such.

The shadows beneath Kevin's cloak flail around a little as his anxiety increases, sending his cloak to fluttering.]

[ Wadanohara is quiet for a moment, closing her eyes again. Aside from needing to concentrate, she... may seem like a horrible sort of person now, but it wasn't always like that.

And... she gets the feeling he knows what that sort of pain is like, too... his gestures. It reminds her of someone she loves very much, too.

Why...? She wonders. Maybe it's all those things. She's still a person, even if she's been irrevocably stained red herself. As she ponders this, the air around them stills quite a bit, and a red sort of tint briefly flickers through the area before it's gone. ]

[ And then she'll just smile again, cheerfully. ]

... Well, if you must know, I think you're kind of lonely if you're just staring at cats. You could use a friend!

[For the barest instant, Kevin actually looks as vulnerable as he feels. Of course he's lonely. He's been lonely since he left the Sinclair estate, and now he doesn't even have the White Knight growling around beneath his heart to keep him company. He has no way of finding out if his wish was actually granted, no one here who's even heard of the places he knows. He's completely isolated, and because taking that Contract had meant throwing away everything that was once good about him, he's now too warped to have the faintest idea of how to reach out.

But at the same time, the things and people he's lonely for are completely out of reach, and the idea of moving on when he's worked so hard to fix it seems like a betrayal. How can he stand here and talk about friendship with a stranger when his head is full of corpses and a little girl begging him not to leave her?]

-- it's a bad idea.

[The temperature of the air around him drops noticeably, and his shadows start to leak out from beneath his cloak. The swordsman is, literally, carrying a cold patch of darkness around with him.]

[ ... She's going to smile. It's an honest one this time, and it shows in the way little bubbles come from her mouth. A representation. Happy. Thinking of her home...

Sal is far worse than he could ever hope to be.

And she'd learned (been forced) to like him, to sleep with him, to spend time with him. He's violent, he's awful, he enjoys pain. Sadistic. Wadanohara herself enjoys inflict pain on others now, too, and perhaps she's a bit of a masochist, because she can't bring herself to leave him now, but... being here has given her a strange insight:

Without Sal around, and anyone else she loves, she... can do whatever she want, and no one will say she's wrong. She doesn't have to live up to expectations, she can just try her hardest to be happy here ON HER OWN TERMS, which is something she hasn't had in ages. ]

I guess it's good for you I'm a witch, then, because I think I know a spell or two for better luck! Seems you could use it, huh? ... Haha. I don't... really want anything. If you really have trouble with it, though, then do me a solid and let a little witch have a friend in a place she doesn't know, hm?

Now, then, that sword...

[ She will concentrate. Really, honestly, put all of her magic into it--and a beautiful sheathe will appear in her hands, white and gold in color. The handle of the rapier has a beautiful rose adorned on it. It's a proper sword. Just metal, nothing weird. ]

Mm... is this suitable? I tried to tailor it to your size, too, but I admit I've never actually made something this intricate; I usually just make anchors.

[Even the hilt is lovely, and it's clear that the blade inside that sheathe must be something far out of Kevin's league. Captains of city guards wield swords like that, not simple knights who serve minor households. But Kevin has never been immune to beauty, and his line of work requires a healthy respect -- and love -- for the sword in and of itself. He'll take an ugly thing that works over an ornament that will snap in real combat, but...

Hesitantly, as though he's not quite sure he's really allowed to reach out for anything anymore, Kevin extends his hand.]

[ Er... it probably doesn't help the only sword Wadanohara has actually seen was indeed kind of very special and she grew up with that sort of thing, oops. Still, it's a perfectly usable blade, she just wanted it to be pretty, too.

... Kind of like Kevin, really. To her, he looked like he deserved a fancy blade; but she was born from an egg, so what does she know about royalty. Their royals are... not that regarded. Not really. Not like that. And classes didn't much exist in the sea kingdom, outside of, say, the guard rankings and the actual princess. But she'll let him have the thing, because she made it for him.

Silly man. ]

I-I remember seeing a few pictures of swords in books, so...

[ She. Tried her best to emulate what she knew. But the bubbles that are forming from her mouth seem to be popping in embarrassment now; she's worried she botched the job. ]

[He'll be even prettier when he cleans up a little, remembers how to smile, and learns to flirt. Just now, though, he looks how he feels -- like a scruffy shell of a man that Hell swallowed, chewed on a bit, and then spat right back out. As he takes the sword, its close proximity to him only emphasizes that, the gold overly bright right next to the black clothing Kevin favors.

Then it's out of the sheathe and in his hand, and suddenly it doesn't look so awkward anymore. Having a sword in his hand has been natural since he was big enough to hold one, and he's good enough at what he does that he almost makes it look like the sword itself realizes that. Stepping back, he swings it a few times, testing the balance of it. With only those few movements his muscles are burning, but it's not that the sword is too heavy. It's that he's out of shape, healing from his injuries and without a weapon since his arrival.]

Ah...it's good. The balance is good.

[ She doesn't much move from where she is--but what she did do she wanted to actually contrast with those dark colors, he looked like he deserved something more cheerful, somehow.

You know, to be happy.

And she... does... want everyone...

h a p p y

after all, doesn't she? Just like her home... everyone, happy... forever.

And so she smiles (ah, but a fleeting thought of how much blood that thing will draw is exciting and the air is just a bit redder around them, but it's gone quickly enough. ]

I'm glad I did it right, then! ♪ You look dashing. Like you might go save someone from a dragon!

[ He does, too. She's been wanting to say this, honestly. A bit scruffy or not, she still thinks it's true. He is quite handsome, and that sword only improves him, in her eyes. And she may have just accidentally projected an image of a big red dragon with little wisps in the air, oops. Her mind is nothing if not fleeting. ]

[He disregards these comments, shies away a little from her...head dragon, whatever that is. He's still looking uncertain, though, and the shadows under his cloak practically start to boil; a nearby patch of daffodils chokes and dies as he radiates his nervousness.

There's no way he can accept this. But he wants it. His fingers curling around the hilt of a sword; this is the way he's supposed to exist. Just having a weapon in his hands makes him feel better than anything else in this place has so far. Knowing he can defend himself again if it comes to it, knowing he can still fight, will be a big step toward something like normalcy. It might even be essential.]

...you're sure you don't -- want some sort of, ah. Payment...?

[He imagines being "friends" with the Will of the Abyss and shudders. In his head, pale fingers reach toward his face, and she wants to dance. But, he manages to shove these things down before the amulet can get ahold of it and project.]

[ She's dragged out of her own world by him, and what's going on around him, and she'll put a bit of her actual magic into the flowers to bring them back, sighing a bit, before looking at him. ]

Goodness, those poor plants...

[ ...Ah, but payment. Why? Does he insist on this idea...? She gives a long, thoughtful, dramatic pause, before finally announcing her decision: ]

Fine, I want the most awful thing you could ever do, my good sir, and you will suffer forever for it...! I want...

[ BIG. PAUSE. ]

A nice big smile!

[ Muahhahahaha? ]

[....nnnnnnyeh --

Nope. Those shadows had been burbling with anxiety, but now they flatten out completely, as though deflated. One of them goes slithering around Kevin's feet, undulating like a disgruntled inchworm.]

Sorry, can't do it. My face is broken.

[Technically it is. He has the bandages and everything. Look, there's a smartass hiding in there somewhere.]

[ She'll laugh cheerfully, though, making bubbles again. As if underwater. ]

It's a bit of a shame I couldn't have met you sooner, I could've healed that.... healing magic is one of my specialties, actually. Well aside from anchors and moon spells, anchors are pretty difficult to make though. But... hm. Now, as it is, I can't do too much... but I'm guessing even if your face was fine you'd never smile, so I actually honestly don't want much.

[ This guy's kind of adorably grumpy, she's pleased to see that he does indeed have a mode beyond brooding. ]

[There is indeed still a sense of humor lurking down in the depths of his broken little brain, it's true, and if you're going to have to interact with the world you might as well be a deadpan snarker. He almost wants to protest, out of spite, that he absolutely used to smile once upon a time. But if he does this she might continue to try to make it happen and Kevin does not want that.

Not when the truth of the matter is that this is actually what passes for a good day for him, anymore. If it wasn't he'd be hiding away somewhere and refusing to come out in public at all, and quite possibly snapping viciously at anyone who did come near. Let her think he's just generically awful. That's fine.]

Hn. ...nothing comes free.

[This is probably as close as he'll get to explaining himself.]

[ .............. ]

So... you're poor?

[ That... was probably not at all what he meant, but she does have a tendency even now to be slow, sometimes. ]

[Kevin is so poor he refuses to part with a cloak full of holes and pays his morally dubious magical entities in body parts.

But no, that isn't what he meant.]

It doesn't really matter.

[ ... Ah, that wind that just went by... ]

That's a little silly to say, though. Everything matters...! Sometimes you just have to keep trying. And, anyway, sometimes the only price of things is a new friend. I'm someone who... likes seeing others happy. But, if that's not possible, I guess I'm just gonna have to try really hard with you! .... Haha, besides... if you're at the bottom... then we can only go up from here!

[ This is probably the most honest thing she'll say about herself. Even INSINUATING she may not be one hundred percent all happy all the time is... odd for her. ]

[Unfortunately, Kevin doesn't understand her nearly as well as he'd need to in order to appreciate that. Mostly he's just growing more and more uncomfortable with every word she says. He doesn't want her to "try hard" to make him happy. He wants to be left alone, with his grief and his regrets and the anger that comes over him in waves, entirely outside of his control. She clearly doesn't know what she's messing with, and if it weren't for the sword in his hand -- tethering him to her now, in a way -- he'd try again to just up and leave.

As it is, he shifts uncomfortably, like a stray animal thinking of bolting.]

You don't know me at all. You shouldn't -- ah.

...you'll be disappointed.

[The swordsman can't even sound regretful about that. If she tries to make him happy, she'll be disappointed. That's just how it is.]

[ ... She's just going to hold a hand out, a gloved hand. Because she doesn't care what he thinks he is; whatever it could be, she is probably far worse herself. I mean dude look at her clothing she's got eyeballs all over her, okay. (Which, by the way, her hat's eyes inside it? All of them just rolled themselves. Yeah.) ]

Well, let's start with something simple. The PROPER way.

[ And now she'll emphasize the following words slowly, expecting Kevin to shake her hand: ]

I'm Wadanohara, the sea witch. Nice to meet you!

[At this perfectly normal and common statement that eventually rises up in pretty much every new acquaintanceship to ever happen in the history of ever, Kevin stares at her like she has multiple heads to go with those eyeballs.

This is because women shaking hands is weird. Women don't shake hands. You're supposed to bow over them and kiss the air above their knuckles and what have you.

But sure, okay, everyone here is weird and there's cultural differences. Sheathing the sword, Kevin starts to reach out, hesitantly -- and then decides abruptly that now is a very bad time to break the personal space boundary, because the thought of touching anybody makes him feel like spikes are raising up out of his spine. It's that sort of day. His hand jerks back, and his shadows flail around a little as they react.]

It's Kevin.

[He leaves off his surname. She didn't give her own, and anyway, he has no way of knowing when somebody's going to turn up who will actually put two and two together and recognize a Red-Eyed Ghost, such as himself.]

TEST DRIVE MEME: JULY

..... It's actually kind of ironic but I played Break in other places before.

I play Break in Som! With a liberal smattering of Breaks and Kevins in DRs and PSLs also.

I approve of all of this it's partly why I tagged you oops white-hair-bias

Ohohohohohohohoho~

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bless this thread's existence.

/uploads this icon just for you