xistentiaooc | Test Drive Meme #5

Entry tags:

#meme,
#tdm

Test Drive Meme #5

You wouldn’t wake; i couldn’t sleep for years.

CRASH LANDING

Exit one dimension, enter the next. It was chaos: pressure against your ears, light bending in an impossible, unimaginable way. The very molecules of your body vibrating against one another. If you have windows, the view outside makes no sense. Even if not, your hands, your face, your feet seem like an uncertain thing. It's the feel of reality itself tearing apart, reshaping, reconnecting, thread by thread.

And suddenly, there's a beach— or ocean, whichever you land in. Smoke. Fire. Salt water churning up, fizzing around.

Maybe you crash, in a ship wrecking into sand. Maybe you merely stumble out of a portal, a ragged wormhole in space. Or maybe you fall off the back of an incredible steed, some creature that carried you into this place. Either way, there's pandemonium around you. Incredibly, severe injuries are far and few between— nobody's screaming about the dead. But you might have to help pull someone free of wreckage, or move quickly to salvage burning belongings from the landing craft. Maybe it's the crafts themselves, that you're trying to salvage.

Likely, you don't know them, these other strangers who arrived here^[1]. Maybe you don't trust them— you just came out of a dying world, after all. But you all have one thing in common: you're here now.

When you get a second to breathe, maybe you'll see it. The brilliant green forest across the sand. Beyond that, the glint of a faraway city.

THE RAIN

Here comes the rain. Trickling down the rafters and tinkling down the trees, it starts as a drizzle and steadily increases to a downpour. Maybe it catches you by surprise, chasing you indoors or to share the umbrella of a friendly stranger. There's something oddly elaborate about the gutters of Xistentia's city-- it clearly carries the water toward the temple in the East, a storm system that causes the lamps to pulsate without threatening to shut down.

You'll notice too that you're prone to nostalgia which even infiltrate your dreams, memories sad or happy. This is easily a private experience, but you might find yourself wandering the city to get away from old ghosts or feeling invincible in the glow of memories. More oddly, whether or not you're an artist, you might be inspired to draw on the windows with your finger in the condensation.

Personal symbols, detailed illustrations, these inextricably lead back to the nostalgia. Whatever it is, it might pull someone to ask.

NETWORK

By now, the city of Xistentia has a population of over 400 people. Shops line the streets of downtown, and increasingly well-trodden paths will take you into the agricultural zones nearer to the forest or even down to the beach. There are still distinctive animal presences around— careful with that— but the most common critters you'll see are birds crapping on your stuff outside and tiny winged hairless people creeping your food.

One afternoon, you are taken from whatever you’re doing - taking a walk through the city, sunning yourself on the beach, running around in the forest shoring up defenses - by a message, appearing on your Daemon’s network screen. It’s a simple line of text, that reads:

PHOTO SENT

It would appear that your daemon accidentally sent a picture, perhaps one from your photo roll or instagram, or a random shot of you or your surroundings. Wait. Was that a public network post? Wait—

IMAGE CODE TEMPLATE

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

hells yeah

Footnotes

Some of these can be nameless, plot-device NPCs to facilitate interactions! But even in this case, please avoid gore in describing their current state of being. Anyone dead or catastrophically injured will have disappeared by the time your characters make it to Xistentia. There are no corpses or dying here.
But like OOCly ask permission ofc.

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[kavinsky glances around for a moment. reassuring himself that this is safe— no 'masquerade' here, you know. being out and proud about his personal state of undead, a drinker of blood, predator of walking, talking people. surely that's less weird than whatever— kurt is, what with the unusually geometric pattern of his acne, his complexion. it's not racist if the person is randomly blue and speaks with a european accent so he would probably be white if he wasn't blue.

or something.]

I'm a vampire. Half-vampire. The other half of me is a whole other kind of magic. No sparkle, no Ed Cullen. I actually don't need to sleep, but I do, because I need it for my other shit. My magic. [he wiggles his fingers like he's casting a spell, but all that happens is that he ends up flicking water in kurt's blue face.] Check it. You're gonna be green tomorrow. Toad. Don't worry, lots of soft-hearted fucks in town will make out with you, looking for their prince.

[in contrast, the dog standing below is preening a little, happy to be admired. she's considerably less of an ass than her master.]

✳ hot as a fever

[Fortunately, Jubilee is one of the lucky ones that ends up closer to the shore. As she steps up onto the sand, her sneaker immediately sinks, followed soon after by the other, making her heave a sigh. Okay, maybe it sounds a little overdramatic, but none of this is at all what she'd had planned for the day. It's not the mall with her friends, hanging at the movies or slugging down slush puppies and eating chili fries until they're to the point of bursting.

And she's not happy about it.]

Ugh, [she expels with disgust, peeling off her soaked yellow jacket, holding it aloft with one hand while she tugs at her equally wet shirt. Then, once she takes a moment to look around, it dawns on her,] Okay, definitely not in Kansas anymore, Toto.

[Or New York, for that matter. After wringing as much water out as possible, the pyrotech drapes the coat over her arm, shakes some of the sand off her shoes and treads forward, hoping that no one's been caught on fire.

Hey, at least she didn't have anything to do with these flames. For once.]

✳ let it wash away my sanity

[Beneath the cover of her coat, she spares a glance up at the steady downfall of rain, wrinkling her nose and blinking rapidly when some of the water catches on her eyelashes. One hand raises to wipe away the drops, fingertips flicking them away, then she turns her attention to the stag at her side.]

How much longer do you think we'll be walking?

["I don't know, but if I have to hear you complain about your hair getting messed up again ..."] Look, it's super important. ["No, it isn't."] Maybe not now, but what happens if I meet someone? I'll be looking a hot mess and that's not a good first impression.

[The buck gives her a look, which she simply smiles at. He shakes his head and she leans, nudging him affectionately with her shoulder.] I'm only kidding, [teases the mutant, amusement clear in her voice.] Besides, I know that even with my disheveled self, I'd still be able to reel 'em in.

[He noses across the top of her head, slicking down the damp ebony strands there. "At least your confidence hasn't taken a harsh blow."] And what's that supposed to mean? ["Humbleness wouldn't suit you."]

Heeey! [A chuff as he withdraws. She pouts, gives him a light push then slumps against his side, continuing on toward their destination.]

✳ network

username tooeffervescent

[ooc: or wildcard is also an option!]

ɪ. ʀᴀɪɴ;
[ Even a Seelie knight must venture into the city. Meliorn doesn't hate the crowds and the smell, no, but he certainly dislikes it. It's not just the city--it is this place. He feels different here, nature feels different here, the world feels different here. Not wrong, but unpleasant, like milk just about to go bad.

Or maybe he's projecting, he thinks, glancing down at the carton he'd picked up from the store behind him. Maybe he's just wary of actually drinking the small carton, for fear it tastes completely different than what he's used to. His nose wrinkles slightly, the fact that he's in the middle of the sidewalk seems not to bother him in the slightest.

Nor does the rain, when the sky opens up with a crack. Meliorn's gaze slides from the milk carton in his hand and to the ground, before he slowly moves his head upwards and closes his eyes. Water cleanses. He breathes out, before his brow furrows. ]

The rain is moving to the east.

ɪɪ. ᴡɪʟᴅᴄᴀʀᴅ;
[ So his world has died. It takes a lot to fathom, and at the same time, quite little: worlds end. Things end. He is alive, and that is the best he can hope for. The situation is dire, but there is the faint hope that his Queen still lives. There is optimism in every breath: surely, there are others from his world here. It would be foolish to think otherwise.

Meliorn remains steadfastly hopeful, but he is no fool. Things must be addressed. The dying of his world, for example. There is no welcoming the future without mourning the past. And that is precisely what he is doing: he has found a small place in the woods, far from needless technology, far from noise, and has created a tent of sorts. Soft fabric is draped delicately, every placement precise. There are butterfly motifs everywhere.

A metaphor: change.

Meliorn, in the middle, sits with his feet drawn up and his eyes closed, still, quiet, listening. For what, it's unknown. This place is still noisy, still crowded, and stuffy, and unpleasant, and--

--and very slowly, Meliorn opens his eyes. ]

To the one that is outside: I can hear you.

[ A curious hiker, no doubt. Meliorn keeps his voice level. ]

III. ɴᴇᴛᴡᴏʀᴋ;
un: knightd

Edited 2017-10-02 08:12 (UTC)

crash landing (closed to link);

[ Despite being spared Calamity Ganon's wrath, it seemed Hyrule was not immune to natural catastrophes. It started as a sprinkling of comets across the sky that grew progressively more redhot and dangerous as they careened towards the planet. He had been home, in Zora's Domain, alongside Link who had so graciously offered to help them restore the Zora monuments when the first ones collided.

The aftershock and tremors of one's impact caused (the usually magnificently coordinated) Link to lose his footing, to stumble back off one of the many cliffsides leading up to Zora's Domain. He felt his heart drop in his chest at the sight. His feet carried him before his mind actually did into leaping immediately after Link without a second's hesitation. The last thing he remembers is reaching out to the other man, trying to wrap his arms around one of the people nearest and dearest to him before they hit the water, and then-

A splash, a disorienting shift. He bobbed up above the surface and didn't recognize the area. But that didn't matter, what mattered was- ] Link! [ he called out, upon realizing that he didn't have the Hylian in hand. Sidon set to searching immediately to find the blond-haired man in the waves, among the wreckage of some kind of mechanism. ]

rain;

[ Well, this weather pattern certainly seems familiar. Sidon doesn't mind the rain in the slightest. But in excess like this, it does definitely call home to mind. At least, home before Link had saved them all from the Divine Beat. Had he reminded him how thankful he was for that today? If not, he'd have to be sure to do it later...

For now, he's tracing said Divine Beast on the panel of a fogged up window. Maybe it's the cute little elephant doodle that pulls someone in. Maybe it's the fact the artist is a fucking red ten-foot tall fish-man drawing it on the bottom of the second-story window. Who knows! Either way, he'll grin brightly despite the gloom at whoever happens to come near. ] Hello there!

Would you like to try your hand at drawing something? Please, go ahead! This window is free. [ Tap taps on the first floor window just below and to the side of him. ]

network;

daemon: mipha'd

[ Busted. ]

I told you guys to be quieter, [ she whispersays but there's no shortage of affection in her tone. There are a few low canine grumbles in response complemented by matching whines. It's difficult to move stealthily with a pack of eight dogs in tow.

Rose hadn't actually meant to sneak up on the tent. This was the route that she ran with her pups often and there wasn't this abode last time they came through. For as unobservant as she can be, the woman thinks she would have noticed it. The canines are decidedly curious too, snuffling eagerly around the area with tails wagging. Rose herself goes around to the front of the structure now, an apologetic smile at the ready for Meliorn. ]

Sorry, dude, didn't mean to disturb your, uh. Camping trip?

Mipha!?

Edited (icon) 2017-10-02 11:32 (UTC)

[ and there it is.

the cut.

juno knows it anywhere, neck going white hot with shame, guilt, more shame, more guilt, until he feels it overflowing high in his chest. he swallows it down as best he can, a rictus half-smile forming on his face in a way that's always existed, just never for nureyev. he props his elbows on his knees and doesn't quite let himself look at nureyev.

he's got a point, but then again, he always has a point (even if the point is utter bullshit flung in from left field that some people are stupid enough to eat up.) juno is soaked to the skin, but really, what part of it doesn't he deserve? especially now, facing someone he's pretty sure he'd never have to look in the eye again. someone who could have done much better, but somehow settled for him in the late hours, whispered something juno hasn't really heard in years from anyone. not anyone that meant it the way nureyev had. dangerous and quiet, lifting and sinking like a stone at the same time.

well that's not how it is anymore, not after he fucked it up, he's pretty sure. but that's how juno likes it. no one needs to get that close to him. he's a goddamn disaster area, a worst-case scenario for anyone who wanted to touch him, car crash, war-zone, nuclear impact. gut punch.

and nureyev.

well.

nureyev is a touch of heaven he didn't really deserve.

there's a sharp tug on his coat that interrupts his brooding however, his hesitance on what to say because what do you say to someone you up and left in the middle of the night? when you traded something good for something bad that needed you just as much? ]

Your biometrics state that this would be a wise decision, [ dahliad snips back quickly and juno's head jerks a bit and he scowls. whose side are you on, you little shit? ]

Well my biowhatevers can go to hell, [ he half mutters before bringing his tired eyes up again. it's. hard. but he does it. and it feels like his organs are doing a sideways slosh uncomfortably left to right. incredulously, half-petulant, the rest of him too tired and chilled to the bone to argue properly just yet (but he's not admitting that. a fucking peacock isn't gonna have one over on him): ] You can't be serious.

[ even after all this. ]

Edited 2017-10-02 12:05 (UTC)

Yes!
That is the one and only Mipha! My beautiful, courageous sister!

[ BUT WAIT. ]

If you knew that, you must be someone from home!

Edited (not paying attention hur) 2017-10-02 12:15 (UTC)

Oh.

For a moment, I thought... but is that you, Sidon? It's Zelda.

( alec had been doing a routine bit of exploration in the woods. sometimes he does it to clear his head, on his guard but mostly looking at flora and observing the living creatures who reside there from a distance. sometimes he does it to make sure nothing is coming too close to the city, or because someone got spooked by something and he volunteered to check it out. it's usually nothing.

this time, though, he finds a tent. he doubts that's what he's looking for, but he's curious, and if someone's living out there, it might be unsafe for them to do so without the general knowledge of the rest of the population. vex likes to hunt, after all, and alec wouldn't want this person to be mistaken for game.

he approaches in what he believes is relative quiet when he hears a familiar voice. )

Meliorn? ( he steps within view of the interior of the tent, his bow on his shoulder and his quiver at his back. )

[ Well, hello there. More company from home, as it were? As he's passing, Magnus catches the tail end of that rumination over the milk carton and the statement following. He comes to a halt, raising his eyes as if to contemplate the movement of the storm.

Is it a storm anymore? It's sort of transcended storm status. A storm is a thing that happens and then fades away after a day or two. Magnus hasn't lived anywhere with a monsoon season for awhile, but this feels like that. The season of rain. ]

East, is it? I wonder if we could persuade it to move a little faster. [ He's very obviously kidding and his expression says as much when he looks Meliorn's way. ]

[ It's totally the doodle that does the trick, totally. ] Hello indeed!

Is there a theme? [ To the drawings. The sparkly, mysteriously not-sodden, stylishly dressed man would like to know. If he's fazed by any part of this, he's not showing it. Just doing what you do, wandering around, stopping to draw on windows with giant fishmen.

This is just a day ending in y! ]

( he doesn't enjoy seeing this look on juno's face -- enjoys less that he's the one who put it there, this self deprecating smile that wears too easily in the lines of his face. peter can't deny his anger, the pain in his heart and the cold memories of waking up alone in bed, searching for someone who he knew wouldn't be there, but

there's pain in this, too. he doesn't want to hurt juno -- he never wanted to hurt juno. the pain of knowing he has makes most other ills of the world seem insignificant in comparison, light little paper cuts to the look on juno's face, an expression that makes peter think he's the one with the ability to read minds. he blames himself. half of peter says good, he should and the other half says he's not the only cruel one.

peter should've known better. you can't take the protector from the city he protects -- it makes him lose his worth. but, to peter nureyev, he had so much more worth than the crimes he solves, the people he helps, the lives he's saved. juno steel was simply the world, and the day the world left him, so too did a couple of other things.

his dignity, a bit. his poker face. his capability of turning juno away when he needs help. )

As the grave, I'm afraid. (charming and playful at first, his expression falls, selectively opening up in a way that only falls on juno's shoulders. ) Juno ... I do hope coming inside even though I'm there is the superior choice to staying out here in the rain

Of course I could guilt you into it by telling you you owe me. ( playfulness back, he smiles at juno, catlike and wild. ) But ... I owe you as well. So whether you come in with me, or I say out here with you, I believe we're stuck together. At least for a little while, hm?

Edited 2017-10-02 18:50 (UTC)

[ really, juno wants to bark back. that'd be the easy thing to do. his teeth grind a little in the back as he passes one chilled hand over the other. there are worse options than choosing to walk through doors with nureyev. he's not leaving the planet with him suddenly, not getting in a car with him. he's not... he's not doing things he'd be afraid of doing with nureyev.

it's just a door. it's just some clothes.

but it's the you owe me that bites him fast and hard at the nape of his neck. you owe me like a sting he knows he deserves, and though nureyev says he owes him too, juno finds it hard to believe any of that.

juno thinks about the rain, how it's soaked through his shoulders, left him tired and fighting the way his chest aches, how his shoulder throbs from an fresh wound now sewn over (sliced through the shoulder, fifty percent mobility gone. right there. from someone far clumsier with a knife than nureyev. less finessed.) this rain is murder on him, but he feels like he deserves it, the aches, the pains, and not nureyev sitting next to him with his legs crossed so elegantly, that smile like six months ago but... far more tired.

so bright.

he stays so damn bright and juno's been in a fucking pit for days. weeks. months. he left that light behind but now?

well.

juno eases up onto his feet, hands spread a bit briefly. dahliad seems to pick up on it and rises with him (it's weird and juno kind of hates it.) ]

Offering someone clothing isn't exactly most people's idea of a good guilt trip. [ it's not. but nureyev knows him well enough that it's almost embarrassing to think about. his voice cracks. it's the cold. ] But sure. Yeah.

[ stuck. ]

Let's just... look. Sure. Fine. Let's just get inside.

[ you're a fucking noodle. he's doing this for you. not for himself and all his chilled bones under his bulky coat.

let's. ]

it would be wise to prepare for disappointment
but if he is not here, there remains hope that he may arrive later
that happened with two of mine. a kingdom of others remains missing, however, including some who are very dear to me
it is the same for many of us. i understand.

a whole kingdom?
are you some kind of royalty?

[ he's unaware that rafa is a vampire, much less their king. ]

I'm not unused to disappointment.
still, I worry about him.
He's the only family I have left.
I have to protect him.

i am their king

so i understand wishing to protect the one you have lost.
it may be impossible for you at this moment
but if i should encounter one by that name, i shall inform you.

i wasn't aware there were any
human kingdoms left.

and thank you.

[ this guy isn't bad for a (presumably) human, though mika isn't going to trust him just yet. ]

[ By this point Peter has gotten used to the constant rainfall -- it had started off as hardly anything, but was clearly intent on sticking around and gaining momentum, turning into a steady shower by the time that the teenager decides to venture out of his home.

Umbrella in hand -- and, of course, in use -- Peter weaved his way between the few others caught out in the rain. Most like himself had some sort of shelter from the rain: an umbrella, a heavy raincoat, even a few folks hurrying by in ponchos.

That is until he comes upon a girl barely keeping dry under the cover of a brightly colored jacket. If she isn't already soaked, then it's only a matter of time before she is.]

It's raining. [ Quite the observer, Peter Parker. ] I mean, [ This time with a little more tact? ]

You're getting rained on.

[ Or not. ]

there are several, in fact, despite their efforts to rid themselves of all tradition

but i did not say i was human, my friend.

[ not human. that has mika immediately wary. if this person a vampire, he doesn't know if he can trust him. a demon would be even worse. he can't imagine anything else because there is nothing else besides demons, vampires, and humans where he's from, and so he in his mind, he's already suspecting the worst.

krul, his sire, would scold him if she were here, but she's not and he has his and yuu's world to save. so if there are other vampires here... ]

99% of humanity is dead where i'm from
if you're not human, what are you?

[ He was falling.

Well, that was nothing new, Falling had become a part of his life ever since he'd woken up in the Shrine of Resurrection, the new aspect was the fact that Sidon dove after him. Why was his friend so concerned? Oh, it was because he didn't know he had a paraglider and could get away from this situation with ease.

But as Link began to pull it out it was torn from his grasp due to the chaotic winds. His eyes widened as he saw the cause for the powerful shift in nature, more meteors had appeared in the sky and were headed straight for them. He opened his mouth as if to yell to Sidon to look behind him but--

SPLASH

All went black.

He was floating. Odd, he could smell the salt of the sea and waves of the ocean, which couldn't be right because they should've landed in the river. He wasn't able to open his eyes yet and every muscle in his body ached- it would've been nice to have a fairy right about now.

He could hear Sidon's voice. Slowly, he tried to raise his left hand to indicate where he was. ]

[well, then Kurt might just be a pitiful mess around her. at least he'll be a gentleman, though?]

'perfect' is a strong word to use. [he's not that confident in his abilities.]
it might take me a while, but yes, i could do any and all colors that you might like to have!

[Much like a fussy child, Jack huffs and raises his hand to carefully take hold of Tooth's wrist, drawing her pressing digits away from the contusion.] I'm fine, [he insists gently, the right side of his face quirking in response to her concern.] Really.

[A sigh of relief is what he answers with at first, ice-blue eyes widening before a laugh escapes him. All of the baby Tooths' cheeping is comforting, too, and he shows no resistance with a widening smile.] Don't worry, I missed all of you, too. [A wink.] Same goes for you. Being okay, I mean. And yeah, if we're lucky, North, Sandy, and the real Bunny shouldn't take too long.

yeah, it is.

weird, though, since most people usually can't see me. 🤔

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Page 7 of 15

Test Drive Meme #5

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jubilation lee ✳ xmu

meliorn | shadowhunters

sidon 🐟 breath of the wild (mostly ota)

II;

network;

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ii

i.

rain.

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rain rain go away

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private;

crash, obv

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i'm so excite .^.

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