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Entry tags:
❪ test drive #4 ❫
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YOUR STORY BEGINS  The Storm came. You only remember darkness, but you don't remember much after that. All you know, perhaps, is that it was cold. You don't know for how long you slept, but the dreams were short, at least. You remember the expanse of stars and the universe that came in view. Every world and solar system ever known was displayed in your dreams in careful, pristine detail. You have also witnessed The Storm, which has devoured a fair portion of these galaxies. It was a dark, thick smog — ominous in appearance and ever foreboding. Your Earth and similar planets were immersed in The Storm. Somehow, you knew it would be the last you'd see of it. That was when she told you what happened, and how you could help. You knew that you'd be living somewhere new, even though you never asked for it. The details here weren't clear, but you knew you'd made a deal with Darma. Not long after, you'll wake at Thesa Station — your body is still cold. It all felt like a dream, but somehow, you knew it wasn't — now, will you keep that promise you made to Darma? PROMPT: THE STORM  CW: death You were awake on Thesa Station. But at some point you, like many other new arrivals before you, wandered into the Observation Deck. Ordinarily, this is where images of The Storm are replayed to remind Refugees of the fate they have escaped. The Natha Orbiters' technology has evolved. They are aware of your gaps in memory. You may have doubts of The Storm even existing, or of your world's destruction. Though they do not wish reliving those last moments on anyone, they have created an experience that will do just that. Before entering the Observation Deck, you are warned that what follows will not be for the weak of heart. As soon as you step in, you will find that the walls around you begin to transform and expand. Welcome to the Planet Cespi, in the Circinus Galaxy. Unfortunately, we were not able to save this world from The Storm's Consumption.
These are its last memories. You are surrounded by blue, grassy hills as far as the eye can see and a pleasant breeze. The atmosphere is thick with a sickly sweet smell. Before you lays the scene of a quiet village, with its residents going about their everyday lives. You aren't alone, either, with an equally confused stranger (or perhaps you know each other?) surveying the scene. Then the world grows completely silent for a full minute. You and your partner are unable to make a sound, verbal or otherwise. Without warning, a deafening roar fills your ears and forces you to double over in pain. The villagers run out of their homes in a panic, finding themselves in just as much pain and confusion as you do. Where there was no sound before, now there is too much for a normal human body to process. Look up. An expanding mass of energy is swallowing everything you can see. It consumes the earth, the atmosphere, the depths of space — and it is getting closer. Your only hope is to outrun it, if you can. The people in the village certainly try to, racing past you. Their fear is very real. Their bodies are very real. You may be able to run from it for a time, only able to catch glimpses of this dark and sinister force swallowing everything and everyone. The earth rumbles and separates beneath you. Electricity surges through the sky, and then through your very body. You fought hard, but it is impossible to outrun the Storm forever. You too will be consumed. Your death is quick, but not painless. What were you thinking, before you took your last breath? You awaken back in the Observation Deck, next to your new friend. PROMPT: TRAINING MODULES  While it’s all nice and well to familiarize oneself with Thesa Station, it is most advised that new arrivals venture out a bit. Not physically. No one is quite prepared for that yet. However, there will be several virtual reality training programs set for those who dare to be adventurous. For those who aren’t and don’t dare, well — good luck, all the same. Once seated and appropriately strapped in, the system will automatically whir to life. 1. When you enter the Natha's newest program, at first nothing loads. You might think this is an error as you look around in apparent total darkness, only able to see your own virtual body if you look down, but soon enough a voice comes to life as if speakers have turned on somewhere. Long ago, the lands of El Nysa were dominated by the ancestors of the dragons who now live among the people, tamed. It was pretty dangerous! How about a little history lesson? And then the simulation comes to life—
2. Let us now travel forward in time, shall we?  a. The Olympian settlement around you is quiet — until the screaming starts.3. And now, the present.  After all those enlightening scenes, the simulation finally brings you to a more quiet area of Olympia. You are deposited out somewhere in The Outlook, a place the very first group of refugees had to trudge through before they found their homes. You've arrived in the early evening — but sunlight is waning, and soon you'll be under a sky full of stars. Luckily, their old campsites aren't too overgrown. The intention here is to get you familiar with some of the local flora and fauna. What sorts of plants will you encounter? Do you find yourself under a Verillum Tree, suddenly compelled to be painfully honest and truthful in conversation with a complete stranger? Find yourself behaving erratically in the presence of Whistleweed? Or perhaps you'll have to break the spell of being trapped in a Vena Amoris' vines... with a kiss. PROMPT: STASIS UNIT  You have found the massive section of Thesa known as the Stasis Unit. There’s no special access required to enter this part of Thesa Station, but refugees are warned that it may not be for the faint of heart. Here, in large pods that nearly cover every square inch of the space, are all of the people the Orbiters have managed to rescue. Your loved ones, your greatest enemy, your next door neighbor — you might find them here. These people are in a state of deep cryosleep. Due to the damaging effects of The Storm, their bodies are not yet ready to be awoken. PROMPT: OMAGE
Upon receiving your mobile phone, you will be asked to set a username. Voila, you can now access the network! You can choose to send a message to the entire network, specific usernames, or you can try out the Orbiters’ service, Omage, which connects you to a random user. They thought this might be a good way for their new guests to make friends with each other...
Connecting to server... PROMPT: WILDCARD
You are welcome to write any scenarios in Thesa Station! Characters have been granted temporary access to the Observation Room, and are encouraged to study it carefully.
FINAL OOC NOTE
These threads may be carried over as game canon if players choose! Players are encouraged to submit TDM threads as application samples, but they are not required. Please direct any OOC questions to the questions thread below! An AC-length thread may be submitted for 2 NATHA ORBITER REPUTATION POINTS after acceptance here. Please submit by February 18th.
We will no longer be providing overflow posts. In an event where the post hits CAPTCHA, players are advised to move threads to an overflow post on their character journals or create their own catch-all post. These threads remain eligible for REP. There will be an application cap of 60, and no reserves. Please read here for more information. |
no subject
‘Foxy Caster’ has a certain ring to it. ]
This is the second time you have referenced foxes.
[ Not at all shy enough to let this detail escape him, Ozymandias continues to pry. Excuse him. ]
Are you one in some way?
no subject
[ She wags her finger teasingly, turning to walk backwards with her hands behind her. Despite her next words, she's painfully sweet with her tone. ]
Some things are better left until our social rank is better, you know? It adds to the mystery we find ourselves in!
no subject
[ Indeed, the mystery thickens. Ozymandias really doesn't understand what she is, but he decides that this isn't important now. At least, not as worthwhile a question the one that he's about to ask next. ]
Does the nature of this mystery need to include the nature of our Holy Grail Wars?
no subject
[ #extra
But, of course they are! Even as she fake pouts, she doesn't let it linger. She nods, stopping in her tracks to point right at him. ]
Yes. As you know, secrecy is needed to preserve battle advantages. To keep weaknesses and strengths hidden until the right moment. That moment has not yet come to pass, nor will it!
[ She's defensive, it's obvious. And for now, she snaps back into a more... appealing personality. A faint giggle and Caster tilts her head to the side a bit. ]
And besides, isn't the wait more exciting when you unveil my secrets bit by bit...?
no subject
You seek to play at war with me? [ His brow quirks upwards at her choice of words. Yes — that’s what Ozymandias got from all that she’s just said. The main theme of understanding and even respecting a woman’s feelings is beyond him, especially considering the pair has just meant. Settling into a note of amusement, he relents, still holding onto his own audacity. ]
If you insist. I shall bide my time until I unearth the perfect opportunity to strike. [ He is under the impression it’ll be best to keep her on the tip of her toes, if only for these kind of reactions. ] Until then, you have permission to call me Rider.
no subject
I'm a lover, not a fighter!
[ Kinda wrong, but also right? Caster was born to fight, to defend her Master with every bit of her being but the girl known as Tamamo no Mae wanted nothing more than love. There was a balance she hated to admit. The way he speaks was formal and she had to note that — storing it away for a future tease or conversation.
The announcement of his name, Rider, makes her eyes wide. ]
————ehhh?! You think this is a war between us.... heroic spirits! There's no grail to be won ♥ — only something else. If you intend to strike, to burrow deep for most hidden core... I suppose you can expect a war then!
[ Playful, she winks and certainly comes off less threatening, but hey — that's her strategy. ]
no subject
Then, perhaps I shall call you ‘beloved’ in place of ‘Caster.’
[ Naturally, that’s a joke. He isn’t being sincere. But this is hard to discern from simply his stilled, scrutinizing exterior. The mention of war appeared to have struck a different cord in him. While he is not depressed, Ozymandias appears more thoughtful, more melancholy, with his bare, muscular arms folding over his torso. ]
There will always be a war. Whether the end reward happens to be that vessel of sin is another matter altogether. Ours will simply be more personal— more mysterious, as you so cutely suggested before.
[ Kings, their vast boredom, and the games they conjure to fill whatever they deem lacking in their lives. This (self-proclaimed) avatar of Ra is a case story of all of that. ]
With that said, we should have our dinner at a different point in time. There are even better suited settings, or so I’ve been told. [ Ceasing his musings, this moment marks the first time Ozymandias has ever been compelled to ask a girl for her number. The lingo is still foreign to him, though he managed to learn the basics of using a cell phone from tutorials. It’d be beneath him not to do otherwise. ] What is your name on the network?