Test Drive Meme #1 (cw vehicular crash, moderate injury)

[spoofer]

Test Drive Meme #1

Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.

You don't need an invite to test
but please remember we're currently invite-only

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.

INTO THE WOODS

Your first night at Xistentia does not feature five-star accommodations, but as the sun begins to set, the forest offers everything you need to survive. By now, you may even have met your daemon, who'll help guide you through this. There is fallen wood to make fires for warmth and cooking, any number of rabbits, deer, and fish if that's what you're into eating. Those very same animals also provide guidance as to what vegetation is edible, including a variety of vine mushrooms, fruits, and flowers. If you're the kind of creature that mostly eats other sentient creatures, well. Technically, there are a lot of those hanging out too^[2]! Now and then, you'll see tiny, winged humanoid creatures the height of a finger dart in and out of view.

A resourceful group, the multiversal refugees have determined ways to create shelters, using wreckage, supplies, and basic survival knowhow. There aren't enough blankets to go around, but the weather is mild and the fires seem to keep out any aggressive creatures.


Things get quiet. This could be a good time to meet the others under less fraught circumstances. Maybe you'll see some familiar faces and reunite with others who fled from your dying world; maybe you'll meet someone new.

Try not to seek out and fight any Rock Trolls. It's still early.

ENTER THE CITY

The city is beautiful, even with the vines covering everything, the streams running down half the streets, the massive white deer leaping off under the highway overpasses. The architecture of the skyscrapers is incredible to look at, modern and sweeping. It's clear that terraced gardens were part of the building design, and some of the greenery that lines the street had been part of the original city plan. This is a city of great potential.

And it knows you're here. As you walk by, beacons like streetlamps begin to emit a gentle glow, registering your presence. No doors are locked, though you might find yourself chasing out nests of silver-winged birds and bug-eyed rabbits.

Here, you can claim empty shops or the clothing and other sales items inside of them. Apartment complexes aren't difficult to find in a range of sizes; nor are standalone homes, brownstones, loft studios. Penthouses may not feel like penthouses when there's a thin layer of dust growing on everything and a flower growing out of the sink, but you know what? Maybe that little bud is gonna be your first roommate.

It's the strangest thing. After a few days, the lights begin to work and the water begins to run, fully operational within the unseen sewer system. At some point, the keys to your house or residence are going to turn up. Your daemon will help you find what you need. F.A.TE.S. welcomes you.

NETWORK

By now you've settled in. You have some time to explore the city, the woods, and your new kit.

Chances are pretty good that your daemon is not a phone or a computer or a wax-sealed piece of parchment or a Howler, nothing with a convenient camera or a keyboard; it probably isn't even a pocket sized. Likelier, it stares at you with eyes that contain the lenses-- or powers-- of a camera, and some part of its body projects a holographic keyboard into the air. For those of us who are not accustomed to manipulating intangible light prisms, it's about as intuitive to type on as shaping a cloud with your fingers.

But here's your network access. Accessible to all your fellow travelers in XISTENTIA.

Misfires, typos, and blurry video footage are likely. Time to feel like a Luddite!

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

hells yeah

Footnotes

1. 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.
   
   
2. But like OOCly ask permission ofc.

Comments

hanako 'rosalina' nurumi; oc (eudio crau); ota

[hasitsthorns]

I. Crash Landing

[ With eight dogs in tow, there was absolutely no way Rose was taking a ship. She opts for the much safer version - a portal - since she's familiar with them. What she'd forgotten after almost a year in Eudio, however, is how absolutely nausea-inducing they are. This one especially is rough and it takes approximately .00000003 seconds after stepping out for her body to declare its protest of the ride. Ignore the woman on the beach emptying the contents of her stomach into the shallow waves. Eight dogs of various breed (one being a Pokemon) surround her, tails wagging slowly in concern. After a couple residual dry heaves, the blond falls back onto her butt into the sand and sighs.

Well, that wasn't so bad. She looks to her left. She could have been on that ship, which has obviously cras-

/record scratch ]

Oh, what the absolute fuck. [ She scrambles up to stand, kicking up sand as she runs towards the wreckage now. No one seems to be fatally injured, thankfully,
but definitely dazed from the impact. Woozy from the smoke. If you're one of the poor, unfortunate souls that happened to be on board Rose is coming to the rescue.
Though one of her canines might find you first. ]

Where the hell is the first aid kit in this thing? Can anyone heal?

II. Into The Words

[ By now, Rose has realized one of her dogs isn't quite like the others. Though his personality hasn't shifted, his... capabilities have. Apollo, a year old Golden Retriever, is apparently her daemon. He seems to be leading the pack (when he isn't distracted by chasing after a fairy) towards their destination and more digital than entirely dog. Strange, but the woman isn't about to be too concerned about it. He's been helpful in getting her the information she needs so far even if it isn't what she's wanted to hear.

What she is concerned about, however, is that in the journey here she seems to have lost the most important people. More important than anyone is Vanyel, which is whose world they were trying to get to... but she has a sneaking suspicion this isn't Tamriel. The woman hopes despite herself that she'll find him - find all her friends - among the refugees, but there's a sense of dread in the pit of her stomach that this world hop is one she'll be going alone. Again.

She's all smiles in the face of this, falling on old habits of bottling that shit up to cope. When she gathers up with the rest of the wayward world hoppers, she's friendly and a little spot of sunshine. ]

Anyone need a dog to cuddle? I've got plenty of those and they're definitely just in need of them as you are, I'll bet.

III. City/Network

Ya'll, I am video recording via dog. The future is here and I am absolutely here for it.

[ Pant, pant, borf. Apollo agrees. He can talk, of course, but that had seemed to startle Rose. Perhaps he'll ease into it as time goes on. For now, he remains very canine-esque as she stares into his eyes (which is admittedly a little strange, but she'll deal with it). ]

So, hey! My name's Rose. I was in a place called Eudio before this. [ 'I was supposed to arrive with someone', she thinks to say. She doesn't. A practiced smile hides her mounting worry. ] If anyone is familiar with it, please. Hit me up.

Otherwise, I'm in the city now and trying to figure all this housing out... Hopefully these apartments are big enough for eight dogs. If not, might have to invest in a house again. I'd almost paid my old one off, too, man.

[ A light laugh and shake of her head. ]

Anyway! I'm new, obviously, so I'm happy to talk to anyone or help out where I can.

III

[mordacita]

Rosie.

[ The relief in Rafa's voice is palpable. He's smiling, his eyes are warm, and he looks almost like himself - aside from the fact that he's wearing clothes borrowed from an abandoned city, of course. This shirt and jeans are not his neatly tailored finest, but they're the best he can do.

His face is also not entirely in focus. He leans forward and back, trying to find the best position, though it's still quite furry even when he gives up. It doesn't matter. As long as she can hear him that's all he cares about. ]

I am so glad to see you. I know of Eudio, of course. I found an apartment, and I am speaking to you via unicorn, believe it or not. Would you like directions? We should stay close together, I think.

[hasitsthorns]

[ Ah.

The voice first helps her realize the face attached isn't of the one she's most worried for. Well. She had still hoped that Rafa might be here. It's a small relief on top of many, many other concerns. Hell, she even found herself worried if Vex of all people had arrived alongside them. Getting to bicker with him about something mundane or hear him complain about all her dogs would be a small comfort right about now. ]

Rafa, dude! Good to see you. Uh. Sort of. Still figuring out the kinks in this thing, huh? I feel you. [ Her own footage is a little grainy, unfocused... It also darts off off of her occasionally as Apollo's eyes catch something else darting up or through the trees. It only takes a second or so before he re-focuses on Rose. ] You got a unicorn? That's adorable. But, yeah, I'd like that. Having some familiar faces around will probably help with all this fuckery.

[mordacita]

[ He can sense her disappointment, and he feels he knows why. He does, after all, share a face with someone far more important to her. His smile is careful. ]

There should be more than one familiar face. Hunter is here, and Vex. And Kavinsky. Now you. It would not surprise me if there were others.

[ But if Vanyel is among them, Rafa hasn't seen him. He sighs. ]

I thought myself well used to technology. This poor creature makes me long for my laptop. My phone was ruined in the fall. [ He's still salty about that. So is the phone; it's full of seawater. ]

3

[vexy]

[ Loud. Dramatic. Groan. ]

Are you kidding me?! All eight of them got through the portal in time?!

You're like bloody roaches!

[ This is Vex language for "it's good to see you, Rosie, let's have a drink and a chat sometime soon", no, really. ]

[hasitsthorns]

[ She'd recognize that sound of displeasure anywhere. Her face lights up in a smile despite the complaint, knowing full well this is Vex speak for 'good to see you.' Yet another person she doesn't have to be worried about having lost. Even if their relationship is unconventional, Rose would have missed Vex more than she'd care to admit had he not made the trip. ]

Of course they did! They're good boys. Aren't you all, [ she coos at them off screen. Apollo himself barks happily in reply, the sound loud and harsh against the mic, which is... also him...This is gonna take some getting used to. ]

Where are you, dude?

[vexy]

They're not good boys, they're monsters and--

[ The camera view shifted, as apparently Vex's daemon was more interested in looking at a flying mosquito than focusing on whatever the fae was nattering on about. ]

Oi! Eyes here! Over here?! Are you bloody listening to m--

[ The view eventually went back, to the absolutely frazzled Vex. ]

Ugh! I can only assume by that terrible sound that yours is a dog. If he starts licking his crotch I'm hanging up on you.

I've got a house on the beach, lovely view of the wreckage. Stop by when you can find a dogsitter.

iii!

[drehnifusbahi]

Rose!

[His relief is palpable in his tone - and for the first few seconds, that's all she has to go off of, because whatever Van's recording this reply on, the camera doesn't seem to want to focus on him.

Instead, his daemon appears to be in a tree, looking at the surrounding forest. Then, it jerks abruptly downward, and Vanyel finally appears in the shot - dressed in the armor he'd put on in preparation to return to Tamriel, and looking a little worse for the wear than when she saw him last. But still in one piece, and the relief is as obvious in his expression as it was in his tone.]

Whereabouts in the city? I'm still on the outskirts, but I can head your way- [The daemon's gaze shifts away from him again, and it even seems to be squirming, prompting a hissed don't even think about it, you from Vanyel.

Sorry, Rose dear; we're experiencing some slight technical difficulties here.]

[hasitsthorns]

Vanyel, oh my gosh, [ Now that is the voice attached to the fact she was most concerned about. Her relief is incredible, lighting her face in a smile she can't contain. Though she only gets a glimpse of him before suddenly she's looking at a landscape of the forest instead. Huh.

It occurs to her what's happening, finally. His daemon isn't cooperating with him. Perhaps she shouldn't be so amused at it, but it's just. It's so great to see him, even she hadn't realized herself just how anxious she'd been about the thought he might not have made it. So to know he's here and close and safe (well, safer from the looks of him) is a huge mishmash of emotions. Mostly positive, of course. ]

I just got here myself, actually, so not too far in. Uhm, Apollo! [ Yes, Rose? he asks, in a synthesized voice. She seems a bit surprised for a moment, blinking. Right. She still has to get used to that. ] Send Vanyel my coordinates, please.

[ You've got it, he answers and boop. There's where Rose is! Hopefully, Vanyel can wrangle in his daemon long enough to get them and on his way. ]

I'll wait right here. [ 'I can't wait to see you,' sounds too sappy. It's probably too sappy. But it's true. ]

chasing fairies it was ment 2 b

[astralera]

[ Era had not been too concerned with her surroundings. She has yet to come across a single Morbol or Treant, which speaks volumes of its safety compared to the Black Shroud. There are others around and though she is aware of them she keeps to herself for the time being, adjusting to the strange feel of... Well. Everything.

A faint spike of alarm hits her through the link she has with Lily, startling Era from where she examining a plant. The fairy hasn't drifted too far - she can't, given that her physical form is tethered to this realm via her aether - so it won't take long for her to see what has caused her companion such a fright. ]

[hasitsthorns]

[ What has caused the fairy such a frighten is a Golden Retriever by the name of Apollo. He only wants to investigate the creature, honestly, though for such a tiny being it's understandable why he might be a bit intimidating. He snuffles the air above him where the aetherial creature flits to and fro.

Rose isn't far behind, calling, ] -Apollo! Leave that poor thing alone.

[ The dog twirls back around to greet Rose, tongue lolling out and a digitial sounding bark sounding. His attention turns back to the fairy quickly, however, as well as the new person coming to its aid. ]

Hey, sorry, [ Rose starts, once she spots the other... woman? Are those horns? That's interesting. ] Is she yours? Apollo's friendly, I promise, he's just. A dog, so, he gets really excited by fast-moving critters.

ii

[fratricidio]

[ Some of the dogs seem to recognize the boy standing around with a guarded - if mostly expressionless - gaze, trotting over to him with exceptionally good behavior for how much excitement they feel. They've met Caleb, but the Caleb they're meeting hasn't met them and never would have, if it weren't for this place.

He's smaller. Younger. Lacking some of the mirth that the boy Rose knows seemed to carry in his back pocket all the time. He doesn't look concerned, he doesn't look comfortable; ambiguity is the name of the game when you're a demigod in a world that wants you dead, thrown into a new one where you want to make sure you don't break any compromising rules.

Caleb's daddy taught him good. In a royally fucked up way, considering the Holt boy is the messiah of a well-meaning cult.

Probably the first thing that comes naturally to him, his hands find their way to the heads and backs of each and every dog with just enough affection to go around. It's a habit back home, turned comfort in a place so far from it. Their owner will be wondering what the hell is going on, no doubt. Caleb might not have that mirth in his metaphorical back pocket, but he doesn't have any bacon in his literal one, either. ]

... Dogs tend to do that around me. I don't know why.

[ This is a lie. ]

[hasitsthorns]

[ It isn't often her dogs gravitate to someone unless Rose herself is already engaging them. So to have the canines suddenly veer off intrigues her. It was very possible that they'd spotted someone familiar before she had; that is, in fact, the case. Someone familiar, but not quite the same. Even she can tell from the moment her eyes fall on him.

This is Caleb Holt. This is not her Caleb Holt.

It was always a possibility. He wasn't the first. She had seen in Eudio different versions of the same people cycle through. None of them had ever been anything more than acquaintances, of course, so she isn't actually sure about how approach the fact it is someone incredibly important to her that isn't the same. That won't remember the time they'd spent together because in his reality they'd never spent a moment in each other's company at all. After Vanyel and others had come to her just as she'd known them, she can't deny that she'd hoped if she encountered Caleb again it'd be the one she was intimately acquainted with. But he's not. She doesn't know how to feel about that, so she decides not to feel anything at all just yet.

This revelation takes a fraction of second. Hopefully not long enough for him to notice anything amiss. The blond puts on a practiced, pleasant smile at his explanation. ]

A dog whisperer, huh? That's pretty cool. Me too, if you didn't already guess from the whole pack here.

[ A fibber fibbing a fibber. This should be fun. ]

3

[helical]

I think you can just take what you want. [ or, well, that's definitely what he did, so if he's supposed to pay rent he has no idea where he's gonna get money to do that. but he's not worried. he can be resourceful, and his skillset is useful around here.

oh, and — ]

Hi, Rose. [ pleased little smile!! he knows u!! ]

[hasitsthorns]

[ After meeting the Caleb who wasn't her Caleb, Rose was entirely prepared for more people to not remember her. So when Alec starts speaking she's a bit... concerned that would be the case considering he doesn't acknowledge her.

But then-!!! ]

Alec! You're here! [ exclaimed with an unmistakably genuine grin. Which, of course, means Magnus can't be far behind. Right? They're practically inseparable in her mind. Which is good since she was very saddened at the prospect of having to go this new adventure without them. ] So good to see you, dude. Where are you?

As for the housing, I guess I'll take what I want. [ ... Wait for it. ] I was going to ask Vanyel if he wanted to get a place, uh. Together. [ Said nervously while trying to sound casual. Asking your boyfriend to move in with you is a big!! deal!!! ] Is that too serious? It's probably too serious, maybe I won't ask.

city!

[kinks]

Oh, thank fuck.

( the owner of the curse word looks at rosie with the utmost relief in his lined features, which rosie can clearly see, since he happened to grip her shoulders tightly in order for them to face each other, chocolately brown eyes staring at her singularly. apparently, he likes whatever he sees, and in the next moment his head drops, body arching just a bit closer. )

I thought I was all fucking alone, Miss Rosie! I thought. Fuck. ( he doesn't think he's ever been so relieved to see another fucking face before. he wants to cry. he's not alone, and the darkness of their otherworld seems that much farther away. ) Fuckfuck.

( without much thought, he wraps his arms around her, resting his cheek on her shoulder. )

I'm not gonna cry, promise, swear that'd be so goddamn lame. But I haven't seen anyone from home, nobody. Just you.

why do you hurt me in this way X(

[hasitsthorns]

[ Thankfully, this Rose has had a year of intimacy and affection to soften her. The sudden grab isn't met with a visceral fight or die retaliation; it is, however, addressed with a good dose of surprise. Perhaps too much for someone that should recognize him.

It doesn't seem as if he notices though considering he draws in closer and drops his head to face to her shoulder. She doesn't stiffen under his hold but also doesn't reciprocate just yet. An awkward in-between as her thoughts race. Her mind is trying to piece together what he's said in this whirlwind of a one-sided reunion. A lot of 'fuck' but also- Miss Rosie? In what universe would she have ever been called a 'Miss?' (Missus, eventually but even Knox isn't from that far ahead. And that's even more implausible than 'Miss' so it's probably for the best.) ]

I, uhm. [ Funny, maybe, that all she can think is Fuck herself.

What does she say? This is one situation she can't possibly lie her way out of. Tempting as it is, she'd be caught before it was even worth it to lie in the first place. ] I'm sorry, [ she starts, because she truly is. This poor boy and all his misplaced relief that she's about to strip away with a single statement of, ] I think you have the wrong person.

[ The words feel heavy, even to her. Whoever she was to him in another world, she already wishes she could remember. Wishes she were her instead of the Rose before him. He called her 'Rosie,' a nickname reserved for friends. Family, even, but she's not Miss or Rosie or anyone to him. ]

I'm Rose, but I don't... think we've met. I mean, I'd definitely remember you. [ Hottie alert, etc. ] I'm. I'm so sorry, dude.

iii

[fiachdubh]

[ Ronan still has a very strong dislike for any kind of communicating device, even if it's his fucking raven, but he has to ask when he sees the message, commanding Chainsawd to give him the keyboard. ]

why do you have 8 fucking dogs

[hasitsthorns]

why the fuck not

[ Seems like reasonable logic to her. ]

ii. apollo meets the giant butterfly

[lacquers]

[ Magnus is going to run into Rose in the least predictable of ways. That is, not at all. Not really.

Okay, back up. Let's say he's exploring a little. And letting his new friend, Anned the bird-sized monarch butterfly, do some advance scouting. And Anned (say that fast five times) the giant monarch butterfly might be just the thing to catch Apollo's eye. She's brightly-colored and fluttering around like some of the fairies... makes sense, right?

Either way, Rose will no doubt see Anned before she sees Magnus.

Or hear her first, as the case may be: ] I'm not a dog toy! [ says a high-pitched and vaguely feminine voice. If an insect could talk and it weren't in a Disney movie, that's what Anned sounds like. As soon as she announces this, there's some shuffling of branches off to the side and, very shortly, Magnus will appear.

Looking immaculate as ever, of course. How does he do that? ]

[hasitsthorns]

[ Apollo - or Apollod, in this case, but she's not calling him that - is definitely distracted by the colorful, flitting insect. He dashes off because Rose can see what's gotten his attention this time. She actually hears it before anything, brows furrowing at the tiny shout. The blond breaks through the underbrush herself to see the scene unfolding. Apollod looks as apologetic as a dog can before panting out an, ]

Apologies. I could not help myself. [ He's a lot more eloquent than she'd ever actually pictured Apollo, honestly, but she's getting used to it. Speaking of eloquent, her eyes cast up now at the person coming into view and- ]

Magnus? [ she asks, despite herself. Is this her Magnus? After the Caleb that was not her Caleb, she's definitely wary of multiversal imposters. ]

3

[healingdork]

Hey, Rose. I'm recording through a cat. Weird, huh.

[hasitsthorns]

[ Ah, there's a winning grin if he ever saw one. ]

Will! You made it too! Awesome. It's like a Eudio reunion party up in here, pretty cool.

[ But wait. The blond can't help but pull a face at the mention of 'cat.' ]

Your daemon's a cat? It's like I don't even know you.

I

[cantseame]

Already on it! [Calls a voice from overhead, if she isn't quick she might get a little splash from Farraige riding a conjured wave. The water vanishes with a wave of his staff when he slows for a landing, coming to a running stop when he hits the sand, looking over the wreckage before him.]

Prioritize the most injured first, I've already seen a few people who need my aid first. If you have to move anything, be careful. We can't risk more harm coming to someone.

[He hopes she'll forgive the lack of courtesy or greeting. He's happy to see her, but he'll be happy to talk with her more when there's less critical things to worry about.]

[hasitsthorns]

[ Rose definitely flinches away from the splash of water just in time, but-!!

She knows that voice. In the midst of chaos, it's an absolutely elating thing to hear. He's absolutely someone she wanted to see. But he's right in his priorities, there's definitely bigger things to worry about than reuniting in a new world right now. ]

You got it, dude! [ Rose had been fully prepared to take the helm but admits she falls into a following role a bit easier. She does as she's instructed quickly seeking out those that need help (or a dog to cuddle because talk about a stressful situation) and it doesn't take long before it seems like the worst of it is over.

Thankfully, the crash didn't appear to be fatal to anyone that she can see. ]