Sodder (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sodder) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
soddersays2018-09-30 12:01 am
sodder) wrote in soddersays2018-09-30 12:01 am
Entry tags:
October 2018 Test Drive Meme
OCTOBER 2018 TEST DRIVE MEME
Welcome to October’s Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: HALLOWEEN HORROR.
All Test Drive Memes contain at least one clue to the Deerington's upcoming in-game events for the month! Keep your eyes peeled! But...not literally.
Characters may die during TDMs, but you do not need to count it towards a game-canonical death unless you want to. Consider it a freebie. All TDMs can be considered game canon as TDMs introduce minor aspects about the world of Deerington that can be revisited by characters later on in the game. You may also use TDMs for your application writing sample as well as AC.
CW: Wet and rotting corpses/zombies, ghosts, violence, blood, knives, possessed dolls, options for underage drinking
Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!
IT’S JUST A BUNCH OF HOCUS POCUS
It’s not Halloween if you don’t make a trip to a cheesy haunted house. At least, that’s what everyone in Deerington likes to say. The old Victorian stands at the top of a hill, rickety and in desperate need of a new paint job. The yard and porch have been decorated with what you’d expect for your typical haunted house; fake spider webs spread across the overhang, painted foam grave markers with cheesy names like “Here lies Richard Cranium” and “BEWARE!!” in creepy letter etchings. You can see the blinking of variously timed strobe lights in some windows and the shadow of what you’re pretty sure is a full-sized doll standing in the window, meant to look like someone staring out at you. The rocking chair on the porch near the door has a skeleton with a bowl of candy in his lap, and a sign is propped up against the wall next to him.Well that sounds promising.
The first few rooms you enter are appropriately cheesy. There’s the silly burst of air that you hear just before a plastic figuring pops out of a poorly constructed coffin, the clicking sound of the machinery inside echoing in the room when it starts to pull back and the lid closes once again. There’s fog machines trying to give the appropriately spooky air, stuffed sheets shaped to look like dead bodies wrapped up laying in piles on the floor with fake blood staining the white fabric, black lighting to show off words scribbled on doors like “TURN BACK NOW” and “SOMETHING WICKED THIS WAY COMES.” Nothing you haven’t seen before. It might be even worse than things you’ve seen before, over the top cheesy, boring enough to give a yawn. Each door seems to open on its own so you don’t even have to touch the handles.
As you make your way through the next automatic door, the room you walk into is different than those before it. It’s a regular children’s room. A bed against the wall near the window, a dresser in the corner, a small desk with a chair. Nothing out of the ordinary, save for the lights not being on, and the strange flickering light in the closet. You step towards it, figuring you’re in for another jump scare, but the door doesn’t open. Whether you’re naturally the curious sort or not, something in the back of your mind makes you want to open the door and see what’s on the inside.
If you fight it and walk towards the next automatic door, you’ll find you’ve walked out to the backyard of the house, those same foam decorations and a dozen or more jack o’ lanterns lighting your way on a path back to the town.
If you choose to pull the door open, however, it’ll take you into yet another room, with a flickering television playing nothing but static. Once you step past the doors of the closet, they slam shut behind you and whoever else dared to enter. The doors won’t lock no matter what you do, no matter how strong the person shaking the handles or pushing against the wood may be. You realize you broke the one rule; you’ve touched something. But can things now really touch you?
The only light source in the whole room is that television and it’s not lighting up much inside the room around it. If you squint when the TV is at its brightest setting, you can just make out another door. Your exit, you hope. But as you make your way towards the door, the flickering suddenly stops, the TV steadily bright, a low humming noise coming from the screen, and suddenly the door seems several more feet away from you than it was a second ago. Before you can reach the door, there’s the sound of trickling water from behind you. If you choose to look back, you’ll see something coming out from the screen - a girl with soaked clothing and pale, rotted skin. She emerges fully from the glass and starts to move towards you. You know it’s best to start running for that door. If you stay and try to fight, you’ll find that no regular weapons work on her, though special weapons and powers that are effective against spirits will definitely do the trick. For those who don’t have any of these at their disposal, however, there is one more hope besides just trying to run; two old school VHS tape sit on the table near by, a fancy machine between them that is meant to copy one to the other. Work as a team and have one distract her while the other records, and you’ll find that she disappears as quickly as she flickered on the screen and the TV will return to static.
Regardless of what you choose before carrying on, the next room you come to as the door slams and locks behind you is entirely different. Brightly lit and filled with what seems like hundreds of porcelain dolls, it’s almost hard to tell where there could possibly be another exit hidden among the massive shelves. You can start to wind your way through them, but before long, you start to hear the sound of running feet, the jingling of bells, the swish of satin, and most eerily the sounds of children giggling - but there’s nothing that sounds save about them. Some of the dolls you saw on the last shelf seem like they’ve moved and are sitting in the corner or laying in a new position on a new shelf. Sometimes you swear you can see their heads turn to watch you pass, but it has to be a trick of the light, doesn’t it?
That is until one of those dolls runs by you, brandishing something shiny in their hands - something sharp. A knife, you realize too late, as it tries to slice at your legs and knock you down. You can kick them away and they’ll go flying, and when the porcelain smashes, the doll will scream in agony. You notice there’s blood pouring from the hole that formed, spreading quickly across the ground. The dolls are easy to kill, but are they really just dolls? You can take your time to contemplate that later, as now you have to fight your way through the violent and armed toys to reach the door at the end of the maze of shelves. Hopefully you can get out without too many severe injuries.
When (or if) you do manage to get to the next room, you seem to have a chance to take a breath and tend to any wounds. It’s decorated like the room of a small cottage, a large pot over the fireplace that isn’t lit, and several jars full of (possibly rotting) food and herbs on the shelves. You see a book on the stand in the center, latched shut and covered in dust. You can open it, if you want, but remember the warning you ignored that got you in trouble in the first place. It’s probably better to carry on to the next room.
If you do choose to open the book, though, there will be eerily glowing text lining the pages, the light will seem to poor out and fill the room, and you’ll be transported back out in front of the house.
Those who continued through the door will find themselves out in the backyard. Just like for those who got out sooner, there are dozens of jack o lanterns, but the graves don’t look like they’re made of foam this time. They’re real stone, engraved with real names and real dates this time. And the ground underneath them seems to be moving, like someone’s trying to crawl out of there. Better not to wait around. Soon as you start to move down the path, you’ll start to hear the sounds of groans as the undead start to crawl from their own graves, pulling themselves up through the dirt, and determined to get to the only food source they see - you. The zombies seem like they’re never ending, coming from every inch of the yard, but at least they’re just like normal zombies - completely incapable of being killed unless you cut off the head. There are shovels lying next to a few graves if you need a quick weapon, but there’s also still always the option to run as fast as you can up the stone path to the front of the house and back towards the street.
When you do finally manage to get back to the front, there’s a momentary blinding flash of light, disorienting anyone near it for a few seconds. When it finally fades, any leftover zombies chasing you have disappeared and the house looks like the same, cheesy haunted house you walked up to in the first place. If for some reason you decide to go and explore the backyard again, the grass will be back to normal, and the graves will all be replaced by cheaply painted foam once more.
Was that all in your head? Who knows. But maybe it’s best to just get out of here.
WE DID THE MASH
Somehow the street lamps have all been converted to oil based flames, the Authority are in witch hats, and every where you go there is music that seems to be playing from faintly glowing bats hanging upside down from telephone wires. The bats will open their mouths in succession, seeming somehow capable of producing the sounds of instruments and singers alike of popular Halloween songs.
Yards are decorated as thoroughly as the front of stores. Maybe you haven't bothered to decorate, but your neighbor sure has! Fake gravestones are propped up in yards, giant fake spiders in trees, and no matter where you walk, the ground seems covered in thick, rolling fog from machines. Or at least you hope it's coming from machines. Hell, you can't even find it in yourself to be too worried! Everyone around you is having way too good of a time! And God, there is food everywhere! Might as well grab a bite while you're out, huh?
It's tempting to break loose and dance. Jack-O-Lanterns absolutely crowd the streets. There's more than you can even begin to count, and all of them are lit all throughout the night. Even if you accidentally trip over some, they don't seem to catch fire to anything or go out! Some neighbors have camp fires set up with marshmallows to roast, while others have...are those broomsticks? Well that's kinda cool, you guess. Correction: it's really cool since you can actually pick one up and take it for a fly! Make sure to attach a little lamp to the front though because God knows it's dangerous flying at night. The brooms only work if you wear the appropriately provided hats, of course, but you can keep both the broom and hat indefinitely and have a readily available means of flight in Deerington after! Be forewarned though: the brooms are as easily broken as regular brooms and the hats easily blown away in the wind.
TRICK OR TREATS
At any of the events, especially the nighttime partying, you can find any number of the following treats (and their potential side effects):Donuts (Will make you deliriously happy. Everything is amazing to you. May cause a lot of affection. A lot of affection.)
Character Arrival
You can read how all characters arrive in Deerington here.There is not a collective "all these characters showed up at the exact same moment" occurrence in Deerington. Since characters fall asleep, die, or pass out at various times throughout all their worlds, it wouldn't make too much sense if they arrived in game all at the exact same time. There should be some discrepancy between character arrival, whether by a couple minutes, hours, or even days up to a week.
The players are entirely in control of how/when they want to play their characters arriving in Deerington. For TDMs, you can play it like your character has just arrived and that can be maintained as your game canon, or you can wait until game events for that moment. Or you don't need to acknowledge it at all. The flexibility for character allows a bit more of an organic feel to the character arrival situation, so please play it to whatever feels right for you.
If you are interested in having an "arrival" introduction for one of your TDM prompts, you are more than welcome to explore that option.
no subject
Venom frowns in answer to Blake's suggestion, despite Eddie's probing curiosity at the idea.
It's not gonna kill you, buddy. ]
AND WHY WOULD WE WANT TO FEEL LIKE THAT. HE FEELS ENOUGH LIKE THAT FOR THE BOTH OF US.
[ Just eat the apple. It's not Snow White, he's not an evil queen, it's just an apple. ]
YOU DO KNOW THAT'S A HUMAN STORY, RIGHT? WE DON'T CARE ABOUT YOUR SILLY FAIRY TALES.
FINE. GIVE US THE STUPID APPLE.
[ And with that, he grabs the whole thing with a clawed hand and swallows it whole, crunching and slurping. ]
no subject
[ How do you know he's not an evil queen, Eddie? Hmmmmm? ]Nice.
[ Said with the utmost glee. He cannot believe that just happened, honestly. Literally one of the most amazing things he's ever seen (according to the donuts). He is, of course, going to question his sanity over all of this later, but for now, he'll bask in the glow of having successfully drugged an alien. Hello, bucket list update! ]
So, how was it?
no subject
GOOD. NOT LIKE CHOCOLATE, OR BRAINS, BUT GOOD.
[ A beat, considering it further, then: ]
WE LIKE THE CRUNCH, IT'S LIKE BONES BUT TASTES BETTER. AND STICKY, LIKE A CLOT BUT SWEET. WE LIKE SWEET.
no subject
You like chocolate? [ He grins and hates himself for it. Dude was just talking about sweet clots and here you are chit-chatting about chocolate. ] That's really neat. Chocolate's my favorite kinda candy if I'm gonna have some. Dark chocolate.
How 'bout your friend? Can I talk to him again?
[ He's curious how the apple's treating Eddie. ]
no subject
[ Blake asks to talk to Eddie again, and Venom kind of huffs, a rumbling, almost purring kind of sound, before retreating. Viscous black goo retreats in a series of fluid movements, revealing Eddie's head first before seeping through skin and fabric, ending with a lingering, twisting tendril wrapped around his wrist before that finally sinks into skin too. ]
That is always such a neat feeling. Like being hugged by warm slime, but it's firmer. And more reassuring, like hot chocolate on a really cold day.
[ A beat, a moment to just kind of bask in it before he shifts his attention to Blake, only it's sharper now. More focused, but less too. He grins, roguish and warm. ]
You have nice eyes. They're kind and stern at the same time, it works. And you've got that kind of...bad ass, take charge thing going on? I'm sure a lot of people get really into that.
no subject
[ Oh, gosh. Oh, no. He wasn't expecting that. He laughs, a little tongue-in-cheek, his head shaking back and forth. Blake's never been the kind of person to be all that good at taking compliments already, but the food makes him that much more off-guard. He's trying to recover, hand scrubbing at the back of his neck. He thinks it's dark enough that it won't be so obvious how red he's turned right up to his ears. ]
That's the apple talkin'. [ Yikes, don't make it awkward, Blake. ] No, um... Thanks. That's cool of you to say. Wasn't anglin' for that, but...
no subject
[ He doesn't know, it was there on the tip of his tongue and while he would have swallowed it back down normally -- he's still stuck on Anne, for one, for another he's not generally the type to give rambling and strange compliments unsolicited -- there was no holding onto it. No swallowing. It was there on his tongue then out of his mouth, and there's Venom, snickering at him in the background.
He raises his hands to scrub them through his hair, mussing it then smoothing it down and then rubbing at his face, unease and self-consciousness warring in light of Blake's discomfort and Venom's teasing. ]
So what were you angling for?
no subject
[ He'll maybe note later that he did kind of give a warning, but it was potentially wrong of him to suggest the apple at all since he's really only gotten a vague idea about it from other people; he's not tried one for himself. ]
The last person I talked to said they thought I made good pancakes and the person before that said the same about coffee, so...
[ Nothing quite so poetic as going on about his eyes. ]
Sorry. [ He's not able to feel too bad about it now, but he will later when the donuts wear off and he doesn't feel so giddy. ] Made me feel good. Dunno how 'take charge' I am, though.
no subject
[ He grins, the expression a complete challenge, but he wouldn't blame Blake for refusing. He doesn't feel particularly bad for the overshare, but he can certainly appreciate that normally he'd feel differently. That other people might feel differently. ]
Good. That's what compliments are supposed to do. As for taking charge...
[ He shrugs. ]
Maybe it's something you still have to figure out.
no subject
Maybe it's somethin' I used to be and I'm just not anymore.
[ He hardly means 'maybe,' but he's too happy to really worry about that. It's been a long, hard couple of years. Not that it probably holds much of a candle to being oozed by Slimer, but hey.
Grabbing up another apple, he glances between it and Eddie, an eyebrow raised. ]
You really think this is gonna be fair?
no subject
Nah, if you were that way once, it's still there. Just gotta figure it out.
[ Eddie reaches for another cup of hot chocolate, sipping at it as Blake picks up the apple. ]
Why wouldn't it be? I dare you.
no subject
We're all going to regret this.
[ But he can't help laughing. Literally. Because he's 50% high on donuts and 50% nervous he's gone too far. What's with that happening so much lately? It's self-destructive in a different way, like he's taking steps to actively ask people to assassinate his character.
Munch munch, it's going to take him a while to eat the damn thing, so he's talking around it for the minute he's waiting for it to kick in. ]
So, what d'you do? He didn't say.
no subject
Investigative reporter. Had my own show and everything.
[ Case in point, not that he really has much in the way of regrets about it. Getting Annie fired, sure, but asking the questions he wanted to about Drake, and ultimately where everything ended up? No regrets. ]
no subject
So you like gettin' to the truth, huh? Makes sense.
[ Strangely enough, if Eddie's motivations are that of a true investigative reporter — the objective truth — then he could see why a guy might accept some kind of deal; it doesn't seem like there's much kept secret between Eddie and Venom. ]
I'm into that. [ Oh god, it's already starting. Blake is probably going to have to lean into this to save any face. ] What kinda stories?
no subject
All kinds of stuff. Corrupt officials, unsolved cases, shady corporations.
no subject
Bet that makes you a lotta friends. [ Especially in those particular topics. For a guy that's interested in making waves himself, he can appreciate that. ] You've got a roguish edge. Bet you ride a motorcycle, too.
[ It's actually the footwear — the wear of the footwear, in fact — that leads him to that conclusion, but Brock doesn't need to know that. ]
no subject
[ The donut inspires a bloom of warmth in his gut and down his arms, has the symbiote seeping out to wrap a tendril around his forearm, smaller tendrils branching out like fingers to secure the connection. He takes another sip of the hot chocolate in his other hand before answering, grinning widely, and more than a little self-deprecating. ]
I think most people would call it reckless, but I'll take roguish. I do, yeah, how'd you know?
no subject
[ Said cheekily. Not to prey upon Eddie or anything, but you can't tell a guy like Blake you're into solving complicated conundrums and then brashly ask for the answer. Nope, buddy, you're not getting the satisfaction. ]
You work a lot? Like even when you're not workin'? [ Blake waves a hand, already deciding he's right. ] Same thing with me. Bit of an obsessive workaholic type. Makes for a good roommate, right?
Or- No. [ He hesitates, raises an eyebrow. ] What? Girlfriend? [ And then, as he watches Venom acting out, he smirks, but not unkindly, and adds: ] Ex. Recent?
[ Educated guesses, mostly because of the attire, grooming, and Brock's possessive friend, but also a little because John just gets how people work. Not himself, of course, but plenty of others. ]
no subject
[ It's a decent deflection. ...okay, maybe not the smoothest, but it's the best he's got. ]
Ex-fiancee, actually. Pretty recent, yeah. Got her fired following a story.
[ He looks pretty chagrined about it, but what's done is done. Or something. ]
So excited to see your reserve!!!
That's really rough, man, sorry to hear it.
[ Eddie seems like a nice enough guy, but Blake's got no trouble imagining a person's career getting in the way of a decent relationship, especially when it's the kind of job that's in the public eye. ]
What d'you like to do to cope? You race? Man, if we had bikes here... [ Hngh. ] That'd be hot.
/rolls around in excited anticipation
The second half requires more of a response anyway, even if it's a self-conscious chuckle with a darker, more rumbling one in the back of his mind and a curious mental probing as Venom tries to find context.
WHAT DOES HE MEAN BY 'HOT'. I DON'T THINK MOTORCYCLES ARE PARTICULARLY HIGH-TEMPERATURED UNLESS YOU'RE STICKING YOUR FINGERS IN THE ENGINE. ]
That's not...
[ He sighs, and rubs the back of his neck, trying not to come across as more of a weirdo having this discussion with Venom.
He'd rather not be having this discussion with Venom in public, honestly. ]
I don't think he means literally, buddy.
[ THEN HOW DOES HE...? ...OH. HE MEANS PHYSICALLY STIMULATING. LIKE WHEN-- ]
Stop. Just stop. Yes.
[ YOU'RE BLUSHING. ARE YOU EMBARRASSED? IT'S PERFECTLY NATURAL, EDDIE, ALL SPECIES-- ]
Stop. I'm not having this conversation with you right now, so shut up.
[ A beat, a (meant-to-be) calming breath, then he continues. Trying incredibly hard not to give off any more vibes of embarrassment. ]
Not necessarily race, but a ride's a good way to blow off steam, yeah.
no subject
Oh, you look like you'd be great at blowin' off a little steam.
[ They're doing innuendo, right? No, wait, probably not, he totally just got out of a thing and no. Just no. (But he knows for a fact people who ride bikes have pretty good hip action...) ]
Don't take offense if I think you need a little convincing. It's cute for a little while, I'm sure.
So, what's fun? Dancing? Drinks?
no subject
Hey, you gotta convince, convince away. Right? Haven't really had a whole lot of time with. Everything. But yeah, uh. Dancing, drinks. Movie night. You know, the usual.
no subject
[ He's not a connoisseur of any kind and often his television would goes days without John bothering. It's a symptom of his upbringing — sharing with dozens of other boys meant no one got to watch what they wanted — but he can be convinced. Usually because it's more about spending time with a person than necessarily enjoying what he was seeing on screen.
Nibbling at the apple, he tries not to feel too much like a predator as he watches Eddie trying to brush it all off. ]
no subject
WE LIKE HIM, EDDIE. ]
You're only saying that because he's talking about popcorn and candy. Greedy little gremlin.
[ Venom chuckles, practically a purr; it knows better than to assume it's an insult, not with the warm flush from the donut.
YOU LIKE HIM TOO OR ELSE YOU WOULDN'T BE ENCOURAGING HIM. ]
Beers, blanket, and whatever. Absolutely.
[ TOLD YOU. ]
Shut up. We'll talk about it later.
(no subject)
I am enjoying this thread ENTIRELY too much
SAME! I don't know who to feel worse for...
right??
If you ever want to meme, hmu!!
absolutely! I'm super down!
Let's do it!!! What's easy for you? Discord? PM?
discord works! I'm kaos#9890
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)