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November 2018 Test Drive Meme

NOVEMBER 2018 TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to November's Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: WONDERLAND.

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.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to the nature of November's plot, character arrival prompts are unavailable in this month's Test Drive. Throughout each prompt, all characters will very clearly feel as though they are still stuck in a dream, and are working on a way to get out.

CW: Body horror (growth/shrinking), implied drugging, violence via swords and bludgeoning

Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!

Prompt One
Prompt Two
Prompt Three
Prompt Four
Master Navigation

BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING

The hallway you've ended up in is long and narrow, almost seeming to twirl in on itself as it spirals a long way out of sight. There's no means to go back the way you came - it's walled off now, somehow, though you're not sure when or how it happened - and so you realize if you want to leave, the best thing to do is just move forward. You walk along the checkered marble floor, the click and the clack of your shoes echoing off the twisted walls, the only sound in the whole place as you move.

You're almost convinced you're never going to find the end of this hallway, until you start to see a pinprick of light in the distance. Maybe you even pick up your pace when you start to see it. Regardless of whether you keep at an even walk or you sprint towards the light, you eventually get to the end of the hall. The ceiling has stretched up way out of sight at some point, but there's still a light shining down from somewhere, casting a large spotlight on the only two objects in the room: a fairly large dollhouse on the floor and a table with a cup filled with what looks like punch and a plate with a piece of cake on it. There's a sign, neatly handwritten in black ink: EAT ME! DRINK ME! At least it's to the point.

You can choose to ignore that sign, but as you observe the dollhouse, or the hall you're trapped in, there are two things that might persuade you into realizing it's your only option: 1) There's no door at the end of this hall in order to let you out of it, which means you're still as trapped as you were at the start. And 2) There is a door on the front of the dollhouse and if you squint, you can see a tiiiiiiny key stuck in the lock.

This all might be looking familiar to a fortunate few.

Eventually, you'll have to cave, or end up sitting there forever. Whether you choose the cake or the cup, the moment you swallow, you'll start to feel an uncomfortable ache through your whole body. Soon you can start to feel your bones caving in on themselves, your muscles tightening and shrinking, and your whole body might even start to feel like it's about to implode. It's agonizing - worthy of a scream or two as the magic works through your body, and you see the world starting to become bigger and bigger...

And all at once, it stops. The dollhouse now looks as big as a real house and that key? Is just the right size for your hand. You turn the key, push open the door, and enter into a grand foyer, brightly lit and covered in flowers and ribbons. On top of that? You're no longer alone - someone is in the room with you and they seem to have been stuck waiting for someone to help them explore the house.

TAKE SOME MORE TEA

Sometimes dreams just don't make sense. And this room seems to be the one that sticks out the most. You can see the ceiling, decorated with whimsical paintings and colorful chandeliers, and you can see the four walls, but the ground is definitely grass and dirt, and somehow there seems to be a fresh breeze blowing through, bringing in the crisp air of fall and the scent of burning leaves. Strange, since the grass is so green, strikingly so when compared to the white linen of the table cloth covering the expansive table in the center of the room, and there's not a fallen leaf to be seen anywhere.

There is, however, several place settings, several tea cups, and several tea pots. Your favorite treats are stacked high on the plates in front of you, smelling so fresh your mouth is watering already. It seems like a feast just for the two of you and your stomachs are starting to growl. Maybe sitting for a little while to rest and eat wouldn't be so bad, right? You notice name cards in front of each place setting and eventually, you find your own names, neatly printed in bold lettering. It's best to take a seat if you're going to dig in.

As you start to pile food onto your plate, you notice there's a card between the two of you, with a fun riddle printed out for you to solve:

I'm as small as an ant,
as big as a whale.
I'll approach like a breeze,
but can come like a gale.
By some I get hit,
but all have shown fear.
I'll dance to the music,
though I can't hear.
Of names I have many,
Of names I have one.
I'm as slow as a snail,
but from me you can't run.
What am I?

It might seem like fun and games, but you'll find that as you eat, your mind is getting a little foggier, and the words are blurry and harder to understand. You think it's time to go and you get up from your seat to do just that, but the door you came through - the only door in the room - is locked.

Chances are that riddle is your only means to get that door open. When you finally do solve it, a bright light will appear, and you'll need to stand in front of it, lining your shadow up with the handle, and miming turning it in order to get the door to open itself.

OFF WITH THEIR HEADS

The strategists might enjoy this next room when they open it; in front of you is a giant chessboard, one half of the board all set up and ready to go, and the other half of the board just missing a few pieces in order to get started. The Knight seems to have gone off to do his own thing and, much to the dismay of those around them, the Queen seems to have made herself scarce as well. But luckily for you both, there's two of you! And you seem to be just in time to take the place of these missing players.

Once you each settle into your chosen square, the game begins. It seems pretty tame at first - pawns moving to various pawns, and maybe one of you is taking charge and shouting for where each piece should go next. Best left to the Knight, likely, considering the strategy needed for that particular piece. And all is well and good and fun - until the first piece gets taken. Or, rather, not so much taken, as suddenly smashed to pieces by their opposition.

It doesn't take long to realize the same will happen to you if either of you are captured by your enemies. You have to rethink now, figure out the best strategy to not only win the game, but to make sure that neither of you ends up dead on the way there. You see the other Knight has a giant sword, one that seems to slice through the marble pieces around you like they're made of butter.

If you fail, you can try and dodge the blast, and you could also choose to run from the start; but there's a high chance the pieces will begin to revolt and come after you. You can either play the game or try and fight your way to the door. An interesting dilemma, considering that you're unarmed.

I AM NOT MYSELF, YOU SEE

This dollhouse is filled with tons of rooms, all of which seem to have their own unique flair, and sometimes they seem to be very much filled with the uniqueness of you. As you and your companion explore each door, you eventually start to open ones that seem to contain pieces of them or pieces of you put onto display. How is that possible? Well, you're not quite sure, but it certainly seems like they've managed.

Some of these rooms may hold memories playing out like strangely made stop-animation films; clay versions of yourself and anyone who was in the memory with you, mocked up to put your deepest secrets or your happiest moments into a visual reality. Other rooms may hold objects that relate to your very being - either physical items from home that were exceptionally important to you or metaphorical symbols of who you are as a person. A heart for loving, a stuffed lion (or a real lion, though you'd better hope it's friendly) for courage... All those stereotypical links people have created to show who they are over time.

There's no choice but to keep searching these rooms, though, learning more about yourself and your companion than either of you probably ever wanted to know - because eventually, one of those rooms? Is your ticket out. You'll know when you see it. A giant mirror will be leaning against the wall, the image fuzzy and rippled and not at all the reflection of the room around it. If you put your hand to it, it will sink right through. So long as you don't shy away in fear, you've finally found the end to this dream - or nightmare, as the case may be for some.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[The dollhouse's front door opens directly into what would be called an "open concept" ground floor in the real world. This means that the entry is technically in the kitchen area, but it's possible to see all the way through to the living room area as well.

It's in the latter that someone is artistically draped over the couch, forearm over his eyes. His black hair nearly hides ears that end in a definite point.

Don't get too excited. [His voice is somehow still arrogant, even if he's stuck inside a dollhouse, and accented with the unmistakable sound of Quebec French.] D'fucking stairway has a hatch. It's locked. I tried getting upstairs by going outside but all of the windows are just painted on.

[He removes his forearm from his eyes and looks over. He blinks and sits up.]

...Don't I know you?

Do you?

[Canadian. Alpha Flight. Doug's recognition comes more from the X-Men's files than any personal encounter. The New Mutants' interactions with Alpha Flight hadn't been lengthy. They might have spoken to each other all of one or two times.

Unless he's speaking of interactions with Douglock, a weird time in Warlock's history he hadn't been around for.]

...You're Northstar. I'm Cypher, formerly of the New Mutants.

[An odd person to run into here, for sure, but at least they're potentially from the same world. Only potentially, however, as the multiverse is very much a thing.]

An exit has to exist somewhere. Perhaps if we grew in here we'd be able to break the walls down. [He holds out the plate he still has in one hand.] Cake?

[Jean-Paul looks Doug over with a chilly, penetrating gaze. He nods once.]

Right. Seen you in photos. Guthrie and Rasputin and all of that. You were really young in them.

[He swings his legs around and puts them on the floor, pulling himself gracefully up to stand.]

You're the first person to recognise me. You have no idea how comforting that is, and not just because of my ego. I'm pretty sure in every other goddamn dimension I'm dead.

[He eyes the cake.] Or we break our necks on d'ceiling. In this place I wouldn't be surprised. But I suppose I don't have any other ideas besides "find something actually heavy to use as a battering ram." Everything seems to be... well. Plastic.

Oh! The lock is a combination lock. I dunno, there's some weird writing on the hatch that I can't read I thought might be a code but I have no idea about that shit.

Hey, I'm still younger than the others. I was dead for a while, you know.

[Not that this is a good thing, but Northstar's comment made him feel a bit like an old man.]

You've seen others that should recognize you but haven't?

[As soon as the other man mentions a combination lock Doug is setting the cake down on a very plastic table in order to go look at it. If he'd known it would have been as simple as a code he wouldn't even have suggested the other option.

He puts his ear to the lock, and it speaks to him as he turns the dial. A few clicks one way, then back, now the first way again. Five little turns it takes before the lock comes undone.]

Thanks for pointing this out.

Edited (Sorry, I couldn't help myself.) 2018-11-09 17:18 (UTC)

Don't worry, I'm still older than you. And join the resurrection club.

[He follows Doug to the hatch, speaking as he does so.] Ouais, I have. Several. It's... disconcerting.

[He watches with surprise as the lock snaps open under Doug's hands.]

...Chrisse. You did that easily. Guess we should go up. Here, I'll go first in case it's dangerous - I'm faster.

[He pushes past Doug and onto the second floor. He peers around and then waves the other up.]

Seems safe.

I just spoke its language. That's kinda what I do.

[Doug considers grabbing the cake he'd left behind on the table, but carrying that plate around everywhere they went would get awkward very quickly. Chances are that puzzle is over and there's little point in him carrying pieces of it with him. Eating it might not even make him large again at this point. What is size in a dream anyway?

He could argue that he would be better at reading signs of trouble, but that might be an insult to Northstar's skills. The Canadian is as good a choice for leading as any. Though him being faster could mean that Doug has less time to react and get out of the way of something the other man has already avoided.

Following, the blond peeks his head up over the stairs.]

My parents wouldn't let me have a dollhouse when I was a kid. Said it was for girls. And yet they let me take up dancing.

[Pretty much anything can be read as an insult by Northstar - he's cranky like that. He offers a hand up.]

Dancing, really? What kind?

There was a dollhouse in one of my foster homes. I played wit' it a few times wit' the girls. We were supposed to be playing house but I just had the stuffed bears attack it.

[The upstairs of the dollhouse is bright and cheery, but all the doors are closed. It's somehow ominous.]

Edited 2018-11-11 01:36 (UTC)

Ballet mostly, though Miss Hunter had us branch out sometimes. Most of us in the New Mutants went to her classes as part of our regular routine. It helped with focus and flexibility.

[Nowadays it isn't really part of the curriculum. He thought that was a shame during the short time he spent at the school teaching, but there were different activities for them to enjoy. Dancing was something you sought out. Most kids weren't going to waste their time.]

I just wanted one of the houses because they always seemed so detailed with fun little pieces to collect. Castle Grayskull only came with so many parts and didn't allow for as much customization. Ah...

[Doug crosses his arms as he examines the room himself.] We're still stuck.

That's actually a really good idea. Tough sell to a lot of teenage guys, though.

[He's thinking of several of his students who wouldn't dare be caught dancing in any form.]

This is true. Guess they figured little boys were more interested in the figures.

Hn. Unless they're not locked?

[He walks to the closest door and tries the knob. It rattles but does not turn. He shrugs and turns away, which is when the door swings open. Jean-Paul looks at Doug.]

Well. That's fucking creepy.

[Still, he looks inside. It's a bedroom, with a floral comforter on the bed.]

Hn.

From Alice in Wonderland to horror themed? Seems like a typical dream. More stream of thought than having any real meaning. Then again, this isn't at all a typical dream.

[Doug doesn't immediately step into the room, but glances to the other doors.]

Suppose they all work the same?

[That would only make sense. They'd have to be wary of jump scares and doorways into oblivion, but one of these might lead back out. Unless they're meant to stay here as dolls until some giant child comes along to play with them. That really would be a nightmare.]

Only one way to find out. ...wait, if this is Alice... what did SHE do to get out? [He rejoins Doug in the hall, trying to remember. He's never read the book, but he saw the Disney cartoon once.]

I mean, maybe there's something in one of these rooms that leads to... whatever comes next. Mice? Tea? I bet it's tea.

Alice? Oh she eats the cake and grows bigger which upsets her so much she starts crying and that floods the room. She only shrinks down in size again with the help of a fan - at least in the book - which we don't have. Also there's a whole thing with a mouse, various animals, and a caucus race... so suffice it to say I don't think we're in Wonderland anymore. At least for now.

[Honestly it would have been fun to get the chance to ask a mouse where his cat is in French, but he doubts that'll happen now. Missed opportunities.]

I don't think there was a dollhouse at all. If we end up at a tea party after this I wouldn't be surprised, though. Most people only remember a select few details from the story.

[He puts a thoughtful hand to his chin as Northstar rejoins him.]

What if we tried opening two different doors at the same time?

Oh. ...I never read it.

[It's quickly becoming apparent that Doug is a Smart Person who Jean-Paul should probably listen to. Probably.]

Worth a shot. [He walks to one and puts his hand on the knob. Once Doug has done the same, he nods.] Okay? One, two, t'ree!

[He opens the door. This time there is no resistance and it swings open to reveal a useless plastic bathroom. It's very pink.]

...well.

I think I found the Barbie doll equivalent of the rebellious teenager. Their room, anyway.

[Doug is staring into a room with gray carpet, black bedsheets on the bed and a poster on the wall of a young man screaming into a microphone that just says "POWER ROCK".]

This may actually be the most cliche thing I've ever seen.

[It doesn't provide them with an exit, though there is a cute bear on the bed with a plastic nose ring.]

[He snorts laughter.] Oh, wow. This is... I have no words.

'Power rock.' [Snickering.] My favourite style of music.

[He enters, though, and goes to the toy dresser to see if it opens. It does, and inside is a a piece of paper upon which is written, "That depends a good deal on where you want to get to."]

...okaaay.

[Doug pauses. It's such a basic phrase, answering a question they haven't asked out loud, but the wording is specific. A note like this adds to their riddle, and he can do riddles.]

"I don't much care where," says Alice. "as long as I get somewhere." So we've found the Cheshire Cat after all.

[Which isn't a huge help, unless the answer is simply to keep walking as the cat suggests. Keep walking and you're bound to get somewhere - unless there's walls blocking your way.]

Wonder how big this house is.

Edited 2018-11-12 02:57 (UTC)

How the crap do you KNOW that stuff?

[It's called 'reading', Jean-Paul.]

Well. This hall doesn't look very long, but I've no idea how many stories there are. Maybe there's an attic?

[He wanders back into said hall, opening another door. He leaps back in surprise when he does so.] GAH! [Inside is another bedroom, this one with a plastic bed upon which rests a skeleton. It isn't a human one, at least. Jean-Paul walks closer and peers at it.]

Uh. I think it's a rodent. ...did. Someone leave a hamster in here or somet'ing? Chrisse.

A mouse. Hamsters don't have long tails.

[Bones tell a tale on their own. Artists have been able to reconstruct whole faces from an intact skull. Doug's powers let him read the shape of these, see the form it would have left behind. Not that this helps much. He doesn't find one mouse any more familiar than the next.]

If we're still on the Alice and Wonderland theme, there were two mice in the book of any importance. One she met in the sea of her own tears, the other is the dormouse from the mad tea party.

[He turns to the other mutant with a shrug.]

I've read the book. Puzzles are a code, a language. Language is my specialty so my powers use that knowledge from my memory. In any case, both mice told stories. She would have met the dormouse after the cheshire cat if we're going in order, but order might not matter.

Might not. Or it's part of a plan we can't see yet. This whole town feels like that.

[Jean-Paul considers the mouse skeleton.]

What stories do they tell?

Well, the first mouse tells a long and sad tale that isn't very long at all. Alice imagines the words being in the shape of a mouse tail because she's watching the tail as he says it. It's basically a poem about a dog about to eat a mouse, just with fancier conversational wording. I can recite the whole thing if you want.

The dormouse tells a story about three girls who live in a treacle well, eat nothing but treacle, and draw pictures of things beginning with M.

[It's a decent amount to work with in either case, and it may only take the slightest additional discovery to figure out which mouse this is supposed to be - if either. If he has to go into other fairy tales they could be here all day.]

Non, I trust that you know it. If some sort of clue pops up in relation you'll see it, I have no doubt.

Hn.

[Jean-Paul gives the rest of the room a cursory glance, but sees nothing much of interest. Back in the hall, he studies the ceiling. There is indeed another hatch, this one with a small keyhole.]

Hn. Guess we need a key. ...should we look for M things? Maybe that's where they hid it?

Well, "mutant" starts with M. [He wags a finger briefly from himself to Northstar and back.] Hopefully this isn't the House of M.

[Doug hadn't been around for that particular incident, but there are very few records he can't gain access to if he wants.]

"Mouse" itself starts with M, as does mousetrap. Manor, manners, mirror, mirage, micro, memory, many, music, musical, melody, missing, morbid, monopoly, mystery, maintenance, malevolence...

[He can keep going. And he might, if he isn't stopped.]

Ugh, don't remind me.

...mirror? Isn't that the second book? Through the looking glass? There was one over the sink in the bathroom, maybe it opens up?

[He's already headed back that way, because speedsters aren't known for their patience. In the bathroom (with a very useless toilet) Jean-Paul studies the plastic mirror over the sink.

He hits it and that does nothing. He studies it, frowning, and then inspects the edges.]

Ah!

[He grabs one edge of the plastic film that is the mirror and peels it. Underneath is a drawing of the Dormouse done in the style of John Tenniel. Underneath it someone has written "mousetraps, memory, muchness."]

...Okay. Well. The mouse theme continues. Did this asshole of a character do anyt'ing besides sleep?

Well he was very big on treacle, as seen in his story about the three girls. He also attended the trial for the Knave of Hearts.

[He's way past feeling ridiculous at this point. They're wandering a doll house looking for Alice in Wonderland related clues just to get out. Though it feels far too real to be a dream it's a lot easier to put aside any sense of embarrassment when one can attribute everything to dream logic.

He holds out a hand for the note so he can look it over himself.]

He didn't like the fact that Alice grew large. I still have that cake downstairs unless the house has up and eaten it. Don't know if that will actually work. The riddle seems to be contained in this house so far.

What d'fuck is treacle?

[He hands the note over.]

May as well check downstairs anyway, since there isn't much up here.

[Once downstairs Jean-Paul goes to the kitchen and pokes around.]

There's a nice tea set in the cupboard but no treacle.