JANUARY 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

[sodder]

JANUARY 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to January's Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: OCEAN 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.

PLEASE NOTE FOR CHARACTER ARRIVALS: This month, all players can choose to have their characters wake up in the town of Deerington or on the Titanic.

CW: Ghost of a child, rotting corpses, drowning, hallucinations, paranoia
Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!

Prompt One
Prompt Two
Character Arrival
Master Navigation

WHERE FEET MAY FAIL

For those who were left behind in Deerington while everyone else was whisked away in the flood during the New Years Eve party, they will find that the town is a little more wet than usual. The streets are still flooded, houses are damp, and the chill of winter isn't making it easy to deal with. Your hands can feel like ice any day of the week and it's hard to focus with how badly you may find yourself trembling from the cold.

But it's almost preferable to the visions. They start off while you're sleeping; large sea monsters roaming the ocean, waiting to pull you down into the darkened depths; or maybe it's a strange, ghost looking girl with glowing eyes and tattered clothing, her skin blue and rotting the way a body does when it's been submerged in water for too long. She's calling out to you, beckoning you down, and all around her are the strung up, floating corpses of the people who were foolish enough to listen.

It's just a dream though, right? Slowly you start to see the girl around town. She's still calling to you, watching you, waiting for you. If you get too close, she'll even be able to grab onto you, pulling you down into the waterlogged streets, and into what you thought was only a puddle of water. It's as deep as an ocean, and just as dark and cold too. Someone near by can grab onto you before she can drag you under and the vision will disappear. If no one does, maybe if you're a strong swimmer, you'll be able to struggle free, but when you resurface, there will be a bruise forming on your arm in the shape of a hand – something to remind you that maybe these visions are a little more real than you gave them credit for.

The only way to stay safe is to travel in pairs. The girl seems to keep her distance when there's more than one person around, but it doesn't mean she won't try to find the means to separate you. Whether it's increasing the flooding in certain areas of the street or trying to distract one of you long enough to put some distance between you and your comrade, she'll do whatever it takes to try and grab onto whoever she can.

GHOST SHIP

Those who are on the boat might find that life is a little easier, depending on what class you've found yourself in. The struggles between first, second, and third are certainly rough on everyone, but many seem to find themselves thinking this is just the way of things. Maybe your mind has been altered to just accept the class differences or your memories completely rewritten and you think you've led a completely different life so far; either way, only a handful of passengers seem to fully understand that this isn't the way things are supposed to be.

There's nothing anyone can do to change things, though, and so many find themselves getting lost in day to day activities. Whether it's working on the ship, enjoying the finer foods in the first class dining halls, or enjoying the rowdy parties in third class storage after hours, everyone seems to be finding something to keep themselves occupied. As the days pass, even those who know full well what's coming seem to forget the looming doom, and you might even find yourself feeling lost in the monotony of day to day life.

But those who stare into the water too long, who look at the strange, large shapes swimming just under the surface might find a sense of dread filling them. The paranoia will shake you to your very core, leaving you with a sense that all is not right with this journey. You can try to tell people, but most will look at you as though you're insane. Eventually, your fear will become so heavy that you start to see destruction all around you. Whole sections of the ship will look flooded, rotting wood and rusted steel taking over every inch of the once proud ship, and every section is covered in algae. You might start to realize it looks uncannily like an old shipwreck.

The ship is still floating, though, and the coarse steady. So it's all in your head, right? Staying away from the water will make the visions and paranoia eventually ebb, but any glance at the floating shapes will cause it to come back tenfold. Maybe just stay inside and away from the ship's edge. It seems a lot safer that way.

Character Arrival

You can read how all characters arrive in Deerington here.

NOTE: Character's this month can wake up in Deerington or on the Titanic.

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.

Comments

OMG XD This is great

[1926]

[The odd feeling is shelved for now with that charming smile. Damn, usually she's the one laying on the charm. This gent wasn't one of her marks, so perhaps just enjoying his company for herself wasn't so wrong.]

You know, usually a gentleman introduces himself before asking a lady her name. [Her smile is coy.] Antoinette Crowley. And I would be honoured to learn.

[She set down her glass of wine on the nearby table and brushed her auburn curls behind her shoulders.]

innt? XD

[upper_management]

It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Crowley. [her name struck something in him. Perhaps the old saying, let them eat cake? She did remind him a bit of a French dilettante, but of course with shaved legs.]

I'm Richard Dickson. But you can call me Rich. [he offered her his hand] Shall we?

This is going to have wonderfully embarrassing fallout for both of them, if you app.

[1926]

[She took the hand and faced him fully, pivoting on the ball of her foot.]

Miss Crowley seems so formal. Most just call me "Ann". [Except one, but he's a special case. Odd little angel of a man who knows more than he should about her.] It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Rich. [She curtsies, then rests her other hand on his upper arm.]

I'll follow your lead.

When I app

[upper_management]

Ann. [he's pleased to do so as he leads her out onto the dance floor. Then a hand on the small of her back and he leads her into a waltz. He's perfect at it, but then, he's perfect at everything. He's built himself up to be spotless]

May I just ask, what is a lady like you doing in a place like this? Everyone here is diamonds and pearls, but you? You're a rare gem. In my country we would say: 'Yowza'.

[discocop]

[It's a good thing Kim keeps him steady, because he wobbles on his feet for a few seconds.]

So evening then?

[He burps. It is not a pleasant smell. He doesn't seem to care.]

When I "left" Martinaise, it was only about noon. We hadn't taken down the body, but we had barely even looked at it. I threw up. There were no "events of the day" to even discuss. Not yet.

[He gives Kim a look, certain that the detective will come to the conclusion himself. The timeline is all messed up. Costeau had heard as much from other people... other "sleepers". But here was proof.]

We're a long way from Revachol.

;w; Yay!

[1926]

[She won't tell him, but she's waltzed a time or two. He is impeccable at it and she's honestly impressed. Far better than she is.

Crowley steadily follows his lead, trying not to let the compliments flatter her too much. She's not here to get attached to someone, but he's making it too easy to enjoy his company so far.]

That's just it, I think. Back home, I'm forced to conform to a certain "diamond or pearl" but I've heard America allows for a more adventurous lady to find her own shape. What brought such a dashing gentleman to England? Business? Or pleasure, perhaps?

[upper_management]

Any shape you want. [a smile] Diamond. Pearl. Ruby with an inner fire. [and she did have one. A fire that both attracted and repulsed him. Something he couldn't put his finger on. But he knew to keep his friends close and enemies closer so it was a win-win as far as he was concerned]

Business, unfortunately. I represent the interests of a certain Mrs. Alföðr. Or Allesvater if you want to keep your tongue from twisting into a knot. [he laughed] She's a very wealthy widow with some business interests in the White Star Line, which is why I'm here. Especially since her son has decided to join some Bohemian commune somewhere. Artists. [he shook his head dolefully but it was obvious he was amused by this]

I'm grateful to her, though. I was born a lump of coal on the mean streets of St. Louis. Seven generations without a penny to their name. But I worked hard, caught her eye and under enormous amounts of pressure well-- [a grin] I'm still coal, but there may be something shining underneath.

Which is why, Ann. [he dipped his voice when he spoke her name, almost as if this was a more intimate conversation. Like the pour of wine or the whisper of silk] I think you'd do well in America. Land of anything you want to be so long as you work for it.

[pinballs]

[Kim blinks, looking surprised. The expression quickly fades, however, and is replaced by a look of concern.]

That early during the day? But that means...time in this world must be....

[He trails off, thinking back on the events that day--what Costeau knew versus what he knew, things that happened inbetween. Visiting the bookshop, rifling through various novels, trying to negotiate with that racist, so on and so forth. It could be that the detective suffered another bout of amnesia since then, but that seems highly unlikely.

Kim feels like this world could throw a giant lizard or cryptid at him and it wouldn't seem out of place with what it's already given him.]

We can ponder the anomalies of this world in more depth once we have more information. [And once his brain stops hurting trying to process all this.] How have you been dealing these past few weeks, then?

The Deck

[1926]

[First class, second class, third class? It didn't matter to him. The man in a black three piece suit and deep crimson silk shirt lightly rested a hand on the girl's shoulder, urging her away from the railing. The black glasses likely seemed an odd accessory choice for this late in the evening, but they were necessary.]

I wouldn't stand so close to the railing if I were you. It's beginning to look a touch creepy in that water. Lately, I've been expecting a mythical Kraken to wake from its sleep and swallow us all whole.

[If you asked him, you shouldn't challenge God by saying things like "unsinkable".]

[1926]

[Oh, there was something about him. He was damn near a snake charmer and she was entranced. The story of how he'd been forged into something more. It was enlightening. He may not say it outright, but she'd say he was far more of a finely cut diamond than he claimed. Maybe it was why she was finding him so interesting. She was quite the opposite. A noble who just wanted to enjoy the simpler things. Experience life for all it was worth instead of have things handed to you as long as you didn't question anything.]

I think most misunderstand coal. The struggle and time put into producing something beautiful from nothing is often overlooked.

[If she'd met this man in the past, Crowley would have considered him lowly because of his birthright. That's how Crowley had been expected to perceive the world. That's why she left that life behind.

She felt a shiver run up her spine when he lowered his voice. There was something too alluring about it and that feeling was back again. Like he was someone she should fear. She broke her gaze away, the angle probably showing a glimpse of her nearly amber-coloured eyes behind the lenses.]

I do hope you're right. But sometimes, it just feels like I'm running from inevitability. I'm expected to be something, and no matter how hard I try, I cannot escape it.

[upper_management]

[it felt like a compliment and he decided to take it as one. She wasn't wrong. He believed in hard work. The value of a job well done. He felt that shiver and saw those eyes and new that she was a rare breed of woman indeed. Even more dangerous and something stirred in him that he knew meant he had to keep an eye on her]

Trust me when I tell you that nothing could hold you down for long. You have the grace of an Amazon and the pride of a Queen. [the music ended but he wasn't quite done so he offered his arm] And I'm not ready to give you up yet. Fancy a stroll on the deck?

[1926]

[It most definitely was a compliment. Which was why even she was confused that she said it. She didn't make friends because she wasn't supposed to feel things for marks. Again, he wasn't a mark, but that didn't mean she should break her rule. She was very terrible at not sympathising for others but usually very good at pretending she didn't care.]

That's quite sweet of you to say. [Ezra was the only one who ever showed support for her potential, justified or not. Don't you dare compare them, dammit!

The music was over and the request posed. Crowley hesitated before taking the offer, far more gingerly than she had accepted the offer to dance. This was slowly spiralling dangerously out of her control.] I think fresh air would do a world of good. You're an exceptional dancer, I must say.

[upper_management]

It's the truth. I've got a knack for knowing people. Why do you think I was sent here?

[her arm around his, he lead her out on the deck. It was dark, of course, the night sky strewn with stars. Dark and cold. Freezing almost]

I learned that too. Mostly by watching. I told myself I would be the best dancer. When I was done? I was determined that everyone would think I'd been born in ballrooms. You should see me do a tango. [a wink]

[he went to the railing where the headwind, sweeping up from the water, sent even more chill their way, but her hair danced beautifully in the breeze]

So tell me about yourself? No wait. [he held up a hand] Tell me about the self that you most want to be.

[1926]

[Well, if that doesn't make her more uncomfortable right now, she'd be a liar. She made it a point to pretend she was something she wasn't. Or at least try to be something she isn't.

Despite herself, when the freezing air hit, she hunkered closer to him. She hated the cold. Something about it triggered an almost panic that she'd never been able to explain. How Ezra put up with her odd quirks was beyond her.]

The art of perception isn't something one sees commonly. I'm quite impressed. [It took a lot of restraint not to engage him in a future Tango. That was a dance more her speed, which was exactly why she would not take that bait.] From a waltz to a tango, I'm beginning to get the impression there isn't anything you can't do.

[That wind would be the death of her. It brought prickles to her skin and seemed to slow her thought processes more than should be normal.]

I want to be unhindered by titles. Nobility? Urchin? I want to be seen for what I can do, not what I'm expected to do. I'm told that thinking is quite too forward for a lady of my-- ngk. For a lady.

[She reached up, almost instinctively, to take off her glasses. It was habit for her when talking so candidly, but they were very akin to a barrier between herself and the world. She stopped and brushed her hair behind her ear instead.]

Why are you so interested? I can't truly be that interesting to someone who seems to be able to do whatever he likes when he puts his mind to it.

[upper_management]

[a lady in hiding then. Hiding from what he wondered. Or who. Maybe she was just trying to escape. But he had the feeling there was more there than what she let on.]

Oh there's plenty. For one thing I'm known for being an idiot enough to lead a lady out into the cold.

[he took off his jacket and settled it around her shoulders]

For another thing I have a problem with getting interesting people out of my head. There's something about you that's mysterious. Alluring even. But I don't know a thing about you.

So tell me... Just for curiosity's sake. [he gently takes her hand in his, ostensibly to warm it] What can you do?

A

[guardianofeden]

[Oh, something about that man just seemed...strangely familiar. But also. Strangely off. Why did the sight of that drink in his hand make him want to scoff? Why did he feel that strange combination of disgust, familiarity, fear, and admiration when he looked at him? Did he know him?

He didn't realize he was approaching him until his shadow fell over the man's paper and he barked up at him in that dismissive tone. Ezra flinched just slightly, a more irritated look then an offended one, but the confusion on his face greatly outweighed it all.]

I-I-...I'm sorry, but...I do believe we must have met somewhere before, and I can't for the life of me remember where. You weren't an associate of Mr. Thomas Norton of the Longman family, by any chance? Or...[Why did something about the man make him imagine the sounds of metal clashing against metal? Shouting and screaming, rifles firing across the battlefield?] You aren't a military man, are you?

[upper_management]

[This guy. For some reason Richard had been vaguely annoyed the moment that he saw him. He'd never met someone who looked so insufferably British. It was even more annoying being mistaken for someone else. He had the oddest suspicion that the man should know who he was. But that was ridiculous]

You must be mistaken. [he gave him the friendliest smile he could muster] I'm Richard Dickson. Rich. From St. Louis. The only war I've been to is in the betting hall in Fairmont.

In fact this is my first time across the pond. Granted I've been in London a few months, but I don't remember your face. [he did, but not that much. Like he'd seen a photograph or read it out of the paper]

[kintsugambol]

You're asking why I chose you when you're saying things like that?

[ red creeps into blake's cheeks, and she keeps her eyes firmly on yang's as she speaks. heat travels up her arm, but she stiffens, freezes. something scared you. her gaze detaches, unfocused, a vacant horror in her eyes now.

you're ghira belladonna's daughter. out alone in the streets at night. let me walk with you. you never know what monsters are out in the dark.

hello, my darling.

running away again? is that what you've become, my love? a coward?

you. will. but not before you suffer for your betrayal, my love.

... and as i set out upon this world and deliver the justice mankind so greatly deserves, i will make it my mission to destroy everything you love.

starting with her.

she can't breathe. her ears flatten almost painfully against her scalp, and the rest of what yang says—it might as well be rushing water. the sound of a waterfall fills her head along with a cruel voice that chills her to the core, and everything is red stained over black, a blade red with dust, another with blood, all wilting roses and a blue eye like a whirlpool dragging her down—

she knows that she's felt separate from her body before, when using her semblance. but this is something else entirely. the worst part is that it isn't unfamiliar. ]

[1926]

[Now that made her laugh. Unexpectedly and genuinely.] You, good -sir, are no idiot. Far from it, in fact. I've always had an aversion to the cold. Mum said I fell in a pond one winter as a child and it must've traumatised me. But this doesn't feel like trauma.

[Crowley pulled the jacket around her shoulders more tightly, sinking into the residual warmth of the previous wearer. It was comforting and that made it that much harder for he to be here right now.]

Mysterious and alluring are, perhaps, the most dangerous attributes to a woman, don't you think?

[He took her hand and it made her feel that much more guilty.] I can do almost anything I put my mind to, much like you. I'm too curious for my own good and I'm dangerous to be around. I shouldn't have accepted your offer to dance. [She stroked her thumb over the back of his fingers then pulled her hand away.] I don't want to hurt you, but you were far too intriguing to decline.

[She'd already decided she wouldn't tell her employer a word about this man. She enjoyed the work she did when she could direct it at lowlife jerks who deserved it. And though he sparked some kind of familiar fear in the back of her mind, he wasn't the kind of target she looked for.]

[lookattheglass]

It wasn't really anythin' at first, I'm not sure...

[That's a good point. When did he start seeing this stuff?

He lets go of his shoulder before leaning his hands on the railing.]

It was just little things, like I thought I saw somethin'? But not as bad as this...

[67_impala]

[He thought he was just tracking a vampire on the ship. But if the ship itself was starting to decay around them and no one noticed, or worse, something was making them see things that weren't real meant there might be more than just vampires on the ship.]

Look, I know you probably don't believe what you think you saw or you don't think I'll believe you, but you gotta gimme specifics. What all have you been seeing? I can help, but I need to know what we're dealing with first.

[Dean cast a glance over the edge, looking down at the water. Something he'd taken to avoiding since the last time he started seeing shapes in the water.]

[upper_management]

I think cunning and wit. [his smile didn't dampen a notch when she took her hand away. He let it fall and then shifted to seat himself upon the railing, feeling the open sky and endless sea at his back. A nervous chill went down his spine at the thought of all that water that he couldn't fight, but that was why he sat there.

She intrigued him. She was dangerous she said, and more than in just womanly wiles. Dangerous to be around. Able to hurt him. Why. How. What was she? Spy? Assassin? Thief? He told himself it didn't matter. That this wouldn't mean a thing to Mrs. Alföðr. But maybe that was why. It was something apart from her. Something for himself that didn't have to do with money or esteem or rising on the ladder of society one rung at a time.

This was just-- him.

And by Herself did he want to know.

Even if that would take time, he was good at the long game]

Everything is a risk. Life is a gamble and Death is always right around the corner. [with wings as black as the space between the stars] If you don't risk the pain, you don't get the reward.

And one risk I've been thinking of [he looked into her eyes, trying to see their strangeness through the glasses] is that I'd really like to kiss you.

No startings. No endings. Just two people sharing a single moment.

[lookattheglass]

The problem is I very much do believe what I just saw.

[But he's right, to figure any of this out, they needed facts.]

It was just little things at first. The water...like there were moving shapes. Thought they might be sharks. But the rot...

...the rot's new.

[A pause.]

Are you in law enforcement? Or a detective?

[1926]

[When she'd stopped at his side and replied to his comment, it had been a familiarity and the mystery behind it that drew her to him. His kindness and his intrigue kept her attention. That spike of danger she felt beside him wasn't enough to drive away her curiosity. It's fortunate she wasn't a feline, else the old adage might spell her death for her curiosity.

He gave her absolutely no reason to fear him, and yet she felt that same bright light from him that she did her dear Ezra. But this felt so much brighter. Blinding in comparison. As if she should burn standing this close to him.

The mention of Death gave her another chill, but this one wasn't due to the cold. Unbeknownst to her, a similar image flitted through her mind. Wings of a void, littered with flecks too dense to be stars.]

What if there's no reward to be had with this risk? Just disappointment and danger?

[Crowley lightly touched her fingertips to his jaw and her thumb against his chin, drew up onto the balls of her feet and placed a feather light kiss to his forehead. Not what he likely had been asking for, but it was the most she could give. It was possible, if he wasn't too distracted when she drew closer, he would've caught a glimpse of her strange amber eyes past the glasses.]

I wasn't entirely honest when I introduced myself. Crowley is my maiden name. I'm Antoinette Fell. I'm sorry for deceiving you. In my line of work, I don't often encounter someone so genuinely interesting. [She didn't have to tell her boss she encountered anyone tonight.]

[upper_management]

[he spreads his hands in a shrug] You can catch what you don't chase. [he didn't know if he expected the kiss or not, but definitely not what he received. It was almost tender. He was enchanted by it even as it made his stomach turn for some reason. He saw those eyes again and knew one day he'd have to take the glasses off to get a better look at them.

That she was married intrigued him further. And that she opened up about her mysterious work. He didn't ask. He could. But that would come later. When she trusted him a little more. Instead he just smiled at her]

Fell, you said? I think I've met him. Hope he treats you right. [and then he holds out a hand] Friends then?