sodder: (Default)
Sodder ([personal profile] sodder) wrote in [community profile] soddersays2020-03-25 05:21 pm
Entry tags:

APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME




APRIL 2020 TEST DRIVE MEME









Welcome to April's Test Drive Meme! This month's Test Drive's theme is: ENCHANTMENT 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: Enchanted food, possible body horror, mild finger injuries, magic based mind control, rapid aging, possible death
Don't forget to tag content whenever necessary. Have fun!











YOU UNCULTURED SWINE


Pork is on sale!! Time to buy it up for all your family meals. It also means anything with pork in it in all of the restaurants is on special and super affordable for just about anyone. New arrivals can even get a free meal of bacon, sausage and eggs at the diner! Seeing all the low prices, you find yourself craving pork more than ever. But who doesn't love bacon, right? Maybe you had ham and pineapple pizza at Peter's or those delicious and mouthwatering pork dumplings at the Hot Pot. You could have cooked a nice pork loin with your friends and family for a large get together. Candied bacon is a real treat to munch on in the park!

You're cooking it yourself or getting it from the local restaurants, so nothing bad could happen with a little self-indulgence, right? Just about everyone has learned not to trust the food at a giant feast in Deerington, but short of the lunch and dinner menus at the diner, the restaurants and the grocery store have never done a Sleeper harm! At least, that's the way it's always been before. Two years is long enough to start taking things for granted.

Anyone who has any of the specials from the restaurants or who cooks any kind of pork related product at home will find that once they have finished their meal, they will slowly turn into... pigs. It seems to vary on how fast a single person turns, some moving slowly over the course of days while they eat more and more food, and others will turn into a full blown pig in a manner of minutes. At first you can still talk to others and display your usual personality in pig form, but the longer you stay a pig, the more boarish you'll become.

So how do you break the curse? Locals say there's a magic stream up on the mountain that will stop these kinds of enchantments, but you can't go alone. Someone will have to carry you up and sing to you while you drink. It might be a friend or a lover or a complete stranger, but whoever you can nudge into it will have to physically carry you in their arms up the side of the mountain looking for this stream. It can take a while— the walk is fairly long, a few hours at best, but you'll know it when you find it. The stream sparkles unnaturally in the sunlight and it seems like none of the animals are willing to drink from it's unnaturally cold waters. The moment you take a long sip while your companion sings whatever song pops into their head, you'll turn back into a human. Hopefully your clothes turn back with you.

If your character does not eat meat/pork, then they'll be safe from this event!


GOOD ENDURES


Mirror mirror on the wall...

The pork doesn't seem to be the only enchanted object around Deerington this month. There are several of them cropping up all over the place and each one has a different outcome for those unfortunate enough to run into them.

Spinning wheels seem to be in the most random of places. Some of them will even just appear in your house. Sometimes multiple spinning wheels show up. Anyone who gets to close will have the strong urge to prick their finger on the spindle, the needle very easily cutting the tip and making you bleed more than you might have expected. Hopefully you have a first aid kit around.

Anyone who pricks their finger will find that they are forced to follow the next person they see around everywhere. They'll follow them to work, to school, to the bathroom, to the kitchen, even to bed. It doesn't matter if it's someone you've never spoken to in your life, you will follow them like a lost duckling every hour of every day. It's enough to drive anyone bonkers.

Mirrors will also suddenly be being displayed in every home and every shop, even if you never had them before. It doesn't matter whether or not you have a reflection, any person who looks into the mirror will find that they are forced to imitate the next person they make eye contact with. This can be their personality, their posture, the way they speak, their basic movements— you'll start to become a total mirror image. If it goes on too long, you might even start to find the two of you start to look more and more alike...

Apples start to pop up in all the stores as well as in your fridges. They're bright red and look so delicious, you can't resist taking a bite. Even if you don't like apples or are normally allergic to them, you'll want to eat these, and you'll find they taste delicious and don't bring harm to anyone. At least... not at first.

A few hours after eating the apple, you'll start to notice differences in your appearance. Your hair has start to thin and become gray and limp, your skin is wrinkled and covered in spots, your hands become frail and shaky. You're aging, and rapidly at that. Before you know it, you've turned into a hideous hag, one that would frighten children in any fairy tale book. But how do you reverse it?

The cure for all three enchantments is to tell three facts about yourself. Even just introducing yourself will show improvement if it's to someone who never knew your name before. Those who ate the apples will have to seek someone out, but anyone who pricked their finger or looked in a mirror will specifically have to confess these three facts to the person they're enchanted to follow/imitate. Once three facts have been shared, you'll be able to leave, return to normal, and age back to your regular self.



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.
finalrequest: (☁ winding through my head)

[personal profile] finalrequest 2020-03-26 03:22 am (UTC)(link)
[He takes in her general appearance.

The weapon is... unusual, but mostly it's the complete lack of covering that seems to throw him off, the fact that she's not in a big, heavy raincoat that covers her completely, like he is.]


You don't know what timefall is.

[It's said flatly, in a tone that makes it clear the idea is completely impossible to him.]

What do you mean you don't know what timefall is? It's been around a lot longer'n me, and I ain't exactly that young.

[This is the least helpful response ever, sorry.]
finaletea: (Smile 9)

[personal profile] finaletea 2020-03-26 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
You should be careful; this is a very dangerous place.

[ Mami pulls a handkerchief from her pocket and carefully ties it around the finger. ]

This should help. Sorry, I would heal it, but I might make it worse. This is the best I can do for now I'm afraid.

[ With a smile she offers the glove back. ]
yourule: (inquisitive)

robin buckley | tranger-say ings-thay

[personal profile] yourule 2020-03-26 03:35 am (UTC)(link)
wakey wakey, eggs and bakey! cw: drugs and nausea mention, body horror to come.

[ robin arrives in deerington, maine hung over and hungry. she's also firmly of the belief that this is more than a mere dream -- it's a drug-induced hallucination, concocted by the evil, secretive russians working underneath her flashy midwestern mall. robin's starting to doubt that she even made it out of that base -- maybe she never had that talk with steve, maybe she never helped bring down that big, slimy tentacle-thing. maybe the drug is still in her system.

but she's gotta keep calm and think rationally. and what do you do to cure a hangover? have some breakfast. even better when it's free!

so robin, still in her now-dirty scoops ahoy uniform, scarfs down one of the free bacon-and-egg breakfasts from the diner. shortly after that, her stomach starts to gurgle, and practically distend. robin feels a roll of nausea and turns to the person sitting next to her. ]


Hey -- uh -- what's in this? I don't feel too good.

network; un: robin

hey if you see a guy with big hair or any evil russians could you let me know? thanks
Edited 2020-03-26 03:41 (UTC)
holybeasts: (059)

[personal profile] holybeasts 2020-03-26 03:38 am (UTC)(link)
[The noise definitely does it's job. In the midst of the other woman's noisy juggling Maria looks back over her shoulder, fingers still pressed into her cheeks and gaze curious.

Once the other woman seems to have the lamp somewhat under control -- or at least not in pieces on the ground -- Maria gives her a grin. It's sure not the smile of anyone embarrassed to be caught prodding their face in a mirror though.]


Good job!
finaletea: (Smile 10)

[personal profile] finaletea 2020-03-26 03:44 am (UTC)(link)
Ah you're right; sorry for not introducing myself. I'm Mami Tomoe. It's nice to meet you, Tsukino-san.

[ She smiles and politely bows her head. ]

You probably have a lot of questions about this place. I can help as much as possible.
zunesareawesome: (Happy - right?)

[personal profile] zunesareawesome 2020-03-26 03:46 am (UTC)(link)
Sounds like a plan to me!

...note to self, never eat anything here that taste good ever again. That sucks.

[He points a hoof towards the diner.]

Got some free breakfast over there. Weirdly enough, I ate eggs too and I didn't turn into a chicken...

...before it's too late. Right. I'm Peter Quill. People call me Star-Lord? Peter's cool, too.
yourule: (Default)

ii

[personal profile] yourule 2020-03-26 03:47 am (UTC)(link)
[ all it took was one free breakfast for robin to go full porker, with the little tail and everything. robin, to her credit, is a pretty good-natured pig. after all, this is just part of the russian-induced hallucination, right? it's not real.

plus, wow, doesn't this girl seem nice and friendly! pig-robin moves closer to her and gives a content oink. ]
zunesareawesome: (Hurt - pained look)

[personal profile] zunesareawesome 2020-03-26 03:49 am (UTC)(link)
[Awesome! She just went with it, which is so much easier than having to wait for people to catch up to the fact it's a thing, deal with it.]

Nope. Just human ones. [There's a huff that sounds suspiciously like an oink.] I have no idea, so like...it just happened? I don't even know...I mean, I did get a free meal, maybe it was magically tainted or something?
finaletea: (Smile 6)

Swine

[personal profile] finaletea 2020-03-26 03:49 am (UTC)(link)
[ This month, Mami was almost tricked by the people of this town, but she knows better now. So much so, she's being very cautious about what's been going on around town. The pork is suspicious of course, but she can't really prove it. Yet.

Still, when she sees someone clearly new, she can't just sit by. Mami tries to be polite as possible she approaches to interrupt Marinette's first bite. ]


Hello there! Can you tell me where you got those pork buns?

[ They do smell really good tho... ]
incandescentfaith: (Dutiful)

[personal profile] incandescentfaith 2020-03-26 03:49 am (UTC)(link)
[Ah. It's easy to forget how perceptive Usagi can be sometimes. Never about academic things, only about people. Rei almost laughs, chiding herself internally for how she had forgotten this fact.]

...It's complicated. But, the short version is no.

[Just to answer the question, and...so she can continue.]

This place is a dream, as Sodder says in the note. I have not met her personally. The deer are just that, deer. Animals. They're the only native beings in this dream that you should trust. The locals may seem friendly, but that's a lie. A trap.

[She rounds a street, turning down deeper into Dunwich Hollow.]

I'm...very serious about that. Those people are basically a death cult.
thighzits: (hey little girl)

[personal profile] thighzits 2020-03-26 03:59 am (UTC)(link)
Wh- I'm-

[Sorry about the blood you've definitely got on your hands now, Robin (and even sorrier about the other stuff). The second Syd's eyes flick down and catch the smears of red beneath the other girl's grip, she pulls sharply backwards, into the opening of a nearby alley. Hokey doo-wop is playing from a cracked back door, escaped from the roller rink inside, but the area looks otherwise abandoned.]

You didn't see me.

[She's already turning away from Robin, scrubbing at her arms uselessly, as though blood could clean off blood.]
holybeasts: (005)

[personal profile] holybeasts 2020-03-26 04:01 am (UTC)(link)
[When the handkerchief comes out Maria almost begins to protest. She can call on Genbu after all and usually for such a little thing she wouldn't even bother with that much honestly.

Then Mami mentions healing it and 'making it worse'. And that strikes a weird little chord of something inside Maria. She wouldn't call it fear exactly but it's -- indescribable?

Her brow furrows some, her look obviously confused as she takes the offered glove.]


How would healing make it worse?
micycle: (red light spells danger)

network.

[personal profile] micycle 2020-03-26 04:02 am (UTC)(link)
how big are we talking

[Hair? Russians? Robin? He's connecting the dots.]
finaletea: (Hm?)

[personal profile] finaletea 2020-03-26 04:04 am (UTC)(link)
[ Mami catches the look and shakes her head a little. ]

If you have an powers here, they may not work correctly. I don't honestly know why, but it can be dangerous. While I can still heal a little... I tend to cause more pain to people because of it. So I don't want to possibly make it worse for something so small.
laruetheday: (what a stupid age i am!)

[personal profile] laruetheday 2020-03-26 04:14 am (UTC)(link)
[ She waits a second, then begins to follow the other girl down the sidewalk again. Clarisse tells herself it's just to piss her off, and it's partly that for sure—mostly that, even—but there's this weird feeling, too. Like she has to be there, just a couple feet behind, or... she doesn't know. Something bad, maybe. ]

What the fuck. [ It's barely above a whisper, frustrated and on edge, and Clarisse rubs anxiously at her face with one hand. Like she can wipe the weirdness off of herself. ]
yourule: (smug)

[personal profile] yourule 2020-03-26 04:15 am (UTC)(link)
HUGE. think farrah fawcett
littlelesshelpless: (hello darkness etc etc)

[personal profile] littlelesshelpless 2020-03-26 04:19 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah. Y-Yeah. [Bella allows the woman to take her hand, trying to focus on the soothing words, rather than the panic or the dull throb of pain from her hand. She looks down, frowning against the wave of nausea at all the blood, then lifts her chin, swallowing tightly.]

Sort of dumb, huh? All this, and it's...it's the sight of blood I'm freaked out by. I'm sorry. Um, thank you.
littlelesshelpless: (love that journey for u)

[personal profile] littlelesshelpless 2020-03-26 04:21 am (UTC)(link)
[There's a quick, shy grin that's quickly hidden as Bella ducks her head. She'd been expecting -- maybe teasing? That's what she'd gotten used to, well-meaning, but still with a kernel of annoyance.] Me too. I trip going up the stairs. And down. And...probably while just thinking about stairs.

I'm okay, I swear. [A moments hesitation, taking in the other girl's cute hair, her big eyes, her smile.] It's...probably good to have a hard head. Built-in helmet?
littlelesshelpless: (did someone say mothman)

[personal profile] littlelesshelpless 2020-03-26 04:23 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah? They don't...bite or anything, right? [She means it as a joke. Probably. She does give the retreating Betty a quick sideways look, unconsciously tugging her sleeves down a little.] Or...bring over poison casseroles or something?
lightthedarkness: (Usagi) (It has to be more than that)

[personal profile] lightthedarkness 2020-03-26 04:24 am (UTC)(link)
Oh, you can call me Usagi, Mami-chan!

This place is just... really confusing. I'm not sure what to make of all of it. We're dreaming but there's pain and we have to eat but it's only our... sorry, I'm sure you get asked stuff like this dozens of times. Or... actually I don't know? How many people show up here? This whole arrival thing seems like it happens a lot.
littlelesshelpless: (:3 uwu)

[personal profile] littlelesshelpless 2020-03-26 04:25 am (UTC)(link)
[Oh no, cute. It's like a...less fuzzy dog? Bella likes dogs. She likes animals in general. She'll crouch on her heels for a moment before her natural lack of balance has her wobbling forward onto her knees and well, RIP the knees of her jeans, apparently.

Still, she holds out a hand, beckoning the pig closer.
] Hey. C'mere. Can I -- pet you? Are you supposed to pet pigs?
micycle: (danger zone)

[personal profile] micycle 2020-03-26 04:25 am (UTC)(link)
[He replies with a somewhat blurry, candid photo: Steve Harrington standing at the stove of their house on Castle Road, one hand on his hip, stirring a pot of macaroni.]

?
laruetheday: (i told you not to conjure anything!)

wakey wakey

[personal profile] laruetheday 2020-03-26 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
[ Clarisse normally wouldn't be so trusting of the free buffet, but until very recently she's been slumming it as a broke college student, and whatever, it's not like her job at the rec center pays that well. Free food is free food. She doesn't even really notice the girl sitting next to her, aside from the dumb uniform, until Robin actually turns and addresses her. Clarisse takes in the sickened look on her face and promptly drops the piece of bacon she was about to bite into. ]

I'm gonna take a wild guess and say nothing good. [ Of freakin' course not. Why should any of them get to enjoy a nice breakfast without getting poisoned or some shit? ]
acidwashjeans: (To be your lover again)

network, un: harrington

[personal profile] acidwashjeans 2020-03-26 04:37 am (UTC)(link)
[ steve has not put two and two together yet ]

no evil russians. some nice russians though. weird russians? definitely


how big hair are you talking? not too many guys with decent hair around here
lightthedarkness: (Usagi) (Will you be alright?)

[personal profile] lightthedarkness 2020-03-26 04:40 am (UTC)(link)
[She can turn cats into people and has "planetary powers" so yes, she just went with it.]

Ah geeze, we can't trust the food? [She frowned.] Okay so... maybe the place has the antidote! We'll just... go back there and ask if they know how to fix... this. [She gestured up to his ears and hooves.]