TEST DRIVE: NOVMEMEBER (get it because it's a meme)

[rysligmods]

TEST DRIVE

Welcome to Ryslig's test drive meme! If you're considering apping here, this is where you can try your characters out in the game's setting. A few things to note:

• You can only app ONE character per round so choose wisely.
• We now have a Quick Game Facts that simplifies the basic information about the game. Good if you want to see what the game is at a glance!
• Ryslig's FAQ is located here, so please take a look if you have questions.
• The reserve date is 11/27.
• Test drive meme threads can be used for your roleplay sample!
• Players with characters already in the game can earn up to a maximum of 6 coins by replying to potential character threads! You cannot use this to go over the bonus 20 coins per month total, but you can use it to reach that coin total. Same rules as normal bonuses apply.

Sample scenarios:

SCENARIO ONE: So you've just arrived, fresh out of the hospital, and already the natives are trying to get on your good side. Offers of food, shelter and other luxuries in return for hoping you don't eat them. They even have some helpful pamphlets to share with you. "How To Deal With Changes", "Alternatives to Human Flesh", "What to Expect When You're Expecting (to turn into a monster)" are all great pamphlets. There's even some detailing certain monsters, and the changes they go through. Some of these seem to have been passed down from one monster to the next.

Among these however, are some... not so helpful ones. "Bunnyipyips And You", "Axe Thief Axehounds," and "So you're becoming a Fur Bearing Trout" among others. Sometimes they have marks on them from previous people who had them saying they are lies, or pointing out good "jokes."

SCENARIO TWO: You've become hopelessly lost in Lager Woods. Paths don't seem to lead where you remember them leading, and you feel as if you're going around in circles. Childlike giggling can be heard from no direction in particular. Suddenly, you stumble upon another character, who seems to be just as lost as you! Perhaps you can find a way out together. Or maybe they want you for lunch...

SCENARIO THREE: The time has come and you've found yourself becoming a monster. Is the change instant, or gradual? Are you familiar enough with monsters to know what's happening, or is it a complete shock? NOTE: Feel free to pick any monster type for this prompt, but note that you may not get the same one in game.

SCENARIO FOUR:The claws, the fangs, the pangs of hunger - horrible as they all are, it's manageable given enough time and perseverance. Local monster hunters, though, not so much.

Maybe it started with a few wayward glances on the outskirts of town, critical stares and disapproving whispers, or just the misfortune of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Whatever it was, deserved or entirely unprovoked, you're being hunted: a handful of aggressive, well-armed humans doggedly chase your trail throughout city streets and out into the open, and if you're not careful (if you don't find help soon) you might wind up as the next trophy kill claim on one of those hunter's walls.

Comments

Rin Tohsaka ♢ Fate/stay night ♢

[brilliantcut]

«« SCENARIO ONE »»
[ It's all too much. It's not that Rin Tohsaka isn't tough enough to handle this--no, surely it can't be that. She's held her head high all her life back home, and she refuses to let this place change that.

It's just that the thought of what the future holds in this strange new world is unacceptable to her. Therefore, it's obvious rage that makes her hands tremble, and not fear or distress.

It's obvious mere frustration and irritation that drives her into a phonebooth in town to escape the people trying to show her those oh-so-helpful pamphlets. There, she's relieved to find that the technology available is really quite easily comprehensible to someone like her. Not even thinking so much about it, she reaches out, picks up a phone, and dials a certain familiar number. ]

Emiya? Are you there? I'll be very cross if you're not, so pick up or I'll make you sorry the next time I see you.

[ Her voice rings out clear and proud--but perhaps it falters a little as she reaches the end of her rant and still hears nothing from the other end. ]

Emiya...?

«« SCENARIO FOUR...afterwards »»

[ On the outskirts of town is a scene of horror this morning as dawn breaks--four angry, armed youths from town, their lifeless bodies scattered over the ground between two trees. They weren't killed politely, either.

Blood is everywhere.

Standing just beyond them, in the shadows of a dark path leading into the forest, is a woman no older than they were--no, she's probably younger. She's spattered with blood as well and staring down at the corpses before her with a cold look. ]

It's natural that you'd come to this, isn't it? You made stupid choices. That's all.

[ Her shoulders are shaking. ]

Sorey | Tales of Zestiria

[handle]

Scenario One:

[ The pamphlets could definitely catch any newcomer off guard. Though, the pamphlets he was handed--weren't all that informative, needless to say. The natives here seemed rather helpful, so why not at least try to read through them? He doesn't want to seem ungrateful of their hospitality. Though, some of the content in them was definitely foreign to him.

Though, he has to wonder why no one would help him find a way out. Not only that, but it's a little weird that he was given strange looks when he introduced himself as the someone well known at home. Well, he probably doesn't look the part right now, huh...

At first, if approached, Sorey won't budge or look up from what he's reading, even if someone calls out for him. He's rather focused on trying to understand this new place. After a while, he looks up, pulling the pamphlet away from him. ]

Fur Bearing Trout...? Fur-- bearing-- Could it be-- a bear fish?! Woah! Sounds pretty cool... If that's how it is, I wonder if I'll be even better at swimming. [ Though, it'd probably be wise read more than one pamphlet if he wants to be informed about this place before he gets excited about anything... ]

Scenario Two:

[ It’s the childlike giggling that he finds a little unsettling, yet it’s the fact that all paths look the same that make the situation all the more strange. Could it be some sort of arte? Could the children giggling be some sort of monsters? He hasn’t felt a trace of malevolence in this place, so could it really be possible that hellions were here, too? If not, he still wonders if those children are really children, after all.

Either way, he’s taking a breather for now! He’s a bit beat trying to find a way out. For now, he’ll take the time to further assess the situation. Were any of the trees any different from where he was? Or, perhaps an extra rock, or something noticeable that could help him figure out if he was going anywhere. Maybe he should leave some sort of path for himself? Then again, he didn’t have anything he could use—

It’s the sound of rustling leaves – a branch snapping that draws his attention. He perks up slightly, eyes looking towards the source of the voice. Did someone else get lost? He moves forward towards the source of the voice. The person could need help, just like him! In that case, there’s a chance that they could try to find a way out together. ]

Hello? Don’t worry, I won’t hurt you! [ He waves a hand in the direction of the new-found stranger. ] --Are you lost, too? Here, maybe we can find a way out together.

Wildcard!:

[ OOC: Feel free to throw whatever prompt you'd like my way, and I'll work with you! As a note, I'll match up with whatever format you'd like to use, too!! ]

Ryoga Hibiki | Ranma 1/2

[oneweeklater]

ONE;
"'How to Deal with Changes'...?"Ryoga stared at the pamphlet title for a long moment. Then he tore up the pamphlets in a fit of sudden and decisive rage, scattering the pieces in the air all around him.

"What do I look like, a prepubescent?! I've already had s... se... se..."

Oh, he couldn't say it...! It would be indecent.

TWO;
It would be a miracle if Ryoga HADN'T gotten lost in Lager Woods, circular paths or no. He'd been in here a day at least, but it was probably fine. He was used to be lost for weeks or more. The laughter, on the other hand --

"Come out and laugh to my face, you little delinquents!"

two!! hello son ive came to adopt

[yasusada]

[ Yamato has been here before, it seems like every time he appears here, its' something new. To be honest, he didn't think he'd have to hear the giggling of the children hidden within this place. Clasping his hands together, he twitches his ears that hold a point at the end as he looks around with sapphire eyes. What he's learned with these new-found powers is that he can do many things, well, only with his eyes so at the sound of him accidentally snapping a branch under his footing — he halts and places his hand on the hilt of his sword that he's been borrowing. ]

Ah, I didn't mean for that to happen.

[ There's rustling that brings his ears to twitch once more and he looks towards a few leaves that seem to shake, seeing a body form from the area and shocked to see that someone had found him. Even though he speaks that he wouldn't hurt Yamato, the male smiles when figuring that this must be someone like him — or what he used to be. When he first appeared, that was something he had also said his first time here. How he wouldn't hurt anyone, how he wanted to find his way out.

But truth be told.. ]

Huh? I'm glad that I've found someone here. It's very dangerous, so it's bad to be alone. [ He learned that his first time from a gentle soul who was willing to help him. ] Keep someone by you at all times, these woods aren't normal. [ Neither is Yamato with his feather hair, but that's normal for some people. For a sword like him, it isn't bothersome but to have the addition on him is something he's learning to cope with. Somewhat. ]

Meenah Peixes | Homestuck

[shoalful]

ONE

[Coming into this place might've somehow made Meenah able to read human gibberish, but after a couple of cracks and giggles at any mer pamphlets that happen to have fish puns scrawled on them, she's kinda done with the initiation. Dumb humans wouldn't even let her get a look at herself in the hospital, and if she'd had her trident on her at the time the poking up would've been priceless.

So when she spies a mirror out the side of her massive fuchsia goggles, the trashy pamphlet she's on ("Fishing for Trouble: A Brief Guide to Merpeople") gets scrunched up and tossed behind her carelessly as presses her hands up to the cold surface and tries to make sure this place hasn't totally fucked her up. Clothes, check; horns and fins, check; floor-length braids, check...but it's been a damn long time since her eyes have been any colour but white, and seeing the distinctive fuchsia pupil on yellow iris that she shouldn't even have anymore makes her rear back and flash her pointed teeth.]

Holy motherglubbing mackerel. I'm alive? Like, proper alive with all the perks and shit and no bullship ring tryin' to mess anyfin up? [Yes, those are fish puns she's spouting at a rate of knots.]

Yo, you, [This comes as she grabs at the nearest person to her, whoever that happens to be.] Come poke me up, I gotta know this carp ain't just more dream bubbles.

--

FOUR

[Fucked as she probably (probubbly, keep the fish puns flowing and they'll probably save her soul somehow, they owe her that much) is right now with half the town on her ass, Meenah can't quite help goading them on. Self-preservation ain't exactly high on her list since she died.]

That all you got? In all that glubbin' insmanatee you don't even have anyone good enough to finish this?

[Even as she says that, hooves clipping the ground and horns catching at branches with her speed, she skids off to the side, down a ditch out of sight. Hopefully that'll throw them off enough that she'll be able to get the hell out before they come back around.

Then again, she might be just about to land on another monster.]

Oh my fuckin' cod-- You get on the stabbing end of these dumbass human buoys and gulls too?

[At least she has the presence of mind not to yell that one.]

Jake Chambers | The Dark Tower

[thehangedboy]

Scenario 2

[Despite the sense of direction and knowledge of tracking that Jake has tried to pick up from Roland, there's only so much he can do in the face of so many trees that all look the same. Even when he does see landmarks he recognizes, all it tells him is that he's been going in circles.

He's also making an awful lot of noise. No matter how he tries to keep his footsteps light, the carpet of leaves and pine needles and sticks still crackles beneath his shoes. He knows enough to recognize how loud he's being but not enough to work out how to stop. Just his luck he'll attract a wolf or a bear or, well, a monster. When he hears sound that isn't his own clumsy feet, he turns, blue eyes wide in the darkness and searching for what he's hoping is a harmless squirrel or a normal human who can help him get back to the forest's edge.]

Hello?

Scenario 3 (Troll; warning for some gross stuff with finger and toenails)

[Jake has been told enough about this place to know this was coming. It would take an idiot not to pick up on what happens to the people who get fished out of the ocean around here. And yet, knowing that it's coming is not entirely the same thing as feeling it happen.

He'd woke up with what he thought was a rash on his back that had quickly extended down his arms as well. What had felt like particularly thick, itchy calluses had quickly bubbled outward and hardened the more he touched them, leaving him with almost flower-like chunks of rock scattered across his upper body. What had felt like particularly angry pimples on his forehead have bulged outward into a pair of stubby horns.

What's really worrying him, though, is the fact that his fingernails and toenails seem to have fallen off, leaving tender, slightly-bloody patches of skin in their wake. To his credit he's trying to be brave about this. Others have survived it just fine, right? He can see the evidence of that all around him. Brave face, Jake Chambers. You've dealt with worse.]

How, uh. How soon do claws usually come in?

Evie Frye | Assassin's Creed: Syndicate

[bymyblade]

Four

The entire thing had felt completely rubbish to Evie when she'd gotten here, though she'd played along for the most part, trying her best to adjust to things here, much as she could. Of course, the fact she was barely showing anything in the way of changes meant nothing to those who'd identified her as a new arrival, did it? She'd learnt that the hard way, being out after dark in an area she'd thought to be safe.

Not so very much apparently. At least she had her skills and training to fall back on, but they didn't do much when the buildings were not so tall as to hide her completely from view. She'd done a good enough job of getting up onto a roof, after a fair bit of running around like an idiot, dodging hunters as they came, and now crouched on a chimney peeking out of a house, looking for a chance to get down, and a safe place to land. The moments ticked away as she considered, glancing at the sky and wishing, almost, for a full moon, despite what she'd been told may happen then. Still the visibility could have helped a little.

When the sound died down, however, Evie was ready, jumping softly, almost, but not quite silently, to human ears, from the roof into a pile of what looked to be trash. Messy, but safe enough, wasn't it? For the moment, she decided, hoping, as she rose from her descent and crept around some new cover, that she'd avoided anyone else's eye.

scenario one

[8bytes]

[ While the voice is unfamiliar to Nanami's own ears, it isn't the voice that causes her to go and see the other girl, it's the way she speaks, as if she's looking for somebody.

She doesn't speak up just yet, instead just peering curiously, before, finally, she speaks, soft and calmly. ]

Are you looking for someone?

[ Nanami asks from behind the other young woman. If Rin dares to turn around, she'll see a petite girl who looks slightly inhuman, there are orange, large, wavy fins on her forearms that cut through her jacket along with ones behind her ears.

And not only that, there's even the word "future" in Japanese strewn across the girl's neck. ]

Kay Faraday | Ace Attorney

[yatagarasu]

[SCENARIO 1: THESE AREN'T THE TRUTHS YOU'RE LOOKING FOR]

[It doesn't take long for Kay to amass a handful of these brochures. But some of those people handing them out don't linger long enough for her to ask questions, or complain about the state of some pamphlets. So, expect to see a teenage girl in colorful clothes and with a giant key in her hair scurrying about as though looking for someone, waving pamphlets about.]

Hey, wait up! What's this for, an audition for a monster movie? [She leafs through the pamphlets and draws one out that seems to be dripping with slime, winces and pulls a face.] Ugh, I want my money back for this one!

[Kay, you were never even paid money. A man approaches her, begging her not to steal their children in the dead of night and kowtowing as though she were a vengeful goddess.]

What? Of course I don't steal children! Unless they've been kidnapped, and then I steal 'em back for y - wait! [The man took off the moment she said "unless", and Kay sprints after him, only to lose him after several steps. She sighs, ejecting the slimy pamphlet into the nearest trash can.]

[SCENARIO 3: DO YOU BELIEVE IN FAERIE TALES?]

[Kay is squinting at herself in the window of the nearest shop. Some people inside are edging away from it, and she looks rather confused. But it's not the behavior of the patrons that confuses her; it's that her eyes are no longer the same shade of green she remembered. They were a different sort of green...lighter, like mint ice cream. Her mouth opens into a surprised gape as she examines her face in different angles, and then moves on to the next building with a glass window.]

That's wei - ow, ow!

[She cries out, clutching the top of her head with both hands. Kay drops to her knees, gritting her teeth, and she is forced to bring her hands away as two pink antennae sprout from within her hair, becoming much longer than her ridiculously tall ponytail. When the pain stops, ebbing away into a sort of dull pounding, Kay slowly looks back up at her reflection. Her fingers quickly find her antennae and she touches them over and over, feeling them in sheer shock.]

These...th-these are real...

[OPTION 4: DON'T STEAL ME, BRO]

Unfortunately for Kay, her wings haven't come in yet, and all she has are her pastel-colored eyes, twitching antennae, translucent claws growing straight out of her gloves, and pointed ears. She's on the run, and quickly ducks into a nearby alley. Perhaps she is sharing that alley with someone else (a.k.a. you), or you might suddenly run right into her as she tries to escape through the other side of said alley.

Boy, these monster hunters will hunt anyone. Or anything.]

Re: Ryoga Hibiki | Ranma 1/2

[bymyblade]

"With..." Evie flushed a little herself, giving the same pamphlet a disgusted look. "Is THAT what they are referring to?" It was disgusting, was what it was, if they were throwing that around. "Besides, how old do they think most of us?"

It was the sort of thing Jacob would have laughed at, she thought dimly, hoping that her brother might be here somewhere.

one

[8bytes]

... I didn't know there were bear fish here.

[ Her features express curiosity as she lifts her heels, standing on the tips of her toes to peer closely with wide, bright pink eyes at the pamphlet. She had never seen one before, so she wants to know if they're real. Probably not, but you know. Details. ]

Zanya Kisaragi | Future Card Buddyfight | OTA

[akeboshi]

→Scenario 1

[ A hospital was suspicious enough, he couldn't shake off this shiver that keeps being sent down his spine. Zanya wraps his arms around himself and rubs his arms for some extra warmth as he exits. Although, upon having all these pamphlets shoved at him, his suspicion grows and he gives the natives icy glares as he takes them... Well, if they hold information, he doesn't have anything to lose, right?

Well, he still wish he knew where all his stuff was... And shifting through the pamphlets didn't help... Ugh. ]

What... Does this even mean? Alternatives to human flesh? How to deal with changes? [ Zanya stares at the paragraphs with a baffled expression. His eyebrows knit as he feels some frustration growing. Okay, it's time to get to the bottom of this, so maybe he can just ask someone and get some answers. Then move on, simple as that. ]

Excuse me, I'd like some answers if that's okay. [ Of course it is, he's going to ask anyway. ] Do you know where I am?

→Scenario 2

[ Maybe going through the forest wasn't the best idea...

If only he had Tsukikage and Byakuya! They could've at least spread out and try to find a way out in a shorter amount of time. Zanya can only get so much ground covered by himself- and there's no way he'd actually go out of his way and ask a stranger to accompany him into the woods either. What a waste of time...

He stiffens when he hears a snap of a twig. Immediately, he lifts his arms and keeps his palms flat- ready to defend himself. Zanya may not have his sword, but he can still throw a few punches if necessary. His eyes flicker from left and right, then decides to call out to whoever is near him. ]

Ha, what? Trying to ambush me? Show yourself already, I know you're out there!

Tanyuu Karibusa | Mushishi

[fourthscribe]

Scenario 3: Naga

[It starts as a shooting pain down her back, a sudden jolt and stretch that makes her stumble and fall to the ground, her crutches clattering down beside her. She barely has time to catch her breath before the pain comes again, and again, robbing her breath and choking out her screams.]

[With a sound of cracking bones and tearing muscle, her lower half nearly seems to explode as her torso extends into a long, scaly white tail over a matter of seconds, both legs ripping off in a gory mess as the coils pile up behind the scribe. Scales push out over her face and hands as well, claws erupting from the tips of her fingers and canines growing into long fangs.]

[It takes her a few moments before she recollects herself, and pushes hersefl back up--or at least tries to. The shifting of her tail rather than a leg makes Tanyuu startles and cry out, but the odd thing is that rather than any human or animal voice, what comes out is a single, clear and deep tone of a bell. She clasps both hands over her mouth in surprise, what skin there is left on her face going pale.]

Wh-what--?!

Scenario 4: Nymph

[These hunters really just don't seem to care who they target. Nevermind that Tanyuu has never laid a single hand on a human before, nevermind that all she has been doing was enjoying an afternoon in the woods with the bushes and trees. All they had seen was the weeds in her hair and the green of her skin--anything else was meaningless.]

[The thick vines from her back and waist more than make up for her useless wooden feet, and Tanyuu climbs and leaps through the trees as skillfully as if she had known this forest her whole life. But she knows it better than that, hears the whispers of her brethren that tell her which ways are quickest. Branches reach for her when she slips, giving her countless second chances.]

[But as much as the forest is a nymph's home, she can't keep this up forever. Finally it's one slip too many and Tanyuu falls to the ground in a startled heap, vines flailing as she struggles to get up. The hunters aren't far behind from the sound of those shouts and jeers, but as Tanyuu looks around in a panic it seems like she's not as alone as she thought.]

Please, you have to help me! I can't get rid of them!

[oneweeklater]

"I don't know," said Ryoga, hand on his hip in a gesture of indignation, "But this is an insult! And I was about to thank them for pulling me out of the water...! Well, I suppose I do still owe them thanks."

The real question was why he was still in his normal clothes if he'd really been pulled out of the ocean. Did the people here know? Did they know his terrible secret?

"...Anyway, I can't be hanging around here. I've got to get back to my training."

Cosima Niehaus | Orphan Black

[doubleblind]

one!
[Cosima doesn't spend long at the hospital, opting instead to explore the streets of the city as soon as she's able. A mysterious terminal illness would give anyone an aversion to hospitals. What she doesn't have an aversion to is pamphlets, judging from the large stack of them she has in her arms. She flips through them as she walks, oblivous to the several near collisions with locals. It's all so unbelievable. This is beyond anything DYAD is capable of, beyond Neoloution and their dreams of directed evolution. If even half of the things the pamphlets are telling her are true, Cosima could spend several lifetimes studying these genetic mutations without being bored for even a second. That's of course assuming all of these monster transformations have a scientific basis, which she is for now. The pamphlets may suggest otherwise, but they don't exactly look like valid, peer-reviewed sources.

It's exciting and she can't help but grin to herself as she reads each pamphlet. But even more exciting than the pamphlets are the living monsters among her. Cosima's not a research scientist for nothing. Any good scientist knows you have to conduct your own research, and she intends to do just that. Cosima approaches any person turned monster walking by with an open smile and an enthusiastic wave.]

Hey. Hey, you mind answering a few questions? It'll be quick, I swear! Nothing invasive or personal, just some basics.

choose your own adventure!
[Feel free to come up with a different starter if you like! Cosima will be wandering around the city, gathering info and continuing her impromptu surveys!]

Helios Sprensonne | Original Character

[folklorist]

Scenario 1

[ Helios is just going to stare owlishly at the offered pamphlets and strange booklets being handed out to him. ]

Ah! W-Wait a second. I-I don't need all of this! Don't you all need food as well?!

[ The pile of stuff in his arms is growing to a small mountain when he finally manages to shoo the villagers away. He just sighs and looks around curiously and unnerved really. But if you happen to pass by he might shout out to you with a wide smile. ]

Excuse me. But do you think you could help me? I'm a bit confused about, well, all of this. Um, if it's not too much trouble. You can even have s-some of this food if you want...?

[ Helios is just really confused and he's not sure the sinking feeling in his stomach is helping any either. ]

Scenario 3: Shade

[ He knew the changes would start after getting information and learning exactly just what this place entailed for its residents now. But he didn't really plan for it. Helios had worked and lived alongside monsters for a good portion of his life before coming here, but actually becoming one was not anything he ever thought about.

In a way he was already perceived as a monster back home. But now...he was actually becoming one and it takes all his will and mental strength not to give into the urges these changes are presenting towards him. He'll notice the shadowy tendrils first, they're hard to not notice and given the looks he's getting from the frightened villagers he can't help but hid in the shadows of a nearby building. His hands are shaking as he tries to calm himself down. ]

Everything will be alright. [ His whispered words sound good but there's a distinct lack of optimism in them that he'd normally have. What does he do now? If you see him he'll be hidden by a house in the more shaded areas of it. The sunlight was actually starting to hurt him physically now. How ironic it was given his name. ]

Wildcard!

[ ooc: Hit me up with whatever you like! ]

Cole | Dragon Age: Inquisition

[unknots]

A. Lager Woods.

[It's night.

And two travelers have stopped for a rest.

Cole has perched himself up on a rock. It'ssss uncomfortable. But it's still an... interesting sensation? Maybe he partly hopes it'll broaden his perspective; help tune him into the mindset and thereby innate navigation ability of any nearby birds. It isn't working much.

He's looking at his travel companion (you, unfortunately? Fortunately?) under the wide brim of a hat. It can't be doing him any favors in the dark that's swelled up long since setting out, but perhaps it's been long enough that... his eyes have adjusted?

He speaks up. Dreamy. But definite. Articulate. He nods. Thoughtfully. Knowingly.]

It is easier when you can hear more.

[Tilts his head a little, lets his voice float high inquisitively; expression doesn't change, because two changes are enough emoting, right?]

But -- you know that -- don't you?

You don't hear -- everything, the -- hunger rumbling in the belly of a beast, the -- soft, searing scream where someone took the wrong trail before you, bidding you back, back, but... the more you can hear, here... the more it helps. It is harder to travel when you can't hear. And -- seeing hasn't helped.

[Head lolls the other way, stays dropped, a little "hangdog".

Again, his face doesn't change. He's watching that of who he's talking to, but his face doesn't change.]

I'm sorry. -- I wish that I could have helped you more.

[Kept you from getting this lost, he means! Surely you would've liked to sleep somewhere warm tonight!]

B. Hunting the Hunters!

[There's a Shade who's been trying to sneak ahead of a ragtag group of torches and pitchforks (and more - it's not like they've got a full, foolproof anti-monster kit on them, but they're prepared to put up a fight!) marching around the Vandare area - hoping to warn monsters away them! But - oh, no! - it looks like the gang was bigger than he thought it was, and a couple of sub-parties have split off to chase some local monsters...

He's had to resort to hopping hiding places instead - he's happy that these new powers of his make him a little harder to catch! He can't stay unseen for long, but it still helps, and that helps helping!

And at some point - ahh, he hears someone! He's happy he hears someone... he merges through a wall next to a monster he is fairly sure is a potential target, or one of the ones they've already started giving chase to, speaking softly.]

Ahh. Hush. Please.

[No fear. No fretfulness, apart from the faintest flutter of that which he feels. Light. Lifting. Meant to soothe. Inspirit. That's... how people talk to each other to make each other feel better, right?

Steadier. Still with minimal disturbance. Matter of fact. Instruction.]

It will be all right.

-- I-i-if we kill them.

We can. [Meant to be reassuring.]

C. Wildcard.

[Have anything else in mind? Hit me!]

3!

[skyentologist]

[Ema didn't really have time to stop on her way home. Besides, what did she care about some random teenager gawking at themselves in a store window? But something about this one was vaguely familiar.

At the shout of pain, she turns fully and stops in surprise. It's been years, but...]

Kay? Is that you?

[Ema herself is probably barely recognisable with her pale, green skin, emaciated features, and kelp hair waving in the breeze. Stranger still, she smells faintly of brine.]

Riku | Kingdom Hearts | OTA

[master_key]

[1]

No seriously, I don't need these, take them back...you've mistaken me for someone else, I'm not--

[Persistent crowd. He'd had better luck brushing off the medical staff at the hospital he'd woken up in, ditching them with a lame excuse of 'no I'm fine, I've been hurt much worse, believe me...' and bolting. Only to find himself outside, being bombarded with pamphlets.]

C'mon...anyone want to listen to me for a minute?

[3 - Merperson]

[Okay so monsterfication was a thing. He'd accepted it was going to happen by now...but when? No one seemed to know, aside from 'it usually happens during fog'. Very helpful...or maybe he just happened to be asking the wrong people.

Well, it was foggy, and he was waiting. Waiting for something spectacular to happen. Nothing did, at first, until the skin on his arms suddenly felt like it was all on fire at once, small fissures developing along them.]

Augh, what the--!?

[The burning sensation worsened, tempting him to put his nails to the skin and try to get it off, to stop the pain, but the rational part of his brain told him that was a bad idea.

Or maybe it wasn't. It wasn't long before his skin began removing itself, sloughing off to reveal dark bluish-purple...scales?]

[Wildcard!]

[Choose your own adventure!]

Uno

[soundsurfing]

[People asking whether they're alive or not has become a thing when new arrivals wash in, but before Beat can assure them they are, he's grabbed at and worded at in a manner that makes him blink. Give him a few seconds to puzzle out that confusing mess of words.]

It's all real yo, ain't no dream.

[A second glance at her makes him grin. She's a troll. The colour, pupils, and candycorn horns give her away. No wonder she's hard to understand.]

Yer in Vandare right now, which is on Ryslig. There's other Trolls here too, dunno if you know 'em though. Gamzee an' Tavros. Aradia an' Sollux was here, but they ain't no more.

2 (OH MY GOD A ZANYA... congrats on your great taste in card game anime)

[thehangedboy]

Jesus, no, I'm just trying to find the way out.

[The voice is that of a young boy and the tone, a mix of worry and frustration, does not exactly scream 'threat'. There's a few more snaps and crackles of twigs, and then he does indeed show himself. As a show of good will his hands are up, held palm-forward.]

one! i bother mikleo on a daily basis so you cant run from this im sorry but it gotta happen

[koullars]

Whaaat, you never heard of a bear fish?

[ He's peeking over Sorey's shoulder a bit, looking at the pamphlet he's reading. ]

Geez, do you live in a barn or something? [ Bear fish totally don't exist... But you know... This can be fun? ]

one

[hotbuzz]

[Joan's wings twitch, and she tilts her parasol so that she can properly see whomever is stopping her. She'd really prefer to get out of the sun as quickly as possible, but this woman seems friendly enough. And she's always open to answering questions for newcomers. The jade scales on her face shift and glimmer as she smiles.]

How can I say no to that?

gary 'eggsy' unwin ( kingsman: the secret service )

[nandos]

SCENARIO ONE

[ Alright, so Eggsy's about ready to be let in on the joke now.

Because that's what it's got to be - waking up soaked to the bone for the third time this month, all this about monsters, people coming up and trying to palm off dodgy loaves of bread and bits of paper on him, everyone looking like they're trying not to let him know they're scared. 'Cause that's the thing: Eggsy knows the look, the one you get from old biddies, the one that says that youth is wearing a hoodie, the Mail says they're dangerous when all you've done is walk past. This is different. This is something real, at least it looks it, and he's starting to get worried. ]

Listen mate, I don't need it, alright--

[ For the eighth or so time he's got to physically reject the leaflet someone's trying their best to push into his hands - he hasn't looked at them, you get enough of that around Piccadilly Circus, all rubbish. It's about all he can take. Irritated now, he glances about until he notices someone in one of those costumes, like it's Halloween or something. Hands still shoved into his pockets, he goes right up to this chosen ambassador, bold as brass with his chin up and the brim of his snapback sticking up into the air. ]

What's going on 'round here then? Ain't Halloween yet, is it?

SCENARIO TWO

[ He's not sure what possessed him to go walking about in the woods - not traditionally the city boy's domain, but at least it gets him away from whatever the fuck's going on in town. Eggsy is confident in his ability to keep his bearings; thinks he's still got them 'til he starts heading back and finds that everything looks totally different in the now half-dark. Even if this was the right way, he wouldn't know it.

So he keeps going. What else can you do? The tip of his tongue between his teeth, he hunches his shoulders and just keeps walking. If he sticks to this direction he knows in his head that he should come out to the edge some time soon - some time eventually - except that it really doesn't feel like it. All he can do is ignore the weird noises. Hope he's not about to get killed. He doesn't believe in ghosts or any of that, really staunchly doesn't believe in them to the point where he's been called a killjoy about the whole supernatural thing, but it's still creepy.

It's a rustling behind a bush ahead that makes him stop dead in his tracks. An animal, gotta be, and he expects a fox or shit, even a bear, but when what comes out is human-sized he jumps about a foot in the air and almost falls flat on his arse in surprise. ]

Fuckin' hell--

YOU KNOW WHY IM HERE. ONE!

[yasusada]

[ Hearing someone speak to him bring the uchigatana to stop in his steps, a tilt of his head as he looks towards the pamphlet that holds various information. It reminds him of Mikleo who would speak about what they were to mean, read them vigorously in silence and ask Yamato about them in silence. ]

Huh? You mean that.. please hand it over to me, and I'll read.

[ There's a point to his ears and feathers in his hair, but he seems harmless aside from the sword by his side. ]

Oh, where you are.. ah.. This place is called the Ryslig Peninsula.. Hopefully the Fourth God will be able to save you too.