TEST DRIVE MEME

[ryslighelpers]

TEST DRIVE MEME: SEPTEMBER

Welcome to the Ryslig Test Drive Meme! Below are a few prompts to get you started, but you may make up any prompt you desire! Please take a look at the navigation page for rules, setting information, and links to reserves and apps. Have fun!

SCENARIO ONE

You wake up on the beach thoroughly drenched with your mouth full of sand. The salt water causes various cuts and scrapes on your skin to sting and the sand isn't helping. The air is slightly humid, ruining any feeling of refreshment you might have gotten from your dip in the ocean. There are lights in the distance but the unfriendly scent of gunpowder fills the air. If you're lucky, you're alone. If not, you might find yourself staring up into a pair of monstrous eyes or down the barrel of a local's shotgun.

SCENARIO TWO

So you've just arrived, and already SOME 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." Then there's the people who aren't happy to see you at all. Glares and silent, judging stares if you're lucky. Torches and pitchforks attempting to drive you out of the town if you're not. You may need a friend to help you.

SCENARIO THREE

"Seek us out," the voice whispers in your head, and before you have time to question it you've found yourself in someplace entirely alien. Maybe it's the Fog God's ghostly town of Dyster, where exultant followers dance around bonfires and sing their praises to the skies above. Maybe it's the Fourth God's arcade, with small robots wheeling about amidst the lights and colors of old pinball machines. Only one thing is certain: you are not alone, in this sacred place.

SCENARIO FOUR

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.

Comments

[missionfail]

[No, the drowning still doesn't make much sense at all. What sort of creature needs to drown someone in order to eat them? If they're going to drag them underwater can't they just eat them on the way?

And how can something this small drown anyone?]

Fine. Where are we?

[soft_focus]

[It's really best not to ask those questions Ever, Jasper.

Otherwise you might find out one day.] You're in another world, [Reira starts, remembering what happened last time he left that out for a bit.] It's Ryslig..!

And the place in Ryslig that we're near right now is Vandare-it's over there, [he adds, turning his head toward the relatively close city.]

But the whole country is called Ryslig. They don't have a name for the whole planet though. I think it's because no one can leave the country.

[missionfail]

What? Leaving a country is easy.

[It is when you're a gem, anyway - especially if you have access to warp pads, though there may not be one here. Being stuck on a planet she can understand, since it's happened to her, but being stuck in a single country?

If she hadn't been changed into this pathetic form she would have simply been able to walk out into the ocean and keep walking.]

Is everyone here so mindless?

[blurspot]

Not this one. [Really now.] They tried-they just got thrown back here instead.

It doesn't work if you swim, or climb, or fly...nothing works.

And some of us were 'made' to swim and fly, [he adds, motioning to himself with his wings.]

[missionfail]

That all just sounds... like you weren't trying hard enough.

[It's not fair to say, and even she knows that. Jasper doesn't know anything about any of the inhabitants here, but she also isn't willing to so easily accept defeat having just arrived.

No matter how defeated she'd been before.

She pushes herself to her feet, straining.]

What would keep us here?

[soft_focus]

Probably the same one who brought us here. Everyone tried really hard-some of them even died..! [he adds, watching the other struggle.]

She just brought them back.

The same way she brings everyone back if they die.

The Fog God doesn't want anyone to leave. She just wants to make monsters.

[missionfail]

Is that right.

[She doesn't believe in gods. That's just a word humans use to describe beings they don't understand. And the whole thing about people dying and returning just makes it sound like they didn't really die in the first place - like their form had simply been dissipated the way a gem's could be.]

You're still talking a whole lot of nonsense. But I'll take a look at this town.

[Being able to walk into a place like that without anyone being confused about the gem on her face is literally the only good thing about this new form, and she doesn't count that as much.]

[soft_focus]

Yeah. [As childish as he has been the whole time, there is something of a serious edge in his voice now, at least.]

That's what everyone new says, I think.

Most of the time they say things like 'that's impossible', or 'gods aren't real' too, [he admits, trotting away from his spot at last,] but things still happen, and she didn't give us any other name. And 'Fog' just seems weird. [He does however, feel he should offer some sort of warning at least. Just so that she doesn't learn the hard way about how the whole 'coming back from the dead' bit works.]

...Don't go past the big wall in the middle when you go, okay? ...Those people... [He digs at the sand a bit, looking away.] ...They're still really mad about the fight they had. ...So if you try to go that way, they'll shoot you. They won't even ask who you are first.

[missionfail]

[Jasper doesn't like being new. She's been around for over five and a half thousand years - most of that spent on Homeworld. Being somewhere different and having no idea what's going on is absolutely maddening.

She doesn't know anything about what sort of fight might have gone on here recently but she does know how paranoid and unreasonable humans can get when they feel threatened or trapped. Without her usual gem body she won't stand a chance against some of the stronger Earth weapons, especially now that they're doing more than just stabbing each other with wood and stone.]

Maybe I should just drown myself now and save myself the trouble.

[She grumbles this as she stares off toward the town.]

[soft_focus]

I just said you'd come back though..! [he protests, shouting to her incredulously.] Dying doesn't stay that way here..! And if you die, you start to forget things..! [Or at least, that's what he was told.

He doesn't think it's happened, not that he would remember it.] ...b...besides, there's a lot more than just Vandare here...

[missionfail]

Hmph.

[The fact that she's just having to take him at his word for now bothers Jasper to no end.]

If there's more than this, what is there? More human cities?

[soft_focus]

Umm...a few. There's a monster city too, and a few other places, like farms. There's also the forest, the lake... [There is a flurry of green-and the boy shifts into a more humanoid stance, balancing himself on two legs so that he can start counting on his fingers.]

...The caves here have cursed crab people, and then there are the bug people underground, but you can't meet those guys, [he adds, continuing.]

No one in 'Sanctuary', or in Bavan, would shoot though.

[missionfail]

Is that it for this whole area?

[Jasper looks doubtful. What a small and pathetic country this is if it only has a handful of towns and cities in it.

Of course she's still trusting the word of this young unknown creature.]

[soft_focus]

I think a lot of the people were too afraid of things like the crabs to make more towns. [It's fair and logical human reasoning you know.]

[missionfail]

[Afraid of crabs? Even crab monsters, given what she knows of the creatures, don't sound very threatening to her. It could be that her mental image doesn't make them large enough.]

Then it's just as I thought. The people here are cowards and weaklings.

[Though they shouldn't feel too insulted. Jasper thinks this way about most people.]

[blurspot]

I don't think they're all like that...

[The boy frowns, shaking his head.] Only monsters, or people who are going to be monsters come back if they die..!

Once they die they're gone for good, so it's normal to be more scared than monsters!

Especially since we eat them. [...Still weaklings, probably.]

[missionfail]

They're humans. I'm not going to argue about how worthless they are. At least some are fighting back.

[That's admirable, she supposes, even if they have no way of winning. She can still respect a determined opponent, even if they're weak, but their tactics here could use some work.]

I don't see why you're being supportive if they're your food.

reira no that is the last thing you accuse jasper of ever

[blurspot]

Because I was human before, [he says rather flatly, feathers ruffling as he speaks.] And I wasn't worthless then! I even fought for niisama before coming here!

[He. Thinks, at least. Time is a little fuzzy, given that he only remembered that after living in this place for a number of months.]

You're human right now you know, [he adds foolishly.] ...Someone could eat you too if you're not really careful.

[missionfail]

[This is something she'd already assumed, but the very concept infuriates her to no end. She raises herself up to her full height (which she can tell isn't as tall as it should have been) and glares down at the little monster.]

Are you going to take a shot at trying to eat me, little thing?

[Because she still thinks she can smash him into the sand.]

[soft_focus]

..No, why would I do that... [It would probably be best not to test that theory of hers. For his part, the boy doesn't look scared-at all. He doesn't even look threatened; he's just a little overconfident this close to his element.] I'm not even hungry right now..!

And you're not trying to kill anyone, so I don't have a reason to do that.

[missionfail]

[The fact that his answer makes it sound like he thinks he has a chance just angers her further. The worst part is that she doesn't know anything of his capabilities. He could be like Lapis, easily capable of overpowering her despite his size.

She hates that there's so much she doesn't know already.]

...Forget it. I don't know why I'm even dealing with you.

[soft_focus]

...Because I'm the only one here, and you had questions.

...Maybe one day someone else will have questions for you.

[How can one child be so...pedantic.

At least he doesn't seem poised to stop her from leaving. If she walks away now, he won't follow.]

[missionfail]

You're the type to offer answers. I might not be.

[It's situational. She'd make sure there was something to be gained from it. Though to be fair she has very little idea of how things will go in the future.]

Now you can go.

[Look, she's going at her own pace here. She's dismissive in a way that says she expects others to listen to her.]

[blurspot]

[Well, he'll just shrug in that case. You're still not Terrible in his opinion, so that's fine enough for-

Uh.] Why would I leave? I came here because I wanted to be here. It's the beach. [The boy gestures to the water. Where he was sitting minutes ago. He's staying ma'am, he wanted to enjoy the surf and turf. and see if he can catch anyone else rolling in with the waves honestly]

[missionfail]

[She scowls at his reply.]

Then I'll go.

[Jasper brushes herself off with far more disdain than is necessary, then rolls her shoulders and cracks her knuckles. Honestly, practically newborn creatures like that shouldn't be allowed to question her orders. Even if they aren't under her command.]

You're welcome to the sand.