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:
Lots of people have asked good questions on the FAQ, so do take a look.
You can only app ONE character per round so choose wisely.
Test drive meme threads can be used for your roleplay sample!
Sample scenarios:
SCENARIO ONE: You've just been released from the hospital in Vandare and no one really seems to know what to do with you. The locals offer polite advice but don't seem to want to spend a lot of time with you. You and the other new arrivals stick out like sore thumbs, so perhaps one will spot you wandering about town.
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.
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.
Lucy flinched away automatically, shaking her head rapidly for a moment before realizing that that did not answer anything - not that she had much of an answer to give anyway.
She carefully removed her bloodied hands from her mouth, spitting a few more teeth into her palms and staring at them despairingly as she tried to answer. "I-- I don't know," she whimpered, trying to talk around newly-empty spaces in her mouth and sharp jabs of discomfort. "I mean I do, kind of, but I don't... I don't know what to do about it, I don't want this!"
She had no idea if that made any sense, but she wasn't really concentrating on thinking it over more thoroughly at the moment.
His hold was loose enough to allow the other to move away, her body shifting from his hands which he kept held out, his fingers relaxed, dropping them slowly as he watched her with careful eyes. It was fine that she had moved back, he allowed it honestly and in turn took a small step back of his own to give her space. The shake of her head was telling, the look in her eyes and then she pulled her hands away, the teeth falling from between her lips into her palms and Ragnar sucked in a quick breath, straightening his posture. For a man who had seen a lot of blood, a lot of death and fought many battles normally such things did not cause him distress but this was something all on its own.
The white of her teeth stuck out amongst the blood and he pulled his own hands closer to his body, wiggling his fingers slightly at the sight. His vivd gaze was quick to return to her face though and he bent downward slightly, attempting his best to remain at eye level so she could focus on something, anything but the obvious issue at hand. Her whimpers made his heart hurt for her, she looked young--older than his own children back in his homelands but this was gruesome. Even though children in his culture were expected to hold their own in ways, to fight, this was on another playing field.
"First, breathe." Ragnar responded with a calm voice, his accent heavy but voice direct, he let out a slow breath to encourage her. "If you let this pain control you it will only make it worse. Don't focus what is going to happen, focus on what is happening and accept it."
"Okay. Okay, right, yeah." She nodded and took a deep breath, despite the panic still seeping into her voice and expression. She had dealt with pain before, worse than this, she could deal with a few teeth falling out, right. Even if she would kind of rather keep her teeth. Even if this was... really gross. Even if she really didn't want to accept anything about it at all.
She started to straighten up, trying to relax her shoulders - and then flinching as the slight movement just increased friction between her skin and... whatever it was, the razor-edged thing apparently trying to push its way out of her back. "Ow, crap-- OW!"
All at once, that thin edge broke through skin, and her hands jumped back to her mouth at another surge of pain, and she felt sharp points pushing out of her gums and at the bases of her remaining teeth. She shut her eyes and shook her head again, mumbling something around her hands that might have been "no, nevermind, screw this".
She did at least make an effort to keep breathing, shaky but kept carefully steady, as she reached cautiously behind her back with one hand, wincing when her fingers brushed against the thing - the fin - that had grown from her back.
It was an easier thing to say than to actually put into practice. It depended on what one was used to, what their lives were like and that all filtered into the tolerance of pain they allowed. It was something different though, something worth noting that this was more like torture than a wound gained in battle. Pulling teeth, pushing them, it was not something one came across even with his own lifestyle being one of brutality and conflict, it was a method to gain something from a helpless victim and there was something wrong about it, something cruel compared to what was the norm of society. There was always various methods to execute, particularly within his culture, and only the most painful where saved for the ones who did the most wrong.
The blood eagle being one of them, but this girl had likely done nothing to deserve such treatment from her own body to rebel so far to rid of her of her own teeth, where sharp, more pointed white was beginning to show through the blood of her gums. It made his stomach turn slightly and as she tried to breath he watched her face, watcher her body movements and kept his hands at the ready if she were to lose consciousness.
"Good, breathe." He repeated, inhaling and exhaling again. "Think of it how the world was created, our bodies change and shape like the lands." He spoke calmly, his voice low so that she was forced to listen in if she had the mind to try; there was still a sternness to it though, a demand to be heard. Though, further more a story maybe, something else to distract her. "Listen, have you heard the story of the giant Ymir?"
Honestly, there was a moment where her first impulse was to say something about how yeah, people's bodies change, but puberty doesn't usually involve teeth falling out and fins growing out of your back. But she latched onto his next words instead, giving a brief shake of her head, watching him with a mix of wariness and curiosity rather than just keeping her eyes closed this time.
She watched him and that was good enough, if he could keep her focus away from the pain for at least a moment it was at least some small victory in assistance. His eyes looked over her face, keeping his attention on her eyes, away from the blood upon her lips and he didn't make a move to see what was growing upon her back. It was a good tale indeed, and it was relatable to what she was going through. The idea of being formed into something better, it might be worth the pain, to gain something that might assist her more in life and push her to a greater purpose.
He held out his hands, palms facing her and as he spoke he spoke with his hands, moving them along with the story. If she couldn't focus on his face, his words then at least there was another option.
"Before the dawn of time, there was a place call Nilfheim, a dark and cold place consumed with ice and fog. Below was the land of Muspelheim where fire ruled the lands. Between there was a great void, the vast emptiness called Ginnungagap. Where the air from Nilfheim and Muspelheim met, where the fire melted and the ice began to drip there was a giant called Ymir. While he slept, the sweat from under his arms grew two more giants, one male and one female."
He held up two fingers and paused, taking a breath, the tone of his voice clear to how much he knew these stories, how he thrived off them. "Now the Allfather, Odin, along with his brothers became wary that the giants were beginning to outnumber their own kind as Ymir was constantly conceiving new offspring. The only solution they could see was to kill Ymir and wait until he was asleep before they would began their assault."
He took a pause there, to make sure she was following, a small smile upon his lips.
She listened, glanced between his hands and his face, because focusing on this was better than the alternative (and it wasn't over yet, she could tell it wasn't over).
It honestly struck her as... kind of a weird story, even if this was just the start of it. And even if her own country had its own share of odd stories and history. But she saw how invested he was in this, and how he was trying to help, and when he paused she nodded to show she was listening.
Good, as long as she was listening that was what mattered. He had met different people from different cultures who had different gods and different stories but this was as close to home as he could get, telling these tales. It was a rather long story, but he tried his best to speak very clearly, his accented voice pronouncing the unique names of people and places with a sort of grace and melody. Ragnar encouraged her with a smile, keeping an eye on her the whole time, making sure she was conscious and taking note of her blood-loss along the way, those details away in the back of his mind to assure that if she was to go too pale, he could assist her however he could.
His hands continued moving, he continued speaking. His voice hushed slightly, but the passion still remained, the call to attentions. He held up three fingers before moving one. "Odin, and his brothers Vili, and Vé, descended upon Ymir in a horrifying battle. Using all of their strength they managed to kill the giant whose blood spouted out with such force in every direction."
Ragnar's hands separated, pushing outward to each side of his body to illustrate the force of the idea, then he brought them back in.
"And it was from Ymir's remains that the world was created. The three brothers dragged the boy of the giant towards the centre of Ginnungagap. The blood was transformed into oceans and water. The flesh became lands, the bones mountains, his teeth made into rocks. His hair became the grass and trees and eyelashes became Midgard, the earth. They threw his brain high up into the air it became the clouds, his skull became the sky and it was the lid that covered the new world. So you see, despite blood and carnage there can always be something beautiful that comes from pain."
A pause and a small smile. "You're teeth like blades for battle, your body changing to fit the sea. Yet unlike Ymir you are far from dead, but alive and able to meld yourself into something so beautiful as the earth is."
Oh God that got gory fast. She was pretty sure she managed to keep most of the alarm off her face, though. And, as he went on, she gradually understood why he was telling her this.
A couple moments after he finished, she removed her hands from her mouth entirely, slow and careful, grimacing with a flash of red-stained, needle-sharp teeth at the blood already dripped all over her hands. Then she spit out another mouthful of blood and spit and the blunt, normal teeth that had apparently just been replaced. She was pretty sure this was the grossest thing that had ever happened to her, and that was saying something.
Once the majority of the mess was out of her mouth, she looked up at him again, attempting something resembling a smile (keeping her lips closed as much as she could). "...I... think it's done. Uh..." She takes another deep breath, still trying very hard not to panic. It's a little easier, now that her body doesn't feel like it's actively trying to kill her. Her back still hurts, but it's just leftover soreness rather than the insistent stinging of the fin actually pushing its way out.
"Thanks. For... for the story, and staying here." She still isn't sure how she would deal with this. She understood what he was trying to say, she appreciated it, but this just felt so wrong.
As they had a tendency to, their stories had a level of violence to them but for a culture that relied on such things as raids and battle to sustain themselves, it was no doubt his gods had equal baring and equal levels of fairness and brutality to their name. It was a telling sort of story, a tale for the ages, one that related to the idea of such bodies being apart of the land they lived upon but still, it might not be as horrifying yet as the idea of someone losing their teeth to such sharp cartilage that took their place. There was something fascinating about it but equally unnerving to see someone go through it. Still, he tried his best not to show any disgust at the transformation though he did wrinkle his face slightly when she spit out the remainder into a small pool of blood that had gathered.
As she was speaking, noting that what had happened had completed, he reached into the pack he had and pulled out a small piece of cloth and offered it out to her, watching her face carefully still, wanting to assure that she would not slip back into the pain she was previously in. "You handled it well, that you did on your own so there is no need for thanks."
His voice remained calm, though there was a small smile that pulled at his lips. "Here, take this. When you can wrap this in ice or dip it into cold water and place it against your teeth, it should help ease the ache."
It was slowly sinking in that this really was something she would have to get used to. It felt kind of stupid, that this was coming across as more upsetting than anything else that had happened so far, after she had been suddenly transported to this weird place, far away from her friends and her guild and even without her keys. After all that, this felt shallow and ridiculous. But she knew, from all she had heard and seen here, that this wasn't the end of it.
This place hadn't just taken her away from everything she knew, it was going to turn her into something she wasn't.
She didn't want to let it. She clenched her jaw, blinking away tears as she took the cloth, trying to minimize how much blood she got on it. "Thank you," she said again, her voice a little steadier this time, though she was still figuring out how to talk around these new teeth.
no subject
She carefully removed her bloodied hands from her mouth, spitting a few more teeth into her palms and staring at them despairingly as she tried to answer. "I-- I don't know," she whimpered, trying to talk around newly-empty spaces in her mouth and sharp jabs of discomfort. "I mean I do, kind of, but I don't... I don't know what to do about it, I don't want this!"
She had no idea if that made any sense, but she wasn't really concentrating on thinking it over more thoroughly at the moment.
no subject
The white of her teeth stuck out amongst the blood and he pulled his own hands closer to his body, wiggling his fingers slightly at the sight. His vivd gaze was quick to return to her face though and he bent downward slightly, attempting his best to remain at eye level so she could focus on something, anything but the obvious issue at hand. Her whimpers made his heart hurt for her, she looked young--older than his own children back in his homelands but this was gruesome. Even though children in his culture were expected to hold their own in ways, to fight, this was on another playing field.
"First, breathe." Ragnar responded with a calm voice, his accent heavy but voice direct, he let out a slow breath to encourage her. "If you let this pain control you it will only make it worse. Don't focus what is going to happen, focus on what is happening and accept it."
no subject
She started to straighten up, trying to relax her shoulders - and then flinching as the slight movement just increased friction between her skin and... whatever it was, the razor-edged thing apparently trying to push its way out of her back. "Ow, crap-- OW!"
All at once, that thin edge broke through skin, and her hands jumped back to her mouth at another surge of pain, and she felt sharp points pushing out of her gums and at the bases of her remaining teeth. She shut her eyes and shook her head again, mumbling something around her hands that might have been "no, nevermind, screw this".
She did at least make an effort to keep breathing, shaky but kept carefully steady, as she reached cautiously behind her back with one hand, wincing when her fingers brushed against the thing - the fin - that had grown from her back.
no subject
The blood eagle being one of them, but this girl had likely done nothing to deserve such treatment from her own body to rebel so far to rid of her of her own teeth, where sharp, more pointed white was beginning to show through the blood of her gums. It made his stomach turn slightly and as she tried to breath he watched her face, watcher her body movements and kept his hands at the ready if she were to lose consciousness.
"Good, breathe." He repeated, inhaling and exhaling again. "Think of it how the world was created, our bodies change and shape like the lands." He spoke calmly, his voice low so that she was forced to listen in if she had the mind to try; there was still a sternness to it though, a demand to be heard. Though, further more a story maybe, something else to distract her. "Listen, have you heard the story of the giant Ymir?"
no subject
no subject
He held out his hands, palms facing her and as he spoke he spoke with his hands, moving them along with the story. If she couldn't focus on his face, his words then at least there was another option.
"Before the dawn of time, there was a place call Nilfheim, a dark and cold place consumed with ice and fog. Below was the land of Muspelheim where fire ruled the lands. Between there was a great void, the vast emptiness called Ginnungagap. Where the air from Nilfheim and Muspelheim met, where the fire melted and the ice began to drip there was a giant called Ymir. While he slept, the sweat from under his arms grew two more giants, one male and one female."
He held up two fingers and paused, taking a breath, the tone of his voice clear to how much he knew these stories, how he thrived off them. "Now the Allfather, Odin, along with his brothers became wary that the giants were beginning to outnumber their own kind as Ymir was constantly conceiving new offspring. The only solution they could see was to kill Ymir and wait until he was asleep before they would began their assault."
He took a pause there, to make sure she was following, a small smile upon his lips.
no subject
It honestly struck her as... kind of a weird story, even if this was just the start of it. And even if her own country had its own share of odd stories and history. But she saw how invested he was in this, and how he was trying to help, and when he paused she nodded to show she was listening.
no subject
His hands continued moving, he continued speaking. His voice hushed slightly, but the passion still remained, the call to attentions. He held up three fingers before moving one. "Odin, and his brothers Vili, and Vé, descended upon Ymir in a horrifying battle. Using all of their strength they managed to kill the giant whose blood spouted out with such force in every direction."
Ragnar's hands separated, pushing outward to each side of his body to illustrate the force of the idea, then he brought them back in.
"And it was from Ymir's remains that the world was created. The three brothers dragged the boy of the giant towards the centre of Ginnungagap. The blood was transformed into oceans and water. The flesh became lands, the bones mountains, his teeth made into rocks. His hair became the grass and trees and eyelashes became Midgard, the earth. They threw his brain high up into the air it became the clouds, his skull became the sky and it was the lid that covered the new world. So you see, despite blood and carnage there can always be something beautiful that comes from pain."
A pause and a small smile. "You're teeth like blades for battle, your body changing to fit the sea. Yet unlike Ymir you are far from dead, but alive and able to meld yourself into something so beautiful as the earth is."
no subject
A couple moments after he finished, she removed her hands from her mouth entirely, slow and careful, grimacing with a flash of red-stained, needle-sharp teeth at the blood already dripped all over her hands. Then she spit out another mouthful of blood and spit and the blunt, normal teeth that had apparently just been replaced. She was pretty sure this was the grossest thing that had ever happened to her, and that was saying something.
Once the majority of the mess was out of her mouth, she looked up at him again, attempting something resembling a smile (keeping her lips closed as much as she could). "...I... think it's done. Uh..." She takes another deep breath, still trying very hard not to panic. It's a little easier, now that her body doesn't feel like it's actively trying to kill her. Her back still hurts, but it's just leftover soreness rather than the insistent stinging of the fin actually pushing its way out.
"Thanks. For... for the story, and staying here." She still isn't sure how she would deal with this. She understood what he was trying to say, she appreciated it, but this just felt so wrong.
no subject
As she was speaking, noting that what had happened had completed, he reached into the pack he had and pulled out a small piece of cloth and offered it out to her, watching her face carefully still, wanting to assure that she would not slip back into the pain she was previously in. "You handled it well, that you did on your own so there is no need for thanks."
His voice remained calm, though there was a small smile that pulled at his lips. "Here, take this. When you can wrap this in ice or dip it into cold water and place it against your teeth, it should help ease the ache."
no subject
This place hadn't just taken her away from everything she knew, it was going to turn her into something she wasn't.
She didn't want to let it. She clenched her jaw, blinking away tears as she took the cloth, trying to minimize how much blood she got on it. "Thank you," she said again, her voice a little steadier this time, though she was still figuring out how to talk around these new teeth.