TEST DRIVE MEME: SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER

[ryslighelpers]

TDM: SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER

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 is making all the cuts and scrapes on your skin 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 of the natives are trying to get on your good side with 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 on the more informative end of the scale. 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 readers saying they're lies, or pointing out good "jokes."

Then there are 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? Feel free to pick any monster type for this prompt, but note that you may not get the same one in game.

Comments

[ohnose]

[Lo and behold, the armed locals along with Eugene all scream and turn to run, one of them yelling-- it's one of them monsters already! and firing a poorly aimed shot near Cassandra. It's a one-shot-load gun, though, and the three of them dart back to their ship for cover.

Eugene, however, does not know that this bear could eat him. Well, it's a bear, sure! But horses can climb, so maybe bears could like, not eat him? Regardless, he pops his head up from behind a shipping barrel once the goons have disappeared.]

Well, that was convenient.

[And then remembers yes, bear, and literally tries to hold his hands up in attempts to reason with the bear.]

Now I appreciate your help there but, uh, how about we don't have a Eugene-shaped snack on the menu? We cool with that?

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[Oh, how Cassandra just hated guns. She always found them so clunky, and difficult to use... as well as a constant reminder of that one time she almost shot her future boss. So, on top of being not nearly as personal as she'd like, they also apparently hurt. A lot.

And guns were very loud in Bear ears! So, a sharp pain shoots through the Sun bear's skull. It disorients her, but just enough to make her look angrier, and therefor more dangerous. The goons noticed this apparently, and made the wise decision to exit the scene, before they could be pursued by a bear.

Truth be told, she wasn't going to eat them. Scaring them was perfectly fine, and didn't leave Cass feeling fulfilled but morally disgusted. It was all in the name of protecting that poor sap hiding behind the barrels-- and yes, she could smell him. She knew he was there, before he poked his head up and attempted... reasoning, with a bear.

And who else could it be, attempting that?]

...Rruurghuuugh.

[That... sounds like a close approximation of "oh my god". In bear.]

[ohnose]

[Well, at least Eugene's suspicions are right. This bear... isn't a normal bear. Eugene lowers a brow, tilting his head as though getting a better look at the bear will help him identify it somehow. He puts his hands on the barrel as though he's going to vault it to get closer, but hesitates.]

Okay, talking to a bear now. Better than the locals, I guess.

Hey uh, you're not hurt, are you, big guy? Big girl? Excuse me, I'm not uh, polished on the bear necessities.

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[If a bear could roll their eyes, than this one is making a good attempt on it right now. She'll, for the moment, let him stay behind his barrel, hesitating to get any close to a giant bear, like a smart person.

It's better that he gives her some space, anyway.

The bear shakes her head, and looks down... way down. And she seems to sort of fold into herself, in a traditionally non-bearlike way. The form and shape underneath the fur seems to wall away, as the fur coat deflates and bunches up against the ground. Make no mistake, Eugene can hear the bear, as it's still grumbling, in bear, as the... "melting" continues.]

Rruughrawwh. Wuhruran't believe this...

[Wait, that sounded human. And muffled.

The "bear" rises again, barely half of its original size, but definitely taller, and thinner. And... angrier She fur shifts and moves, more like a coat than actual skin.

And then, a pair of eyes poke out from it all, and a mouth. There's a whole face! She looks unamused.]

Of all the fucking people I could find around here, why did it have to be you, Fitzherbert?

[ohnose]

[The more the bear changes into something that isn't a bear, the more Eugene starts to shrink behind his barrel-- and then there's a face.

Eugene's eyes grow wide, his jaw slack, and then he lights up. There's a person under all that fur! A person whose voice and... general features he recognizes!

But especially the cold voice!]

Cuh-cuh-cuh-Cassandra! Why I, I barely recognized you!

[really]

You, you, uh... You gonna tell me what's up with, uh....

[Eugene points at... all of Cassandra. Just, all of her.]

That?

[feudalladyshandmaid]

Yeah, I'm sure you bearly did.

[It sure is Cassandra; the same sullen expressions, the cold disposition... the bear pelt that she doesn't normally wear. But it's an interesting night and there's more than enough of it to stay warmly covered.]

Oh... This? Yeha, that's a... a long story. But do you mind telling me what you're doing here?

[ohnose]

Oh sure, breeze over the giant bear thing. Why not.

[As glad as he'd seemed to see her, Eugene's already frowning again. Fine! Fine. This is how they're going to do this.]

Oh, you know. I was just making my way through the castle on a perfectly normal, ordinary day, and then I'm face down in the sand here talking to cold blooded snake woman in a bear suit about why I'm "here" without knowing why she seems to know where here even is!

[Eugene sounds more and more frustrated the longer his run-on goes, volume increasing with every word.]

[feudalladyshandmaid]

So, they got you too, then. Ugh, that's just perfect.

[That is how they're going to do this. Because Cass now has to deal with this in her life, besides everything else. Now they're both frowning!]

Listen, there's a lot to explain, and I've got about an hour to explain it. Long story short, you're not in Corona anymore, we're in a place called Ryslig that likes to mess with people. And I'm not wearing a bear suit.

[Cassandra, meanwhile, sounds evenly frustrated the whole way through the explanation. Like she knew this would have to be done someday.]

[ohnose]

Mess with people?! Why can't you just explain it to me like a normal person, this seems like something that needs to be explained, Cassandra!

[Eugene's just as frustrated, further incensed by Cassandra's frustration. It shows in his... winding sentences.]

I know you don't trust me, but this is--- this is a whole new country, and you're a bear with a curfew now?!

[feudalladyshandmaid]

How about you let me get to that!

[She's ready to tear hair out. So, it's just like old times.]

It's a lot to explain, genius. We're in a different world, far, far away from Corona. And there's magic here, bad magic that likes to cause trouble for everyone. On top of weird shit that happens every month, we have to turn into monsters!

So I'm a Werebear now. Any other questions, Fitzherbert?!

[ohnose]

[Eugene, to his credit, shuts up when Cassandra re-asserts. It's.... quite evident he's scared of her, in how tight his posture is, but it's not even anything to do with the Bear bit. He stares at Cassandra in silence for a moment after Cassandra's done, arms up in defense, and then-

just raises one finger. He has one last question! One!]

Where--- wh-where is Rapunzel?

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[Cassandra's emotions are on overdrive now, and she likes to think it's all Eugene's fault; fear, confusion, distress, anger. It's all there in her words, and her appearance. Her hands grip the pelt she wore tightly, almost like it would tear, if that were magically possible. And once her rant is over, she stands ready to face whatever benign comeback Fitzherbert could throw at her.

But really.... she should have expected this instead.]

...She's not with you? [That's an honest question, softer than all the words before it. Her body almost seemed to stiffen at the name... before sagging.] If she's not with you, then it's possible she didn't get pulled into this, and she's still back in Corona.

That's... for the best, honestly.

[ohnose]

[When Cassandra asks if Rapunzel is with him, Eugene shakes his head-- and sags along with her at her response.]

Oh. Well, yeah. No, that's... that's good.

[Eugene puts his palm to the back of his neck, rubbing it, and makes vague gestures with his other hand, not really looking at Cassandra.]

Wouldn't want her to be stuck in a place like this.

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[It's always a bit strange when they reacted in the same way-- which typically happens whenever the topic of discussion involves Rapunzel.]

Yup. We... wouldn't want that.

[And she isn't going to mention that Rapunzel already was stuck in a place like this.]

Look. You're not exactly safe here, I can take you somewhere there isn't going to be people pointing swords and knives at you. Then, we can figure things out.

[ohnose]

A-ha. Yeah. Kind of picked up on that unsafe part.

Where are we headed?

[It's an attempt at his usual goodhumoredness, but his voice is pretty tired.]

[feudalladyshandmaid]

There's a castle I'm staying at with a few other people. We'll be safe there.

[She sounds pretty tired too, like this was the last thing she expected to have to deal with today.

With that, Cass starts walking. Without a word, she throws the bear pelt over her head, and there's a moment of... rearranging underneath it. And the bear that had scared off some would-be attackers was out once more.

The bear grumbles in a bear way, as if unhappy with this.]

i don't have an icon for this yet ok

[ohnose]

[Exhausted though he may seem, Eugene must be incapable of avoiding the theatrics-- in a much more subdued way than usual, his shoulders lift up and his brow furrows as Cass becomes.... something else. He shakes it off with a shake of his head.]

You really gotta learn to give a guy a warning.

[All the same, he takes a place at Cassandra's side and looks over to look her right in the bear face.]

...But, uh.... Thanks.

WHOOPS SORRY

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[Every day is a whole ordeal in Ryslig, though... that isn't all that different from Corona when Cass thought about it.

The bear thing was new though.

The beast, formerly known as Cassandra, turned her head to regard him and noticed, possibly for the first time, how exhausted he seemed. She couldn't say anything, naturally, but she could reply with a nod of her furry head.

It was literally the least she could do. Of course she would save his dumb life.]

[ohnose]

[It would seem that Eugene prefers the lack of words, anyway; he gives a half smile and leans over to ruffle the top of her bear head.]

You know? I think I might like you better this way.

[But he sure isn't gonna let the mood stay like this THANK U]

[feudalladyshandmaid]

[It's amusing that he says that. Cassandra preferred the lack of options for conversation too; she had time to think now, plan. There was a lot they would have to go over, in more detail than he probably cared for, but at least the basic facts had been presented. That's one thing.

The fur ruffling is another, and as soon as she feels his hand on her head, the sunbear formerly known as Cassandra was regarding him with a fixed expression; her gaze was fixed, if Eugene had never seen a bear glare at him, he was now. Her lips pulled back, showing a wide assortment of rather white, rather sharp, teeth.

It's a plain message. She may be a bear, but she's still your friend Cassandra, Fitzherbert. And she's also a bear.]