TDM: NOVEMBER/DECEMBER

[ryslighelpers]

TDM: NOVEMBER/DECEMBER

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 in a dark ditch, the sky cloudy overhead. Dirt cakes into your cuts and scrapes. The air is clammy and damp, and it smells like rain.

You’re in a grave. And when you sit up to inspect the tombstone marking your spot, it has your name on it. Maybe the graves next to you have the names of familiar friends, family, acquaintances. Not all of them are open like yours are. RIP.

There’s a light dancing in the distance, and you hear the jingle-jangle of heavy keys, or worse still, the gravekeeper’s massive pitchfork or shovel. If you're lucky, you can sneak out beyond his notice, and get out alone. If not - you might find yourself on the wrong end of a shovel’s swing, or worse yet, tripping headfirst in front of a pair of monstrous eyes.

SCENARIO TWO

You've stumbled your way out of the graveyard, and you're promptly besieged by the overwhelming sights and sounds of the city. Cars honk at you to get out of the street, and strangers try not to look in your direction for too long. They see your dirty clothes and scraped faces, and pretend to busy themselves with something else. Rarely, a look of pity is cast your way.

But some people try to reach out. Enterprising citizens and those that hope to curry favor with the newcomers pass out new clothes and bundles of food, asking if you have a place to stay the night, wondering about the details of the world you came from. Some are even handing out pamphlets which vary in how helpful they are--"What To Expect When You're Expecting (To Turn Into A Monster)", "Wolpertinger: Fact or Fiction?", "100% ACCURATE MONSTER QUIZ ASSESSMENT: GUARANTEED TO PREDICT YOUR MONSTER!", and "Ryslig Law In A Nutshell".

As you wander from street to street, you come to realize that some of these people seem...off. If you draw close enough to look at them--really look--you'll be able to observe certain uncanny features. A misshapen eye socket that looks more like an insect's compound eye, skin like a loose bag that seems to fit poorly over their own musculature, a backwards hand that seems to function as normal, and, of all things, an opaque mucus that seems to drip from unseen orifices.

Not only do these people look strange, they act strangely, too. One can be seen drinking a cup of whole coffee beans. Another chews on a piece of rubber tire as if it were a stick of gum. A man dressed in a full-body trench coat seems to writhe as he sits and reads a newspaper.

If any of them notice your approach, they immediately stroll over to enthusiastically greet you. When they speak, a droning buzz seems to emanate from deep within their chests. They smile and stare unblinkingly, talking in obscenity-riddled, disjointed sentences.

"Welcome! It is almost a season! Are you ready to fucking party?"

"What the shit! You're monster?"

With time, more and more of these people begin to shuffle towards you in an almost swarm-like fashion. Lose one of them, and more show up around the corner. They're eager to ask questions--most of which make absolutely no sense--and they won't be easily dissuaded from their goals.

Maybe you should run. Or maybe punch one of them. Surely, that won't cause any problems.

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? Does it fit you, or does it feel incongruous with your nature? Feel free to pick any monster type for this prompt, but note that you may not get the same one in game.

Comments

[grantpa]

[At least he's not alone in this - though he's pretty sure that trying to find Hope or Janet or even Scott in this mess was nil.

That was fine. He was a trained SHIELD agent and even with age and history he was feeling ...well. Better then ever. First things first. Lay of the land and talk to the locals because it was strange.

So he doesn't relax. He's an old man and that's a strength but he does adjust his glasses.]

...It's perfectly ridiculous. The notion of becoming something else entirely and worship of ancient Gods is-

[Not far fetched when you deal with physics, superhuman suits, and a world where god aliens exist]

stupid. What do you think of it Mister...

[believeprotector]

[Mister?? Uh, yea. No. That sounds weird, even if Riku was made Master not even a month ago.]

Just Riku is fine.

[As for the notions of all of this… Well, usually Riku wouldn't be quite so free with his thoughts, but inside a hubspace the balance between the Worlds really doesn't matter so much anymore.

He shrugs.]

Most of the concepts fit with my experiences. There have been hub worlds before, where people who lost their original homes could come together. Other worlds layer magic so that entry from the Outside World shapes the visitor to local circumstances. The way this god goes about it though…

[The fact that they were summoned and trapped, the fact that the Fog God is supposed to change them into something else entirely…

Riku's hands clench.]

None of this aligns with how the worlds are supposed to work. It will probably damage the balance.

[Something that's already fragile enough.]

[grantpa]

[Once upon a time Hank would have smiled, nodded, and quietly nodded to somebody to make a phone call to call someone to help the young man.

then, he invented his own particle. (And was willing to die to defend it)

then, his wife returned from a realm of infinite possibility.

So he crosses his arms over his chest, cautious by nature, and listens.]

The balance?

[The rest of it makes a sort of sense. Going from point a to point b. Civilizations within civilizations. Worlds within worlds. There's so much more to this place then we ever theorized.]

Something that could potentially alter the fabric of... [he gestures with his hand] all reality?

[believeprotector]

[What that means, well… Riku hesitates to name specific consequences. He knows what happened the last time the balance was about to tip, but this is different. Still…]

When the balance tips, the borders between the worlds become more fluid. [More darkness mean more cracks to slip through, after all.] In theory, that means if the balance is upset enough escaping this place should be fairly easy.

On the long run though, that kind of upset results in the worlds starting to be consumed. All that begins in darkness also ends in darkness.

[Does the last sentence sound like a quote? Yea, it is a quote. Anyway…]

That's how it should go. But we are dealing with an entity, who can drag anyone from anywhere and seals their powers and magic down to nothing.

[Riku's eyes fall down on his right palm. Missing Way to the Dawn is like missing a limb, really.]

Ultimately, it's impossible to know what to expect.

[Doesn't mean, he isn't worried about the implications though.]

[grantpa]

So something affects the fabric of reality and alters it on a molecular level.

[Makes sense. Calling it magic, well. Once upon a time he'd joke with Janet about being a magician but that's not entirely accurate.

Rubbing his shoulders, he glares at the collection of locals and summons every ounce of spy instinct he has before nodding mutely at the boy.]

I'm freezing. Let's get inside.

[Upsetting the balance, altering worlds...] The amount of energy it would take to cause something like reality to capsize has to be astronomical.

[HE hates that he doesn't know. Ever since Janet came back, he doesn't know as much as he wants to which means he can't help people. Which means...]

How do you know about all of this? were you studying it? Trying to prevent it? Are you an Avenger?

[believeprotector]

[Riku nods, and leads the way to an abandoned building he's spotted a while back. This isn't exactly a tavern-safe conversation after all, even if it matters less here than elsewhere.

If nothing else, there'll be a fire place there.]

Less than you'd think. The tipping point has been brushed a few times too often in the last couple of years.

[The "how do you know this" question is hardly unexpected… the last part leaves Riku perplexed.]

Avenger? There is little less pointless than revenge, if you ask me. [He has opinion on that. As for how he actually knows...] I've been helping keeping the balance between the Worlds stable for the last couple of years. It's been more on-the-job training than studying, unfortunately.

[It wasn't always like that, if Master Yen-Sid is to be believed.]

What about you? You seem like you are taking this all pretty well.