TDM: MARCH/APRIL

[ryslighelpers]

TDM: MARCH/APRIL

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".

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? 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

[heyunderoos]

Yeah. I was out with MJ and it was broadcast live. Mysterio faked a tape that I killed him, and outed me. [The thought of that just sours Peter's expression further. His whole life was about to change, and now he was just pulled away from that.

He isn't in suit somehow though. He isn't sure how or why beyond the mun decided no spider suit. Showing up in full costume probably wouldn't have been a good idea here though.] I'm guessing we met... way after that point?

[sciencesquid]

[Otto had never heard a detailed version of how exactly Mysterio outed Peter's identity, and arrived a few months too late to see this broadcast with his own eyes. Needless to say, now that he has a better picture of what happened, he's disgusted. He doesn't have much room to talk, considering how many cars he flung at Peter's face, but still.]

Several months after. Mysterio's actions had some rather... devastating effects on your life, and so, you turned to Dr. Strange for help. You asked him to cast a spell which would make everyone forget that you're... [He casts a quick glance at their surroundings. He'd rather not say it out loud in a public area, just in case.] You know.

[heyunderoos]

Oh. [Peter loosely wraps his arms around himself, his expression settling on unsure. He isn't sure how he actually gets to that conclusion, but if anyone could fix something that big, it would be Doctor Strange.] I guess that's definitely one way to try and fix things.

I'm gonna assume it went really wrong?

[sciencesquid]

[A wry, strained smile dawns on Otto's face at that guess. It's not a laughing matter, but he can't help himself.]

To use the man's own words... The spell got botched. As a result, it began to tear holes in the multiverse.

[Had Otto known about Mysterio's little plot involving the multiverse, he would've led into this concept with a more delicate path. Unfortunately, he's blissfully unaware of any lies Quentin Beck told and so he just tossed the term out there without second guessing it.]

[heyunderoos]

[Peter pauses at that, his eyes widening. His emotions are all over the place, but- he can't quite stop himself from speaking.]

Wait, wait the multiverse is real? I thought Mysterio had made that up. [He is alarmed and excited in equal measure.]

Wait- no, I nearly like tore holes in the universe, oh my god.

[sciencesquid]

[Otto shrugs his shoulders a bit. After everything that's happened, he's learned to let go of his skepticism. Apparently things like alternate universes and magic are real. And so are monsters, now. It certainly makes his entire life as a scientist feel a lot more meaningless.]

No, Strange tore holes in the universe. [Because Peter asked him to use magic and apparently interfered with the spell-casting, but... Y'know, Otto can't let this kid carry the blame by himself, and he'll gladly throw Strange under the bus for it.] As a result, several individuals from other universes ended up in your own. ...Including myself.

[heyunderoos]

Again, oh my god. The implications are- amazing, crazy, but amazing. Also scary, cause the universe doesn't need any holes. [Whilst Otto finds the realization disheartening as a scientist, Peter lights up. The excitement he had previously shelved when he realized Beck was lying is back in full force. ]

It means the possibilities are genuinely endless. Anything and everything could happen. I mean, it technically did, you ended up in my universe.

[sciencesquid]

[Oh, that universe absolutely didn't need any holes. In the end, they became more like terrifying rifts, and Otto feels bad that it ever came to that. Had Peter sent them home from the very beginning, things could never have escalated that badly and May- ... Well, he can't tell Peter about May.]

It was... quite the experience, I'll tell you that. But you needn't worry. As far as I know, the holes were mended in the end. Though... I can't say for certain whether everyone was sent back where they belong. I did wake up here, after all.

[heyunderoos]

I'm glad things are, or are going to be fixed. The idea is still cool but the implications are kind of horrifying. The fact you ended up here is also raising a lot more questions.

[Peter realizes they're blocking foot traffic as someone jostles by them. He gives the person a sheepish look. He looks back to Otto, smiling still.]

Maybe we should find some place to actually sit down or something?

[sciencesquid]

[Otto has so many questions, he can't even sort them all out. But he's certain Peter has even more of them, so he'll refrain from touching any of his own for now. At the suggestion, he hangs his head a bit.]

Yes. Yes, of course. Somewhere quiet, preferably.

[He throws a quick side-eye towards the direction the mob took off in. What if there are more people like that?]

[heyunderoos]

Yeah, we just gonna- have to hope we find a decent place. [Otto's glance does make Peter look around a little himself.] With maybe less angry mobs.

[Peter looks around uncertainly, picking a direction at random.]

Let's just try to head away from where those people went.

[sciencesquid]

That'd be for the best.

[He'll stride after Peter at a casual pace. Not only is he still very sore, he's worried that walking too fast might draw attention to them. There's only a brief moment of silence before a somewhat embarrassing realization hits him.]

My name is Otto, by the way. Otto Octavius. [He'd add a "Doctor" to that, but he doesn't see the point anymore. Fat lot of good his fancy title in nuclear physics will do him here.]

[heyunderoos]

[Peter releases a soft laugh at that, turning to look at Otto as he walks.]

Well, its really nice to meet you again. In probably equally as weird circumstances. Dunno if this counts as weirder, even with the whole, pitch fork wielding mob part.

[sciencesquid]

[He weighs his options for a bit, hands slipping into the pockets of his coat. ...Oh good lord, there's mud in there. Those hands are being hastily retracted again. Yep, he knows exactly what the answer to the question is.]

It's weirder. Your universe was still relatively close to my own. I went from New York to New York in such a seamless manner that I hadn't even noticed I was in another universe for a long while. Waking up in my own grave, on the other hand...

[heyunderoos]

Okay, so you also woke up in the grave-? Cause that was incredibly freaky. I kinda of jumped out of mine and ran, but I don't know what else I was supposed to do.

[He feels bad about the people he ran into, but Peter was panicking.] New York is at least consistent, you know where you are at home. Here its so far not great.

[sciencesquid]

[Peter waking up in a grave as well raises concerns for several reasons. Otto was meant to die, and so, the cemetery was not entirely surprising. But Peter... Peter would have and should have lived to fight many more days.]

Heh... New York will always be New York, I suppose. I don't even know what this place is supposed to be. It feels European, somehow.

[heyunderoos]

Vaguely European and threatening is kind of the vibe. [It makes Peter miss New York more, since most New Yorkers would just roll their eyes at monsters and move on with their day.] I'm sure people like living here, maybe, but I'm not much of a fan.

[Peter looks around as they walk, the hustle and bustle of the city proving there isn't as many quiet spots as the two would want. Where they came from likely had quieter, but also more prone to having mobs.

A relatively empty restaurant comes into view, more specifically their outdoor seating crammed in a corner.]

If we don't see a bench or something, we could probably sit there, until the staff probably chase us off.

[sciencesquid]

[Oh good, he's not the only one who got the European vibe. But perhaps they've both lived in New York for so long that everything outside it appears like a foreign country.

He peers at the restaurant when Peter indicates it, trying to take in just how many others are in the vicinity and just how leery they look. So far, it doesn't appear too bad. The lack of money is a whole other issue to keep in mind, but perhaps the staff will take pity on them.]

Right... Yes. [Time to approach one of the tables on the side, then. You know, for easy get-aways.] ... If the two of us are here, then perhaps... Perhaps there are others. Did you see anyone else at the cemetery?

[heyunderoos]

[The restaurant isn't a perfect solution, but it'll do for now until they're chased off in some capacity. Irritated waitresses are way better than dealing with angry mobs with pitchforks and torches.

Peter moves to take one of the seats to plonk down in. He briefly looks around, at least relieved no one is really approaching them yet.]

Yeah, if we're here, it wouldn't be crazy that more of us are here too. [He rubs the back of his neck idly, expression settling on something somewhat thoughtful.] To be honest, I didn't really look around that much. We could always go back and look to see if anyone familiar crops up.

[sciencesquid]

[As they get settled, Otto starts idly wiping at his hair with one hand, tufts of mud clinging to the fingertips of his gloves. If he could just get cleaned up a bit more, perhaps blending in will be easier. There's nothing he can do about the scrapes on his face, though.]

Going back in our current state is risky. We stand out a bit too much. [He pauses for a moment. It's true that he's a lot more defenseless without his actuators, but there was something else off about the earlier confrontation.] ... And forgive me if I'm wrong, but you don't appear quite your usual spry self.

[heyunderoos]

[Peter at best tries to get some of the dried mud off of his clothes. Brushing it off away from the table just means loose dirt hits the ground near their table. He spares a glance at the wait staff and immediately looks back at Otto, guilt written on his features as he stops.]

If we were less dirty, we'd probably be okay. Just cleaning up is going to require us finding new clothes and stuff.

[Peter can't help but make a bit of a face at that. He was maybe trying to avoid thinking about this.] I kind of realized mid-way during that mob thing I can't really stick to anything anymore. I haven't really tested anything, but I'm sure I'm not going to heal the same either.

[He rolls down his sleeve somewhat to where he was struck earlier. The skin is starting to bruise bit by bit already.]

[sciencesquid]

[This Peter has some sort of healing ability? That's news to Otto. Though, it does explain quite a bit about how fast he recovered from his first real fight with the Green Goblin. And if it's not working anymore now... Otto frowns, his gaze stuck on Peter's bruising and almost in a reflex, he raises his hand to the back of his neck.]

... Something's odd about this place. Does it take away the things which make a person superhuman, perhaps?

[heyunderoos]

[Peter operates readily on the assumption if Otto knows he's Spider-Man, he must know more specifics.

Peter rolls his sleeve back up for the moment. Otto's gesture to touch the back of his neck goes over the teenager's head.]

It could correlate with the turning into a monster thing? [His expression settles on something thoughtful. He's speculating a bit wildly, but they don't really know much.] Wipe away what would conflict with changing. This universe probably functions a lot differently than our own, so its a possibility.

[sciencesquid]

Indeed, it wouldn't be the first time. There's another who... changed, when he was taken to your universe. As I understand it, he'd become a being of pure energy in his own universe and somehow, he regained his own body when crossing the threshold. He hadn't lost his powers, though. He'd simply changed physically.

[Otto still doesn't understand how that worked, and he doubts they'll ever find out, short of Max showing up here to allow for another comparison. He doesn't want that, though. They'd only just gotten him back to normal.

Drawing in a deep breath, he feels a dim ache in his spine and it's only after a few seconds have passed that he even remembers he can just... sit back in the chair. He can do that now; there's no obstacles anymore.]

[heyunderoos]

That is cool, but also, kind of alarming given everything else that went on. [Peter is trying to stay focused on the topic at hand, opposed to the whole being of energy thing. Cause how does that even work?

Otto sitting a bit weirdly takes a second for Peter to really register. Maybe Otto finds the chair uncomfortable?]

I'd test my strength, but if I can't stick or heal the way I should, I definitely can't do anything else I normally can. It'd be a good idea to get more information to see what we can do. Besides the pamphlets those guys like threw at us. There has to be something a little more in-depth to look over.