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graveyardsmash2023-04-09 02:43 pm
ryslighelpers) wrote in graveyardsmash2023-04-09 02:43 pm
Entry tags:
TDM: APRIL/MAY
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 from a deep and dreamless sleep to find yourself lying among the ruins of a burnt-out, empty town. Your head aches and your limbs are stiff. The ground here is scrubby with half-grown plants and barren stone, and while there are a few buildings - most notably the large, empty hunting lodge at the center of the town - there is no sign of life.
Almost no sign. Wander around, and you may start to spot others like you, lost among the bones of empty buildings and abandoned firepits. Perhaps you’ll enter the lodge, which is still more or less whole, and find the bloodstains on the wooden walls, the meat hooks waiting empty in the kitchen. Perhaps you’ll discover, among the empty huts, graffiti scrawled in rusty red: TAGE LIVES.
Perhaps, out of the corner of your eye, you might see a flicker of movement; a figure that looks almost, but not quite, human. These figures will not attack you–in fact, if you approach or call out to them, they will quickly flee, vanishing into the ruins–but they watch you from afar, and you can’t quite shake the sense that they’re waiting for something.
Maybe you shouldn’t hang around to find out what.
SCENARIO TWO
You've stumbled your way into a city, and you're promptly besieged by the overwhelming sights and sounds. 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 lost expression and your clothes- so different from their own- 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. A hefty laptop may be handed to you, with words of a ‘network’ used for communication. Wonder what that’s about? Then there’s the very confusing pamphlet stuffed within: "What To Expect When You're Expecting (To Turn Into A Monster)”. They may direct you to an organisation known as the Lighthouse, their members most prominently found at the 38-8 apartments and the Lighthouse Church. Or perhaps, if you're injured, they'll refer you to the Crowe Clinic instead. Unfortunately, the directions you're given are so very complicated that you lose your way in the streets after two left turns, a right and a left at the soup kitchen.
Take care when asking for more help. 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
Now that you've found a moment of peace, you open up the mysterious device that's been handed to you. Perhaps you'll recognize it as some sort of laptop, albeit an old and clunky one. Or perhaps you'll be astounded by this curious feat of technology, which is unlike anything you've ever seen before. Regardless, the moment the lid is propped open to reveal the screen and the keyboard within, you gain your first glimpse of the network.
Perhaps you'll want to choose a username and write your very first message, posing the pressing question that's on your mind at this very moment. The lettered buttons click and clack awkwardly beneath your fingertips as you type.
However, you may instead want to respond to today's most popular message.
WELCOME TO RSDOS. PRESS F1 TO COMPOSE POST. *** TODAY’S TOP POST *** 018.07.154.55 <JUSTSOMEGUY> I'm booored. Who wants to play Twenty Questions? It's like… You choose a thing, right? And say you're ready to play, I suppose. And then someone else will ask you twenty yes/no questions to try and guess what the thing is! It HAS to be questions that can be answered with "yes" or "no". Entertain me, network friends! |
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.
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Shit. Shit, I am so sorry, I didn't see—
[ The girl that bends down to get a look at Sunny is paler than he is. It must look like staring at a corpse—because he is. She is one, no heartbeat or breathing to speak of. Fur peppers across her cheeks. One antler looks broken and bleeding. She's a monster, a weird undead deer. ]
1/2
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All of this was very real. Anytime he injured himself in Headspace there was never blood; only turning into Toast. Literal Toast.
But since he’s bleeding and feeling pain, this must be something else. Something he’s unsure about. Another hallucination? Maybe?
His shiny knife is missing from his person otherwise he would try to strike at this thing if it came any closer, much like how he’s fought his hallucinations in the past.. maybe that’s all this was, but he’s never seen something like this before. Never.
Sunny scrambles back on his hands and feet, awkwardly crab walking on the ground away from Max, his breathing beginning to speed up and his lungs starting to grow tight. ]
Pl.. please. Go away.
FDJSIAFAS THAT VIDEO
Her hooves clop against the concrete as her hands, covered in unfairly adorable pawpads, shoot up in front of her, palms out. ]
Easy. I'm not gonna hurt you. I- would've hit you with the car if I was, right?
[ What a fucking GREAT justification. Max winces, both inwardly and outwardly. ]
his life is so weird... cw: gory descriptions
Sunny continues to crawl back on his hands, shaking. ]
No.. you wouldn't have.
[ He taps the side of his head and takes a long, steady breath. He's stronger than he used to be, but he's still scared. ]
You want to eat my brain. Slurp up my spinal fluid through a bendy straw.
[ ... he has an overactive imagination. ]
Crack open my sternum and devour my heart.
[ YOUNG MAN THAT'S ENOUGH ]
cw: casual ableism in narration
[ Okay. So this guy's gonna fit right in here, because Max is pretty sure he's insane. Or- at least incredibly morbid, because as he keeps going on— ]
That's- what the hell, don't be gross! [ Max maybe you should not yell at the boy crab-walking away from you? Her tail—which halfway down abruptly turns from matted fur to only bone—lashes, annoyed. ] I don't wanna touch your brain, or your heart, or any kind of fluid, I wanna make sure you don't become someone's twisted hood ornament!
[ it's possible she's also not good at this ]
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Somewhere in his mind he believes Max— that although she looks scary, she won’t actually hurt him. Another part of him is terrified she will and then another part of him is tired of struggling and just wants it to end. There’s even the concern that she isn’t even real and is just another one of his hallucinations.
He stops crawling and simply curls his knees to his chest— his go to sitting position— and hugs his legs close to him. His voice is timid and meek: ]
Okay.. just tell me what you want and leave..
[ She just said what she wanted but perhaps he’s too nervous to even register what she just said. ]
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Her jaw's locked firmly in place as she forces herself to walk through what to say instead of blurt out whatever leaps to her lips. In this silence, it's easy to hear it coming, especially with her enhanced hearing:
Another car, headed toward them.
One ear quirks up in its direction. Quickly, Max holds out a hand, palm up. ]
I'll leave, I'll gladly leave, just come with me for a minute so you're not in the middle of the damn road.
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Sunny can feel the faint vibration of a cat getting closer and the headlights soon are spotted in the distance. Slowly and shakily, he stands, instantly curling his arms around himself. He makes his way towards the other side of the street.. thought he could probably move a little faster.
Yeah, no. Not going to take her hand either. ]
…
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She nods him along, hearing and feeling the car more than seeing it. ]
A little slower why don't you...
[ She still has to move her car to make sure it doesn't get t-boned... ]
cw: true route spoilers, depression
Meanwhile, the little twelve year old horror that lives far away in a safe Headspace is having a frustrating time considering the Wi-Fi has gone out. How else is he supposed to play games on the laptop? Omori is keenly aware, though, of what is going on with Sunny, especially since there isn’t a distraction in White Space now. His goal is to protect and he detects a threat. The intrusive thought seems to come out of nowhere:
Stab her.
Sunny has never felt so confused in his life (he gets confused.. a lot) but he hates interacting with people considering the only person he’s spoken to in the past few years has been his Mother. Talking to people makes him anxious— but traveling in this unknown world is even more anxiety inducing. He’s not really sure what to do.
His voice is just above a whisper as he replies to.. essentially himself: ]
No.. that’s mean..
[ He’s just going to ignore the weird tantrum Omori is having in his minds eye right now— between the Wi-fi being out and not driving a knife through this person for his safety. Besides, he’s unarmed and although he has a lot of intrusive thoughts like this, he always knows they are wrong… besides the ones where he punishes himself.
He reaches the other side of the road, finally lifting his head and looking at Max, voice shy and meek: ]
S.. Sorry about being in the way.
[ His arms are hugging himself, fingers curling to claw into his body. He doesn’t want to be alone.. but he’s very nervous. He has trouble feeling any sort of emotion, but he definitely looks sad.
I should ask for help.
No, she’s mad at you. ]
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Just...look before you cross the street next time. Especially in the damn fog.
[ Max hurries back to her car, driver door still open. As she climbs in, she studies Sunny, his body language, his...all of that.
And she sighs. ]
You...just woke up here, didn't you?
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He can’t look at her, but it’s obviously he’s trying to. He seems nervous and tense. ]
I..
[ His arms still hurt from being scraped, but maybe it’s just another trick his mind is playing on him. ]
I thought I was still sleeping.
[ That might explain his reckless behavior; it’s a dream so it doesn’t matter. He can’t distinguish his vivid dreams from his reality, especially since his mind has been trying to escape it. ]
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Carefully, she pulls the car to the side of the road, as the approaching car zips by. ]
I hate to tell you, but you're not. Welcome to the Ryslig peninsula, population, us poor schmucks.
[ She digs around in the glove compartment for something- aha. First aid kit. ]
I almost ran you over. Let me at least get the gravel out of your arms.
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He wants to cry from being so nervous and afraid and sad, but he's so slack faced nowadays, it rarely happens that he allows his body to express itself.
While she digs into the compartment, Sunny gets a good look at her. She's definitely some.. undead creature, but she's trying to help him. He's always been morbid and fascinated with dead things and he's always been fascinated with monsters too. Why else would so many of them exist in his imagination otherwise?
He leans in a little closer, kind of invading her personal space, only to quickly jolt back once she's done reaching in the compartment. ]
...
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I'm not gonna bite. Literally.
[ She nods to the hood of the car. If he can walk himself over there before she gets out so she's not in his space, that'd probably be for the best. ]
Is it just your arms? Or are your knees scraped up too?
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Um..
[ And then he just points to some big scrapes on his knees too, very akin to a child. That's probably because somewhere his mind is still trapped in being twelve years old instead of sixteen. ]
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(So really this is a new way for the universe to play a cosmic joke on her.)
So Max stops the assuming and makes herself hold before talking to him like he's a lot younger than her. ]
Okay. Arms seem worse, so... Hop up on the hood. [ She opens the kit and removes some gauze. ] Put that on one of your arms. Keep the pressure on it for like...a minute. It'll stop any remaining bleeding, and then I can clean it out and bandage.
Got it?
cw: omori spoilers, suicide mention
A lot like Mari.
He remembers how protective she was anytime he hurt himself and anytime there was danger. She would smother him with affection and love that he never thought he deserved before tending to the scrapes and bruises on his body anytime he clumsily lost his footing as a child or simply got hurt trying to play.
He missed her. So much.
He will never understand why she used the jump rope and his favorite tree in his back yard to end her life.
Silently and almost fleeting, tears flood his eyes and drip off of his long lashes. Not even a shuddering breath passes; not any other indication that he is sad.
He can’t talk about something like that, especially to a near stranger. She wouldn’t understand. He nods, slowly, the heel of one of his palms digging into his damp eyes before he reaches over to the gauze and follows her instruction. ]
cw: domestic violence allusions
It's only by chance that she glances up to catch his nod and just the hint of dampness, as he's stamping it out, and it freezes her. ]
—Oh. Uh—
[ No, Max, don't you dare say anything about it. She instantly knows, she can't. She digs into buried feelings, pulling up how she'd learned to avert her eyes when her stepdad got too angry. When she wanted to offer to ice her brother's bruises and he looked at her like he might literally bite.
Billy didn't want that and they lived in the same house for five years. She can't try and have a heart-to-heart with a strange kid on the side of the road, especially not with any indication of where to even start.
Overall, she falters for only a few seconds before pressing her lips together into something thin, something almost like a smile. ]
Yeah. Just like that. Hold it firm, and...I'll start on your knees.
[ Just like that, she crouches down with her own gauze, gently applying pressure. They don't look like they're bleeding, so she'll be able to pick out any gravel and disinfect easily.
Contrary to Sunny's impression of her, Max really doesn't know what she's doing, outside of applying first aid. She's usually brusque and sharp, and she does a bad enough job at being a little sister, let alone a big one. But maybe the fact that she really doesn't want to hurt some kid who obviously is in way over his head matters for something. ]
no subject
He's silent as she gets to work, though, and the tears have disappeared already, dark eyes taking note of her odd features again.
Then, in a very hushed voice, without any crack of smile: ]
You're.. endeering.
[ He's laughing. Just on the inside. ]
no subject
Blink.
Blink, blink.
Max's nimble fingers halt. She had to have misheard that. The emphasis, it's- she-
Very slowly, Max's head tilts upwards to get a look at Sunny's face. To see if he's cracking a smile. Anything. ]
Excuse me.
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The anxiousness is there, though, and Sunny repeatedly picks at his finger nails. He could say more:
I’m growing fawn-d of you.
Your kindness is helping me buck up.
I’ll replace the supplies in your first aid, but I am short of doe.
He keeps those jokes to himself, though, and instead he just.. looks away and doesn’t say anything else. 🧍]
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What's she supposed to do with this. Truly, what is Max supposed to do with this, he's acting like- some kind of shy kid, she doesn't know how to respond to this if she can't just snark back at him.
She thinks if she snarks back, he might burst into tears. ]
...
[ ... ]
...O...kay, then, uh. I'm just gonna keep on...
[ Max resumes her first aid duties. ]
cw: suicide ideation / intrusive thought
[ ok...
....
This is hard. He doesn't remember ever talking with his friends being this exhausting, but now he just wants to take a big nap. The biggest nap, maybe even the longest one he's ever had. A forever nap.
Oh.. there's an intrusive thought. Let's dwell on that for just a little more.. how would be the best way to take a forever nap? There's always the knife which he doesn't know where it is at.. so maybe he should think of another way. Hmm.. jumping would be quick.. maybe painless.. oh, he shouldn't think about this too much. That's right, let's think of something else...
This girl.. deer girl.. zombie deer girl? Maybe she needs a better look in his imagination. The undead thing was kind of scary, but maybe she could stay a deer.. a pretty deer. She can have a cottage near the playground.. and she seems like she has a tough exterior. She and Berly would probably get along! In fact, she could probably headbutt better than anyone else at the playground!
Congratulations, Headspace Max has been created. Hopefully she won't grow spider legs like some of his imaginative creatures do.
By the time he's done, his eyes are closed. There's maybe a tiny smile on his lips, but he continues remaining quiet. Imagining things.. it always brought him some sort of comfort when things were stressful. ]
weeping fully @ headspace max
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we can end here if you want!