TEST DRIVE MEME #5.

[acatamods]

I ▫ main IV ▫ premise       XI ▫ applications XIV ▫ activity II ▫ logs V ▫ rules VII ▫ bestiary   IX ▫ canon updates XII ▫ taken XV ▫ drop/hiatus III ▫ ooc VI ▫ faq VIII ▫ setting   X ▫ mods XIII ▫ reserves XVI ▫ players test drive meme #5 It happens in the blink of an eye. One moment, you are home. Perhaps you are with your family, perhaps you are at work. It's a completely normal day . . . and then, suddenly, your stomach drops. You are overcome with a sudden sense of vertigo. You cannot see up, or down, or where you are. You fall flat on your face. It's bright, warm, and humid . . . for now. Weirdly, the weather seems to be entirely in flux. One moment, it is warm and humid, and within the next handful of hours, it is starting to snow. Whatever is going on with Astoria seems to be messing with the atmosphere of the Temple, and as a result, you are having something of a wild entrance to Acatalepsy. It takes a few seconds for you to gain composure and catch your breath. You are surrounded by ancient stone buildings, with carvings you do not recognize etched into the stone. There's a sense of nausea, overwhelming and sudden, when you realize you aren't in Kansas anymore. Indeed, it seems as if you have fallen down the rabbit hole. A weird, mysterious, snowing-yet-humid rabbit hole. THE TEMPLE OF BEGINNINGS. Welcome to the "Home Base" of Astoria's Circle. What the actual name of the base is called is lost to the ages, and there's no sense of where you could find it, unless you started asking around. At any rate, this is a central hub of the Circle, a place of powerful magic and mysterious energy. It is a scattering of ancient stone buildings and for the most part, it looks abandoned . . . except for what seems to be a few items, some rooms taken, items moved or organized, even a small garden planted. These are just the smallest hints that there are people here that have been here before you arrived. Overall, it's fairly beautiful. However, it is definitely not modern. Upon exploration, you find that the buildings are kept up by some kind of magic. Some of the rooms have items, things from other Circle members already settled, and others appear to be unclaimed. Pick your rooms, explore the grounds, see the beauty and wonder all around you in such a magical place. However, be careful -- there is some additional movement around the Temple that seems specific to the time of year. HAPPY UN-BIRTHDAY. The kitchen has become overtaken with a flurry of activity. Vines have woven their way into the area of the Temple typically reserved for food, and there is a massive tea party! What a splendiferous thing -- surely this can't be all that bad. There is such a massive array of food here that it almost seems impossible to know where to start . . . tea and cookies set out with messages that read “EAT/DRINK ME." Well, if you insist. However . . . certain foods and drinks have certain effects upon your person that are wholly unexpected. Well, drat. If you taste the rosehip tea, you are suddenly infatuated with the first individual you lay eyes on. They are everything to you. You think you may even want to propose, immediately, right now. Weddings, I love weddings! Tasting the ladyfingers will cause you to spill your deepest secrets to whoever is nearby. Have a secret crush? Not anymore! The entire room has to know about it, and you somehow can't seem to shut up about whatever you've been trying to keep quiet. A sip of the chamomile tea will cause you to become ridiculously sleepy. That corner looks like a particularly delightful place to take a nap, doesn't it? Maybe someone else wants to nap too. The Madeline cakes cause a ridiculously high spike in happiness. Nothing can get you down, not even the grumpiest of people. Smile, smile, smile! You need to spread this joy to everyone in your reach. A nibble of the scones will prevent you from lying. . . and, in addition, you will be brutally honest on whatever question you're asked. Maybe now is a bad time to give an opinion on your friend's outfit or new haircut, hm? And, finally, the Earl Grey tea will cause an enhancement of your Astoria given powers. Make sure you have that under control, or you may accidentally blow out a window, depending on what it is. YOU'RE LATE, YOU'RE LATE. The Unseen Servants will be a little, well, mad. Not that anyone will be able to see them, but there will seem to be things moving around the Temple at random, whether they be sheets, clothing, food, furniture, etc. with very little if any logical reason to it. It almost appears like the sheets and the like are moving throughout the air without any rhyme or reason to it . . . someone certainly isn't happy that the Temple is all astray. In addition, the Unseen Servants may also be attempting to steal things off of you. After all, you are also new to their world, and they want to make sure everything is put into their proper place, so beware any silent mischievous Unseen Servants dipping hands into pockets. Also . . . some of the rooms in the Temple are shifting around. Certain entryways could lead you to a select location at random. You may have thought you were entering your room, but it appears you’ve wound up in someone else’s. Or the bathhouse. Or the forest. Either way, you may find yourself lost for a bit...until the Temple decides to stop playing tricks on you. Keep track of your location, or you may wind up in the Forest of the Fey by mistake. OFF WITH YOUR HEAD. Should you approach the fighting ring, you’ll find that isn’t quite what you’d expect — there are no training dummies to be found, the rusted gates are colored a lavish gold, and the dirt ground has been replaced with a red and black checkered flooring. More notably, the ring itself seems to have expanded to make way for seating so that it’s become more of an arena than anything. There is an audience of spectators: many of them are typically known as the bestiary of this Temple. They are a bit more, er, refined and chatty today. When you enter, the gates will shut behind you. They will not budge. You have now entered a makeshift Royal Court. Suddenly, a playing card manifests in your hand. It might be… A Heart: A princess-like figure is displayed on this card. She appears to be singing. A Diamond: A gallant knight-like figure is displayed on this card. He appears to be fighting. A Queen: A refined queen-like figure is displayed on this card. She sits atop a throne, her finger pointed right at you. A King: A triumphant-king like figure is displayed on this card. He stands on a podium for all to see. A Joker: A jester-like figure is displayed on this card. He is dancing, laughing, and making a general fool of himself. On the back reads a message that states “This card withholds your role. You’ll be permitted to leave once we are thoroughly entertained. Best of luck!” No further instruction is given. Those who have entered with you are in the same predicament. How will you interpret your card? Who are you stuck with and how will you satisfy the audience? Or are you a member of the audience instead? Either way, good luck getting out — it’s up to you! COMMUNICATIONS. Upon arriving, you will notice on whichever is your non-dominant hand, you will have a fairly simply screen. A smart watch, if you will. Upon exploration, you will find that it has a directory of all those here with you at the Temple of Beginnings- names, and access to a direct message to them. The watch also has video, audio, and text capabilities, as well as what looks like a collection of messages sent to everyone who wishes to open them. This is your 'network', and also how Astoria can reach out and communicate with you. There is nothing keeping you from removing and/or losing your watch! But remember that you will not have access to this network without it. OOC: Also feel free to join us and other possible players on our discord server! enjoy! ♥

Comments

[disposal]

Hah. [ it comes out as more of a scoff. she places her hands on her hips and fixes her gaze elsewhere. ] They don't make you strong so you can make friends.

[ but ultimately, she agrees. if he was just merely a weapon, she supposes he wouldn't have any semblance of a personality. as far as she's aware, he speaks more candidly than she'd expect from a... well, robot, or something that was manmade. ]

All right then, what else do you do?

[bestaround]

Uh—no, I guess they didn't.

[ She isn't telling him something he doesn't already know, but it does manage to throw him in for a loop. Maybe it's a sign he really has been away from Earth for a long time; by now, he's come to expect certain responses when this topic comes up, all of them always defying the expectations he's had of humans, and now that he's facing someone whose views align more with the reality he came from, it's... weird.

9S shifts his weight upon his feet, uncertain, and not quite focused on her, either. ]

That's... a broad question, don't you think? There aren't any rules or a chain of command here, so... [ He trails off, vaguely gesturing around them. ] Nowadays, it's whatever I'd want.

[disposal]

[ in turn, his response does confuse her a little bit. she cannot see his expression with the dark... blindfold? covering his eyes, but his voice is telling. dejected. the same kind of tone hope would give her when she had rejected his help and companionship in the past. perhaps that's the reason why she doesn't simply walk off and pretend this little misunderstanding never happened— this kid reminds her of hope.

and she isn't entirely sure how that makes her feel... which is why she's grateful for the change in subject. ]

Sounds familiar. [ he's handling a lot better than she had, not having to abide to a chain of command. her experience with that had been quite embarrassing to reflect on. ] What does an android want, anyway? When he's been relieved of his original function.

[bestaround]

[ 9S falls silent once again, head canting to the side in thought. It's a thought he's mulled on plenty before—what does an android do when they no longer have their intended purpose ahead of them?—yet has never landed on an answer, despite all the time he's had. It's hard when those around want him to be something he knows he can't be.

So he only ends up shrugging lamely, fully aware it's an unsatisfying response. ]

Dunno. It's still a work in progress. [ He pauses again, then: ] ... Do you have androids where you're from? You kinda talk like you do.

[disposal]

Guess we've all got problems. [ for what it's worth, that's an entirely human. took her a while to figure out her purpose, too, after she was cast away from the very people she fought for.

and now— she isn't entirely sure what her purpose is. spread good throughout the world? that's as broad as a mission can possibly get.

lightning shakes her head "no." ]

I'm just familiar with things that create weapons out of people. Also have seen my share of people "born" into weapons too. [ she shrugs, not entirely sure if she likes her answer. ] It's complicated.

[ she glances at him again. ]

How long have you been here?

[bestaround]

[ 9S slips out a hum in affirmation. That's... comparable enough, he supposes, but he wouldn't quite call it the same. Still—if he were going solely with her questions, she would still come off as intimately familiar with the kind of background he's from, which is considerably more than what he could say of most people. Odd as it feels, he can appreciate that she gets it.

Which has him wanting to ask more questions in turn, but 9S knows what a "it's complicated" means when he hears it. Not something the other party necessarily wants to delve into, even if it nags at him like a dangling carrot just out of reach.

Well, whatever. He can file it away for later, at least; he's got good memory. ]

—How long? Er, let's see... [ 9S takes a moment to count off his fingers. ] My internal clock goes by the standard Earth calendar system, so according to that, it's been approximately half a year since Astoria decided to drag me here. And I'm going to guess my assumptions are correct—you've only barely arrived yourself, huh?

[disposal]

[ it's information not worth delving into, even, because where she's from? they're no longer relevant. benefits of taking someone from endseries...

lightning's eyes narrow quizzically at what he calls "earth calendar system." she has a feeling that calendar doesn't coincide with hers, but that's not important anyway. all she needs to know is that he's been there six months. not too bad. ]

Just got here, yeah. [ said with a shrug of her shoulder as she folds her arm under her chest. Not sure what the point is, bringing me here. Plenty of people here as it is.