test drive # 2

[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 #2 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. All you hear is a voice -- light, bubbly, warm, soothing, in your ear: Don't worry, darling. This won't hurt a bit~ ♥ For those who recognize the voice, it will sound a bit strained. Possibly tired. But the moment happens so quickly it's hard to pin down, and once that moment is over, you fall flat on your face. It's dim, damp, with the trickling of what feels like rain. It takes a few moments for you to gain composure, to catch your breath. You think, for half a moment, that a hand is on your back, rubbing between your shoulder blades in comfort, but when you open your eyes, no one is there. 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. And, of course, because this is just your luck. It's raining. 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. For some, this place is home. For others, this strange land is new and dark, like a haze has settled in the air. The creatures in the forest seem to be stirring, and every now and then the sky will open up, and a storm will pass through, in varying degrees of intensity. Some will be easy spring showers, others will be angry, thunderous storms. Not exactly the most welcoming place, but it's a start. 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. The rain makes everything feel a bit softer, but also eerie, like there is a secret being kept just on the outside of your vision. Of course, this means you have free reign. This place seems easy enough to figure out on your own, with enough time to take a walk around! However- members who recognize this place may notice the lack of a certain figure, the grounds feeling a bit more empty, more abandoned, than they did before. IT'S A FIELD OF . . . POPPIES? The buildings of the Temple of Beginnings span out across a fair-sized field, intermixed with trees, open grassy planes, outside sitting areas, fire rings, and other oddly ancient but somehow structures. With the mist and the rain, everything feels a bit more ethereal, like there is life to every inch of what you see before you. Or like you've stumbled into some kind of alternate world. Around the temple is a ring of stones that do not seem to move no matter what characters may attempt, and beyond that is the forest. The forest itself is more than just impressive - it is near-overwhelming. An impossibly ancient stretch of woods that crackle with magical energy. Within, there is all matter of fauna and flora, darting from tree trunk to tree trunk. The canopy is thick enough to shield from the worst of the rain, but still the water gets through, dripping down through the leaves and dampening the ground under your feet. While there is always a sense of wonder - and possible danger - in every stretch of this forest, nothing will come any closer than a brief glimpse out of the corner of your eyes. No matter how you try, you can't quite seem to catch a full glimpse of what is moving about. Some of the creatures seem small, flittering through the air, while others dart through the trees, larger, more imposing. Everything here seems to be looking for some kind of shelter, so be wary of stumbling across something already taken. There is a particular clearing not too far into the woods that opens up, a field encircled by trees. In the middle of the field there is an odd glow - luminescent even in the darkened sky. Upon investigation, you will find a bush - about the size of a small car - filled with glowing flowers, white, blue, gold, and purple. They all smell faintly sweet, but it's hard to tell with the scent of earth and rain all around you. if you decide to pick one of these flowers, there will be no immediate recourse. However, the longer you decide to keep the flower on your person - or if, for whatever reason, you decide to eat said flower - the following will start to set in. White: For whatever reason, you will have more energy than you know what to do with, and will be filled with the urge to shine. Ever needed a confidence booster? To a point that you need to get up on buildings and belt your favorite song at the top of your lungs? Well, now you do. Blue: After some time of carrying around this flower, you will start to feel at peace. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, is it? Until that feeling of peace continues to grow, and continues, and continues. Soon you will feel so peaceful, it's almost as if nothing matters at all. I mean...it'll work out in the end, won't it? You're no longer missing home, missing people, worried about what happened and what you might fine. Everything is chill. Beyond chill. The most chill. But maybe out in the middle of the forest isn't the best place for a nap? Gold: Congrats, you've officially become a hoarder! No, seriously, you will have this uncontrollable urge to grab things and collect them. It doesn't matter what they are, or where they are. You need to have them and you will find a way to make it happen. Hats? Rings? People with green hair? The world is your oyster, and that's the key word here - yours. Purple: Suddenly, and without warning, you find yourself unable to...well. Go on alone, really. The first person you see, or that you come in contact with, will feel much like the savior of your world, and for the next five hours or so, you will be unable to be far from them. Even if you know the fear is irrational, you can't really help it, following friend or stranger alike, always needing to be just in arms reach. Regarding further exploration of the wood, it will seem to go on forever. Getting lost seems almost imperative to existence within this forest, going on forever in all directions with no edge in sight. You could walk for days, weeks, possibly even more. However, the second that you find yourself thinking about wanting to return to the buildings from before, you find yourself cresting through the edge of the trees, back to your home. RUN BY THE RIVER While inside the buildings and in the main open spaces, the water doesn't seem to be building up all too terribly, un an unfortunate turn of events, it all seems to be rolling down a very slight hill, pulling just on the outside of the ring of stones. The ground here is unstable, wet and muddy from the amount of moisture falling from the skies. So much that in some areas (the fighting area being one), it will start to collect into a dangerous combination of mud and moving water. It's possible to get stuck in it, possible to get lost in the flooding, but it's also possible to...you know. Have some fun? Mud slides, mud wrestling, mud...castles? Whatever you want it to be, it's at your disposal! While the arena was originally a place to practice your powers, or any of the various weapons that are usually kept here, now you can do the same with a little added obstacle in your path. That, or it's possible you simply got stuck trying to make it back to your room. Hopefully someone will be by to help you! CONNECTIONS AND COMMENTARY 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

[lonered]

Starfleet? We're probably from different realities. Or maybe different times. There's no Starfleet on the Earth I'm from. There's the Galaxy Garrison.

[A shake of his head at the question.] No, that's some augmented visual display or something, right? ...science isn't exactly my thing; I'm a pilot. Hunk or Pidge would be all over it. Just... you never know.

[A shrug of a shoulder as if what he says next is something he's still getting used to saying.]

People get dragged here from all sorts of realities. And even back home, it's basically been months since I've even seen another human I didn't travel out with to start.

[unimpeded]

Definitely, then.

[Geordi can say that with some certainty. More likely an alternate timeline like the one encountered by the original Enterprise than that, though. He's not entirely sure that there's ever been a time between first contact with the Vulcans and the present that Starfleet didn't exist...

However, he brightens at the understanding]

And that's correct. I'm blind without this. It's a visual augment.

[Thank God that's one less person to explain it to.]

Also if you don't mind my asking, if you haven't seen a human in months, who have you seen?

[lonered]

Sounds handy to have then.

[Keith's guess had been more about it picking up reading beyond the normally visible spectrum, like his Blade of Marmora mask did when it was engaged. But even more impressive if it actually countered for blindness.

But he turns his attention to that next question.]

Galra, mostly. Alteans, Olkari. Other peoples who are members of the coalition. But the Blade is all Galra, so mostly them.

[But now he's curious too.] Your Starfleet, how far have humans gotten out into space?

[unimpeded]

Okay. Not familiar with any of those species. But I'm going to guess that you're not too familiar with Vulcans, Klingons, or Betazoid.

[He's already getting the different worlds vibe. It fits.]

As for how far we've gotten? Not counting freak accidents carrying us outside of the Milky Way...we've mapped about a quarter of the galaxy by now. We've sent probes into the other three quadrants and had extended contact with the Delta, but our mapping has been limited.

[Thanks to aggression by the Cardassians, mostly.]

[lonered]

Never heard of any of them. And if you know aliens and haven't heard of the Galra... definitely different realities.

[Given that the Galra have conquered most of the known universe in his world.

But Keith looks genuinely impressed by that.]

Huh! Humans haven't made it past the solar system where I'm from. ...not with their own tech anyway.

[unimpeded]

[Frowning...sounds an awful lot like the Borg just based on tone.]

What year is it for you, then, if mankind hasn't made it beyond the solar system?

[May as well ask.]

[lonered]

[Slightly less assimilation, slightly more conquering, enslaving, and killing.]

Turn of the twenty second century... [An entirely made up date based on how tech seems to work anyway.] I haven't been on Earth in a while, so it's hard to keep track of the exact year.

[unimpeded]

[That's so Cardassian...]

Couple of hundred years before me, then. It's the mid twenty fourth century for me.

[A grin, and an offered hand.]

Pleasure to meet you, regardless.

[lonered]

Likewise. I mean, aside from the whole kidnapped by a witch for a magical hop through various worlds.

[Sorry that's more bitter than he means it to sound.] ...how're you handling the magic thing?

[Has he run into the magic thing yet? Because that's a trip and a half.]

[unimpeded]

Eh...? I mean, it isn't magic as far as I'm concerned.

[He waves at all...this...]

I've seen weirder. Your people ever run into a being known as Q? Or the Q Continuum?

[lonered]

Call it what you want. All I know is, I never used to be able to fly before I got here. And now I can. Maybe there's some science behind it? But sure seems like magic quiznak to me.

[He's also used to science and magic coexisting side by side where he's from.]

No, never heard of them. Who are they?