Test Drive #3

[felldenmods]

Welcome to the November test drive! We're so excited to have you with us.

A few things of note:

✦ Test drive threads can be considered game-canon if you choose. They're essentially in a shared dreamscape and take place between your character leaving their world and arriving in the audience hall with their faction leader.
✦ Reserves will open at 12:01 AM UTC on December 1st, and continue to be until 11:59 PM UTC on December 7th. This is to reserve a character, not an application slot.
✦ Applications will open at 12:01 AM UTC on the 8th, and remain open until 11:59 PM UTC on the 15th, or until all application slots have been filled. Once Activity Check ends, we will have an application slot number available on the application page. The IC & OOC intro logs will be posted two days later.
✦ Questions? We have a FAQ that's chock full of good information! If they are test drive specific, we have a top level thread below that allows for OOC questions to be posted.
✦ The network is available to use! No matter where your character is, their compass arrived on their person. Please feel free to include a network post in your top-levels! Once opened, the compass will display instructions on use, such as using voice-commands to activate it. Usernames are your characters first name or their most common nickname.
✦ Below will be a header for OOC questions as well as a request for Fortuna if you risk having your fortune read in Kyst.
✦ Current players who participate in the test drive by tagging new players will be eligible for a secondary blessing in December.

All set? Perfect! Welcome to Fellden.

AS THE MOON RISES.♪ You’ll find yourself just outside the Temple doors, which will be locked if you try to open them. A little rude, keeping you out after bringing you all this way. The thing is, you can hear a lot of commotion in the distance, and smoke rising from the center of a district; you may want to check that out. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire! Except the smoke is not at all something to be concerned over. Instead, people are gathered near a large bonfire in the decorated city square, drinking and carousing, singing songs of celebration; Moon saviors have arrived! War winners! The residents of the city laugh and sing and dance in pairs throughout the square that's dusted with snow, grateful for those who have come to aid them. Their merriment doesn’t dwindle as the sun begins to set on the horizon, twin moons rising in its place. When you (and other new arrivals) are finally noticed by the revelers, do not expect to be left alone! Crowns and laurels of fir and juniper will be deposited upon your heads, seasonal fare of food and drink placed into your hands, while live musicians play loud enough for the dead to hear. You’ll be invited to dance, to drinking games, and offered food and flowers and other items of value. Some may cry when they look into your face, thanking you for becoming their champions during this long and exhaustive war. Hopefully you’re here to enjoy the festivities. Sneaking off is just fine, too, but don’t expect to be let go of quietly; the people of the Moon Temple are so happy to see you! Enjoy the celebration while it lasts long into the night. If you do manage to leave, a helpful citizen of the Temple will inform you of the nearby transport mirrors that will take you anywhere on the map, one of which they will provide to you.

THE SETTING STARS.♪ You'll find upon your arrival that the castle is not accepting visitors as they decorate the interior in preparation of the festive season that quickly approaches. Guards at the door will instead direct you to the center of the city where further preparations are being made. Venturing there, you'll be greeted either by those who are decorating for the evening's party that will enlist you to help, or perhaps you're a late arrival and the celebration has already begun! Festivities are in full swing in the Court of Stars. Starfolk have begun their celebrations of the new arrivals and the ushering in the season of the Winter Festival. Once hesitant, guarded, the Stars citizens now welcome new arrivals with open arms, celebrating their appearance with a deep gratitude. Large circles of dancers will pull you into the fray or pull you to dance one-on-one. Others will place bundles of cedar and juniper in your arms for decorating or perhaps learning to weave your own wreath to wear: some will even take pity, create it for you, and set the laurel upon the top of your head. You'll be invited to dance, drink, eat, and participate in the festivities through a snow dusted square. Even the soldiers will join, knocking shoulders and welcoming you to the Court of Stars. Whether you choose to remain for the festivities or wander off, one thing is certain: you are more than welcome in your new home. If you do manage to leave, a helpful citizen of the Court will inform you of the nearby transport mirrors that will take you anywhere on the map, one of which they will provide to you.

MARKETS OF THE COAST.♪ The coastal city of Kyst is abuzz for the holidays, some calm finally beginning to settle in after the rocky past few months. Newcomers will be welcomed with smiling faces from merchants as they look to try to sell their pricy but beautiful wares. Tavern owners and barkeeps will beckon with the promise of warm food and delightful drinks, a place by the fire, and stories of holidays of old. The air is rife with music and the smell of delicious baked goods. Perhaps you'll hear or smell something you recognize from your home; as Fellden is the beginning of all worlds, it wouldn't be an impossible likelihood! Those looking to help out might be coaxed to assist in decorating homes with laurels, garlands, berries, and other bright green, red, silver, and gold colors. Those who seem very eager to help might be recruited by shopkeepers to stand outside and try to get customers in to see their wares, to have a drink, or to rent a room. Anyone willing to do so even for a day will receive free food and drink for the duration of their assistance. And for the auspicious, some may notice a person who has set up a mild little stall in the back of town, sipping eggnog as she offers fortunes. "Fortunes for the new year, my friend," she tells any who approach her. She offers only a small smile. "A laurel for a card. Only one."

BEYOND THE CITIES.♪ In the distance from Kyst, a large forest looms, the Gods Wood imposing even from this distance. Should you travel there, everyone you encounter will urge you to be respectful while within the forest. There, people can be found visiting intricately decorated shrines, prepared for the upcoming holiday, while people leave seasonal offerings in the bowls and plates within the shrines. You're free to leave the crown you were given at your faction celebration, or perhaps something else that you've been granted since your arrival is better suited for your offering. Be mindful of your actions though; those that show disrespect will be forcibly removed from the Gods Wood by the trees. Best foot forward! If the forest is too intimidating, there appears to be a gathering at the nearby Lake Theta where the Festival of Aeons is taking place. You'll be drawn into the fold readily where people will inform you that it is a celebration of souls, both living and passed beyond the veil. You'll be taught how to make paper lanterns to be set into the sky when twilight falls, with further revelry coming after. Be prepared for a long night of celebration ahead of you as the dancing, music, and festivities last long into the night.

Comments

[summonere]

[ He shakes his head. ]

I didn't assume it would... be so accommodating. I didn't look for a room.

[ He had pretty much assumed he was going to be left out on the street to sort out his own problems. That was what had happened when he had been created. Griffon had thrown him, naked, out a window into a pile of garbage and he'd... had to deal with it from there. ]

[sealeted]

Well, let's get that sorted first, then.

[She heads off again, confident he'll follow; he's come this far, after all, and she also has his stuff. She's got a handle on his normal speed by now as well. It's not a long interlude, really, finding an attendant and getting the details ironed out.

The only time Hakuno falters is when they ask his name. She opens her mouth, blinks, and... turns to him, a faintly abashed look on her face.]

I... don't think I ever asked you, come to think of it. I'm sorry.

[summonere]

[ Functionally, he doesn't have one. Just like the demon hadn't. But he'd assigned both to make things easier when dealing with the demon hunters... ]

You can call me V.

[ Not quite the same as 'my name is' but it does the trick. ]

[sealeted]

V it is.

[One of her friends was a homunculus named Rani VIII, so this too passes without comment. They get him sorted, a key, and directions, and then they're off again.]

...still, sorry I didn't ask earlier. I think I got caught up in Griffon's pace.

[And nerd antics, and making sure he survived. She is now more than faintly worried he originally planned to just muddle though in his thin, only clothes, winter be damned.]

[summonere]

He has that effect on people.

[ And he was used to not really providing unneeded details to people. Maybe it was time to care a little more whether or not people knew his name. He'll have to think on it. ]

[sealeted]

I'd imagine so. Especially if he picks as many fights as you say.

[She shuffles out of the way so he can unlock his new, non-alley, totally above board and legal room.

What a big step...]

Are the others show-stoppers too?

[summonere]

[ He pushes open the door, not sure what he expects inside here either. He's distracted from answering her question when he sees it, ]

This is nicer than I expected.

[ It's a basic room, but it is nicer than the unfurnished apartment with cracked plaster and dusty, warped wooden floors he'd thrown money at a landlord for. ]

[sealeted]

Better than sleeping on desks or the floor or an infirmary cot, that's for sure.

[Gilgamesh, of course, had been disparaging about the quality and insisted on redecorating a bit to suit his standards, but he's done that with every room they've had to date.]

[summonere]

[ I mean it's. Clean. Light comes in through the window at an angle that actually fills the room, rather than actually just casting everything in shadow. He goes to the window to look out, he can see some of the hedges in the garden from here, a walkway where someone is walking idly, reading a book. ]

We pulled our mattress out of the trash, and a chair.

[ Another one of those admissions..... ]

[sealeted]

I ran around dangerous labyrinths doing what basically amounted to chores and finding lost items in order to spruce up ours, back in the Moon Cell.

[No shame, her nostalgic, slightly rueful smile seems say, yet again.]

...I still find myself missing that ridiculous stuffed tiger we got, sometimes.

[summonere]

Maybe Shadow will cheer you up.

[ He does remember that she asked him a question. ]

My second familiar. He doesn't need any particular form, but he's convenient as a panther. I'll bring him here, somehow.

[ He does miss the demon. Shadow was calm, methodical, faithful. A steadying anchor where Griffon was all noise and fury. ]

[sealeted]

I'll look forward to it, then. Is he as charming as Griffon?

[That... sure is one way to describe him, isn't it!]

[summonere]

In his own way, he's a very different demon. But he does have a mind of his own, and feelings of his own.

[ He comes to collect his package from her at last, setting it aside with his cane, sitting down. ]

Nightmare is... different still. It doesn't emote the same way they do. It was created to destroy anything in its path, but... [ It's hard to describe because even he can't fully speak to what he had been shown inside Nightmare's core. ] The four of us had something to accomplish.

So we came together and they gave me their loyalty.

[sealeted]

That's usually how it goes. When the stakes are high enough, differences and disagreements tend to fade to the background, bit by bit.

[She leans against the doorframe with one shoulder, her tone turning nostalgic.]

I... had something like that once. Not just with my partner, but with other participants I ended up trapped with back then, for a time. It was definitely tough, but it... it was nice, having a few more people around to rely on.

[summonere]

[ Well. He offers his hand out. The stakes in this war-riddled world are pretty high. ]

[sealeted]

[She blinks, and her smile tugs into something sweeter.

She pushes off the doorframe and takes his hand.]

Welcome to Fellden, V. I don't know if we're really saviors or what, but I'm glad I got to meet you, regardless.

[summonere]

I'm no one's savior, but... I'm not completely useless either.

[ Despite what Griffon might say to tease him. Despite the circumstances of his creation. ]

You can call on me.

[ Maybe it would even be nice, if she did. ]

[sealeted]

Of course I will. We still have to finish hooking that bird of yours on books, don't we?

[She knows that's not what he means. But she'd like it to mean that, too.]

Plus, we have to figure out what your favorite food is, still.

[summonere]

[ She's got a list of activities she needs to do with him. Never in his life. Never in Vergil's life, at least not since it was Dante pestering to play this game and this game and this game. ]

What if it turns out I just hate food, and Griffon's an idiot?

[sealeted]

Then we'll start in on drinkable stuff; that's nice and tidy if you have the right cup and straw.

[Hakuno's never been good at giving up. And there's just so much available, here and now; surely, there must be something for everyone. It's just a matter of tracking it down.]

And you don't have to be smart to enjoy a good story. I'm sure there are plenty out there for him to get into. Actually, live plays or puppet shows might be a good way to start off, come to think of it...

[summonere]

[ His smile is placid and bemused. The only person he can think of more direct and determined than this is Nero. ]

It's a long syllabus of improvements to make.

[sealeted]

Well, if we've got the time we might as well spend it on things we enjoy.

[There's the war, and the cult, and other issues on the rise as well, but—there's still time, too. Why waste it?]

...hey, do you think if I told Griffon you called him an idiot, he'd start reading out of spite?

[summonere]

Oh... he heard me.

[ With that his smile pulls a little mean. He and the bird love each other, but they also pick on each other. ]

But you're welcome to remind him, any time you like.

[sealeted]

Hey, someone's got to be nice enough not to call him names around here.

[She wrinkles her nose at him, but there's no hiding her own amusement now.]

My partner calls me 'mongrel' more often than not—it's hard not to feel for yours on that front.

[summonere]

[ He does not at all like that anyone would call her mongrel, but he holds his tongue. ]

I'll try to be a little nicer.

[ He cannot, however, promise any of the other Spardas lurking around won't call him a little chicken or tell him to go flock himself. ]