TEST DRIVE MEME #1

[inthenightmods]

TEST DRIVE MEME #1

Hello and welcome to the In the Night test drive meme for June! Thanks for your interest in our game! Reserves open on June 20, and applications open on June 22.

While you're here...

• Take a look at our rules and faq pages to familiarize yourself with the game.
  
• Note that we have a reserve/application cap of 20 apps per month (this has been waived for the first month!).
  
• TDM threads can become game canon if both players wish. If the situation isn't something that could happen in-game, you're free to chalk it up to some strange hallucination, a shared dream, or other mysterious circumstance.
  
• Note that this is not limited to new characters threading with characters already in-game. If current players wish to thread out the TDM prompts as canon events, they are welcome to do so.
  
• Though threads can become canon, they cannot count toward AC.
  
• If you plan to apply, please keep in mind that we do require at least one sample thread on the application to be from our TDM (though it doesn't need to be the current TDM).
  
• You're welcome to use the provided prompts or come up with something on your own, but we do ask that all threads take place in our game's setting.

Thank you again, and we hope you'll choose to join us!

log prompts

YOU'RE DEAD, JIM

You haven't been in Beacon long when you find yourself in Bonfire Square, staring into the flames and thinking about how you ended up here. Maybe it was an accident, a sudden freak thing that you never saw coming until you woke up on the ferry, or maybe it's a miracle you made it as long as you did. Maybe death was a relief. Maybe it was just your time. Whatever the case, you can't help but reflect on your final moments as you linger in the firelight.

But however you died, it's behind you now, and you're here, stuck in this little town with just a few buildings and a smattering of other people. You're going to be here a while, so you may as well get to know your neighbors, but... Would it be cathartic to commiserate about your deaths? Or is your time better spent stocking up at the general store? Then again, you've got plenty of time, so why not catch a drink or two (or three) at the Invincible? Pretend you're unaffected by your death, and, well. Fake it 'til you make it, perhaps.

Point is, you have options. You're dead, you died, and this is your "life" now. Better get used to it.

AND THEY WERE ROOMMATES

Currently, there's only one place to live (technically speaking) in Beacon: the Invincible, a tavern and inn located in Bonfire Square. Luckily, the place has working amenities (minus light), and the forest spirits don't charge anything for your stay. Unfortunately, it seems there may not be enough rooms for everyone. Guess you'll have to get cozy!

Maybe you'll try to pick a roommate from around town or in the bar downstairs, or maybe you'll just walk into the first room you see and choose that way. Want a room all to yourself? Get ready to fend off any potential intruders. And the fun doesn't end there.

The Invincible's rooms aren't all created equal. Some may have had their furniture stolen or become a dumping ground for unwanted pieces, resulting in a single bed, five dressers, and other equally distressing situations. Will someone sleep on the floor? Will you nail two beds together to form bunk beds? Maybe you just want to make this room into something more like home— potentially to your roommate's chagrin. Whatever you decide, this is where you're staying for now, so you might as well get comfortable.

network prompts

HACKER VOICE: I'M IN

In order to use the network, you have to register a username. Er, at least, that's how it's supposed to work. For some reason, new users have recently been able to bypass that requirement, allowing them to post anonymously. Time to troll strangers on the magical internet!

Eventually though, you'll need a username in order to use the tablet's other functions, like the direct messaging system. So hey, why not take advantage of the ability to source opinions, and workshop your potential usernames on the network? Share ideas, get feedback, steal ideas, critique others, and figure out what you want everyone to call you.

TURN ON YOUR LOCATION

When you wake up, you're in the woods. An iron shackle complete with a chain leashes you to a tree, and the only light you have is your lantern. You've never seen this area of the woods before. You certainly didn't go to sleep here.

Hm.

But, all is not lost. You find your phone in your pocket, as well as a scrap of paper covered back to front in cryptic scribbles. Are these clues to your location? They must be. You also spot a key dangling from a branch, though it's hanging from a tree you'll never be able to reach from here. Perhaps someone on the network will be able to lend you a hand...

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Comments

Boromir | The Lord of the Rings

[steadfastjewel]

i. shitty trumpet noises

[It sure looks like this guy died in one heck of a way; there's several large ragged holes in his tunic, which is extremely bloodstained. There's a sheathed sword at his hip, but it seems to move a little too easily to contain a whole weapon. At least the notched shield at his back is still generally intact. For, you know, all the good it apparently did him.

For the moment, Boromir is just sitting by the bonfire. It could almost be familiar, if not for the unnatural darkness flickering at the edges of the light. And the company, as well - but he is glad none of that is familiar.

Both halves of the Horn of Gondor are in his hands. He turns them over, feeling the jagged edges and slotting them together as if they might miraculously become whole again. He wonders if anybody here would be able to repair it?

Probably not.]

ii. I'm from the third age and what is this

[Obviously, Boromir knew that he had a tablet.

He may, however, have sort of forgotten about it for a while. He only spent a moment inspecting the smooth glass slab when he discovered it, just long enough to decide that he had no idea what it was. It must have appeared for a reason, so he kept it on his person, but there were many other more important things to focus on.

Until right now. Because all of the notification settings are on, and every single time someone makes a network-wide post or comment, the tablet makes a really loud and startling noise. This is happening with increasing frequency!]

What is this?

[He can see that the screen is lighting up each time, and he's poked it some, but you've gotta swipe it my dude]

this makes me so happy??? prompt one

[withsadness]

Oh no!

[Mary gasps as she gets close enough to see what it is that Boromir has in his hands, but it's clear that she's hesitant to get that close. She's keeping as far away from the bonfire as she can, standing on her toes and craning her neck to see.]

Did you break your treasure?

it is my middle school self running free

[steadfastjewel]

[At first, the question makes a tight knot of emotions rise in his chest. Shame, guilt, anger - at himself, of course. He did not call the orcs down on their fellowship, but it is his fault they were not all together at the time.

But it's only a child. Boromir cannot be impatient with one so young, especially when he thinks of how she might have come to be here. He smiles, only a little wan.]

I did. It was an heirloom of my house. [He turns a little and holds it so she can see - even in pieces, it's a lovely enough thing that he supposes a young girl might like it.] It is said that aid would come to any who blew it within the bounds of Gondor.

I support you

[withsadness]

An heirloom...you got it from your father?

[She understands well enough. The fire's scary, but she comes closer and takes a careful seat so she can see the horn all the better. A part of her, impulsive, wants to grab it, but the better part of her reminds herself that that's impolite, and she puts her hands in her lap.]

Oh! It makes a pretty sound! I'm sorry that it broke...do you think it can be put back together again?

[steadfastjewel]

And he from his father before him. It is tradition for the eldest sons of our line to carry it.

[He slots the pieces together again. He's not sure how it would be repaired, but then, he is no craftsman. It seems as though even if you could, the sound would be forever altered.]

I don't know. Perhaps someone could - I would like to think it will be passed to my brother, now. He should have it whole. [He's a little uncertain as to how this works, but it doesn't seem incredibly likely that this is the literal horn, and he and all his belongings simply vanished entirely from under Aragorn's eyes? Boromir has never cared much to ponder the fate of a Man's spirit, but he knows full well how their bodies linger.]

press f for sean bean's characters // Trumpet noises + third age?? sorta??

[practicemakesimperfect]

[ She should really maybe not be so big. There wasn't much of a use for it right now, and it wasn't as if shape shifting and holding a new form was of any bother to her. Quartz soldier height was comfortable to her, though, without feeling..too weird. At least this meant Boromir would only have an eight foot tall pink woman to deal with.

His clothing wasn't very familiar with what humans had yet managed to accomplish, but it was close enough to count for Pink. And he did seem startled by the tablet he had.

There wasn't much she could do for the horn without supplies, but she could help with the tablet nonsense!

She slid over with a disarming smile and sheepish wave, accustomed now to how humans could be startled by her appearance, and that they often required a bit of patience. ]

If you don't mind, I think I can help you with some of your belongings.

fffffffff

[steadfastjewel]

[That's? Still so tall?

It honestly puts Boromir in mind of a troll, but this woman is clearly no such creature. She's of no people he's familiar with at all, unless hobbit women are enormous with flower-colored hair and the little ones just never thought to mention it.

But - does that even matter here? She seems friendly, and they're in the same boat. What could happen, he'll die again?]

That is kind of you, my lady. [He holds the tablet out just as it pings again. At this point he's accustomed enough not to jump, but oh my god why] This...glass. I have never seen anything of its like.

don't tempt fate, he probably can die again.

[practicemakesimperfect]

[ Hobbit women are a well-kept secret, maybe Pink is the reason why. Clearly any hobbit she married would be one lucky bastard.

She couldn't help but cover her mouth to hide a laugh at him. He was polite and stout, for sure, but the reactions she got upon first meeting someone unaccustomed to gems always tickled her. ]

That's alright, I can show you what to do. Usually they're called tablets. They let you talk to others from far away without needing to yell, sort of like your horn, there.

[ She takes the tablet and holds it down so he can also see what she's doing. She's explained Gem technology to humans before, so really this was hardly any different. ]

It's lighting up because other people are talking, and you can sometimes see their conversations. This one's..a bit archaic, buuuuuut if you just touch the screen like this, it'll unlock and you can do more with it, like write! And talk, and see others.

if he doesn't I'm playing him wrong

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir pays attention to the explanation, but he doesn't really have any kind of technology foundation here. It's magic? This is fucking magic???]

I have heard tales of the palantiri, the stones of seeing. But it is said that they are all lost.

[If he may have some idea that some of them aren't that lost, well, he wouldn't say as much to some random woman. Upon being unlocked, the tablet automatically goes to the account setup screen. What do you want your username to be?]

It wishes for a name? [that's pretty sus fam]

jumpin on the sad trumpbon train

[spitefullight]

[ The state of this man catches Elden's eye. Armoured bloodied and battered, everything like it was right out of a warzone. Something Elden could relate to. His own gleaming silver breastplate might not have holes but it was definitely scuffed and covered in blood (though none of it his own.)

The boy steps over to the sitting man who was eyeing the broken horn. He leans over a bit to get their attention before saying; ]

I'm guessing it wasn't a fun party and a few too many glasses of wine that broke that horn, huh?

[ Might as well try and joke about it. Since they're all dead. ]

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir just. Looks at him for a second. Soldier's humor is hardly unfamiliar to him, but he doesn't know this boy and he's not exactly in the mood.]

It was an Orc blade.

[spitefullight]

[ Right. That look? It says enough. Elden just lets out a long breath as if it might blow away some of the tension. It probably wouldn't and well, Elden is about to dig his grave by going further with the joke. ]

Right. Not the time for jokes. Sorry.

[ Regardless, he takes a seat since the man hadn't dismissed him. Onto something more serious though... ]

You're not still hurt are you?

[steadfastjewel]

[Well, whatever. Boromir shrugs it off after a moment, pressing a hand over where one of the first arrows pierced his chest. There's no pain, no wound - he investigated them all when he first woke, but he can't help looking over and over again.]

No. It's as if it never happened.

[Except, you know.

He looks the boy over, checking to see if he has any obvious former wounds. There's a lot of younger people here, aren't there?]

gimme them trumpet toots

[facelessgirl]

[ Finally, someone who looks like they belong in the realm that Arya has just come from. Everyone around here looks so strange, and that's been part of what's convinced Arya that this must be some strange dream rather than whatever comes after death. She'd seen quite a lot in Braavos, some truly queer peoples indeed, but seeing someone from across the bonfire in garb she recognized was like a jolt of feeling straight from home.

She had no idea how much worse that jolt to her heart would become when she approached him. He had his head turned away from her until the last moment, looking off into the night, and Arya becomes rooted to the spot when he turns. When she sees his face, he looks so much like someone she once knew that Arya's eyes go wide, her carefully composed expression slipping.

She'd been going to ask him a question. Now all she can say is: ]

Father?

[ Yet even as she says it, she somehow knows it isn't true. ]

OOF OUCH WOW

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir was already turning at the sound of her approach, but the address stops him short for a moment. Of course, he has no children; it's not that. Just the look on her face - his confusion quickly turns to sympathy.]

I'm afraid you're mistaken. My name is Boromir, of Gondor.

:DDDD

[facelessgirl]

[ As fast as hope took her, Arya wilts again. Her face falls, her mouth snaps closed, and of course it isn't her father. No matter how much it seems to look like him. ]

Of Gondor? [ She's never heard of that place, whether it is holdfast or realm. She composes herself a little and frowns with curiosity. ] I have never heard of this place.

Fuckin Sean Bean can't stop dying on everyone

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir glances away for a moment, awkward and guilty. There's nothing to feel bad for, really - he can't just be the girl's father. But he hates to just immediately start letting people down upon arriving here.

At least places are a decently neutral topic.]

It is in the southwest, between the country of Mordor and the sea. [It's not all that unusual that she hasn't heard of it, he supposes; he's met quite a few people now who had not.] What land are you from?

Trumpets

[song_of_ice]

[He's a warrior, that's clear before Jon even has time to get a better look at the man. The shield on his back doesn't seem to carry a sigil that Jon recognizes, but he knows the usual marks and wears for items carried into battle. He also knows the wounds that would have caused those tears in his clothes. Arrows and blades, he received both over the years.

It isn't until he draws closer to the bonfire that he sees the man's profile. He's caught somewhere in his emotions, uncertain what seemed a better response. He wants to cry for all of the disappointment he must have caused his father, all of the ways he failed. He wants to pretend the past never happened and he's still in Winterfell, but there was no going back and he knew that long ago. Instead, the first thought that claws through the torrential surge of emotions is the surprise that he has his head.

Would whatever brought them here give it back?]

Lord Stark?

honestly I didn't watch got and this didn't occur to me but fucking bring it

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir turns, if only because it has been quiet around the fire, and no one else is very near to them. It seems as though this man must be addressing him - and yes, he's certainly looking at him. As if he's seen a ghost.

The title is his, or was. But that may be coincidence. He certainly knows of no Stark, and though this man looks to be a soldier, he is not of Gondor.]

I beg your pardon?

I'm so ready to be fucked up by this cr

[song_of_ice]

[The fact that he turned at the name held more significance in Jon's hopeful mind than the question itself. It didn't occur to him to imagine that there was someone else with his father's face. Seeing him against the fire, he can only believe that this is Lord Stark.

Who else could this be?]

Father?

I'm gonna be real with you I didn't even know Jon Snow was a Stark but I'm into it

[steadfastjewel]

What?

[What? Boromir rises to his feet, taking a few steps closer so they can see each other better. Maybe it's just a trick of the dark and the firelight, making him seem to be someone he's not. Maybe it's wishful thinking. Either way, he keeps his voice low, not wanting to make any more of it than it already is.]

I'm sorry, but I am not your father.

[ trumpet noises ]

[telconta]

[ of all whom he expected to see here: his friend and brother. by the fire. light that flickers around him often. their companionship throughout their journey had been cruelly cut short. the ring called to boromir often. through his virtue tried to twist him.

he comes by his side. resting his hand on boromir's shoulder. ]

It may yet be made whole.

oh shit! oh wow!

[steadfastjewel]

[Boromir has seen no familiar faces here thus far. He had looked to see his mother, perhaps, or his companions who fell in Osgiliath. But no one from their Fellowship, he hoped, not so soon - Frodo and Sam were away, and the little ones were alive when he last saw them. The others would have gone after them. They could still be saved. He has to believe that.

So his first reaction is far from pleased - he jerks abruptly to his feet, eyes wide with horror, the two halves of the Horn forgotten for the moment.]

Aragorn! What are you doing here?

hey hey hey.

[telconta]

That, I know not.

[ only that their party had been at the gates of mordor. willing to buy frodo and sam more time. willing to die for that end.

it is strange that he should meet this fate when he had been led to gondor's throne. but he does not regret his actions. ]

It is good to see you again. [ he yet wears boromir's vambraces. ] Are you well? Speak to me of what has happened since we faced the Uruk-hai.

yooooooo

[steadfastjewel]

[Yeah, Boromir has not yet noticed the matching vambraces. He clasps a hand to Aragorn's shoulder, looking him over as if to find traces of whatever killed him. His own wounds are gone, but the rents and bloodstains on his clothing remain; there should be some sign. But if there is, his eyes cannot pick it out in the flickering light.

His brow furrows at the question.]

It cannot have been more than an hour, by my reckoning. [How long for Aragorn?] I found myself on the shore and made my way here. I have met some others - it seems I look very much like a "Lord Stark".

[It's weird. This is weird.]

What has happened since I have been gone? You speak as if it has been some time.