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

[burstmodes]

[ what. what.

prompto has to read over that message several times to make sure he's seeing it the right way because... how could that be possible? that's not what he remembered. that isn't even close. ]

are you kidding?
that wasn't

noct altissia and the stuff with leviathan was over two years ago
you've been
you've been gone for about that long

[broplaints]

[He is deeply sorry for the things he is about to say.]

No shit, Prompto
That's kind of what happens when someone dies

[burstmodes]

no NO
you weren't dead
you didn't die there
we made it to gralea and i dunno

[ is he freaking out? he's freaking out. he doesn't know how to explain this without sounding crazy, and right now, he already thinks he crossed that line. ]

can we meet up?
i mean anywhere is fine
i just
i really wanna see you

[broplaints]

[You're definitely freaking out, Potato.]

Of course we can, Prom
You've seen the fire, right?
Wanna meet me there in ten?
There's a hug in it for you

[burstmodes]

yeah
yeah i know it
meet you there in like five

[ which is where he will casually be pacing and trying not to freak out, unsure what he's even going to say when he sees noct. if he sees him? maybe all the texts were an illusion, and this place is just some sort of hell that he'll have to deal with for the rest of eternity. prompto doesn't even know what to expect, so he tries to chill out and sits down; hands over his head, he drags his fingers through his hair in another attempt to figure out what he's going to say when he finally sees him. ]

[broplaints]

[When Noctis had awoken here, his first thought hadn't even been that he was so obviously dead - no, it was decisively how he hoped that he was the only one who had suffered this fate. It was a weight that would be almost too much to bear alone, but if he had managed to at least save his friends from the same one, then it would be worth it.

But no, he couldn't even accomplish that, because there was Prompto, figure illuminated by the dim light of the fire and for a moment he actually did contemplate just turning around and walking away. Would seeing each other make it all better or worse?

All he'd ever done was cause them pain.

Taking a deep breath he stepped forward, reaching out to run his own fingers through blond messy strands as he spoke.]

Someone's eager to see me.

[burstmodes]

[ he keeps staring at the fire, and the more time that passes, the easier it is to accept that he'd gone crazy. having been too late to save noct from whatever had happened at zegnautus keep with the crystal had continued to haunt him for years, and even though there had been time to separate them from that, he hadn't been able to ever forget his best friend. each time he woke up, the world still blanketed in darkness, the ache had grown exponentially. so, maybe being here should have been a reprieve from that. somehow.

yet, that voice he hadn't heard in so long – except in the occasional video he watched sometimes when the loneliness cut straight through him – and spoken in a way that was entirely unscripted burns through all of that. he loses his breath with the touch and quickly stands, turning around so fast that he makes himself dizzy. in fact, he almost trips over his own feet to keep himself steady, and he knows, without a doubt, that the look on his face betrays everything he's thinking. he's there. he's real.

... so why does it hurt so much more than he'd ever thought possible? ]

Noct — [ a slightly choked sound, and prompto doesn't even think; he just acts. his arms are around him and squeezing, so tight that he's pretty sure neither of them can breathe. and yet, he doesn't care. he can't bring himself to when he's right there and solid and not just some figment of his imagination. ]

[broplaints]

[Throughout everything that had happened and everything that was yet to come, Noctis had always known what lengths the other three were meant to reach in order to keep him safe. Him. One little inconsequential drop in the bucket when placed against the bigger picture. Nothing more than a single grain of sand in an hourglass filled with other lives that were all so much more important than his.

Being prince - no, being king didn't change that. And he had never wanted his friends to sacrifice themselves for him.

So seeing Prompto here now was like having dull claws dug into his chest, ripping out his still beating heart and tossing it into the dirt.

There's no time to react, to even so much as take in a deep, bracing breath before he's being embraced, the full weight of his friend suddenly against him and squeezing. And he can't even find the words to complain about how tight it is, because his own arms are wrapping around Prompto's waist and holding on just as fiercely until he's certain he can feel ribs popping beneath the force.]

Hey. [A quiet whisper, adjusting his hold just enough to bring a hand up to press against the back of Prompto's head.] I'm right here.

[burstmodes]

[ through this whole thing, he does his best not to cry. it wouldn't look very cool to just break into tears all over his best friend, but the longer they stay like this, the easier it becomes to accept that's what's going to happen. even the touch of noct's hand and the whisper of his voice... it's like sensation overload. how had they been content to just wait things out and hope noct would return to them? why did it have to be in a place like this that they finally had the opportunity to reunite? not only that, if noct remembered altissia... then there was so much he had to tell him, and prompto wasn't sure he could confess each and everything thing that happened them afterwards.

so, he tries not to think of that and presses his face into noct's shoulder, sucking in a breath and doing his best to keep the sting of his eyes just there. ]

I thought... [ prompto chokes on the words, unsure what he'd been trying to say. still, he aims for the truth and hopes it doesn't make him seem too much like a loser. ] I missed you, dude. I didn't think this was ever gonna happen.

[broplaints]

[What else were they supposed to do? Nothing could have hastened his return to them, even if they somehow appealed to the gods themselves. There was a path that had been forged and he had been made to follow it, despite what wants and desires he may have held so deeply within his heart.

Really, he hadn't been the one who had suffered so greatly, locked away within the safety of the crystal, away from the endless night and onslaught of daemons that seemed never-ending.

Maybe it was for the best that it had all ended the way it had, when it had, so that he could at least save them the pain of waiting years for some savior who was nothing more than a poorly chosen puppet.

He wants to say something, to trade some sarcastic barb about Prompto missing him. But it doesn't come, because he can feel the tension wrapped so tightly around his friend. Can feel the way he's trying to hold back, even though it's likely a losing battle.

So instead he takes them down, holding in the sound that threatens to leave him when all of that weight goes to his knees upon the hard ground. Rest back onto his legs and drags Prompto along with him, until they're as wrapped around each other as they possibly can be.]

I'm sorry, Prompto. [Gods, why did all of this have to be so hard?] I'm so sorry. I never wanted to leave you.

[burstmodes]

[ they're simply caught in a wheel, in the cruel hands of fate to do whatever it wishes with them, and who is he to fight it? that hadn't been his right, not when he'd decided to follow noct across the world to face the call of the gods. and still, it frustrates him that he couldn't have been stronger. he should have fought harder, should have done something to stop the inevitable descent into hell, and now that he thinks about it, he wonders if he could have tried to stop ardyn before they'd reached zegnautus keep. or would he have died?

maybe it doesn't matter. they're dead now, and it feels impossible to change that. together in the afterlife – or wherever this place is – seems like a really romantic gesture, but in all honesty, prompto's just glad he's not alone. he doesn't have to face this particular darkness without someone he loves by his side, and that means he'd just follow noct deeper into the dark to see if there was anything beyond this. ]

I know. [ he breathes it into his shoulder, trying to collect himself. there's definitely the watery feel of tears building, but he sniffs and tries to swallow it down before he draws back to look at him. with the firelight, it only reflects the pale skin of noct's face, his eyes and hair like a faded afterthought in all this darkness. ] I never thought you did. I – [ he bites at his lip, suddenly unsure of everything. ] All I could do was wait and hope you'd show up one day, you know? Guess this isn't exactly the way I pictured it.

[ it's the perfect opportunity to make a joke, but right now, he doesn't have the heart to do it. ]

[broplaints]

[Maybe it was. Maybe right now was the perfect moment for one of them to say something incredibly dumb and lighten the mood before it got any heavier.

Prompto had always been like pure, liquid sunshine, packaged and bottle into a container far too small to hold it's greatness. No matter how dark things got, Prompto was always there to make things seem bearable. Like they would get through it. Like maybe things had a possibility of being alright.

But they were dead and there was nothing alright about any of this. Not even Prompto's light was bright enough to break through the darkness that surrounded them.

Guilt washes over him, thick and oppressive because in some other version of events, he hadn't died. No, he had just gone away, apparently. Left them all there to deal with whatever madness came their way. And what had Prompto done? Waited for him. Waited or him and hoped that, some day, they would be together again.

It was strangely romantic. All of this sort of was. But the thought was lost with the shine of those tears in beautiful blue eyes and it cracked his heart just a little bit more.]

It shouldn't be this way. [Not for Prompto. Never, ever for Prompto. He didn't deserve this. All because he had chosen to follow Noctis down into whatever hell fate had chosen for him.] You shouldn't be here, Prompto.