TEST DRIVE MEME #9

[inthenightmods]

TEST DRIVE MEME #9

Hello and welcome to the In the Night test drive meme for March! Thanks for your interest in our game! In an effort to streamline our application process and avoid future confusion between incoming and existing players, we will no longer have a reservation period. Applications open on March 22, and will be judged on a first-come, first-served basis.

While you're here...

• Take a look at our rules and faq pages to familiarize yourself with the game.
  
• Note that we have a (current) application cap of 15 apps this month for new players, as the game has a player cap of 70. An accurate count of current players will always be available on the taken page.
  
• 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 top-leveling is not limited to new characters! If current players wish to post a starter, they are welcome to do so. They are welcome to make posts in the main comms for TDM events as well. Please note, however, that actual plot clues or happenings will not occur in TDM prompts.
  
• 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).
  
• If you haven't already, please take a moment to look at our announcement regarding changes to the application cycle, which involves information concerning the 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

DANCING QUEEN (cw corpses)

When the ferry chugs up to the dock, its speakers are crackling with a happy song. What a fun way to bring in all the newcomers! Except... goodness, what's that terrible stench? The ferry docks and lowers its gangway as per usual, but the ship is quiet. No newcomers flock to the deck to disembark, and instead, the faint sound of buzzing flies can be heard over the breeze.

Boarding the ferry quickly reveals the source of the flies: decaying bodies, dozens of them, are littered throughout the ship. Some lie in bunks and could be asleep if it weren't for the rot, and others are strewn throughout the cargo hold and the deck. There are no lanterns among them, and there aren't any signs of fighting or struggle around the ship. Inspecting the bodies (if anyone seriously wants to do that) won't yield any definitive answers in terms of cause of death, but, oh. Though it's difficult to tell at first glance due to the decay, these bodies... They're residents of Beacon.

Maybe you find your friend or yourself or, oh, there's Rastus! And Robin! The gang's all here, albeit disgustingly—and Dancing Queen crackles over the speakers. Welcome, welcome!

—but before the ferry departs again, the corpses start to move. Moving about the ship, someone might first hear a sigh, or a sputter, or a little laugh, and maybe it could be brushed off as a trick of the mind until the bodies stand, hoisting themselves up with whatever limbs they have left, and drag themselves toward the deck. One by one, they slip clumsily over the railing and back into the lake, but not before they drop their disguises and slowly contort back into their usual forest spirit bodies (source).

Ugh. Frickin' spirits.

WELCOME TO OUR GAME: INTO THE DARK

In spite of the strange occurrences starting off the month, there's still work to be done in Beacon. Or perhaps it's precisely due to this that Rastus calls for the attention of anyone who will listen as they pass by his station at the bonfire. All but shoving a torch in your hand, he requests that you place it around one of the many locations that could use a source of light! A lot of new places have been discovered recently, after all.

In the event that you choose to choose to play with this prompt as game canon, please remember to report where you choose to place a torch on the item request page so the setting can be updated accordingly! For incoming players, this can be reported retroactively!

These efforts would be a great service to the community at large; Rastus reminds everyone that while the bonfire is a finite resource, it's still a resource that's meant to be utilized.

network prompts

IF YOU DIE IN THE GAME YOU DIE FOR REAL

Not long after the ferry shows up with, uh, no people and a whole lotta corpses (that turn out to be forest spirits playing a very uncool prank), Robin makes a post to the network!

Oh holy god uhhhh OK so no idea what's going on with the ferry this month, wow. Data from the portal is saying nobody new came through, so... nothing to worry about!!! Probably!! I really don't know anything more than you guys right now but I'm gonna get in touch with Dr. Solis. She'll have a better idea of what's going on than me. I'll get back to you all as soon as we figure out what's up.

In the meantime..........!!! I thought it might be fun to play some games to get our minds off stuff? How about hangman! Here's how to play if you don't know!

She attaches a little set of instructions for any characters not in the know. Fun stuff!

But, uh oh. If you get a letter wrong, you'll notice it's getting just a bit more difficult to breathe... Is the air particularly heavy today? Allergies, maybe? No, the feeling only gets worse as the game continues, each incorrect guess tightening an invisible noose around your neck.

The only way out is through, it seems, as nothing provides any relief save for winning a game. But what happens if you lose...?

(If asked, Robin also has no idea what's up with that. Heck! Maybe it's the lanterns acting up again? In any case, the weird hangman curse will resolve itself within a day or two.)

PARTICIPATION FOR CLOWNS

All at once, a notice arrives in everyone's inboxes. It appears to be some sort of strange attempt at a bingo card! It would, potentially, be a mystery as to who crafted this and, well, exactly what it's supposed to mean, were it not for the underlying message that accompanies it.

HELLO! HELLO? HELLO HELLO. ALL BRING CARD TO GET GIFT FOR ALL! YES! ONTO BODY LIBRARY GIFT IT GOES! THANK A MUCH!

The real problem here being, of course, that the librarian's apparent game is a bit, well, difficult to understand. Well, it's possible that it won't require any stringent rules. Ultimately, those who bring in a bingo card that has a row of marks in any particular fashion will receive a free gift compliment of the spirit as a way to promote the library. There might be some fabric missing where the shirt has been bitten into, but, hey, nobody's perfect.

QUICKNAV
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Comments

[callada]

"Sort of," is his initial response as he stands upright, having been checking over a body in one of the rooms. He turns to look at Somnus with a frown. "There are people here who, to my knowledge, haven't ever died here. But every one that's still identifiable is someone who's here now, or has been before."

Disturbing for sure, and it also debunks his initial theory. "Never seen the ferry arrive without people on it," he adds, sounding somewhat worried.

[meridio]

Well, that confirms that.

"Were we not once people?" They're just animated corpses now, little better than the bodies littering the ferry. He looks at the body that Rosinante was just checking. "What could it mean?"

[callada]

He suppresses an eyeroll at the initial question, which he leaves unanswered and rhetorical. They're still people, in his mind. Far more than dead bodies, since they still have souls and thoughts and goals to pursue. They may have died but they're not rotting piles of flesh.

"Can't really say," he replies. "Maybe we all have lots of empty bodies here somehow. The ones that don't get used get discarded into the lake?" But where would all the spares come from and why would that even be something Dr. Solis would do? Seems like a lot of work, creating and maintaining duplicate copies of entire bodies to move their lanterns to if they die.

[meridio]

It's unsettling. He's always thought of his body as his. With all these corpses strewn about, he's starting to reevaluate that thought. Why the lake, though?

"But this is the first time they've been carried by the ferry." Disposable bodies without the fire of a lantern to keep them moving. Truly, eerie. "What significance does the lake bear?"

[callada]

"You're asking the wrong person," he replies as he bends down to check for life signs of another body, but stops when he recognizes the sharp, elderly features. Stone - so a duplicate, again. At least it makes the searching quicker, though he doesn't care to see the old man in such a state.

"It's probably just an easy place to dispose of things, though. Too dangerous to go find something that's been tossed in. Want to get rid of something, it's a good way to do it."

[meridio]

Are the bodies hiding something, then? He gives a corpse a sidelong glance. It's not someone he recognizes right away, and he isn't interested in inspecting it further.

"What next?" he asks. Do they just leave the bodies be?

[callada]

"Let's... for now, why don't we get cargo unloaded. There's a lot left and we don't really have unlimited time," he sighs. "But if you see a body you don't recognize, check it, or let me see if I can tell who it is."

Because only those unknown people, he imagines, have any chance of being actual genuine newcomers here. "Look for lanterns," he adds. "Lit first. Unlit is still important, though."

Because that's another thing that sticks out to him, now that he considers the pile of dead - the spirits can mimic corpses well, but they don't have lanterns.

[meridio]

Lanterns are a precious resource. He'll keep an eye out for them.

But first, the cargo takes precedence and that's where he pipes up after a bout of silence, "I've the power to store objects in a space only I can reach. It's been suggested that I maintain a store of foods from the ferry's supplies in cases of emergency."

They don't know if the ferry might ever stop coming or cease bearing supplies. Food isn't necessary to survive, but one can never be too careful. Somnus looks Rosinante's way. "What says you?"

[callada]

"Yeah, I heard that mentioned before. I think it's a good idea in general. My only problem with it is it's dependent on you being here, right?"

As in, if Somnus dies and doesn't return, the supplies are completely lost, presumably. "Maybe an alternative is to use that to transport them, but then find a physical location to store them in," he says as he thinks it through, then bends to check a face for familiarity - yep. Another spirit, then.

[meridio]

Perhaps. Or perhaps it'll all come raining down like the opals once he dies or leaves. There's no way to know without courting death for a second time. And with these bodies strewn about, he's not about to throw himself at unnecessary deaths.

"In downtown?" he asks as a throwaway suggestion instead. Should the town be compromised, downtown is the next most livable space. Or should they choose a more significant location, such as the church?

[callada]

"If it's possible, I would split stores between all three main housing areas. One cache in the downtown hotel kitchen, one in the stockroom at The Invincible, and then a third somewhere in the village. The rec center, maybe. We want people to have food access without having to risk running for hours from one part of town to the next."

They are so much more spread out now than they ever were before, and it scares him a little. Next time disaster strikes, they're going to be less ready, with more people who've never seen what the spirits can do, and with less guidance on how to handle a catastrophe. There have been people planning what to do, but little has been done to make those plans accessible. The patrols should probably also involve a weekly supply check. A monthly emergency drill wouldn't hurt, either.

[meridio]

When Rosinante maps the current situation out like that, it's that much more evident how spread out they are. And just how organized is each housing area? If they're scattered, a structured response to disaster takes precedence.

"Each area must be self-sufficient," he agrees. They may not number too great, but they simply can't afford to lose even one housing area for a plethora of reasons. "Does a plan of action exist?"

[callada]

"There was one before we discovered the downtown area. People near the bonfire square were to head to The Invincible, and people in the village were to head to the armory. Each location should have someone monitoring who comes in so we can keep track of anyone who might still be out and missing, and communicate the lists of everyone accounted for and everyone who isn't over the network. It shouldn't be hard to make sure the same happens at the downtown hotel. Patrols are organized, so we know who is out in which area at which time watching for threats."

Honestly, it all sounds good in words. The problem is he knows that kind of organization crumbles readily when panic sets in. Talking it out now is helpful though - it's nice to have a sounding board. He frowns, thinking on what's missing.

"Need a supply check and emergency drills, but I'd also like to have someone actually responsible at each location named to keep those check-in lists, and then two backups. It's hard to appoint one person with a job when people can die and only a third of them manage to come back, but if three people are appointed, that should cover that gap."

[meridio]

People come and go. As bizarre as the idea is, he’s seen it happen. There’s an inherent challenge to assigning individuals for a task when those individuals might not be there the next day.

All that does sound good in words, but he understands that everything is harder in practice. Alack and alas, he considers neither his knowledge base nor person established enough to be throwing out solutions. He can only absorb and build upon what others like Rosinante tell him.

“What are your thoughts on the network?” asks Somnus. More importantly, is it somewhere Rosinante would feel comfortable discussing these details? He knows there are those who eye it with some suspicion, and perhaps for good reason; the technology is too foreign for him to understand its holes and flaws in full.

[callada]

"It's useful," he replies. "We didn't have anything like it where I'm from. I'm not used to being able to send messages so quickly, let alone take pictures and send them so easily, or listen to music or everything else it does for us. Why do you ask?"

Because maybe he's similar, not used to technology of the sort they have here. But maybe there's more to the question - how safe is it, how far from town does it reach, can it be used to do something they're not using it for yet? He can think of a lot of possibilities. But as someone who previously worked in intelligence, it's an incredibly powerful tool if used for that purpose, and he's taken to it readily.