memesinthenight | TEST DRIVE MEME #05

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!tdm

TEST DRIVE MEME #05

Hello and welcome to the The Next Night's test drive meme for December-January! Thanks for your interest in this GPSL! We operate on a rolling application system. Applications are always open and will be judged on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Next Night is currently set to end in spring of 2021, so this will be the last TDM posted - but don't let that dissuade you! There are plenty of opportunities for new characters to get involved in current game events as the community of Beacon unites to deal with a world-ending foe.

While you're here...

Take a look at our rules and faq pages to familiarize yourself with The Next Night.

Note that we will have an application cap of 10 apps for new players, and that the game has a player cap of 60. 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 and encouraged to do treat the TDM like any other game-wide event. Current players are welcome to post logs or network posts using TDM prompts as desired.

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.

As we no longer plan to have a bimonthly game-wide HMD meme, we will require all new applications going forward to have a HMD post somewhere on the journal and we will ask for this as part of the application process.

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

log prompts

the walls, the walls are coming down

After Dr. Solis' disappearance, the people operating the portal have occasionally struggled with bringing in new people. So they widen the parameters. Select all target sectors of the multiverse. Surely, this has to be better, right?

For some of you, the last thing you remember is dying. Maybe it feels like a moment ago, maybe a lifetime. But now you awake in darkness, with a lantern your only source of light, and a tablet that prompts you to sign on to a network at your side. The locals must be these strange thing surrounding you - some humanoid, some animal-like, others something else entirely, but they encircle you, masked faces pressing closer, until one shrieks and squeaks and takes you by the hand, or shoves you, or simply tries to herd you to the large bonfire in the center of an open square.

For others, you're quite sure you were just recently alive, and possibly in the middle of something important. And when the forest spirits try to haul you off, their hands pass right through you. Your lantern flickers. The network prompt blinks, but entering a username doesn't seem to get it to go anywhere until it finally lets you on as an anonymous guest user. Strange. But while you're here, you might as well enjoy the sights, right? Hopefully this is just some strange mistake and you'll wake up shortly with nothing more than a headache to show for it.

Note: for characters who are not dead, they will function as "ghosts" for this TDM - however you want to interpret that! If you decide to app them to the game, they will have to end up dead as part of their arrival in Beacon, but are allowed to remember the events of this TDM once they have died and wound up here.

As this is a fourth wall-style prompt, feel free to play any character you like for a brief visit to Beacon, but keep in mind that if you later decide to app them they will need to fit within the rules for appable characters. For situations involving characters previously in Beacon returning for this mini-event, any memory of previously being in Beacon is allowed but will automatically render the threads non-canon (or some strange hallucination).

Questions? Feel free to ask on the December Gameplan.

rat nicholas

Did you all forget the Rat King? Because the Rat King hasn't forgotten you. Just as you're picking up the monthly supplies and greeting the strangest round of newcomers yet, there's a thundering of paws, shrill little squeaks, and the glint of torchlight on sharp teeth. A wall of rats overtakes the town, threatening to trample anyone and anything in their path.

But if you manage to stay out of their way, you'll see a strange sight - the Rat King, body composed of hundreds of fleshy, furry rat bodies writhing and swaying, is being pulled on a large piece of scrap metal across the snow. And as they swarm, the King tosses gifts to and fro! Try not to get bonked in the head by a shrunken apple doll, or trip over a very pungent cheese rind. Among the strange rat-favored junk you might even find a few treasures in the form of actual sweets, or some lovely spirit-made garlands, though you might have to beat the rats to the good ones!

network prompts

Q&A

WHAT WOULD YOU GIVE
TO SEE THEM AGAIN

WHAT WILL YOU GIVE
TO KEEP THEM SAFE

KNOWING YOU GET NOTHING IN RETURN?

[The words appear on the network - sometimes when you go to make a post, sometimes interrupting what you were trying to type.

Maybe this place is just like that, or maybe there's someone looking for an answer?]

shivers

The brutal cold drags its teeth across your flesh with every biting gust of wind. You just want to get indoors, to safety - but the snow spirals thickly around you, blocking all vision, reflecting light from your lantern onto shards of ice that seek to dig in to any part of your exposed skin. You close your eyes, cover them with a hand, while branches crack and snap in the forest around you.

When you open them, you aren't where you were, and you are very alone. But the tablet in your pocket still has a signal. Maybe you can ask for help? Maybe someone knows how to guide you back?

(This is a mini-version of our upcoming event, Shivers (I've Got 'Em)!)

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[ with another apologetic look on his face, daylight shrugged in helpless confusion. ]

Sorry but, um, I don’t know for certain this time around. [ which is weird. he remembers in great detail what happened to him the first time he had died and arrived in beacon. he's been wondering about that since he stumbled through... something. did someone jump him? was there an accident?

his armour loosens up and expands to dispel static electricity that's been building up beneath him, allowing his systems to relax. if he really had to dig up... ] Last thing I remember is heading out of the reception hall. I think I did it in order to catch up with my kindred, Nightbreak, or get some fresh air. Didn't feel bad. Nervous, yeah, but a giddy type of nervous.

After that, I found myself back here. [ he lifts up his lantern, the fire in it now a pale red and gold instead of its purple colour. ] Guess the new lantern is meant to be an apology gift?

[Were it someone he knew less well, Rosinante would assume that to be a deflection. Doesn't know? More like doesn't want to say. But even with five years to change and become more cautious, Rosinante would like to think Daylight wouldn't lie to him about something like that.

The lantern is certainly different too, but although it looks nice, he can't guess at what it means, if anything.]

Well, if what some people think about the lanterns somehow being our actual soul is right, then maybe they change as you grow. So, that reflects you now, somehow. I like it.

[Might as well find some good in what happened, he decides - but the moment he's able, he's going straight to the lab and he's taking Will with him because he'd love to pore through portal data but needs someone to actually make sense of it and explain it to him. What the hell did the portal crew do?]

[ he smiles at the comment, nodding in agreement. reflects him now... yeah. daylight can get behind that. five years is enough time for him to change and grow up, his tastes and his views changing a lot over half a decade. it would make sense he wouldn't have the same lantern and he's glad for it. he likes its style!

especially since he realises the design reminds him a lot of his friends, in a way. something about the design of the lantern reminds him emer, nightbreak, and especially dial up. (colours, maybe.)

focus, daylight: ] Sooo— Speaking of changing, how have you been doing so far? Like... what's been happening on your end? Personally?

It might have been under a year since I wasn't here but some big stuff must have happened, right? Things got shaken up? Things got revealed?? How is Soldat? Dr. Ingram?

[Classic Daylight, hitting him with a barrage of enthusiastic questions. So much has happened in his absence, with new discoveries every other week and big decisions still to be made.

He's gearing up to tell Daylight all about how Law is here now, how much that means to him, but then as Day wraps up his questions he mentions the other person who always makes Rosinante's eyes light up. His smile softens, turns maybe a little self-conscious at the same time. Yeah, all right, he'll tell Daylight about people he actually knows first, especially since he asked directly.]

Dr. Ingram... [He chuckles a little. He spent so long calling the man by his title like that, but now it feels a little foreign on his tongue. He's just Will now, though not to anyone else here.]

He's good. He's doing well. Started dedicating himself to lantern research a while back, actually, though now he's all swept up in working on that portal at the Helix Station.

[The lantern stuff is pretty telling in itself. Since when does Will do anything for other people's benefit? When does he concern himself with their survival and well-being? The answer is, he doesn't, exactly. He's just trying to make sure he knows every detail of repair so he can fix Rosinante's lantern if it continues to get in worse and worse shape. But he'll keep quiet on that detail.]

Um, he and I are... [A thing they've never really put a name to, so he starts, but then doesn't quite know how to finish the sentence. Daylight can probably figure it out, though, given how awkwardly he glances away as if searching for the right word, smiling all the while.]

[ daylight has seen that expression before. fuck- daylight has probably made that expression before when trying to describe himself and emer to someone.

it does not take a genius to realise what the implication is and, honestly, relationships are probably one of daylight's best strengths. no need for a proverbial lightbulb to go over his head when he knows what this all already means.

so his face lights up in joy for rosinante, his winglets wriggling from his excitement as he lets out a happy squeal: ] Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.

Congratulations, Rosinante! I'm so happy for you guys!! [ he calms down, enough for him to a bit more serious and meaningful with what he has to say next: ] I'm glad you guys were able to be each other's light here.

[Man, he'd held it together pretty well up until that squeal, but now he's blushing brightly as he waves a hand for Daylight to settle down.

Of course, the last sentence there is just so touching that he lets his hand rise back up to where it was helping balance the sack of oats. Still needs to get those to the kitchen but all in good time.]

That's... Thanks. Yeah, it's... [He sighs, happy but sort of at a loss for words.] I wouldn't have guessed when I first got here that he'd end up meaning so much to me, but I'm glad for it. Never thought about ending up with anyone here, honestly, but life finds ways to surprise you, doesn't it?

[ 'happy but sort of at a loss for words.'

oh, always a mood whenever daylight finds himself tripping over his excitement whenever he wants to gush about emer or explain what it's like to have the most supportive, funniest, and sweetest (in his own way!) boyfriend ever. he's glad rosinante gets to experience the feeling because it's great! kind of embarrassing but great. ]

Considering how we all got here - well, first time around for some, at least! - it definitely fits with the theming of catching us by surprise.

[ but, like, in a good way.

daylight's winglets continue to flutter - watch out, walls and ceilings! and daylight's own helm, which he tries to keep ducked at all times - pleased as punch for his friend. ] I am happy for you guys. I really am. If anyone deserves to find happiness here, despite it all, it's you guys.

Do you think if I tried to look for Dr. Ingram, he'd be cool with me congratulating him or nah?

[If anyone deserves happiness? Really? Rosinante gives a soft huff in surprise, but decides not to argue. Everyone here deserves happiness, in his opinion; he is certainly not more deserving than all of them. And not a lot of people would say Will deserves happiness either - even if they appreciate what he does, to them he's not kind, or generous, or any of the things people usually like to reward.

Daylight's question makes him chuckle abruptly.]

No, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't anyway, if you want to. He'll act all put off, but it's good for him to know people care.

[Now, let's see if he can manage to open The Invincible's front door and get himself and this sack of food through without losing his balance and falling in the process. He's already teetering as he reaches to push it open.]

[ daylight laughs, amused by the answer. ]

Yeah— Definitely sounds like Dr. Ingram, alright. [ he’s so going to call him and be all gushy about it.

oh... that can wait for a bit, though. upon noticing rosinante teetering a bit while trying to push open the door, daylight opts to help by holding out his servo, summoning arc energy from his core.

he sends a pulse, strong enough to make the door push itself open. ] There we go.

Sorry for the mild static shock. Thought you needed a hand. A figurative hand, at least.

Wh-

[The surprise of it throws him off, but it is at least less catastrophic than somehow colliding with the door in the process. It swings open as he falls backward in the doorway, but he keeps both arms around the bag of grain and holds it to his chest so the bag doesn't tear and spill on the hard frozen ground. Ow, bruised tailbone though, speaking of hard ground. It's a wonder he has any nerve endings left there.

With a grunt, he pushes himself back onto his feet, then makes a face at how his hair sticks to his cheeks and floats in the air with the residual static as it starts to die down - then turns and grins at Daylight, having gotten over all that easily enough.]

That was cool! Thanks! Wish I could do something like that, how cool would that be?

Oh— Rosinante! [ it takes a bit of finagling but he manages to kneel down and still give rosinante a sense of space, his expression one of alarm and worry. that looked like a heck of a tumble, buddy!

he only relaxes when rosinante shows he's not hurt (that bad) and seems impressed with daylight's power. it makes him duck his helm in bashfulness, unable to hide his grin or the twinkle in his optics. ] You’re welcome, I guess?

Glad I didn’t accidentally make you, like, break your nose or something. [ he didn't break his nose or anything, right? it's been some time since daylight has hung out anything vaguely resembling humans. ] I've been practicing with my powers for a while and that's, like, the latest thing I can do with it so far. Pretty neat, huh?

[Yes, thank goodness his nose is intact - he'd hate to lose it. Losing the ability to taste things was bad enough; he'd at least like to keep his sense of smell.]

Sure is. What else have you figured out how to do since you were here? I've, uh, guess I've been slacking on the practicing front myself, but tell me what you've come up with.

[It's less slacking, more just a change in his priorities. Over the summer months he and Will had talked a little about what he might be able to do, given Will's better understanding of the physics of sound, but that sort of experimentation has never been his forte and there's so much else to focus on, like learning to speak with the spirits and working on his boat, and trying to improve his computer skills at the lab.

At last, he heaves the sack of oats onto the bar for someone else to deal with, and then brushes oat flour and frost from the tumble off of his clothing.]

[ daylight opts to help brush off the debris from rosin ante’s clothing — his servos can cover a lot of surfaces, after all, but watch for that strength, daylight and rosinante! — as he explains what he’s been up to in regards to his powers: ]

I’ve been mostly been refining the control of my powers now that I have a lot of time on my hands. With a bit of luck and a lot of help from Nightbreak, I can do lasers now. [ he (rightfully) sounds breathlessly excited when sharing this tidbit, his winglets become a lot more emotive than he's allowed them to be since his arrival. ] Actual lasers.

[ it’s super exhausting to do, yeah, but it came in pretty clutch one time he and emer got trapped in a random bad guy’s cage. ]

And this isn't as cool and all but... I can, like, glow on command now. I'd show it to you but I have a feeling that it wouldn't work here.

[ or it would and he'd tire himself out. the more he's here, the more a lot of his memories of beacon come back to him. ]

[ACTUAL LASERS. That sure gets his attention - not that Daylight didn't already have it, but he straightens up and stares with open delight. Never mind the oat dust. Lasers!

Then gives a chuckle at the rest.]

Probably not. Sure would be useful if you could, though. Do lasers work here, for that matter?

[What... what really are lasers, come to think of it? He knows of them vaguely as cool powerful beams he associates with robots and other exciting technological elements of fiction, but are they light? Fire? Some sort of superheated gas? He actually has no idea, having never encountered them in person and having vaguely thought of them as maybe complete fiction.]

[ daylight pauses for a second, actually wondering the question himself: can he use lasers here in beacon? as rosinante pointed out, it would be pretty useful to the others if they need a hand in clearing away debris or needing a hand in building stuff...

in the end, daylight, looking apologetic, shook his helm. ]

I'd like to figure that out but, if my memories are correct, it would take a lot out of me. [ yeah. now that he thinks about it- ] Forming force fields here were daunting and I couldn't use my powers for up to maybe... What? Three times a day?

Trying to form lasers here and for a while would be pretty exhausting. I mean- I could try, if you want. It doesn't look like I'll be leaving here anytime soon so... you knonw.

We can do show and tell later. I do think it'd be a good idea to try it out before an emergency, but maybe not right this moment.

[Before they head back out at all, though, Rosinante stands with his back to the bar and gestures to the interior of The Invincible's main ground floor room, here. Covering almost all the walls are murals, clearly by many different painters of different skill levels. Flowers, boats, and abstract swirls of color are just a few of the decorative elements all around.]

I think we did this right after the flood, if I'm remembering right. Time's a bit of a blur. We've had a lot of hardships since spring. It's stuff like this that helped keep some people smiling. Now that you're here, if you want to add to it later, you should. There's always more paint.

[ with his winglets perking up at the sight of the murals, there’s no denying the interest daylight has in the prospect of putting a little touch of his own. despite the years and the tribulations, his love for the arts has carried on strong.

so there’s no need for him to deny his interest and excitement at the extended offer. ] Really? You’d be alright with me putting an image or two on the murals?

Of course! It's a community project. You're as much a part of it as any of the rest of us.

[And surely more than some, despite Daylight's long absence. His impact on Beacon and their relationship with the spirits continues to be felt every day. They owe him more than some here probably know.]

Whenever you want. I should probably fill you in on more of what you missed, though. Want a drink?

[Seeing as how their supplies have all just been refreshed, he's already reaching around the bar to find a new bottle to crack into.]

Yeah. [ his winglets hitch up in excitement at the proposal - both the chance to paint on the mural and the drink.

mainly the drink, because he has some pretty big (to him!) news to tell rosinante: ] I can actually eat food and drink stuff like water now. Without having the urge to immediately puke it back out and everything. Always curious about how human alcohol tasted so I'm not letting this chance getaway.

[ it's these sort of little victories over the years that had made the biggest impact in daylight's day-to-day life. ]

Got any recommendations for anything?

[He'd mostly offered out of politeness, so when Daylight says he can actually down it, Rosinante glances over his shoulder with another of his bright, open grins. He does that a lot more lately. Reunited with Law, and having found a romantic companion in Will, he's honestly happier now than he was most of his life. Certainly happier than he used to be in Beacon.]

That's great! Yeah, let's see here. I'm partial to whiskey, but the red wine isn't bad. [He picks up a wine bottle and squints at the label, but it's something he can't read. Not a familiar one.]

Can't vouch for this one, actually, this is new. Or if you'd rather go for beer I can poke my head into the stockroom, see if we have any of that brown ale left. Kinda liked that one.

Oh! Let me see- Maybe I can read the label...

[ daylight needs to squat down and adjust his optics to zoom-in. when he's able to pick out what it reads, his expressions brightens and his winglets flicker up and joy in enthusiasm.

he recognises that logo and the font anywhere! ] It's a Chateau Latour. From... 1982, it looks like it. [ is this from a previous boat trip? definitely came after the end of this world. ]

Heh. I remember my grandma loving this stuff while I was growing up. [ he had very faint memories of her now but the smells of wine and paper and ink always stood out to him in memories. ] I'm no expert but my grandma was and she always touted how Chateau Latour is one of the best wine estates there is.

[Funny how the sounds of the words are familiar. Chateau? He knows that one, but the text was all wrong. Chalk it up to Beacon's translation weirdness.

Wait-]

This is from your world? Wow, lucky find. I'd love to try it. Here, I'll get us some glasses.

[And a corkscrew. He's back around the corner of the bar in a moment, and sets the glasses down on top of it with the corkscrew at the ready.]

I guess that means somewhere in all the notes we recovered from the lighthouse, there's coordinates for your world. I can try to look that up later.

I'm positive about it. I remember my grandma showing off her favourite bottles to me and this showed up a lot.

[ admittedly, showing a baby robot alcohol they can't drink isn't... the safest thing to do, but daylight is willing to let it go because grandma was at least enthusiastic to spend time with him.

since no chairs will be able to hold his weight anymore, daylight opts to sit on the ground, crosslegged as he waits for a small glass (or bucket. he won't be picky) of wine. ] I think grandma was a patron for them too. Before the end of her life, she made it a point to, like, patron people in fields of vinification and dance and linguistics and cryptanalysis...

[ 🎼 some of these things are not like the other. 🎼 ]

[Yeah, the glasses are just the size they are, suitable for everyone else but not these two. Rosinante fills them nearly to the brim to attempt to make up for it, then hands one to Daylight before sitting on the floor as well - as he's always resorted to here. Chairs hold his weight, but they're not at all comfortable and he tips them over too often anyway.]

That's a wide variety of interests. Hm. Cryptanalysis? That's not an average person's hobby.

[ daylight laughs and nods in agreement, optics twinkling as he remembers his grandma. ]

Grandma wasn't an average person. She participated in the Shadow Wars. [ right- wouldn't know any of this- ] The Shadow Wars happened around the 2020s or 2030s. It was humans' attempts to push back against these two factions who hailed from my dad's species because, where I'm from, Earth and other places got dragged into the two group's battles with the other. It wasn't pretty.

But my grandma, and others like her, didn't give in that easily. She was part of a codebreaking group that was not only trying to decrypt the ciphers the factions were using but learn their languages at the same time. She helped build human-sized versions of both factions' cipher machines despite having never seen it, using only documents and photos for references.

[ daylight looks nostalgic and proud as he speaks about his grandmother and her accomplishments, undeniably affectionate of her.

while she wasn't perfect - he's come to understand that none of his family were but they tried in the end for him. especially his grandma, who wanted to right some of her wrongs before she passed away. ]

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