phantasmemes | TEST DRIVE 002

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test drive

TEST DRIVE 002

Hello, and welcome to the second test drive for Phantasmal Rift!

Test drive threads are assumed to be game canon for accepted characters unless otherwise noted, so don't feel like you'll have to introduce yourself a second time to everyone you meet! As an added bonus, participation in the test drive comes with the chance to earn up to two items of loot for your trouble! Characters who are accepted can earn one item for having a top level, and one for tagging out to someone else's top level! Your SWEET LOOT will be included with your acceptance notice.

Additionally, characters currently in game can earn themselves a piece of bonus loot for the dungeon by tagging people's top-levels on the test drive! Existing characters get their bonus loot along with the rest of their loot at the conclusion of the dungeon.

This test drive is based in the Fissure nearest to the Station, same as last time! But this time you're coming at the shoreline from a bit of a different angle...

If you really want, though, you can reuse prompts from the first test drive! In particular, there's still landsharks around the new area of beach. Otherwise, here's three new prompts!

OPTION ONE: OCEAN BREEZE

The cavern you find yourself in smells of the sea... And looks like it, too. Large crystal formations, usually in blue or a light yellow-green, glow along the walls and ceiling of the cavern, providing more than enough light to see by. The whole place is damp and a little chilly, and occasional pools of water rise and fall with gentle waves - some outside tide flowing in through underground passages.

More chilling, though, is the wind that flows through the caves, never ever quite going still but varying wildly in intensity. In fact, characters will discover that they have some control over the intensity of the wind - or perhaps some lack of control, depending on their exact response to waking up in an unexpected place. Strong emotions of any sort make the wind stronger in turn; while calm leaves the wind gentle, panic will send it whipping around corners and drive already-distressed characters to take whatever shelter they can, lest they get blown into some cavern wall.

Other than the wind and the crystals, the caverns seem mostly normal for a place that's clearly underwater at least part of the time. The lower reaches of the caverns are full of barnacles, mussels, and other shellfish that await the rising of the tide for their survival, as well as the occasional crab (some of them surprisingly large, up to about the same of a man's head), and bits of seaweed catch on rocky corners.

OPTION TWO: SAY NYA

What's that sound? Is it... a cat?

... No, it's not. It's a meowing seagull, for some reason.

Except for their strange vocalizations (all feline in nature), the seagulls found outside around the cliffs and beaches are all reasonably normal. (Specifically, anyone familiar with the Gulf Coast on Earth will find that they look much like Laughing Gulls in their black-headed plumage.) They're normal-sized and not at all afraid of people...

In fact, they're so unafraid of people, that they'll come right up close to you and nick your stuff! And not just food, mind. Anything they can carry that isn't attached is fair game to be taken and winged up the cliffs to their roosts. Magpies have nothing on these guys.

Good luck chasing them down for whatever it is they've taken, or climbing up the cliffs to get it back. It belongs to the seacats now.

OPTION THREE: ALL THAT GLITTERS

This gravel beach is absolutely splendid in the sunlight, looking like someone shattered a thousand stained glass windows and left the wreckage to sparkle. Protected from the worst of the waves by some rocky outcrops in the distance, the water here is gentle and doesn't disturb the beach much.

Luckily, the glitter does not, in fact, come from glass. Close examination will reveal that the gravel of the beach contains an impressive number of fragments of some kind of hard scale - about a third, if one's going by volume. They vary in size from a large thumb-nail down to nothing, and most transparent in every color imaginable. They're quite hard, and more likely to break into fragments than they are to be ground down by the sand.

But what is it that these scales come from? The answer can be found only at night, when the sun's light disappears. Then, large reptilian-looking creatures - somewhere between snakes and fish - make their way out of the crannies hidden in the rocks around and across from the small beach. In many different colors, they glow beneath the waves, some internal light filtered through their skin and scales to make each appear a different color.

The serpents aren't violent, at least for now, but given that the largest of them is at least twenty feet long... Perhaps it's best not to hassle them.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I asked regarding that before I opened the hive.

[He tilts his head, regarding Julian thoughtfully.]

You don't sound too content to be hiding your abilities.

Oh, good.

[Julian looked over at him for a moment, blue eyes vibrant in color but clearly troubled, or perhaps tired was a better word for it. He looked away and did his best to sound fine.]

It's just how things are. There's no point in being upset about things I can't change. It's safer, anyway.

'Safer' and 'better' aren't always the same thing. I've spent a number of years hiding what kind of person I really am due to societal stigmas, and I'm much happier when I allow myself to act as I wish. Besides, I don't believe in simply accepting the way of things.

[He is a rebel at heart, after all. The mask on his face is proof of it.]

Hmm...I wonder. Would it make you feel more at ease if I were to show you a form of my own that most would consider monstrous?

They're usually the same thing for me. I think. I mean, that's what other people say, anyway. [And he doesn't want to let other people down. He's a mess, but he's a mess who cares deeply about his family and doesn't want to worry them by getting hurt. The constraints are all in his mind when other people are around, a fear of being discovered not just for what might happen to him, but how disappointed his family would be.

Julian is not a rebel. He's not sure what he is, and therein lies the problem.]

I guess? It can't be as bad as me, whatever it is.

[He takes a step back, spreading a pair of pure white crow wings to a span of more than twice his own height, before his appearance warps and the young man is replaced by something that closely resembles a harpy...if harpies had nature defying tattoo limbs for wings and tails. His torso is humanoid, except covered entirely by white feathers, save the dark blue patch that continues down the middle of his chest from his crow-like head. From the waist down, his legs are shaped like those of a bird, ending in vicious looking talons. His shoulders are covered with the same white plumage as most of his torso, but quickly transform in to dark blue, two-dimensional tribal-esque markings in the general shape of bird wings, with his tattoo tail feathers fanned out behind him. Beyond the size and general build, the only thing left that ties him to the human-passing boy he was a second ago is those dark red eyes. Despite the beak, he doesn't seem to have any trouble speaking in his usual voice.]

This is my Noise form, called Corvus Cantus.

[Julian's eyes go wide, and for a moment, he can only stare. It's been years since he saw anyone else who wasn't human. The experience of being reminded, visually, that he isn't completely alone is more powerful than he was expecting. Hopefully staring is alright, because he can't stop himself from openly gaping.]

You're beautiful.

[And with that soon-to-be-embarrassing statement, he can't resist the temptation to reach out and brush his fingers over the nearest white feathers he can touch, lightly, taking in the way they glimmer in the light.] Sorry. Just - had to verify this was really happening.

[He tilts his head so he can watch that hand moving, but doesn't pull away. He stretches his wings - which somehow function as a whole despite the lines not being connected - and then folds them at his sides.]

It's alright, as long as I can see what you're doing. Just be mindful of the wings, they're every bit as sharp as they look.

[He does give into the desire to touch the wings despite being warned, but he makes sure it's a part Goro can see. The look on his face is a mixture of fascination and something close to envy, which is confirmed when he admits,] I wish I was something like this. Something good, I mean, instead of a spider. And you can fly, too...

[All he can do, all he usually does, is turn into his tiny spider sized form and hide somewhere. He's nothing majestic like this.]

What are you?

[The feathers are smooth, much like sheets of glass...complete with a razor edge.]

I'm a Composer, a ghost who's responsible for overseeing a local area of the afterlife.

Honestly, this form isn't good for much outside of combat. I don't have usable hands like this, and I imagine some would find it eerie to speak to someone with the head of an animal. An extra set of limbs honestly sounds more practically useful.

[They're shiny and he can't tear himself away. There's something incredibly comforting in having physical, tangible, touchable proof that he's not the only person here who's not human. Julian has never been good at figuring out if he's attracted to someone or not, but he's aware that glasmpauki are usually drawn to people with shiny hair and wonders if this is what that love of glossy, shiny things feels like.]

I see. I didn't realize the afterlife worked like that.

At least you know how to fight at all. I don't. [He really should learn some kind of self-defense, at least while he's here.] I haven't really gotten to use my extra limbs much. I couldn't risk the neighbors seeing when I was growing up, and even though I have a single room, college is pretty crowded, too.

Usually only people who have died know the specifics.

[Carefully, he unfolds the wing just enough to spread the feathers out a little, giving more flat surface that isn't bordered by a razor's edge. As they move, the light plays off them about as one would expect for something so perfectly smooth.]

If you would like, I could teach you a bit of swordsmanship. I'm afraid you would have to find a way to acquire a real weapon yourself, though. Neither of my swords work properly unless someone from my own world is the one trying to use them.

I guess that makes sense.

[He runs both his hands over the exposed feathers, touch light and inconsequential as that of a spider's; his fingers may look a little too long and thin to be human, but he's comfortable letting them extend right now. The only thing that somewhat kills the moment is the mention of weapons.]

I don't know if you know what I am, but people like me are already viewed as violent. Carrying a weapon would just add to that.

Unarmed combat is a little more difficult to do effectively, especially when your opponent has large teeth and rough skin. Areas like the one we're in now are dangerous places.

Though, I suppose it would be fine if you stayed out of them once we get you back to the Station. You can find some interesting things exploring Fissures like this, but it's far from mandatory.

I can try avoiding combat. And I do have knockout venom, although I guess that might not work on everything. I haven't actually bit anyone on purpose since I was... six? Seven? [Somewhere in there, in his early years where he hadn't had anyone willing to step in and defend him. After that, he was safe and sound with his adopted family, where he didn't have to worry about people hurting him if he kept a low enough profile.]

Maybe I could try some kind of self-defense course, but only after I meet more people here and make sure they won't hold it against me.

It is generally advised to enter in groups, though...it's proving easy to get separated. If you're willing to take that risk, I'm sure there are a number of people here who would be willing to guard a noncombatant against the more aggressive wildlife.

[He turns his head so he can see Julien's face. The bird-like facial structure means he can't keep what's in front of him and what's to one side in view at the same time.]

I really doubt it's going to be a problem, though. Demons are generally thought of as violent as well, and I haven't seen anyone making a scene about the one at the Station carrying a weapon.

[Julian's face is its' typical unexpressive near-blank, but there's something telling about the way his eyes only briefly meet Goro's. He stops fiddling with the feathers, fingers going still.]

People don't like me. Even when they think I'm human, I mess things up. I don't really know how to act human well enough for people to put up with me, and when I do find people who can deal with me, they leave when they realize I have mental health issues. And that's when they don't have any reason to think of me as a burden. Here, since I can't fight, I am one.

[He's fine. This is fine. See all this eye contact he's forcing himself to make like a normal person? He's okay. Just don't ask his therapist if he is.]

[His own expression is impossible to read, with the static beak and lack of eyebrows...but still, his eyes somehow look soft.]

I can promise, I won't abandon you for being different, or what people consider not right. I've spent enough time struggling against a judgmental society myself that destroying someone's hopes like that is the last thing I intend to do.

[Julian's surprise is obvious. He stares at Goro for a second, trying to process what he said. It's so unexpected that he has to make a conscious effort to speak instead of just gaping at him.]

...that's really kind of you. I don't get that kind of response a lot. Most people think I'm crazy. I don't know if I think I'm a person at all sometimes. I know that sounds like a lot to put up with but I won't talk about it too much, I promise. I know it's stupid.

Not...as much as you may think.

[He pulls his wing back, then shifts back to his human form. For a second, there's a pair of glossy angel wings folded against his back, before they vanish in a burst of light.]

I might have been born entirely human, but I was an illegitimate child. Because of that, I spent my childhood unwanted, shamed merely for existing. It's left me rather mentally and emotionally unstable, and I still struggle with the belief that my value as an individual is equal to my usefulness or how pleasant I am to be around. It's only fairly recently that I've found people who care about me despite knowing everything about who I am and where I come from.

[He blinks at the sudden transformation, then focuses on Goro's words. His wince and glance away at the words 'illegitimate child' should be an obvious enough clue that the same holds true for him. Granted, Serbian society tended to treat illegitimacy as the cause of mental illness and Julian does have struggles with depression and feeling real, but he was tolerated. Unwanted, not allowed in some places, unloved and unloveable at home, yet ultimately, did it matter? He got out. He was adopted by people who genuinely loved him. He shouldn't feel any pain over the past, right?]

I was, too. My birth mother and her husband weren't the greatest to me. Eventually I got adopted because otherwise they would have had to face criminal negligence charges. They were really relieved to get rid of me... I guess I made them miserable, but I didn't mean to, I swear. [Guess who still thinks he somehow deserved what happened to him?] My adopted parents care about me. They just prefer the more human me. Everyone does.

If your culture is anything like mine regarding illegitimate children, I doubt their attitude was any fault of your own. My own mother...suffered so much for my birth that the misery took her life. It had nothing to do with my actions, it's simply how parents of illegitimate children are treated in my society.

Holding yourself responsible for society's views will only push you down into those same depths. If your adopted parents care as you say, it must make them happy to have you as their son. You should focus on that rather than how you were treated for factors outside of your control.

And I'm not certain how much it's worth, but I'm perfectly fine seeing you in either form.

People hated them because of me. If I hadn't been born or if I had looked enough like one of them to pretend to be legitimate, I think their lives would have been changed for the better.

They do care. They love me. But I know I stress them out sometimes. I'm not good at things full humans are, like making friends or telling jokes or even basic things like smiling. They're always worried about me and I can't act human enough to make that go away.

You don't think it's unsettling? Or ugly?

There are times I wish I hadn't been born as well, because then my mother would still be alive. But if that had been the case, the people who love me would have never had that chance. That's what I remind myself to make it easier to keep going forward.

As for your alternate form, I can assure you that I've seen much stranger. Even aside from my own Noise form, I've encountered entities that bear a passing resemblance at most to any mundane creatures.

I never thought of it that way before. [He'd always sort of viewed his life in terms of how much damage he was doing to the lives of other people. Looking at it in terms of who loved him was a foreign concept.]

I haven't seen any other non-humans in years. Sometimes it's easy to forget there are other people out there who aren't human.

In my case, it helps that my boyfriends have been quite insistent that they're glad to have met me.

[His face flushes red at the mention of his partners, but he quickly continues.]

And it should be quite easy to remember here. Marisa-san has visible wings and a tail, and Jetshard-san has gray skin and brightly colored horns.

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CW: suicide mention

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