phantasmemes | TEST DRIVE 001

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!test drive

TEST DRIVE 001

Hello, and welcome to the first 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.

(In the future, characters who are in-game can also earn themselves an extra item of loot for tagging in to top levels on the test drive, to be distributed with the rest of their loot upon dungeon completion.)

This first test drive is based in the Fissure nearest to the Station, and comes with three potential options, all with a distinctly watery bent -

OPTION 1: MAROONED

Hey, uh... What's that maroon film distorting your vision? And how did you get on this beach, anyway?
So long as the sun is shining, there doesn't seem to be a problem out here on the beach, aside from the strange maroon tint to everything. But when clouds pass over, the tint grows darker, and darker, and the water grows redder, and redder...

That... can't be blood, can it?

Characters who remain beneath the patchy cloud cover will find themselves filled with increasing anxiety that the ocean is made of blood, until either the cloud passes or they check the water for themselves. The bad news is, that while it isn't actually an ocean of blood, contact with the red water will drain characters of energy very rapidly, causing sudden fits of exhaustion as though they were suffering from anemia. By itself, this isn't particularly dangerous...

...Except that the return of the sun doesn't mean the return of that lost energy, and if you've waded out too far, the shifting sand and pull of the waves underfoot can easily pull you down and under.

OPTION 2: LANDSHARK

You really hope that isn't a shark fin moving through the sand. That's just not possible, right?

(Yes, yes it is.)

Landsharks are amphibious, predatory creatures just as at home in the sand as below the waves, and always hungry. They track their prey via disturbances in the sand or water, but fortunately, you can track them the same way - they're large enough to be easily visible in the relatively clear waters near the beach, and their bulk causes a patch of shifting sand above them as they roam for more terrestrial prey.

As a result, they're most dangerous near the waterline, where the shifting sand is hard to see due to the motion of the waves (though they can, of course, pop up further up the beach). Fortunately, they're not large enough to swallow a person whole. Unfortunately, they're still between nine and twelve feet long depending on the individual and easily large enough to take a good chunk out of you.

Like any other shark, they're vulnerable to being sliced open with something sharp, kicked in the gills, or punched in the snout to establish dominance. On the magical end, they have a particular weakness to electricity.

On the bright side, if you're hungry enough, the landsharks are very edible once cooked (or, you know, if you like sushi). For some reason, the meat tastes faintly of chocolate...?

Drops: Meat, shark teeth, candygrams.

OPTION 3: JUST IN TIDE

A bit further down from the beach, the water comes up to the base of the rocky cliffs, leaving numerous nooks and crannies to climb over and explore. In fact, they're practically begging for it.

What might you find? Well, there's the usual beach refuse, for a start - sand, seaweed, shells and fragments of shells, and big barnacles and mussels tucked into the cracks. However, other debris finds its way into the cracks, ocean-going refuse from a thousand worlds... There's also a number of pointy blue-green crystals that tingle to the touch and remain wet no matter how characters attempt to dry them.

And finally, there's a bunch of bottle crabs - overlarge hermit crabs that look more at home in half-broken beer bottles or soda cans at their size than they do in shells (though they'll live in anything that seems protective enough - the largest seem prone to making their homes in rusty helmets). The crabs are not aggressive unless you harass them first, but they can give a nasty pinch if provoked.

...Did you lose track of time out there among the rocks, or did time lose track of you?

Either way, you're now stuck out as the tide comes in. If you can swim, good for you! You probably won't have too much of a problem, at least once you're far enough from the rocks that you aren't at risk of getting thrown against them and having some important swimming limb broken...

On second thought, maybe it's better to stay here and wait it out, whether you can swim or not. Hope you're ready for a couple hours stuck on a rock with some weird-looking, too-big hermit crabs and...

Who is this other person, anyway?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I can. Another of my more recent abilities. Admittedly, its usefulness is mostly theoretical at this point, but I expect it to be useful for getting around.

I expect creating drinks to become much more practically useful if we can't find actual civilization here, though.

I can't even fly without my steed, so I'm a little jealous...

[Downing the rest of the coffee, he examines the shark to see if its decently cooked, awkwardly picking off some of the black bits.]

Do you really think we won't find anything?

It is one of those 'comes with great responsibilities' powers, so you shouldn't be too jealous. Well, unless you enjoy bureaucracy, that is.

[He reaches into a pocket of his outfit and draws out a switchknife. With a casual flick, he opens it and starts cutting off the worst of the scorch marks from the shark.]

Anyway, it's hard to say. There might be a thriving city waiting for us at the top of those cliffs, or we could be dozens of miles away from any hint of settlement. For the moment, it's best to hope for the former, while still considering our options in case we have to manage on our own for a while.

Bureaucracy...?

[He doesn't quite get it, but simply shrugs it off.

He appreciates Crow's assistance in making the shark more edible, and can't help but grin at how well-prepared he is.]

I guess we just take it as it comes. Civilization would be nice...I bet there'd be all kinds of fun things to do! Better food than burnt shark, too.

The flight is associated with a new job of mine, and there's quite a few rules and expectations. Not that most of it matters at the moment...I'm a little outside of my jurisdiction.

[Just don't ask what else this knife has been used for, Astolfo.]

And please, you're going to make me even hungrier. I'm already starting to miss my boyfriend's curry.

[He shrugs it off. Rules and jurisdictions...that's all stuff he doesn't care for.]

Well, it's no curry, but here-

[With one movement, he rips one of the fins off of the shark and holds it out to Crow with a smile.]

It should help somewhat.

[He's not exactly a fan, himself. But sometimes you have to play lip service and keep your rule breaking to loopholes and places you won't get caught...and sometimes jurisdiction is enforced by you losing the majority of your power when you leave it.]

Thank you.

[He removes his gloves and reaches to take the fin. He honestly doesn't know the first thing about cleaning fish, but...shark skin is rough, right? He awkwardly sets about peeling the skin away from the meat before taking a bite of the latter. And...oh. That's good.]

Oh, wow. It tastes a little like chocolate!

What- really?

[That doesn't sound right, but he rips off another fin and just...takes a straight bite out of it.]

You're right! [Chomp.] First it drops candy, and now it tastes like chocolate... [Another chomp.] Some sharks, huh?

Mhm!

[He's being a bit neater about eating, but it doesn't stop him from stuffing his mouth. It's easy to see that food is something he gets really excited about.]

And the chocolatey aftertaste goes very well with such a mild meat. I'm glad they're so large, I'm definitely going to want to save the leftovers.

You can have the rest of this, if you can find somewhere to put it.

[He gestures to the cooked carcass.]

I don't actually need to eat anyway.

[He's gonna go out on a limb and assume Crow's a regular enough human being and probably still needs stuff like sustenance.]

Finding somewhere to put it shouldn't be a problem, these clothes have very deep pockets.

[It's an accurate enough assumption, although if Astolfo is paying close enough attention, he might notice that Crow has stopped breathing in his excitement over the food. The lack of oxygen doesn't seem to be bothering him, though, as he stuffs more shark meat into his mouth.]

Mmm. Are you sure you don't want more, though? Even if you don't need to eat, it's still delicious.

Shark-deep pockets...? [He blinks a couple of times and then lets out a laugh.] You never cease to amaze, Crow.

[The shark was really tasty, he can't deny that. His eyes wander back over to it...and he tries to shake his head out of it.]

No-- no. You actually need it.

[Still tempting though...]

My carrying capacity is a little...special, when I'm in this outfit.

[He reaches into a pocket and pulls out what, to all appearances, is a blue laser saber. Even if the blade retracts, there's no way it could have fit in his pocket.]

It's based more on cognition than actual physics.

[And he sees you staring at the shark...]

And you do realize that I'm fully capable of killing these sharks myself, right? If I run out, there's really no reason I can't bait another one into showing itself.

Mm...I guess you're right...

[...Fine, he's going to cave in and tear off another chunk, and hastily shove it in his mouth. Dignity? He doesn't know her.]

So good-!

[After he finishes, he looks over at the saber Crow produced from his pockets. It's pretty flashy, so naturally he's a fan of it.]

What else have you got in there?

Quite a bit, really.

[Flashy weapons are best. He sets the laser saber down in the sand and follows up by producing what appears to be a bright gold raygun, a serrated, red sword, a plush crow, several cans of a soda called Dr. Salt NEO, several packages of vending machine snacks, a plastic bag full of strange looking fruits, and...a shirt so filthy it's impossible to tell what it actually is? All in all, it's way more than he could have possibly been carrying on him, and it seems like he only stopped because that last item surprised even him.]

Ah, I'd forgotten I had that in there...I really should clean it and find out if it's anything worthwhile.

[He watches in disbelief as Crow produces the mountain of items from his pockets. The raygun, sword, and little plush crow catch his eye the most. Especially the little crow because...well, that's just adorable.

He only really notices the shirt until Crow brings attention to it.]

What- what did you do to that?

[The crow is absolutely adorable and he actually set that in his lap instead of the sand.

The shirt he shakes out a couple times, then stuffs back into his inventory.]

I found it this way. Sometimes the treasure I find takes the form of dirty laundry...though it usually turns out to be something with at least some protective abilities once I put it through a wash.

[Oh, that's sweet. It makes him realize that Crow's still pretty young, and for a brief moment he feels a pang of pity for him being stuck here. He really ought to be living life back with his friends and not worrying about survival.

But they're here now, and at least that means he can help him whichever step of the way he can. Besides, Astolfo can hardly maintain any kind of sad feeling for very long.]

I wouldn't immediately think 'treasure' at dirty laundry...maybe you could wash it in the sea? I can watch your back in case of sharks.

[He's eighteen, he's old enough! The crow just has sentimental value, that's all.]

I'd rather not use salt water. Besides...I don't like the bloody appearance it takes in he shade. I haven't been able to quite shake the feeling that it really does transform into blood.

[Still, he's a teen! He has so much life left...]

Hm. [A dilemma.] There's got to be some freshwater here, or a dry cleaner's if we're lucky. [He kind of really wants to know what the shirt can do.]

[Except he's already dead, but details. He's at least remembering to breathe again, now that he's slowed down stuffing his face?]

If there is, it's probably further inland. We might be able to find a stream of some sort...of course, if worst comes to worst, I could create a decent amount of water given a few hours. But I don't consider it worth that much trouble at the moment.

[Astolfo barely took notice of the breathing thing out of being too preoccupied by also stuffing his face.]

You can create water too? Is there anything you can't do?

[He laughs, but there's a sincere awe behind it. Crow's got the most diverse spread of abilities he's seen before, so it's hard not to be impressed.]

[That gets a laugh out of him too. Please, flatter him more.]

Quite a few things, really. But my drink creation power is any liquid I can think of, which does make it highly practical.

[Oh but of course! That's an inevitability.]

How do I know you're not just saying that so you can keep surprising me?

[He completely forgot that water was a liquid, and would come under that. It...happens.]

Now now, there's so many different things that could potentially be possible that the only way to have nothing you can't do is to be truly omnipotent. And I'm hardly that...I just happen to have a strong inclination toward versatility in my powers.

But...that's not until rank 9 in his game!

don't underestimate him

He is Unsure of this arrangement...it seems a little extreme.

You mean you *don't* throw your life on the line for relative strangers?

No, no he does not. Only for best friends.

Best friends, people you just met...same thing right?

People he just met are potential dangers until proven otherwise, honestly.

Oh god what's this poor kid been through

You really don't want to know...he's seriously traumatized.

Well there's as good a reason as any to try to make him smile sometimes, then.

He is a Sad Boy, he needs more reasons to smile. And fewer reasons to hate. ...Food makes him happy.

Astolfo's...well, you saw how good he is at cooking but oh my god will he try.

He's...actually a little better than Crow? It's only a *little* burned.

Just a *little* better...

Luckily, he knows people who actually CAN cook.

Oh good, there's hope for him yet.

He also knows lots of good restaurants?

Does he have the cash to afford that?

Sort...of? He begs food from a coworker a lot in canon...

Damn, he can't mooch off of him for dinner then...

Nope, no mooching off a moocher. Or a food thief, he does that too.

Stealing food isn't particularly heroic, but...it could be a robin hood kind of situation. He's down

Robin Hood is actually his original Persona, so...but he's also a reforming villain, oops.

no subject

By the way, do you have Plurk/Discord?

You mean you don't throw your life on the line for relative strangers?

He's...actually a little better than Crow? It's only a little burned.

Just a little better...