TEST DRIVE 005

[phantasmods]

Hello and welcome to the fifth 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 time, the Test Drive takes place in Incendia - a less-ruined-than-expected city that has been abandoned for over a century, due to the magical effects of the Fissure (unstable reality region) that have made it impossible to live in. What effects are these, you ask?

Well...

BY DAY

By day, the city is lovely, if oddly empty. The sun shines down, and magical lights along the sidewalk - the equivalent of power lines - flow energy throughout the city. It's possible to think that the little sparks you sometimes see at the corner of your vision are related. After all, there's a great deal of magic in the air...

But in spite of this, the city lies abandoned, for no immediately apparent reason. You might have found yourself in a wide-open shipping yard, where large metal containers levitate about, moving without any help or oversight from human hands. Be careful; these containers changing positions make it easy to get lost for quite a long time, since few of them have much in the way of identifying traits over than color. Didn't you already pass that arrangement of two red ones on top of a blue one before...?

Or perhaps you're in the massive park in the center of town, with its blatantly magical fountain (a half-dome of water just hanging in the air) and the tents of an abandoned festival. Two stages and a long line of street food booths stand empty - surely no one will mind if you use them for something, right?

Or perhaps you're just suddenly on the streets, among stalled-out taxis and cars that go nowhere and lack the familiar smell of gasoline. There's apartments and shops all around, with little gardens spilling out over balconies... Maybe if you go knock on some doors, you'll find people.

Wherever it is you are, surely there's got to be someone around who can tell you what's going on, right...?

BY DUSK

As night falls, rather than dropping the way you might expect, the temperature begins to rise. And then the sparks in the edges of your vision are very much more than simply at the edges of your vision. They catch first on the plants, the papers stuck to the now-lit magical streetlights, the trash cans... And then, increasingly so, on the buildings proper, the shops, the skyscrapers, the cars in the street.

Within half an hour, an inferno is starting to build, and it's clear that there's not going to be anywhere above ground safe from it. But fortunately, there's safety beneath the level of the streets - if you can make your way fast enough to an underground station.

BY NIGHT

In the remains of these subway tunnels, lit mostly by the dim glow of magical energy lines, you're at least safe from the inferno above. Unlike the aboveground parts of the city, however, the tunnels are in an obvious state of disrepair, with broken concrete, rot, and mildew. The stations might have once been clean, but they quite transparently are not now, and the tunnels themselves are as bad or worse.

Thankfully, no trains run anymore, so you're not at risk of being run down on the broken tracks. There's also not any full-on collapses blocking the way, and the tunnels seem well-enough made that there's probably not risk of a cave-in.

Less pleasantly, you aren't the only thing taking shelter in the tunnels from the firestorm above. And the magic of that flame has touched the feral dogs that rove the tunnels, turning them into barking, howling creatures of as much flame as flesh themselves. And then there's the occasional patch of mold, mildew, and slime in the darkest parts of the tunnels, where even the magical circuits have gone out, that moves to douse any light that comes near it...

Comments

Sync the Tempest / Tales of the Abyss

[fifthreplacement]

Day

[So there's a part of town that looks like a small explosion went off. In fact, you might've actually heard said explosion, or seen the giant pillar of light that went up into the sky. Or both.

The cause of said explosion is currently leaning on a nearby house, looking decidedly unimpressed with everything]

Why...am I still here?

[He's not really expecting an answer to that question. Sync doesn't want one particularly either. There is no answer that he'd find satisfactory. To think that something would make him still be alive, and in a place where there was seemingly no people...tch. The universe hates him. That's the only reason this is still going on. So he's going to fume for awhile. Maybe someone should tell him that he's not actually alone...if they dare to approach the clearly peeved teenager]

Dusk

[The temperature rising was the first problem. Sync always hated heat, ever since Zaleho. But the temperature on its own wouldn't have been an issue. It's the fire that makes this situation an issue.

He's frozen for precious moments, staring at the blaze that's erupting. The flames, the heat...it's not lava, but it's close enough to be bad. And it's enough to trigger the panic in him, his usually good fight-or-flight response going to freeze. He can't move for the memories, the screams that only he can hear]

No...not this...

[He might eventually snap out of it in time, but then again, a helping hand might be a good thing Sync could use right now]

Night

[However he ends up underground, made it down there he has. And now all he wants to do...well. He actually doesn't know what he wants to do. Or what to do.

Sync sits in one of the stations, leaning against a wall with one leg drawn up to his chest and his arms folded on top of his knee. It's as at rest as he can ever get in a place like this. He's still on guard, head snapping up whenever he hears a noise. He's not wanting to be surprised here. But when he's not tracking sounds, he's thinking and trying to understand what he should be doing here...]

None of this makes any sense.

[...and also complaining about it, because really. None of it does, and he hates not understanding stuff]

What am I supposed to do here?

Niiiiight

[bloodyashes]

[It's not hard to pick up on the sound of footsteps coming from further down the subway, off in one of the tunnels. Asch isn't carrying a light, so he has to pause and blink in the increased light of the station area for a moment before his eyes adjust.

So Sync is probably going to see him first - unmistakably Asch, but with a good portion of his outer uniform shed and abandoned, and his hair restrained in a bun with far too many spines from some kind of cactus. He wears a sword, as usual, and a heavy-looking pack of an unfamiliar material.

When his eyes adjust, he transparently stares at Sync for a moment... And then shakes his head slightly.]

Of all people...

[fifthreplacement]

[The sound of footsteps makes him look up, squinting into the darkness. Sync hasn't got much in the way of light either, having only been using the sparse light ball when he needed to. Light seemed dangerous down here. But he's never really needed it unless it was pitch black, which it isn't down here.

So he sees Asch. An Asch that seems oddly different to when Sync last saw him, and an Asch that is very much alive which is even more bizarre. But then, he himself is supposed to be dead. So maybe he shouldn't be so surprised after all.

When Asch notices him, he's already being glared back at in response, because Sync is rather unhappy to have to deal with the redhead, even if it's some sort of familiarity]

Trust me when I say it's not like I want to be here.

[He's snarling a little, but also doesn't bother getting up. Asch doesn't scare him. He doesn't see the other as any sort of threat]

[bloodyashes]

Yeah, that sounds like you.

[Just... not even fussed, really. It's weird. Sync is the first truly familiar face he's seen since... Well, there was never anyone at the islands. Not even once.

He's not sure how he feels about seeing someone, here. Even less sure about how he feels about it being Sync.

...After a moment, he approaches, but settles into a similar seat a good distance away, far enough that even if they both reached out towards each other, they wouldn't touch.]

You haven't been here long, I take it.

[fifthreplacement]

[The distance is good. He's already tensing up as Asch approaches, but once the redhead sits down, Sync slowly relaxes again, as much as he ever can. He's still on guard though. While Asch is no threat, that doesn't mean Sync trusts him either.

He thinks for a moment before deciding there's no point in not answering]

A few hours. It was day when I got here.

[Short and to the point. It's the easiest way to deal with this situation right now]

[bloodyashes]

[It's not as though Asch really trusts him, either. He trusts the other (former) God-General to not strike without some reason, and that's about as far as it goes.

At the response, he nods.]

It's the same for me... but I was somewhere else, first. A similar place to this one.

[fifthreplacement]

[He makes an unimpressed sound at that. It's a little disbelieving, but that's also not something that he voices. Because this place itself is impossible, so it's entirely possible right now that Asch is telling the truth]

Lucky you. I guess the universe just doesn't let people die anymore.

[There is so much bitterness in his voice]

[bloodyashes]

[And aren't those words painfully familiar - enough to make Asch frown, thinking of someone else.]

It's not the first time I've heard that sentiment. ...Do you want the short version or not?

[fifthreplacement]

[Sync rolls his eyes a little, not caring for the first part of Asch's statement and ignoring it. As for the second...]

If you're going to be so generous and tell me, who am I to say no?

[The bitterness easily turns into sarcasm. But there's a small gleam of genuine interest, shown as Sync lifts his head a little. He can't say no to information. Information is knowledge, and knowledge is power. Sync has never been able to turn down information when he can get it, no matter how much he distrusts the source]

Dusk

[hairpincurves]

[A helping hand he'll get! One that's firmly grasping his arm and tugging.]

Hey! Don't just stand around! There's underground tunnels this way!

[She was wondering whether or not to do this sweep at all for people left aboveground and suddenly she's glad she did...]

[fifthreplacement]

[The tugging breaks him out of it, somewhat. Sync is still breathing hard for no apparent reason, his head jerking around and staring at the stranger in alarm. There's a little bit of fear too, but after a second or two he manages to push that aside and focus on the words she said]

R-right.

[He turns, still a little slower than he would normally be, which is an average speed for most. It's hard to focus when the memories still tug, but maybe getting underground out of the heat will help]

[hairpincurves]

[Since he's moving on his own, Akira lets go, moving towards a station entrance. She's moving a little quicker than normal, but the fact that she's in Joker mode helps with that.

... She's on high alert, however, looking out for any obstacles or other hazards. If something happens, she does have healing, but she'd really rather it not get to that...]

Stay alert.

[fifthreplacement]

You don't have to tell me that. If this place is going to randomly go up in flames...

[Sync shakes his head. Now that he's starting to somewhat pull himself together, he's checking around for anything else that's a threat right now. But he follows, still pushing those memories away, and only stumbling occasionally on things. He needs to pull himself together more...if this is happening, he's still too weak]

[hairpincurves]

It does this every night, believe it or not.

[Akira jumps out of the way of some falling debris.]

Explanations can wait until we're safe.

[It's... luckily not too much further now.]

[fifthreplacement]

Wonderful.

[So dryly. If it does this every night, he's not coming back up here unless someone forces him to]

If there's an actual explanation, I'll be surprised.

[Cities don't just burst into flame randomly, it's true, but to happen every night at sundown? That's beyond weird. How is everything still standing? It makes no sense. But he doesn't ask, not while they're moving, merely makes that comment. He's right behind the stranger, focus on getting the hell out of here]

[hairpincurves]

[Once they've gotten to the station, she looks back one more time to check on him before she starts descending the stairs, taking them two or three at a time and sending some startled flame pigeons flapping away.

Once she gets to the bottom of the stairs, she only goes a little further before just... plopping down right there.]

There. The only things on fire down here are some dogs that got affected by the magic in the city...

[fifthreplacement]

[Sync follows her down the stairs at a similar pace. He wants to be underground and out of the heat rather badly.

When they get down the stairs, he doesn't sit just yet, but he does pick a wall to lean against and lean on it heavily, letting himself just kinda breathe for a moment]

Monsters. They don't scare me. I can deal with things like those.

[Monsters are easy. It's memories that are hard to handle. He can't punch those out of existence]

Day

[meowna]

[It's way, way too early for the city to go up in flames yet. Not to mention, that massive pillar of light doesn't look like anything he's ever seen here before now. Did one of the mana lines still running through the city explode? Morgana is running to see what the trouble is, since (once the initial explosion faded) the danger seems to be past.]

Hey..... you okay, Green?

[Someone is definitely talking to him..... but nobody else is around, right? Sync is all alone, except for a small tuxedo cat in a gorgeous, bejeweled yellow collar, who's cautiously making an appearance to investigate the blast damage.]

[fifthreplacement]

[The question registers, and he considers it without looking around just yet]

Apparently, I am.

[It's said in a way where he'd expected very much not to be. Sync glances up, but then blinks at not seeing anything. He scans the area, then focuses on the cat. Monsters and animals can't speak though...but it's the only thing around]

[meowna]

Is it really that surprising?

[He's not liking the looks of these scorch marks, or the damage to the ground and surrounding buildings..... Sync looks fine, but Morgana pads closer just to be sure, whiskers twitching as he sniffs to check for the telltale scents of injury. Blood, burned flesh, pain, fear, adrenaline.....]

[fifthreplacement]

Considering the last thing I remember was dying, just a bit.

[The sarcasm is heavy, even as he watches the cat. Maybe he is dead, if he's ended up somewhere where he's talking to a cat. He half expects Arietta to walk around the corner any moment now, really.

All the typical scents of someone who should probably be more injured than most is there, but Sync himself isn't actually hurt]

[meowna]

You don't look very dead to me.....

[He smells like he should probably be maimed, but not dead. Have a little white-socked paw batting at your ankle to see if it'll pass through it like a ~spooky ghost~.]

[fifthreplacement]

[Sorry kitty, he is very much solid]

I don't feel very dead either.

[He is mildly upset about this fact]

But then here I am, alive when I shouldn't be, talking to a cat. So for all I know I could be and this is some weird after life nonsense.

[He backs a little away from the cat, and then kind of flops into sitting down, because leaning down to look at the cat is getting annoying]

[meowna]

I'm not a cat!

[Priorities, he has them.]

Besides, this place can't be an afterlife. I'm alive, and so're most of my friends.

[Most, but not all.]

[fifthreplacement]

You look like one to me, so if you aren't, blame the place I came here from for not having whatever you are.

[It's not really an apology, because Sync in truth really doesn't care]

Eh, one theory gone. Not like it was a good one anyway. I can't explain whatever happened or what this place is then.