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phantasmemes2018-07-12 11:56 pm
phantasmods) wrote in phantasmemes2018-07-12 11:56 pm
Entry tags:
TEST DRIVE 005
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...
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...
no subject
At the end of it, she has her fingertips over her mouth, as if in prayer, and really hopes she's smiling. (She isn't.)
"...I understood very little to none of that," she admits. "You are definitely not in Kansas anymore, if that means anything to you. I'll make some more kebabs and see if this rice is any good, then we can hit up the commercial district."
no subject
"So you come from a world that has Kansas. Well, lots of planets have a Kansas, I suppose...I'm from Halcyon City, California, never been to Kansas. Never been anywhere, really, until today. Anyway, yeah, more kebabs, rice, all good. Anything I can do to help? Anything I can go scrounge for?"
no subject
She hands over a plate with one chicken skewer and one of vegetables over rice, takes her own plate with her food, and comes to sit down next to Harriet and look at the fountain.
"Oof, that's better," she says. "Anyway, there is - perhaps, something you can do when we're done here." She eats with a fork, very properly but very fast. "If you regularly beat up the minions of the quote 'assholes beyond the Gate' then you're probably better fit to watch my back while we forage."
no subject
"Halcyon City? Superhuman capital of the world? Where do the supers in your world hang out? And sure, I'll cover you."
no subject
"Treasure Island," she says - tossing her a wrapped moist towellete.
She unwraps one of her own, wiping her mouth and hands, throws her trash in the curiously empty bin, then moves to shrug on her pack.
"More 'secret base for giant robots' than 'superhero,' though. And you're talking to a bridge bunny rather than a pilot."
It may not be clear she's being modest and/or wry with that self-assessment.
no subject
"Treasure Island." Harriet looks thoughtful as she mops hands and face with the moist towelette. "I think there's a place in Halcyon called that, too, out in the bay? AEGIS has a facility there. Weird coincidence. Anyway, I have no idea what a bridge bunny is, or no idea that isn't, like, rude." She throws her trash away.
no subject
“It’s a silly term to begin with, but I was also being modest,” she says. “My actual title is Quartermaster... and Anchor. When not keeping everyone from starving, I navigate for Pilots from the base.”
She straps down all her straps, and points deeper into the city. “There’s a shopping district this way,” she says. “Clothing stores, specialty shops. No one left to object.”
She pauses, then adds - amused - “As ever, no one will rob the bank. What’s the point?”
no subject
"Time to get mah pillage on, then," Harriet drawls. "Not very heroic, but hey, you seem to be short on mecha, so I guess we're both having an outside-context day."
Looting happens, Harriet mostly trusting the Quartermaster to shop for her while she keeps watch, except when it comes to trying on clothes. After a while, Harriet's watch-keeping diligence slackens, as it seems there's nothing to watch for, but she mentally reproves herself when she realizes her mind is wandering and tries to refocus on business.
no subject
“And Pilots.”
After a moment, she sighs, and adds, “Or Nightmares to fight, thank God. Though there are strange, so far harmless, animals. Glowing pigeons, sooty cats.”
The stores are unfamiliar, the brands alien, and they all seem to reference magic somehow. Except the ones that reference a sort of zeerust fascination with brushed metal and white plastic technologies.
The sports goods store is found in short order. Meredith examines wetsuits with a critical eyes, and then says -
“So. Superheroics, I’m guessing?”
no subject
In answer, Harriet calls up her costume. From within the body-hugging sheath of non-light, she says, "Harriet Miller, AEGIS registered hero 948063719, working name Nirvahara but I gotta file the paperwork for a new one when I get back." The costume vanishes, and Harriet is clad only in T-shirt, jeans and sandals once more.
"Did you hear a crackling noise when I did that?" she asks, and sniffs. "It didn't used to make ozone either. I think my being merely human is tainting it somehow."
no subject
"Sounded like radio static," she confirms. "I bet radar would have a hell of a time finding you. You looked like a science fiction movie's idea of a black hole."
Or like the Singular Void, she does not say.
no subject
"Hmm. Radar. Dunno. Never tried it." Harriet shakes her head. "But...a black hole is like...a distortion of spacetime. It still exists. It touches Nirupadhika at the singularity? But it exists within the universe of form. My non-light is a manifestation of Nirguna. Call it...an existential black hole, I guess.
"Not that it matters." She shrugs. "I guess I picked up some of Nirvahara's bad habits, like raging pedantry. Side effect of long-term possession. Sorry."
no subject
She's probably not aware how apt that statement is.
She finds the backpacks and frowns behind her hand - they're lighter, less like the heavy-duty one she's wearing, and look to be made of flimsier stock. But they're better than nothing, and she points them out.
"It might matter," she says. "If you have any idea why we came here, any insight from your world we could compare to others... correlations we can track and rule out..."
She laughs. "Once we're situated, of course. Wouldn't do to run out of food or rest before we can think about the big questions."
no subject
"I'm pretty sure why I left home. Not so sure why I wound up here, except that Nirvikalpa is all torn up around this world, this reality. I think, falling outside the universe as I was, I hit one of those tears and rattled down to Earth like a pachinko ball. But if you weren't expelled from your world of origin by a vengeful personification of metaphysical law, I have no insights."
Harriet loads her new backpack with a few choice items they've already stockpiled.
no subject
She finishes her circuit of the store, hand over her frown, thinking. "Honestly, being asleep and dreaming... probably isn't as bad, but it could be bad enough. But it doesn't feel right. You have to wander off rather far in a dream to get THIS lost back home."
no subject
"Mm. Yeah. I remember things from when I was playing host to Nirvahara. Enough to do some tricks. Interrogating shinma Dharma whether something is pure or corrupt, for instance, and feeling the texture of shinma Nirvikalpa. Which, as I said, is downright mangled around here. I, uh, I would have to explain about the shinma in some detail to give you an idea of what I can do?" Harriet looks vaguely hopeful that Merry will declare Yes, by all means, lecture me about something I have no context for and will not understand. Old habits really do die hard.
no subject
"I wouldn't understand head or tail of it, I'm afraid - I'm decent at math but not with metaphysics. Maybe we'll meet someone who can. I know we're not the only ones here."
She heads out the door... and stops, looking at the flickers in the air, and the sun starting to set. There's a certain tension...
"...You can see those sparks too, can't you?" she asks.
no subject
"I don't even do the math. I remember when Nirvahara tried to give a chalk talk on shinmaic mathematics to Wrench Wench. Mayan pictograms were involved—"
Harriet looks around at the sparks, frowning, and concentrates on the balance of the shinma.
"Fuck," she says after a moment. "Things are about to turn ugly."
no subject
But right now she has more important concerns. "Define ugly," she says, making absolutely sure everything is strapped in properly.
no subject
"I don't know for sure. The texture of Nirvikalpa is changing here--reality redefining itself--and Nishkriya is withdrawing...not violence per se, I don't think, but destruction...we need to find shelter." Harriet is already looking around for defensible positions, a pursuit handicapped by having no idea from what they're going to be defending themselves--
"Is it getting hotter?"
no subject
She stops herself. "Heat and smoke rise. What do your senses make of the subways?" she asks.
no subject
Harriet looks around for a subway entrance. "Less destruction, more violence, and an awful lot of filth and impurity," she reports. "I'm good at plain violence, though. Air turning to fire, not so much."
Without further discussion, she heads for the nearest subway stairs at a fast jog, charging her burn as she goes.
no subject
There's nothing else for it but speed, at this point.
no subject
The two girls make it to safety without Harriet having to employ her spatial moat more than once, to hold back a collapsing wall for a few seconds. As they take stock of their surroundings, a pack of hellhounds arrives to defend its turf, and Harriet is forced to detonate one as an example to the others.
"Ugh," she says, brushing embers from her shirt as the remaining dogs flee. "Flaming dog guts, lovely. Glad we grabbed a change of clothes."
I wish I had the right icon for this. Soon.
Mind, she did warn Merry, so she's not as put out or terrified as she might be. Still, it's one thing to hear I'm a superhero who punched out a cosmic law, and quite another to be showered with gore from her imploding a monster.
"...give me a moment," she says, breathing hard. "I - yes, yes, very. I have, uhm, some handkerchiefs..."
She's searching for those, as a partial distraction.
Re: I wish I had the right icon for this. Soon.