{ test drive #01 - august 2021 }

[dreamposts]

✵ TEST DRIVE MEME ✵
Reminder that our Test Drive Memes double as an Intro Log and threads can be carried over in-game. They are also required for samples. Refer to the Game Info for general information and feel free to toss any TDM related questions here. Reserves open on August 25th and Applications open on September 1st. Our application cycles are bi-monthly so the next cycle won't be until November.

I. WELCOME TO SONGEREIN

Upon "arriving" into Songerein, everyone is understandably confused. The first thought would be they must be in a dream, which makes sense since the last thing they might remember doing is falling asleep or losing some form of consciousness or awareness before opening their eyes and finding themselves in the Plaza of some strange town they've never seen before. But there are a lot of other people around, some that may look familiar but others so strange that it would be impossible for their own imagination to dream up. And they're all just as confused. Fortunately, a red tapir-like creature appears and introduces itself as Solei, one of the "keepers" of this place. It offers some explanation before letting everyone explore their new "home." [Reminder: Other people aside from the characters will also appear to act as filler NPCs so keep in mind that the initial group is at least double the size. Players are also free to be creative and come up with any kind of creature or animal their characters might encounter. The only limitations are they must be small to medium in size and not be overly aggressive as the creatures within the town are mostly passive, just wary of the new arrivals.]

A. Magic Journals. Everyone will find a journal stylized just for them on their person somewhere and it's the primary means of communication with everyone. The only limitation is that it's text only, but images can be magically imprinted on the page from the writer's mind. Might as well give it a whirl and see who all is out there.

B. Dreamotion Abilities. Although everyone maintains most of their original abilities while in Songerein, they are also capable of using special abilities based on dreamotion energy. From having their emotions affecting the environment to utilizing new abilities entirely, it's probably something that they should start familiarizing fairly quickly. Especially since all the emotional surprise and confusion may already be affecting things, such as random glass shattering or cracks forming at one's feet.

C. Exploring Town. The town of Reverein is small but still sizable, so walking around and to see what all there is might be a good idea. The town is empty of any other people and it's relatively safe aside from most of the buildings looking like they're about to collapse in on itself, but there are a few small fae and small wild critters who have made a few nests so just watch your step—or head. Some could venture out to the farmlands and beyond...but anyone who gets too close to the Wildlands will encounter a tapir who will tell them to go back for now. Be warned if anyone tries to ignore and push past them.

D. Dreambucks Cafe. As a way to welcome their new inhabitants as well as give them a nice, cool refreshment after all the work they will be doing, the tapirs will call everyone's attention to a certain cafe back at the Plaza. Called Dreambucks, it's a quaint little cafe staffed by friendly tea fairies and primarily serves tea and small cakes. Their teas and foods are quite special as the flavor will influence one's emotions and dreams—but in a good way! There are no harmful side effects and they are usually positive. Bolstering one's spirit; calming or relaxing nerves. The tea fairies want everyone to enjoy their time. Anyone can pick whichever table they want to take a break and meet some people. Or take a peek at what someone might be dreaming thanks to the teas.

There are three different types of teas available:

Rainy Morning. After drinking this tea, one might feel a little melancholic or nostalgic for something from their past. They might even have a short little daydream of a distant memory.

Summer Afternoon. This tea will make anyone feel more vigorous and joyful. So much so they might start shining like the summer sun itself! Any dreams influenced by the tea will be one of a happy occasion or a hopeful dream.

Autumn Evening. Brewed with special strong, herbal spices, this tea has a bit more of a kick to it, but it's also warm and is great for calming nerves while giving just enough of a confidence boost to get through whatever difficulties lie ahead. The dreams influenced by this tea will reflect when the drinker has been their bravest.

Although it doesn't always happen, sometimes the tea will be a strong enough influence that it will make the drinker daydream for a bit. Anyone nearby may notice their dream crystal lantern flicker and catch a brief glimpse of the daydream on it. Or perhaps those who want to try out their dream crystal lanterns are deliberately trying to see if their dreams are captured. Only daydreams influenced by the tea can be caught and even then it's just a brief glimpse, but it's still an interesting way to see how the dream crystal lanterns work.

Note: There is no currency in the world and everything served is free at this time. However it might not be immediately obvious and the fairies won't mind if customers repay in some way, be it helping out via cleaning and serving, giving gifts such as flowers or fruits, or something else.

II. HOME IMPROVEMENTS

The entire town is in need of a massive fixer upper, but one of the first areas everyone will likely want to start is the residential area to figure out their new homes. Instead of houses, most of the homes are in the trees. Be it a treehouse or carved into the tree itself, various dwellings can be found. Unfortunately, there are some unwanted guests making a mess of things, so they will need to be cleared out.

A. Pest Control. One of the worst offenders are giant bugs of varying size of type with the biggest about the size of a large dog. Some are actually quite friendly and can be shooed or coaxed away to the forests just outside of town. Or who knows, someone might befriend them and make them into a new pet or house helper. The giant beetles could make for some interesting guard...bugs. Some, however, are more hostile as they find the fruits, leaves, flowers, and wood of the trees delicious. The biggest threats are the giant termites so they must definitely be eradicated or removed.

B. A Little Pruning. The trees themselves are a little...testy in large part of the bugs that have been chowing down on them. After the bugs are cleared they will calm down and become more passive, but until then everyone will also have to beware of wild swinging branches, rotten fruit falling, and roots suddenly springing up from the ground. Another way to appease the trees is cutting out some of the old, rotten wood and giving the trees some pruning, especially any vines that are choking some to death. Positive dreamotion energy will also help revitalize the area.

C. Tidying Up. Once the area is clear, the new residents can start cleaning up and repairing the different houses there. From repairing walkways connecting the trees, to the stairs and ladders that lead up to the treehouses, to decluttering and repairing the buildings, there's a plethora of work that needs to be done.

III. DREAMSCAPE TUTORIAL

To help everyone understand their dreamwalking abilities, the tapirs will ask anyone who is willing to gather around the Dream Swings in the Central Plaza. There anyone is invited to sit in the chairs or hammocks and focus on their dream crystal lanterns to enter a special dreamscape made just for them. Those watching might find the sight of everyone suddenly turning into a colorful ball of light and disappearing alarming, but that's just the normal process of entering a dream. When someone leaves the dream, they will briefly reappear as that light before returning to their original form. The theme for this dreamscape is Spooky Forest and it first starts in a pumpkin patch before moving to a dark, fog filled forest.

A. Suddenly Pumpkins. The moment anyone enters the dream they will find themselves in a fenced in pumpkin patch and turned into a pumpkin. Since anything can happen while dreamwalking, the first exercise is to try and change back to their original form or have fun and just roll around as pumpkins. They can even try to change the pumpkin form, such as changing the size, the shape, color. Just watch out for the mice. They are feeling very artistic and will try to scribble whatever on any pumpkin around, but otherwise are harmless and easily scared off. The marker will remain even when turned to the normal, but should be easy enough to remove, right? The only way to leave the patch is to turn back to normal.

B. Festive Candy Hunt. At some point the tapirs come in and ask the dreamwalkers to try and change the spooky forest into something a little more festive. They are given free rein to change the environment in how they see fit. Of course, this means the dreamwalkers need to figure out how to focus their energy and imagination to make those changes. Perhaps starting small by adding decorations or changing the colors of the leaves is a good starting place. But there may be some difficulty as some rogue candy is messing things up and getting in the way. Capable of movement, they will dash, roll, and even fly to evade capture. They will also try and defend themselves using special "attacks" based on what they are. Chocolate will make melted chocolate puddles, taffy will make sticky traps, bubble gum will try and encase people in a sticky bubble—might want to avoid the giant jawbreaker as it's more of a bodybreaker. Fortunately once caught, the candy will change to its more normal form. Maybe altering the environment could work to their advantage. If successful in either decorating or catching the candy, there will be some kind of reward later.

C. A Little Frightening. While traversing through the forests, any small, minor kind of fear will manifest and chase them around. For example if one is afraid of spiders, a small group or one large spider will suddenly appear. If one hates cleaning, a bunch of brooms and brushes will start harassing them. It's not enough to induce full blown nightmares, and no one can actually be harmed, but it's enough to give anyone a fright and need help getting rid of them. Thinking of more pleasant ideas that counter the fears, like fluffy clouds or cute plushies, can help disperse them. If the fears worsen instead, a small noctaere will form. The tapirs warn that they are creaturn born from nightmare energy, and if too many appear and grow bigger the dreamscape could turn into a nightmare. So what a great opportunity for the dreamwalkers to test out their new dreamotion abilities! Especially since their original abilities aren't even useful while dreaming. The noctaere are quite weak, so a few hits can easily disperse them, but there might be a few that will take a bit more teamwork. This is especially so since everyone's abilities will be weak as well.

Comments

[fishflakes]

[Toge blinks in surprise at the man’s quick assessment of him. That… was pretty much 100% accurate to his ability. The man could discern all that just from one fight? Half his face may be covered, but Toge’s surprise is quite clear. Slowly, he nods once.]

Salmon, salmon.

[Yes to confirming that was how his Cursed Speech worked, and yes to it being on all the time.]

[seemagicshit]

[To be fair, Zhao has been in a lot of fights. Growing up where he did, being able to size up someone's abilities quickly is a necessary skill of survival. It's also a good way to find people who'll be immediately useful to you.

At the same time, Zhao's also thinking of his friends, the ones who don't seem to be here at the moment. If one of them does arrive, it'd be better for them to get here and Zhao already having allies to help them for...whatever may come.

He does scratch his head at why this kid has to use food to mean other things. "Salmon" must mean yes with the way he's nodding.

Also, he should maybe be more freaked out about the possibility of magic powers, but he's been hanging around Kasuga-kun and his hyperactive imagination for long enough that this seems downright normal.]

Hunh. That's something all right. Gotta be hard to hold a conversation, unless texting or writing is fine.

Name's Zhao.

[fishflakes]

Salmon.

[Yes, it could be difficult to hold a conversation with a Cursed Speech user. Especially if one wasn't familiar with his safe words, and what all the rice ball ingredients tended to mean. That's part of why he liked to stick around Maki or Panda, and why he was happy that even Yuuta had been quick on the uptake with him. Having someone to talk for him was pretty handy. Here on his own? It was a little harder.]

[He nods to the man, but gets an idea. Writing... he has a journal now, doesn't he? And sure he knows it can be used for communicating through that weird magic network thing, but he could... use it like a regular journal too, right? So, he takes a moment to reach for his journal, using the provided quill to write down on one of the blank pages.]

Toge Inumaki

[seemagicshit]

[Zhao gives him a moment to write in his journal before looking at the result. Without the adrenaline rush of battle, Zhao seems like he's way more relaxed. He doesn't have a drawl in his voice but there's a cadence to his speech so he takes his time with what he says.]

Toge-san, hunh? Well, I'm going to float a plan your way and you can write out your thoughts. Or just tell me "salmon" that we're good.

I don't know if you have a crew of sorts, but I do. None of them are here at the moment. So it seems like it makes sense that people on their own should team up in one of these treehouses and make the best of it for a while, yeah?

If we work together, we can watch each other's backs. In addition, I see you've got something that helps you when ya shred yourself with your powers. I'm pretty decent with cooking and if you give me time, I could probably try to come up with something that'll help with that. I'd need to test it out and get a kitchen together. Shit like that.

So, what do you think? Thoughts? Anything you wanna add?

[fishflakes]

[Huh, that was simple enough. Toge nods, listening to the man speak. And honestly, it's not that bad of a plan. Jujutsu sorcerers may tend to work solo most of the time due to a lack of numbers, but sticking together with others and helping each other out? It was a wise move, especially if people had abilities that could compliment each other. Plus, if this guy is willing to offer making some throat remedies for him? That would help mitigate some of the worries he had about his limited supply.]

[So, he takes a moment to scribble down some more words, before offering his journal for Zhao to read.]

I have friends who aren't here either. Not other Cursed Speech users like me, but they know how to fight if they ever show up. But teaming up does sound like a good idea. If we're here to help out this place it makes sense to work together.

And I won't say no to any extra help with my throat. Lesser commands aren't bad, but big ones can hurt. Don't want to cough up blood if I don't have to.

[seemagicshit]

[While Zhao is slipping down his shades a bit so he can read the message, his brain is making hasty plans and connections. Normally, everything he just found out about Toge's world and friends without him realizing it.

Cursed Speech is capitalized so it's important. Stands out. Since not everyone can do it, he's taking a guess that another ability would be Cursed whatever. Cursed Punching, who the hell knows. But that there's definitely more than one kind of power and there are actually people who exist that can used Cursed Speech.

His friends know how to fight. Given this kid's age -- Zhao figures somewhere in the middle of high school -- that his friends might be roughly the same age. The next logical question is what the hell would a bunch of kids need to fight. That he doesn't know the answer but he puts a pin in later.

Powers might have drawbacks that can be mitigated or exploited. Finding something that could genuinely help Toge will earn goodwill with him and any of his friends who stop by.

The number one thought that races through Zhao's head is that if he can be an ally to Toge, he's in favorable position with anyone else that shows up, which puts them in a favorable position for the crew if they show up.

But as for the message, Zhao nods and smiles.]

Seems more than fair. Guess this place is gonna be one of those fix up kinda deals. But I can make this work as long as we can make kitchen space.

Happy to work with ya, Toge-san.

[fishflakes]

[While Zhao takes a moment to read his words, Toge takes a moment to look over Zhao. Now that they're not in combat, he can get a good look at the guy. And... Not gonna lie, he does look a little shady. The way he dresses and talks, it kind of reminds him of the characters in gangster movies or manga. It would make sense how this guy was able to hold his own in a fight, and him calling his friends a 'crew'. But, he had helped him out, and was willing to offer him some more help as well. Even if he was just impressed with his Cursed Speech, he still seemed like a decent enough guy. And in a place like this, where they were all just sort of tossed into the unknown, it was better to have allies than enemies.]

Salmon.

[He nods in agreement to Zhao. Though, he can't help but ask one thing, written down and offered once more.]

You said you have a crew? You some kind of gangster or something?

[Not that he's against it, but he's curious.]

[seemagicshit]

[He reads the little message and laughs a little breathless laugh of delight. Zhao knew he made the right choice with Toge. He takes his own journal and writes back in kind.]

Yep, that's what our leader calls us. His crew. I am technically not any kind of gangster at the moment, but like myself and a few of the crew, we know how it works.

It's a long ass story, but if we're here long enough, might just tell it to you sometime.

For now, let's try to work with what we got, yeah? Never lived in a treehouse before. Might be cool, maybe?

[fishflakes]

[He was just kind of joking about the man being a gangster, but listening to the way he talks... leader? Crew? Technically not a gangster?]

[...nah, he's pegging this guy as a Possible Gangster. Maybe even Former Gangster. At least, that's what he's gonna consider the guy in his head. But for now, he just nods.]

Salmon.

[He's willing to hear that story out sometime, and also willing to work with what he's got, like Zhao said.]

It's different from an old dorm room, I'll admit

[seemagicshit]

A dorm room? Oh, you must go to one of those high schools that you have to live there? Heard about those.

[He takes a dead termite and heaves it away, trying to clear space.]

This place definitely has potential. Also way more living space than where I was, so a definite plus. Especially if I can get a kitchen going.

[fishflakes]

Salmon.

[Jujutsu High was definitely reclusive for a school; necessary since the other sorcerers don't want the general public to discover them. So it had dorms; old, dusty dorms from however many years ago, but still better than nothing.]

[Toge hums, looking up at the area around them. Yeah, it definitely has potential, giant hungry termites aside. He'll help with clearing out the dead bugs but not before taking a moment to write in his journal.]

I definitely won't say no to free food.

[seemagicshit]

Oh yeah? I figured you wouldn't. They probably don't feed you enough at your school.

[Zhao remembered being super hungry a lot going through growth spurts. At least he ended up at a decent height of 6'1". Hard to say what Toge would end up as.]

But I'm just thinking about what I'd need to try for a sub on your drugs. Honey's definitely in there but I'll think about the rest and try to have it not taste like shit when you chug it.

[fishflakes]

[Toge chuckles a bit, before writing some more.]

My school's out in the middle of nowhere. Makes it hard to order take-out

[There were weekly grocery trips, true, but they were still more or less left to their own devices.]

[As for Zhao's inquiry about his throat medicine, Toge shrugs and reaches into his pocket, offering Zhao one of the bottles of medicine for him to inspect. It's your generic, over-the-counter cough medicine, typically found in most corner stores. After offering it to Zhao to look at, Toge will write one more thing.]

Tea and honey works too, if I don't have medicine.

[seemagicshit]

Ah, that sucks. Probably did it on purpose so you can concentrate more on school or some shit.

[Zhao studies the bottle of medicine, reading the ingredients. It does seem like normal medicine and not something super powered so he hands it back.]

I mean, tea and honey would work, but it's not like whatever you're fighting is gonna give you time to heat up water and pour a cup.

Nah, we need to figure out something that'll act fast. I know a couple of other things that'd also work, but I really need a kitchen to experiment.

You any good at cooking at all?

[fishflakes]

[Continued here!]