TDM: January

[moustre]

Test Drive: January

Welcome to aefenglom's test drive! All threads can be considered game canon, should you choose to do so; regardless of if you pick specific threads to remain canon to the game, the prompts and test drive itself will be. This will be touched on later in-game, so it's fairly important to note! Aside from that, here are some quick reminders:



• Reserves Open Today! If you're interested in securing a spot, put one in! We accept applications without reserves too, of course. Reserves will expire three days before the end of the application period, on the 28th.
• Applications Open The 24th! These will last until the end of the month, the 31st, with the intro log going up on February 1st. The application page can be found here. As a reminder, this will be our last uncapped application round!
• If you have any questions about the game or the world, please refer to the FAQ page; if you still have questions, feel free to ask them! For questions specific to the test drive, please ask them on the appropriate thread.
• For the purposes of the test drive, your character will have access to all magics taught by the Coven if they're a Witch, and as much of their shifted form as you'd like if they're a Monster. Feel free to play around and experiment with each!
• Test drive threads can be used as samples for your applications!



With that taken care of...

You feel like you're floating. Around you, colors and sounds and smells swirl as if trapped in a whirlpool, vibrancy and hue ever shifting. The more you watch them, the less solid they are; they only become clear out of the corner of your eye. The area around you begins to feel more solid as well, until your feet are on the ground, the wind brushes playfully against your face -

and you know one thing, and one thing alone: this is a dream, and an incredibly realistic one at that.

The Prehistoric Wilde

Thick summer heat hangs heavy over the uninfected landscape like a damp blanket, smothering. The jungle around you is thick and wet, full of the sounds of chittering animals and the high-pitched drone of insects. The flora and fauna are like nothing you've ever seen before, large and alien in colors and shapes, though they bear no signs of the Cwyld. Flowers the size of a man's head and brightly colored in rainbow hues curl their tendrils invitingly, and giant mosquitoes buzz through the air seeking a meal. You can barely see the glow of the twin moons through the thick canopy above. There are no signs of civilization - at least, not the civilization most will be used to; only the distant sound of the river, compelling you to follow its winding path. But will you go forward, or will you go back?

Rumble in the Jungle Making headway through the jungle at night is a chore. The foliage grows thick and the humid heat is oppressive for even those who enjoy the warmth. There are no clear paths here, no easy way through. The canopy of the ancient trees far, far over your head is just as dense, but the faintest moonlight filters through the holes left by the huge leaves in stippling patterns across the musty forest floor. 'Large' seems to be the theme - lining whatever path you pick your way through, there are pitcher plants massive enough to swallow a grown man, with small animals and giant insects being digested down inside the sticky liquid that fills them. The flowers are as big as a man's head, and come in a rainbow of colors, their venomous tendrils curling toward signs of life. The trunks of some of the trees are as thick as houses, and shade the ground beneath them with leaves like umbrellas. The hand-sized mosquitoes thrive in the sticky heat and if not killed first, can make off with a full pint of blood from an unsuspecting person. At some point in your journey, the ground begins to rumble beneath your feet. The farther you go, the longer you walk, the more signs of life become visible: thick, winding trails of crushed foliage, huge, animalistic footprints in the mud. Luckily, to this world, you are small and insignificant, and may escape the notice of the local Monsters - the massive, prehistoric ancestors of today's Monsters. They seem like giants, colossal Titanoboa Nagas with hollow fangs like swords, towering Fauns with the lower halves of mammoths, sabertooth Turnskins, pterodactyl Harpies with leathery wings. Even the parts of them that resemble humans (and they have far fewer human-like parts than their modern counterparts) are larger than any actual human being. They operate primarily on instinct, made even stronger by the full moons above, and perceive the strange new creatures as threats - or food. Sticking to the river seems safest - at least until you run into megalodon Merrow, singing an alien, but alluring, song to draw in prey, or the apex predator of this prehistoric world - Dragons, bigger and scalier than the ones Mirrorbound may know, stopped to drink at the river. All other Monsters flee from the huge reptiles, lest they become food themselves. Luckily you can defend yourself with your new abilities, or your neat changes - you're small, but not totally helpless. Interesting to note... while all other Monster types are represented, there are no Fae or Chimeras in the Wilde here, and the Vampires are more like huge bat-monsters that traverse the jungle on all fours than humanoid bloodsuckers.

The Natives Going backward, away from the distant sounds of the sea and against the current of the river, leads you through dense jungle. How long have you traversed the landscape? Hours? Days? Time passes funny in dreams. Eventually the trees thin out, grow taller and less leafy, and the air becomes drier. Instead of loamy soil beneath your feet, you start to feel rocky, harder earth, and spot outcroppings of stone. The sun begins to rise, which makes it easier to spot people on the horizon, a little settlement coming to life in the morning, nestled where the river forks into two. They're much hardier than the familiar people of Aefenglom, sunburned and dressed in natural, rough fabrics. Their homes, if one can call them that, are shoddy little structures made of sticks and leaves and mud, pressed up against the sturdiness of the stone formations. And, when they spot strangers approaching their village, they scramble for their weapons - crude clubs, stone axes, even just large rocks snatched up off the ground. The translation magic works on them, thankfully. Their speech is halted and simple, but they get their point across. Tell them who you are, or they'll beat your brains in. Monsters might get their brains beat in anyway if they aren't careful, even though they're much smaller than the Monsters these humans are used to. And Witches? May the gods help you if you use magic in front of these terrified, unevolved people, lest they mistake you for a Fae (the word is whispered with fear and revulsion in their voices) and swarm you with simple iron tools. If you're an actual Fae, an obvious Fae? They'll whisk their children into their huts protectively and then run you right out of the village. Violently. The truly observant, or those who can see through illusions, among you may notice something strange, though. Some Fae actually seem to live among them, heavily cloaked in natural illusions, with the primitive humans none the wiser. There are just a few, but all of them look young, twelve or thirteen at the oldest, and they are all scared of their secret coming to light. Fae who get caught tend to be burned at the stake around here.

The Invaders Perhaps you chose to go forward, with the current and toward the distant sound of ocean waves, where the river pours into the sea. More long-time residents of Aefenglom may notice that the shoreline is familiarly-shaped, but wider, bigger, not yet worn down by thousands of years of erosion. There is no bustling Harbor, only the waves crashing on the rocks, small islands dotting the water near the shore. There is no Bright Wall - there is no city, even, only an expanse of beach transitioning gently into an idyllic grove dotted with gauzy, pointed tents, and a beautiful, gilded ship half sunk into the sandy earth. It seems safer than the jungle, at first - until you notice all the Fae. They're more insectoid than the ones many are familiar with, with big, glittering eyes and either bright, jewel-toned wings like dragonflies or butterflies, or delicate, leafy wings in greens and browns. They're also taller than modern, lesser Fae, though not by much, and they're thin and angular, standing on spindly limbs that barely seem able to hold them. Characters receive a warmer welcome here, by the band of true Fae that have made their camp in the grove, though the alien-looking beings have a tendency to treat them like toys, children, or both, cooing over their sizes and their magic. "Look at the little Monsters! Aren't they cute!" "We should make some of our own! And oh, the little humans have magic! Delightful!" It's hard to have a conversation with one - they're condescending at best, and at worst, flit off to another entertainment out of boredom while you're mid-sentence. And entertainments abound in their camp. They're served and tended to like emperors by collared humans - adults and young adults do the heavy labor, including pulling grand little chariots for transportation, though there are some highly-supervised human children running about fetching drinks and fanning their Fae masters with palm leaves. Farther out, a large, deep pit has been dug out of the earth, ringed by a waist-high barrier of logs, a few Fae gathering at the barrier and leaning over, talking in conversational, happy voices. Down below, Chimera gladiators fight for their amusement, while the Fae keep up running commentary, discussing each warrior's chances, new breeding prospects, interesting crossbreeds their fellows have come up with ("She's trying an Arachne and a Turnskin together, how delightful!"). Trying to disrupt the proceedings will only result in the Fae turning their magic on you - illusions and curses, nasty little tricks. Sit down, silly little ones! The fight is just getting good! Or maybe... Maybe they'll toss you into the pit to see what your chances are in battle.

Comments

[exarchal]

[He actually isn't sure Urianger will recognize him until he does. That's a relief. Granted, from what he's wearing, that should have been a given... but things work differently here, and there's a possibility he had worn something similar to this before arriving in the First.

Whatever the case, Urianger is happily in his care now. The Exarch makes a gesture for Urianger to follow. He leans on his staff a bit as they walk, seemingly playing up the harmless old man angle. He has to do what he can to not seem like one of the feral monsters terrorizing this poor village.

He keeps his voice low.]

I do not doubt your ability to negotiate your way out of trouble, seeing as you too have dealt with the residents of Il Mheg and to great success, but these are a different lot. They are... traumatized from what they have experienced, and do not react well to outsiders. This appears seems to be a time before literature not unlike the First Astral Era... certainly different from the dream I had before I arrived myself.

[prophexy]

[Urianger is about to respond with dismay to the idea of living in a time before books, but instead he pauses at that last part, turns it over again inside his head.]

Thou speakest of dreams...and since I arrived here, I have felt certain that I walked within one, although this dream is more vivid than those to which I am accustomed. Well do I know from my travails within Il Mheg that dreams may overlay certain truths...perhaps thou canst better illuminate for me the nature of this one.

[exarchal]

[He nods, and draws Urianger toward a place relatively secluded by rocks, nowhere near any villagers. He doesn't want to be overheard.]

There is some truth to it. Not long after awakening from my own vivid dream of this fae-touched land, I fell through my reflection, and woke up here. What you see is not a mere dream but a portent—a true premonition, which I am sure you are quite tired of...

[He smiles a little in sympathy, and continues.]

There is no guarantee you will awaken in this new land, but there is a chance. Mayhap you have noticed that the flow of aether feels different, and the spells you know are not working in the same way... Traveling to this other land alters us, giving some the aspect of beasts and others the gift of magic where they once had none.

Even I may count myself among them, for without the Crystal Tower's power to draw upon I am of little use. And yet, with proper study, I have found my magical abilities to be expanded.

A way back has not yet been found—though it has been promised by Nessa and her Coven—and all my previous research on the subject come to naught. I can only surmise that this continent, Geardagas, is a world separate from Hydaelyn and its reflections.

[prophexy]

[That earns a soft, slightly bitter laugh.]

If a true premonition this be, it shall be the first I have ever truly witnessed with mine own eyes. [He's not a real prophet, remember? Just terribly good at playing the role.]

But a world entirely apart... I had not conceived of it. If aether works differently, it's understandable that even thou wouldst be ensnared, whether purposefully or not. ...What canst thou tell me of this 'Coven' which makes such promises?

[Assuming this isn't actually just a weird dream, it's a remarkable breakthrough in the study of dimensional metaphysics. You can almost see the outline of impenetrable research papers beginning to take shape.]

[exarchal]

Yes, well... should you arrive, I have a spare room in the house that I can prepare for you.

[As a fellow scholar, he can appreciate the ideas Urianger latches onto without having to guide him there.]

The Coven is a coalition of Witches-- this world's term for those with magic-- who have some sway in the government of the city. There are multiple cities, of course, but you would arrive in Aefenglom if anywhere. The Coven, along with Parliament, makes decisions on how to react to threats both within and without. And long have they deliberated on our status as unwitting citizens of their fair city.

The Coven is working on a way to tap into the mirrors from whence we came. While we await their... momentous undertaking, they provide us with education and lodging and all manner of chores. I hope you are not above living the life of an adventurer, my friend, for there are quests aplenty, and a dearth of healing hands besides.

The Coven has yet to show anything but hospitality towards us. However, they are bound by laws and processes, and their work is slow, if they are telling the truth about any of it. I think we would better serve ourselves on matters of our return.