test drive meme 1.

[awashmods]

Her Pa committed suicide By biting off his head. Her mother saw her uncle's ghost And died of fright, she said. So her unpleasant habits Seem most curious to me, Because she seems to come from such A happy family.

Prompt 1: he forest looms as ever, colorless but not at all dead. The leaves are full, fluttering in the silence, but there's no scent to them, no color. The effect is eerily hard to navigate, almost like an optical illusion, leaves, branches and trunk blending together with the small path -- which already disappears and reappears at a whim. But even so... If you brave the path, it seems as though there is something leading you onwards. A trail of... something, crumbs, maybe, the same shade of colorless as everything else, almost impossible to see. Following those might be a bad idea -- your chances of getting lost, tangled in random underbrush, or wandering aimlessly for hours are pretty high... to say nothing of what you might encounter if you stray too far (hint: even the small, fuzzy things have nasty bites). Still, it's there, and if you follow them... eventually you will come to a small house. It's decrepit, falling apart and in shambles... do you really want to go inside? Perhaps armed with one of the many convenient tree branches that have probably smacked you thus far? Prompt 2: hould you enter the house, you'll be greeted with a creepy, creepy doorman. Aw, how cute! And in that doll's hand, there's...a message. On a slip of paper, it reads, simply and plainly: The more you take, the more you leave behind. Curious! (And yeah, you can destroy the doll. It's just a normal doll. You may even come across said doll already crushed by an intrepid explorer.) Of course, it's a riddle, and the answer's a warning -- the longer you walk around and about the house, the less you'll remember about yourself, until you forget why you were there and why you should leave, and who you are at all, doomed to wander forever. Or someone saves you, that's fine too. Prompt 3: roblem: There are no fresh eggs in the Town. Solution: Catch a feral chicken, and keep it for eggs. That seems simple enough, right? You're totally up for the task... right? But why do all of the animals look so strange in the forest? Mutated, with teeth, or wings that don't belong, or claws. That's... a chicken, right? Catching it will allow you to get some eggs, but that beak looks pretty nasty -- it might be harder than it looks. But you're intrepid and clever, right? Why not demonstrate your Chicken Wrangling Skills that won you the championship so many years ago? Or try to serenade the savage beast? Or wuss out and form a coalition with which you draw lots to see who has to do battle with the chicken? There's safety in numbers! But the prize will surely be worth a bit of blood loss and fowl-related trauma. Do it for the eggs. Prompt 4: here's a new quest on the forum today, and it looks awfully easy! It's listed simply as: Quest XXII. Talk to someone you've never met about their childhood. Quest will be completed when you have reached an acceptable level of knowledge. On the other hand, that's a little vague, isn't it... ? How will you even know when you've completed a quest like that? Still, it looks easy! Maybe go give it a try. You could respond to the forum post to try to find people, or just go on outside, go harass someone about their past. If you're lucky, you'll drag it out of them with very little hassle and it won't take you a good chunk of the day. If you're unlucky, that's what highly persistent stalking is for! But don't forget, you'll likely have to return the favor. And your new friend might not be the only one listening. Extra: Got something in mind? Want to play with the setting more? The sky's the limit, so feel free and make up your own prompts to play with! Welcome to Awash's first Test Drive Meme! Please check out the FAQ and rules as you test your characters out. The setting is yours to play with, so be creative and have a good time with it! Important dates to remember are March 1st, 9 PM EST, when Reserves will open, and March 7th, 9 PM EST when Applications will open. Keep an eye out for it! If you have any questions about the TDM, feel free to ask us here. If there are any other questions, you can catch us via PM, the FAQ or the contact page. Thank you for your interest in Awash!

Comments

[jokered]

[yeah, he's just going to smile a little, shrugging.]

How do you feel about eggs?

[even if that almost seems like a non-sequitur, it's really not.]

[worlds]

[Uhhhhh.]

Why?

[jokered]

If I catch the chicken-monster, I could get chicken-monster eggs.

[and he'd be willing to share some with ouni as thanks.]

Since you helped me.

[worlds]

[...]

If you're trying to offer people food, you should stop referring to it as "monster eggs".

[jokered]

It might not be a monster.

[so, fair enough.]

It acts like one, though. [mostly because it's a pain in the ass to catch!]

It's an offer for eggs, either way.

[worlds]

[...]

I'll do it. I'm not interested in charity.

[This is sort of an offer to help, except Ouni would rather die than admit to helping people.]

[jokered]

It wasn't charity.

[he shakes his head. this is the kind of situation where he's more about keeping a level playing field, not charity.] You helped me, I was returning the favor.

[but!]

But it still might be easier with two people.

[look, it's an asshole chicken. and in the end, akira's not asking him about his childhood, so it works out in some weird way.]

[worlds]

[He's pretty sure that suggesting a net was, like, the minimal level of assistance, but whatever.]

Where is it?

[jokered]

[look, he didn't really think of it. his experience with acquiring chickens at most is going to a grocery store. he's from a small town, but not the farm.]

This way.

[and after a moment, he offers:]

Akira Kurusu, by the way. [since there didn't handle that yet. strangers, and all!]

[worlds]

[Most people would probably take that as an invitation to give their name in return. Ouni, on the other hand, is a butt who just inclines his head as a sign of acknowledgment, before following along.

... Sorry, Akira, he doesn't care enough to introduce himself without more explicit prompting.]

[jokered]

And you're... Grumpy Gills?

[you asked for it, ouni. this is what you get for not offering a name.]

[worlds]

[UGGGGGGH.]

Ouni.

[There. Happy now, Akira!!]

[jokered]

[much better.]

Less syllables, much better.

[and probably a little easier to remember than "grumpy gills."]

[worlds]

... Just by one...

[Not that he wants Akira to call him "Grumpy Gills", mind you, but.]

[jokered]

One less is still less.

[look at all these math skills, ouni.]

[worlds]

[Amazing. (Ouni can't talk, Akira could probably math circles around him if he really tried.)]

... Whatever.

[THIS GUY IS WEIRD, why did Ouni volunteer to catch a chicken monster with him.]

[jokered]

[because akira has that natural protag charisma that ouni found himself accidentally drawn to.

or something?

possibly.

in any case, it really doesn't take that long to get to the chicken monster's lair. which isn't much of a lair, just a clearing near some trees where it's... making chicken-like squawks.]

[worlds]

[Ouni can't say that's a sound he's heard coming from an animal before, but welp.

Quietly,]

Anything to note about it?

[jokered]

It's very bitey. And scratchy.

[helpful, akira.]

It's not afraid to use those claws at all.

[worlds]

I'll keep that in mind. [...] You need it alive, right?

[So he, uh, can't just kill it, he assumes.]

[jokered]

It's probably tough to get eggs from a dead chicken.

[unless they want ghost eggs.]

[worlds]

Why do you even need eggs so much?

[jokered]

People were looking for eggs. Good source of protein, I guess.

[yeah, that's it. he's doing this because other people were saying they needed eggs.]

[worlds]

... Well, let's just get this over with. [...] Knocking it unconscious is fine?

[jokered]

I don't see why not.

[again, things he probably could have done if he was better equipped, but you can't even pistolwhip someone properly with a model gun, even if it looks realistic.]