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! |
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"The more you take, the more you leave behind."
[it definitely sounds like a riddle.]
I guess first we'd have to know what we'd be taking. Aside from that piece of paper.
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Once Akira points that out, Minato just.
Casually puts the paper back deliberately. NOT...TAKING THAT.]
Hopefully, we won't be taking anything at all... but maybe we should look around. There might be some clues, or something.
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It probably can't hurt. I think we should keep away from touching too much, though. Just in case that counts as "taking."
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[NO ARGUMENTS HERE. Instead? it's time to take some steps forward and see what they can find. Mostly... it looks like a musty, dusty old house?
Hm...]
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you know.
until it's not. something's definitely not right here, but he's not sure what. or why? he's peering through a cabinet quietly, but akira definitely feels... not all there. huh.]
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Something is definitely not right here, and Minato's own expression is a little contemplative as they poke around. Still, quietly, eventually Minato brings it up:]
There's...nothing here...
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[in more ways than one, and as he turns to minato, he's... kind of unsure? it doesn't really show on his features very much, though maybe that's just because what little light is in the room seems to reflect of the lenses of his glasses.]
We don't really have much reason to be here, do we? [he's kind of not even sure what he was looking for to begin with. everything feels a little fuzzy, and he isn't realizing that he's just forgetting things right now.]
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Oh well.]
Didn't we come in here for a reason, though...? It was to--
[........to.....? Minato's brow furrows, expression puzzled.]
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To find someone? Or... something.
[that doesn't feel right, though. he moves toward a window, looking out at the grey trees.]
.... How long ago did we get here?
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He doesn't know. He doesn't...know? How can that even...
Minato looks around the house, brow furrowing, expression contemplative.
They came in here for...something. There was a message...? There was something like that--how long have they been in here? A slow step forward, towards Akira, and then Minato's eyes fall on the doll. It sparks... something...]
Ah.
[The more you take, the more you leave behind, right? He's not even going to take more than a moment--he reaches for Akira's arm, grasping his wrist in his hand, and tugs him towards the door. Before he forgets again what he was trying to do.]
Let's go.
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and that means when minato is suddenly grabbing at his wrist (an interesting role reversal from earlier, even if he can't quite recall it), akira is kind of recoiling a bit. he's usually pretty relaxed about these things, but he doesn't even have the strongest recollection of anything about minato.
which probably makes sense, considering they just met and he pretty much only knew his name anyway.]
Wait, where are—
[they going...? ]
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[Minato admits that with an almost grim hint to his tone, but even so he keeps pressing forward, brow furrowed. They have to get to the door. That's what he's thinking with single-minded determination, towing Akira forward, stepping forward one by one.
Almost there.
They just have to get to the...........
.......?
His steps slow.
What was he...doing?]
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akira was already confused, but minato losing his determination means that akira has even more to question. by the time they get to the door, akira's forgotten why minato was towing him along to begin with.
he didn't know where they were going aside from "outside" but now they haven't gotten that far, and all he can wonder is one thing.]
...
[...?]
Why are you holding my wrist?
[he doesn't sound offended or bothered, just legitimately puzzled.]
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His gaze shifts from Akira's wrist to his face, and then to the doll, and back outside.
He had to be going outside, right? That's...where he looks like he was going. But he has no idea why, or for what purpose. There must be something though. If he grabbed Akira's wrist, he had to be pretty desperate, because he is very much a personal space kind of guy.
A beat.
And another.
And finally his brow just furrows, and he tugs at Akira's wrist again, a sharper tug to hopefully get him off balance just enough to tug him out through the door. It's almost like a kneejerk action, stemming from a desire to protect someone else--because he still has no idea why he did it, he just knew that he felt like he absolutely should.
(Even though he's still standing there a few paces away from the door, expression puzzled.)]
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but he can't really anticipate what minato is going to do at all, so...
well, soon enough he's been stumbled past the door's threshold, and he's just...
definitely also pretty puzzled. he stands there, looking to minato, to his wrist—then to the house, but all he asks is:]
Are you okay?
[yeah, despite all of this, he's still more concerned for this near-stranger than himself. he can probably take care of himself! but minato was kind of... aggressive, or desperate to get him outside, and his head is still fuzzy enough that he's not putting the pieces together at all yet.
(this is the worst status effect ever.)]
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... A shrug.
Minato sounds...calm, but a little uncertain.]
Yes...
[...]
I think I was...looking for something...
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[he thinks? but he's still pretty uncertain himself.]
Maybe.
[his expression contorts, just a little. something about this is kind of aggravating.]
I don't know what I'd be looking for here, though.
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He's really just...looking even more puzzled the longer he's standing in that doorway though.]
Ah...
[???]
I don't know... I don't know what... I'm doing here...
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definitely looks like he's trying to remember. he's trying to remember a lot, and he finds himself taking his glasses off to rub his eyes a bit.
it's kind of giving him a headache, in all honesty.]
...
[...?]
We should... go—
[go back? go back where, exactly?]
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Mm... maybe I should keep looking...?
[For something.]
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[akira... isn't sure he likes that idea. going back into the house doesn't really seem like the way to go here, but what right does he have to stop minato?
they're strangers, after all.]
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He has no idea.
Oops.
Help him.]
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[yeah, that's all he's got.]
I won't stop you if you think it's better, but...
[he shakes his head, he's just got a bad feeling about it?]
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[Minato's pretty pliant, he's willing to listen.
He takes a step towards the door, and looks...puzzled again.]
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[he's not too sure, either.]
We... were in there, right? [that much he can remember, since he remembers being pulled outside, even if he doesn't remember why.] You pulled me out.
...I don't think that happened for no reason.
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