Test Drive Meme IV

[eternitymods]

A. RETRIEVAL Dreams fade slowly, and awareness returns in increments. The hum of machinery, the smell of recycled air, the murmurs of others waking up around you. The interior of the ship has been outfitted with cots for those Biggs and Wedge retrieve from the Dream Width. Outside of the makeshift infirmary, windows set into the walls of the worn lounge area offer a view of space. It’s time to meet your fellow new arrivals who have been brought together on Biggs and Wedge’s airship. The other newly-awakened people have no idea how they came to be here, but now's a good time as ever to introduce yourself to the others on the airship and glean what information you can. B. CURTI CENTER The researchers at the Curti Center are not quite so unprepared as last time, but it is still obvious that they are struggling to understand the sudden influx of interdimensional travelers from the Dream Width. "Please step into the lobby for a quick survey. Perhaps there is some common thread we haven't discovered yet..." The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, write down all proffered information they can about the arrivals' homeworlds, provide maps and pamphlets about Vaikuntha and the destinations within it, and even guide the arrivals to a neighborhood where housing has been provided for you. Yes, due to the strange influx of arrivals, you’ll be expected to share, but the Curti staff are doing the best they can, considering they are still housing the previous arrivals here on the island. Experiences like these bring people together. Perhaps you are the only one here from your world, but at least you are not alone in this experience. Others are right beside you, learning the same information, planning trips to visit the same new cities, checking out these Job things, and settling in to their new (temporary) homes. C. UP IN THE SKY There’s a whole new world to explore. It’s almost enough to distract from the fact that there’s one place you can’t go- home. You are on an Airship, the main mode of transportation between the major cities of Vaikuntha. While the majority are owned by airlines, perhaps you hitched a ride with a friend that has their own. You can go anywhere in a matter of hours — One can only hope you don’t have motion sickness. D. GUILDS Proud representatives of the Guild are lined up, ready to demonstrate their skills for the new initiates. Make sure to stay behind the designated line, this might get dangerous. So you want a new Job? You'll have to first travel to the Guilds, sign the papers, go through the orientation and introductory lectures, and get basic training. Afterwards, you can freely chat and practice with your fellow members, celebrating your new powers, and checking out your new wardrobe. E. LET'S BE ADVENTURERS Separated from all of your material possessions, connections, and everything you know, and really, what you’re left with is time. Better try to make the most of it. Enough expository banter. It's explorin' time. Maybe instead of spending every day in your room, you'd rather spend it living it up in the city of Lavode, or betting on Chocobo Races in Sparks Goldsaucia. Or maybe you'd rather go and explore the caves and ruins near Arito. With Airships and Chocobos at your disposal, you can go nearly anywhere! F. SIDEQUESTS Maybe you’re telling yourself, ‘I didn’t sign up for this.’ But wait, you did. At least it pays. It all started when you checked the Quest Board.  All you wanted was a few gil to spend, and here you are in the wild, hunting for a Malboro Vine. Or maybe you are in some ancient and decrepit ruins looking for an artifact. Or you could be asked to be janitor for a week. Consider yourself lucky though, at least you don't have to do that alone. G. GET A JOB (THE OTHER KIND) You’ve got a Job, but Claire keeps sighing and muttering about layabout space-people not earning their keep, so it might be time to seek out Employment as well. There are plenty of opportunities to earn some gil in Vaikuntha, no matter where you choose to settle down. Your iMog slate includes listing for employment opportunities. Hopefully you can find something you can live with so that you can start saving up for an airship or the security payment for your permanent housing. H. MOGNET *Ding!* You’ve got Mog-Mail! Thankfully, you can instantaneously chat with your friends around the world thanks to you iMog Slate. And unlike old-fashioned Moogle Letters, you can even send messages to everyone in a blink of an eye! However, despite the change in technology, the old tradition of Mognet Strikes have never gone away. Nobody knows any more whether the Moogles have legitimate reasons to go on strike or if they are just lazy. But today, Mognet is down, and to get information you have no choice but going to the public boards or risk message corruption and mishandling. I. RANDOM ENCOUNTER The ground trembles, and out of nowhere, something hostile appears! Is that battle music playing? You were minding your own business walking around, and suddenly monsters attacked you! Time to put to use the skills you've learned with your Jobs! Will you try to fight on your own or seek help? And remember, you die in random battle, you die FOR REAL. There’s no shame from running from enemies that are a higher level than you! J. PUMPKIN SPICE Let us send shivers down your spine. The weather has turned cooler, and with the arrival of autumn comes fall-themed treats, fall fashion, and of course, the beginning of the spookiest holiday season. Even though summer is still newly ended, it is not uncommon to already see people embracing the season in full force. Pumpkins and ghost-moogle decorations begin to appear on porches and in windows, stores offer a pumpkin version of everything, and there is so much orange. It is all good fun in the day time, but there does seem to be a rise of monstrous activity after the sun sets... K. WILD CARD Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Comments

[mech_and_mutt]

That answer earns a quick sigh and a slump of his shoulders.

"'Fraid not. I actually managed to find this mecha after just a few weeks, but I couldn't get it workin' without the guild's help. And I had been fixin' this thing up ever since I was little!"

"Things just don't work the same way here. I've been here for months now and I still haven't figured it all out."

[acapriciousreaper]

Poor taste? Poor taste?! Now it's Kuja's turn to slam his fists on the table. "Listen to me, you overflowing gelatinous planetoid, I have personally wielded more power in a strand of my immaculate hair than you could possibly contain in the quivering folds of that grease-balloon you call a body! Even now I could flay you alive with a gesture and would lose no sleep for doing so, save for the fact that currently you offend every single one of my five senses and I doubt very much that your insides would be any less nauseating to behold!" And now he's the one shouting. Look what you've done.

[hashtagdaddy]

[He joins Noct on the bench only once he sees that Noct is settled, not wanting to sit on the much smaller and scrawnier guy. And also because waiting gives Gladio a little time to survey the area and make sure there aren't any other, and potentially less friendly, surprises lurking around.

And of course it's Ardyn. Honestly, Gladio wouldn't be surprised if all the world's wrongs came from Ardyn.] That damn bastard. [The words are huffed out with an enraged breath.

Gladio doesn't want to ask about Luna, figuring she would have to be dead if Ardyn was able to get to Noct, but he knows he should.] ... And Luna? Did he get her too?

[Noct can't see Gladio's clenched fists, but he might be able to hear the tension in his voice and feel the way his hands tremble with rage. At Ardyn for destroying their home and killing the Oracle and hurting this Noctis in such a way - at situations he could do nothing about.

A breath, deep and measured.] How long have you been blind? [Gladio needs to know how long Noct has had to start learning a few tricks for at least walking around, though the incident with the plant leads him to believe the blindness must be relatively new.]

[garyoutensei]

If you've got rice, you can make sake. -Baiken shrugged.- And since those guys at the guild are pretty gungho about enlightenment and all that crap, they get real into brewing their own sake as a form of meditation.

[beariot]

It's not exactly a precise art form. But as a means of personal guidance, it's actually pretty handy. Even if it winds up telling you something you already know, it's good to have affirmation every now and again.

[beariot]

-Oh. Right. Professional Student-Teacher conduct and all.-

H-hello. Uh. -She released the hug, straightening out and giving a nervous laugh.-

Well. You seem to be okay, at least. There's one worry gone.

[waywardking]

[Don't you dare sit on him, he hasn't lost any strength from his disability and won't hesitate to grab the cane back up and turn it into a makeshift club.]

Yeah...he uh...she's gone, yeah.

[The explanation is a little easier the second time, and Gladio reacts about the same way his Gladio did. He can hear the anger in the larger man's voice and remembers his corresponding body language well enough to make an assumption.

The second question requires a bit more time, because he's not entirely sure off the top of his head.]

Not sure. 3 or 4 months, maybe 5? We stayed in Accordo for about two weeks, then Cartanica, then... [He continues recounting their stops, but trails off until what he's saying is more intelligible to him than Gladio.] Yeah, closer to 5.

[Unfortunately, the only tricks he's learned rely on other people, e.g. fighting back-to-back so he doesn't hit his ally or relying on guidance to direct his warp strikes. The plant was a fluke; it didn't make noise, so he didn't notice it even existed.]

oops sorry, life got nuts

[daggercubed]

You were an astrologer, back home? Astronomer? Star-looking type?

[He's not sure of the word.

Either way, rudeness doesn't bother him. He saw worse. He wasn't great, either.]

[hammerheadsqueen]

It really is! Although I'm just a beginner at this.

[She smiles at Pidge, still holding the gunblade.]

People like me didn't have technology like this on Eos.

[hammerheadsqueen]

[Well that was a familiar voice. It was always good to see Noctis, even if he was doing something like handing someone a sick bag.]

Ey Prince! Whatcha doin here?

[hammerheadsqueen]

Oh, thank ya!

[She's going to hold the end of the gunblade and brace herself while the other woman attempts to pull off the pumpkin.

When it does pop off, Cindy falls on her butt, but isn't hurt.]

Pumpkins are weird.

[legalcy]

Perhaps. My taste receptors are unable to tell if the taste is high quality, but all species have a habit of indulging in vices.

[Vices like eating pumpkin spice lattes, apparently.]

What I do not appreciate is all the comments about my wearing a "costume". It's insulting. [And hits a bit too close to home.]

[dispenserofjustice]

...Taste. Why would a synthetic need to taste anything at all?

[ The Geth certainly don't have need for something like that. Pretty sure the Reapers didn't have anything like that either? ]

Really you should just ignore them. You'll get used to the glances and the ogling eventually. The novelty wears off. Trust me.

[dispenserofjustice]

[ Has he done a good thing here? Or has he walked into a trap... ]

And these leylines are important? [ WHATEVER THOSE ARE! ] What happens if you don't keep on that?

[legalcy]

Testing of materials, ensuring that we aren't consuming corrosive Energon, and generally having as many receptors primed, to name a few reasons.

[He understands this one's confusion. Many organics would not have a positive outlook on metallic lifeforms and thus have little knowledge of their anatomy.]

I can handle surprised looks, as I am, what you say, a "big deal" among Cybertronians. The locals speak as if I'm not the person they are interacting with.

[dispenserofjustice]

That doesn't seem like a very efficient way to refuel. At least Geth hubs take out the whole "potentially being poisoned" factor out of it.

[ Look, he can't help it. It DOES seem kind of inefficient. Who ever heard of a synth actually needing to consume anything? ]

Can you blame them, though? It's not like you're exactly commonplace.

[hashtagdaddy]

[Five months and he couldn't walk with a cane? Or five months and he just didn't want to walk with a cane?

Probably the latter. There's no way any of them, least of all Ignis, would let Noct stumble around for that amount of time without having some form of independence, even if it was minimal compared to when he was sighted.]

So you've had some time to adjust then. Good. [There's a smile in his voice to match the optimistic one on his face.] Between my dad and the others I'm sure we can figure out training for you... but you'll have to decide if you want t'train with the group or on your own to start. An' if you choose to start one on one, that's fine, but you'll have to join the group training eventually.

[Gears are already turning in his head about how best to work with a blind fighter, but he can't plan anything until he talks to his dad and Cor.

Gladio gently rests a hand on Noct's shoulder.] M'sure you've got questions of your own. Ask 'em.

Guilds

[flowrite]

[There's a skinny blond at the range standing a short distance away, not really appearing to be doing anything in particular at the moment. There's a gun similar to Garrus's at his hip but he's not practicing on targets--maybe he's already finished, or hasn't started yet?

What he's actually doing is watching Garrus decimate targets. He looks pretty impressed, as a matter of fact. By the time Garrus stops to comment about the difficulty, or lack thereof, the blond is applauding and... making what's supposed to be a whistling sound. If you squint. Maybe.]

Hyuuu~ That was great, you got them all! You've done this before, haven't you?

[sonoftenebrae]

[Of the two of them, Lunafreya is the stronger, and Ravus knows it. He had used anger as a crutch to keep hobbling forward, while she had strode forth unimpeded.]

What do you remember?

[He can't let go of her just yet. The memory of Lunafreya fading from his arms in Altissia haunts him. She looks disheveled, but perhaps she has been spared experiencing the worst of it.]

pumpkin spice~

[flowrite]

[Oh dear, if you want to talk hair accessories, Fai's your guy. In fact, it'd probably be wiser not to get him started at all.]

Ahh, it's really cute~!

[...too late. He's grinning like the sun and poring over the other hair doodads now.]

Hm, this cute little ghost would probably look good on you too. These all go really well with your hair color, I think you could wear any of them!

Cid nan Garlond | Final Fantasy XIV (Up to 4.3 - Under the Moonlight)

[runaway_prodigy]

A) Retrieval

"...and I'm telling you, if you think this is a joke, it's a damn poor one."

Cid was clearly not happy here. Here he was, on an airship, being told that he was being rescued from "the Dream Width" and that they were on an airship being piloted by Biggs and Wedge... who were obviously not a Roegadyn or a Lalafell, but Hyurs. And he wasn't having any of it as he was arguing with a crew member

"Now, I'm going to say this again: Where am I, where are you taking me and who are those godsdamned people piloting this Airship?!"

B) Curti Center

Alright, so Cid is getting a few answers. Those people ARE Biggs and Wedge, just not from his world, he's on Valkuntha and he got here from the Dream Width, an interdimensional portal of sorts.

"...something like the Interdimensional Rift. I'm becoming more and more convinced that Omega's behind this." Cid said before turning his attention to the doctors around him. "Look, everyone, I'm fine. Go tend to someone else. Right now, I just need to think, to get my hands on something so I can think."

He's inching to build something, to just do something away from all of this so he can think and ponder out what's going on here.

G) Get a Job (The Other Kind)

Okay, so he needs to do something to help these Heroes of Light (the title feels ridiculous, especially since they're trying to foster it onto him. He's no hero - as much as Nero has pointed out, he's a man of science. And his manner of helping was through his inventions.

It was time for the Garlond Ironworks to open up a brand new branch. And hopefully not have someone like Jessie be a penny pincher. Woman has her heart in the right place, but seriously...

"Alright, easy with the sign there! Need to make this as professional as possible!" Cid shouted as he had hired hands help him out in setting up shop. "Sorry for the mess, finally getting started here. It's obvious you need an easier way to get things, so..."

K) Wild Card

Got an idea you wanna run? Go ahead, fire away!

[waywardking]

[More like misplaced it and Prompto was more than willing to be there to lean on and provide information, so he just rolled with that. With a nice dash of outright denial that he wouldn't find some way to get himself fixed up once they sorted everything out.]

You sound more excited than...my Gladio-- [That does not get less weird to say each time he says it.] --was about me participating in battle. Something about 'not letting the blind guy wave around sharp things'. I can fight alright, just...need a chance to practice.

[Just not right away.]

Yeah, I've got a question. You said you don't think everyone came from the same timeline. What do you mean by that?

Fai D. Flourite | Tsubasa Chronicle

[flowrite]

Curti Center

[Lost. Somehow he's gotten separated from the others and found himself completely and utterly lost--not just in this world, but across dimensions. He doesn't even remember Mokona's magic activating, and he obviously didn't use his own...

...speaking of which, his own magic is gone. Sealed somehow or completely ripped away, the end result is the same. He can't access it at all. Which means he can't travel through dimensions back to Yuuko's shop to try to figure out what happened. He can't try to find his way back to Outo. He can't... do anything. The only bright side is that he can't feel those eyes that are constantly watching him, and without his magic there's a much smaller chance of that other person finding him, if (when) he wakes.

He has to find a way out of this world, back to the others. Back to the princess. His entire life depends on it. But at least while he's here, he's safe(r) than he has been in a long time. Still, maybe there's a chance the others have landed in this world as well? Without his magic he can't sense them; time for some good old fashioned information gathering.]

Excuse me! I'm sorry to bother you, but have you seen a young girl with bright green eyes, about this tall-- [He gestures somewhere against his chest; he's skinny but he's quite tall] --named Sakura? Or a boy named Syaoran, about the same height? Or... maybe a tiny little white creature who's incredibly adorable and calls itself Mokona? Looks a bit like a very round bunny rabbit?


Explorin' time

[As guilty as he feels for visiting an amusement park of all places when he should be finding a way out of here instead, finding his way back to his traveling companions... some part of Fai is also absolutely captivated by the rides and attractions of PuPuland. The lights, the colors, the laughter.... Maybe it's that whole 'never actually got to be a kid' thing.

There may, in fact, be a hand reaching out to grab you by the wrist, and a very excited looking blond gesturing toward the Ferris wheel.]

There's still one empty gondola! Let's go!


na na why don't you get a job

[At least it's easy enough for him to find a job in this world. Being a waiter isn't quite as fun as running his own cafe, but the basic principle is the same. Serve customers, give everyone a friendly smile, share a bit of chatter. He's good at that.

(It's also a huge perk that he gets to drink for free. Not even gonna lie.)]

Welcome! What can I get for you today~?


Wildcard

[Got another idea? Hit me up via PM to plot or just throw something at me!]

Munehisa Iwai | Persona 5

[geckoman]

Curti Center

[Alright so there are a lot of things that Iwai has seen in his life but this one is just going to take the cake. He's not liking any of this one bit but it looks like he's just stuck with whatever this mess is now. So he's spending most of his time listening to others gather information while he shoves his hands in his pockets and moves through the people there.

Not really how he expected to spend the day. Not really how he wants to spend any day honestly. Especially since he can't seem to find Kaoru anywhere in all whatever this is.

If anyone's touched Kaoru...

Bumping into someone, he slides his gaze over. He sure looks intimidating as he studies the person but Iwai's not here to hurt anyone. (Anyone who might have touched Kaoru not being part of that.)]

Need something?

[This is...mostly how he does friendly okay.]


Up in the Sky

[Well, this is everything he never expected he'd get to see. For most of the trip to wherever he's headed, he's been just looking out at the world around them. Not every single day someone gets to end up in some kind of ship like this, floating over the world. It's a lot to take in but it's probably the most at peace he's looked since arriving here.

That kid would probably like this too. It would be like him. The thought amuses him as he gives a bit of a smirk, wondering what he's doing right about now.]

Probably gettin' involved in some kinda trouble...


Sidequests

[There's not a lot of people who would be assigned a janitorial job and not mind it. But here he is. It earns him some money for this place so he can, well, get his own place. Besides, it's stuff he's done in the past before while working his way up to having a clean living. Now it's just time to apply those skills to where he's at now.

Some part of him is building up a place for his kid should his kid arrive. The rest of him just feels better about getting a place of his own rather than having things given to him. It's the way he's always been.

But the moment he sees someone about to step up to where he's at? Well he has some words.]

Just swept there. You should go around.

[Don't mess up his clean floors damn it.]


Wildcard

[Got something else you wanna do? Go for it! I'll follow along!]

Curti Center

[geckoman]

[Iwai is just as lost as anyone else here but he hears someone talking to him and turns. Tall guy. Blond. And apparently looking for people he's never heard of and his pet apparently. Well, if he can't find those guys here then he's in the same boat as himself with Kaoru. Which basically means they're not going to find them anytime soon if they're even here.]

Ain't seen anyone like that. For your kids or your pet.

[He's figuring that's what they are anyway. It at least makes sense that they would be in his head at any rate.]

If they're not here then I don't know where they'd be. Finding people is proving to be a problem.

[Implying he's also looking and not finding.]