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!

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Alya Césaire | Miraculous Ladybug

[rougereporter]

[G: Get a Job!]

[It's a normal day and you might be getting a coffee or heading to- or from- your place of employment. Whatever the case, you might be at your most relaxed... were it not for that feeling of prickles along the back of your neck.

Somewhere nearby, you're being watched.

Maybe you turn, and see the last shoe-covered foot disappear into a bush, or maybe you look up from your iMog Slate to see someone slip behind a newspaper and cross their legs as if having their own quiet, merry day. But if you look overhead, you see a very small moogle holding a microphone and a magitek recording device. The moogle squeaks in surprise and hurries to find somewhere to hide.

What was with today, anyway?]


[H: Mognet]

Come on, you run on magic! How can you have zero bars today of all days!?

[Her arms were as high as she could raise them, both hands grasping an iMog Slate as this odd girl hurried along the sidewalks. She would pause every block, lower the slate, then look just a tad frizzier for what appears to be a lack of positive change.]

Every time I've got fresh footage burning a hole in my pocket...!

[Okay, fine, next street. She peered left, right, and then sped across the street in the hopes that maybe the local cafes had their beans together. I mean, it's not like there were towers or anything like that in a place like this, right?]

g.

[zanarkandian]

[Tidus is no stranger to being chased by reporters. It's all part of the game when you're a popular athlete back home, after all. But it's his moogle Zunne, a tiny thing wearing black shades and a scowl, who first notices that something is amiss.]

I think we're being watched.

Huh? What's up, bud?

[Zunne responds with an exasperated grunt and points at a nearby tree. Tidus looks up, finally hears a rustling, and shakes his head. He's not especially worried right now, but he has a spell called up in the back of his mind just in case. He raises his voice for this part:]

Y'know, I don't bite unless you try to bite me first...

[rougereporter]

[Funny thing is, that line sounded exactly like a superhero kitty she knows back home. But within that tree, she squinted behind her glasses, keeping her tablet pointed in his direction.

She was busted, but she wasn't going to play dumb.]

The only thing I'm taking a bite out of is the opportunity to get the 411 on interdimensional lifestyles!

[She'll just hop down. The moogle joined her, sporting a large pair of black-framed glasses and readying a notepad and pen.]

You've got a minute to answer a few questions, right?

[zanarkandian]

[This would be just fine. Tidus flashed her an easy grin, his posture relaxed. Could've definitely been a lot worse.]

Always happy to help out. What've you got for me?

[rougereporter]

Great! Ahem-

I don't even need to ask what you do for a living, but is it any different from what you do back home? What was the adjustment period you had to go through, and what have been your triumphs and challenges during?

[zanarkandian]

[He laughed a little at the question, but realizing that could come across badly, he shook his head and flashed her a warm smile.]

Actually, it's exactly the same as what I did back home. I was so surprised that another world had exactly the same game! I guess you could say I took the easy way out, but I wasn't just a blitzer. I was a guardian, too---someone who protected a summoner and fought fiends.

Being here is great, in a way, because it lets me work on both. I'm getting stronger to protect people, and the skills I learn from that help mold my mind and body to be a better blitzer too.

The hardest thing is finding enough time in the day to do all that! But I love both my jobs.

H. Mognet

[modelcivilian]

[As it so happens, there's a familiar blonde sitting in the café she entered, drinking a mocha in the accompaniment of his moogle grumbling and munching away at some kupo nuts. The mognet going down caused some technical issues at the library which left him with a surprise day off, but he decided take it slow and maybe look at the quest postings later.]

[When the door opens, glancing up was a bit of a reflex, but he sat up a little higher upon seeing who it was.]

Hey, Alya!

[rougereporter]

[She still had an impressive frown on her face when she lowered the tablet, but what feelings of being cut off from the information superhighway lingered would quickly fade. Alya brightened up pretty darn quick.]

Adrien! How's it going?

[Then, sheepishly:]

The, uh, wifi works here, right? I'm hitting some serious dead zones today and I'm on a self-inflicted time crunch.

[modelcivilian]

Pretty good right now.

[Though, oooh... yeah, that would explain a few thinks like why Alya's popped by.]

Actually, it looks like Mognet's down right now. This kind of happens every so often.

[rougereporter]

[Her worst fear. Well, okay, the world isn't ending (yet) but today was the last day she needed the entire 'net to go crashing down.]

No way... Seriously? How often is 'every so often' around here?

[modelcivilian]

[Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.]

Mostly whenever the moogles feel like going on strike. It'll probably be back up tomorrow - the strikes don't usually last too long.

[rougereporter]

[She looked skeptical.]

Rrrright... the little fluffy guys. The ones that eat those fancy nuts all day and like to complain when they don't get to sleep in or have to do any work?

[Then her face blanked.]

No, wait, of course they would.

G

[hctiwknip]

"Hey! Get back here you Kupo creeper!"

Tiffany looked up startled by her own Moogle who had just taken off flying after the one with the microphone.

"Cassy wait!" She took off scrambling after her, but tripped on her apron and had to catch herself on a nearby trashcan.

Meanwhile the aggressive Moogle was surprisingly fast. Hopefully the microphone moogle was fast too?

[rougereporter]

The little dude was as fast as his wings could carry him, but when caught by surprise like that, Cassy had the upper hand in pursuit. He squealed in shock, flapping his arms in the hope that it would add some much-needed speed.

Meanwhile, hopping down from her vantage point, the young girl hurried to give a hand to Tiffany. A scoop's a scoop, but she wasn't here to get this poor girl hurt!

"Whoa, whoa, hey... you okay?" Boy, aren't you reminding her of someone, tripping all over yourself?

[hctiwknip]

"I-I'm OK...sorry for worrying you." the blond straightened up blushing sheepishly and hurriedly smoothing out her gormund's apron trying to regain composure. "I'm sorry about Cassandra. She always gets so protective..."

"I'll show you aggressive Kupo!" Cassy called over her shoulder while trying to wrestle the microphone away from the Moogle she had chased after.

"Um...that being said...are they with you?" Tiffany asked gently as if doing her best to avoid offending with the accusation. The unspoken question would be of course if the Moogle was with this newcomer why were they spying on her?

[rougereporter]

Clark helplessly struggled to keep a hold of that microphone, entering a tugging match. But his size wasn't exactly doing him any favors, with a distinct lack of strength to match.

"Oh, Clark? Yeah, he's with me. See, we were observing some of the otherworlders at random to get a general feel for a few things for an article I'm working on: Interdimensional Lifestyles, and Where WE Fit In!" She set her jaw and looked pumped.

"So far, I've gotten some juicy details. Just in case someone tries to make the claim that we 'Heroes of Light' don't pull our weight, I can slap a novel's worth of evidence to the contrary right in their laps."

G

[entrer]

[The watcher might become the watched as a form drops down nearby with a cheerful greeting.]

Bonjour~, ma peche~

[rougereporter]

[Her entire body went rigid, but she managed to hold firm to her vantage point despite this guy popping up out of nowhere. How did he find-!?

She smirked, but she peered at him from over her frames, a brow quirked.]

Hi. Let's pump the brakes a little with the greetings, shall we?

[entrer]

As you wish!

[Enter bowed politely, although there was a certain element of supervillain class to it.]

I suppose that was a little over the top, non?

[rougereporter]

[She laughed a bit, and shook her head in disbelief.]

Yeah, just a touch. Maybe you can make it up to me by telling me a little bit about what you've been up to since you got yanked out of the Dream Width? I'm working on a little something.

H (and I am so sorry for her.)

[doodlebuginette]

[She'd been in the process of delivering drinks for herself and Mai when the sound of the door opened. Curious, Marinette glanced up just as she set the coffees down at the table for two...

and promptly shrieked at the sight of her best friend walking through the door.]

Alya?!

[Unfortunately (for Alya), that's the only sort of warning before Marinette gracefully flings herself bodily at the other girl.

Please don't let her fall on her face, Alya.]

[rougereporter]

[She honestly should have seen this coming. Marinette was nothing if not 110% on how she felt, whether the girl was too shy to be open about it (AHEM) or not.

Alya lowered the tablet and her eyes were wide as saucers, knowing that voice anywhere. However, with no time to really plant her feet, the most she could do was catch her friend and let gravity take care of the rest.]

Marinette! What on earth are you doing here, girl?

[doodlebuginette]

[Alya really should have seen this coming. Life with Marinette up until the point she'd been dragged here should have prepared her for the danger of random pounce-hugs, if nothing else!

But at the moment, the only thing she was worried about was the fact that her best friend had just walked in and she hadn't seen her in what seemed like forever!]

It is you!

[Boy, wouldn't she have been embarrassed if it had turned out she was tackling someone that just resembled Alya a little.]

I don't know! But as far as I know there's no way to get home yet? [She's just going to casually make herself at home hugging Alya on the floor in front of the doorway. No big deal.] Wait! Why are you here?

[rougereporter]

In the flesh, 100% authentic!

[After everything she'd been through, she wasn't about to be a cold fish, and the hug was returned. Everybody else can use another door.]

Oh, you know, the whole 'getting dumped into the universe and getting picked up by a space ship to be turned into a video game adventurer' deal. I'd say that's completely wacko, but you can't really run it if you're sort of living it.

But seriously, how cool is this place!? I never thought I'd be somewhere that lets me add 'oh, and also become a flamethrowing mage or a time-warping wizard' to my daily planner!

[doodlebuginette]

Oh my gosh, I missed you so much!

[Hello understatement of the century. And she's not at all concerned about whoever else might be trying to come in through that door. They could go around. Or step over the ridiculous girls on the floor. Alya was more important!]

Yea! That's what happened to me too. Just BAM! Woke up here in the Dream Width and had to be rescued. It's very exciting! [And terrifying, but she doesn't want to worry Alya just yet.]

It is pretty cool! So you've decided on a couple of jobs already? That's good. [Marinette is smiling at that, because of course she could see Alya going for either of those things.]

Oh! Adrien's here too! [And just the way she says it should clue Alya in to the fact that things were different. She's gotten... a lot better at generally being around the blonde without turning into a spazz, if nothing else.]

He's actually been here longer than I have...