memesofeternity | Test Drive Meme VI

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, and some helpful Heroes of Light 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 and your rescuers 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. The experienced outworlders who helped pull you from your memories may be able to get you caught up to speed.

B. CURTI CENTER

The researchers at the Curti Center are pretty used to this right now, though there's still no good explanation for the influx of interdimensional travelers from the Dream Width since earlier this year. "Please step into the lobby for a quick survey. We have just a few routine questions, it's invaluable to our research so we do ask you indulge us..."

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 have offered to permanently house all of the outworlders here.

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 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 productive members of society and helping support the local economy, 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 housing elsewhere in the world.

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. And they say, those that party up will live to party on!

J. LOVE IS IN THE AIR

All the mistletoe would have come in handy here...

As January gives way to February, stores and streets are decked in red, pink, and white. Posters line the Curti Center walls advertising Speed Dating events and offer to send flowers with anonymous or signed letters to outworlders and Curti Center employees - though there is some suspicion that a handful of received were never requested by the sender. Who cares! Some romances need an extra push!

For the less adventurous types, the love-o-meters stationed at just about every hallway can predict your romantic (and platonic, if you so wish) future with just 100 gil, or even measure how good a potential match between two people will be. Is there any scientific backing to their calculations? That's not important.

K. WILD CARD

Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Futaba was.. apprehensive, but she supposed it would be better than her blindly wandering around by herself. Besides, she promised she would try to get better around other people. Any assistance with that would be very helpful. So, Futaba nodded, accepting Nozomi's offer.

"I a-appreciate the offer, I think I'll accept it."

“Great!” Nozomi said before wincing, toning it down. She was more than certain Futaba wasn’t used to people and she didn’t want to upset her. “Great, Great... have you picked out a job yet?”

Futaba shook her head. She had just got here, and she was already being asked about work? She barely knew what this place was like, how would she decide on a job so quickly?

"I have to work?"

“Not that job. There are those here, but I’m talking about Jobs. Like classes in RPGs.” Nozomi said. Like I got Wizard...”

She brought out her iMog Slate and brought up the Wizard Job as her main.

“...Red Mage...”

Another switch and she’s wearing the red garb of the class.

“...and even my powers from home.”

Another switch and she brings out a pink cellphone device, transforming into Cure Dream. Congrats, Futaba - your friend’s a magical girl.

“I probably overwhelmed you, didn’t I?”

Futaba's jaw dropped, watching Nozomi change through her different Jobs. She was literally in an RPG. Not believing what she just saw, she removed her glasses, wiping the lenses with her shirt, then put them back on again. Nothing changed.

"How did you.."

Her eyes moved to the iMog slate. They used a tablet for all of that?? She supposed it wouldn't be the first weird thing she's seen that came out of a mobile device, but still, it didn't make it any less surprising seeing it in person. Futaba blinked, frozen in utter disbelief.

"...No, I didn't even know I could do that. "

“Uh-huh. It’s actually pretty neat, I think!” Nozomi said, noticing Futaba’s surprise. “But, if you didn’t know that, then you probably should know more about them. Is there any preference you have?”

Preferences... hm. Futaba wasn't one to fight much, she usually was lending support to her allies. If this worked like an RPG, there had to be a support class, right?

"Anything for support?"

"Hmm... well, there's the Chemist. Get to make potions and stuff. Puppet Master lets you use something else to attack for you. And I think there's Scholar, too!"

Nozomi pondered a bit before shrugging.

"I'm sure there are others, but those are the ones I know of for sure."

None of that aligned with what Futaba was familiar with, but it's not like she had too many options. She would just have to learn how to do... all that... herself... ugh, wasn't there anything more sci-fi esque than fantasy?

"Is it all magic stuff? No like, tech-y sort of Job?"

Nozomi pondered at that. "Well, there is the Magitek Knight, but that's more combat than support, really. But, that's where the Custom Job comes in."

She showed Futaba her Slate, showing off her Custom Job. "When I got here, I couldn't use my powers. For some reason, it just wouldn't let me. But, they were able to help fix this by letting me basically customize a blank asterisk to do this. I think that's how they put it?"

Nozomi shook her head. "I don't know what you can do, but maybe you can make your skills into a Job, too!"

A custom class? That would likely be her best bet for finding something that fit her style. She wondered if it would be possible to make one that allowed her to summon her persona...

"Maybe I could. I don't know how it all works."

"The Curti Center is where it's made. It takes two weeks because they need your help in fully making it." Nozomi admitted. "I'd be happy to help you if you think you need it."

It was reassuring to have someone so willing to assist her in adjusting to this strange new place, which had made her form a small smile. It seemed her anxiety had subsided... for now, at least.

"I would really appreciate any help you could lend me."

"Anything. You just ask." Nozomi said.

Curiously, she held out her hand to Futaba. To shake it, to hold it, to squeeze it in reassurance, anything. She wanted to show her she would be there to help her.

Futaba looked confused for a second, but quickly realized what Nozomi was trying to do. Briefly hesitating, she extended her arm towards Nozomi's hand, shaking it quickly before retracting her arm back to her side. This would still take some getting used to.

"Thank you."

Nozomi couldn't help but giggle. Maybe one day she can help her out of that shell...

...why did this feel familiar?

"Say, are you hungry? Maybe we can find somewhere to get something to eat. My treat."

Futaba hadn't actually realized it with everything that's been going on, but it has been a while since she last ate anything. Although, she did wonder what the food was like here...

...soon enough, she could hear her stomach growling. Futaba winced, and nodded.

"T-That sounds pretty good right about now, thanks for the offer."

"C'mon, let's see what we can find." Nozomi said. "I've yet to find someone who can make a decent hamburger, though..."

Test Drive Meme VI

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