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6.0 Test Drive Meme
6.0 Test Drive Meme
Premise & Arrival ֍ FAQ ֍ Apply ֍ Navigation
Welcome to Well! See the first prompt for how your characters arrive in Well. Your character arrives with only a handful of memories, clad in a mix of Old Western clothes and clothes that might fit in at a renaissance fair, and no items from home.
Anyone is free to play on the TDM, but you need an invite to apply. Feel free to use these prompts, and interact with the arrival or locations. NPCs are around, but only say a certain set of phrases. TDMs can be considered game canon.
This TDM takes place from the first week of May onward, and can happen concurrently with other events during May and June. This will be the only TDM for May, June, and July.
Applications are open April 26th until May 1st, and May 27th until June 1st. Invites are available for friends of current players.
Arrival: Escape!
Content warnings: forced captivity, blood, eating eyes, drowning in sand, forced intimacy
If you don't complete a task in five minutes, you will return to very first room and have to start again.
You can choose your own path, or comment below to have a random path set for you!
1. There Ain't Room
2. Glitter Bomb
3. Riddles Three
A. Cry For Me
B. Love Me
C. Hold Me
I. Blood
II. Sweat
III. Tears
The receptionist greets you as he always does, welcoming you home.
New characters arrive using this prompt. Characters can return from death from the previous cycle using this prompt. You can also just wake up and be in this prompt, so you can do this as many times as you like.
tl;dr:
The First Room
You wake up somewhere dark and damp. Maybe this is your first time waking up here, maybe it's your fourth, but the beginning is the same. You're in a small stone room. The only light comes from torches flicking on the walls. The room is bare except for a metal door. And you're not alone. You and someone (or someones) are here together, and you have to get out.After this, you find yourself in one of the following rooms. Choose one from the first set, then one from the second set, then one from the third set. You will always end in the final room. You must travel through five rooms to escape.
The door is locked, and to leave it you must just find one key. On the door is a note with a clue:
Freedom is hot!
The key is in fact in one of the torches! Depending on luck, you might find it on your first try, or your fourth. Find a way to extinguish the torches, and handle the hot, hot key to unlock the door.
If you don't complete a task in five minutes, you will return to very first room and have to start again.
You can choose your own path, or comment below to have a random path set for you!
The Second Room
You find yourself in one of the following rooms:1. There Ain't Room
2. Glitter Bomb
3. Riddles Three
1. There Ain't Room
In this room is a shooting game. There's a barrier with bebe guns attached to it, and at the far end are small cut outs of people. There's a sign on the far wall, in old-West style script, reading:
There Ain't Room
The cut outs look sort of familiar! There are cut outs of you and your compatriot(s), as well as some typical cowboy looking cut outs. Shoot your own cut out to escape! You each must shoot your own one, if you shoot each others', that person feels it as if they have been shot, and will start bleeding.
When you successfully hit all of your own cut outs, the floor under you opens up and you drop into the next room.
2. Glitter Bomb
As you walk through the doorway, you feel oddly.... sticky? Like your skin is covered in honey. Because it is! Yum.
In front of you is a room covered in glitter. There's so much glitter. You can't see a door, but you have to find a way out. Search the room to find the exit.
The exit is a trapped door in the floor. You'll need to make your way through the glitter, all the while it will stick to your very sticky skin. You'll need to dig a big enough path to get through, open the door and get into the next room! Too bad some glitter will come with you, and you'll still be sticky.
3. Riddles Three
A large hour glass in the middle of the room starts ticking down with sand as soon as you enter this room. One three of the walls are riddles engraved in the stone, and chalkboards in front of them. You must answer all three riddles correctly before the sand runs out to escape:Once you answer correctly, the hour glass disappears, leaving a hole in the floor that you must jump through to exit.
- Where waves kiss sand and breezes blow, where tropic dreams grow, I'm where you want to go. What am I? Answer: Kokomo
- With auburn locks and eyes of green, a rival, a threat, a beauty queen. Answer: Jolene
- With cowboy hats and boots that stride, no one told me where my horse I ride. Answer: Old Town Road
The Third Room
Next, you find yourself in one of the following rooms:A. Cry For Me
B. Love Me
C. Hold Me
A. Cry For Me
This room is beautiful and shiny, the walls made of crystals. In the middle of the room is a crystal plinth with a small crystal cup on it. In flowing script around the cup it reads:
Collect five tears
You must collect five tears in the cup to escape. Once you do, an entry way opens in the crystal in front of you.
B. Love Me
This room is very plain, and on a piece of paper dangling from a string in the middle of the room is the instructions for this room:
Exchange five sincere compliments each. Don't break eye contact.
You must do this within the alloted five minutes to escape. If the compliments are less than sincere, you may try again, but if you don't reach the five each by the end of the five minutes or if you break eye contact even once, you will be returned to the first room.
C. Hold Me
This room looks a lot like the pub in town. The walls are wood paneled and there's jangling piano music coming from--somewhere?
In the middle of the room is a mechanical bull, with a sign reading:
Stay on the bull together for 45 seconds.
If you succeed within the five minutes, you're free to continue on!
The Fourth Room
Next, you find yourself in one of the following rooms:I. Blood
II. Sweat
III. Tears
I. Blood
This room is very tall. There's a rope dangling down one wall. On the wall it reads:
Climb!
And that's what you have to do. The word "Climb" starts to bleed. And then the walls start to bleed. The room will fill up with blood within five minutes, so you better get climbing!
At the top of the room is a hatch that will let you escape through a hatch in the ceiling.
II. Sweat
When you enter this room, one of you finds that you are alone. You're standing at the edge of a pool, and that pool is full of sand. It's also searingly hot in here. On the wall, it reads:
Rescue your partner!
One person is chained at the bottom of a swimming pool full of sand. A counter on the wall counts down until they will suffocate. Better get swimming!
Once you've rescued your partner, a door on the other side of the pool will open up. Better move fast to get there!
III. Tears
This room is dark, very dark. You can just barely see, except for a glow-in-the-dark sign reading:
Eat some eyes!
And that's what you need to do! In the walls are eyes. They're watching you. You must each eat an eye to continue on. Once you do, a door cracks open in the far wall.
The Fifth Room
No matter the path you took to get here, the final room is the same:The last room you end up in, even though you enter through the same door, you find yourselves separated by a wall. There is a door for each of you at the far side of the room. You can hear each other, but you can't see each other. Each of you have a plinth in front of you, which reads:When you escape, you step into the lobby of the Staywell. It's bright and airy with beautiful white stone. When you look behind you, it seems that you've stepped out of a supply closet. Weird!
Who should escape?
In front of you are the names of yourself and your partner(s). You place the name of the person you believe should escape in a slot in the table.
Once everyone has made a selection, the names will light up:If your room is green, when you open the final door, you've escaped! Welcome to Wellstone.
- If you all chose each other, your room lights up green.
- If you all chose yourselves, your room lights up green.
- If someone chose themselves, and someone else chose another person, the room of the person with the most "votes" lights up green. The others light up red.
If your room is red, when you open the door, you find yourself back in the first room. Good luck!
The receptionist greets you as he always does, welcoming you home.
New characters arrive using this prompt. Characters can return from death from the previous cycle using this prompt. You can also just wake up and be in this prompt, so you can do this as many times as you like.
tl;dr:
- You wake up in an escape room! You must finish (at least) five rooms to escape. You have five minutes to finish each room. If you fail, you'll be taken back to the beginning of the dungeon.
It's alive!
Content warnings: public shaming
When you shake off the glitter and the sand, it might be time to head on down into Wellstone town. The air is full of a shimmering warmth that might be familiar to some. It's like the sun has been baked into the very stones and is radiating back up at you. Run-down buildings lean against each other for support, made out of mostly weathered stone with a few old boards here and there to keep structures up. Desiccated, skeletal fingers of dried-out ivy climb them, waving occasionally as you pass. Waving, and… whispering? For more information about how the town has changed, check out this month's Wellstone Post or read the Locations Page.
The town is alive with sneering, whispering voices. It's unclear where exactly they're coming from, but they're everywhere. Step into the Cactus Pad Tavern and you might hear a decisive no manners! spat sharply from the doorway. Make your way to the steaming bathhouse to wash off that honey, but be careful when you're undressing: you might just hear rude snickering from the air around you. Wow, the walls might say, your toes are so long. What weird feet!
The voices might interrupt a conversation at breakfast to make fun of something you said. Your mirror and your wardrobe might question your outfit choices. They're loud enough to be heard by everyone in a public space and seem to delight in saying cutting things at the worst possible moment. You don't recognize the voices, exactly, but they seem just familiar enough to really hurt, and the voices seem to know you well enough. They might even call you out when you tell a little white lie, or let everyone know exactly how loud you snore.
There's no way, seemingly, to get them to shut up, so... may as well get used to it?
tl;dr:
When you shake off the glitter and the sand, it might be time to head on down into Wellstone town. The air is full of a shimmering warmth that might be familiar to some. It's like the sun has been baked into the very stones and is radiating back up at you. Run-down buildings lean against each other for support, made out of mostly weathered stone with a few old boards here and there to keep structures up. Desiccated, skeletal fingers of dried-out ivy climb them, waving occasionally as you pass. Waving, and… whispering? For more information about how the town has changed, check out this month's Wellstone Post or read the Locations Page.
The town is alive with sneering, whispering voices. It's unclear where exactly they're coming from, but they're everywhere. Step into the Cactus Pad Tavern and you might hear a decisive no manners! spat sharply from the doorway. Make your way to the steaming bathhouse to wash off that honey, but be careful when you're undressing: you might just hear rude snickering from the air around you. Wow, the walls might say, your toes are so long. What weird feet!
The voices might interrupt a conversation at breakfast to make fun of something you said. Your mirror and your wardrobe might question your outfit choices. They're loud enough to be heard by everyone in a public space and seem to delight in saying cutting things at the worst possible moment. You don't recognize the voices, exactly, but they seem just familiar enough to really hurt, and the voices seem to know you well enough. They might even call you out when you tell a little white lie, or let everyone know exactly how loud you snore.
There's no way, seemingly, to get them to shut up, so... may as well get used to it?
tl;dr:
- The town is alive, and it is judging you. Your outfits, your words, your body, your habits: nothing is off-limits.
- The voices sound just familiar enough to feel like voices you know, but aren't able to be pinpointed to a single person.
no subject
Don't take this the wrong way, but aren't you projecting a bit? From my admittedly limited experience, you think conversations end when you dismiss them, and you walked in here expecting me to just fall behind your lead without any discussion about it. Coupling that with your surprise that I don't find magic intimidating, the impression I get is that you've got a position of power where you come from and aren't really used to being questioned. Am I off the mark?
[He does, however, cross the room to join Diluc. This conversation isn't nearly interesting enough to risk being trapped here for.]
no subject
I have met a fair number of people here who reacted badly to magic. You are the first in a while that is without magic that treats it like another part of the scenery.
I walked ahead of you because if something tried to kill us, it is better I take that blow. With you behind me I can freely use fire ahead of me. It wasn’t guts that let me take that bullet. I’ve been through far worse with opponents that can do as much damage as I can. It makes more sense for me to take the damage while you use what you’re best at, your mind.
But I understand, from now on I will be much clearer and discuss actions and choices with you first. However, if a creature attacks, please follow my word.
[His own safety is irrelevant. Prehaps a flaw. Prehaps not.] My objective here is your safety.
no subject
Honestly? I think the scenery's the main reason I'm calm. If it were just the magic, maybe I'd struggle with it. But everything else here is equally weird--and a hell of a lot more dangerous. If I'm being forced to accept resurrection and body-snatching fungus, why would I draw the line at you or Palamedes?
[It's part of the truth--he really doesn't distinguish between magic and Wellstone's general weirdness--but it's far from the whole truth. He knows that now. Not that he would confide in Diluc about that.]
But in terms of what I do best, I'd say you've got the wrong objective. Look at how the past two rooms were structured--we advanced as a team, or not at all. The logical conclusion is that you dying or incapacitating yourself would result in both of us failing the test, whether I survived or not. You walking ahead makes sense, but the objective is both of our safety, not mine. All right?
no subject
As I said, it takes a lot to kill or slow me down. All I ask is you account for that in the event someone has no choice on getting injured. Let me take the damage. That’s all.
To your earlier question. I am used to having power, yes. I have had active use of magic since I was seven. I have had to make sure others were protected from it as well as how to use it effectively while I was taught to serve and protect my home and its people. You can question whatever you like. That is part of the ode of freedom. Anything else?
[Light had remarked that he cut the conversation off. So he waits instead. To him things are seemingly finished but they are presently a team.]
no subject
Don't worry, I won't fight you on that. I'm not eager to die again anytime soon.
[Again. The word is sour on his tongue, and the memory sourer still. He tilts his head at Diluc, curious.]
Did you make it to the end? Last month, I mean.
no subject
[He moves to walk for the open door and into the hall as he says,] I was killed when I broke through the control long enough to ask for death.
After I revived, I assisted where I could. [The hall is a little longer this time. Diluc cups his hands together. Red light pours out of his skin like smoke from a fire. The power condenses in his palms into a golf ball sized ball of a fire. He sends it up above them.
This hallway is different from the others. The stone looks worn away and the path twists and turns. The stone looks more rounded with holes at odd intervals. Faint sounds almost too faint to hear drift in the air.]
…always a good sign when things shift.
no subject
I'm sorry. I only ask because I was one of the first, too, so I don't really know what happened outside the Staywell. Just another thing I'll have to piece together from others, I guess.
[He could mention that he didn't give up and beg, precisely because he trusted others to be able to help. He could mention that Diluc's assistance accomplished nothing, and everyone died regardless. He could. He won't.
He glances up at the ball of fire overhead.]
Tch. How much more of this bullshit is there going to be?
Cw: insect descriptions
Those holes are irregular. [They’re not man made. They’re big enough one can fit their foot inside. Whatever used them was large and probably a predator. They wouldn’t be lucky enough for harmless. The faint sounds get loud enough to catch. It sounds like shuffling and skittering with little pops in between. Diluc keeps walking, lengthening his strides. The sounds grow louder. The skittering gets closer and Diluc breathes,]
Run. [The ball of fire shoots to his hand and he grabs it as he breaks into a run. He can’t go his full speed, he has to account for Light. High pitched inhuman screams come from the holes like a choir in mid-performance.]
cw: big old bugs
Yeah, this is exactly why he wanted a gun.]
cw: big bugs
He forces himself to move to the side to let Light through. The bugs screams from the hallway wash over him as the ball of fire in his hand crackles. This room is plain. It is square. A rope dangles down from a hatch at the top.
And he can’t spare the magic for a light. He moves to put himself between Light and the door. Magic floods out of his core into his arms. The ball vanishes. He dashes towards the door as a little wooden sign on chains reads : Climb!] Keep going! I’ll stall them.
[The door way isn’t wide enough for his best move. He’ll have to flood the hall with fire.]
no subject
Great.
Light shins up about six feet for safety before calling back:]
The room's flooding. Stop stalling them and move!
Cw: bugs, arson,
Sickening sounding pops resound as the waves of fire continue down the hall. Diluc has already turned and sprints for the rope. With Light already six feet up, he doesn’t have to account for him.
He can go at his true speed. Diluc gets to the rope and catches up in just a few minutes. The only light in the room is the flame barrier in the doorway below.
The walls ooze and he keeps his attention on moving, slowing down enough to stay just behind Light with a little room to account for motion. The screaming is still there, just as terrible and all his senses feel sharp and alive. The bugs aren’t bright. There are more pops.]
cw: blood
We're doing this all wrong. Keep climbing; I'm letting go.
[There's an air of command to his voice not unlike Diluc's own: Light has a plan, he's confident, and he expects to be obeyed. Careful to swing his body clear of the man below him, he releases the rope and drops feet-first into the pool of blood.]
cw: blood
The change in speed is immediate. He moves up the rope quickly without moving it that much. He reaches the hatch and pops it open, pushing it up and out.]
cw: blood
Once both he and the blood are only a few feet from the top, Light grabs the rope with both hands and starts climbing again, hoping Diluc will be alert enough to help him up.]
cw: blood
He silently thanks Barbatos that the bugs weren’t swimmers. He kicks the hatch closed once they’re both away from it.] …we should probably keep moving soon. But we have a few minutes if you want them.
cw: blood
[This is true. He is, however, completely drenched in blood, which makes the smile he gives Diluc look more than a little unhinged. Light pushes his dripping bangs out of his face and sighs.]
Let's keep moving.
no subject
The walls are sharply defined. At the far end are two doors. One is marked with wind whorls carved into the wooden surface. Strange flowers that Diluc knows. Some look like wind wheels. Some like bells. A mountain peak crowned in whirling winds is on the right side. The outline of a city the left. He doesn’t touch the door. But it is clear that he feels drawn with it. He looks to the second door.]
no subject
Should we split up?
no subject
[He opens his door and steps inside. The door shuts behind him. The walls are painted with more of the scenery, gently moving and filling him with a sense of peace. It's a piece of home. A sign hangs before the far door.
Who should escape?
Two slates sit with their names on it, and the small podium before him has a slot in the middle. He picks up Light's name slate and slides it in, tapping it. It lights up and he waits.]
no subject
[Light walks into his room and approaches the podium, his eyes narrowing at the instruction on the wall. Something about the setup feels familiar, a logic puzzle he's toyed with before. The Prisoner's Dilemma, or something like it. Except here, there's no explanation beforehand of what the different outcomes will mean. If the goal is to have the most votes, the best option would always be to vote for oneself. If it's some sort of trick--exposing your vote to your partner, for instance, or punishing selfishness--the calculus changes. There's no way to know. Diluc will almost certainly vote for Light; the man's self-righteousness wouldn't let him do anything else. Would voting for Diluc get him points for teamwork, or would it just cause their votes to cancel out and fail?
Light slides his own name into the repository. A moment later, the door out to the Staywell appears, and the walls of his room light up green.
He's off for a much-needed bath. Sorry, Diluc.]
\wrapped
This taught him several things. For one, his assessment hadn’t been wrong.
Noted. Very much noted.]