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2.0 Test Drive Meme
2.0 Test Drive Meme
Premise & Arrival ֍ FAQ ֍ Apply ֍ Navigation
Welcome to Well! Characters arrive the same way every month. Your character arrives with only a handful of memories, clad in old west style clothes of your choosing, with no items from home. This month, there is a strong possibility that those old west style clothes include a pair of jorts or daisy dukes.
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 April, May, and June.
Applications are open April 26th until May 1st, and May 27th until June 1st. Invites are available for friends of current players.
All-Night Diner
Content warnings: feelings of euphoria and mild intoxication, exhaustion
There’s banner over the diner's doorway reading Welcome!, with colorful flags drooping in the heat. Inside, the waiter greets you with a wide smile and an announcement:
“Welcome to the Stardust Diner! Pie’s on the house today. Have a seat.”
During the day, the diner is just that: a diner. You can get anything on the very extensive menu, including prickly pear lemonade. The pie is free, and everything else is put on the tab for your room that will never come due, probably. It seems like a shame to eat that pie all alone! Accepting a piece of pie makes you feel like you should share this moment with someone. Luckily all the booths are plush and open, and it’s easy to plop down with a stranger to share this special moment.
At night, the mood shifts. The diner’s neon sign is a beacon against the thick darkness, beckoning you in with blinking lights and a line of text reading FORGET YOUR WORRIES. Inside, country-swing music rolls in time with throbbing red lights. The tables have been pushed aside to make room for a makeshift sticky dance floor, and the atmosphere is intoxicating.
It’s as easy as anything to be swept along with the vibes, the dancing, the intensity of it all. When you start dancing, you really do forget your worries. You forget that you don’t know how you got here and that you don’t may not even know the person beside you; you forget that you’re supposed to be anywhere else except here. Everything feels briefly perfect and beautiful, meant to be, no matter what else is happening to you.
When you stumble outside, it will be dawn, no matter how long you think you’ve been there, and you’ll be exhausted enough to simply curl up right there in the sand and fall asleep. Hope you made a friend kind enough to drag you home, or that someone wakes you up!
tl;dr:
There’s banner over the diner's doorway reading Welcome!, with colorful flags drooping in the heat. Inside, the waiter greets you with a wide smile and an announcement:
“Welcome to the Stardust Diner! Pie’s on the house today. Have a seat.”
During the day, the diner is just that: a diner. You can get anything on the very extensive menu, including prickly pear lemonade. The pie is free, and everything else is put on the tab for your room that will never come due, probably. It seems like a shame to eat that pie all alone! Accepting a piece of pie makes you feel like you should share this moment with someone. Luckily all the booths are plush and open, and it’s easy to plop down with a stranger to share this special moment.
At night, the mood shifts. The diner’s neon sign is a beacon against the thick darkness, beckoning you in with blinking lights and a line of text reading FORGET YOUR WORRIES. Inside, country-swing music rolls in time with throbbing red lights. The tables have been pushed aside to make room for a makeshift sticky dance floor, and the atmosphere is intoxicating.
It’s as easy as anything to be swept along with the vibes, the dancing, the intensity of it all. When you start dancing, you really do forget your worries. You forget that you don’t know how you got here and that you don’t may not even know the person beside you; you forget that you’re supposed to be anywhere else except here. Everything feels briefly perfect and beautiful, meant to be, no matter what else is happening to you.
When you stumble outside, it will be dawn, no matter how long you think you’ve been there, and you’ll be exhausted enough to simply curl up right there in the sand and fall asleep. Hope you made a friend kind enough to drag you home, or that someone wakes you up!
tl;dr:
- The diner is open and the pie is free.
- If you get a slice of pie, you feel compelled to share it with someone.
- At night, the diner transforms into essentially a nightclub. The vibes are intoxicating and you can forget all your worries and dance the night away.
- You can only leave at dawn, and your body will be exhausted. Better get help getting back to your room!
Something’s Coming
Content warnings: blood, blood-sucking, monsters
A few hours after dusk, strange creatures begin to scurry from shadow to shadow, chasing after anything that moves: chupacabras. Large ones. They’re big creatures, the size of large dogs with spikes down their spines and tails, dark and hairless with fearsome teeth. They are everywhere, and they are hungry.
They are indiscriminate in who they try to bite: the biggest among you is just as at risk as the smallest, but the bigger you are, the more of them might come for the fight. No matter where you are, there’s a risk: they seem adept at making their way into buildings. You might find one looming over your bed, resting on your chest, getting ready to bite; one might slip into the diner while you’re dancing and latch on when you’ve forgotten to be concerned.
If a chupacabra manages to bite you, it will suck your blood, and it won’t stop until you’re completely drained unless you do something about it. Having your blood sucked by one is not a pleasant experience, it’s excruciatingly painful and the creatures will do their best to keep you prone while eating their fill. The more they drink, the more exhausted you’ll get, until it’s very difficult to fight them off.
They can be killed or scared off, but the further they are into a fight or into their meal, the harder they are to get rid of. If a chupacabra has latched on to you, you’ll need help escaping!
tl;dr:
A few hours after dusk, strange creatures begin to scurry from shadow to shadow, chasing after anything that moves: chupacabras. Large ones. They’re big creatures, the size of large dogs with spikes down their spines and tails, dark and hairless with fearsome teeth. They are everywhere, and they are hungry.
They are indiscriminate in who they try to bite: the biggest among you is just as at risk as the smallest, but the bigger you are, the more of them might come for the fight. No matter where you are, there’s a risk: they seem adept at making their way into buildings. You might find one looming over your bed, resting on your chest, getting ready to bite; one might slip into the diner while you’re dancing and latch on when you’ve forgotten to be concerned.
If a chupacabra manages to bite you, it will suck your blood, and it won’t stop until you’re completely drained unless you do something about it. Having your blood sucked by one is not a pleasant experience, it’s excruciatingly painful and the creatures will do their best to keep you prone while eating their fill. The more they drink, the more exhausted you’ll get, until it’s very difficult to fight them off.
They can be killed or scared off, but the further they are into a fight or into their meal, the harder they are to get rid of. If a chupacabra has latched on to you, you’ll need help escaping!
tl;dr:
- Chupacabras strike the town at dusk.
- They want to suck your blood, and are indiscriminate in who they attack. They will try and drain you completely.
- They can be fought or scared off. It's easier to get rid of them if you have a pal.
The Walls Have Eyes
Content warnings: eyes, trypophobia
There are eyes everywhere. They peer out of cracks in walls, the floor, the grout in your shower, an open cut in your skin. There are even eyes in the craters on the moon, staring down at you unblinking.
These eyes seem familiar, even if you don’t remember them. You feel like you do. You feel a heavy weight settle over you when you look at them, guilt curdling in the pit of your gut.
The eyes belong to someone, or someones, who you’ve hurt or let down. They belong to your greatest mistake, to someone who you left behind, to someone who you regret. The same eyes over and over again, or the eyes of many who you’ve hurt, watching you, judging you, pleading for you to save them or apologize or make up for the mistakes you may not even remember making. You just know that you made them. They eyes don't lie.
The more you ignore these eyes, the more they seem to encroach on you: appearing in the walls, following you around corners, in the creases of your knuckles, the fold of your sheets. They replace the eyes of the people around you, the same eyes staring at you from everywhere you look.
Your skin itches with the constant feeling of being watched. Your head feels tight, and your own eyes feel too full, like there’s too much of you inside your skin. You’d do anything to get away from this feeling.
Soon enough, the mounting pressure explodes: you have to confront them and your guilt and your mistakes, and beg for the forgiveness they’re asking of you. Even if you don’t remember what those mistakes were, or why you should feel guilty, you have to tell someone. If you don't, the feeling will only mount, until all you can see are eyes. Eyes, just eyes.
tl;dr:
There are eyes everywhere. They peer out of cracks in walls, the floor, the grout in your shower, an open cut in your skin. There are even eyes in the craters on the moon, staring down at you unblinking.
These eyes seem familiar, even if you don’t remember them. You feel like you do. You feel a heavy weight settle over you when you look at them, guilt curdling in the pit of your gut.
The eyes belong to someone, or someones, who you’ve hurt or let down. They belong to your greatest mistake, to someone who you left behind, to someone who you regret. The same eyes over and over again, or the eyes of many who you’ve hurt, watching you, judging you, pleading for you to save them or apologize or make up for the mistakes you may not even remember making. You just know that you made them. They eyes don't lie.
The more you ignore these eyes, the more they seem to encroach on you: appearing in the walls, following you around corners, in the creases of your knuckles, the fold of your sheets. They replace the eyes of the people around you, the same eyes staring at you from everywhere you look.
Your skin itches with the constant feeling of being watched. Your head feels tight, and your own eyes feel too full, like there’s too much of you inside your skin. You’d do anything to get away from this feeling.
Soon enough, the mounting pressure explodes: you have to confront them and your guilt and your mistakes, and beg for the forgiveness they’re asking of you. Even if you don’t remember what those mistakes were, or why you should feel guilty, you have to tell someone. If you don't, the feeling will only mount, until all you can see are eyes. Eyes, just eyes.
tl;dr:
- The eyes of someone(s) who embodies your regret appear in the cracks of the world around you.
- The more you ignore the eyes, the more of them appear, and the more you feel an intense, heavy sense of guilt.
- The guilt you feel can be based on things you remember, or things you don't. If it's based on things you don't know, your head will also hurt.
- The eyes will ease if you admit your guilt, to the best of your ability. Tell someone your guilt, and the eyes will recede.
- If you don't, your whole world will become eyes.
ariane yeong | signalis
Where earth's pores ought to suffice
And things have learned to walk
That ought to crawl
WAKE UP ]
//01. arrival.
//02. all-night diner.
//03. the walls have eyes. cw: mild self-harm
All Night Diner
She gives a little shrug and her silver eyes scan the area for a spot where she can sit down on her own while she answers.]
Uh. Hey- Yeah. I haven't been here very long. But I'm not especially hungry right now.
[That was a lie. That's exactly why she had come here.]
no subject
[ Ariane is one to talk. She looks like shit, practically emaciated, with pronounced circles under her eyes. But Ariane was always too honest for her own good. It used to get her in trouble all the time. ]
Have a slice. [ Ariane pushes a second slice of apple pie forward, untouched. ] You don't have to talk to me.
[ Ariane's great at not talking. ]
no subject
I... I've been worse.
[If her memories were anything to go off of. She was aware that she had apparently died before she got here. Her silver focus on the pie briefly. She doesn't dig in right away, but she grabs a fork and lightly pokes and prods at it with a fork.]
Uh- Thanks.
I don't have much to say honestly.
no subject
[ Ariane pulls out some dusty magazine -- a farmer's almanac, by the looks of it, although it's hard to believe anyone farms out here in the desert. But in terms of reading material, Ariane will take what she can get. ]
I can just read while you eat. That way you don't have to talk to me at all.
1
[Arms crossed and leaning against a nearby wall, as if he was waiting for her.]
There's no calendars anywhere either. Wherever we are, we're not supposed to know how much time passes.
[But that's not as important as how she looks right now.]
Are you... okay?
[Because she does not look okay.]
no subject
Well, when I went to bed last night, I was fine. Now I'm - this. [ She gestures generally at her body. ] This doesn't happen overnight, so either I'm dreaming, or it's been years.
[ She takes a breath. ]
Which is why I need to know the date.
no subject
[And hope she doesn't mind some more staring, because that's what he's doing. He's obviously not looking peak either with those tired eyes, missing front tooth, and scar across his cheek, but she's a fair amount worse.]
Knowing the date might not even help. Start with this: did you fall asleep here? What did you look like before you went to sleep?
no subject
Those are fair questions. Ariane nods. ]
No, I fell asleep on my ship, the Penrose-512. It was in the process of crossing the oort cloud. Before I went to sleep, my hair was chin length, and I didn't have any of these. [ She gestures to her bandages. ] I don't know if you know how fast human hair grows. I definitely don't.
[ That would be weird! ]
no subject
[He points to her chin.]
To there...
[Now to her waist.]
That's years. Like maybe a couple? Maybe for humans it's different...?
And the bandages... If you didn't put them on, that means someone did it for you. So you weren't alone, at least?
no subject
Years sounds about right, but it's not especially easy to here. Ariane nods grimly. ]
Yeah. I was on a ship with another person, so I guess she helped? I don't know why she would, though. We're not close. [ Ariane says, in the clipped, brusque way that suggests she isn't close with many people.
But hold up: ] What do you mean, for humans? Are you... not human? [ Aside from the pointed ears, he looks perfectly human to Ariane. ]
no subject
[Said bluntly, but also so matter-of-fact he clearly doesn't realize this could come off in a rude way.]
Oh. Um... yeah. I don't think I am. I mean...
[He touches the point of his ear and then points towards hers.]
Everyone here's got round ears, except me.
no subject
[ Ariane doesn't take offense to that. In fact, it's almost close to a lead: maybe she was asleep, and for a really, really long time. It's not the most plausible explanation, but at least it's coherent.
Ariane shrugs, unsure what pointed ears have to do with not being human. ]
I mean, most humans don't have red eyes, either. But we both do. So either you're human, or I'm not, but it probably doesn't matter either way, right?
[ It's not like being a human, and living with other humans, has done Ariane any real favors. ]
1.
[Palamedes stands near the foot of the stairs leading up to the rooms on the higher floors, watching the woman with gentle concern. He doesn’t recognize her, which is a new feeling after months surrounded by the same two dozen people. She looks…ragged, and not just because of the bandages.]
He is right about the breakfast, though. I recommend taking advantage of it. Or at least having a cup of tea. [rueful] I know it sounds silly, given these circumstances, but I find that tea always makes a difficult situation easier to handle.
no subject
Fair enough. You're probably right. [ She relaxes a little. ] Thanks for getting me out of there. The tea's with the breakfast?
no subject
He steps down off the last stair and gestures for the woman to follow him towards the dining room.] Am I right to assume you have only recently arrived? I don’t recognize you, I’m afraid.
no subject
Is that what they're calling the Empress now?
[ Shit, that's not what you're supposed to say when you've met the enemy. Ariane's been told since she was young that that's what a gun is for. But she doesn't have a gun, or any real specific dislike for the Empire, so the best she can do is keep asking questions. And follow him. ]
Yes. I'm Scout Officer Ariane Yeong, of the Eusan People's Navy, and I won't detain you if you don't detain me.
[ Diplomacy!! ]
no subject
[As Ariane will quickly discover, Palamedes has no idea who the King Undying is or why the exclamation comes so easily to his lips. Asking him about the man behind the title is like asking someone to talk about the Betsy in heaven’s to Betsy.
He pauses in the doorway of the dining room and turns to look at Ariane with a puzzled expression.] A pleasure to meet you, Scout Officer. I’m called Palamedes Sextus, and I haven’t the slightest idea why I would want to detain you—or vice versa, for that matter.
no subject
[ Ariane says, as if she's pointing out the sky, or the ground, or any other obvious fact about the world. But this Palamedes Sextus really seems to not going on, if he doesn't know why being from the Empire means they're supposed to be enemies, automatically.
Emphasis on supposed to. This place seems to play by different rules, after all. ]
Well, we're at war, aren't we? My Nation has been at war with the Empire since its founding. [ Ariane doesn't remember precisely how long it's been, just that you couldn't go through a single school day without talk about the war. ]
no subject
…I believe we may be operating under a misunderstanding. [He speaks slowly, politely, knowing the wrong word could turn this abruptly towards violence. How he knows this, and why it leaves him with a sudden tightness in the back of his throat, he isn’t sure.] Idiosyncratic idioms aside, I don’t have any particular love for my Emperor. [A beat.] I don’t think.
[He considers taking a shot in the dark. It had worked with Nona—and oh, how he craves another thread-like connection to his home, someone else who can fill in his scattered remembrances.] Tell me, does the phrase ‘Blood of Eden’ mean anything to you?
no subject
Ariane nods. A misunderstanding makes sense. Maybe this is one of the worlds she was sent to find? Maybe there are multiple Empires - an exciting prospect, even if Ariane assumes that's something she should be afraid of. ]
It doesn't mean anything to me, no. [ Ariane thinks about it, but nope, still drawing a blank. ] It's a beautiful name, though.
It's all right. I don't think - [ Ariane looks over her shoulder, as if making sure no one's listening. ] - If I had to guess, I don't think I liked my Nation much, either.
[ The few memories she has of it aren't great, at least. ]
no subject
It is, isn’t it? An unsettling one, too, but beautiful things can be unsettling sometimes. [A beat.] Given we know so little of each other, or of ourselves, for that matter, perhaps we might start over? Even if we would be enemies at home, nothing says we must be so here.
(no subject)
(no subject)
no subject
[ she leans across the counter to ask the receptionist, ] What day is it today?
[ to which the obvious answer is "what is there to do in town? i'd check out the saloon, and the diner has great food if you want something different. stay in town, though, it gets dangerous outside at night." yang gives the long-haired woman a weary, knowing look. ]
No days of the week, either.
no subject
No days of the week. Got it. [ Repeats Ariane, as if she knows what those are. She has some vague memories of school, but nothing that specific. ]
Have you... been here long? [ She seems to have things together much more than Ariane does. And maybe Ariane can find out how long she's expected to stay here. ]
no subject
Not that long. A day or two? Just long enough to explore the inn, [ she pushes away from the counter, rocking back on her heels before straightening her posture, ] and hear a lot about breakfast and some storm that's coming. The only ones who don't seem to be on a script are people like me and you.