recollecters: (Default)
Recollé Mods ([personal profile] recollecters) wrote in [community profile] repeter2018-01-17 08:44 pm
Entry tags:

JANUARY 2018 TDM

TEST DRIVE
JANUARY TEST DRIVE
The city of Recollé...

What do you mean the city's behaving for once?

I.
The large opaque dome enveloping the entire city continues to stand tall and firm, though this may be the first time you've noticed the dome itself rather than believe it's simply an eclipse effect. Faintly reflective in appearance but blocking the outside world, the dome still allows the warmth of the weak winter sunlight to seep through. It isn't hard to breathe, and the flora and fauna seem to be responding just as naturally as always. But the city of Recollé is pitch black except for the light citizens shine themselves.

The dome stretches incredibly high over the city, but anyone who can get close enough to it will find that they can briefly see themselves in the surface. Upon touching the dome, it appears to be smooth and almost rubbery in texture despite a shell-like shield appearance. Soundproof and unable to provide clues to what's happening outside of the city the dome is also harmless for those who wish to touch it and examine it, causing it to bounce a few times under light impact. However, do be careful not to trigger its defense mode! Should anyone attempt to damage the dome itself, it will light up with a bright, sickening blue color for three seconds before delivering a shock to its attacker and rendering them unconscious for an hour. Perhaps you'll get lucky and you'll only deal with the too-hot-to-touch surface that self-activates when the dome is threatened, or the spikes that appear at the source of impact. The dome seems to have a temperament of its own. It may be best to treat it the way you want to be treated.

II.
Going about your normal day, the darkness seems endless aside from whatever light can be shed via flashlights, cell phones and interior lights inside buildings. However, as you wander the streets of the city, under your feet a swirl of yellow light appears before darting ahead, bouncing and bobbing its way over snow and concrete to create a clear path for you. It's a little convenient to have a guide to follow, but you're not the only one. Others around you are following their own lights and they all seem to gather right at the entrance of the old subway station. Perpetually under construction for as long as you can remember, the station appears to be wide open for anyone who ventures in.

The light will guide you for roughly twenty-five feet before it dies down again. You're allowed to turn back, of course. There's nothing stopping you...except for the vine that suddenly snakes along the ground and wraps around your ankle, hooking onto you and beginning to drag you further into the tunnels. Now would be a good time to start calling for help.

III.

Back in the city itself, it's hard to say who, exactly, is to blame for the first hit. People are minding their own business and moving on as if everything is perfectly natural as usual. However, in addition to the hustle and bustle small barrels appear on every street corner with an assortment of colored guns. The moment you step up to investigate one of these barrels it becomes a little more clear what, exactly, is happening here.

A bright red, green, or blue dot appears on your skin as the laser light hones in on you. Someone's decided to make you their next target in a city-wide game of laser tag and you have precisely ten seconds to run. For anyone tagged by the guns, a confetti-effect of red green and blue dots will appear all over you lasting for up to fifteen minutes before you're back in the game.

Will you grab your weapons and join the game? Or will you dodge as long as you can?

IV.
As the evening sets in, there's a smell in the air. It's not the usual winter-y scent of peppermint or warm soup or anything like that. No, you soon realize that the smell is buttered popcorn and now instead of the barrels of laser tag guns there are carts containing popcorn machines, bottles of soda, candy and more. These carts don't move and they do not seem to be manned by anybody so feel free to take as much as you'd like! At precisely 7pm, the street lights dim a little and the dome above you starts to...glow? It glows and a picture stretches all the way across the sky as a movie begins to play for your enjoyment. Maybe it's the first of the Galaxy Fights series, or it could be that crazy archaeologist turned fortune-hunter Kentucky Smith. The movies will rotate one after the other for the rest of the evening until 7am when the street lamps come on, but for now grab some blankets and a good seat. There's always time for a movie with some friends.

BONUS.
Of course communication to people outside of the city is still out of the question. Of course it is. There are absolutely no signs of that changing anytime soon no matter how many times you call or text or email. Snail mail is nearly impossible and don't even think about videochatting.

On the other hand, it seems as though the powerlines above are beginning to spark, pulsing in patterns of a bright blue color visible to the naked eye. What's up with that? Trying to get a closer look will only reveal a thick, crackling sort of energy that is surely not dangerous in the slightest and is nothing to worry about.

The energy won't leave the powerlines at all, but instead the next time you use your phone for anything a song activates instead. It's loud and it can't be shut down, but once it ends you may find yourself in a video chat with a fellow Retrospec user. Say hi!

Welcome to the [community profile] recolle test drive meme! All characters will be begin in-game AU'd as Recollé residents. You may use any of the above prompts for ideas or make up your own depicting your Recollé AU! Prompts do not have to be set in the districts listed above. You can review our list of locations for what's available. Please note that TDM threads can be used as samples, can be kept as game canon, and can also be used for bonus points for future item regains. Share a few minor details of your AU, tag around, and have fun!

For current players, please remember that TDM threads can only be used for bonus points, not regains.

Please note: you will need a reserve to apply, and current characters must have full AC posted at the time of their reservation.

Your January TDM directory is here, and your AU workshop is here! Our mod questions thread for this TDM is over here!
dulynoted: (pic#12000676)

III

[personal profile] dulynoted 2018-01-18 06:09 am (UTC)(link)
[ Akira is also abstaining because he's Too Old for this. And because he has better things to do. That doesn't mean he hasn't seen people ducking back and forth in the streets and trying to snipe from a distance, clearly inspired by the perpetual darkness.

Sigh.

He's found it more ominous but less inconvenient than he thought he would. Arguably, this changes things a bit. Because if someone shoots him he's not going to be happy.

Which is why he looks about impressed as one might imagine that his little sister is pulling one on him. ]


I think I should be saying that to you instead.

[ He also sounds PRETTY SERIOUS there, Maki. ]
energybent: (sways (22))

[personal profile] energybent 2018-01-18 06:11 am (UTC)(link)
[ ... except she notices something, and immediately she's on his tail. Korra isn't sure if he's a part of the game, but it's an honest mistake if not, right?

It's not like he'd get hurt!!

Korra skids to a halt just outside his hiding spot, and she jumps out at-- ]


Mako?!

[ whoa what. ]

I haven't seen you since we were kids!
idealest: (all of his questions)

[personal profile] idealest 2018-01-18 06:12 am (UTC)(link)
[ ONE HOUR LATER

Sakichi stirs. There's something around his face. He automatically slaps a hand down on it, and is surprised to feel something furry. Still, he finds a strong grip on it as he pushes himself up on his other arm. ]


What happened...?

[ What is he holding. A raccoon of some kind?

just gonna talk to it i guess ]


Where are you from? I've never seen any raccoons like you around here.
justfists: weeknd @ dw (Default)

i-a.

[personal profile] justfists 2018-01-18 06:12 am (UTC)(link)
[this was it. She'd finally screwed up enough courage to go find him, after having been afraid that... maybe she was being too presumptuous here. Perhaps the emotional attachment to the letters she'd received had been only one-sided, all in her imagination. But, Makoto was not one to avoid the truth. She had to know, even if it left her with an awkward year in Recolle, knowing her brother was close... yet far.

But, she had to scold herself, mentally, for jumping too far ahead. Maybe it was okay? It could be fine. He could welcome her, or-- at least be polite?

Her hands were gripping her bag way too tightly as she approaches where she thinks he'll be, ready to call out his name.

And then she hears his question, and she notices for the first time that-- the dome? It's there? It's real? She hesitates.]


Um... Sakichi?
bylight: (softness)

[personal profile] bylight 2018-01-18 06:13 am (UTC)(link)
What, and not gotten the satisfaction of finding out on your own? You would have still punched it to make sure.

[Doesn't look too damaged...]

I have a first aid kit at the bar with some burn cream.
energybent: (sways (112))

[personal profile] energybent 2018-01-18 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
[ Don't call her out like this.... ]

Yeah, I guess that's true. And-- that sounds pretty nice, actually. It's not too far from here, right?
crudest: (♚ poko huff)

[personal profile] crudest 2018-01-18 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
[Some things never change and that's apparently including the fact that Sakichi's going to keep talking to a raccoon that can't respond.

Tanuki is sort of content to be held?

He's fat. Love him. He will reach out one paw to press against Sakichi's cheek.

Hello.

He sneezes in Sakichi's face.]
admiringly: (189)

iii

[personal profile] admiringly 2018-01-18 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
[ Chiyo knows that voice, knows that hat, knows those eyes. Her face lights up even in the darkness. She trots over to him and crouches next to him, handing over her laser gun without a second's hesitation.

She trusts him with her (laser tag) LIFE. ]


Are you going to try to clear a path, Sakichi?
idealest: (his pound of flesh)

[personal profile] idealest 2018-01-18 06:15 am (UTC)(link)
[ i mean somehow it is, because ]

Bwah!

[ Sakichi sits up real fast, and probably headbutts Zoro if he's crouching too close ]
dragonspooker: (stay on target)

Lina Inverse | Slayers

[personal profile] dragonspooker 2018-01-18 06:17 am (UTC)(link)
[Workshop post is here!]

I: Well I'll Be Domed

This is. New. New, and stupid, and irritating. Lita growls and grumps, taking time to poke at the dome for a bit before just erupting into yelling at the thing. "C'mon, what's the big idea?! I've got to get to IFC before they close! Let! Me! Through!" she shouts, punctuating that last bit with a trio of useless, stompy kicks into the surface of the dome.

The blue glow that follows catches her off-guard, and she stares anxiously at it before she gets jolted for her trouble, knocking her off her feet and back about ten feet with a pained scream, leaving her a crumpled, unconscious heap on the ground.

Oops.

--

III: A Shot in the Dark

Lita had started taking part in the game, earlier. She's talked big and gloated to a number of people, and she paid for it, now grumpily slumped down on a bench with guns in-hand, but a persistent confetti effect over her head that's lasted roughly ten minutes at this point. Most people that approach her while carrying guns get shot a particularly venomous look, one that seems to say 'yeah, I'm out, fuck off to the left'. She could give up and go home, but. Revenge. Nobody bests Lita Chantler at a game and gets away with it!
Edited 2018-01-18 06:18 (UTC)
darin: (12)

[personal profile] darin 2018-01-18 06:18 am (UTC)(link)
[ For someone who'd all but been demanding help she's somehow pretty shocked when she gets it.

Korra sort of wooshes in all super hero style and it leaves Maki a little wide-eyed. ]


I-I can get up myself!

[ So she thinks, the vine does recoil a bit but Maki isn't fast enough. It wraps around her ankle again, another one slowly crawling towards them both. ]

No! Absolutely not!

[ She shouts, like it'll stop the vines. She tries to kick at it with her free foot for good measure. ]
energybent: (sways (96))

[personal profile] energybent 2018-01-18 06:20 am (UTC)(link)
If I lift you up, I can probably snap the vines if I kick hard enough!

[ She's still kicking at the vines. It would be more effective to get down on the ground and pull at them, but then she runs the risk of getting caught herself, which would definitely end in disaster for both of them. ]
bylight: (mooglepalooza001)

[personal profile] bylight 2018-01-18 06:20 am (UTC)(link)
[She calls you out because she loves you.]

Just a few minutes walk. I'll lead. [Which means taking Korra's uninjured hand in her own and taking her to a bar lit up by candlelight.]
justfists: weeknd @ dw (Default)

Makoto Niijima | Persona 5

[personal profile] justfists 2018-01-18 06:21 am (UTC)(link)
i.

[she's nothing, if not inquisitive. Once it really sunk in that she'd just been... tuning out this strange bubble, she had no choice but to investigate it? To get close, and even rap it with the back of her hand a few times, as if maybe that might break the spell.

Obviously, it didn't. But you can't say she didn't try.]


Fascinating. It's been here this whole time, and I've only just noticed.

[she rubs the surface, and frowns, considering.]

... Rubber? [she glances over at you] Um, excuse me.

iii.

[look, honestly, Makoto was skeptical at first. But then, she wasn't. All she had to do was don a mask, right? And no one would know who she was, and she could play to her heart's content. She's on the green team, and she's ready to rock and roll, mask firmly in place, lest she ruin her studious reputation.]

Come get some!

[... that seemed right, she'd heard it in an American action movie, right?

Anyway, she's aggressively chasing her target. Watch out.]


iv.

[now that the laser tag is over, Makoto can remove her mask and happily stare up at the movie. She's looking pretty pleased with herself, hugging her knees to her chest as she watches the Galaxy Fight series.

America is weird.

But this was pleasant.]
hauntedsavior: (caught a glimpse of the ending)

A2 (Anna Lehmann) || NieR: Automata

[personal profile] hauntedsavior 2018-01-18 06:21 am (UTC)(link)
((hello!! here is my AU workshop post))

iii. laser tag city

[were they kidding her? first she finally figured out that this wasn't just some weird, prolonged eclipse, and now she was here in the middle of the next neighborhood over with a green laser pistol in her hand? god. Anna knew heading out today was a mistake, and she sure as hell wasn't going to entertain whoever decided that this was the way today was going to go.]

[after the whole dome thing, though, she didn't really feel like taking any risks on what might happen if she got hit. the thing was that, thanks to the always-crappy holidays, her cigarette intake might have been a little higher than usual, and she hadn't really been able to do a lot of gym stuff lately. so she managed to dodge her way into an alleyway until her lungs decided to protest and practically double her over into a coughing fit, which definitely wouldn't give her position away or anything. super great. this sucked.]


iv. movie night??

[this sucked a little less. like, yeah, sure, she was standing outside idly munching a small bag of popcorn with her head tilted up like a moron. but Anna didn't have any streaming services of her own, and everyone at work had been getting on her ass lately for never having seen a bunch of classic movies. this was probably the best time for them, because everybody was going to be talking about it tomorrow anyway, maybe.]

[she hadn't caught the title of this one, but... okay, look, it's just a really big screen and she really had been caught off guard, and that's why this girl who had been leaned up against a wall and very peacefully watching this movie just jolted hard enough to send popcorn flying out of her bag and directly into her face. hopefully she didn't yelp. like this whole thing wasn't embarrassing enough. immediately afterward, she started looking around, hoping to god nobody had seen her. she should be so lucky; that reaction was way too genuine for this to be anything but her first time seeing a "classic" movie.]


bonus. tevin campbell intensifies

What the—?

[that's one way to start a conversation. say hello to a woman who looks like she hasn't had a good night's sleep in a few weeks now. all she wanted to do was check the weather so she could decide if this was a day where she could get away with that one coat she liked with the fake fur collar—the one that she's wearing when the video clicks on.]

Get the hell out of my phone.
energybent: (sways (112))

[personal profile] energybent 2018-01-18 06:23 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah, I'm still getting used to the layout of this place.

[ Hooooo. It's so much bigger than she's used to... ]

I guess with all this darkness, it's harder to get my bearings.
browbeater: (It's so beautiful. I'm speechless.)

[personal profile] browbeater 2018-01-18 06:24 am (UTC)(link)
Korra...!

[it was her-- and more importantly.

Holy shit, she was right. He thought she was someone from his past life's memories but, actually, he'd known her in elementary school.

And he felt like a total idiot for not realizing.]


Wow.
liarboo: (with a charming extra tooth?)

Usopp "Barreto" | One Piece

[personal profile] liarboo 2018-01-18 06:25 am (UTC)(link)
[His workshop thread is here, and I'm totally open to more CR/Brainstorming if anyone wants to hit it up late!

Also, despite his icons, he will have a normal nose..... It's still larger than normal but not near the handsome specimen it should be.]



I.
[Usopp is not pleased about this whole dome business. He was, at first, scared of it, because who wouldn't be? This was some scifi crap here and for all he knew they were all running out of oxygen with every breath they took.

But after a couple weeks passed and he was sure enough they weren't about to asphyxiate he finally left his room at the bed and breakfast he had been at for only a few days before this dome shit happened. And, in fact, that's part of why he's displeased. He just arrived to the city, having moved away from his mother for the first time ever. And he had promised her he would call her every day, and now he couldn't leave the city let alone call her.

Which is why he's at the edge of the dome now, trying to figure this out. He was a smart cookie, right? He's solved loads of mazes. He could find a way out!

And obviously the way to figure it out is to poke at the dome, find it springy, then slowly push more of your finger, then hand, then hands, then face into it. For science. Not because it's a little cool and fun.]



II.
[Yeah, he was one of the suckers that followed the cute glowing orb out of curiosity only to be met with doom.

Live and learn, don't trust cute things or you'll find yourself dangling from a horrible monster vine far too high up in the air for your own comfort or safety.]


Help!! Help me, anyone, someone!!!

[He screams and basically cries openly as he flails violently, but impotently, in the air.]


III.
[Guns weren't his weapon of choice, as it were. Bow and arrows were more of his target shooting forté. He had dozens of trophies and prize money still in the bank to prove this fact.

But he was still quite good with a gun, and he picks up an orange one out of the barrel with the first look of glee since he was trapped in the city.

He turns around, holding the gun up, already peering down the site with an expert flare, despite the fact it was just a toy.]


Who's going down first!


BONUS.
[He didn't really mean to get so close to the weird, sparking powerlines but he had to pass under some in order to buy some cup of noodles to replenish his stock.

On his way back to the bed and breakfast he pulls out his phone in hopes he could finally call his mother, but as soon as he swipes to unlock it a crazy loud, somewhat familiar song blares out at him. With a shriek he drops the phone as he himself drops to the ground on his ass, hand going to his racing heart.]


What the hell was that about?!!

[He shouts, not noticing that a face of a stranger has appeared on his phone's screen...]
darin: (4)

[personal profile] darin 2018-01-18 06:28 am (UTC)(link)
[ It's not often she's in any kind of position to bargain with her siblings, but especially not her older brother. Maki tilts her gun forward, and looks down the barrel(?). ]

My tiramisu from last week--

[ She doesn't explain any further, because obviously anyone in their family would know what she was talking about. Cases of stolen snacks were a common catalyst for cold wars in their household. ]

Was it you? Or was it Megumi?
energybent: (sways (96))

[personal profile] energybent 2018-01-18 06:28 am (UTC)(link)
Don't tell me you forgot me!

[ She actually sounds kind of upset by the idea. He'd just... disappeared, and at the time, she'd wondered if she'd done something wrong. Silly, but she was just a kid.

She's looking at him expectantly, though, gun held at her side. There's also a touch of curiosity. Korra hadn't really expected to meet Mako again after so many years, but it's a big city, isn't it? ]
idealest: (your darkest moments)

[personal profile] idealest 2018-01-18 06:28 am (UTC)(link)
[ He pauses. That voice is familiar, yet impossible. The last he knew, she was supposed to be in Japan.

He removes the light from his hat and points it between them, the better for them to see each other. It feels like it's been a long time since he's seen her in person, but she's just familiar enough. He would be a poor kind of brother if he couldn't recognize his own little sister.

His eyebrows lift only slightly, but the surprise on his face is clear to anyone familiar with him. ]


Makoto? Is that you? Why are you here?
browbeater: Ha ha? (Calc...you... later?)

[personal profile] browbeater 2018-01-18 06:30 am (UTC)(link)
No-- I mean.

[a pause, and then more firmly]

No, I just... hadn't thought to catch up.

[it was elementary school, and he feels awkward in normal interactions. He places his hands on his hips, and pulls down his hood.]
idealest: (stuck still no turning back)

[personal profile] idealest 2018-01-18 06:32 am (UTC)(link)
[ gross

Sakichi wipes his face. ]


Are you from outside the dome?

[ He bundles Tanuki up underarm and heads back for the dome. He will see if you seem like you want to get out, fat furry creature. What if he holds you out toward it... ]
darin: (7)

I

[personal profile] darin 2018-01-18 06:33 am (UTC)(link)
Uh, yeah?

[ She scoffs, like it's the most obvious thing in the world. Was he even looking at it? ]

You know how religious people always say things like 'God sees everything you do'? That's the first thing I think of when I look at this.
fiddlestick: (hmmmmm)

i

[personal profile] fiddlestick 2018-01-18 06:34 am (UTC)(link)
[Elliot had come to investigate the shell to see if he could get any clues from it. He had hoped to go with Eren, but for some reason he wasn't answering his phone. So he was here alone when Makoto shows up, looking lost in thought as he stared at the wall. Her voice will make him come to attention]

Oh- yes?