repeter | JANUARY 2018 TDM

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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

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!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[[ Howdy! Delta's workshop post is available here for quick reference. :> alternatively, if you wanna hash something out, feel absolutely free to hit that up! ]]
[[ Aaand as Delta isn't going to be the same physically, he's basically just. a very forgettable tall-ish dude that looks like he's spent a lot of time out in the sun over the past few years-- about 6'2", fairly sturdy in build, and in pretty decent shape for his age. he's not much special, and it's whatever as far as he's concerned. ]]

[ I. ]

[ The dome's always been there, hasn't it? It's-- a bit too big to be smuggled into place under cover of night or something like that, and it certainly feels as though it's been a long time since it got where it was today. Jacob can't figure out what it is about it that's gotten his attention today of all days, but something about it just doesn't quite sit right. Why's it here, anyway? There's no way it's doing much good blocking everything in-- or...out, as the case may be. ]
[ That's an uncomfortable thought. Was it for protection, or quarantine? Nothing in the city seemed to be amiss, but then again, the damn dome hadn't seemed like it even existed up until very, very recently. ]

[ Getting out to a spot where he could actually investigate it had taken some doing-- his beat-up excuse for a truck certainly hadn't enjoyed the trip, nor had it done much to make it all that pleasant-- but after some effort and bellyaching on both their parts, Jacob's parked the vehicle a short ways off from a portion of the dome's bottom edge. He's made a point to leave it a distance away just in case; it's probably going to be fine, but he's only got the one car, and if he manages to blow it up or something with this little side trip, he's going to be both pissed and stranded. That certainly isn't going to end well for him. ]
[ He wasn't expecting to see his reflection in the dome's surface for the half-second it was there, and it's enough to convince him to take a half-step back to get as much of a better look as he can. Needless to say, it's not working out as well as he'd hoped-- the yellow glow of his headlights can only do so much, and his phone light's not helping matters, either. Cautiously, he nudges the dome with the toe of a well-scuffed work boot, brow furrowing in silent contemplation as he waits for the response. It...doesn't appear to be doing much, though? Was it supposed to? ]

[ He's pretty distracted at the moment, and the rumble of his truck's engine is doing a good job of drowning out the little noises that might warn him of anyone else's presence. To his credit, Jacob's trying a few different things to try and get a feel for what he's looking at-- seeing as the nudge didn't do anything, he's felt around for a sturdy enough stick to give it a prod with. That earns a sudden wave of heat, and his startled curse is much, much louder than he intended. ]
[ --hopefully, nobody was around to hear that. Probably. He looks around to be sure, shaking his hand a few times to try and cool his singed fingers down faster. It's fine! He's fine. He'll pretend that didn't happen. ]

[ II. ]

[ Admittedly, Jacob hadn't been expecting the subway to be the end point of this goose chase, but-- well, here he was. ]
[ He'd followed the light after a minute or two of curious appraisal, watching the glow as it danced over the terrain; it didn't take a lot of thinking to piece together what it wanted, but whether or not it was a good idea was another thing entirely. He was off today, though-- there were perks to being your own boss-- and that meant that he could spend an hour or so following whatever the hell this was to its intended destination. There's plenty of other people in front of the station when he finally gets there, so...on the plus side, he wasn't the only one who decided to take a detour today! ]
[ He clears his throat awkwardly before he speaks, eyeing the entrance to the station with clear suspicion while his light twirls in front of it. ]

So...that looks like a real good place to get mugged, if you ask me. [ Sure, the light show was a neat trick, but he doesn't trust it much. ] Do we know if anybody's gone in yet, or--? 'Cause if they have, somebody should probably go in after 'em.
[ It's not so much 'probably' as it is 'definitely,' and Jacob's already bracing himself to go running in. Might as well be prepared for it-- somebody ought'a be. ]

[ IV. ]

[ The popcorn's actually pretty decent, surprisingly enough-- he's more than happy to go back for seconds, keeping an eye on the fight scene playing out on the dome overhead as best he can in-between scooping some more snacks into his bag. Jacob appears to be enjoying himself, as much as he's outwardly showing; there's a small smile on his face, and he gives a quiet chuckle when one of the protagonist's cheesy one-liners draw a groan from some of the audience. His soda's still doing alright, and he figures he can pass on a refill for the moment; there were snacks to focus on, and that was the important part. Once he's of the opinion that he's gotten enough to munch on, he leans back against the nearest wall, idly tossing a few pieces of popcorn into his mouth. This impromptu cinema showing's confused the hell out of him, but hey-- he can afford to relax for a minute, right? There's just-- one thing that's bothering him, though. ]

You have any idea what movie this is? [ He hasn't looked down yet, but he's not quite paying as much attention to the film as he was a few seconds ago. ] I got nothing, honestly. Been watching it since it came on, but I'm drawing a blank, sorry to say.

Are you volunteering?

[Rosalind glances over. She has her own little light bobbing a few feet ahead of her, but she isn't paying it much mind. She looks faintly annoyed, but don't take it personally, buddy, she's always kind of annoyed, especially lately.]

More or less. [ A shrug. He glances around at the others, looking a little unimpressed with the whole affair. ] Not like we've got a whole lot of eager volunteers from what I see-- so I figured I'd bite the bullet.
[ Just a proverbial one for now-- Jacob doesn't think it's going to get much worse than that, but he's holding out for something far less pleasant. Better to prepare now than to be caught off-guard later. ]

Besides, with people running into a construction zone on their own? Someone's gonna get hurt at this rate, and it's better we get 'em out now than wait until things go wrong.

And what happens when you need rescuing, hm?

[She's certainly not going to go in, but nor does Rosalind feel comfortable simply wishing this man a happy trip.]

[ That's a good point, really-- Jacob knows he can't argue it, although it doesn't stop him from reaching into his pocket to grab his phone for the flashlight anyway. He's gonna need the extra light, and he's not about to trust the yellow one swirling at his feet for that much. ]

Well-- we burn that bridge when we get to it, I guess. [ His tone's flat and matter-of-fact, like he's making the most casual observation possible. What other options are there? While they didn't know who all had actually gone into the station, it was safe to assume there'd at least been a few brave (or overeager) souls who'd taken the plunge. ] Look, I'm not a fan of getting into this sort of thing myself, but at least I know what I'm doing.
[ Sort of. He can handle himself alright, and that was the important part, here. ]

You realize that isn't the statement, yes? It's we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. What you're saying implies that you're confident you're dooming yourself.

[NOBODY ASKED FOR YOUR OPINION ROS, and yet here she is, offering it anyway. Call it the result of being a university professor. She sighs, though, at his second statement.]

You sound like a friend of mine . . .

[Some asshole named Booker DeWitt, actually.]

Come on, then.

Crossing, burning-- what's it matter? It's gonna get dealt with either way, just...a little differently, is all.
[ One's definitely going to be a whole hell of a lot easier to work through, though. When Rosalind trails off, he fixes her with a brief questioning look-- not incredulous, but rather gently curious. He almost asks if the similarity's a good thing before she speaks again, sidelining that train of thought before it gets too far underway; it wasn't much of his business in the first place. ]

Alright, sure. We'll see what happens, huh?
[ With that, he turns and begins the trek inside, picking his path a little more carefully than the light does. One of them actually has to worry about traveling in a three-dimensional space, and he couldn't say he completely trusted where their guides were going. ]
You ever gone spelunking before? 'Cause this might wind up being an awful lot like that, depending on how far along they've finished the place by now.

If it becomes that dangerous, we're not going further ahead. There's no point in spelunking or something like it without proper equipment. You'd only be endangering yourself and any potential rescuers.

[But she follows his steps, turning her cell phone out to try and illuminate the way.]

Have a name?

[There's a young man nearby chowing down on popcorn and laughing obnoxiously at even the cheesiest of one-liners. At the man's question, Kurt gasps in surprise.]

Dude! You never saw Kentucky Smith and the Wheel of Fortunes?? But it's a classic, man!

Oh. S'that what this is? [ He cocks an eyebrow at Kurt, taking a moment to both rifle through his bag for that box of candy he'd snagged himself and to actually look at the person he's talking to. Basic manners do matter at least a little, apparently, albeit less than chocolate bits. ] Should've guessed from the game show jokes earlier-- bit of a dead giveaway, now that you mention it.
[ Overhead, the action's shifted from an outdoor showdown to...well, something happening in some ruins-- Jacob's lost track of the plotline as of five minutes ago, really, although that hasn't dissuaded him too much. It's still fun to watch, and he's alright with sinking some more time into this; he's already gotten this far through the movie, so why not finish it off? ]

So...why exactly is Kentucky goin' in here, if you don't mind my asking? Never really kept up with this series too much when it was coming out, but I guess I should've if it's a classic.

Ha! Yeah, with a name like that, they just gotta drop those references! [Kurt smiles as he chows down some more of the popcorn, glancing between the man and the movie screen.]

Well, you know, they're ruins. He's just gotta explore them. It's his thing! There's, like, an ancient wheel of fortunes to find.

[The dome is of more than passing interest to Karen, or Kara to her friends. She headed up that way in her own truck, a nice looking thing she'd parked a few miles back. It wasn't too cold for a walk, and she wasn't about to try and offroad in Recolle. Maybe if this were back home in Midvale, but the ground was way too rocky. Bundling up, carrying a heavy stick, she moves pretty lightly through the trees until her ears catch the sound of an engine.

Following those sounds, she's surprised to spot Jacob standing by the dome. Rather than sneak up, she calls out:]

Hey. You okay, Jacob?

[ Alright, so much for getting out of this unobserved. It was worth a try, though! ]
[ He has to squint for a few seconds to actually spot Kara in the dark, but he waves in her direction when he can finally make her out. There's a moment where he wants to ask what the hell she's doing all the way out here-- although he's not in much of a position to wonder himself, is he. ]

Yeah-- Yeah, we're good. Just got startled, is all. [ Jacob bends down to retrieve his phone, pausing to swipe as much of the dirt off the screen as he can. Nothing's broken, though; he didn't figure it would be, but with his luck, he was almost expecting it to shatter completely. ] Nothing to worry about, I don't think? Unless you wanna go messing with this thing, in which case I might be wrong.
[ He gestures toward the dome, looking exasperated. The stick test failed him spectacularly, and he's still trying to figure out what to even classify it as. ]

[Well, she'd answer his question with a smile and some statement about being a scientist. But as it's unasked, she doesn't remark on his presence out this far.]

Yeah? [Kara picks up her pace until she's within easy speaking distance, casting a disparaging glance at the dome itself.]

I was just going out this way to see what it was like. Figured it'd be a waste to not investigate and see what's keeping it up. For science, of course. [Translation: she was curious, and wearing a lopsided grin at the phrase.]

What have you observed so far?

[Eleanor had been drawn by the sound of the truck engine, having not really expected to find anyone else out poking at the dome, and she stepped out of the trees just in time to hear him curse as his stick heated up. She couldn't help but smile faintly, reaching up to adjust her purse on her shoulder before she approached.]

You might want to be careful. [Her voice was tinged with amusement as she called out to him, made a bit more evident by the bit of an English/Irish accent she seemed to stubbornly hold onto.]

The harder you poke it, the harder it seems to poke back.

[She'd learned that first hand.]

Gotta admit, I'm not all that used to the 'poking back' part. I'd prefer it didn't, personally. [ As long as that was all it was going to do, though; he glances down at where he's pretty sure the stick landed, frowning. If it could roast a twig in under five seconds, it was probably for the best that he move another step or two back, as he reminded himself. He takes one just to be safe, and doesn't budge an inch more than that. ]

That's exactly why I didn't just touch it directly, though-- knew it'd be a bad idea. [ Not as awful as he'd anticipated, fortunately enough! Things worked out sometimes. ] It's weird, right? Can't make heads or tails of what it's doing, but it's definitely something.

[That made her laugh softly, stepping up to him and the dome.] I think we'd all prefer if it was a bit less responsive. Would certainly make trying to move it easier, at least.

[She considered the dome for a few seconds, chewing thoughtfully on her the tip of her tongue, her eyes narrowed.]

It's not...always dangerous though? It seems to genuinely depend on what we do.

[As if to prove her point, she just reached out and placed her palm flat against it, giving it a little push. Nothing happened.]

See?

I was down there only earlier this week.

[ So says the woman next to him. She's comically small as compared to him, 4'1 and maybe 115 lbs tops, 41 years old but fairly youthful in appearance in part because of her size. ... Well, the purple hair helps that too, which she's playing with the ends of. It's a little past her shoulders and he keeps not cutting it. But that's immaterial.

... She was in the subway system, at least. ]

Edited 2018-01-22 18:02 (UTC)

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

JANUARY 2018 TDM

Subject Delta - Bioshock

slams the fuck in here hello almost-canonmate, also 2

HELLO THERE

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