repeter | 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

[The middle-aged man he ends up pointing the gun at tenses up, his grip on his umbrella momentarily tightening. Then the situation slowly seems to dawn on him - the exaggerated pose definitely helps - and his wary expression is exchanged by a bright little smile.

Taking a step closer, he uses the tip of his umbrella to gently nudge the laser gun.]

A small suggestion, my dear, if you don't mind? [His voice is hoarse and strained - a closer look at his neck will reveal a breathing stoma there.] Don't aim weapons, even fake ones, at veterans. It's considered a little bit rude.

Edited 2018-01-19 02:50 (UTC)

_{[ Yogi gasps and has the good grace to blush, swiftly moving into a bow of apology - which brought his head in contact with the umbrella rather than his play weapon. He squawked and leapt back up, pressing a hand to his forehead. ]}

I-I'm sorry sir! I didn't mean to be rude, I was only playing a game.

[Lavrenty laughs, a wheezy but otherwise pleasant enough sound, and shakes his head.]

To be fair, you weren’t to know. But be a bit careful while playing, will you? Not everyone is as charming as I am. [More to the point, he’s glad it wasn’t one of his jumpier - and more agressive - friends. The young man could’ve gotten hurt.]

I wasn’t aware that there was any event going on in the city. Is it some kind of festival?

_{[ Yogi continued to look a bit contrite, but he seemed to perk up when the other man laughed, smiling back at him. He held up the fake gun, giving a sort of half shrug. ]}

I don't really know, honestly. These were in a bunch of barrels around the city, and I saw a lot of other people with them and playing so I decided to join in.

Is that so?

[What has the huge dome he somehow hadn’t noticed before, strange lights and... laser tag have to do with one another? Maybe nothing, but they’re all seemingly inexplicable events cropping up all during one day.]

Perhaps some sort of promotion? [No, he doesn’t actually think so.] Tell me, my dear, have you noticed anything else strange going on?

_{[ Yogi put a finger to his lips as he thought. Well, there was the dome, but he was pretty sure the man noticed that. Everyone would, wouldn't they? He didn't feel to worried about it though. ]}

Well, I did see some weird lights in the ground, but I didn't follow them. I had to get to practice or coach would have been mad.

Wise move, as it turns out. Unless you actually want to be attacked by greenery.

[He taps the ground thoughtfully with his umbrella. There’s actually no real chance of rain, but he’d used it earlier to go poke experimentally at the dome. Then he swings it around and points at the sky with a slightly melodramatic flourish.]

And would you describe that up there as an “eclipse”?

_{[ Yogi looked up, titling his head at the dome. An eclipse? Well, he supposed it could be, though... ]}

If it is, it's lasting a long time, right? Eclipses don't last all day, do they?

_{[ He was pretty sure they didn't.... but then, science had never been his area of strength in school. ]}

[He offers the younger man an encouraging smile.]

Right. Nor do eclipses as a general rule cover the entire sky.

[He taps his lips a bit thoughtfully.]

And yet before I woke up this morning I was sure that an eclipse was all it was. Isn't that strange?

Well, they can look like it, don't they? Because it's the moon covering the sun up and it turns to night.

_{[ Which seemed to him very much like covering the entire sky, but maybe that was what people would call semantics. He tilted his head at the man, considering this. ]}

I don't think so? It's what anyone would think, wouldn't they? I mean, it's not like the sun can just disappear!

[The young man is starting to remind him of an old comrade. Evan, right? Hair always on end from pulling at it in thought; not exactly the brightest spoon in the attic, but a sweet soul.]

Not an unreasonable assumption... but no, I've seen eclipses before, and this isn't anything like that.

[And he certainly has never been able to touch one before.]

It seems like some strange things are happening, right? [An idea crosses his mind.] Actually, would you mind shooting me with that toy?

_{[ Hey! Yogi was smart! Well, all right, he wasn't the smartest, but he was bright in other ways. Maybe just not, you know, with math or science in particular. But not everyone is strong in those!

He looks at his plastic gun and back at the other man and shrugs, because he knew it wouldn't actually hurt him. He leveled the weapon at the other man, finger hesitating on the trigger. ]}

Are you sure? If you start playing, you'll already be down a point.

_{[ Not that he knew of any real scoring structure, but he assumed that getting shot was bad generally speaking. ]}

[Let's be honest here, not being the very smartest isn't exactly worse than being like Lavrenty, and being a little bit too impressed with your own cleverness. At least Yogi is a bit more aware of his limitations.

Lavrenty laughs in a friendly manner, shaking his head.]

Since I wasn't planning on joining the game anyway, it's a bit of a moot point. [Not much of his military career actually involved people pointing guns at him, what with being in the Air Force, but he still gets a bit jumpy. Besides, his shoes are far too nice to jump around in, and he's sure it's more suitable for people younger than he is.]

Go ahead, my dear.

_{[ Well, in certain areas. His doctors might say otherwise considering his knowledge of his own limitations.

Assured the other was really all right with it (not the Yogi actually knew if there were points or not, but he assumed so - it was a game after all), he pulled the trigger and Lavrenty's body light up with the multi-colored confetti lights. ]}

JANUARY 2018 TDM

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