December 2021 Test Drive Meme

[reddosmod]

DECEMBER 2021 TDM

Another month, another test drive meme! Our test drive memes are open to anyone interested - regardless of whether or not you join our game!

All Test Drive Memes are game canon. Players can choose to keep their TDM threads canon or not. TDM threads can be used for AC and can be used as your writing sample for your application.

Our TDMs serve as a way to build into the actual lore and worldbuilding of Deer Country and we strongly encourage everyone to enjoy and participate! Current players are always welcome to pull prompts from the TDM to reference on the Network or bring into logs as well as tag out to new characters top-leveling on the TDM itself.

Characters will always be able to actively die during TDMs as this is an extremely dangerous world. You can still have this be game canon! Check out how character death in Deer Country works here.

If you have any questions about the TDM, please ask down below!

IMAGE DESCRIPTORS IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE
Prompt One
[Image One: A cat skidding across a frozen lake.]
[Image Two: A man carving ice sculptures]

Prompt Two
[Image One: A woman laughing as she plays with many tentacles.]
[Image Two: A naked girl in a fetal position under water.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: A cold limp hand in bloodied snow.]
[Image Two: Jack Nicholson slamming an axe into a door in The Shining.]

[NAVIGATION]

TDM Questions • Reserves • Taken • Applications • Full Navigation

[Jump to Comments]

SEMI-STANDARD ARRIVAL

WHEN: End of December, early January
WHERE: The Farther Shores/The Boardwalk
CONTENT WARNINGS: Similar warnings from November's TDM. Drowning, freezing to death, trapped under ice, hypothermia, frost bite.

---

Arriving in December has most of the same from the November Arrival. One difference is that the beach itself has completely frozen over, making it a slick black ice skating range. And that's exactly how Wakers treat it. You can rent skates and sleds. People have taken to the beach to have fun as well as help Sleepers out. Learn how to ice skate and help your fellow Sleepers! Win-Win!

Tents are filled with furs and warmth. Someone is giving out hot soup and hot chocolate to those just arriving. You can find plenty of hot bread rolls. Local seamstresses have gathered and are giving out thick wool cloaks with unique designs. You can find thick fur ushankas, gloves, and scarves. There are coldblood stone snaps as they call them where two small coldblood stones are hooked together so you can make a snapping noise that generates a small spark of flame that's hard to blow out.

Along the Boardwalk are magnificent ice sculptures of various intricate creatures: humans, animals, monsters, Pthumerians and other things. Some Watchers are in the process of working on new mounds of ice and are willing to teach anyone interested in the art of ice sculptures.

CH-CH-CH-CHANGES

WHEN: End of December to mid January
WHERE: The Pthumerian Ocean and the Farther Shores
CONTENT WARNINGS: possible drowning, injury, hypothermia, giant friendly tentacles, confinement in a goo egg, nudity/exhibition, body horror of varying degrees

---

A new year is upon us and the winds of change can drive rough and tumultuous waters, now filled with big chunks of ice. Some incoming sleepers will be facing more obstacles of ice, cold and wayward currents that can take them off course and delay their arrival on the shores. But many are in luck as the massive tentacles of a benevolent beast from the deep can be seen rising from the waves on the horizon as it collects as many sleepers as it can who have begun to shift from their squid form before they are safely out of the choppy waters and onto the ice covered beach.

The tentacled behemoth will wrap new sleepers up in a protective, transluscent and spherical fish or squid egg filled with a gooey liquid to help further suspend and cushion them on their journey to shore. However, this protective egg is a toss of the coin in how helpful it can be. Merely by chance, a sleeper may find themselves in either a red or blue tinted egg that they wil likely need help getting out of, and quickly, seeing as the warm goo that is cushioning them doesn't exactly provide air for those who require it.

A Red egg will provide extended magical warmth even when a sleeper exits it into the cold, they will feel as though they are stepping into a heated room and wearing comfortable warm clothes, even if they are naked. Wakers who assist someone getting out of a red egg and who are splashed with the gooey contents will also feel this effect, and if they are clothed they may feel... overheated and overcome with the strong compulsion to get their clothes off.

A Blue egg is not so helpful, if a sleeper finds themselves in this egg, they will start to transform back into their squid form, even if their mind is continuing to reform and remember themselves. They can regress all the way back into a squid or be unfortunate enough to get trapped in a grotesque halfway fusion of squid and their regular form, but either way their mind will still be normal and somehow some will be able to speak. Just like a red egg, this can happen to Wakers who come in contact with the blue egg's goo. This effect can last for an hour or longer depending on player preference.

Characters who attempt to make their way out to sea to make contact with the tentacled monster will never seem to be able to reach it to see what it looks like. The waters will become darker and colder, and more tumultuous the farther they go either by boat or swimming (why you're swimming is beyond literally everyone else, but you do you). Chances of ending up in the freezing water and dying by drowning or freezing to death are extremely high if this attempt is made, and locals will advise against it if asked.

BABY IT'S COLD OUTSIDE

WHEN: Late December to mid January.
WHERE: All over Trench
CONTENT WARNINGS: Surreal/existential horror, out of body experience, temporary memory loss and fugue, imprisonment, frozen death, blood, possible insanity and violence, monster/creature leech

---

All throughout Trench there's a phenomena of bloody snow piling high in whole districts within minutes and snowing people into their homes or whatever building they happened to be in at the time, even a tent on the boardwalk can be covered. Most of the blood is a stark red, but other blood type colors can be found in large or small swaths here and there. At first it seems like an inconvenience that you can either wait out with whomever you've found yourself snowed in with or dig your way out of, but the blood in the snow is thick and heavy and pressing in against the walls and windows and if you choose to try and dig, the influence of blood in the air will hit you hard and the ill effects will come on fast and halt you in your efforts...

Soon, the rooms appear to warp, minds become foggy as what appears to be an illusion or a reality warping takes hold, no longer does the room look like your home or the store you were browsing, and you can't quite remember what it was before or why you were there. The roof over your head is different, and the slow motion of the fan causes the cracks in the plaster to show shadows in ways that just don't match your memories. It is strange, but as you walk through the new space, you do not feel in danger. Something is just not quite right.

You recognize the furnishings but you can't place when you bought them. It looks like a hotel room and this is a suite for two. How long have you lived in this place? The door of the kitchen or perhaps the pantry opens, and someone else emerges with the same look of vague confusion there. You recognize them, but not quite. Their name is on the tip of your tongue until they speak. Do you know each other? Yes, you do. This is your house, right? Weren't you just standing there together not long ago...?

It must be your home: Some Sleepers, for one reason or another, might accept the surreal experience as the new reality even as they grow weaker and ...thinner? Their life feels impermanent, almost like you could peel the wallpaper away to find something entirely different underneath. But it isn't a bad life. It's simple, comfortable, food is always magically available somewhere when they need it and the people they are with are family, are they not? You're pretty sure that's what you remember. The scope of the vision grows, somehow you find yourself in the bar of this hotel where a bartender stands waiting. He doesn't feel quite real, but he'll happily chat over a cocktail 'on the house' with guests, who he assures have always been there.

But some Sleepers find themselves rejecting this vision, as comfortable as it is, it's still wrong. This isn't their home. This feeling everything should be fine is a lie. Everything is wrong, and at a certain point, they snap. The idea of sleeping a night in this place is just too much and the moment that their mind refuses this reality completely, it is replaced by a singular urge: to destroy this lie entirely. Paranoia and a frantic instability overtakes them and they find whatever weapon they can to start breaking everything in sight, even attacking their fellow Sleepers and hunting them through the shifting little hotel spaces that seem to move around them rather then them moving within it.

Violent Sleepers can be subdued and reasoned with, but it may be difficult. Powers are also dampened, though not gone, if Sleepers can remember that they have them at all. All sleepers, docile and violent will start to weaken to the point where they collapse and they will eventually die, but if they are lucky enough to pull themselves and/or each other out of it, they'll be able to see clearly that it's the bartender that they should attack. Once they do, there will be a screech and the illusion/reality alteration will falter and the bartender's true form is glimpsed.

Once the creature is wounded sufficiently, Sleepers will find that there is a fleshy pulsating rope attached to the base of their skull as the creature was feeding on their hopes and dreams of the future, keeping them in a state of complacency, confusion and conflict. The only way out of this is by attacking the bartender or death.

CODING

Comments

[azurestar]

[It's Keith's feelings about what just happened to him that drag him back the most. And as he blinks himself back to the present, he looks from the blanket up to Keith and then quickly back. He looks like he just woke up from a coma and is figuring out where he is and trying to catch up on what he missed all at once. It's overwhelming.

His hand comes up to run down his face, pausing to massage at his eyes a moment. The fact that Keith isn't surprised to see him alive hasn't really occurred to him, though even if it had, he'd probably still need to hear it. But right now, he doesn't think he wants to ask just yet. There's so much already going on that he is trying to wrestle into submission.

And then there's the matter of Keith's trauma and everything he's clearly still dealing with. He nods at the offer, and accepts a small corner of the blanket to at least brush the globs off. It gives him something to occupy his hands and part of his mind.

After a pause, he figures out how to answer, his attitude shifting once again. There's a tight tremor in his tone again as he's making himself open up slightly just to get through this encounter. Get through to the next moment, then the next. And even as he opens up, he's shutting down part of his emotions. Again. Survival.]

Sorry. I know it's a lot to take in. Let's just… focus on catching you up to speed… [He closes his eyes and his voice takes on an edge of barely contained pain as he reluctantly admits:] There's stuff I don't wanna think about either.

[Please don't ask about him or if he's okay. That's as close as he'll come to admitting maybe he's not completely fine, but he'll be more fine if they just stick to business and don't talk about it. Not now. Likely not ever.]

[tempredmental]

[That last statement seems to settle it. There was understanding there now, and Keith just nodded. He already had a good amount of stuff in his life that he preferred not to think about, even without any potentially added trauma of being in a strange place for three years. Most of Keith's life had been trauma, honestly.

So, he let it go.]

Okay.

[His tone is quiet. He got it. Maybe, later, they could work things out a bit more, but he was okay for now to just leave it there.]

Anything you can tell me, then... it'll help.

[He left it open to Lance to decide what was important and what he was comfortable sharing.]

[azurestar]

[Good, okay. He expected Keith to understand, at least for now. It makes this slightly less difficult. It was always going to be rough for him, but agreeing to no discussion beyond the facts right now is at least one less thing off the 99 other problems he's got.]

Man, where do I even start…

[He lets out a shuddered breath and smooths a gloved hand through his hair on one side as he thinks. His hair is a bit more in his eyes these days, but he still keeps himself well groomed and away from mullets. For so many reasons… anyway, right, basics. Focus Lance.]

This place is called Trench. Well, the city is, anyway. The world is Deer Country, because it was sort of "born" from this place called Deerington. [Wow, this really is a lot. He heaves a breath and focuses on lining up the basic facts and knocking them down, following one thread of information to the next. It helps him disconnect from his turmoil as it's a rather robotic task.]

Anyway, Deerington was a nightmare. Literally. Those god beings I told you about? They're called Pthumerians, and they can make half Pthumerians with humans. A half Pthumerian little girl ended up being really powerful and couldn't control it- [His breath hitches there because that hits close to home. He shakes his head and continues.] She was having a nightmare she couldn't wake up from and lots of people got pulled into it from different worlds and trapped there. Then the nightmare collapsed and from her power it created this new world. And a lot of us were brought from there to here just about four months ago.

But it's been like centuries or something since this place was created, so I guess we showed up late, or some weird time dilation thing happened. I dunno, man. It makes my head hurt. But we're here now, and there's Pthumerians and half Pthumerians all around, and blood magic, and I've got no idea how or why more people like you show up here, but the way you came is the same. You were reborn as a squid thing and we're called "Sleepers" because that's what we were called in the nightmare so I guess it stuck. Also, word is there's no way home.

[He lets out another long breath and stops there for the moment to give Keith a second to take that all in. That was the extremely simplified version of everything, of course. Julia, the little girl having the nightmare turned out to have been dead for most of the time they were there if not the whole time, and it was a whole… convoluted and confusing thing that would take hours to explain.

He considered briefly about telling Keith he'd also been in the nightmare, but he knows him well enough to know he's not ready to learn he forgot over two years. Or rather, that he got a "reset" of sorts, since his body is clearly back to what it was before and he's not almost 24 anymore. Also, it's a painful subject for him and he'd rather not go there right now.]

[tempredmental]

[Yup. Okay. So, that was A Lot. Keith needed some time to take it in and process it. He was quiet for a bit, tumbling around thoughts and feelings and information in his head while attempting to sort it all out. He had no reason to believe Lance would lie to him about this, and, really, who the heck could even make something like that up? Especially the whole squid part. Like, why was that even a thing?

Keith looked down at his lap for a second, wondering if the whole squid thing was why his legs didn't want to work right.

He squeezed his eyes shut as all of that finally settled on, "...there's no way home." There had to be a way home. Sure, Keith wasn't exactly the patient type, but they'd only been outside the nightmare for four months, right? So, maybe they hadn't found it. He wasn't quite ready to accept that, yet.

Which also brought up another question. Opening his eyes again, he looked back at Lance.]

So, what makes anyone think that this isn't just another nightmare from another super powerful alien thing? [He was not going to try to say "Pthumerian" right now. It had taken him long enough to be able to remember "quintessence".]

[azurestar]

[Lance snorts and crosses his arms, looking away in discomfort and fear and passing it off as annoyance. Though it's a valid thing to ask, he doesn't like the idea of it, not at all. It strikes nauseating levels of fear in him after all the times he's been made to question his perceptions of reality.

It's a struggle he has regularly, not really knowing what's real or fake. It's not an issue that's unique to him, but it's not common either. It's the last thing he needs especially right now when trying his hardest to stay disconnected from the immense grief and pain of finding Keith here on the beach having been reset.]

It's- it's just not. Don't go there, man.

[It's a shame he can't seem to keep the unsteadiness out of his voice when he says that. He swallows a thick lump in his throat and grips his arms hard where they are crossed to keep his hands from shaking too visibly.]

There's differences, alright? I dunno how to explain it, just- just trust me on it.

[tempredmental]

[Oooookay. He'd managed to hit another nerve. He took a breath. GOD, he hated walking on eggshells like this. Sigh.]

Okay, okay. I... I trust you. [Which, yes... he did. Have fun with that, Lance.

He rubbed a hand across his face.]

You said there's stuff on the Boardwalk, right? Maybe... let's focus on something like that. [Neutral enough, right?] I can try to get up again. [Keith pinched the bridge of his nose, knowing he wasn't fully processing everything, yet, and he knew all of this was going to hit him hard later. But he was kind of tired of sitting on frozen, goo-covered sand next the egg that nearly killed him, and he was getting a little antsy about making sure he could actually move.]

[azurestar]

[Keith, your entire existence is hitting a nerve, this is kind of just your fate. Lance huffs out a breath, he doesn't need to be an empath to tell what Keith is feeling right now. He knows he doesn't like tip toeing on eggshells or being left too much in the dark.]

…If you have more questions, just ask them. [He doesn't sound annoyed this time, just worn out. But determined to get through this. Get to the next moment, then the next.] Chances are I'm not gonna like any of them but when has that ever stopped you from getting on my nerves? Or stopped us from getting to the bottom of something.

[That last part is actually a gentle tease, the kind of thing he'd say after they started getting closer just to break some tension and get Keith to lighten up and relax a bit. It's not easy for him to lean into that rapport right now, it hurts, but a lot of things in his life have hurt more or less constantly for a while now. He can try and swallow it for Keith.

He raises his hands with a little shrug, trying to force an air of aloofness.] But if you wanna risk smacking your face in the ice, be my guest. It hasn't been an hour yet.

[He can tell Keith does feel antsy, though. So even though he says that, he stands and offers him a hand up. Still, he's not looking at his face as he does, but the gesture is an improvement. If Keith has more questions, he can ask them on the way to the tents.]

[tempredmental]

[That tease? That felt closer to normal... familiar. It was almost comforting. Keith quirked an eyebrow, slipping easily into a return shot of his own.]

Like you never got on my nerves? [He smirked a little, honestly thankful for the tiny moment.

But, yeah... hour or not (and the comment about falling gets a small eye roll in response), Keith definitely wanted to get off this beach and away from the remains of that egg thing. In fact, he ends up looking at it again kind of by accident, and the casual teasing attitude disappears under something more of a 'holy cow how did I survive that' for a split second before he pushes it down to look at the offered hand.

Okay... he took a breath. Moment of truth, he supposed. He grabbed the pack again, putting it over both shoulders this time with a tad bit less difficulty than he'd been pushing through earlier, and then braced one hand against the ground as he grabbed Lance's hand with the other. Control over moving had come back, at least, even if it wasn't the same usual level he had, but strength was another thing entirely.

He clenched his jaw, squeezing his eyes shut as his legs refused to let him stand. Despite best efforts, Lance might potentially feel a tremble in his arm as his frustration suddenly spiked.

He did not want to be in this spot anymore.]

Fuck. [Keith breathed hard and deliberately, trying to focus and keep himself from freaking out again.]

[azurestar]

[It's a nice moment though for him bittersweet doesn't even come close to describing how he feels about it. Lance catches Keith's smile and has to look away to swallow and hide the pang that it sets off in him. Conceal don't feel, Lance.

So he ends up not saying anything in response and divides his focus between helping Keith up and tamping down on his inner conflict as he feels his powers start to respond to it at his core. One good thing about his internal damage not healing is it acts as an early warning system for when he's about to turn dangerous for the people near him. It hurts to use his powers these days, and he's oddly glad for that as of late, and right now.

He catches Keith's glance at the egg and gathers rather well how much he really doesn't want to be near it. Lance can understand that, he doesn't wanna be near it either, albeit for different reasons. And then Keith makes his standing attempt and… doesn't go anywhere. Lance keeps his grip solid and watches where their hands are joined with an unreadable expression. Safe to assume there's pain under there, though.

Then he lets out a shuddered breath and gently pulls on Keith's hand, dipping his head in an offer to let him put his arm around his shoulders if he wants. Even as he does, he's mentally and emotionally distancing himself as much as he can, so while the offer and the action would usually be a great bonding moment, his body language and expression aren't in line with that.]

Come on… you don't have to do it alone.

[Even the tone of his voice is more flat and guarded, and he's looking away as he says it. But he's trying as best he can and isn't about to let Keith freak out alone and… suffer like last time.]

[tempredmental]

[Keith definitely got the sense that this whole thing was making Lance really uncomfortable. While he didn't really get why that was, he still felt guilty for putting so much on him when he didn't seem to want to be in this position. He let guide his arm up and over his shoulders, and, despite best efforts, ended up having to cling a little with his other arm across the front in order to finally get upright. Shaky and weak at best, he was pretty sure that he would take that faceplant after all if he let go.

He dropped his gaze down and to the side, away from Lance.]

Sorry...

[His voice was low as he apologized, feeling like he was just being a problem and this would have been so much better if they could have gone their separate ways as soon as Lance had cut him out of the egg in the first place.

But now, this close, and in such physical contact, Lance would definite feel like Keith was colder to the touch than he should be thanks to his new blood type...]

[azurestar]

[The closer he is, the stronger his empathic sense of someone. And in the case of Keith, the closer he is, the more difficult this is for him emotionally. He feels torn in five different directions and shutting down is the best way he's managing for the moment.

But Keith's feelings coupled with that apology has his throat constricting. God, no matter what he does, he can't win, he can't stop from hurting in some way. He swallows the feeling and shoves it in the box with the rest and resolves to focus n getting Keith to the boardwalk. His arm comes around to support his waist and pull him closer.]

You've… got nothing to apologize for. [His voice is less detached, more rough. Then he forces the sincerity he feels to come through, though there's a tremor as he does.] We're a team.

[He swallows and closes his eyes. His head turns a bit jerkily away like he just heard a loud voice that startled him. Which he did, but he knows chances are it's all in his head. That's usually the case. And he makes himself not address it more than that. Then he opens them again and now that Keith is so close he's definitely noticing how cold he is. Then he tries to sound more normal. Tries.]

Dude, let's get you some soup, you feel like an ice cube.

[tempredmental]

[Keith gave Lance a concerned look at how that was said. They were a team, yes, but why did Lance sound so upset about it? What had happened in those three years that had him so shaken up?

Keith nodded anyway, though. Because, in his mind, they were still a team. He wanted Lance to know that.]

Yeah. We are. [That was why Keith was worried about Lance...

A beat.] Thanks.

[He looked surprised, though, when Lance said he felt cold. He shook his head.]

But I'm not cold? I mean... I even feel a little warm. [He was pretty sure it was just the coat, but he honestly felt even warmer than before. He had no idea that coldbloods didn't really feel cold, or that he was even a coldblood for that matter, nor did he have any idea that the red goo was making him feel even warmer.]

[azurestar]

[At this point he's gonna have to give Keith something in the way of explanation. He can't stand feeling that worry coming off of him. And he should be supporting Keith better, looking out for him, not barely holding it together (unravelling (always fraying. Falling) Hush).

But somehow he finds the strength and courage to keep it together enough to get Keith over to that boardwalk. And that grief and anger and erratic pain stays locked in that box for now. It's a bit difficult for him physically as well thanks to recent-ish events, but like hell he's gonna let that stop him from doing even just the bare minimum here.

They're closer now, but he pauses in his step when Keith mentions not feeling cold. He himself feels seriously overheated from the goo where it is touching him, so it could just be that. But could be his blood. Lance has enough coldblooded friends to know.]

Well, I guess that could be your blood. We don't just get changed into squids, our blood also changes and gives us magic. [He temporarily lifts his hand from Keith's wrist around his shoulders and wiggles his fingers in a spooky way, making a face and putting on a voice.] Blood magic~~

[tempredmental]

First squids, now magic... [Keith's ability to believe things was tenuous at best, but it was getting weaker. While the magic thing was kind of more believable, the whole blood aspect of it was kind of iffy. He sighed heavily.

He woke up in an egg full of goo. Really. And everything Lance had told him about the dream and being here was pretty fantastical in the first place. And, yes, Lance had a flair for the dramatic, but this was stretching even what Keith knew of Lance's imagination.

There was no way he could have made all that up.]

So, you're saying that... my blood... is keeping me warm?

[azurestar]

[He lets out a drawn out breath and takes a moment to get them over to the stairs of the boardwalk. A pause there and he figures here is good for a break and starts to help him take a seat on the steps. Even if Keith might not need a break, he does, physically and emotionally.

There's tension from strain in his voice as he answers.] Maybe. Something like that. If you're a Coldblood, anyway. There's five different types of blood, they all look different and do different stuff. Coldbloods feel cold to other people but they don't get cold. And the powers it gives you is different from person to person.

[He looks down at his gloved hands as he's talking and goes to sit down with careful movements on the other side of the steps. He's tense and lets out a shuddered breath through his nose as he gives Keith a second to take that in.]

[tempredmental]

[Okay, so Keith wasn't actually adverse to the idea of sitting on the steps for a bit. He wasn't looking forward to trying to get up them just yet, but they were away from the egg, at least, so that was progress. He'd take it.]

Okay... [He took a breath, processing that. Weird blood, special powers... this really was getting weirder by the minute. Definitely a lot to take in. He leaned against the railing next to him as Lance sat down on the other side.] So, how do I know what I have, then? [He looked at his own hands then.] Is there a way to like... test it?

[Also... he filed away how Lance was moving for later... he was definitely going to ask about that.]

[azurestar]

[Lance reaches into his pocket and pulls out a pocket knife, then wiggles it between his thumb and forefinger.]

Quickest way is to prick your thumb and look.

[He very much does not wanna be asked about that, but he knows he's not exactly hiding it well. Then he passes the knife over to Keith. It feels kind of weird to do since Keith always has a knife on him somewhere usually. But arriving completely naked in a goo ball probably means no knife until he finds where his things ended up. Hopefully his blades are here too, Keith without his blades feels very weird to Lance.]

Or you could sit there and focus on trying to make fire or lightning in your hands. But if you do, I'm totally filming it.

[That last part is more mischievous sounding, more like himself. Then he has to clear his throat and swallow down the slip of emotions that bubble up when he let his guard down.]

[tempredmental]

[Keith eyed the pocket knife for a second, and then took it. He turned it over in his fingers a few times, his thoughts going along the same line as Lance in regards to his own weapons. He'd like to have them... strange place with potentially hostile environment, having something familiar to defend himself with would be a good bonus. He hadn't gone completely through the pack Lance gave him, yet, so he didn't know everything that might be inside it. He'd just grabbed the robe in order to throw something over himself instead of continuing to sit on the beach completely exposed to the winter weather and anyone who walked past.]

Fire or lightning, huh? [He snorted a little at the idea of producing fire. That would be oddly appropriate, wouldn't it? He manages to get the blade unfolded with less effort than it took to work the closure on the pack, his dexterity slowly returning to his fingers, but then hesitated.

Part of him didn't want to know. Lance had said it would look different, too. Just how different? But, if he was going to have weird powers, he'd need to learn to control them, right? So, he should probably be prepared and know what to expect. And that meant pricking his finger so he could see what was going on... even if it didn't look normal.

He pressed his thumb against the tip, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before finally just doing it. And, yeah... it hurt. That was normal. It also confirmed to Keith that this was pretty damn real...

That unsettled him. His other hand clenched around the handle of the knife for a second before he forced himself to actually look. It took a moment before the pale blue fluid started to bubble out. NOPE. He gasped quietly and then stuck that thumb in his mouth automatically without thinking in order to get it to stop. He squeezed his eyes shut again as he tried to absorb the fact that his blood was the wrong color.]

[azurestar]

[Lance watches as Keith moves that knife in his hand and gears himself up to take the plunge. Or is he deciding if he wants to try making fire, Lance can't really tell much beyond the general uncertainty.

And then that bead of ice blue blood appears and he lets out a soft breath, but then blinks in some surprise when Keith's reaction is to shove it in his mouth. Well, okay, that's actually a pretty normal reaction to a bleeding cut on one's finger, it's just not one he ever pictured Keith having for some reason.

It's weird to think that even after all they've been through, there's still little things like this that surprise him. And that reflection has his emotion box cracking and sending a vice to clamp on his heart. He looks away quickly with a grimace and teeth clenched so tight that there's a fluttering muscle in the side of his cheek.

Get it together Lance, Keith's clearly grappling with the same thing they've all grappled with and you should know how to help. But he doesn't, he doesn't know, and he's not sure how much more of this he can take. His voice is a bit hoarse as he forces himself to speak but he tries to sound normal.]

We've… all been there, man. You're not alone. Also… that's uh, that's gonna turn to ice in your mouth in like two seconds.

[And it might get stuck to his tongue or something. At least it's not a metal pole in winter.]

[tempredmental]

[The ice comment was horribly, or really well, timed, because that's exactly what happened. Keith sputtered for a second, then spit out a piece of ice with a startled look.]

What the hell? [He stared at his finger again, forcing himself to watch as another drip fell off and hit the steps with the distinct click similar to the sound of hail.

He pressed it against the robe draped over his leg this time to at least get some pressure on it to make it stop, and then shuddered before putting his head on his other hand, the knife hanging loosely from those fingers. He closed his eyes again, just needing to block out at least one form of sensory input to help process this.]

Okay, so... what does that mean?

[azurestar]

[Lance gets a funny look on his face.]

Uh… that you're a coldblood, obviously. The ice wasn't a big enough clue?

[Come on Keith, it's right in the name he told you about before. Cold. Blood.

But he's not unsympathetic, even if he's getting a bit testy again. Yes, he's emotionally strained to his limits, but this time, he's also trying to sound more normal. If he ribs Keith a little in that easy way they do, something normal and familiar, maybe that'll make this feel less crazy?

It's hard for him to gauge what would make anything feel less crazy. He's been steeped in crazy horrifying crap for so long, he's not sure he even really remembers that well what it felt like to have his body altered for the first time. There's a lot of holes in his memories in general, though.]

[tempredmental]

..... [Keith sighed through his nose.] Right. Yeah. [So helpful, Lance.] Coldblood.

[He leaned back, laying against the stairs. It wasn't comfortable, but it grounded him, reminded him that things were real.]

What are you? [He'd mentioned other types, right?]

[azurestar]

[He is the most helpful person, it's true. He watches Keith press his back into the stairs like that for a moment and looks away with a breath out his nose and clenching his jaw.]

I… know it's totally messed up right now. But you'll get used to it. [Then his hand goues through his hair and he answers the question.] I'm a paleblood. It looks normal during the day, but if I bleed in moonlight it glows this pale milky color.

[tempredmental]

Okay. [Sounded weird, but what wasn't weird at this point?]

And you said about... like... powers and stuff? Each one's different?

[He stared at the sky, focusing on keeping his breathing even.]

[azurestar]

[Lance's eyebrows draw together a bit as he can tell Keith is trying to keep himself even. After a moment of hesitation where the little twitches in his fingers speed up, he mentally checks on the locks on his emotion box and reaches over and places a hand on his arm.]

Keith… you don't have to keep pushing through on this. If you wanna just freak out about it for a second, you can. [He lets out a shuddered breath and makes a short, sharp hiss between his teeth when a voice tells him he's a hypocrite.] Buuut to answer your question: yeah. Each blood type gets a kind of power. Coldbloods get elemental powers, palebloods get brain powers, darkbloods have reality changing powers, vilebloods get… physical powers, I think? Or is it just poison? …Anyway uh, the last type is warmbloods, they have no powers.