(August) 2021 Test Drive Meme

[reddosmod]

AUGUST 2021 TEST DRIVE MEME

Welcome to our first-ever live Test Drive Meme! Thank you so much for your interest! While our applications and reserves this upcoming round are for Early Access Members only, this Test Drive Meme is to open to everyone - both brand new players and old!

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: Lego face down on beach shore.]
[Image Two: Melting ice cream cone.]

Prompt Two
[Image One: Person screaming underwater.]
[Image Two: Waves crashing on rocks.]

Prompt Three
[Image One: Woman on a piano in the middle of the ocean.]
[Image Two: Pirate ship on wave during storm.]

Dates to Remember!
Read our Game Open information here.

Early Access is only applicable to those who played in Deerington from Dec2020-June2021. Public Access is applicable to everyone regardless of whether or not you previously played in Deerington.

August 27th: Reserves open for Early Access Members open.
September 1st: Applications for Early Access Members open.
September 26th: Public Access reserves open.
October 1st: Game officially opens. Public Access applications open.

[NAVIGATION]

TDM Questions • Reserves • Taken • Applications • Full Navigation

[Jump to Comments]

STANDARD ARRIVAL

WHEN: August
WHERE: The Farther Shores/Boardwalk
CONTENT WARNINGS: N/A

---

You're one of the lucky ones. Your journey is smooth sailing and you wind up exactly where you're supposed to: on the Farther Shores. You grow out of your squid body without a hitch, either with the help of another Sleeper or one of the Wakers, and you get to discover this new world. All new Sleepers might take some time to find their bearings. It might be tricky to remember how to use your body parts the way you're supposed to. You might stumble around the beach or forget how to talk - but don't worry! It'll come back to you sooner or later.

Hopefully, you've found something to wear, either in your Welcoming Bag or otherwise, and can start familiarizing yourself with your surroundings. Maybe you help some other squids out on the beach. Waking up sucks! You feel for the little guys. And hey, maybe you're hoping one of those squids is a good friend...Stranger things have happened.

SEASONAL DETAILS ON THE BOARDWALK
August means colorful streamers and fairy lights twinkling over the Boardwalk, lighting the way. Although Trench is a grim world, there is a distinct summer vacation feeling to the Boardwalk in August. You can smell fried dough and hot dogs being prepared - and no worries! Everything on the Boardwalk is completely free to Sleepers. The workers know it's your first stop and that you, more than most, need a bit of charity right now. Stop by and get a deluxe sundae or ice cream cone at the temporary ice cream booth. Want something besides your welcoming robes to wear? There are a few small shacks selling some solid pirate and sailor-inspired looks. There are also some cute bathing suits for those who think taking a dip in the ocean could possibly ever be fun. Get these summer goods while the going's good. They won't be around in September!

Some people have even set up some crude form of volleyball out on the beach. Join in for a game! The ball is a little leathery and strange to the touch, but it's probably for the best if you just ignore that. Hit the ball around enough and you'll notice that if it gets away from your court, it seems to roll itself towards the ocean. Pick it up again and it's just a ball again! Weird...Just play with the ball and don't ask questions.

The Boardwalk really is a gentle introduction to Trench. It's easy to forget that you just woke up to a hellscape dominated by blood. But hey. The corruption here is low and maybe that's the point. Take it easy while you can, Sleepers. The tide is coming soon enough.

DIFFERENT TIDES

WHEN: WHEN EVENT
WHERE: Among the Rocks in small crevices and caves.
CONTENT WARNINGS: Drowning, crushing bones, intense claustrophobia, flesh eating crabs, possible animal death via burning, possible hallucinations via toxins.

---

While most Sleepers are lucky enough to wash up on the Farther Shores, not all are so fortunate. The ocean is unpredictable and in this world, the ocean also happens to be a temperamental living creature. Come in at the exactly wrong time and the Pthumerian Mariana might decide to send you on a harrowing course towards The Rocks. Having to wake up while being slammed up against slippery slopes of stone is no one's idea of a good time, and if you're not a strong swimmer, you might die before you even have a chance to realize where you are. Even if you are a strong swimmer, it's exhausting and brutal being slammed against slate again and again. But you're not the only one suffering. There are other Sleepers crashing against the Rocks with you. Maybe you can help each other out before it's too late.

If you have the ability, you can possibly grab hold on the side of the Rocks and cling for dear life. You might even discover the advantages of your newly reborn body and blood sooner than intended. Not too many can clash against the Rocks without spilling a little sacred blood but you might just be able to use that in your favor. Sometimes shedding blood in this world means getting a hell of an adrenaline kick - and you might need it right about now. Maybe you can climb to the top and back to safety?

Not everyone has to take a beating against the Rocks. Some are sucked into the undertide and carried directly inside of the Rocks. There are dozens of small caves and channels. If you're having a genuinely terrible day, you might break the surface of the water in a pitch-black space, with rock above you, rock all around you. There may be very little space between the water and the rocks surrounding you, making it harder to breathe and concentrate and easier to panic in. Cry out and you may get some help. Find your way to one of the open caves inside.

As you try to find your way in the dark, you hear a constant clicking noise all around you. It sounds like rocks bouncing together, clacking, clicking, some plopping into the water near you. You can feel them moving around you and eventually, one drops down onto your shoulder. It's a crab! The little guy is no bigger than a golf ball and he mostly just seems curious. Another little buddy joins him on your other shoulder. Looks like you have some friends! Maybe they are here to help you.

Then you feel a little sharp jab of pain. And another. And nope- these guys are not your friends. They use their small claws to take chunks out of your flesh and eat it. They are easy enough to brush off your shoulder, but the problem isn't their size, it's their quantity. As soon as you get one off, another is falling down. And some are a lot bigger than golf balls. They get as large as basketballs and when those land on you, brace yourself, because they are dense. You'll discover that the crabs seem completely impervious too. They have rock-hard shells and are resistant to blood magic - probably because they eat nothing but blood-and-flesh creatures. But like all living creatures, they do have a weakness or two: fire and light. You can completely stun and paralyze these creatures with a flash of light. The brighter the light, the longer they will be stunned. If you have a light source to carry around, the crabs won't come near you at all. Fire won't stun the crabs, but it does terrify them and will send them fleeing. If you set a crab on fire, you'll see why: it's the only way to kill them.

So congratulations, you have Trench Crabs. Not the best experience, but it's an easier experience for some than others. Unfortunately for Warmbloods, Palebloods, and Vilebloods there's a certain toxin in the crab's flaws that can cause mild hallucinations and confusion in response to your specific blood type. Hopefully, you're stuck with another blood type who isn't affected by the crab toxins. To get rid of the side effects, you will need to thoroughly clean out all of your wounds with warm salt-water.

Let's just hope you can all make it out of the Rocks alive. Good luck.

QUICK FAQ

1. Those whose Patron Pthumerian is Mariana will be much luckier in the waves. Some may even discover that the water urges them towards safer passages. If they ask for direct help, the water might directly respond with immediate help. In the most extreme cases, the water might heal flesh wounds, but it will burn a little. Never a good idea to put salt (water) on an open wound, but hey, better than bleeding out!

This applies to the third prompt as well. 2. Characters can either find their way across the Rocks and climb to the area around the Sanguine Station or wind up at the Farther Shores. Wakers would be quick to help any mangled Sleepers.

3. Other characters can go to the Rocks and try to help save the Sleepers being brutalized. Maybe throw someone a rope or if you have the power of flight you can try and get them to safety.

OVERBOARD

WHEN: Pirates continually sail the Pthumerian Ocean therefore this event could take place at any time.
WHERE: Somewhere beyond the Fishing Zone of the Pthumerian Ocean
CONTENT WARNINGS: Drowning, kidnapping, imprisonment, "human" trafficking, cannibalism.

---

Some Sleepers don't make it to the Farther Shores or the Rocks. Your body might regenerate in the middle of the Pthumerian Ocean and the only thing in your favor is at least you're not reborn naked here (unless maybe you are - dealer's choice). You're cloaked in some long, white garment - not that it does much against the crashing waves all around you. This is not a great place to wake up! And it looks like you woke up in the middle of the storm only it's not really a storm...This is just the natural state of the Pthumerian Ocean: violent and unpredictable.

Waves crash and pull all around you, thundering through the air, the wind and skies above just as hostile and aggressive. You can't tell if it's raining or if you're just being constantly splattered by the mist and water of waves nearby. Whirlpools spin in gurgling clusters and it's easy to get sucked into them. Thankfully, you're not completely alone in this terrible situations. You can see other Sleepers nearby...And furniture?

Chunks of furniture float by. Couches, mattresses, pianos, bookcases. There is the debris of ruined ships too: flanks of wood, doors that could probably hold two people if you actually tried, masts, barrels, and the like. Might not be a bad idea to try and hold onto some of that stuff. Better than the alternative! Another thing going in your favor is that you showed up in August. The Pthumerian Ocean is a brutal place, but you won't be freezing to death in these waters. At least not this month. But what about where you are? Where you need to go? Well. That's answered for you.

There are few things tougher in Deer Country than the pirates who live by the law of the ocean. Their ships have been coated in blood magic, cutting through waves, navigating the tidal waves and the whirlpools with abnormal grace normal sailors could only ever dream of. But the people aboard are not human. Not anymore. Most have become completely corrupt by the violence of the ocean and they're more than happy to scoop up poor, disoriented Sleepers they find along the way. You'll find no mercy from these pirates. Instead, it's off to the brig with you! The people on the ship have disoriented appearances, looking more like sea creatures than humans, and they have the manners you'd expect from pufferfish and tiger sharks. They cannot be reasoned with - after all, they aren't just rude. They are blood corrupted and some of them are borderline on their way to full beasthood.

Pirates will value Sleepers for their blood and plan to either eat the Sleepers, use their blood for blood magic, or sell them to other pirates and most won't immediately try to kill a Sleeper. They might be violent, but they aren't stupid. Pirates may simply throw you in a cell or chain you up. They may put Sleepers in a cell together or separate them into cages. If Sleepers are especially mouthy, they may make you walk the plank, tied up with heavy chains that will surely bring you to the bottom (if there even is a bottom) of the ocean. Players can choose the severity of the imprisonment of Sleepers and how Sleepers may escape their situation. Maybe they sneak out of bond and steal a lifeboat. Maybe they overpower their captors and kill most of them or throw them overboard and steal their ship. Either way, once they have met some kind of escape, the Pthumerian Mariana will be impressed enough by their hardiness to help guide them through the currents all the way to the Farther Shores.

CODING

Comments

[royalfling]

[ Wu makes his way down to the sand, wondering if Fritter might like that better, or, Spirits, if she washed up on her own. He isn't quite thinking straight about how an adolescent raccoon would make its way to a place like this, but he knows that she has to be here. She was with him when he left, she has to be here now.

He's so focused on that that he doesn't spot Mako at first. He's looking at the ground, looking for a small black and grey shape, so when his eyes hit feet, he thinks nothing of it. But then those feet are stumbling right toward him, and he looks up, ready to snap at whoever this is.

He sucks in a breath, his feet stumbling to a halt.

It's Mako.

It's Mako and he looks awful and he's naked and he's right here and he's here and ]

Mako! Mako! Oh, wow you look terrible. Mako, are you okay, you--

[ He stumbles toward Mako, his eyes wide and staring, thoughts of Fritter gone for the moment. ]

[arclightning]

Nn.

[ It's the only thing Mako can make his mouth actually form. He's too relieved and disoriented to think about several pieces of reality right now: namely, the naked thing, and also the fact that Wu was desperately searching for Fritter and... not Mako?

Nope. Not thinking about that. Or any of it. They crash against each other like clumsy waves, Mako still-half-stumbling, and water washes coldly up over his bare feet and he just presses his face into Wu's hair and sucks in a hard breath. ]

Was... looking for you.

[royalfling]

[ Wu's arms automatically wrap around Mako, holding him close and tight. He's cold, really cold, and that just makes Wu hug him tighter, trying to warm him up. A knot of worry he didn't know he was carrying loosens and his breath hitches. He was looking for Fritter, but he was worried about Mako, too. He was worried that Mako wouldn't be here. He was worried that Mako might have ended up somewhere else, might have moved on without him.

He doesn't quite realize that he's crying until he starts sniffling, burying his face in the crook of Mako's neck ]

Where were you?!

[arclightning]

[ Oh. Oh no, Wu's breath is hitching, and there's more wetness on his skin, and Mako knows what that means. He holds Wu a little tighter, almost pulling him up out of the sand with the force of it, and turns his face, pressing tentative lips to the side of Wu's head. He tastes like salt. Spirits, he's so warm, why is Mako so cold? He must have been in the water longer than he thought. The sun feels like a blanket on his skin, tugging at his blood in a way that reminds him of the waves.

Wu, by contrast, is a warm and solid core, and for once Mako lets himself cling to that, relieved beyond words.

It's a long time before he says anything. ]

In the water. Took some detours before... I hit the shore. You safe? Not hurt?

[royalfling]

[ Wu sniffs, holding him tighter, his arms around Mako's shoulders, glad for his weight, even if he is cold. Why is he so cold? It just makes Wu hug him closer, wanting to take care of him, to keep him safe. That kiss feels good, though. It reminds him that Mako's here, that Mako loves him. That isn't going to change. He turns his face to catch Mako's lips in a wet kiss, salty from his own tears. It's short, soft, because he's still sniffling, and he murmurs against his lips, pulling back just enough to meet Mako's eyes ]

I'm okay. I, I got a little hurt, but I'm okay now. It's really not that bad.

Are you okay? What detours? Wasn't it just the, the sea?

[arclightning]

[ Mako frowns against his mouth, pulling back even farther with his hands still on Wu to look him over. He's a little bruised, and Mako can see an angry red mark just under the collar of his robe, on his shoulder, but otherwise he doesn't seem that bad off.

Something in Mako relaxes, just a little. ]

We'll find Korra, get her to fix you up.

[ Ignoring, for the moment, his own wounds, of course. Mako's pretty beat-up from being chained up in a cell and then dumped onto sharp rocks. Swimming long distances isn't something he's ever had to do before, and every time he tried to bend he'd be too sodden or he made things colder, and he still hasn't figured that out. Everything is nebulous and floating in his own head, a static whirl of questions he can't put voice to. ]

You missed the ships? And the rocks, and the... crab things?

[royalfling]

Ships..?

[ Wu reaches up to touch Mako's cheek, petting over his skin, reassuring himself that Mako is here, he's here and he's okay, mostly. He presses in close again, wrapping himself around Mako. He's so cold, and that's so strange, but Wu can keep him warm, or at least he can try ]

I, the rocks and the crabs. The crabs bit me. Did they get you too? Mako--!

[ He squeezes Mako tighter, burying his face in Mako's chest. ]

[arclightning]

'm fine. Don't worry.

[ Wu doesn't need the details of that awful cell or the crabs right now, not while Mako's reassuring himself that Wu's actually okay and not about to keel over because of those things. He got away, he's here, that's what's important. Mako makes himself think that, cements the thought hard in his own head, because otherwise he's going to think about Wu alone in the dark surrounded by clicking, half-drowned and terrified, and—

No. He's safe, they're here, he has a robe.

Mako blinks against Wu's hair. ]

...clothes.

[royalfling]

[ Wu holds on tighter. Even if he's colder than he shoulder be, this is Mako and he's okay and he's here and Wu's still sniffling a little, too overwhelmed by the fear he'd had and not acknowledged about losing him.

But when Mako says that, he looks up at him, blinking the tears out of his eyes. ]

Oh. Oh! Yes. Clothes. There were these nice people giving us robes...

[ Wu looks around and his eyes land on a Waker, hovering near the edge of the beach. Wu gives them a little smile and a wave, and the person comes over, offering Mako a robe, too. ]

I think he's okay. Just cold.

[arclightning]

I'm fine.

[ The protest is practically a reflex at this point, mumbled as Mako sort of... half-hides behind Wu, staring at the Waker, who mostly just rolls their eyes as Mako reaches out, around Wu, to take the bundle of cloth and shove his shaky arms into it as quickly as he can. The Waker watches for a moment like they're making sure Mako's alright until he huffs at them. ]

Thanks, I'm fine, you can leave.

[ He's not particularly in the mood to be nice, half-frozen as he is. At least he has clothes, even if he can't seem to make his fingers work enough to knot the tie keeping it shut. ]

[royalfling]

Thank you.

[ Wu says pointedly, turning to look at Mako. He really isn't being very nice right now, but Wu supposes he can't blame him. He takes the robe from Mako's hands gently, untying the knot. ]

Here.

[ He holds it up to help Mako into the robe. It's the least he can do, and his own feelings are still swirling with relief that Mako is here and he's, mostly, okay. ]

[arclightning]

...thanks.

[ At least he says that with a lot less acid. It's telling that he actually accepts the help, though, lets Wu drag the cloth over his skin and pull it shut. He feels clumsy and too-cold, limp now that the rush of determination and adrenaline has left him. It's like the breath after the battle, and Mako has never been good at that moment. He stands there mutely until the robe is wrapped around him, and only moves to actually do something when it comes to pulling it more closely around himself like a traditional Fire Nation robe.

Wu's fingers are so warm, and so familiar. Mako's leaning into him without really thinking about it, letting himself sink into the awareness of his own body and more importantly of Wu, safe and warm and here, even if he got bitten. ]

You got away from the crabs without me, huh?

[royalfling]

[ Good, good, he pets his hands down Mako's arms, glad that he's accepting help, that he hasn't gone back to how he was after Wu was killed, doing everything for himself, refusing help, refusing Wu. Wu doesn't know if he could handle that right now.

He presses in, wrapping his arms around Mako's waist and looking up at him with a soft smile and a thin laugh ]

Without you, but, ah, not alone. I had help! Oh, oh, did you know that Varian can firebend now? It was wild!

[arclightning]

[ Mako wishes that was more of a surprise to him. Mostly he just nods, dropping an arm around Wu's back to keep him close. He's so warm. When did Wu get so warm? Usually Mako is the warmer of the two of them, but now he feels like he needs to huddle close to Wu just to feel his fingers properly. ]

Yeah, I met someone else who didn't think he should be able to use fire but could. No idea what's happening, but—That how you got away? Varian helped? Was he any good?

[royalfling]

Another person?

[ Wu's eyes go wide ]

Oh, wow! I wonder if that's a thing here? Like, if people are learning new things like that?

Ah... Varian wasn't very good at it. Well, maybe he could have been, but he kind of freaked out instead of really helping very much. I had to make him use it to get rid of the crabs!

I tried. I don't think I can firebend at all, still.

[arclightning]

That's... probably for the best.

[ Mako smiles when he says it, at least, tugs Wu back into a hug and lets them stay like that for a few quiet moments as the waves crash behind them. He had no idea what would happen when they stepped into the water together (when he yanked Wu into the water with him, really) but they're here and they're alive and Wu still remembers him, so...

Mako's hopeful.

Strangely.

If cold.

He squeezes Wu once before pulling away and tangling their fingers together instead. ]

You were looking for Fritter, right? Let's see what we can find. She has to be around here somewhere.

[royalfling]

Yeah!

[ Wu smiles brightly, staying close to Mako's side. He's so glad that Mako is here and that he's (mostly) okay. He isn't warm like he should be, but he's solid and his hand is so wonderfully familiar in Wu's ]

I don't know where she went. She was with me when he get into the water, and I'm so scared for her. I don't think she knows how to swim, and she was swimming on me, but then everything changed and I was--

[ A squid, but he doesn't say that part ]

I really, really, really hope she's okay.

[arclightning]

We'll find her.

[ Mako sounds a lot more confident about that than he feels. The odds of a tiny raccoon making it all the way out here, unless she got turned into a squid too, are... low. Very low. But he can't tell Wu that, not yet. Not without trying to find her, so Mako swallows those words down and wraps his arm around Wu's waist. ]

We just have to... [ What? They have to do something. It's so hard to pull the threads of his thoughts into something coherent. What comes out of his mouth sounds much more like something Bolin would say. ] ...think like a raccoon.

[royalfling]

Think like a raccoon!

[ It is more than a little surprising that Mako would suggest that, but he's trying, he's trying to help and Wu looks up at him with a wavering smile. ]

We lived with her for months, we should be able to do that. Definitely. Raccoons... like to get into things! To go where they're not supposed to be. Which would be... this whole place.

[ His face falls again and he leans into Mako's side. ]

[arclightning]

Food.

[ Mako says the word, and then realizes a moment later he has to explain. He does this mostly by angling Wu at the boardwalk. ]

Smells like there's food up there.

[royalfling]

[ Continued here ]