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April-May 2024 Test Drive Meme
April-May 2024 TDM
Introduction
Welcome to Folkmore's monthly Test Drive Meme! Please feel free to test drive any and all characters regardless of your intent to apply or whether you have an invite or not.
All TDMs are game canon and work like "mini-events". For new players and characters, you can choose to have your TDM thread be your introduction thread upon acceptance or start fresh. Current players are also allowed to have in-game characters post to the TDM so long as they mark their top levels ‘Current Character.’
TDM threads can be used for spoon spending at any time by characters accepted into the game.
Playing and interacting with the TDMs will allow characters to immediately obtain canon items from homes especially weapons or other things they may have had on their person when they were pulled from their worlds! There will always be a prompt that provides some sort of "reward" to characters who complete certain tasks.
🦊 New Star Children meet the Fox still in their worlds, and she brings them into the new realm of Folkmore. As you follow her, your body begins to change and new characteristics emerge. These may stay for a while, or perhaps they will hide away after. And during all of this, the Fox explains to you where you will be going: to Folkmore.
and then... you fall like a shooting star, falling to the land in a burst of starlight.
🦊 Experienced Star Children are already familiar with this time of the month. There are shooting stars all across the sky, and some fall to the land, which means the Fox has brought new arrivals. These newly arrived Star Children will face some tests, but Thirteen wants the more seasoned residents to participate as well.
Perhaps you follow the falling stars on your own, or perhaps the Fox simply teleports you there, but it appears you too will be part of this.
Content Warnings: Forced Relocation, Forced Sharing, Potential Violence & Harm
New Star Children arrive in Wintermute. Not at the hot springs, the school, or anywhere else near civilization. They arrive in the middle of white, snowy nowhere. The good news is that Wintermute is no longer dark twenty-four seven. There is enough light to avoid crevasses, blocked up wells, and other dangerous features of the landscape. Further, no one is expected to figure out how to get out of there on their own.
Usually Thoth finds the lost travelers in the cold expanse of Wintermute. However, she's busy exploring the multiverse for new and interesting ideas for technology. Not to fret! She hasn't abandoned ye who've entered here. There's a new emergency lost and found network:
The Wandering Dog food carts are now open twenty-four seven! The dogs work in shifts, but the food remains as delicious as ever. When a Star Child gets lost in Wintermute, another Star Child will happen to be buying food from a Wandering Dog somewhere in Folkmore. One such lucky unlucky Star Child gets transported to the School of Thoth. Specifically, to where the mechanical sled dogs hang out. They receive a warm winter coat over whatever they were wearing and another one on hand for whoever they are rescuing. Then it's off across the snow! Don't worry, non-mushing experts, the dogs know what they're doing and lead the sled right to the designated lost Star Child.
The rescuee gets to lay in the sled for the ride back, wrapped up warm and cozy in their new winter coat (it may be spring, but it's always cold in Wintermute). The sled dogs bring Star Children back to the hot springs, so that they can warm up even more. Alternatively, Star Children can explore the Cutting Edge, the School of Thoth, or something else in Wintermute. However, the Star Children cannot part ways or leave Wintermute immediately.
The sled dogs, yes the whole team, will stay with the pair to enforce this. They may surround the pair like a pack, cuddle pile on top of them, or lay around the edges of a hot spring. No matter how long it takes to realize the dogs are doing this and that there's a reason for it, Star Children will eventually find instructions in one of the dogs' collars: Share something that other people have refused to listen to you about. Everyone ought to be listened to.
Only once both Star Children have shared something with each other will the dogs let them part ways and see, perhaps, the rest of Folkmore.
On the walk to Akhlut Station, Star Children will see plain weapons sticking out of the snow: swords, guns, knives. These are simple, non-magical practical weapons. Experienced Star Children may know to suspect such free offerings, but nothing immediately happens upon picking one up. However, once on the train, the train will be attacked by frost spirits. These icy spirits must either be hacked to pieces until they can no longer reform or melted with fire. Innocent passengers who didn't pick up a weapon may be forced to get involved, but the frost spirits will be most focused on those who picked up weapons.
New Star Children arrive in Wintermute. Not at the hot springs, the school, or anywhere else near civilization. They arrive in the middle of white, snowy nowhere. The good news is that Wintermute is no longer dark twenty-four seven. There is enough light to avoid crevasses, blocked up wells, and other dangerous features of the landscape. Further, no one is expected to figure out how to get out of there on their own.
Usually Thoth finds the lost travelers in the cold expanse of Wintermute. However, she's busy exploring the multiverse for new and interesting ideas for technology. Not to fret! She hasn't abandoned ye who've entered here. There's a new emergency lost and found network:
The Wandering Dog food carts are now open twenty-four seven! The dogs work in shifts, but the food remains as delicious as ever. When a Star Child gets lost in Wintermute, another Star Child will happen to be buying food from a Wandering Dog somewhere in Folkmore. One such lucky unlucky Star Child gets transported to the School of Thoth. Specifically, to where the mechanical sled dogs hang out. They receive a warm winter coat over whatever they were wearing and another one on hand for whoever they are rescuing. Then it's off across the snow! Don't worry, non-mushing experts, the dogs know what they're doing and lead the sled right to the designated lost Star Child.
The rescuee gets to lay in the sled for the ride back, wrapped up warm and cozy in their new winter coat (it may be spring, but it's always cold in Wintermute). The sled dogs bring Star Children back to the hot springs, so that they can warm up even more. Alternatively, Star Children can explore the Cutting Edge, the School of Thoth, or something else in Wintermute. However, the Star Children cannot part ways or leave Wintermute immediately.
The sled dogs, yes the whole team, will stay with the pair to enforce this. They may surround the pair like a pack, cuddle pile on top of them, or lay around the edges of a hot spring. No matter how long it takes to realize the dogs are doing this and that there's a reason for it, Star Children will eventually find instructions in one of the dogs' collars: Share something that other people have refused to listen to you about. Everyone ought to be listened to.
Only once both Star Children have shared something with each other will the dogs let them part ways and see, perhaps, the rest of Folkmore.
On the walk to Akhlut Station, Star Children will see plain weapons sticking out of the snow: swords, guns, knives. These are simple, non-magical practical weapons. Experienced Star Children may know to suspect such free offerings, but nothing immediately happens upon picking one up. However, once on the train, the train will be attacked by frost spirits. These icy spirits must either be hacked to pieces until they can no longer reform or melted with fire. Innocent passengers who didn't pick up a weapon may be forced to get involved, but the frost spirits will be most focused on those who picked up weapons.
- New Star Children arrive in remote areas of Wintermute.
- Star Children buying food from The Wandering Dog get teleported to the School of Thoth to rescue people with a team of sled dogs.
- Star Children get amazing new winter coats!
- Star Children cannot part ways until they share something others have refused to listen to! The dogs enforce this.
- Simple, non-magical weapons stick out of the snow on the way to the train station.
- Anyone who picks up one of those weapons will see their train get attacked by frost spirits.
Content Warnings: Potential Forced Participation, Potential Harm
Thoth has been listening to any and all ideas people have had around science in the last few months. Whether they were shower thoughts or a discussion between scientific colleagues or anywhere in between, she's made her list and built every one as an experiment. On a human scale. A human test subject scale. Because every idea has merit. That's right: Thoth believes in you.
Posters saying Thoth Needs You! go up around Folkmore. They offer a reward for participating in an experiment. Simply tear off a piece of paper from the bottom of the poster, and at some point in the future, you're in. Now, there might be a little hiccup here or there. These posters are experimental too! So some Star Children who don't tear off a slip might get pulled into an experiment as well. (Who said Thirteen ought to recruit for her trials? Thoth listened… or she tried.) Oh well, at least it's all in the name of science!
Perhaps Star Children need to sing Baby It's Cold Outside to convince the other to stay (it really will be cold outside). Perhaps they have a choice of spinners, buttons, levers, or other devices to interact with. Perhaps they make their way through a maze. Perhaps they try a new contraption. Perhaps they even recognize their own idea come to life! There's a multitude of new tech to try, and it has not been safety tested.
Nothing will explode. Probably. Maybe. Okay, some experiments are definitely going to have explosions. How about pressing that button anyway and finding out if it's this one?
Once Star Children survive the experiment—and they will, Thoth may be a loose cannon of a scientist, but she's ensured that much—they will emerge from one of the School of Thoth's laboratories. Togo, the grey wolf mascot, waits on the other side with an item for each test subject: an item from home. This may even be a weapon or magical item.
No one is left to the cold to fend for themselves. One of the nearby classrooms has been set up as a first aid center. Dog spirits of all sizes, from the smallest Maltipoo spirit to the largest Great Dane spirit, staff a healing clinic and will treat any injuries Star Children received in the experiments (or already sported). They offer hot lemonade—lemon juice, molasses, and hot water—to everyone to warm their soul. Injured Star Children can find a corner to rest by themselves or company with which to discuss their experiments.
Thoth has been listening to any and all ideas people have had around science in the last few months. Whether they were shower thoughts or a discussion between scientific colleagues or anywhere in between, she's made her list and built every one as an experiment. On a human scale. A human test subject scale. Because every idea has merit. That's right: Thoth believes in you.
Posters saying Thoth Needs You! go up around Folkmore. They offer a reward for participating in an experiment. Simply tear off a piece of paper from the bottom of the poster, and at some point in the future, you're in. Now, there might be a little hiccup here or there. These posters are experimental too! So some Star Children who don't tear off a slip might get pulled into an experiment as well. (Who said Thirteen ought to recruit for her trials? Thoth listened… or she tried.) Oh well, at least it's all in the name of science!
Perhaps Star Children need to sing Baby It's Cold Outside to convince the other to stay (it really will be cold outside). Perhaps they have a choice of spinners, buttons, levers, or other devices to interact with. Perhaps they make their way through a maze. Perhaps they try a new contraption. Perhaps they even recognize their own idea come to life! There's a multitude of new tech to try, and it has not been safety tested.
Nothing will explode. Probably. Maybe. Okay, some experiments are definitely going to have explosions. How about pressing that button anyway and finding out if it's this one?
Once Star Children survive the experiment—and they will, Thoth may be a loose cannon of a scientist, but she's ensured that much—they will emerge from one of the School of Thoth's laboratories. Togo, the grey wolf mascot, waits on the other side with an item for each test subject: an item from home. This may even be a weapon or magical item.
No one is left to the cold to fend for themselves. One of the nearby classrooms has been set up as a first aid center. Dog spirits of all sizes, from the smallest Maltipoo spirit to the largest Great Dane spirit, staff a healing clinic and will treat any injuries Star Children received in the experiments (or already sported). They offer hot lemonade—lemon juice, molasses, and hot water—to everyone to warm their soul. Injured Star Children can find a corner to rest by themselves or company with which to discuss their experiments.
- Thoth has built experiments to bring Star Children’s ideas to life.
- Pick a paper tab off a Thoth Needs You! poster to participate. Or don’t. A mishap may bring Star Children there regardless.
- Do science! Be a human experiment! Maybe experience explosions!
- Togo, the Thoth mascot, will have an item from home for every Star Child who participates.
- Dog spirits man (dog?) a first aid center in a nearby classroom.
no subject
He frowns at the voice. Did they break this thing already? Maybe that solved the test?
"Okay, so that was an interesting button." Matt uses his cane to guide himself over to where the man is. He figures standing by the console might be safer than trying to figure out the tank of water.
"So now we have a bigger tank of water." He sounds slightly amused. "Did the water level drop or is the tank still full?"
no subject
That's more than they used to know about it.
"You know most of this place is run with magic and the technology can be lightyears ahead of Earth's. I think maybe they translated the controls to something they thought we might understand. I'm assuming you don't pilot, no offense, but it kinda looks like a plane control."
no subject
Matt doesn't know what to make of the platform growing and the tank not except that it means they aren't connected to each other. Sand would explain some of the stranger sounds he's heard. There's not a lot of shifting sand in Hell's Kitchen.
"They definitely thought wrong." None of the control names made any sense and what's happening in front of them. Well, in front of one of them.
He sighs. "Maybe the key is getting in. I can't think of any other reason for a swimsuit to be here."
no subject
Steve is truly not trying to drown again so soon, but, he couldn't let Matt go in there, either.
"How about we figure out what everything does first?"
no subject
Matt feels a bit useless standing there letting this guy do all the work. His own observations are that the levers and knobs make no sense and they're sort of stuck.
"Sure, keep testing them." He motions towards the console. "I'm Matt by the way."
He'd like to know the man's name. He doubts they know each other but he can't shake how familiar his voice is. Matt wants to know why. The machine isn't interesting to him but the man standing next to him is.
no subject
He imagines one of these must be a temperature dial, and when nothing happens on one dial, he walks up to the tank to press his hand against the glass.
Which is where he is when he says, "I'm Steve. It's nice to meet you, Matt."
no subject
"You're Steve Rogers," he says with a little bit of surprise in his voice. "You're Captain America."
Who is dead as far as Matt knows. Voices are how Matt mostly distinguishes people along with scent but that's a weird one to talk about with a basic stranger. He's heard enough recordings of Captain America to know the voice but not without a gentle reminder, apparently.
no subject
He doesn't think he's dead to Matt, but he thinks any civilian might be surprised to find him here. He just doesn't think too much of it. "Yes, I am. That'll make it easier to explain a few things. Like why I'm not gonna let you get in that tank."
no subject
And the guy has a lot of soft edges around his face which Matt assumes is a beard. It makes it harder to tell what he might look like in his radar sense. Steve's voice is the best he's got.
If he hadn't already been warned about the different universes and different points in time during his rescue from Wintermute this would be incredibly unsettling. Matt still feels a bit... strange standing around trying to figure out a machine with an Avenger.
"There's no braille to label things for me," he says with a bit of stubbornness. "I won't know what lever or button I'm pushing. Can you really be in the tank and direct me at the same time?"
no subject
He probably just caught Steve once or twice on a reel, which means he's fit for the job.
"Besides, I think if one of us gets in trouble, physically, it should be me."
He doesn't know about the Daredevil thing, Matt.
no subject
Like most people in their shared world Matt's grown up with the story of Captain America. He listened to documentaries in school. He's heard the news interviews while the man was alive. It took him a moment but yes, he recognized the voice.
"Is there anything else we can throw in the water?" he asks, thinking like a lawyer for a moment. "I don't know if there are explicit instructions that say a person has to get in the tank. We could put anything in, arguably, and see the results."
He drums his fingers against his cane. "This is as good as a person, arguably, and safer."
no subject
But it's a good compromise - they'll get to put something in the tank to test it out, and hopefully achieve whatever goal they need to do in order to pass.
"Welcome to Folkmore, by the way. The trials here are usually like this - no instructions, stuck somewhere having to figure it out." Though mostly whatever it is can be resolved with hugs.
He's gonna wait on that suggestion.
no subject
He knows that's a lot to ask of someone. Normally he'd only be comfortable asking Foggy for that level of help but someone has to show him around or else he has to pretend to be Mr. Magoo while he tries to find a new cane on his own.
He doesn't particularly want to do that.
"Can I sue over ADA compliance?" he asks with a small smile. "I have some suggestions about accessibility."
Please don't hug him.
no subject
He doesn't mention her by name because he doesn't think Matt knows her.
"But sure, this one breaks and I'll help you around town. Was gonna offer anyway - I take the new people on a tour." Captain America moonlights as a tourguide in cottagecore land. Let's just not question it.
no subject
He's very fond of Jen and all the ways he's worked with her. It was good to know he had one familiar "face" in this place when everyone else is basically a stranger.
It sounds like the sorts of questions Jen would ask when coming to what is basically Nevernever Land.
"I'll just need something similar and then be fine on my own." Matt doesn't mind the occasional bit of help but he really hates when people won't let him be independent. Steve is doing a decent job narrating which is a skill that's hard to learn but he doesn't need or want a babysitter.
no subject
"Sure," he says. "But this place runs on magic so I think we're a little short on walking sticks. But hey, we'll try." He doesn't know how Matt feels about this, so he just keeps on going.
"How are you? As a swimmer? It's pretty deep."
no subject
Matt won't talk about the time they worked together because he doesn't need to talk about his skills as Daredevil to Captain America. He suspects Steve Rogers has some strong feelings about vigilantes. Good and bad.
"Even a cane for walking would be better than nothing." A longer, slightly flexible walking stick would be best but Matt can make do with a lot of different options. He just needs something along the same basic lines.
"Well, I never joined the swim team but I'm pretty okay at it."
no subject
Though, to be fair, Matt can't see him.
And, really, he'd chosen to put his stick in instead of his glasses. Meaning he can probably be fine without it for awhile, but he'd rather not show Steve his eyes.
He can respect that.
"Want me to do it, or do you wanna walk up to it? You can... feel the glass, probably."
no subject
New York is very good at ignoring everything around it.
He holds the cane out in the direction of Steve's voice. "Why don't you throw it in? Your aim will be better."
They can stay at the console and get back to experimenting as soon as the cane lands in the water if they stay where they are.
no subject
Then he returns to the machine, and starts reading off more labels to Matt, before turning the dial just a little bit to test them out.
He's really not sure still what the goal is. Just to test everything?
"Little hint might be nice," he says, hands on his hips.
no subject
"We could just see if the door is unlocked," Matt suggests. "That would mean we've accomplished our goal."
Whatever that goal is. Hopefully not to report their findings because Matt cannot report anything really useful.
"Otherwise wait for something to happen to the cane." He shrugs. It's the best suggestion he can make.
no subject
He thinks he'll walk Matt over to it. That seems the safest option for both of them, and Steve can continue to push buttons that he doesn't understand.
He'll figure it out.
He's been a lab rat.
no subject
Matt knows. He has the whole room laid out in his radar sense but there's a note of helpfulness in Steve's voice. He likes being useful. He likes having a purpose. Matt can let him have a little something to do in guiding him towards the door.
Of course Captain America is built like a truck. Matt can feel the strength of his muscles on the short walk to the door. He'd be hard to fight but there's a part of Matt that still wonders what it'd be like.
When they reach the door Matt tries it just because he's curious.
no subject
Unless.
"One second."
Steve looks around for something resembling a hairpin or a paperclip, and then finds one, striding back over. "Don't tell anyone I can pick a lock," he says. "It kinda clashes with the image."
no subject
It is strange to know that Captain America, paragon of good, moral character, can pick locks.
"Like most superheroes, you're more than your image," he says and can't help but smile when he hears the lock click as it unlocks. "Any other secrets you want to share?"
He wonders if Captain America will share more. He's been very open so far. Matt hasn't heard a single lie out of him so far and people tend to lie in small ways almost daily.
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