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June-July 2024 Test Drive Meme
June-July 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: Ghosts, Potential Violence, Potential Death
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.Do not pass go. Instead they will haunt the ghost town for one week in the room where they were killed. Other Star Children may recognize them and work to snap them out of their routines. Yet nothing will free the Star Children's spirits before the week is through. At the end of the week, they'll come to, alive, in their bodies in the room they died in. Best get through and out of the ghost town before dying again!
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
Summer has hit. It's hot, and nowhere is it hotter than Cruel Summer. Naturally, new Star Children arrive in Cruel Summer with no indication of which direction to go to escape, unless they're so lucky as to arrive near the Selkie River. The water provides a break, and a selkie skin will protect Star Children from the heat. Though beware the cruelty of leaving a selkie without their skin. Along with the heat, Star Children can hear whispers and the echoes of screams throughout Cruel Summer. There's no obvious source of the noises. Not the normal creatures. Not anything anyone can see.
Whether new or old Star Child, anyone lost, overheated, in need of a rest, or anything else will find a friendly spirit will find them in the sands, rock, or shores of Cruel Summer. They'll guide the way toward the huts found in Cruel Summer. These huts have changed; the huts are bigger and grow together, making them one interconnected twisting winding empty town. No one appears to live there. The wooden town is in disrepair, varying from building to building. Even so, they are cool inside, a welcome break from the summer heat.
No matter how one entered, even through the swinging doors to the saloon, that exit disappears behind Star Children. There's no turning back. The only way out is to explore the way through the buildings. This fact continues to be true building to building as exits continue to vanish. The abandoned town isn't as empty as it first seems. As Star Children explore the branching paths through the wooden structures, they see ghosts of spirits going through the paces of their lives. They're familiar to these spaces and interact with missing objects that sometimes shimmer in spirit energy.
Spirit Children may interrupt these routines to try to talk with the ghosts. Some ghostly spirits are friendly. They may interact with Star Children as though they're someone else, someone the spirits used to know. Others, like the bartender, may treat them like a new customer. Other ghosts are determined to stick to their routines and, should Star Children continue to interrupt, will attack those who disturb them.
These spirits may kill Star Children when they attack. Normal weapons won't hurt them. There are revolvers, shotguns, iron pokers, hunting knives, and other plain weapons around to grab in self-defense. Salt bullets and iron will dispel ghosts. These weapons may be grabbed at any time. However, doing so attracts the creatures in Cruel Summer. A blood red worm spitting yellow acid may break through the floor to eat or spray Star Children. An enormous coyote may leap through the window. Whether attracted by the use of weapons or passing by, any dangerous creature found in Cruel Summer seems agitated when they come near these structures and will attack them and anyone inside. They will focus especially on anyone with a stolen selkie skin.
Should Star Children die, whether to ghosts or creatures, they will not immediately return to life.
A constant through these scenes are the spirits' spoons, visible somewhere in each scene. The ghost spoons are whole. Once free of the ghost town, Star Children may choose to travel to the Shattered Spoon Shrine in Never Fade to search for the broken fragments of any of these spoons. They are in such small pieces, however, that no Star Child may feed them enough Lore alone to bring the spirit back. Two or more Star Children may spend time in the Shrine creating and feeding Lore toward the spoons to heal them. It just may be enough to bring someone back.
- Whispers, echoes of screams, etc become common throughout Cruel Summer
- Huts become bigger, interconnected, growing together. Anyone lost, overheated, in need of something in Cruel Summer gets a friendly spirit redirecting them to these buildings
- Buildings will still be in some state of disrepair, but like a whole twisting winding town
- Insides are a cool respite
supernatural ghost spirit air conditioning - Only way out is through, no turning back, as the exits disappear behind you
- Many are friendly, but some are not. One can attempt to talk to them, but how interactive they are varies
- Occasionally other creatures from Cruel Summer may burst in and attack
- If a Star Child dies, rather than return to life immediately, they stay a ghost for about a week, part of the tour
Content Warnings: Fire, Coerced Confessions
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessionshelp Folkmore grow as well. Gardens bloom in beautiful displays. Crops grow healthy and joyful. It’s even possible to hear humming from some of the vegetables and fruits. The land grows with the Star Children. Anyone who lacks a green thumb can work their way around that with confessions! Save that dying plant and grow those tomatoes.
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
Fire! Fire across the realm! For the second half of June, wildfire burns everywhere. While it doesn’t hurt Star Children, it can reduce everything else to ash: homes, businesses, gardens, spirits. The local spirits will be in a panic and beg Star Children for help from small ice mice in Wintermute to fennec foxes in Cruel Summer. How can Star Children help? Confessions. Anything the person they are with doesn’t know. The more earnest and meaningful the better.
When wildfire erupts and spreads, Star Children may stand in or in front of an area they want to protect and confess something to another Star Child who happens to be nearby. Their neighbor? Their partner? A stranger lost in a new land? These confessions simply need to be something the other person doesn’t know to protect structures and spirits. Memories related to the confession will show in the fire. The fire will fuel these memories until they run out of energy, dying down to embers. At least in that place at that time.
Should something start to burn before someone confesses, multiple confessions are necessary to catch the wildfire’s attention and distract it from the fuel source it is feeding on. Two or more Star Children will need to make confessions whose memories are shared in the flames. Water powers can also help quell the flames, but confessions are necessary in the end.
Once July hits, the wildfires are mostly gone, only sparking up here and there on occasion. In their stead are embers. They spark in the air like fireflies and fly around Folkmore, attracted to Star Children. These embers land on Star Children and make them glow. There’s no pain. In fact, the embers provide sparks of insight into memories, situations, and other emotional dilemmas that Star Children haven’t previously understood. Talking the issue over with another Star Children provides further emotional clarity.
Spirits are welcoming to both embers and Star Children. Confessions
One time that a Star Child confesses, either to wildfire or to embers, they will find a jeweled box shaped like a flame. The peak of the flame comes off to reveal the insides. Within, there is an item from home. It may even be a weapon or magical item. Larger more meaningful confessions are more likely to receive weapons. These items may even be larger than should fit in the box or its entrance. Whether the box should only hold a single ring or fill the palm of one’s hand, these items fit. Star Children also can keep the jeweled box, and this one item from home can be stored within the box. Other items too large to fit the box will not enter it. Only the one from the box.
- Last two weeks of June, wildfire burns across Folkmore. After that, they are rare.
- Confessions can protect or rescue buildings, land areas, and spirits.
- Come July, embers spark across Folkmore like fireflies. They provide insight for Star Children. Talking helps.
- Confessions help the land grow.
- Confessions reveal a jeweled box containing an item from home.
no subject
...honestly that tracks with everything he's been told about his mom. That's kind of comforting. He still doesn't know how to address... any of that... but you know what? This gives him something to do that distracts entirely from that. He'll focus on it and try not to panic.
The de-sanded boot gets pulled back on, and he rises to his feet, glancing around.]
There's monsters further out in the desert who keep attacking people- ghosts, too. We can head back out there and see what comes at us.
[Is it irresponsible to guide a newcomer directly into danger? Sure. But he suspects she'll head out there on her own if he doesn't join in, and... in truth he really wants to see his mom in action.]
no subject
Enemies that cannot be escaped, even in the next life? Lead them to me at once, young warrior! [A beat.] And what should I call you? You have yet to declare your name! [At any volume.]
no subject
OH NO HE WASN'T READY]
Uh- uh- I'm-
[He can't say Casey Jones. That is too obvious! Or maybe she'll think it's a coincidence? Of course she would, who in their right mind would hear someone say "hi I have the same name as you" and go "you must be my future child that I named after myself!" No one. No one would think that. But still, it's weird, right!? He has no explanation except the truth, and the truth is WILD and he's not ready, and- and-
....oh right he needs to answer.]
Um- CJ! I am. CJ. [Said in a decidedly low volume, non-commital. Oh god, he did in fact panic.]
no subject
Those are the same as my initials! I have laid claim to them through my own existence!!
[Casey considers ordering the boy to change his own name, but she thinks better of it. After all, she's trying to be good now. Maybe that includes sharing her initials with this boy? Plus, looking at him, she feels a little bad for him. Maybe he could use the power of her initials.]
...But this is fine! You may go by those initials with my blessing. If anyone needs to differentiate us through our initials, they may call me Grandma CJ!
no subject
The truth is going to come out eventually, just... when he's ready, or near enough. This is daunting.]
Um... thank you. [For letting him keep his name... good grief. She's the one who gave it to him in the first place!] It's hot out there, so before we go I'm gonna grab an extra water bottle for you. We can also use it to get more while we're traveling, so don't drink it all at once.
[Just gonna quick visit a nearby vendor, trading some lore from his scrungly bent spoon for another bottle.]
no subject
In any case, she stays up in the air while following him, her movements continuing to be jerky here and there while she continues feeling out this whole flying business. She looks intrigued as he brings up water.]
Of course! Aside from my newfound thirst for justice, I also feel an actual physical thirst that would do well to be quenched. Hydration is vital!! I will humbly accept whatever you offer to me, Other CJ. [And she watches with fascination as she deals with the vendor. She likely heard about the spoons from the fox, but it's another thing to actually see the exchange in action.]
no subject
It isn't much, but it should keep us from passing out in the desert. [He glances over at her, taking in those wings. Legend, huh... it doesn't surprise him at all. Everything he's heard about her has made her out to be a legendary figure, in a sense. She seems to have (mostly) gotten the hang of flying very quickly, too. That's good!] Are you good to keep flying? It'd probably be fastest.
[It means he can switch to a familiar form for a while, which. Is a good idea. Hard to spot his ongoing mild panic on the face of an animal.]
no subject
As she receives her water bottle, she clutches it tightly, and squirts just a bit into her mouth. This area really is scorching.]
I thank you, Other CJ! I will treasure this nourishing hydration!
[She's getting there with her wings! Her movements are still a bit uneven, but she's managing to keep going in a straight line at least.]
Yes! I will gladly keep this flight going! It is proving to be good training. They shall know me as the terror of the skies! ...Er, heroic terror of the skies!
[After a beat, she adds more meekly-]
Also, I don't know how to land.
no subject
Landing can be tricky. At least the sand's a decently soft place to practice.
[Gets everywhere, but it's better than stone. He crouches down, tucking his bottle away for safekeeping, and focuses for a moment-]
Okay, I'm coming up!
[-before shifting into the form of a comically-small rainbow bird. Immediately he tip-taps on the sand left and right - hot, hot! he's lost his boots! - and takes off to join her in the air.]
no subject
-but then she looks on with wonder as he assumes his new form.]
Other CJ! You have become a - an incredibly tiny and adorable bird?! [Some confused flaps as she looks towards him.] How could this be? Are you a mutant - or is this what is known as a Familiar??
no subject
Oh, yeah! I'm a familiar. I can turn into a couple of animals. My- [-mom, he almost says, but his brain sort of short-circuits midway. Is it weird to talk about his new mom to his first mom? Even though she's not really his mom (yet? maybe never now? will he still exist without the apocalypse?). Oh no, that's a spiral he can't get into right now.
...Let's. Start over.] I read about it in a book, this one's a painted bunting.
no subject
[Oddly shifting sentences aside, Casey's impressed by this transformation! It may not seem powerful, but she sees how it could be useful.]
You are full of surprises, Other CJ. And well-read as well! Truly I have found a fine ally for my quest! [She observes the way his wings flap, for additional pointers on how to work her own.] You may continue leading the way while telling me more of yourself. How many other animal forms have you obtained?
no subject
(Mom thinks he's a good ally... aaaa...)]
Um- I have two others. I started out as a pangolin, and months later I learned how to turn into an owlbear. This one's more recent, I got it about five months ago. Haven't learned any new ones since.
[He doesn't know if he needs more bonds or if 3 is his limit. There doesn't seem to be any consistent rules for familiars at this point. (Not that he knows, at least.)]
no subject
I see! A random yet incredible-sounding set of forms ! A pangolin's armor must be very useful. And an owlbear?! [Her eyes shift color with intrigue!] I have never heard of such a beast! It sounds quite fearsome.
[She imagines some fearsome youkai. It sounds cooler than a ghost bear at least!]
You must show me that form when we are no longer in flight! I'm excited to see if I can outwrestle a creature like that...
[Familiars are more exciting than she expected!]
no subject
If birds could blush, boy howdy he'd be doing it. He does chirp quite cheerfully, though.]
I can do that! It starts out kind of small, but I can make it grow. Usually if I get mad, so it'd be good in a fight. We should find some monsters first.
[The seemingly abandoned huts scattered around and full of ghosts are getting closer, now. he's not sure if they should be fighting ghosts, but there ought to be some of the desert beasts roaming around causing trouble.]
no subject
So that form starts off more on the 'owl' side of the scale... [She was picturing the opposite.] Interesting! It does still sound very powerful.
[Casey totally wants to punch a ghost-]
Yes, let us seek some worthy opponents for my first battle in this world. A true trial by fire! If we have trouble locating such monsters, I can try making a variety of animal calls to draw them out!
no subject
[He sweeps in towards a set of huts sticking out of the desert like a sore thumb. He can sort of see figures moving about, but they're hard to discern until they get closer. (Ghosts, maybe?) Instead of getting too close, however, he circles around Cassandra again.]
Ready to learn how to land? The trick is to glide in without flapping, then angle yourself feet first. Let your wings be sort of like a parachute.
[He flutters down to a rooftop to demonstrate. landing smoothly. Thankfully he's had months of practice for this, so it's much easier than the first time... he's rooting for you, kind-of-Mom!]
no subject
[How many times has Casey just haphazardly leaped from perilous heights in her past? Well Casey Junior should feel extra lucky that he was born, that's for sure.]
To glide without flapping... like the majestic, tiny bird...
[She focuses. She closes her eyes for a moment, then realizes it's probably important in this instance to keep her eyes open. She focuses, with her eyes open! She angles her wings and feet just right, even spreading her arms to keep things extra balanced and slowly descends towards the rooftop.]
Behold! As this Legend heroically descends at a steady, controlled pace...! [She declares that dramatically in the moments before she touches down upon the rooftop near him.]
no subject
[Casey shifts back, straightening up and giving an absolutely earnest, zero-irony clap. After hearing nothing but stories for so long, he's eager to see his mom in action, and this is a great start.]
You did that like you'd done it a million times before.
[Unless she doesn't stick the landing, in which case, it's probably still awesome, just slightly unpracticed.]
no subject
Why thank you! All I did was follow your capable instruction to the letter!
[With that, she bows at him.]
I should thank you for acting as my sensei in aerial maneuvers! I have learned a vital lesson from you and have not fallen on my face.
no subject
[Sensei taught him almost everything, true enough, but... his mother deserves credit for teaching him and taking care of him for the first five years of his life, so! Teaching her younger self to fly feels like a small price.]
I've never been a sensei before. That's weird.
no subject
It is an honor! You have gained enough wisdom to pass on what you have learned in the manner of a true sensei. I know I have felt a strong pride in acting as a sensei for my Brownie Clan. You should feel proud as well, Other CJ!
no subject
Your... Brownie Clan?
[A chance to hear about the Brownies firsthand!]
no subject
Yes! They are a clan that I myself have taken command of. It consists of a number of young scouts clad in traditional apparel who sell delicious brownies to the masses! I made sure their fighting arts were up to snuff, and they acted as my agents in my campaign for world domination! ...One which was, admittedly, a bit too much of a long-term plan.
[A beat, and then she decides to add.]
For additional context! ...I should mention that until recently, I have been evil. But my allegiance has since changed!
no subject
How recently?
[He'd like to get a timeline without making it obvious he knows who she is and where she's from. Eventually he'll figure out how to broach that... weird topic...]
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