June-July 2025 Test Drive Meme

[folkie]

June-July 2025 TDM

Introduction

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This Test Drive meme is open to all.
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 a canon item from home, 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.

Current players are always encouraged to tag new people on the TDM!

🦊 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.

[ Prompt One ★ Prompt Two]

Pirates of the Loreibbean . ★

Content Warnings:

Old wood creaks and groans, barely audible over a howl of wind. Wet droplets of rain hit faces and soak into clothing. Clouds overhead are a murky gray, blocking out the sun. Though summer weather is often somewhat temperamental, a true storm has now hit. Both newly arrived Star Children and veterans may find themselves in the midst of this situation quite abruptly, standing on the unsteady deck of an old, grand ship. Those who run to the nearest rail and peer overboard may be shocked to discover a stark absence of water below. Instead, the view just goes down… and down… The land of Folkmore lies far below, as this ship is flying through the storm, its sails struggling to hold under the force of whipping winds. There is no captain, there is no helmsman- there is no crew at all to be found, only fellow Star Children. And yet… the ship is still moving full speed ahead through the storm, as if it has a destination in mind.

A resounding boom echoes, and those with a keen gaze may just spot something whizzing past, missing the ship by a hair. Was that… a cannonball?

Just like that, a second vessel weaves its way out of a deck of gray clouds, pulling up side by side to the ship the Star Children are on. Lightning flashes, illuminating a whole bunch of sneers across the way, along with some eye patches, bandanas and goggles. Sky pirates are attacking! It's clear from their animalistic features that they're local spirits, but they're hardly as benevolent as those typically seen in Folkmore.

Ready yourselves, Star Children!

Those who wish to return fire will find several cannons lined along the ship's deck, ready to be used. These don't work just like any old artillery, though. In place of those unwieldy metal balls, one must load magic into these cannons. Lore, to be precise! It even says so on a small metal plaque, attached near the firing mechanism: "Connection is one's true ammunition." Find a fellow Star Child and start chatting! The more meaningful the conversation, the grander the magic ball one may blast at the pirates with the cannons.

Unfortunately, the cannons alone are not enough to fight off the pirates, as several of them swing their way aboard with ropes. (Or just fly, if they're bird spirits.) Star Children can head down into the armory below deck to grab a weapon. Yes, even weapons from home (or items that can be improvised weapons) are available, and may be kept after the fight is over. Star Children capable of flight may even be daring enough to make their way to the enemy's ship and deal some real damage over there.

The ship continues to shake and creak and bob in the storm, which may complicate the fight, but not all is lost. There, in the distance, up ahead… A beacon of light flickers, struggling to be seen through the thick clouds. What is that?

• Star Children (new and old) find themselves aboard a grand wooden ship, flying through a storm. Yes, literally flying!
• Sky pirates attack! They're just the local spirits, but a rowdy bunch nonetheless.
• Use conversation to load up a cannon with Lore energy, then blast it at the pirate ship.
• Alternatively, grab a weapon (possibly from home) from your ship's armory and start swashbuckling.
• Star Children can keep one (1) weapon/item from home and other basic weapons.

So Said the Lighthouse Keeper. ★

Content Warnings:

Other Star Children, both new and old, may find themselves drawn to the floating island of Never Fade. Up here, in the clouds, the storm rages just as fierce, and the native spirits all share the same worry: the lighthouse is broken. Indeed, up on the highest hill of Never Fade stands a towering white spire, its beacon dimmed. 'A ship is coming in at any moment', the spirits all whisper. 'And there's reports of pirates in the area, too. What will we do?'

The goats which are quite common in Never Fade join forces to guide Star Children up the hill towards the lighthouse. And if not guiding, then dragging, chompers clenched around the fabric of sleeves or pant legs as they pull. The rain does not slow, but the wind thankfully blows uphill. Best to just go along with it, so you can go take shelter from the storm inside the enormous spire building, because the goats won't leave you alone otherwise.

Just outside the lighthouse stands a very curious cat. It's so large, it's almost the size of a pony, and its fur is black. No, white. … No, it's black, isn't it? (It really depends on what mood it's in.) Karma the cat peers up at any approaching Star Children with knowing eyes. It dashes inside the lighthouse for a second, then reappears with an envelope in its mouth, holding it out for the newcomer to take. Careful- the paper might get wet in the rain! Come stand under the awning or inside the house as you read:

"The lighthouse keeper is on vacation. Please help! The beacon needs to be charged. We need positive energy to power the light, and negative energy to rotate the lens. Be nice or be mean, both are good! :)"

Are you up for the task, Star Children? Then stay in the lighthouse's near vicinity, or go right on up to the beacon, and do as Karma asked: Either compliment your fellows, or insult them. Share fond memories with one another, or commiserate on how terrible this situation is. Both pleasant conversation and nasty confrontation will do the job. Before long, the light springs to life and the great glass lens begins to rotate around it, a majestic beam of light revolving outward from the spire, piercing the dark clouds.

Those who wait around will see it: that great big wooden ship which comes flying towards Never Fade's docks to make port there. … Is that a hole in its side? And a cutlass sticking out of the mast? Confusion may make way for relief, as all the Star Children aboard disembark, surely bursting with a great tale to tell. Elated spirits bring out the hot soup, bread and all other hearty comfort foods to celebrate the successful arrival. Time to celebrate! Or raid the armory for a free weapon from home, if you haven't gotten one yet- with an emphasis on one, because Karma the cat will attack anyone who got greedy, be it now or during the earlier voyage.

• Star Children who weren't taken to the ship may instead have been drawn to Never Fade, where the storm rages just as fiercely.
• Goats guide Star Children towards the lighthouse, which is broken. Karma the cat awaits them there.
• In order to get the lighthouse beacon working again, it must be charged with both positive and negative energy. Engage in either pleasant or hostile conversation with a fellow Star Child to help out!
• Once the lighthouse is up and running, the ship from the first prompt will dock at Never Fade, uniting all the Star Children for a great celebration.
• The ship's armory is still available for a free weapon (possibly from home), but anyone who got greedy and tried to take more than one will be confronted by Karma. Literally. (And lose the additional items).

Comments

[saisdoesmatter]

Casually playing bowling with the spirits has its benefits, since it allows him some space to turn on his heels and really stare at Casey with wide green eyes.

"When he does what now??? Uses--what??? The hell are you talkin' about Case???"

[apuckalypse]

Ohhhh no. He doesn't know what ninpo is. Casey blinks back at him, though the only sign of it is a slight shift in the green glow of his mask's eyes.

"Um..." How does he even begin to explain Hamato ninpo. "It's a... thing that the fam can do? Ah- duck!"

He lurches forward and swings his staff around, smacking a spirit pirate clean in the face when they try to take advantage of Raph's surprise. Jerk, he was trying to talk.

"It's like- magic, I guess? A mystic energy. From ghosts. My Raph can use it to make hug red armour around himself!"

[saisdoesmatter]

Raph's seen some weird stuff over the years back home, but in comparison, both he and his brothers are very much 'normal' turtles with simply knowing how to be ninjas. This mention of the other Raphael this Casey knows being able to do magic of some form??? That's definitely new. At least in terms of the turtles being able to do anything like that.

He gets part explanation before Casey's telling him to duck, which he does, dropping to the ground to let the other fighter take out the spirit pirate with his staff. "The fam can do it? Like everyone can?" he questions, springing back up behind Casey to roundhouse another pirate going after his exposed back, keeping up with the fight-and-converse between the two of them.

"...from ghosts? Whoa--that sounds rad as hell. I can't do anything like that--sounds really useful!"

[apuckalypse]

"It's pretty awesome, yeah! Not that, uh. Ninja fighting isn't. That's still awesome." He grew up learning it, after all, and it's all he knew how to do before coming here. He'll never discount their physical skills. "Everyone's got different powers. You'll see it, if you're here long enough. All of 'em are here."

Surprise?

[saisdoesmatter]

"I mean, the default awesome is being a ninja," he replies, snickering as he checks for any incoming pirates that want to get too close to them.

"...if they're all here, who's protecting New York????"

[apuckalypse]

Oh boy. "Um... New York's probably fine. It's survived worse than whatever random criminals are left." In his time, anyway. They just made it through an alien invasion! The turtles already beat Shredder! The Foot Clan's basically annihilated! What else could go wrong?

(Tempting fate, there, but the real answer is much more complicated and theoretical, and he doesn't know how to get into that mid-fight.)

[saisdoesmatter]

"I can only imagine what ya'll might have been up to if you guys have powers and stuff that like my bros and me don't have..." he admits, though he idly recalls all the weird stuff that HE had to deal with back home.

There's way different horror stories there.

[apuckalypse]

"Well- I don't have any powers. At least, not ninpo. And I'm guessing your Casey doesn't, either." He's learned magic in this world, granted, and the familiar role lets him shapeshift. But that's quite different, if you ask him. "We have had to deal with a lot, though."

[saisdoesmatter]

He shakes his head, thinking about his friend. "No, though he does have a way with explosives, if you want to count that." Though he grins a little when he says it. "Not the same thing though. From what you've said though, it sounds like it's tied to the brothers directly?"

[apuckalypse]

"Explosives, huh." He'll have to remember that... "Ah- yeah, it's a Hamato thing. Usually by blood, sometimes by... soul? Uh, soul connection? It's hard to explain."

It's complicated! Way more complicated than a rushed fight conversation would allow! Though some of the spirit pirates are starting to give them a wide berth. They're getting a clue that these two are pretty darn strong.

[saisdoesmatter]

"Yeah, he was especially fond of blowing up pucks," he says with a grin, glancing around to see if the pirates have given up because the two of them actually know how to fight. "Soul or blood stuff, huh? Sounds complicated."

He turns the grin toward the nearest pirate, faking a surge and a growl at them to startle them back and let them turn tail to run. "Looks like we've got them rethinking comin' after us, Case."

[apuckalypse]

"Whoa..." Casey might be making a mental note of that. Explosive pucks! Amazing. Unfortunately someone in this world has made him think that hockey pucks are cat food tins filled with rocks. So his explosive future might be extra weird.

Anyway- he doesn't have a rock or hockey puck handy, but he does have a mean throw, and since it feels unreasonable to try and get the cannons going for a retreating opponent, he hefts one of the balls in his hand and chucks it with surprising strength towards the enemy ship, just as a few pirates climb back aboard. It shatters through the railing and makes several of them jump. "Yeah, you better run! Stay off our- uh. Well, it's not our ship, but it's not yours either!"

[saisdoesmatter]

When the pirates start turning tail to run, it's tempting to follow and chase them down, but he doesn't know if anyone else on the ship might need help, so he refrains from doing so.

He isn't expecting Casey to grab one of the cannon balls and lob it like a pro baseball player at the opposite ship. When it shatters through a railing and startles some pirates, he whistles once before laughing when the pirates seem to run even faster away. "Nice one, Case! Make them rethink their priorities." He holds out his fist for a fist bump, grinning. "That'll show 'em."

[apuckalypse]

Casey returns the grin, showing zero hesitation as he baps his fist against Raph's. He may be different in size, but the vibe is very similar. Raph is always friend-shaped, perhaps. "We nailed it. We should probably figure out how to land this thing, though."

Before they decide to come back...

[saisdoesmatter]

The grin remains as Casey doesn't leave him hanging, but he nods, already looking around to see if it was a traditional ship set up with a wheel in the front or back, or if it's somewhere else entirely.

"Good idea. Someone's gotta be driving it though, given how we aren't going down," the short bruiser says, though he makes a face. "At least I hope there is one."

[apuckalypse]

"Uh..." Casey looks around as well. Besides them and maybe some other equally confused Star Children, the place seems entirely abandoned. Not even a stereotypical big-hatted captain. No one at the wheel, or in the rigging... "...We might be on our own, here."

Well, shit.

[saisdoesmatter]

He winces, grinding his teeth as he comes to the same conclusion - there's people about but they look about as bewildered as the rest of them. "...well crap. You know anything about ships?"

[apuckalypse]

"I... know they have wheels?" That's so very helpful. "We can go up there and give it a try."

He'll head up the stairs to peer warily at the helm. It's... just a steering wheel. A really big one. How hard could it be?

[saisdoesmatter]

"Guess it isn't much different than driving..."

He follows Casey to where the helm was, since there's a ship wheel there and it's kind of huge. Nothing new there really before he's looking around to see if there was actually a captain. Maybe someone who might have been hurt?

He doesn't see anyone and frowns, then looks back at the helm. "You wanna give it a shot or should I?"

[apuckalypse]

"Um... well, I learned how to drive recently. Maybe it'll carry over."

He reaches out for the steering wheel, but before he can even make contact, it abruptly turns itself, causing the whole ship to swerve to one side. Casey braces himself on the rail, eyes wide. "Whoa! I didn't even touch it!"

[saisdoesmatter]

"Here's hoping, Case; haven't driven a ship like this before but...can't be that much different, yea?"

The way the wheel jerks before Casey can even touch it though pulls the ship to swerve, making him flail for a second before Raph's squaring his weight to keep from falling over completely. "The hell??? We got spooks on top of everything???"

[apuckalypse]

"No, uh... I'm guessing it's magic. This world's full of it." Even he's got some, these days, though it's a long story. "That'd explain the whole... flying thing, too."

Though that still leaves them with a question of where it's taking them. He tugs on the wheel, but it doesn't budge, having already chosen its destination.

[saisdoesmatter]

"Magic, huh? M'guessing it's not going to pop doves out of its pockets now, eh?" Though it'd explain the whole idea of a boating ship flying through the air, he supposes, but that's kind of lingering as a 'what the hell' moment.

He comes over to help give Casey a hand with tugging on the wheel, since they're both plenty strong, but nothing happens. "Okaaaaay, that's spooky. At least it won't go down but like...where are we going then???"

[apuckalypse]

"I've never seen doves do magic..." Yeah, he has no idea what traditional performance magic is like. Maybe Master Leonardo described it to him once years ago, but the details have slipped away. "It's definitely the weird and amazing things happen kind of magic."

The wheel continues to be stubborn, so he gives up on it and instead grabs at some of the ropes along the rail, climbing up into the rigging. "Hard to see a destination through this big storm. We might have to wait it out."

[saisdoesmatter]

The laugh slips from him as he shakes his head at the mention of the doves. "That'd be a trick - nah, I mean human magicians. They tend to pull birds out of their hats as a trick." But the mention of magic in this world makes him nod. "Looks like it... I'd almost believe it was a ghost ship but this place is real different..."

He has to accept that - not that he wasn't used to seeing weird stuff back home, but the ship clearly has a destination that they have no control over, so might as well roll with it.

Even though Casey is capable enough to handle stuff, he scoots closer to the rigging, since everything is wet and damp. Just in case. "Is this normal for this place, Case? Like okay, the flyin' ship thing is new, but--getting taken somewhere???"