TEST DRIVE MEME

[wearethecrystalmods]

Hello and welcome to the COSMOGRAPHIA TEST DRIVE MEME! This is a place where you can get a feel for your character(s) in the game's setting! A couple quick points before we get down to business:

☆ Please take a look at our Premise, World Information, and our FAQ to get a feel for the rules and setting. This is great if you want to see what the game is about before jumping in!

☆ Test Drive threads are certainly allowed to be used for samples for your application, should you choose to submit one!

SAMPLE SCENARIOS:

A: By whatever means, you've tumbled through a hole into a cavernous temple. Gems suspended in bubbles float about the ceiling, and a large Heartlike gem looms before you. Touching it, whether out of curiosity or frustration, will give you some basic information, but then again, there's no guarantee you're just going to walk up to a giant weird thing in the middle of a giant weird room and touch it, right? Why not take a look around and see for yourself what kind of place this is? Perhaps you'll run into someone in the same predicament as you, or perhaps you'll run into someone who can help explain why there's a weird rock now affixed to your body?

B: It's Thursday in Waverly Bay, and that can mean only one thing: the weekly Farmer's Market is here again! Stalls not only from farmers on the outskirts of town but from crafty residents with interesting homemade items to sell, and businesses looking to attract the Market's crowd are all here! Are you shopping for a good deal on vegetables for dinner? Or perhaps you're getting a feel for the residents, having recently arrived? Or, perhaps, are you an industrious gem who's looking to set up shop? Either way, you're bound to run into somebody in this bustling, busy place.

C: Uh-oh! Looks like you've run into a monster! Apparently, from what little you've heard, you can shapeshift into things and pull a weapon from your gem, and you have some sort of special power, but maybe you don't know what it is yet, or you're still not used to using it? Guess you're going to have to learn on the job. Don't leave your fellow gems hanging if you see them fighting one of these little guys either! You're going to need each other to take 'em down!

Comments

[goodguygrifter]

You want impossible? Watch this.

[He shakes his sleeves out first, one and then the other, then raises his eyebrows at the guy. Nothin' up my sleeves, kid. Then the rock on his palm shines white and Stan's other hand reaches for it, and pulls out a knuckle duster. He don't put it on, don't wanna' threaten the kid, but he does wave it around a little, showing it off.]

And this arm? I broke the crap outta' it a while back, got my elbow messed up real bad in this fight in the woods. By the next week, it was good as new. I only know what I heard but uh, what I heard is so long as that rock right there don't get messed up too bad, you're golden. You can survive pretty much anything. What sorta' stuff do you call 'impossible' back home? 'Cause back at my place, that's the sorta' word I use to impress suckers.

[cutiemutie]

[The younger man's pen hit the floor, rolling across the plain grey concrete. He scrambled for it, sat back up, and wondered how badly Stan could hurt him with the knuckle duster if he grabbed the apparent showman by the wrist to examine his stone. He decides against it, because he's disoriented enough without a black eye.]

That's amazing. I can do that too?

[He leans in, starting to grin in wonderment. Stan has just tapped the very real excitement of a scientist who has something brand new to study, even if it's not one of his certain fields.]

[goodguygrifter]

[Stan grins wide, and you can practically see him filling up with the amazed way this guy is looking at him.]

Yeah!

[He only realizes after he says it that he doesn't know if that's true, but you know what? It's what the guy wants to hear, and Stan already said it, so he might as well go with it.]

Yeah, this superhero rocks from space bunk's got its upsides, huh? We can do all sorts of crap! I met a kid whose hands started catchin' on fire the first day here! Here, wanna' see?

[So Stan holds out his only weapon to the complete stranger, grinning expectantly. If you didn't know what it just came out of it'd be pretty normal, except for the color - green on one end, pink on the other, just like the stone he pulled it out of.]

[cutiemutie]

[Virgil took it gingerly, turning it over in his hands. His cousin used to have a pair of these, he was familiar with how they felt. There was no question that the color scheme was interesting. He handed it back and took to the notebook again.]

Did you say 'From space'?

[Superhero rocks was bad enough, being turned into a superhero rock was more, but tacking 'From space' on the end was just ridiculous.]

[goodguygrifter]

Huh. Yeah I did, didn't I? Don't think about it too hard, kid.

[Stan takes the weapon back, holds his hand palm up and, with a grin and a waggle of his fingers, makes it disappear back into the magic space rock again. He's only pulled the thing out a couple times so far, and it's still cool.]

It's not like the space thing's really that weird compared to the rest of it, huh? Unless they don't got space aliens in your dimension.

[cutiemutie]

I don't, but if the multidimensional theory is confirmed by anything, it's this. Aliens are common where you come from?

[He rubs his own gem as if it's something of a comfort, wondering how to extract a weapon of his own. Perhaps it's something spiritual?]

[goodguygrifter]

Uh. Depends on how you think about it, I guess. Weird stuff's all over the place though, yeah. So, are you a scientist-type, talkin' about that multidimensional whatever like that?

[cutiemutie]

I'm a mechanical engineer, but I dabble in several fields.

[Virgil nodded, then realized he hadn't introduced himself. This American fellow had been too (debatably) kind and helpful not to give his name too. When the notebook was returned to Stanley's hands, the younger man offered a hand to shake.]

I'm Virgil Alexandrescu, thank you for all the information. There wouldn't happen to be other 'science types' here would there?

[goodguygrifter]

[Stan takes the guy's hand, paying attention to the way he shakes. Stan's always said you can tell a lot about a guy from his handshake. His, for example - exactly two shakes, firm, energetic, the kinda' handshake you just wanna' trust, isn't it? Yeah. Yeah, that's what it is.]

Yeah, with a name like that I guess you didn't have any choice but to grow up into a huge nerd, huh? I don't, uh, I don't really get around much but yeah, there are a couple others around here. Why, you wanna' get 'em all together and start doin' experiments?

[cutiemutie]

[It's three shakes, firm, timid but friendly and well meaning. Stan can take it as he wants.]

I'd like to see what they know, and look into studying this condition we've been gifted. Test this invulnerability and 'poofing' concept, perhaps. Would you mind introducing me?

[goodguygrifter]

Well, that sounds like a bag of screaming nightmares waiting to happen. That and one bejeezus of a lawsuit, you're lucky this little town don't have lawyers. Not that I met, anyway.

[Stan takes a second to study the guy, thinking his question over. His first impression of, too good looking, too polite, probably an axe murderer wasn't too far off, and Stan ain't surprised to realize it. He's got a good feeling for people. It's just that with this kid it's experiments instead of axes. Scientists.]

You know what, yeah. I might know a guy. But you're gonna' keep that test subject bullhockey to yourself, alright? Do you think you can handle that? 'Cause if you experiment on Ford, I'm gonna' be poofin' you, got it?

[It's impossible to say that sorta' thing without a good poke to the other guy's chest. Here, Virgil, have a poke.]

[cutiemutie]

[Oh, come on Stan. He's never killed anyone with an axe. It was one person, and with a rock, and with good reason. Virgil leans back as Stan pokes him in one pectoral. He raises his hands, smiling as if in embarrassment. He doesn't know who Ford is, be he father, brother, or even husband, but he wouldn't intentionally hurt someone he hasn't even met.]

You've pegged me all wrong, Stanley. I just want someone to help me learn, no one's getting tested aside from a few mice- or whatever the space rock equivalent is. And hey, if I have to test something sentient, I'll try myself first.

[goodguygrifter]

[Stan's hands go right onto his hips, and the way that makes his shoulders and chest look bigger, yeah, that's intentional. He don't mean to look like he's making a full blown threat, just wants to let the guy know that he could make one, if he wanted.]

I'll hold you to that. And uh, you might not find many mice, at least not with the gem thing goin' on. There's a couple monsters around, though, if you can keep 'em from eatin' your face long enough to poke 'em with a couple needles be my guest. Look, I'll let you get settled in but once you are, find me somewhere, alright? I'll be around. Then I'll introduce you to Ford and you guys can nerd your little hearts out together. Sound good?

[cutiemutie]

[Stan really can be imposing, even if Virgil has to look down at him. His eyebrows jump, but he still tries to smile. He's making a very useful offer. As he moves to start looking more around the room, to settle in, he ripped out a last note for his makeshift welcoming committee.]

That would be wonderful, I'll be looking for you in a bit. Thank you, for the help.

[goodguygrifter]

Yeah, yeah. You can pay me back later, alright?

[Stan moves toward the door, pointing a finger at the guy.]

I mean that. You can pay me.

[Then he turns the gesture into a lazy wave, and heads out, back to whatever he was doin' before. A whole lotta' not much. Well, that was a distraction for a good couple minutes.]