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[godsoffortune]

TEST DRIVE # 07



Whether you're trying to figure out how your character would fare in this setting, trying to get some samples together, or just dipping your toes in the water, you've come to the right place! The Test Drive is here to make your life easy by letting you see what the game is like without actually joining it first. So here is how it works:

1: Post a starter with your character, including whether they are a god or shinki in the subject line.
2: Act like your character is established enough in the setting to allow your thread to go places.
3: Take on any god/shinki of your choosing, as long as they're not already in the game!
4: Comment around to the other people on the meme.
5: Have lots of fun!

To get you started, here are some ideas for thread-starters! Feel free to come up with your own ideas if these don't strike your fancy, though.



Echoing Endlessly

Many people in the area are complaining about a strange echo following them around. It never seems to go away and, in fact, collects more and more echoes with each passing moment, creating a cacophony of sound. There have been reports of a few people slowly going crazy because of this echoing. It's your job to find what's causing it and put an end to the echoes!

French Frenzy

The new craze has swept over the city! Everything French is so in right now, and everyone wants something newer and Frenchier to make them stand out from the crowd. Just your luck, you happen to have something very French you can peddle - or maybe you can convince someone just how French your very Japanese things are!

Gateway Guardians

A very strange old shinki has left you with a very simple request: guard this door and don't let anyone through. It looks like a totally normal door on a totally normal house! You might be curious to peek through it, but it's locked and you were told not to go through yourself either...

Helping Hands

There's an ayakashi roaming around that is literally just hundreds of hands that randomly grab people and things and move them around before disappearing. The odd thing is that they are... actually doing good things? Maybe it's a scheme to suck people into a plagued afterlife without being caught, or maybe they just really want to help people out.

Irksome Illusions

There's a certain street in the downtown area that has some of the craziest rumors being spread about it. Apparently going down this street will just bring you back to the entrance, but when you turn around to head back you'll only find yourself at the entrance again. Moreover, there are a lot of creepy things that whisper and appear as you walk, more with each turn you make...



If you're uncertain about anything, feel free to check out the Premise, Rules, and FAQ posts. And don't hesitate to ask any questions you might have on the FAQ!
When and if you're ready to join the game, check out the Taken Characters before throwing in a Reserve and starting on your Application
Have fun!

Comments

hazel grouse | saiyuki | god

[churchbelle]

faux french

[French things being in sure is... a unique trend. Playing the snake oil salesman isn't new to Hazel, as such, although usually it's on his own terms and very much not about peddling wares, as it were. This time, someone's handed him a half sheet of paper with a short script on it and told him to improvise.

So while he's reading that, mostly to himself...] Bonjour, y'all... I do declare, this lil sham ain't likely to see much success.

[Just before he loses this wannabe French-products-peddler's attention, though, he gets a pat on the shoulder and an instruction to tell the people about that lovely French hat he's wearing. The literal cowboy hat. It might as well have DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS written across its front, for how much it's obviously a cowboy hat—

And Hazel can't believe what he's hearing.]

Ya can't pick the least French thing about me and have me passin' it off as the genuine article— Are ya listenin' still, sir? No?

[No. The answer is no. ...After a minute, holding up the little script he was given to work off of,] I'm sellin' these fine French advertisin' guides, if y'all are interested...

illusions

[He's been going down the same street for ten minutes now. Or rather, he's gone down the same street maybe four times - first a coincidence, second suspicious, third to be sure and fourth... a mistake.

He's had better ideas. That didn't take ten minutes, but he's been here for the rest of that time just leaning against the side of a building on this mysterious street, arms folded, unimpressed. So maybe he can't figure out how to leave, whatever, he's not going to come out and admit that—!]

Afternoon, [he'll say, to any other fool who's stuck in this crappy street.] You come down here huntin' for mysteries? Bit anticlimactic, ain't it?

illusions

[razzledazzles]

It's almost like we're stuck.

[A stranger talking to him is a welcome invitation, after the brief irritation at being bought back to the beginning of this street again and again. There's new writing on the walls that hadn't been there before, he's sure of it— but still, he says "almost" stuck. An illusion can't keep him here forever!

And he's rather certain it can't extend upwards forever, too. Anyway, he finally looks over at Hazel instead of up at the sky with his pondering— hello.]

...It would be a shame if our pretty faces were lost here forever. Why don't we find the source of this together, then?

banned

[churchbelle]

A pair of fine gentlemen like ourselves? It's a cryin' shame to keep us wanderin' around in a place like this.

[Though one of them is finer than the other, ahem... He's had more than his fair share of standing around here, though, so he pushes off from the wall after that and takes a step closer to Jae-Ha, considering him. Hmm.]

I'll kindly lend a hand on account of you takin' so long.

nah

[razzledazzles]

[Look at this tiny man, sassing him. Jae-Ha smiles a bit at it, folding his arms together.]

I'd hate to interrupt you just enjoying the weather, but I do think walking might be the key here.

[Walking. The useless walking he's already been doing and has kept ending up at the beginning with. But if writing appeared just now, after so many turns, then maybe more things will pop up as clues? Jae-Ha is very much assuming this is an ayakashi. Isn't everything caused by an ayakashi?]

If an ayakashi is here, then prodding at it repeatedly may be the best way to draw it out.

[Jae-Ha's plan: annoy the hell out of the monster until it attacks. Which will be a bit of a problem once he realizes shinki need their gods to fight, but, details.]

faux french --kisses-- - hi this man has pissed off sanzo i was told this was important

[deniles]

Ah, trying to appeal to a mass group of people?

[Niles smirks and enters from the shadows when people have left, and moves towards him.]

They seem to like certain products, after all.

[And that hat isn't even going to cover the important parts. He grins and crosses his arms over his chest.]

But don't worry. I have the perfect solution. If you're interested.

please sanzo is his best friend, i am not lying

[churchbelle]

[What kinda man appears out of the shadows like that? A shady one? Aha. Hazel straightens up from trying to pawn off these papers on some little kid who isn't interested at all, looking over at the other man.]

Well, there ain't anyone else left makin' a bid for my attention, so— shoot.

i have the cast on my plurk i'm gonna ask them

[deniles]

Well, first I need you to close your eyes.

[Because that's not shady at all. Not even a little bit.]

Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you.

faux french fun

[killsthebuddha]

[ A better man than Sanzo would help a god that was clearly having a hard time adapting to the fact that it was nearly impossible to keep attention from the living at times. Or a better monkey, really, and he's incredibly relieved that he hadn't brought Goku along on his errand. The kid would have tried to help, and no doubt somehow managed to drag him along somehow.

As it is, he's going to keep walking as if he were as oblivious to the cowboy hat wearing weirdo as any one of the living.

This shit's not his problem. ]

Best Friends

[churchbelle]

[Hazel, meanwhile, has abruptly lost interest in whatever actually living soul he's trifling with over here with his... paper bits. It's an almost comedic double-take, glancing at Sanzo as he passes and then glancing, eyebrow raised. That sure is the illustrious Mr. Sanzo, in the flesh.

Soooo, papers tucked hastily into a pocket, and smoothly sliding into step beside his very favorite person is Hazel, right now. A better man would let sleeping dogs- or ornery holy men- lie, but that sure doesn't describe anyone here.

Hello.] What's a fine gentleman like you doin' on a street like this?

[people will notice if he's murdered in public, just saying]

who the hell are you

[killsthebuddha]

[ He'd been just about to light a cigarette when suddenly Bonjour, Y'all falls in beside him for no apparent reason. He doesn't so much jump when he speaks as shift over a step with slightly more haste than dignity, picking up his pace somewhat as he does.

Who the hell says something like that? ]

Minding my own damn business. [ Seriously, he has not had the best track record with strangers that immediately invade his personal space. ] You should try it.

illusions

[lighttheway]

[ The fool that's stuck is a very stubborn one to be sure. This will be the seventh or eighth time that the huge scarred soldier marches past. He's relentless and determined, but each time he comes back around, he seems to be just a little more bothered by this all. He's not going to give up though. He thinks this is a battle of wills, his against whoever is doing this. He thinks if he keeps mindlessly marching forward, whatever is causing it will get tired and give it up.

He is on lap 9 when he finally stops, but only because someone had called out to him. He turns to look at the man leaning against the wall and frowns a little. His huge hands immediately start fidgeting, as if he's embarrassed he's been caught being so pig headed. ]

Hello. I did because this is troublesome to others. But I can't seem to tire out whoever is doing it. I've been at this for hours. How long have you been here. [ He's loathe to think he's actually trapped forever. ]

[churchbelle]

[Troublesome to others... A regular boy scout, huh? That's different. Hazel quirks an eyebrow, but it could just as easily be directed at the street they're well and truly stuck on than at that explanation. He shrugs, apparently quite settled against this wall. Hmm.]

Lost track of time, myself. It's just, you were takin' a while, goin' around like that...

[lighttheway]

[ Definitely. He's always more worried about others than about himself. The state of his body pretty much says that. ]

I know I was. It's not the longest I've marched. [ He remembers that much at least. ] If this is a test of endurance, I am going to beat it.

[ But what would the lieutenant do? Probably outsmart it. Too bad he's not that smart. ] I am going to keep at it until they give up. It's the least I can do. Could you time me and tell me how long until the next time you see me?

its the real hibari this time-illusions

[disciplineking]

[And he's pretty much in a constant state of anger. One. He was stuck in this goddamn street. And two, there was an annoying guy in here with him. Hibari gave him a look that was about as unamused as he felt on the inside, and almost immediately drew his tonfas up to the guy's neck.

For some reason, this guy just rubbed him the wrong way.]

Don't talk to me.

[churchbelle]

[Alright, hostile. Hazel blinks, leaning his head back until it bumps against the wall, for lack of anywhere else to go to get away from those things. Who fights with sticks? Unreasonable.]

Ya coulda kept walkin'.

[disciplineking]

[They aren't sticks, how dare you insult him in this manner. He'll bite your head off. Literally.]

You know as well as I do that we're stuck in here, and if you don't, you'll be the first idiot to try interdimensional travel.

Illusions

[commoncurtissy]

I suppose "hunting for mysteries" would be a good way to put it. But yes, it's not that wondrous a mystery.

[He just shrugs and sighs.]

Oh well. I suppose it was a way to pass the time.

[churchbelle]

Passin' time and gettin' stuck?

[Like, to be sure we're on the same page here, and some people aren't impossibly not-stuck.]

[commoncurtissy]

Ah~ Well, you caught me.

[He smiles.]

My curiosity got the better of me with those rumors about and now here I am.

[He doesn't look the least bit bothered, though.]

And what about yourself?

enemies and faux!

[erogappa]

[ He's not sure why everything today is red-white-and-blue with pictures of some weird spidery-looking tower, but if there's one thing Gojyo is beginning to learn, it's that Japan is just plain weird. Nothing's on fire and nobody's chasing him, so it's not that big a deal -- plus, now that he doesn't have to worry about digesting things, he's discovering that he really likes cheese!

Other things he really likes: girls in frilly black-and-white dresses with feather dusters, girls in striped shirts with strange flat hats who keep asking him for cigarettes, and girls with heaping trays of cake calling for passers-by to come try a sample.

Things he really doesn't like: spotting Hazel in a cowboy hat at one of the booths. And his day was going so well, too.

Cue one enraged redhead storming up to Hazel's table and slapping both hands flat on it as he leans in with a snarl. ]

Do you know who I am?

[ He might be a double. He might be a shinki. Or he might be about to get his face punched in. Gojyo's really hoping for option #3. ]

what about........frenemies, no--

[churchbelle]

[Of all people to spot him in a crowd, it's this guy. Hazel spots Gojyo a little bit before he's rudely accosted - that hair is hard to miss, even here - and pointedly doesn't try to get his attention at all. He's curious, but not curious enough to seek Gojyo out...

And lo, he doesn't even have to. He leans back from the booth when Gojyo leans in, frowning but not startled—and notably, not apparently confused by this weird demand. Give him a moment before the smarmy grin comes back.]

The misfortune's all mine. [seriously don't slap the booth] What can I do for ya?

what about freget you?

[erogappa]

[ Gojyo, naturally, ignores Hazel's question, his lips pulling back in a truly unpleasant grin. ]

I was hopin' you'd say that. [ --he sneers in a fake Southern accent. Then he punches Hazel in the face. Like. Square in the mouth. Because fuck you, that's why. ]

fauxriffic!

[reformedsinner]

Advertising guides? [Hakkai picks one off the table, flipping it open. His eyebrows rise.]

Isn't this in Japanese?

[churchbelle]

[Hazel's busy making nice, polite faces at other passerby, so he almost double-takes when Hakkai appears to pick up one of the papers, but not quite. Mr. Spectacles, and not giving him sass?

Aha. Well then. He leans forward, propping his elbows on the table.]

Well, it ain't makin' enough money to burn a wet mule, that's for certain. Or ya can call it the beginner's edition, whatever suits your tastes.

[reformedsinner]

I think I might have to use phrases like "obvious fraud."

Let's see.

[It was unusually easy to get this man's attention -- a single question? -- and it's proving unusually easy to keep it. Hakkai tilts his head thoughtfully to one side.]

Shinki or god?