Test Drive #22

[godsoffortune]

TEST DRIVE # 22



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.



Buttered Buns

Things are tough for small bakeries in huge cities. It seems like there’s always a bigger chain offering less expensive breads around the corner. To compete, “Four Clover” bakery has gone all-in with a campaign to attract customers, and you’re here to help. They’ve put together a mascot costume for you (degree of cuteness up to player’s imagination), printed a zillion flyers, blown up bunches of balloons… and in praying for the success and prosperity of their store, they’ll certainly go along with whatever heaven-sent ideas come along.

Copious Copies

Outdoor art exhibitions take advantage of the best days of the start of fall. In one large park, a multitude of unique bronze and ceramic statues are on display. However, there’s way more of them than there actually should be. The artist and organizers are stumped by a plethora of near-perfect copies standing alongside the originals. Should a god or shinki get close enough they’ll be able to tell which are ayakashi pretending to be statues, but don’t get your nose bitten off. And don’t break an actual statue while hunting the ayakashi. Please.

Debt Diversion

Formula car races are huge draws for those who love speed, and those who love betting. Snake skeleton ayakashi are twining themselves around the necks of betters, whispering in their ears to seduce the humans into crippling debt.
While gods and shinki are in a human’s blind spot and generally go unnoticed, trying to remove an ayakashi from someone might draw attention, depending on how you go about it. And in a crowd this large, there just might be a human who will notice a strange pair trying to do something to someone else’s neck...

ESP and Extraterrestrials

A group approaches you. Some of them look relatively normal, if a bit on edge. Some of them look the very image of a nerd. And all of them are looking at you intently. This group of searchers of the paranormal have somehow (accurately) honed in on you, and are intent to find out everything about you. What planet are you from? What’s up with those clothes? That hair? Do you have any special powers?!
While they welcome you in peace, they are also very unwilling to let this interview end with your escape… Might need a friend to help you out (or throw you to the wolves).


Fashionable Frills

Fashion runway. Frills. Shirts, pants, dresses, underwear; the changing room is full of variety.
Go strut your stuff.
It’s for a good cause, honest.





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

goddammit

[hakingitup]

[even without your memories you're the worst.

He's just going to hand them over to you.]

You can wear them.

[hear that hak? that's the music of your death.]

it's like i only wrote the one

[hakingitup]

[He puts it right back on the rack. Because no. Nu-uh.]

I'm fine.

[He's just not going to wear them. And now he looks at the guy's shirt.

And quickly looks away before he laughs.]

You can wear them.

[Sliding the pair towards Akira.]

1/3

[littledove]

Without their feet they would be like a sna-- [POP]

2/3

[littledove]

KYAAAA!!

[She startles with the pop, jumping clear into the air and flailing before she realizes that:

1.) It was just the balloon popping

and

2.) They're just loud when that happens.]

3/3

[littledove]

I... I had no idea Balloon-san could be so loud.

[littledove]

Eh?

[She can't tell? =O ]

It's a dog! [Pointing out it's features which don't look anything like it but you know.] Have you seen a dog before? [She's sure she'd be able to see the resemblance if she has.]

And... this right here is his tail!

[thirdbeauty]

N-No, don't worry about it! I, um... I wanted to help.

[Sheesh, she's never had to be this forthright just to convince someone they're not being a burden. It is encouraging that Mikan is able to get herself up okay, and yet...

If she's dizzy, she might fall again. It was bad enough the first time! So Natsuru moves in closer alongside the other girl.]

Look... if you need to, you can lean on me. Just until you're feeling better.

[If she doesn't want help, Natsuru won't force it, but she hopes she'll accept it if she does need it. While she moves to gently take Mikan's arm, she glances away a bit to hide her blush when the other girl calls her kind like that. She is trying to be, of course. Yet Mikan says it like it's such a rare thing...]

[slightlysaggy]

I guess you're right, it--

[ She breaks off when the rest of Mai's words finally sink in. And for what seems like an extremely long time, she just stares. As she mentally runs through possible actions, reactions, and even the plausibility of what she's been told, an angry shade of red rises to her cheeks. ]

You're joking right?!

[ She spits those words out venomously... And almost instantly realizes it was much harsher than she'd meant it to be. Truth be told, she doesn't have a real reason not to believe Mai, it's just easier not to. And while Bulma often does take on a "shoot the messenger" mentality, she takes a deep breath. ]

You're not, are you?

[slightlysaggy]

[ Scene-stopping record scratch. ]

W-what?! That means... They don't know anything about us?

[ She hasn't even seen Goten or Trunks yet, so she has no idea how much harder this situation could be. Still it takes a clenched fist and a strong focus on the anger building inside her to fight back the tears that are threatening to fall. ]

There has to be something we can do about it, right?

[ Yeah, she already got the spiel about Shinki when she first arrived but... They can't just shrug and give up over something like this, can they? ]

[waitingforhope]

[There was a notable flinch at the exclamation, but in truth, Mai had been expecting far worse. To the point where she was more surprised when Bulma calmed down so quickly.]

[Not that she feared being blamed. Shoot the messenger or no, there was no rational reason why any of this was her fault, and she trusted someone as smart as Bulma—and Mai had first hand knowledge of the woman’s intelligence—to understand that. Eventually.]

I almost wish I was.

[Almost, because she wasn’t the kind of person to joke about something like that. Not when the pain of realization was only just beginning to ameliorate, aided by a few other points to highlight:]

It wouldn’t matter to me so much. I never knew Goten in our timeline. And Trunks...he’s from a time before we met, so he wouldn’t know me even if he had become a god. [She tried to keep her voice as steady as possible and nearly succeeded.] But with you...I know it’s hard, Bulma, but you can’t let them know you knew them before. They can’t even suspect, or it’ll cause them pain. It would be trying to force memories they’re not supposed to have.

[slightlysaggy]

I know, but...

[ But what? It's not fair? Yeah, it isn't but Mai already knows that, surely. As Bulma wipes at the forming tears in her eyes, she takes a moment to feel sorry for herself, of all people. Being whisked away to a new place where her son doesn't know or recognize her? It's hard. as if it's not just as bad for Mai and Gohan. ]

No!

[ Luckily the good ol' Bulma resolve doesn't take long to kick in. She links her arm with Mai's and starts marching out, dress and all, dragging the poor girl along with her if she doesn't come willingly. ]

We'll find that attendant! Who was it she she works for? Ame-something? Whatever! I'll find out who's in charge of this mess!

[ And do what? Probaby yell and scream and get totally no where. If she can even get that far. ]

[waitingforhope]

Bulma...

[Once again, she was startled but not surprised. A sheepish smile appeared.]

If it will make you feel better, we can try to find them. I’m not entirely sure where they would be at the moment, though.

[And they were technically still in the middle of a prayer mission.]

[daydreamrealm]

HEY! BACK OFF!

[Nina can be loud when she wants to be. She can also appear out of nowhere when she wants to. After more yelling, she's able to get the crowd to disperse. She'd been tailing them, which had led her to Shin-ah. Not wanting to be presumptuous, she was willing to wait until they stopped being annoying and actually being threatening.

Maybe she'd stepped in too early, but it hadn't seemed like he was going to do anything.]

Are you okay?

[farseen]

[Shin-Ah had learned to trust his instincts, even when memory failed him-- and, for reasons he couldn't quite fathom, his instincts had told him to stay still. Be silent, and bear the torment of his aggressors... because people only ever acted for two reasons: interest or fear.

Both intentions were blameless, even when strangers violated his personal space. He could see what they were on the inside, and each one of them bore a beating heart.

Just like he did.

To the girl who had intervened on his behalf, he solemnly replaced his glasses and lowered his head in a show of gratitude.]

Mm. Thank you.

[farseen]

[Then they were united by a cause, for words and Shin-Ah were rarely on even terms. Silences were a place of comfort and safety for him, but occassionally a few words to exchange with a kind person found their way into his grasp.]

Mm. [He nodded, feeling somewhat bolder with this.] He's a good person.

[farseen]

[Some people simply weren't made for the stage, Hibiki. Even if they looked the part.

Shin-Ah didn't move or didn't make a sound from his corner. He merely shuddered in silence-- for this woman was terrifying.]

[saiyanhybrid]

[Gohan lifts and lowers his shoulders.]

There...is, but we can't tell them anything directly, so indirect is the best way to go. [As much as he wants to tell Goten and Trunks everything, he can't do that.

It's already too much of a risk already how much the two brothers look alike. He's just fortunate that Goten hasn't bothered to ask him why that is.]

There's another person here, too. Her name is Mai.

[daydreamrealm]

No problem!

[Tailing them had been fun! And there had been a few cute guys in the bunch. Losers, sure, but they wouldn't see each other as losers. Maybe they'd look into each other's eyes and forget about aliens. They would see that the only thing worth pursuing is the other guy. And then, later that night... oh, it would be wonderful.

...She's able to catch herself before it gets too far. Barely.]

Where are you off to?

[slightlysaggy]

Can't you go all Super Saiyan on whoever's in charge of this place and get us all sent back home?

[ It almost worked for Vegeta, just pretend someone smacked Videl! ...Or not. That last part allows her to finally put two and two together. If Vegeta could figure out that Mai was the little girl they had practically adopted, Gohan would've realized it right away. Unless he had somehow come from a point in time before all that. ]

This is a nightmare! [ She ruffles her own hair in frustration. ] C'mon Bulma, wake up!

[slightlysaggy]

[ Screw the mission! Honestly, Bulma thinks they're doing the fashion show a favor by getting these hideous excuses for dresses out of the public eye. And even after Mai's admission, Bulma is going to keep the same pace. ]

There has to be some way to find them. Does that God person have a house or a shrine or something? If they've got enough power to pluck someone out of her perfectly happy life, it should be something extravagant!

[saiyanhybrid]

Not sure if that'll work. Barely anyone sees the old gods and there's a lot of people who have been stuck here a long time.

[Honestly, he's not sure who is in charge.

Gohan smiles slightly.]

It's not...so bad if you forget the fact they don't remember us. Trunks is in good hands, though. He's Mai's shinki.

[slightlysaggy]

[ Wow, that just seems... Pretty cruel. It makes her wonder more about the process they use to match people.

And then, she just stares flatly at Gohan. ]

Not so bad? This is my son we're talking about here! [ She huffs loudly as she looks away, trying not to get even more worked up. ]

Listen Gohan, I'm not just going to sit back and take all this like it's no big deal. I'll play along with this little God game for now, but I'm definitely going to figure something out. I'll keep looking as long as we're stuck here!

[ She looks back at him, still frowning. But, it's a much softer expression now. ]

I hope I can count on you for help.

[priforprince]

[ Hibiki is beside herself. Not the least because she doesn't understand what's going on here. That, in and of itself, is an impossibility.

She is a genius, you see. She understands everything. ]

Didn't you sign on for this!? A model who won't go onstage - it's unthinkable! The purpose is completely defeated!

[ There is only one thing to do: ]

I demand to see your manager!

[ COMPLAIN ABOUT IT. ]

[waitingforhope]

All gods have shrines.

[At the very least, each of the lesser gods had one. Mai included. Which meant Bulma would have one as well, once she settled in and found it properly.]

I haven't seen them, but I also haven't been here for very long myself. A little more than a month, I think? But, as far as I know, not many other people have seen them either.

[slightlysaggy]

[ Slowly, Bulma comes to a stop. This is stupid. She has no idea what she's doing, or where she's going. Even with her newfound powers, there's no way for her to charge headfirst into this. There's nowhere to charge. They're just stuck.

Her arm slips out of Mai's, and Bulma crouches down. She rests her arms on her knees, buries her face, and just cries. It's not an overdramatic tantrum, she just has to let everything out after that realization. ]

I'm sorry, Mai.