prismaticrap | ▶ TDM .012

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You awaken amidst the darkness with only a faint light to greet you. Your body is hemmed in by shards of crystals, gently sparkling and possibly pricking your skin. The surrounding landscape is dyed in the pinks and purples of the dusk filled with crystals protruding from the ground, some as large as a skyscraper. After an hour or two of wandering through the crystal wilderness, a group of people find you worse for wear. They are the gallant Moon Knights from the planet of Prismatica. Because of the strange phenomena during the past months when scientists observed the sudden appearance of rainbow crystals in the sky, the government has been feverishly combing through the moon for more Moonblessed to be rescued. You’ll eventually be brought into Iris’s moon government center.

You all may have your usual inquiries — Where are we? Who are you? What's going on? — and the Prismals are almost too eager to answer. They tell you about their world and about the first appearance of the Moonblessed as the medical staff give you an examination to make sure you’re not carrying any viruses or biological hazards. If you react violently, you may be restrained and nerfed with a specialized neurotransmitting gun that releases a numbing agent through the top of your spine. Once the examinations are over, you’re informed that you will be provided accommodations on their planet during your stay. You will then be escorted to the docks, and led onto a large transport vessel that makes frequent trips back and forth between the Iris moon and the planet. Faces onboard vary from both old and new Moonblessed as well as the local Prismals.

The next destination: Prismatica.

▶ I am the Terror That Flaps in the Night
Iris Moon, Government Center (Arrival) and Planet Prismatica, City of Lunatia | top

Welcome to Prismatica’s hub, Lunatia, the city of your dreams! A bustling metropolis lush with bright lights, vibrant colors, luxuriant plant life, and all the conveniences of technology absent from your own world… It seems like paradise to all the uninitiated. After a quick tour of the city, new arrivals can find themselves getting cozy in their new homes.

A Settle in your new home at Level 2 to find new roommates and say hello to your neighbors! City officials will give you directions to the designated districts across Level 2 and instruct you to pick out a unit. Each apartment complex has a different aesthetic, some may look cozy, some stylish, and some bizarre. The free accommodations have a basic living space that can only fit two or three people at most in one unit.

Starter Chromaspace furnishings are provided which can be controlled with the touch of a built-in panel. Examples are color-changing curtains, transforming sofa beds, cabinets turning into tables, etc. Customizing your apartment or moving out will have to wait until you earn more chroma. Until then, why don’t you check out your new neighborhood or explore the city levels? Maybe your new roommates or neighbors can give you a “hand” with allowance for dinner.

B Your new flat is covered in a sprinkling of feathers here, there, and everywhere! They appear to be coming through the air vents. This seems to be a city-wide problem in all buildings, as many news outlets are informing people to stay alert. They believe the feathers are from the masked seraphim, King Majestas, who attacked the Elaran Amphitheater a few weeks back.

You are advised to destroy the feathers on sight. Prolonged contact with these feathers cause hallucinations and paranoia. You will feel as if winged creatures are always after you, be it one-winged angels or dark-winged ducks. Other side effects include hearing the chanting of voices in an indecipherable language out of this galaxy. These hallucinations may cause headaches, dizziness, or nausea. Thankfully, a bit of moonlacing will heal these symptoms away.

▶ Got Milk?
Level 2, Crystal Beach | top

With the Coiled Hearts Festival fast approaching, local fishermen have already begun procuring food across Crystal Beach’s clear waters to meet next month’s demands. Around this time of year, the popularity of octopus dishes dramatically rises. The Lunatians have an annual tradition to prepare flavorful octopus dishes for the romantic season, such as the much-lauded dark chocolate-coated octopus or the mouth-watering octopus braised with red wine.

Everyone is welcome to join this heart-throbbing affair. During the Second and Third months, everyone is encouraged to give your loved ones something special for a long, successful relationship. Friends, family, and new acquaintances are traditionally given a small amount of Demichroma in tiny cute cases, while lovers are given something that reminds the gifter of their homeland.

A Interested in catching your own octopus? Horned taurus octopi very frequently migrate to the shorelines to perform their elaborate mating rituals. It’s easy to find clumps of taurus octopi participating in a vigorous dance, filled with undulations and strange moaning noises that octopi should not be making. You can lure the octopi by either using a special flute which mimics their moans to gather them in heavy droves. It’s ideal to have a partner with you to scoop the octopi quickly into water containers once they’ve become entranced enough.

Play the flute carefully! If the taurus octopi grow too excited by your music, they will squirt white ink. If you are spritzed with the thick substance, you will start either randomly puking or uncontrollably secreting a milky sweet substance from any body part that secretes liquids. Luckily, the high-end boutique Prissy Polyp is nearby in case you need a change of clothes due to any sizable stains. Effects will naturally wear off after an hour.

B Come with a friend and enjoy learning some octopus recipes together. The Crystal Beach Resort has opened a seminar where several professional chefs will be demonstrating and teaching how to cook various dishes of different flavors and ingredients guaranteed to impress your date, and taste-testing is free!

One dish makes use of horned taurus octopi skin as the star ingredient, renowned for its irresistibly delectable scent. The chefs explain the palatable skin is a potent ingredient in various love potions and aphrodisiacs, so add or mix them to your dishes in moderation! The effects have a significant delay, so you may feel fine for a while, but when it hits, it hits hard. You will become enamored with every little thing — hey, you just met them and this is crazy — but that person’s smile, the sound of their voice, or the way they say your name will make you unable to resist the urge to shower them with your affection.

▶ Going Viral
Level 2, Moonlight Medical Center | top

“Help Wanted” posters can be found on virtual forums and announcement boards across Level 1 to 3. The Moonlight Medical Center has put out a call for volunteers due to a recent shortage of medical staff. The work involves filling in for overworked nurses, performing tasks such as feeding patients their meals, wiping away their sweat, changing their clothes, encouraging their spirits, and so on. Any volunteers may directly walk-in at the hospital. You will be provided a nurse uniform and any necessary equipment while on the job.

The shortage has resulted from the hospital recently taking in a severe number of patients from a nearby small village to the west of Lunatia, Port Sylvel, a known shipping and freight destination. The number of patients worryingly keeps on rising by the day and will soon fill all available rooms.

A Some of the patients are experiencing varying degrees of paralysis. The worst cases have crystallizing parts of their body. The hospital staff will stress that you should be careful around patients with crystallized limbs. Patients like these have a history of aggressively biting anyone who comes close hard enough to draw blood. Those bitten will exhibit similar symptoms as the victims, including crystallization on their bodies, and experience a steady drop in Chroma. An uncomfortable heaviness will cause you unable to move without the aid of others as well as an uncontrollable urge to aggressively bite someone.

While affected Moonblessed can cure it by moonlacing, the Prismals can only be cured by a gluteal inoculation the Lunar Scientia has recently managed to develop. The sick and beleaguered will probably hate you less if you aren’t the one trying to stabbing them with injections in the hindquarters.

B Aside from nursing duties, other available tasks to be completed include making coffee for fellow nurses and doctors, delivering flowers to patients, and general housekeeping. Specifically, disinfecting medical equipment, tidying up rooms, and cleaning the spaces around the hospital. As a result of the current situation, many crystal shards can be found decorating multiple surfaces, such as floors, walls, toilet seats, and so on. These will have to be swept away!

However, as your work day progresses, some of the shards can be seen suddenly moving on their own. These crawling shards will start clustering together to turn into elaborate, floating monolithic formations that will then begin attacking anyone nearby. Their main ability includes shooting diamond spears to impale any unfortunate victims in their line of sight. In the midst of the chaos, nurses and doctors will beg the Moonblessed to please protect the sick and wounded. The crystal formations can be destroyed by any method, though because of their incredibly sturdy composition, they require multiple hits before they shatter into dust.

▶ Questions
If you have any questions regarding this test drive meme, please ask them in the Questions thread below.

▶ As a reminder, test drive memes are for new characters only. However, current players are more than welcome to use these prompts for their own posts in the IC communities, personal inboxes, catch-all posts, etc.!
▶ As our test drive memes are game canon, feel free to keep any threads that happen here as canon for your character should they be accepted.

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[Ryo lets out a heavy sigh as he returns to following Zen; of course he wouldn't get an answer to so obviously obnoxious of a question. He can tell that his friend is bothered by something, and therefore, he can only assume that there's a reason for it, but he's never going to get it if he keeps getting the silent treatment.

They reach the terminal, and Ryo is inwardly relieved that at least the awkward walk is coming to an end. Maybe Zen will feel more like talking when he's in his own space? But just as Ryo is thinking this, he's grabbed without warning and shoved against the glass.]

H-Hey now!

[—is all that he manages, certain that Zen is intent on threatening him somehow, but what follows is entirely out of his comprehension. Zen starts kissing him (albeit somewhat roughly which makes the transition all the more confusing), and Ryo's hands linger, frozen, in the air, unsure of how to respond to this new development. Honestly, Ryo has a mind to push him away and ask just what's going on, but that thought is silenced as he tries to work through the hundreds of others that have now flooded his head, including one in particular that doesn't want to do anything off-putting while Zen is putting himself out there like this.

He just... never knew he felt this way! And how could he, with the way that he's always talking? But, what's that thing people say? That actions speak louder than words? Is that what he's getting at now?

Nonetheless, Ryo is finally silenced as desired, and as he settles into the situation, he gently places his hands on Zen's shoulders and closes his eyes.]

[Zen would rather die a thousand horrible deaths than admit it, but the contact doesn't feel as bad as he imagined it would. It almost feels comforting, though that's probably just because his crazy urge for affection is being fulfilled.

When the hands occupy his shoulders, Zen half-expects Ryo to push him away. It doesn't happen though, so he releases his grip on Ryo's clothes, before allowing himself to press softly against the taller man, keeping his hands on the glass behind Ryo's back for support. He holds that position for several seconds, feeling his mind grow strangely clearer and more peaceful the longer they stay connected.

But eventually, his lips leave Ryo's, and he pulls away just enough to shoot Ryo a smug smile (from below).]

Aha. Seems I finally got you to shut up, huh?

[The sweet taste of victory...]

Aah...? Y-Yeah, ahah...

[He replies both stupidly and obviously as the moment dispels, leaving the awkward conversation about it to ensue. His own thoughts on the matter continue to be a tangled mess, trying to unwrap each context clue as fast as possible to unveil the finished product. In the end, he's not sure where he lands on it all. From his side, it was, well, unexpected but not unwelcome? But sudden; it was very sudden.

I mean, he was just saying "get away from me!", "stop talking!", and all that, so if there's a line to read between, where exactly is it? Ryo just kind of laughs nervously as he reflects on such things while stalling for time, but the glass against his back reminds him that they were meant to visit Zen's apartment.]

So, uh, we should get over to your place, yeah? Maybe talk about some things. You know, pointful things.

[Ryo's confusion is natural and even expected. But if Zen could read Ryo's confused thoughts, he would tease him with something very vague among the lines of try thinking outside the box. Perhaps if their roles were reversed, it would have been a lot easier to piece the what and whys, considering how sincere with his feelings Ryo tends to be.

And no matter how much Zen makes fun of Ryo because of that, deep inside Zen feels it's exactly Ryo's childlike sincerity that makes him so hard to dislike.

The kiss appeased Zen's unbearable hunger for affection somewhat, but the giddiness that slowly begins to bubble up again when Ryo speaks up reminds him they shouldn't waste much time there.]

Yeah, we can talk all about it. [And maybe some more.] But until then— [He reaches into his pouch and brings out his bracelet to send Ryo the coordinates before accessing the prismanode. He's definitely not paying for both of them!]

Just keep quiet and follow me. Say any more than necessary and I'll plow you.

[And his smile will be the last thing Ryo'll see before the terminal activates and he's gone.]

[The mood whiplash that one gets when interacting with Zen... Ryo looks down at his bracelet before bringing a gently closed fist to rest against his chin, allowing his thumb to rest upon the lips that were just kissed by a very dear friend. It's not unusual for Zen to act so inconsistently, particularly when dealing with Ryo (at least he's conscious about it), but he can't shake the feeling that something is somehow... off.

A part of him expects to warp to some completely random location, but when he does go through the transport, he breathes an audible sigh of relief that he finds Zen on the other side. That's enough to ease his deepening worries for the moment, and it even permits him to believe that he's been overthinking things. Jeez, without Haruto around to keep things in order, this is what happens? At this thought, he smiles— his natural reaction to most situations, positive or negative, but this one, at least, is genuine.]

Is it far from here?

[Surely this question is relevant enough to speak?]

[The building where Zen's apartment is located is no further than a few dozens of steps away from the terminal on this side. And it can easily be seen towering over its greenery surroundings from that very spot.

Zen has his back to the terminal, already heading towards the destination with impatient steps, when he hears the distinctive sound of the terminal working its magic. Followed shortly by Ryo's voice. Asking another unnecessary question. Again.

Zen turns around, feigning an over-exaggerated sigh (he honestly wishes he could treat Ryo's voice as background noise), then motions at the clearly visible building.]

What, are you desperately trying to give me a reason to shut you up again? I'll gladly comply if—

["Gladly comply?" Well, damn. It's true that the kiss helped soothe some of the effects plaguing him, but that's the only reason it felt enjoyable, right...? Either way, it's too late to take it back. He just needs to avoid the subject (as usual), if Ryo ever asks him about it. Hopefully Ryo won't even connect the dots.]

Never mind, forget I even asked that. [He doesn't wait to see Ryo's reaction as he turns his back and resumes walking.] Come on, I'll seriously leave you behind if you don't hurry.

[Ryo raises his hands in the air as if in surrendering, but really it's more of a reflex action in response to Zen's growing irritation. So not only was his harmless question deemed pointless once again, but Zen confirms that the... incident was indeed only carried out for the sake of silencing him. He feels a bit dejected as a result, and it shows on his face but only because Zen is turned away from him so he won't see it.

He pulls out his camera again, placing Zen at the center of the viewfinder and snapping a picture. He takes a look at the result for a moment before shutting it off and returning the device to his pocket. He then hustles to catch up on account of his delay, and by the time he does, he makes sure that he's back to his usual cheery disposition... Not that Zen is looking, but as a precaution should he turn around once more. He swings his arms up and around his head, interlocking his fingers as he trails just behind, opting finally to not say a word until they get there while simultaneously hoping that they arrive soon so they can hopefully get this whole affair settled once and for all.]

[Zen does take notice of Ryo lagging behind, seeing as the artist's footsteps seem to grow more distant. However, he doesn't turn around to spare another glance, really intent on leaving the other behind as he promised. He needs to bear with this discomfort for just a little longer, then...

Then what happens? All this time his mind was kept busy thinking of ways to endure the temptation of his friend's presence. He hoped he'd thought of something by the time they reached his apartment. But all the thoughts that ever crossed his mind were downright outrageous. Under the effects of the love potion or not, he couldn't possibly cross that line as if it was nothing.

Using Ryo to fulfill his urges like that would be no different from what that bastard did with his mom and Rumiko. The thought of comparing himself to that monkey is enough to make him feel sick.

Thanks to Ryo (unbelievably) cooperating with keeping silent, they reach the location without any other major interruptions. Zen unlocks the door, stepping inside. And for the first time after minutes spent in tense silence, he directs a small smile at Ryo.]

You wanted to talk, right? Must be pretty important since you wouldn't shut up.

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▶ TDM .012

Zen owns it so well!

Zen owns both scarylook™ and carefreesmile™

the most terrifying combination of properties

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