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Entry tags:

*tdm

TDM 2

SEPTEMBER TEST DRIVE MEME

ABOARD THE MOIRA

Whether adjusting to space travel has been difficult or not, there is always something to be done. From working to leisure, the Moira offers a multitude of opportunities to get to know your crewmates a bit better. Exploration of the ship is highly encouraged, but as another planet grows closer to being docked, things start to get a little hectic. You'll notice a slight change in the artificial gravity as the Moira is pulled into the planet's gravitational field; however, more noticeable changes can be found in the overall morale as you prepare to descend.

☄ in the mess hall:

Things have been pretty smooth sailing thus far. There haven't been any unexpected horrors or accidents, and no one has gone missing. Later in the evening, you find yourself hungry and decide to check out what's on the menu. Making your way toward the mess hall, you discover that the door is closed and a sign has been posted directly in the center. It reads:

We don't know who did this or why, but action will be taken if it is not fixed immediately.

At the bottom, in very small print, it is signed by the captains. Venturing inside, you find something irregular about the room, and it's not what you might have thought. Finding the culprit, however, is hardly on anyone's mind. In fact, the kitchen has been closed until everything on the tables has been "fixed". Decadent foods and desserts from many of the planets explored in the past are laid out like a feast. There might even be liquor, but who knows how strong that stuff is. Consider this a thank you for all the hard work and effort you've put forth as a valuable crew member. Whoever said the mess hall wasn't for messes was sadly misinformed! It's party time.

☄ on your own:

There are plenty of other communal areas on the ship to explore! Pick a place, and see where it takes you.

PLANET EXPLORATION

Unlike some of the previously found planets, this one is populated. However, the majority of the natives are located in one central area near a very large body of water. At some point, it might have been a lake, but due to some abnormal constructional designs, it has been transformed into a well-maintained connection of underwater cities. Still, accessing them may prove to be difficult. Your MID warns of no pollutants in either the air or water. Yet, it has problems translating the language spoken between these humanoid beings—if they even speak at all. Most of them appear friendly, more than welcoming, but what's to be said about someone (or something) that doesn't wish to talk?

☄ the submerged:

I would like to be the air that inhabits you for a moment. I would like to be that unnoticed and that necessary.

Exploring the surrounding areas, which consist of marshes and some small trees, doesn't yield much. There are little resources and no fauna to speak of. The natives continue to lure whoever dares to follow closer to the water, their gestures open and curious. There is nothing to hint at the dangers that await anyone who wanders within arm's length of the shore, and if you do... Hopefully you weren't traveling alone and a friend is there to attempt dragging you away from the tight grip of the thing suddenly yanking you into the murk of that lake. They will fight to keep you, sink their hands and fins deep enough to draw blood; it calls more of them up from the depths to bring you down. For they need you like air, are desperate to call you their own, and if you surrender, how are you to ever describe the the last thing you see?

Is that what happened to the all those ships found crashed here and there, buried beneath mud and moss? Is this what became of the people aboard them? How ironic the dead say even less than the things that got you.

OUT OF CHARACTER INFO

FAQ | LOCATIONS | RESERVES | APPLICATIONS | NAVIGATION

For mature or graphic content, please label. Test Drive Memes are not game canon but can be used as samples in applications. For questions, please direction them to the FAQ. As always, be kind and have fun!

[ art credit ]

Threaded | Flat

[Somehow, overnight, Miles has gained an awful lot of weight and a frown, and a weird stillness. There's little of Miles' usual manic nature on display, at least.

Or it could just be that this is his clone. ~~Ignore the icons please~~.]

☄ text

If there isn't tea, I would like to find an acceptable substitute. Even coffee will do at this point. [ Is his tone lacking in enthusiasm? The difficulties of translating that via text. ] Also requesting information about this ship from its current crew members. Please respond with length of service and position. Detail is recommended.

[ Beneath all of that, there seems to be a slight undercurrent of something else. Like a hidden message within the initial message. It sounds like: - .... .. ... .. ... -- . .-. .-.. .. -. .- .-.. .-.. .--. .-. . ... . -. - -.- .. -. --. ... -- . -. .-. . .--. --- .-. - Yet, it's very faint, hardly noticeable at all to untrained ears. ]

☄ exploring
[ This entire intergalactic trip had not been part of the plan. Save the world? Yes. Return with the plane to HQ and find himself in space? Not so much. Then again, he keeps that complaint tightly locked away, considers delivering it to the captains themselves and seeing what they might have to say about it, but that's only well and good when they're not searching this planet for supplies. Intel is low, of course, and what can be amassed from this situation is that it isn't a good situation to find oneself in in the first place. Their equipment isn't suited for the terrain, and Merlin stands just outside the transporter with a lax expression, one that probably reads who is actually responsible for this beneath the guise of politeness. A gentleman always, even in such times.

There is an indignant sigh though, adjusting his glasses once before turning to his MID. If this is what he's been assigned to do, he will do it as successfully as possible. Information, after all, is his calling card. ]

This is not the place for that. [ Said to anyone close by who happens to be idling about. There's work to be done, and he'll see to it that everyone does their part. At least for the time being. ]

mess hall - i don't see how that's a party
WARNING: underage alcohol consumption

[There are smalls sounds of chatter and enjoyment in the mess, but in general none of the benign misery Franz has come to appreciate about the gatherings he knows as parties. This is more like a little picnic, and as such he is quite enjoying himself. He is still getting used to the idea of living communally like this, but there's a nice sense of solidarity here. No one knows who you're supposed to be in a place like this.

It shouldn't be too difficult to make friends.

Franz is carrying a bottle of one of those mysterious alien liqueurs and a glass, looking for a spot to settle down. He notices someone with an empty glass, and lifts the bottle, offering to pour for them.]

What do you say? [He offers with a small smirk.] Shall we risk it?

the submerged - man must explore

[Franz is less than impressed by the scene here. It's muddy and smells vaguely like a graveyard after the rain. He gets to work examining some of the scrubby plant life. Considering their level of development it seems strange that there aren't any animals around to keep the ecosystem in check. He's studied enough of alien planets to be wary of this, still, the first thing on his mind is that he shouldn't presume to understand how anything works around here. Aliens are, above all, alien. They may not fit into what a human can understand.]

I certainly wouldn't peg this planet as the next trendy vacation spot, but that's a point in its favor.

[Franz looks out to the water and sees the natives gesturing in a friendly manner by the coast. He frowns a little, glancing to his companion.] Do we have a protocol for approaching strange life? [He takes a few steps closer to the shore nonetheless, his curiosity getting the better of him.] I wonder if the ate all of the plant life around h-- ah!

[Oops, he got close enough to be grabbed.] You can laugh at me all you want later for this! [Franz hisses out, trying to find something to hold onto.] Help!

mess hall;

[ Far be it for her to look a gift horse in the mouth. Natalia is naturally suspicious of this place, certainly, but she's also starving. There's nothing off about the food that she can sense, and besides, no one else eating has keeled over yet, ergo, safe. Her plate is piled high with something that looks like a pasta dish with cream sauce and she's managed to find the alcohol that looks and tastes like red wine. All in all, a decent haul.

She's seated on her own at a table near the door, her back to the wall. She's not going let her guard down entirely after all. She watches the people come and go, taking mental notes, while idly pushing her food around on her plate. She's either contemplating desert or escape. Maybe both. ]

etc;

( feel free to leave a prompt! )

Edited 2015-09-14 23:01 (UTC)

a. main hall

[Newly arrived, there is a man looking less than happy about the new job contract on board the Moira, staring intently at the device stuck to his hand. He got the explanation, but he's still trying to remove it--so far unsuccessfully. There's got to be a lock or switch. Who wants a phone permanently attached to him? He scowls at any other passengers who happen to enter the main hall, almost like he's accusing them for being accessories to his current condition. The calmer they look, the more disgusted he appears by them. But if they keep to themselves and avoid the stranger's glare, he does speak up in a rough voice.]

What are you looking at?

[Nice to meet you too.]

b. mess hall

[At the surprise party, Saitou is slightly less irritable. At least they have food, although he's giving the drinks a suspicious look. Apparently the captains think alcohol roulette is a fun game. The dark expression he's had is more dry amusement now. If whomever is near him happens to be a bit tipsy, he's watching. Probably waiting to see if they stumble into that conveniently placed chair.]

It looks nice. It could always be poisoned.

[Yes, he is saying that loud enough to be heard. Probably on purpose. He's a kill joy at heart.]

I guess we'll find out soon enough.

c. the submerged

[Exploring the planet is not as good as he wanted it to be. He had wanted to get off of the ship, but the planet seems empty of animals and the plant life is foreign and scarce. So much for relief from the strange setting. Eventually he wanders up to the one point of interest that seems to exist on the planet. The natives seem determined to draw everyone's attention to the water and he slowly appeases them, although he doesn't seem thrilled with the idea. He'll let other crew members go first, thanks.]

They want us to swim?

[Is that supposed to be a joke? He's failing to see the benefit of this, even if the locals are trying to be friendly. Going along with things has never been high on his list of priorities. But he is curious enough to poke around.]

MOIRA.
A. MESS HALL.

[The sign on the door is pretty much thoroughly ignored, because whatever. Who cares. If it were important, it'd be less polite and vague. Maybe more exclamation marks.

Inside the mess, Rick glances at all the foodstuffs laid out with an expression that can only be called suspicious, because aliens and human food never really work out well. Liquor is basically a universal truth, though, so he makes a beeline for whatever astro-punch they've put out and just starts indiscriminately guzzling things down. If something isn't to his liking -- and it probably isn't -- then he either a) makes a sour face and takes a drink from the flask he keeps inside his coat, or b) if it's really offensive, maybe he just flips the bowl completely over. Or smashes the bottle on the floor. Whatever.

He is going through all the alcohol, though. One by one.]

B. ENGINES.

[Yeah, you know the engines? The thing that keeps the ship running and makes sure everyone continues to, like, live?

It's like a hurricane went through there.

More accurately, Rick has been here. Pulling things apart and (probably?) putting them back together. Sometimes with duct tape. It's a problem. He is currently banging on some massive pistons with a stupid-looking space wrench, if you can even hear the noise above the drone of the engines, which, despite everything, still seem to be functioning perfectly well.

Be careful you don't trip over a pile of wires and bolts if you come in here.]

C. MEDBAY.

Yoooo. [Which is what Rick calls into the medbay once he opens the door, because it's less dumb than shouting 'hello?' into an empty room. He hopes it's empty, anyway. If it isn't, he'll be forced to make smalltalk with whatever fuckwit's sticking around in here.

If it is empty (or even if it just appears that way), then he's going to start raiding medical supplies, casually popping pills as he rummages around without even bothering to look at what they are.]

EXPLORATION.

Yeah, I see you, fucker. D-don't pull that on me. I'm on to you.

[Rick appears to be berating one of the aliens for something or other, though they're not really doing anything but looking at him beatifically. Still, it's obviously offensive to Rick in some way, and he keeps waving them off like they're pests. Or seagulls.

Sometimes he treats them like they're seagulls.]

Fucking -- move! Get out of my way. [he says, as he sprints through a throng of friendly little aquatic dudes. They get out of his way but not for long, as they keep trying to be very helpful, and the whole thing repeats itself, Rick growling in aggravation.]

mess hall;
[ Thor recognizes an invitation when he sees one. Hall doors are almost always closed in preparations for feasts to come, a hint to the wonders that lie in wait for those to discover them, and it's without much ceremony at all that he saunters in to look upon whatever's inside. It's much better than he's heard, though probably hardly as good as anything in Asgard, but he will not begrudge these people their hardships. After all, it seems they are not fit to travel these parts of... whatever realm this might be. He hadn't recognized it as any of the Nine; considering his unexpected arrival, though, he thinks it par for the course thus far. And it only takes a moment for Thor to discover the alcohol. Something to ease the tension of his fellow crewmates, no doubt.

... until he pours himself a giant mug of the stuff and swallows several mouthfuls before the taste registers. If he looks a bit disgruntled and decides to drop the container right where he stands, no one could blame him, right? Or the fact he nearly spits the rest of it out too. ]

What is this foul— [ Thor pauses, looking for the correct description and only shakes his head. Anyone else who might have been around to join him is met with: ] Do not drink. It could very well be your death. [ He is clearly saving you the misery of the next morning, friend. ]

wildcard;
[ Open to just about any other area of the ship. Thor can probably be found in random places or maybe accidentally breaking some rec area equipment. (It's not that durable for a god, okay.) Let's get crazy. ]

[Mess Hall]

[This is more food than Elizabeth has seen in a long, long time. The sheer spectacle of it, though, does nothing to keep her from beelining for a grilled cheese sandwich. Now all she needs is a nice cup of soup, maybe a blanket and a book, and this would be a perfect evening indeed.]

[She does realize as she's looking around for a sign of soup that she has to stop this isolationist impulse if she's going to be on the ship for a while. After Columbia, Elizabeth had hardwired herself to accept that she'd never be able to have conversations with normal people-- or at least people who were tied to their timeline, which was basically everyone. Being singular and stationary is nothing new, but different from what she's been living for the past couple of... months? Years?]

[Nevermind she'd never actually learned how to socialize. Maybe the soup/book/blanket plan is better for now. Just until she can figure out how to talk to people again. Where's the soup?]

[Pool]

[Attempting to assimilate into a high-technology environment has been a full-time job for Elizabeth, not to mention incredibly stressful. She wants to perform well, become part of a crew instead of a weak link in the chain, but it's hard when she can't quite keep up with most of the vocabulary. When she feels overwhelmed and like she can't stand another minute with her thoughts, she swims.]

[It's something Elizabeth has to focus on, because of course she'd never had anyone teach her how to swim. But she knew she could-- she'd taken to it very quickly after she and Booker had fallen into Battleship Bay, and she'd made it to the beach towing Booker in a skirt. For a woman raised in a flying city, she was quite the fish when she wanted to be.]

[After her shift, after most of the ship has turned in for the night, reading isn't helping her sense of mental fatigue. So swimming it is-- she makes her way to the pool and, fortunately, given the hour she's alone for the moment. After changing into a suit, she dives in and starts doing laps.]

[Rec Area]

[The ship is large, of course, and Elizabeth does spend a fair amount of time walking around. However, in Columbia and Rapture, there was a lot of running that took place. She's not doing too much of that, and every once in a while she just feels the urge to run if only to make sure she still can.]

[Treadmills, though, are something she's still trying to master.]

[Whether she's just not paying attention or unfamiliar with the settings or too tired, fifteen minutes into her run she's unceremoniously thrust backwards off of the thing and onto the ground. It takes a moment of flailing and rolling and hissing, but Elizabeth manages to get herself away from the still-running machine. Now she has a nice tread-burn on her shoulder to show for her accident, too.]

///: N E T W O R K _

An audio file is uploaded to the ship network, suggesting a sort of ambiguity about the user. Upon analysis, he either has something to hide, or is insecure about posting a visual video. If insecure it the right word; (rude and unaccommodating to his ship-mates would not be the proper assessment, and he will defend his actions if accused of such).

He, figuratively speaking; or at least, it would have been before. Now he actually has a human body, which is highly distressing to his sense of presumably flawless programmed superiority over the fleshy creators of his hard drive. His tone is polite, intelligent, if slightly impatient and condescending (more detectible with his new humanoid countenance) and wholly unamused.

" Pardon me, there seems to be some error with my circuitry. I appear to be a human male, about mid-thirties, average height, acceptable health... Could someone please update my information intake, I fear there may be a glitch in my programming. "

Edited 2015-09-17 22:26 (UTC)

I. Mess Hall
[She's never seen such a spread in her life. It's almost wasteful - who could possibly eat all of this? Where did it even come from? And what in the world is that?

The item in question turns out to be some sort of outlandish purple dessert. Wanda can't place the flavor, but it's quite good. Good enough for a second helping even though she hasn't finished everything she set out to sample.

She turns to the nearest person:]

You should try this.

II. Exploration
[The natives didn't frighten her until she looked in one of their minds. He, or perhaps she, was acting a little too friendly and even their thoughts are grasping. It's a kaleidoscope of sunken cities and cold water and mine.

None of them are close enough to pose a physical threat yet, but Wanda's every muscle is tense as she backs several steps away from that lake. She's not to noping out levels yet, but to the outside observer this is an extreme overreaction to being beckoned closer.]

III. Wildcard
[Maybe you've caught Wanda stargazing, or maybe you just weren't looking where you were going in the hallway. Get creative!]

Threaded | Flat

Saul Tigh | Battlestar Galactica

Kara Thrace l 'Starbuck' l Battlestar Galactica

Ginko | Mushishi

Zam Wesell | Star Wars

Starflight | Wings of Fire

Peridot | Steven Universe

JASPER | STEVEN UNIVERSE

the other Vorkosigan | Those books

Lt. Col. John Sheppard | Stargate Atlantis

Athena | Borderlands: The Secret Armory of General Knoxx