TD006

[ateratmods]

Test Drive 006

WELCOME TO ATERAT

Here is our Fifth Test Drive Meme! There are a lot of areas of the city to explore, so please have a look around! In case you need a little help getting started, I've included a few prompts below, or feel free to start your own! Exploration and player initiative are the names of the game here!

Helpful Links to Get Started

Arrival & General Information | Setting & Bestiary | Locales & Businesses | Residences & Housing Info | Rules & FAQ (ask questions here!)

I. Crash Into Me

Not exactly, but close enough. You have just arrived and received a strange satchel from a tiny, strange little man and are left more or less to your own devices (more information on what to expect upon arrival can be found here)! Follow directions to the north and check out the housing, or maybe have a look around the Historium and try to get some information from that giant glowing ball, see what you can waste your meager starter coin on in the Market District, or maybe just meet the neighbors.

II. What Goes Bump in the Night

It looks like Aterat proper has a spirit problem. Maybe you're seeing specters, hearing disembodied voices, your windows rattle when there's no breeze outside. Maybe there are cold spots in your place of business (or your apartment, which is so much worse). Either way, you're 100% convinced you're haunted. Hopefully, someone else believes you, or maybe you're used to feeling crazy.

III. When the Carnival Came to Town?

Take a look at the prompts from our latest event and go to town (or the carnival).

IV. Try the Network

The Tell-Phone allows for text, video, and audio transmissions to everyone else who has one. Give it a whirl!

V. Wildcard

The above prompts are all options, and there's much more to the setting than what they provide. Do your best (or your worst)!

Navigation

Comments

[bufubulous]

“Truly, I found myself rather captivated by it. So much so that I didn’t notice that shorter man who greeted me departing before I could ask him anything. It’s so different from Tokyo… Between the strange creatures that are common here and atmosphere.” Bustling, but in a much quieter way than he knew… He smiled a little at her description. Quaint and whimsical, indeed. “I would agree. That’s an excellent description of this place as far as first impressions go.” That could change, the teen supposed, once he heard more about the world… But for now? “Indeed. It’s beautiful and somewhat inspiring.” Which was exciting. He’d found himself in something of an art slump recently. “It’s an odd situation, but I believe there are far worse places one could end up in when it comes to finding yourself in a world or reality other than your own.”

Even if the lodgings were… less than desirable, and he would have preferred finding himself here with familiar faces instead of entirely alone. But he was shoving that particular set of thoughts far to the back of his mind.

“Oh? How modest.” He responded to her comment. Clearly, this was someone who wasn’t looking for praise, a rather remarkable thing considering how many would rather brag about achievements and skills. Even he sought the approval of his peers and hoped to impress with his art.

Her question is met with a smile. He felt rather clever for coming up with the name of such a strange creature on the fly. “I believe it makes the most sense to call it that for now, though we may discover it has another name at another point in time?” He responded with a curious tone, turning the plush slightly and poking a hoof. “Beorse flows rather well compared to other combinations of bear and horse, I think…?”

Her question gets a nod as he held the plush aloft with a thoughtful expression. “Of course, inspiration can be drawn from the most unexpected places. One only has to look for it, and this speaks to me in a way I can’t quite describe.” It also made him think of something else he couldn’t quite grasp yet… but it would come to him at some point, probably abruptly enough to interrupt the flow of conversation.

[bufus]

"He walked off while I was asking him questions," there was clear annoyance in her tone. He hadn't even pretended to be interested in her questions. Or dismissed her at all. He'd just turned around and walked off while she was speaking. Rude. "You're from Tokyo?" Other than Shinjiro he was the first person to mention somewhere she could easily recognize.

"Inspiring?" That wasn't quite how she'd continue on with the description of this place, but it was becoming increasingly obvious that this young man was quite focused on that subject. She put a hand on her chin and looked at him quizzically for a brief moment. The way he phrased that last bit almost made it seem as though he had experience with the matter. "Indeed there are. Though I suspect most people don't have an abundance of experience with other realities."

"Oh. It's a name of your own design," red touched her cheeks and she quickly cast her eyes downward. Of course it wasn't actually the creatures name, she should have known that. Now she was reminded of when she'd thought Junpei had explosives when all he'd really done was leave the door unlocked. Why was she so terrible at reading situations like this? "What other combinations had you considered?" Maybe asking that would distract from her own embarrassment.

"Ah, well...I'm glad it can serve some use to another." It definitely didn't speak to her in anyway, so at the very least it seemed he'd get more of a use out of it than she would.

[bufubulous]

“It’s really rather rude to leave before someone is finished talking to you. I was quite shocked by it. Especially if he’s in charge of welcoming those of us who’ve only just arrived.” Yusuke responded with a firm nod and a disappointed expression. So it hadn’t just been him? Well, to be fair to Raimon, he had gotten distracted, but… It would have been nice to have more time to ask. Mitsuru’s question dashes those thoughts rather quickly from his mind. She sounded like she knew of the place? He hadn’t really run into anyone who seemed familiar with Japan or any part of it before now. “Indeed, does that mean you’re familiar with it as well? I must say that it’s rather nice to hear. No one I’ve spoken to seems familiar with the city.”

“Quite! The sights here are so unlike what I’ve seen before, and the experience of being here itself might awaken unexpected creativity.” Yusuke seemed to certainly think there was inspiration to be found here, so different from what he knew. More than the new sights, there were new experiences and people to potentially learn from. Perhaps it would be just what he needed to nudge him forward, or so he hoped. The young man did tend to get a bit carried away with his ideas, though, only to realize later that he might have missed the mark… So it was hard to say.

Yusuke almost says something further on the subject of having experience with other worlds, but thinks better of it. He isn’t Ryuji, after all, and the metaverse might be a worrying idea for someone who might be from the same world as him. “You may be correct on the subject. I suppose it might be quite strange if one were experienced with other realities before arriving in this place.” Yes, it would be so weird, wouldn’t it?

So weird… haha…

“Yes, though I like to think it could be a decent guess as to its true name?” Yusuke responded, seeming to be a bit oblivious to her embarrassment as he focused on the subject. “I considered hoar, but that’s also another word already, and… I believe I think of a few people who would assume that something else is meant entirely. Bearse wasn’t bad, but… It sounds too close to pluralized bears.” He clearly had put too much thought into this, Mitsuru.

Yusuke offered her a brighter smile, though, as he tucked the ‘beorse’ under his arm. “Thank you. I’ll be sure to share any creativity that comes from your generous gift.” Though, finally, almost a million years late… “I must beg your pardon, I realize that I haven’t introduced myself, nor have I asked your name.” He commented with a small frown, how could he have forgotten? “I’m Yusuke Kitagawa, and you are?”

[bufus]

"My impression was more that he was tasked with giving us the colored bag. It would seem he deems his task over after that." If she was correct then she found it a bit shameful that he was so unwilling to go beyond what his task was. One should be willing to go above and beyond what their job description asked of them. At least that was her own personal opinion on the subject. She gave a nod to his question. "It has been quite strange to talk to people who had never even heard of Japan." Though it had opened her eyes to just how much she had to learn about this place. "I'm from Iwatodai myself. Truthfully I'm still trying to get used to just how different it is than any other place I've seen before." If he was hoping to be inspired by something different from Japan then he may just find what he was looking for here. Very little about this place was similar to anything they could find there.

"You might be surprised." She had been. "There seems to be a number of people here who have traveled to different worlds and realities." Some of them even talked about it like it was as common as going to a different city. It was so strange to see people be so open about something like that. Or maybe it was just strange for her to see people be so open in general.

Mitsuru's eyes widened a bit at the other name he considered for the bear and she blinked. "Ah, yes, I think beorse may be your best choice there." It was definitely a bit strange that he'd put so much thought into this, but she could at least respect his dedication to picking a suitable one. "I look forward to seeing what you come up with." And she was genuinely curious as to what he might create based on this strange thing. "It's nice to meet you," there was a hint of embarrassment in her own tone at the realization that they'd both just forgotten to introduce themselves. Evidently beorse's were more captivating than she'd thought. "I'm Mitsuru Kirijo."

[bufubulous]

“Yes, it was an interesting shade to be sure… But also rather vexing that he only dropped it in my hands and told me that I couldn’t even use the key yet, as though I’m a child.” He said in a tone that was a little more sour. Even if he knew very well that in the world’s eyes 16 was hardly an adult, but he felt that being thrust into an orphanage was a slight on his first day. “One would think whoever was in charge of the welcoming committee would be more open to speaking on the subject of this world.”

But he took a breath. It would be like living in the school dorms. It would be a good experience being around others after having been so sheltered before. He would be patient and mature on the matter. A free bed and meals were still a free bed and meals. “Iwatodai? I haven’t been there myself. Afraid I haven’t had much opportunity to leave Tokyo, at least not yet. Perhaps one day I shall have to make a trip to see it. But it’s still nice to have met someone from Japan. Someone who knows what I’m talking about will be nice on occasion.” If either of them got a bit homesick, perhaps it would be a familiar subject.

Yusuke’s eyes lit up to hear that news, though. “Is that so? What kind of worlds and realities have they spoken of to you thus far?” He might have been digging a little, if only because he wondered if it was possible that some of his friends might have ended up here, too. Maybe he wasn’t as alone as he first thought? If not… Well, it was still interesting news to hear. It might prove interesting to seek these people out to learn about their experiences.

“I thought so, thus it shall be dubbed a beorse until we can learn more on the subject.” he responded with a satisfied smile, looking forward to both finding out more and showing off whatever artwork came of this inspiring little reference. He would have to find a way to repay her kindness, even if it didn’t result in something satisfying. But at her returned introduction, he bowed his head lightly. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Is there a preference for how I should refer to you?” It seemed to him that, in their world, she was likely his elder by a few years. Mitsuru might prefer formalities, given they’d just met.

[bufus]

"Unless their main objective is just to send people to whatever housing they've deemed appropriate for us to reside in." Which seemed to be the case here. It was vexing to her, but there was little she could do about it. At least she was rather used to living in dorms and there was the added comfort of having Shinjiro there. Despite the...complications that brought it was still nice to at least have one familiar face.

"It's alright, I haven't had too much travel experience outside of Port Island myself. My duties keep me there for the most part." Though her father had traveled a bit here and there. "There's one other here from the same place as me, his name is Shinjiro. Though...you'll have to excuse him if he seems a bit...rough upon approach. That's simply how he is." You learn to deal with it eventually.

"I'm afraid I haven't been here all that long myself, but I have seen a few mention different versions of Earth completely." She paused for a moment as she contemplated how to phrase her own experience in the vaguest way she could. "I've also heard mention of someone with experience in a separate place that can only be reached at a certain time that creatures tied to human emotion." That seemed adequate enough. "It all seems rather strange." Which was true, Tartarus was exceptionally strange.

Normally she'd have informed him that Kirijo would be appropriate, but that seemed somewhat odd to default to here. Especially if she was actually trying to make acquaintances. "Mitsuru will do. I see no reason for formality here."

[bufubulous]

“You’re probably correct, though one must wonder how they decide where is or is not appropriate for us? How do they know so much about those of us brought here- or at least as much personal information as they seem to?” How were the rooming assignments of the colour buildings decided? How did they know he wasn’t over 18 when he was taller than his peers, who were older than him? So many questions… So few answers. No point in freaking out over it. Of course, it wasn’t about to change anything. But it was a curiosity.

His thoughts shifted, though, as she explained she wasn’t here alone. That was… actually good to know that such a thing was possible. It would also be nice to meet someone else who would know a little more of their world, or at least the normal side of it. “That must be a great comfort to have a friend here with you.” He commented with a small smile, though he had to wonder what this Shinjiro was like based on her warning. “I will keep that in mind should I meet him, though I’m not… unfamiliar with people who are slightly rougher around the edges. As patience trying as they can be, they aren’t all bad.” And no one was here to hear him say that! So it was fine to admit… You could be annoyed by, but also still be friends with someone, couldn’t you not?

Creatures tied to human emotion…? The bit about only being able to access such a place based on certain times was odd, but… It was hard to not see the connection, and the possibility that came with it. If only Yusuke knew that Mitsuru was speaking of her own experience, and not some random bystander… The teen’s eyes widened with interest as he responded. “Is that so?” It was Yusuke’s turn to work out how to respond, and to ask more about this someone and their experience without letting on more than needed. “That is rather strange.” So weird, he couldn’t possibly know what she was talking about, after all. “But interesting, as well. It could be useful to learn about such a place, what with the situation we’re in now. I should like to meet this someone, if I have the chance.”

Kirijo would have been more appropriate, and Yusuke would have accepted that, but he nodded to the request. “Mitsuru, then. In that case, you can also call me Yusuke.” They were in the same situation after all, so leaving formalities aside was a welcome idea. Though, now that he was less caught up in inspiration and thoughts of strange creatures, something crept into his mind. A little nudge of something familiar. Her last name was rather well known, after all. So even if it might not be so, it was hard not to wonder. “Though it occurs to me now, I must ask about your last name… Are you related to the Kirijo of the Kirijo Group?”

[bufus]

"Those are all good questions. Unfortunately, I don't have any answers for them" And she honestly wasn't sure yet if anyone did. Of course, she was going to ask around and look into it because it bothered her to think they had so much information. It also bothered her that it seemed they categorized them based on this information, but as frustrating as it was, there was little she could do about it currently.

"It's a small comfort though...a bit complicated." What in this place wasn't though? The entire situation seemed complicated. "He has a good heart and it's...it's certainly nice to see him again." Especially considering she had never thought she would again. That was a bittersweet thought in itself though as it opened her thoughts up to thinking there could be a possibility she could see her father as well. Which probably was not something she should spend her time lingering on for too long.

"What would you want to ask them if you could meet them?" she looked directly at him with a hint of curiosity in her face. It certainly was strange that he seemed so interested. Then again, it was an interesting subject wasn't it? Objectively speaking the idea that there were other realities or just tears in your own reality that created other worlds...well, it was interesting enough for her grandfather and all those researchers to become obsessed with it.

"Yusuke." She repeated just to familiarize herself with it. For a long time Shinjiro and Akihiko were the only two people she was on a first name basis with and it was definitely a bit...odd. At his question she stiffened and then looked down. "Ah, yes. Currently-" she broke off for a moment as it hit her how painful it was to actually say this aloud. It wasn't really surprising he'd heard of their name, they were known around most of Japan and had been since they'd broken off. Still, the changeover was so recent for her. "Currently, I'm the head of the Kirijo Group. Though, I think that status hardly matters in a place like this, does it?"

[bufubulous]

Continued here!