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Test Drive - 001

TEST DRIVE 001

Welcome to Aterat!

Here is our first ever 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!

NOTE: While you do need an invite to apply to the game, you do NOT need one to tag or top level on the Test Drive!

Helpful Links to Get Started

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

A. Welcome to the Jungle

The URBAN jungle, that is. 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, see what you can waste your meager starter coin on in the Market District, or maybe just meet the neighbors.

B. We've Got Fun and Games

At least there's entertainment. In various parts of the city, there are street performers, slight of hand tricksters, and probably a game or two of poker in one tavern or another (there are several to be found, after all). Start up a game of darts, or just sit broodily in a corner and watch the others coming and going.

C. You can have anything you want but you better not take it for free

The Harbor District is a rough joint. There are pickpockets, swindlers, but also hardworking folk and more than a few buildings that seem to be locked. It sure would be a shame if someone were to go about performing some casual Breaking & Entering...you know, as long as you don't get caught. There are guards around, though not nearly as many here as in the other districts. It's almost as though they like to avoid the place. People talk about wererats in the shadows at night and it's not unheard of for the unaware to go missing when they're traveling around here after dark...

D. What's that smell?

As if being carted off to what looks like a city out of a video game weren't bad enough, there's an entire district to the northeast that seems to be walled off, warded, and in all ways inaccessible. According to the sign, it's the cemetery...and boy does it smell.

E. Speaking Crystal

You could always take a look at the instructions that came with your crystal and see who else is listening. Remember, though, these devices are Voice Only and cannot be filtered. If you speak, anyone with a crystal can and will hear you. Now, whether or not they choose to respond is another thing entirely.

If you have any questions at all about setting or what is or isn't acceptable, please submit it on the FAQ!

If you would like to explore any aspect of the setting more indepth, please PM the mod account OR comment here! All comments are screened!

» N A V I G A T I O N

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"I'm Jacob Miller but you can just call me Jake." He shook his head. "and really, don't worry about it. I wouldn't have offered if it wasn't something I didn't want to do. Come on. It isn't far and some food might do you good." He turned towards the flow of traffic and slowly began to guide Llewellyn towards the place he'd remembered smelling of amazing grilled meats. He would have stopped earlier but he'd been on a job search and hadn't wanted to get too distracted.

The building itself was much like the others around it, set in a Victorian fashion but decorated with red's and stained wooden beams. "I think this was the place. It's a tavern... I think." It was all styles outside of Jake's 21st century experiences.

Luckily, the door opened, spilling loud echoes of happy conversation as well as the heady scent of meat onto the street. "Yup. This was the place. Let's go."

First names were... a little familiar for someone who came from the time he did. So Jake would have to forgive him if he slipped up now and again. “Nice to meet you mr. um... I mean, Jake.” He stumbled a little verbally, an awkward smile slipping onto his face as he followed the man through the streets.

He was right, of course, food was usually the right way to go where Llewellyn was concerned. The man had an appetite that was generally bottomless if his colleagues were to be believed. But between a high metabolism and an incredibly active lifestyle, he couldn’t quite help that. Plus food was, without a doubt, comfort of the best kind for him.

Where Jake was out of his time, Llewellyn was at least a little at home in the setting. He’d grown up in the Victorian era, it was a nice familiarity all the strangeness of the day aside. “Mm... I believe your right, looks like the ones back home. Decor is a little different, but I presume that’s to be expected?” He replied, gesturing at the finer details as they went inside. If he hadn’t had an idea before, the smell of food definitely reminded him just how hungry he was. He’d been saving his appetite after all, trying to be polite and mindful of the meal that was being prepared for him before all of this mess had interrupted. “Oh— That does smell delicious.”

Jacob didn't mind if Llewellyn slipped up from time to time but being called Mr.Miller made him think of his father and thinking of that... that wasn't something he was ready to do. There was a lot that his therapist had been helping him with but he'd yet to reface the night where he'd watched his parents be brutally slaughtered and torn apart.

"Looks like a good place." Jake walked inside but let Llewellyn lead since he seemed more comfortable in the relaxed atmosphere for the tavern. It wasn't really a tavern but Jake had no idea what else he'd call it. It looked like there was a bar but he wondered if he had to have his ID from home. It wasn't like this world had drivers licencees.

...

He will just stick to the meat. "I don't see a menu."

Jacob’s best bet there was to just correct him if he did that then, Llewellyn did listen. If he thought his words were bothering to someone he didn’t actually want to upset, he corrected himself and worked make sure it didn’t happen again more seriously.

“It does, the uh— the place is crowded which is usually a good sign of its quality.” At least he hoped so, sometimes people just liked cheap alcohol after all. Then again, less savoury establishments were usually a little more subdued in tone in his experience. The energy here was pleasant opposed to suspicious.

He raised a brow at the mention of a menu, “No? Well those are usually reserved for fancy restaurants and tea houses in my experience.” He gestured between the main counter and a table, “I presume whoever is working here will offer the special or whatever else they happen to be preparing today.”

"Oh." It seemed obvious but now that they were sitting at a table, Jacob was uncomfortable. He didn't go out that often, unless takeout counted, and UberEats made it so he never had to leave the apartment. He went shopping at the store from time to time but only when he knew if the family was going to come over. They'd give him shit if he didn't have real food in the house.

"Let's just order that. I'm not picky." He'd order a beer if it was crappy. Jacob didn't like drinking anything that tasted good or was super alcoholic.

"Um..." Jacob was floundering a little bit when someone walked over to the table. The special was some grilled meat as expected and they had fresh bread that was baked at the next door bakery too. "Yeah, that sounds good." He looked over at Lewellyn, "Sounds good to you?"

Llewellyn grinned a little at that, “Neither am I, and uh— you never know. Trying something new can lead to great discoveries.” The detective, most would find, could eat just about anything without complaint. Might have had something to do with his upbringing, an orphan living on the charity of the landlady that didn’t have the heart to put him out, you took whatever you were given and were thankful for it.

... Or it might have had to do with the fact that he just really liked food.

He gave a polite nod to the person who came over to give them the specials and take their order as he pulled off his hat to politely set it next to him on the table. Llewellyn was particularly pleased to hear they had fresh bread, that was always a treat. “Yup, sounds good to me.” Not duck, or roasted vegetables, but it was still something.

"Yeah? I was never really someone who tried a lot of new things." He wasn't opposed to it but he knew what he liked and saw no reason to deviate from that. Unless something he liked wasn't offered. "My sister was the try-new-things person in the family." Jake glanced around the room and then shrugged, turning to give Llewellyn his full attention. "Maybe I should get used to it."

Jacob, despite his modern upbringing, was very polite. He spoke to Llewellyn directly and made a point to make eye contact when they were speaking. He showed respect in the small movements, even a slight bow of his head as he said thank you to their waiter.

Manners were important.

"So what were you thinking about? Or would you rather not talk about it?"

“Mm... You should, though more because it isn’t as though we have a choice in that matter. I uh— imagine that everything here is quite new in a lot of different ways depending on who you speak to.” He responded thoughtfully, “The architecture and the uh— feel of some things is very like my own world. But! There are many things that are also different, strange... not really possible where I’m from?”

He shrugged a little, he doesn’t really want to say magic yet. It just feels weird... He liked the idea of it, but it just was hard to reconcile in his head that it might actually be real. “I’m sure it’s different for others who have arrived.”

Llewellyn appreciated the politeness, the undivided attention while they spoke, but sometimes he had a hard time granting others the same attention. He tried very hard, but his eyes would wander or his attention would get distracted, a lot of people thought him rude for it but he really never meant it that way.

He does nod, head bobbing a little awkwardly at the question. “It’s uh— fine. I was just distracted with taking all this in, I suppose... And I had er— dinner plans with someone important before I was... brought here.” Abducted is the more tempting term. “Suppose I was thinking about how late I’m going to be now.”

Jacob rubbed his palm over the back of his head. "I hate to admit it but I'm getting used to the impossible happening. This is just... another impossible that isn't impossible since it's happening." It was slightly circular logic but it was the best that Jacob could offer. This was a really weird situation.

"My world... home? Isn't like this at all." He gestured a bit and then rested his hands on the table in front of him. Jacob had trouble sitting still but he was trying not to be too fidgety as they waited for their food. The food would help.

He hummed thoughtfully before speaking again. "Yeah? That sucks. I'm sorry. I'm sure whenever we get home you can make it up to him. I don't think a friend would be mad at you for getting abducted." If they did get mad then they probably weren't a really good friend... or they were very worried and had weird ways of showing it.

Llewellyn smiled a little, it was still logic he could wrap his head around. “Even if it’s unexplainable, it’s hard to deny what we see before us...” He shrugged slightly before propping his head up with his hand. He could definitely relate to not sitting still well, fidgeting when stationary either from anxiety or a need to get moving was natural. Especially when chairs in general could be rather uncomfortable...

At least for now, there was soon to arrive food and a conversation to distract him.

Well... Until he was opening his mouth to ask more about Jacobs world but the guy beat him to it with a sympathetic apology about the missed dinner. Now he was a little anxious, for what might’ve been a stupid reason. He’d never mentioned the person he was meeting for dinner was a man. So he latched onto the ‘friend’ bit of the apology clumsily, “Um... Hopefully? They’re a good friend. I’d hate to... have my friend cross with me.”

Because they were friends, very good friends, yes... How many times had he said friend? Who knows, he certainly isn’t sure. It was like that time he’d made a point of saying ‘Mr. Walker’ as many times as possible instead of ‘Jack’ when Constable Crabtree was around. Yes, he had over done it and it had been just as obvious as it sounded.

Jacob's mouth quirks into a slight grin. "Can't argue with that." He wasn't trying to wrap his head around this world. All he had to do was live in it until someone found them a way home. He didn't think he could really help in that effort and he figured that staying out of the way was the next best thing.

Jake wasn't great at responding to social cue's but he picked them up pretty well. He wondered what he'd said. Was this guy upset with him? Had he somehow tread somewhere he shouldn't have. "I'm sorry man. I'm sure it's fine. I didn't mean to-" He shifted awkwardly and was going to speak again when the waiter came over with their food. Jacob grinned and thanked the man politely before looking back at his dinner partner.

"It'll be okay." He didn't know that for sure but it was a nice thought.

With that, Jacob decided that it was best to focus on his food for a bit. Even if that meant an awkward silence draped over the table.

“Oh um... No, no need to apologize. It’s not—” He shook his head quickly, feeling silly. He’s gotten a bit bad at masking his reactions, too much stress and too few healthy coping mechanisms in all honesty. There was something just a touch more stressful about all of this different world business on top of everything else. “It’s nothing, I appreciate the concern, all the same.”

Llewellyn was very glad for the arrival of their food, it gave them both something to focus on rather than the awkwardness that had fallen on the conversation. He’s happy to focus on it for a while. It was quite good, and he had been very hungry. After a time, he at least attempts to start conversation back up. “This is quite good?”

Jacob was focusing on his food when he suddenly heard Llewellyn's question. "Huh?" A second passed where he looked like a deer in headlights. "What? Yeah. Absolutely. I haven't had a homemade meal in awhile. My sister's try and get me to eat better. Dad too but I live alone so they don't really have a say." He shrugged. "And I'm not much of a cook myself."

He smiled and forced his own awkwardness away. "What about you? This is probably similar to what you're used too. That is because you said that this place is like somewhere you'd see at home?" Jacob was careful. He didn't want to assume and make an ass out of himself.

Llewellyn didn’t really have anyone to pester him into eating better, thus the man tended to live off of street foods and whatever was offered if he happened to be eating with someone. At least until recently... Well, now that he was here he supposed he would default to his usual habits again.

The question is met with a little nod, and a gesture at the dish in front of him. “Oh— yes! This is very like where I’m from? Some of it is... a little more outdated, but still very close in some ways to what the city I live in is like.” Even the areas that needed work if he was being honest, the great Toronto fire was still gradually being recovered from at this point in his history. So even the need for rebuilding in various areas was familiar enough.

“Of course, Toronto doesn’t um... have anything like magical libraries or people being summoned to help with construction projects.” He added with an awkward little shrug.

"Toronto?" Jake looked like he perked up a bit. "Canada? I have some family from there." They had adopted him but Jake didn't think that it was an important distinction. The Allaways were the best family in the world and he didn't know what he'd have done without them in his life.

He'd probably be a lot more messed up than he already was.

"And yeah. I'm not really used to all the magic here. It's different." He knows that magic exists but he didn't spend a lot of time researching it. "The library looks cool though. I don't think I've ever seen that many books in one place."

That might be the most exciting thing Llewellyn has heard since he arrived, more than all the magic and the strangeness of a new world. Someone knew what he was talking about when he mentioned where he was from. “Oh— yes! I’m from Toronto, Canada. What a coincidence that you have family from there.” He responded with a warmer smile before he had to pause for a moment. Setting his utensils down thoughtfully, “Mm... Of course, that makes me wonder. You’re world is even more different from this one than mine is, yet you have a Toronto, Canada there.”

A strange thing to wrap your head around, but he’s curious now.

Llewellyn had to admit, the library was amazing. He was sure he’d spend entire days in the place once he figured out what he was doing here... Even if it was a mess, he didn’t really mind the lack of organization. In a way, it was another small comfort. He was highly disorganized, and prone to making messes with papers and books.

"Yeah. I don't know all the details. He moved to upper New York after he left his-" Jake paused and had to think of a synonym for pack. "-home. He was before I was born. They aren't my birth family but they took me in and are amazing. Gus used to tell me all these stories from growing up in Canada."

Jake liked those stories. Not only because Gus had lived a long interesting life but because the old dog always managed to slip in various puns that forced Jake to crack a smile.

"It might just be that I'm from a little future in the future. Technology is always getting better."

“That is true, I’ve seen a lot of interesting things being created in recent years... I imagine even a few years will look different from the today I know.” He responded with a little shrug, there were always new inventions coming out. Many patented and others just... very strange things that Murdoch had created to save time on household work.

“There’s an um... Symposium coming up in my own world for inventors and individuals who want to seek change of varying kinds for the future.” Llewellyn poked around the dish a bit, picking at some of the food and enjoying before he continued. “I was supposed to help with security, though I suppose they’ll have to find someone else now.” Which... was a weird thought he’d been trying to not think about. How much was he going to miss just by being in this world? There was nothing the detective could do about it, but it was still something to worry about.

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Test Drive - 001

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