ateratooc | Test Drive

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

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ She can't see it, but his face lights up when she responds and her voice comes out of the crystal. ]

Ah! It does work!

It's a pleasure to meet you Terra. I hope I didn't scare you... You sound like I might have caught you off guard. I'm sorry if I did.

[ It absolutely hasn't occurred to him that linkpearls and magic communication crystals may not exist elsewhere. ]

[She shakes her head, not realizing that he cannot see her.]

I did not expect the crystal to start speaking but it's okay.

[Now she knows.]

Did you just arrive too?

I did. It wasn't how I was expecting to spend my day, but that's alright. I imagine my garden will be okay, though I admit I'm worried about my kids.

[ He could keep going on and on, but he catches himself. ]

What do you think of this place so far? If we were to pretend we weren't brought here without our consent, would you say you like it?

Your garden? And kids?

[She remembers the orphanage but shakes the memory away.]

I... don't know. I haven't been here very long.

The Empire isn't here... [Which means that Kefka likely isn't hiding somewhere in the city.] -that's good.

Yes! I kept a garden of flowers and interesting plants. It was always very calming to take care of them, be it weeding, prune them back... Sometimes my kids, Ahweh'a and Xahqoh, would trample them in their play, but that's okay. Kids will be kids, and miqo'te kids are certainly something else.

[ He laughed fondly, but his tone grew much more serious. ]

Any place without an 'Empire' is definitely better off. We have one back where I am from - the Garlean Empire - that think they should own the world. From the way you speak about your Empire, I imagine it's pretty similar?

I do not know the miqo'te but I... don't remember very much.

[It's entirely possible that they exist but Terra has yet to hear about them. If Edgar were here... she could ask him or Leo...]

Yes. It is. They have taken many lives. I don't know if there is truly a way to stop them.

Miqo'te are kinda like hyur, but they have cat ears and a tail. Their finger nails are more like claws than finger nails, and some of them have fangs or eyes with slits for pupils. They're a wonderful people.

[ There's empathy in his voice, but also a level of determination. ]

There is always a way to stop those with evil in their heart. It is sometimes quite difficult and may seem impossible at times, but there is a way. In my own world we managed to push the Garleans out of my home continent of Othard and back to their own lands. Though the fight is far from over, it is not an impossible one.

The hyur? There are many types of people where you're from?

[She pauses awkwardly but continues after her moments hesitation.]

Have you heard of a race called Espers? Those who can use magic? I was told that magic is... bad, dangerous.

Oh, yes! There's the Au Ra, which is what I am! The Miqo'te, who are cat-like. The Hyur, which are... Well, like most people here? The Viera, who have rabbit ears. The Hrothgar, which are like tigers made man! Elezen - tall and elegant with pointed ears. Lalafell, who are the smallest of Hydaelyn's children. There's also the Roegadyn, who are a large and hardy people. There are also the Garleans, who are similar to the Hyur, but unable to manipulate aether and are aetherblind.

[ He pauses, then continues, a bit confused. ]

There are no Esper that I am aware of... All of the people of Hydaelyn, save for the Garleans, are able to use magic if they have the sensitivity for aether and desire to learn it. My sister, for example, is quite a powerful mage.

[ His tone switches to a gentle tone. ]

Magic can be dangerous if you don't know what you're doing and aren't taught the proper limits, but it can be a great aid to those who need it. My sister has healed her comrades from quite grievous wounds, but she's been taught balance.

Test Drive - 001

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