⇨ TEST DRIVE MEME: WISMUTH

[ringleaders]

WELCOME TO THE SHOW!↴ Or, more specifically, Lost Carnival's test drive meme! This is an opportunity to try out your characters in the setting before you apply, or to put together samples for characters you've never played before. There are going to be options for both new arrivals and veteran characters. Before we get started, let's lay down some details: You can (and should) read the full premise here. Reserves and Applications are currently OPEN. Recruits can be either willing or tricked this month. You can apply as a newcomer or as a "veteran" character who has been in the carnival for up to three years. In the case of veteran characters, you will need to come up with an explanation of why they haven't been around the carnival recently. TDM threads can be used as game canon after the fact if both characters are accepted, the players agree to it, and it makes any sense contextually. If you are interested in additional IC and OOC plot responsibilities, consider applying for a Supervisor position. Head Cook and Treasurer are currently open. Otherwise, we're pretty much down for anything, roles wise. CURRENT STOP↴ ⇨ WISMUTH ⇦ Wismuth is a large coastal city on the east shore of what would usually be the United States. The world it's part of is an Earth variant, meaning that while some aspects may be different, overall it will contain a similar look and feel to Earth many are accustomed to, including some overlapping celebrities, corporations, and technologies. Its most notable feature is that this planet is a part of what is called a 'Pillar of Creation' - a focal point of Creation's energies in the multiverse. The effects of this feature are the only aspect of the setting that will be relevant for this testdrive, as recruits will be entirely within the carnival as opposed to out in the city. ► VIBRANCY OF CREATION: The immediate effects of this trait are that everything in Wismuth, and in the carnival because of its connection to Wismuth, is filled with an unusual sort of vibrancy - colours seem brighter, sounds seems to resonate more deeply, and all other physical sensations will strike visitors as oddly intense, including their own emotions. It's a subtle effect rather than anything that will be overtly disorientating, but it's almost as if everything is more "real" here than it is anywhere else. Obviously, the locals, whom are mostly just ordinary looking humans, have had plenty of time to grow accustomed to this. On the bright side, as a tourist, you have the opportunity to experiment with this sensation as a form of recreation. Recruits from this month will be signing on with the carnival between Day 8 and Day 11 on the season calendar. NEW RECRUITS↴ You gotta start somewhere, right? These prompts are for characters who are arriving in the carnival for the first time, and who are destined to sign a contract. How they go about that is up to you, but in the meantime they can enjoy the sights and sounds of something truly out of this world. Will you become her most recent hire? ► ADMISSION FEES: After crossing into the carnival's realm and passing through the trees, most visitors will find themselves at the front gate - though not all choose to enter that way. If they enter legitimately, however, they will have to pass by a clerk who will trade admission and tickets for various attractions and rides in exchange for "anything of value." What is of value may seem highly subjective, and so some may struggle to produce payment at first, though in actuality the carnival will take anything from mundane currency to items of purely sentimental value. ► MIRROR MAZE: The mirror maze is a big attraction in the carnival, and stretches much further on the inside than it looks like it will on the outside. It's hard to get through, and what's more, after you've been in there for a while your reflections will start gaining a mind of their own - mostly in order to taunt and distract you with personal information. They don't know everything you know, but they know more than they should, and their mind games can be pretty hit or miss. ► GAMER'S CIRCLE: Almost all of the game booths are organized in a large ring around the Cookhouse, called Gamer's Circle. Your can play just about any carnival game you can imagine here, for a variety of prizes sometimes traditional, exotic, or outright magical. Dart tossing? Got it. That game with the water guns? Got it. Most of these booths are currently manned by humanoid spirits who look like they are made of smoke. If they can trick you into earning debt, they will. ► TUNNEL OF "LOVE": A brand new attraction in the carnival, the Tunnel of Love is mostly what you'd expect from such a ride - two people sit in a boat together which journeys through some glitter filled caves, complete with mood music. Unfortunately, there is also something else in there with you... in the form a moody kraken living in the waters, who has very particular opinions about shipping, and may either stubbornly interfere with any attempted intimacy, or may politely encourage it. Or they may just generally be a dick if they're in no mood for either. The Ringmaster insists it is a romance expert. ► TRYING TO LEAF: No matter where you came from, you seemingly emerged from a forest. Obviously, to get back home you should be able to go back in the same direction, right? It turns out you can't. Worse, trying too hard to get through the wood will result in you getting lost, or turned back to the carnival. The trees here are not normal, and are varying levels of alien, including things like trees with glowing fruit or orange flowers that constantly burn like candles. ► WILD CARD: Anything else you can imagine in this setting! There are a lot of possibilities and you're free to explore them. Check out the rest of the game info or the locations page for additional inspiration. Want to make a starter with your character experiencing their first theoretical change? Go for it! VETERAN WORKERS↴ These prompts are tailored to the carnival's existing employees, the veterans. Odds are they've been here from somewhere between a few months and three years already, and know their way around the block. For them, this is just business as usual - and depending on their attitude towards their job, they may or may not contribute to a few people accidentally getting themselves a contract. Whatever you do, though, don't warn visitors away from the carnival - the ringmaster hates losing business like that. ► DO YOUR WORK: This one's pretty simple - just have your character doing whatever you'd like to have their job be! There is a big list of ideas over here, and you could use this to try things out with a character you intend to be a new arrival, as well. ► BREAK TIME: Whatever you were doing, it's break time! It's time for you to relax however you see fit. Do you enjoy some of the carnival attractions yourself, or is that old by now? Do you hang out in the Cookhouse to get a snack? Do you take a nap? Yolo, baby! ► DUNK TANK: Sometimes acting like a dick will earn you the gentle reprimand of being sent to work in the Dunk Tank for the afternoon - you know that game where people throw balls at a target, and if they hit it you get dropped into the water? It's like that, only sometimes there are daunting (but harmless) critters in the water, or some other strange magical affects to spice things up. Hopefully, the visitors will have bad aim. ► WILD CARD: Anything else you can imagine in this setting! There are a lot of possibilities and you're free to explore them. Check out the rest of the game info or the locations page for additional inspiration. Want to do a performance? Hang out in the Backyard? Choose whatever appeals!

Comments

[exaomori]

Are you askin' if I owe anyone anything?

[wait was he the carnival's collector?? Crap, did she do anything stupid??

... No. She would remember. She stayed away from the obvious temptations.]

I didn't take anything that wasn't mine to begin with, so no.

[She shouldn't owe anything. But crap, if she was dealing with demons, just breathing the same air was probably counting for something.]

[betheman]

[Collector, no. Security....yes, but the most he'll be doing here is using Words.

So he shakes his head.] No-I, the man Gongenzaka, am asking you if you failed to pay one of the game keepers, or perhaps even the gate keepers. Those who attempt to leave without, are unable to do so-it would be the easiest way to explain why you are stuck, in other words.

...Of course, if that is not the case, then things are perhaps....more complicated than expected, which would require asking the Ringmaster for answers.... [He scratches his cheek.] ....Though with that in mind, I, the man Gongenzaka, suppose the Ringmaster shall be getting involved regardless then...

[exaomori]

[This guy has a weird way of talking. If he wasn't a demon, then he had spent plenty of time with some.

But it wasn't a game or the front gate that snagged Shura. No, it was catching part of a show while snooping. Oops. But she won't be able to connect that together yet.]

This is the kinda place that looks to snag people up in petty debts, isn't it?

[She isn't accusing him, just being as straightforward as he was earlier. It's easier like that.]

[betheman]

.........Yes.

[WELL AT LEAST HE'S CONTINUALLY HONEST...]

This is a Faerie Carnival-and Fae are, unfortunately, rather particular about their 'rules'...even one as lenient about them as the Ringmaster. Among her rules, is the matter of fair trade. If you did not properly pay for all that you participated in...then she requires you make up for that lack of pay!

[...But that said.] ...Naturally, it also means she will not let you leave until such a time...

[exaomori]

[WELL she already figured out the game, even if it was too late to save herself, but she appreciates his honesty.]

A Fae thing, huh?

[Demon, faerie, they all boiled down to the same thing--not human. It wasn't always a bad thing, but this was a problem. a big one. Shura had enough of demon contracts. Even if the timing was better, she'd still but furious.]

Just what kinda pay is this Ringmaster expecting?

[betheman]

She will expect employment, [He answers.] You would not have been able to see for yourself, but.... ...Whatever moment you entered here, it will still be that moment when you leave.

The Ringmaster will expect you to work here, for one year, and one day beyond it, in return for whichever debt you have incurred-from there, she will return you home.

[There is a...pause.] Unless, [He snorts,] You were to request a contract yourself, naturally..! Not all of those working here are doing so for debt! There is quite a lot she can do to help one who seeks aid!

[exaomori]

[What, so no time was passing back home? That kind of thing was dangerous, not even Mephisto would do that.]

Time's standin' still? How do you know that for sure?

[Of course she'd take the willing contractors. This woman probably wasn't stupid, after all. Those were the easiest to manage.]

[betheman]

[He'll stare for just a moment, in case, perhaps, she can take a guess. But hey.] Because I, the man Gongenzaka, saw it for myself, naturally..!

It is the reason which I took a contract myself; the opportunity to train here for such a time, without any time passing at home... ...it was a chance which I, the man Gongenzaka, could not afford to ignore!

[There is...a cough.] T-Though of course, she did not find that alone an acceptable trade for employment, so we were forced to settle upon a contract for a form of 'life insurance', so that I could be recovered in the event of anything unfortunate...

[Spoilers he has cashed that in Big Time]

[exaomori]

Saw it for yourself, huh?

[That doesn't make it more believable, but this funny talking guy did seem to be honest enough. Shura would have to judge for herself. Her shoulders heave as she sighs.]

What's a guy like you needin' to get so tough for, anyway?

['Life insurance' in this situation sounded just as suspicious as anything else. Ugh.]

[betheman]

Aah, that I did.

[But his ears twitch. And briefly, he looks one part amused and another part honestly confused. As if such a question has no reason to exist.] Truthfully, the form I have now, is rather different from the form I had before...

...however, there is strength in more than the body. The mind and spirit are just as important-perhaps even more. That...that, is what I, the man Gongenzaka, needed to train with.

....I did not have time after all, where I came out from.

[exaomori]

[wait what

There's two things in particular Shura can parse out from this. One, was he under some kind of deadline for something back home, and two, this wasn't his original shape? Pursuing the first thing veers into personal matters that Shura doesn't want to pry into, but the second... Well, she knew lots of stories about fae and fae worlds. It wasn't her specialty or anything, but she knew just enough to be dangerous.]

Are you saying that this place cause you to change physically?

[ just... checking...]

[betheman]

[Well. Yes? He blinks.] You....assumed that I have always looked like this..!?

[He sort of wonders what kind of world you're from now! There's plenty of odd ones, but he tends to stand out even here after all!] A-Auh...well! Working within a Faerie's realm, and being exposed to such magic... ...various changes begin to occur. Such things fade with time, [If one desires it at least,] once they have left of course...but that does not change the fact that it happens..!

For myself, it was largely the fur, the plants...but more importantly, [he adds, scuffing the ground with one of the rear hooves,] These legs-though, in my own case... ...I, the man Gongenzaka, have proven myself something of a magnet for exposure to such magic....

[Whoops]

[exaomori]

Well, it wouldn't be the first time--[Demonic possession tended to produce some weird results, even if said possession was part of a willing contract. Shura's seen some strange stuff over the years.

But that was going to happen to her if she couldn't get out of this contract? No. That's not cool. Whatever she had done to annoy the head honcho here, it couldn't be worth getting exposed like this--

Her lips press into a thin line, rage quietly boiling as he continues to speak. It isn't his fault. She has to repeat that a few times, inhaling deeply to try and calm herself.]

Fade away... It had better.

[how could this guy be so casual about it???]

[betheman]

It...wouldn't? [Boy, he is Made of questions now. But anyway. He nods.] Aaauh. I, the man Gongenzaka, have no doubt there would be at least one here who could prove it, in fact.

[exaomori]

[sorry bro, Shura's not the best at answering questions like that. It's waaay too much effort. She grits her teeth, placing her hands on her hips. This was just too damn much.]

Got it, got it. Thanks for the info.

[But if she sticks around here too long, she might end up wanting to lash out at something, and this guy didn't really deserve that. She's mature enough to know when she needs to remove herself. But just where could she remove herself to?]

This is all a pain...

[betheman]

[Fortunately for her, he can recognize that...to an extent.] ....Perhaps I, the man Gongenzaka, should point you in the direction of the Ringmaster's likely whereabouts... ....you could discuss what is happening with her.

[exaomori]

[ She doesn't want to talk to the Ringmaster, she wants to go home. But life isn't fair, and she was going to have to deal with this Ringmaster demon at some point. ]

I don't have much of a choice, do I?

[ Even if she makes a few pit stops before actually going in to see her... ]

annnnd tied off-!

[betheman]

...Rather unfortunately, no.

[But, at least he's honest.

He'll point out the directions to the tent from there-and send Shura on her way.

Good luck girl-]