( TDM | #2 )

[spellbindmods]

IMPORTANT: This TDM takes place on the current world the coven is part of. Please read the linked Google Doc about the world AND be aware that the world is high-frequency, meaning canon magic and powers can be used.

TDMs can be used for anyone interested in the game and/or testing out a new muse.

Test Drive samples are encouraged to be used for your application sample, though they are NOT a requirement.

Feel free to use one prompt, multiple prompts or make up your own!

These threads can be considered game canon upon game opening if you so choose.

Telepathy and magic can be used at any point in time on the TDM, from Prompt A to your wildcard prompt. A specific prompt exists, however, that makes sure all characters have an equal chance to use this mechanic within the TDM. You're encouraged to have characters use telepathy and their magic accidentally or even purposefully on any TDM prompt.

If you aren't set on your character's power yet or want to try out a few, you're still able to use the test drive. Maybe your character is a late bloomer and hasn't fully unlocked their intuitive drive yet. In the case of multiple powers, only prompts that contain the power you choose for your application will count as potential game canon threads.

While only one character can be apped or reserved during a cycle, feel free to post with more than one character if you like! This is for those who are uncertain of their first choice or who would like to try out different characters within the setting.

WORLD ONE: AIMINTAS

You blink and that's all it takes. At first the picture doesn't come in clear, like you're waiting for a screen to fully load -- more aptly, it's like you're waiting for a camera to focus so you can find image clarity. Before you happened to rapidly close your eyes and open them, your life was normal...well, normal for you, anyway. Fighting an alien, making a quesadilla, dying. And then that blurry picture suddenly takes over... Some of you might open your eyes to find yourself wandering around a sandy area, outside of a large stone house. There's a large glimmering caravan floating around outside, which might intrigue you. There's also a lot of supplies, food, clothing...all just laying around outside. It's worth investigating, right? A ▢ Your character has found themselves arriving right outside the coven's new digs in Aimintas, and there's a lot of confusing stuff to look at. Th ocean in the sky, that floating caravan...your character probably can't get to that ocean, so they may want to examine the caravan. If they touch it, they'll immediately regret that decision -- the caravan has its own defense mechanism, and you can pick one or the other: - A1: Once your character touches the caravan, they can't remove their appendage from it. Kick it? Their foot is stuck. Touch it? Their hand is stuck. Lick it? Their tongue is stuck. They'll remain like this for 15 minutes without magical intervention. - A2: Your character's hand doesn't stay for long, but the caravan holds onto that hand for five seconds while giving your character a pretty excruciating burn. Medic! B ▢ Maybe they're smart and they don't touch the caravan. Let's go through all of this cool stuff on the ground! It might be sort of obvious that it belongs to someone -- a lot of someone's -- but your character is thirsty, confused...maybe there's some water or answers in this pile. And maybe there's also someone who catches your character going through their shit.

Other new potential coven members will find themselves in a completely different part of town. These lucky individuals will have suddenly appeared in the marketplace area of Aimintas, surrounded by walking lizard beings that suddenly turn and take an immediate interest in this stranger. C ▢ The Palai are very interested in the new coven members, and a new humanoid person -- or anyone that doesn't look like them -- will immediately catch their attention. They'll immediately find your character worth of their undivided attention, talking to them about coven-related things...pretty confusing right? If you need help with the short lizard folk, maybe someone will eventually arrive to help you out. On the other hand, you might learn something interesting talking to them. A friend might join in either way! D ▢ Once you break free of the Palai, you'll find that this marketplace is pretty interesting. It's a mixture of primitive and semi-modern technology...or is it totally unfamiliar to you? Never seen a cellphone before? Unfamiliar with the concept of women wearing pants? There's certainly something to see that'll interest your character here. E ▢ Finally, you might be hungry and thirsty after suddenly appearing. The Palai are masters of making food, including a new concoction of theirs that they're trying out in honor of all the new people. It's a sort of bottled fruit juice that has been energized by the Eltos. It's essentially the first Aimintas Red Bull, except on acid. The drink immediately makes anyone who drinks it extremely giddy, hyper and they may potentially hallucinate. It doesn't seem to bother the Palai's biology, but everyone else...oops!

The setting found in Aimintas is pretty expansive, so you have a lot of room to wander around. Here are a few things that might catch your eye if you're really committed to wandering around. F ▢ A house near the marketplace is incredibly special to the Palai people. Characters who wander near here will find a group of Palai who are even more excited about their new visitors: baby Palai. Some are still in eggs and kept inside, but the juvenile Palai are about two feet tall, rowdy and want to play with these new, bipedal creatures. Some of them still crawl around on all fours and are more lizard-like than others. Hope you're good with kids! G ▢ The Palai have constructed a large library in the middle of town. If you wander in here, you'll find a myriad of books in a strange language. The Palai are a rather visual people, though, so many include pictures and illustrations. They also have a collection of computers here that connect to the Aimintas internet, as well as visual media stations that can play videos -- though they're really just powered tablets that play video files. Time to get a little taste of the Palai culture. H ▢ Wildcard prompt. Go nuts and utilize your own creativity within the setting. This can mean striking out on your own or utilizing a certain location in a different way. The world is your oyster!

GAME NAVIGATION

Comments

[talim]

b.

[ so this is definitely not rieze maxia or elympios. that much is very, very clear. little else is. jude stepped off the train to marksburg, and... this is not marksburg. not even close.

jude has been wandering aimlessly, trying his best to keep his wits about him, for a good ten minutes before stumbling upon the caravan and supplies. his first instinct is to investigate it, but — he holds back. something tells him that he shouldn't get too close to anything that might as well have a huge ? marked on it when he's in a place beyond any schism he's aware of. you never know.

milla, what have you gotten me into this time... ?

maybe his thoughts will reach her down there in the spirit world.

the supplies, however... well, jude's sure he can find something that might be useful. he doesn't know what kind of situation(s) he may or may not end up in, but a first aid kit is the first thing he goes rummaging for. medical supplies of any kind will help — you never know when that med school degree will come in handy! fortunately, he still has his artes, of course, but traditional medicine is important too, especially in a foreign environment like this. ]

f.

[ jude is hesitant, of course, because there's always a chance that these things could trick him and devour him whole! but...

but they look so harmless, and jude is lacking in company right now. he leans down, hands on his knees. ]

Come here, little guys. Come on. I'm not going to hurt you, I promise.

[ a couple of baby palai crawl up to his feet, and he crouches down to tentatively give them each a pat on the head. ]

g.

[ once jude comes this far, it quickly becomes apparent that he's not going to leave the library anytime soon. he's in his element here. there's so much information to pour over — it seems endless, and all worries of running on a time limit have dissipated. it's clear that there's no train back home in plain sight, so the next best thing he can do is educate himself, right?

anyone who stumbles in will see jude sitting down with a stack of books taller than him, tracing over words and pictures and mumbling to himself, very obviously trying to decipher the text through sheer willpower alone. sorry, but he doesn't notice you. ]

G.

[caramelswirl]

[it was a bit hot outside, so kotori meandered in to a building -- a library, apparently. she preferred fashion magazines to books most of the time, but in aimintas do as the palai do...? something like that. so she browsed the shelves curiously, running her palm along them slightly -- until she rounded a corner and spotted jude. she waved, happy to have found another human (or maybe "humanoid" would be better), but he didn't so much blink in her direction. undeterred, she walked forward, waving all the while, until she eventually came to a stop in front of him. she bent forward slightly, but it pretty much was all greek to her. but from the way he was concentrating...]

... Wow, you can actually read this? Amazing!

[awe ran through her voice. whoever this guy was, he must be super smart.]

[talim]

[ jude looks up with a start, startled out of his trance and surprised to see another living, breathing human here. his shoulders sag in relief, but then he gives her a sheepish smile, marking his page and rubbing the back of his neck. ]

O-Oh, no... not exactly. More like I'm trying to read this.

[ jude shakes his head in frustration. ]

I'm not really getting anywhere, though. Sorry, are you from around here, or... ?

[caramelswirl]

[now that jude noticed her, kotori stepped back to give him a little breathing room. but she shook her head no at his question.]

No, not at all. That's why I thought... Well, I shouldn't assume! Would you like some help? Maybe there's good information about this place here.

[and at the very least, she can ooh and aww over the pretty pictures with him.]

[talim]

Well, I'm definitely in no position to turn down help. That's what I was hoping... There has to be something, right? And two people are better than one.

[ he smile again, this one lighter, and pulls out a chair next to him for kotori to sit. ]

I know we're meeting under some strange circumstances, but... Hi. I'm Jude Mathis.

[caramelswirl]

It's nice to meet you, Jude-kun! I'm Kotori Minami.

[she returns his greeting warmly, taking the seat he provided. she took a book from the stack beside her, opening it to a random page.

... nope, still greek. and now it almost seemed like the book was upside down. she rotated it, making a quizzical noise in back of her throat.]

I think that's right? Hmm...

f

[baiter]

[Pica, meanwhile, stays standing. She's watching Jude very intently, though, and sticks close to him.]

... bugs.

[Because they're lizards, so--

She mimics a chomping motion with her hand.]

Treat them.

[talim]

Hmm?

[ jude blinks once, then almost jumps when he realizes he's been being watched. for how long? he typically has much better reflexes than this, but the baby palai had been distracting him, and...

oh. it's just a girl? and a human girl? he doesn't quite understand, though. ]

I don't think they're bugs...

[baiter]

[Being misunderstood makes Pica wrinkle her nose, but she's used to it.]

They'll eat bugs.

[To emphasize, she moves her hand about and makes a zzzzzz sound.]

Babies always fuss. Quiet them with bugs.

[talim]

Oh! Oh. Right. Bugs.

[ missing something so obvious... he blames it on not exactly being in the proper headspace at the moment. ]

They aren't bothering me, but that might be a good idea— wait, hold on, do you know what these creatures are? I mean, they look like lizards, I suppose, but I've never seen creatures like this so... social.

[ maybe he's finally found someone who can help him out??? ]

[baiter]

[Oh no. She's being mistaken for someone who knows what's going on. Immediately, Pica shakes her head and holds up her hands. She doesn't want this responsibility!]

No babies. [Said very firmly.] They're aliens. Unsafe to touch.

F

[ensorcel]

[ as much as camilla loved children, these palai looked too reminiscent of faceless for her liking. although, watching this cute boy who reminded her of her cute corrin (who she misses so very much...) behave so cutely around these fledglings made her think twice about her assessment. at least, of the babies. ]

Oh my... You must be very good with children. They've taken such a shine to you already.

[talim]

[ jude nods without glancing up. he's too entranced by the palai to even realize that he has extra company, and he answers without even thinking about it. ]

You think? I mean, I guess I am pretty fond of them. There's this little girl back home, Elize...

[ he trails off, petting the palai and breathing out a sigh. he hopes everyone is okay. ]

[ensorcel]

A little girl? Do you mean a little sister of sorts?

[ camilla's much more interested in this cute weird little nerd than she was a few moments ago. ]

I never would have guessed, since you're just a baby yourself.

[talim]

[ he's trying to figure out whether he sees elize as more of a little sister or almost a daughter (no, he's too young to be a parent) before he processes camilla's presence and jumps up. ]

— I'm not a baby!

[ HE HAS A DEGREE AND EVERYTHING!!!!! ]

Wait — where did you come from?! Sorry, I...

[ he flushes with embarrassment at both his lack of attentiveness and his little temper tantrum. ]

[ensorcel]

[ a giggle. ]

My, you startle easily, don't you? Now I really want to bundle you up and hold you in my arms.

JUDE MATHIS | TALES OF XILLIA 2

[talim]

i literally forgot the subject so i'm just sliding this here... don't mind me.

[genocideharp]

[Carol's another bookworm - she'd found the library almost immediately and dedicated herself to going over everything. Unlike Jude, she's spent most of her long, long life trying to unravel the mysteries of the universe. Lesson number one is to be well organized.

So she has a stack of books taller than Jude, which naturally means its much taller than herself - not that that's very hard, Carol is small even for the young girl that she looks.

Regardless, what she also has is a pen, a stack of looseleaf paper, and attempts at actually transcribing the text into readable letters. She notes which letters correlate with which pictures, and then tries to find where they repeat.

... It's not exactly going well, but time is one thing she's never been short on. Still, frustrated, she gathers up some of her blank pages and trots over to Jude.]

If you're going to beat your head into this wall as well, you should be productive. Make notes. I'll read over them later. [... Oh, right, he might actually want something out of this.]

I'll give you mine at some point. We can compare.

[talim]

[ jude squints at her, surprised by (apparently) being at the whim of a little girl's sudden demands. ]

I was making mental notes, but I guess writing it all down isn't a terrible idea. Wouldn't it be even more productive to just study together, though? Maybe we'll have a better chance at deciphering this stuff if we put our heads together.

[ did that not cross her mind? she seems sort of blunt... ]

[genocideharp]

Have you made any progress so far? [Carol doesn't mind piggybacking off any notes he might make - even incorrect ones would contribute to the process of elimination - but if he's barely making any headway, it'd be a waste of her time to study with him.

... Still, she's going back to get her actually filled notes and the book she was working on, then sitting down next to him anyway. What use is time to her, again?

She smacks one of her notepages with the back of her hand.]

I've been working on basic words. Food, water. Those seemed like the easiest place to start. [Carol's taught herself Latin, Chinese, French, Japanese, Irish, Sumerian, Egyptian, English, and most other languages that exist in her world. At least she has practice.]

[talim]

Not much, unfortunately. I've been able to make out what I'm guessing are pronouns and such, but putting the words together and interpreting their meaning is another thing entirely. The abundance of pictures helps, but...

[ he shakes his head with a sheepish look. ]

As much research as I do, I guess languages aren't exactly my strong suit.

[ he feels a bit inferior, and jude can't refrain from giving in and asking: ]

Uh... sorry, but how old are you, anyway?

F

[enflame]

( Emil can't say he has any more or less experience with these new people wandering around, only identifiable because he doesn't recognize them from the usual suspects. It's surprising to see someone who's new adapting to the setting pretty quickly, as evident in how he's quick to touch these wriggling creatures.

Which is where they differ, because he's....not about to touch these things without some direct evidence that they aren't going to bit him or give him some kind of pox.

This explains why Emil's staring so intently at Jude's interactions with these lizardlings; he likes kids and all but he's not catching a rash. You can take the bullet for him. )

[talim]

[ emil's presence doesn't register for a good minute or two, but when he finally spots him out of the corner of his eye, he tilts his head and gives him a crooked smile. just how long was he watching him? ]

Can I... help you?

[ jude looks. very uncertain. ]

[enflame]

( Not very long, subtlety is a language he doesn't speak. )

No. But you got very familiar with these smaller creatures rather quickly. ( One's trying to reach for him, but he's not sure whether or not he should interact, yet...these lizards seem to take a mile when you give them an inch, or at least that was what happened yesterday. )

[talim]

Well, they're just being friendly, right? Look, I think they want to say hello to you, too. They seem harmless.

[ he points down at emil's feet with an amused smile. ]