004 ⟡ JULY TEST DRIVE

[bayhelpers]

⋆✩ test drive 04 ✩⋆

The day begins like any other.

Routines, eventful scenes, and boring errands — no matter what you were in the middle of, there's a moment where everything begins to feel wrong. A searing pain tears through your body, so intense that it feels like every nerve has been struck at once. Muscles spasm, joints scream in protest, and as you double over, you find yourself clawing or clinging at anything within your reach. As your attempts to maintain composure fail you, your bones begin to twist with an agonizing force, the pain rising in a crescendo until it becomes unbearable to even breathe. Then, as quickly as it began, everything stops.

For a single, terrifying moment, there's nothing. No sight, no sound, no touch, no taste, no smell — just the weight of nothingness swallowing you whole. The absence of sensation might even be worse than the pain, leaving you adrift in a void you can't escape. Hopelessness threatens every fiber of your existence, and try as you might to fight it, your darkest thoughts begin to surface, flooding your mind in an onslaught of suffocating feelings and ideas.

In the darkness, you hear a voice.

It's faint, a gentle flashing of something warm along the edges of your mind, like sunlight itself. It's a voice, but you can't identify who or what it comes from, how it sounds, or what it means — still, you know it's directed at you. Something tugs at your heart, a powerful ache that throbs once and ripples outwards. You can feel the aches again, like fresh sores throughout your body. You feel off, like something isn't quite right, like you're not where you should be, or who you should be. But the voice continues, whispered just beyond your understanding. The sound is warm like hope, and it wraps around you, distant yet intent, before you wake up.

i. arrivals

STRANDED ON A BEACH

Beneath your body is wet, thick, sand. In the early dawn hours, one would think all color drained from the world. Eyes open to the shadows of distant buildings, with massive cliffs looming ever closely in the faint twinkling of sunlight. Water, for those particularly unlucky, laps at the body to leave a persisting chill — sinking into bones that no longer feel familiar.

It’s impossible to tell how you got here. All you have is those last moments before it felt as if your entire being was being broken down and stretched into this uncanny shape, this thing that doesn’t feel like you. Even the ground itself seems to agree. It shifts, and rumbles. Gathers into mounds, rising up and over with the sounds of dying gasps. But wait.

That isn’t normal sand. That sand is alive. That sand, gathering into shades of pink, of blue, of green, it all forms faces before your very eyes. An enemy, you may think? A monster? A threat?

“OhhhHHhHH…What has happened to us..?”

Or perhaps, someone in the same predicament as you?

“Someone…Someone get Mightyena!!”

Albeit someone who clearly knows more than you do here, on this beach that slowly regains its color.

CASTLES OF SAND

⟡ Severity of dysphoria and disorientation symptoms are entirely up to the player, as is the duration of time these symptoms last.

⟡ The Sandygasts on the beach of Bottlecap Bay are in fact residents of the town by proxy. They are at their most active during the summer, and can thus act as helpful NPCs to help player characters toward the town.

⟡ These Sandygasts are very strange in color. The colors they appear in include — Pink with lilac stones and a blue shovel; Moss green with brown stones and a black shovel; Deep red with black stones and a cyan shovel; Dark purple with white stones and a black shovel. They don’t know how their colors changed either, but they certainly remember being normal Sandygast before everyone arrived.

ii. see the sunset

COPPERAJAH-TONE

With newly arrived Pokemon settling in from the beach, the town quickly moves to adjust existing plans until they’re certain the shores are clear. It only takes a few days before they’re back on schedule however, and every Pokemon including those same arrivals will find themselves with an open invitation to the shoreline.

With the recent successes of Bottlecap Bay, public opinion is at an all time high, which is reflected in the activities pulled together in response. Through much of the Summer season, the beach of Bottlecap Bay becomes a literal hotspot of activity. Beach activities that many will find familiar take part at all hours, with equipment set up at small stands for public use.

A volleyball net is a particularly popular feature of the beach, with a particularly spooky form of gameplay spotted in the evening hours where Ghost types reign. Multicolored buoys float out to section off a safe zone of the water for Pokemon capable of it to swim at their leisure as well, with Bottlecap’s very own Dondozo and Tatsugiri acting as lifeguard.

The most popular game by far however is sand sculpting. Tools of wood and stone can be gathered up to shape the sand into any number of shapes, and some Pokemon may even offer small rewards to those who make especially impressive ones.

Be sure not to accidentally use the sand of one of those colorful Sandygasts however.

Beach Day Breakdown

⟡ During the entirety of July, beginning on the 15th, the beach is open for public summer games.

⟡ While examples listed above are available, Players are encouraged to include their own Beach traditions within reason. If you are unsure, please ask under questions.

⟡ Beach fun will happen during the day and night alike. During the day, the beach is far more active; Pokemon are livelier, and enjoy much more cheerful activities. At night, while many Ghost and Dark type Pokemon enjoy the games, there are also often small campfires where quieter traditions such as apple roasting and scary stories happen.

⟡ Alcohol may be present at the campfires of the evening. Please be sure to mark threads including alcohol with a warning, and remember that characters under the age of 21 may not partake.

iii. mentorship methods

BUDDY SYSTEMS

A whole host of new Pokemon arriving is no longer a fully unanticipated scenario for Bottlecap Bay. While the town has persistently done their best to seek a solution to so many displaced new citizens, they have also come to recognize a growing pattern in their arrival. Every other month, these new Pokemon have appeared.

Therefore, the combination of their recent peace and the local nature of these particular arrivals has given them an easy option for guiding these lost new souls. Rather than any of the Guild leaders seeking out ideal Pokemon among their ranks, those who have arrived from other worlds themselves are tasked with a new assignment. Help their fellow interlopers!

At minimum, each Guild Leader suggests a few basics to cover, but the methods with which they do this is ultimately left up to them. A tour of the local sights? A chance to test their mettle with brand new powers? Or perhaps simply a listening ear from one who understands the strangeness of these new bodies. The world is truly their Cloyster.

A MENTOR MINDSET

⟡ Each of the Guild Leaders will offer to their existing members few points they consider most vital to teach to the newcomers. Mightyena focuses on making sure the new Pokemon have a place to sleep, and insists that they be taught how best to fight. Ribombee emphasizes a need to show the necessary work ethic of the community, so that an understanding of how much they need to work together is understood. Polteageist in turn, gives a list of necessary establishments to familiarize themselves with, beginning with the Clinic, Archives, and Questboard.

⟡ During much of the month, various Pokemon maintaining stores and eateries within Bottlecap Bay will be offering their own helpful advice to guides and their charges. This trivia is minor, but typically focused on what the food is like, or what the benefits of certain articles of clothing might be.

⟡ Any Pokemon who helps another newcomer will earn 50 points for their Guild! As well, newly arrived Pokemon who put up with the guidance will receive a voucher for a custom, non-magical accessory, such as a hat or scarf.

ADVANCE TRAINING

After considerable research and effort, Polteageist has once again teamed up with Dr. Denne to craft a series of ever popular escape rooms, hinting that participating in them will be very useful in the future. Joining the effort is none other than Cheri and Oran's own Ribombee and Mightyena as well, making it a truly unified project. With so much investment going into these exercises, it's no wonder that every Pokemon from another world, new and old alike, is offered the chance to try at least one when they have the chance.

THE NORTH

⟡ Located just between the Canopy and the beginnings of Bottlecap Bay’s southern coastline, the lush greenery of the Northern Forest's entry has been sectioned off into a training ground. Pokemon are grouped into random pairs, and tasked with finding the end of a hand-crafted maze within this early area of woods.

⟡ While many threats within the Northern Forest are well documented, some may still come as a surprise. Wild Pokemon such as Bug and Grass Types may still be encountered, as well as mushrooms releasing rage spores.

⟡ The Forest itself is also a threat — though it seems to understand these Pokemon mean no true harm, vines and plants will move when not directly looked at, creating added navigational challenges.

⟡ Pokemon who show no signs of escaping on their own after a certain point will find themselves retrieved by a local Grafaiai or Mankey, as enlisted by Bottlecap Bay.

THE MIDDLE

⟡ Located a good distance down the southern coastline of the Bay, a section of the Middle Forest's entry has been carefully sectioned for a training ground. Supervised in part by a recently recruited Bloodmoon Usaluna, Pokemon will be grouped into random pairs, and tasked with finding the end of a hand-crafted maze in this early area of woods.

⟡ Due to the presence of heavy supernatural fog, Pokemon participants are warned heavily in advance of what to expect. The fog is known to literally reach into others, creating visions and hallucinations, as well as a deep loss of identity the longer they're exposed.

⟡ The end of the maze does not lead out of the Middle Forest. Instead, Pokemon must find their way back from the uniquely marked bone pile; because of the fog, this return is far shorter than the journey in.

⟡ Pokemon who spend too long within the Middle Forest while showing no signs of successfully escaping will quickly be retrieved by Ursaluna, whose Mind's Eye grants relative immunity to the Fog's effects.

THE SOUTH

⟡ Far to the south of Bottlecap Bay, beyond the farthest stretch of wooded coastline, the Southern Forest lies shrouded in darkness. While there is no longer a thick haze of fog, its unique dangers mean that numerous Ghost Pokemon have been recruited to monitor a simple challenge within the woods. Specifically, two Pokemon will be paired at random, led a short ways in, and told to find their way out.

⟡ Due to the mechanics of the Southern Forest, nothing within this 'maze' has been crafted personally. Pokemon are sufficiently disoriented by the forest's own ability to alter its surroundings when none are looking directly at them, as well as the significant time dilation that occurs here.

⟡ Local Ghosts who have entered an agreement with Bottlecap's recently recruited Spiritomb will be available as both obstacles, and guides. As obstacles, they will intentionally lead Pokemon astray by joining the team in disguise, playing on the Forest's ability to create inconsistencies in memory and experience both.

⟡ Any Pokemon who spend too long within the Southern Forest with no signs of being able to return on their own will be led home by Ghost Pokemon acting as guides. These Pokemon take care to not shapeshift into anything other than themselves.

✩ OOC NOTES.

⟡ TDM CWS: Disorientation, Dissociation (Escape Room Prompts), Body Dysmorphia, Possible Pokemon Injury

⟡ TDMs are game canon and act as events for the month they are posted.

⟡ New characters can link to their top level beneath the NEWBIE DIRECTORY

⟡ All new arrivals are not assigned to any one guild. However, they may assume themselves to share rooms within any one of them during the course of the TDM.

⟡ Remember that at least one thread for your application must come from the TDM! There is no comment minimum, but we will be looking for engagement, as well as for players and characters who take the time to delve into things like character thoughts, emotions, morality, and other deep themes. Take this time to engage with the setting as you would in game!

⟡ As a reminder, reserves and applications are permanently opened. Please see their respective pages for details on processing time.

⟡ Have any questions related to the TDM? Ask here! If your question is more general for the game, please make sure to direct it to the FAQ page instead. Thank you, and happy threading!

FULL NAVIGATION

Comments

[telewarped]

Then think fast!

[As much as Shoka enjoys terrorizing newbies, in the spirit of mentorship, she'll go a little easier on this one and start off basic with a Scratch. The only warning is a quick ripple of movement under the cloth of her disguise before a dark, tentacular arm emerges, swiping at Odile with a set of savage claws.]

[paperceptive]

[ Odile's more prone to attempting a Guard rather than trying to dodge attacks, at her age. Getting hit isn't great for her even with a buff, but she's just not as nimble as she used to be. The strange shadowy limb, when it appears, looks rather more like a Sadness than she anticipated. Her attempt to parry with her own large claws doesn't quite work out, and Shoka's claws rake through the short fur on her arms.

It seems like she might actually have some sort of combat experience, though. She ignores the pain and takes the chance to strike back; strangely flat shards of shadow flicker around her claws as she uses Assurance. ]

[telewarped]

[The Assurance hits its mark; the shadows slice through the fabric of Shoka's disguise, sending her reeling backward with a hiss. Judging by how quickly she recovers, however, it apparently didn't cause her any pain—even if her head now appears to be hanging by a thread, lolling far back on its broken neck.]

Huh! Not bad—for a noob. [Even if Odile doesn't seem completely new to battling. To Shoka, this just means she's free to ramp things up a little.] Now let's see how you handle this!

[Next, she'll try a Shadow Sneak, sinking down into her (suddenly much longer) shadow and reappearing behind Odile to attempt another strike.]

[paperceptive]

[ Hm - a decoy? Odile had known it wasn't her real head, but the thing seems to have taken the brunt of her attack. But now that it's dangling backwards like that, she ought to have a shot. ]

What - ?

[ She picks up on what Shoka's doing, but doesn't turn around quick enough to do anything more than take that Shadow Sneak to the face rather than the back. Odile stumbles backwards, sputtering - she's definitely flinched for this turn! ]

[telewarped]

[Apparently having too much fun not to be a little ruthless, Shoka follows that attack up immediately with another, grabbing her wooden tail with her free hand and swinging it wildly like a club at the already stumbling Odile. This is a game to her, and she's looking to Play Rough.]

[paperceptive]

[ That attack certainly hits, sending the Weavile to the ground! But despite taking so many hits all at once, there's a sharp smile on her face. ]

Hah! So that's how it is, is it?

[ She's probably going to lose. Odile knew that from the start; she's a beginner, and for a while, losing is most of what they do. But she's not willing to go down quite that easily. She backs off, whipping out a claw to shoot a hail of small, nearly paper-thin Ice Shards at Shoka. ]

[telewarped]

[This lady is tough—Shoka will give her that. Her next attack comes so fast that Shoka can't hope to evade it or even answer it with another quip of her own. The Ice Shards slice easily through the material of her disguise, leaving papercut tears across her cheek, her ear, then her body, dangerously close to one of her real eyes. No blood flows from the open wounds; instead, dark particles, like countless grains of dust, spew forth from the rips in the fabric.

There's a hiss of pain from Shoka, but she still follows through on her lunge undeterred, retaliating with another Play Rough (not with her full power, mercifully).]

Nice one—but not nice enough!

[paperceptive]

[ As predicted, that last hit takes Odile down hard. She taps out, for lack of knowing what the local signal might be. ]

Alright, alright, that's enough. [ let her just catch her breath here ]

[telewarped]

[To her credit, Shoka backs off immediately—though not without snickering.]

Aw, so soon? [So she says while still scattering Mimikyu-dust everywhere. Her arms disappear briefly under her torn disguise rag, then reappear holding a large, round berry with dark blue skin.] Okay, just take it easy, grandma. Here—try this.

[paperceptive]

Ha, the energy of youth...what's this?

[ Like, she's already accepting it even as she asks. Her body aches, but it's really not as bad as it could have been; she called it before things could go too far. That was already more than enough to count as a learning experience. ]

[telewarped]

Berry that explodes old people.

[She deposits it gently into Odile's claws. It looks a little bruised, yet remarkably intact for a fruit that was apparently sitting around in Shoka's disguise through their entire battle.]

Kidding! It's an Oran berry. It'll help you feel better, trust me.

[paperceptive]

Oh, no. I've been exploded.

[ She takes it and gives it a light sniff. She can't quite decide if it reminds her strongly of any specific fruit back home...she takes a bite and chews thoughtfully. ]

Not bad. And it's medicinal?

[telewarped]

[She giggles.]

I guess? [It restores HP, she wants to say, but she gets the feeling that Odile won't have any idea what that means.] Just don't ask me to explain how it works, like, medically. All I know is I can keep fighting pretty much forever as long as I've got a few of those with me.

[Her arms disappear under her disguise rag again, and this time reemerge holding a needle and Spinarak-thread. With delicate, deft movements unbefitting of her savage claws, she starts to sew the rips in the fabric closed.]

You're pretty tough, by the way—for a newbie. Almost like you've done this before.

[paperceptive]

It's like a Crafted water or tonic.

[ She doesn't expect Shoka to know what that means, of course; Odile just means to say that she sort of gets the concept. ]

I've seen my fair share of combat. Vaugarde hasn't been a very safe place recently. I was traveling with a party working to set things right. The ice is new, but I'm trying to think of it as a different form of Creative Craft.

[ Even if, more properly, it feels closer to Piercing than anything? It's an idle comparison; she's not sure the type systems line up at all. ]

[telewarped]

Uh. Yeah, sure.

[She continues to work on patching the holes in her disguise while she listens, apparently so practiced at mending it that the job doesn't require her full attention. Some part of what Odile says next, however, convinces her to stop.]

Wait. Did you say... Vaugarde?

[She also said "craft"... Siffrin's mentioned that before, haven't they?]

[paperceptive]

Yes - that's the country we've been traveling through. Why?

[ Someone who knows Siffrin, maybe? ]

[telewarped]

[Disguise repairs briefly forgotten (an almost comical spray of Mimikyu-dust continues from one of the remaining tears near the disguise's neck), Shoka takes a moment to look Odile up and down, racking her brain for a memory tucked away in the back of her mind—Siffrin's memory, left with her by the rains of last May. Odile's Pokémon form was unfamiliar to her, of course, but looking at her now... Is the shape of her feathered crest and ears familiar? What about the way she took notes, or the sound of her voice? It's hard to say for sure, when her strongest memories of Siffrin's party are of them dying, but... The Researcher—what was her name again?

Realizing belatedly that she's been staring for just a little too long, Shoka stumbles through her reply.]

Oh, I've... heard of it before, is all. Not where I'm from, but from a friend I met here. [There's a hesitant pause before she deems it safe to add,] Their name's Siffrin.

[paperceptive]

You have met Siffrin.

[ There's a new consideration in her eyes. ]

We were traveling together, yes. How have they been?

[telewarped]

Duh! We met a while ago, actually. Found 'em lost in the woods all scared and alone, hah. [How many months has it been since then? It feels long ago now.] And you're from their team...

[She sounds a little awed, saying that last part. To Odile, it's probably obvious that she's heard of them before (although, truthfully, saying that Shoka's heard of them is an understatement). It's also obvious from her voice and her eyes that she'd be smiling, if she had a mouth to do so with.]

They're good, last I checked. And that was, like, yesterday. [She quickly decides not to bring up the fact that Siffrin was stuck in the clinic with several broken bones very recently. They're fine now! It's fine.] I mean, this place is kind of an adjustment for everybody, obvi, but... They've been good. And I bet they'll be even better once they hear you're here.

[Or... so she hopes. It might come as a bit of a shock, but she'll have to remember to tell them if they don't run into Odile themself first.

She won't, after Odile vanishes. The memory will only return to her later, once Odile's returned to the Bay again.]