006 ⟡ NOVEMBER TEST DRIVE

[bayhelpers]

⋆✩ test drive 06 ✩⋆

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

OUT OF THE FRYING TUBES…

The first thing you notice is the heat. It’s dry and sweltering, a pressuring thing that surrounds you in darkness. Opening your eyes reveals that it’s not just the temperature doing this however - no, all around you is a near total darkness, broken only by the soft glow of red gold that creeps in from distant cracks.

And perhaps, in some circumstances, yourself.

The tunnels here appear to be lava tubes, long faded from primary use by the caldera nearby. While the occasional pool of hot molten rock can be spotted throughout this impressive maze, it never seems difficult to avoid. In fact, the deeper you go, the more evidence you find that someone - or at least, something - even lived here!

Staying here is probably not going to feel comfortable however. Not unless you’re Fire or Ground type. Escaping the tunnels is only half the battle, too, as the exits lead to a desolate plain of ash and dust. The caldera of Furnace Mountain is hot indeed, and it seems that’s precisely where you wound up! But perhaps, another kind Pokemon will appear to help lead you to somewhere safer?

AND INTO THE FIRE

⟡ Furnace Mountain’s regions all return to the settlement of (Death Blood Murder) Skull Town easily, but it’s not impossible for Pokemon to get lost and wander from the tunnels to other locations:

The Caldera Crater is a maze of molten lava and narrow walkways, where one can eventually find a crooked Obsidian Spire - making contact with this will cause a chorus of shouts to echo through one’s mind.

The Plateau in the meantime is covered with numerous geysers, with safe paths marked by what appear to be skeletal remains. They lead to a valley filled with even more such skeletons, many of them partially melted.

⟡ Worry not dear Pokemon, for Lurantis, the Mayor of Skull Town, will be sending rescue crews to your location; in addition to current Players, various Ghost Pokemon will likely answer the call to guide others out.

⟡ For those who remain in Skull Town for a time, they will find the village primarily focused on either rescuing newcomers or preparing for winter: Characters may find themselves swiftly recruited to help dry foods, or gather wood.

⟡ While TDM events specifically will occur here, Players are welcome to have their Top Levels involve other locations as well.

ii. BRISK BREEZES

KNOCK ON SUDOWOODO

For the most part Pokemon are encouraged to return to Bottlecap Bay as quickly as possible - rather, to be brought there for the first time. The Guilds are all located there after all, and it will be far easier to settle Pokemon into their new homes if the Leaders are able to meet them in person. With the winter season right around the corner, everyone is trying to avoid travelling unnecessarily; they held that mayoral vote for a reason after all!

While much of the food stores have been prepared, that doesn’t mean there’s nothing to do either. In addition to putting together warm materials for beds, or cutting and preserving the last of the autumn harvest, a good number of Pokemon have started their own efforts to prepare the guilds, and gladly accept extra help from these newcomers! In Cheri Guild, everyone gathers to build stronger, more weather resistant rooftops for the otherwise open tree houses, with some even gathering large leaves to make curtain walls - the more that the wind can be kept out, the warmer they will be, and starting a fire in these buildings is ill advised.

In Oran in the meantime, an enterprising Tinkaton has started work on a bilge pump system - an incredibly relieved Mightyena is happily telling everyone who will listen that if they’re lucky, they won’t have to worry about flooding until the seasons warm up again.

Even the Lum Berry Guild has their hands on something, even if it isn’t anything quite as impressive; given the weather preparations they haven’t had time to put together any special escape rooms this time, but they’re at least willing to send out less busy members to give tours of the town.

Though of course, the quality of the tours vary, and it’s hardly as if the new Pokemon can offer to help tour themselves!

…Right?

YOU JYNXED IT!

⟡ Pokemon who assist in any of the three projects - including the tours, which they can indeed attempt for themselves, will find themselves granted an article of warm clothing. Stay warm everyone!

⟡ For current players, Player Quests as referenced can be found here, along with many other wonderful submissions!

⟡ As Guild Leaders will be taking their time to decide on who fits best in each group, housing is at the moment an open bag. Players are free to assume anyone from Oran, to Cheri, to even Lum opened their room to other Pokemon to be shared - they can even assume residence at Skull Town for the time being if they wish!

iii. FREEZE THE DAY

WINTER HAS COME

It happens without warning. A sudden chilled wind from the coast - a darkening of the skies that would normally entail thunder, and rainshowers. Rather than the anticipated storm however, weather experts at Lum are quick to sound the alarm: a blizzard is here!

With just moments to spare, all Pokemon residents - and even some visiting wild Pokemon, who are confused but grateful all the same - are herded into the nearest shelter. Houses, Guilds, even storefronts become temporary homes as the snow blasts through the streets, freezing anything in its path. While some Pokemon might find the conditions tolerable, the leaders of each region are enacting a No Exceptions policy to the rule, even making use of Pokemon abilities to locate anyone who might be in danger.

With the snow storm in full force, it’s on the various guilds to find methods to pass the time. The winter storm can’t last forever, but if it does they’ve fortunately prepared. At this point in the year, there was very little food that would need to be sourced from outside each building - each and every location has at least a small connection to the storage tunnels below, and the Oran berries even have access to sheltered portions of the ocean. Even the newly planted Winter Gardens are well protected, with one of Lurantis’ first orders of business being to put enough fencework up that they could roof things in if need be.

Entertainment will be the true struggle, and each Guild Leader has their own method at the problem - as does Lurantis, back in Skull Town. And fortunately for those with Grumpig Pearls, it’s possible to make your own fun as well!

Unless you actually enjoy the ice breakers, of course.

HOW ABOUT SOME ICE BREAKERS?

⟡ There are a variety of ways Pokemon will be catching others outside, including methods such as ‘Future Sight’. Players are free to get creative with how other Pokemon might find their characters (and vice versa, with Player permission).

⟡ Each Guild has their own unique set of ‘Ice Breakers’:

The Oran Guild involves various races, as well as seek-and-find games through their more sheltered tunnels, capitalizing on their ability to remain active. They also host a number of slumber parties to help keep everyone as warm as possible.

The Cheri Guild also hosts sleep overs, as well as various crafting circles within their huts - that way, they can do something useful! As the buildings are connected via bridges, Teleporting Pokemon within the guild have offered to graciously lend their power to get everyone between the necessary buildings.

The Lum Guild has access to the archives, so a similar Teleport use is offered on a case-by-case basis to get Pokemon into the Archives; try not to abuse this, everyone! Once in the Archives they’ll find plenty to read and study, and some Pokemon are even hosting ‘board game’ parties! Though they seem somewhat confused about how these board games work.

Last but not least, those in Skull Town will have found themselves herded into the primary housing facility to sleep together. Lurantis, despite her anxiety with crowds, has actually arranged a variety of simple ‘Get to Know Each Other’ activities such as word games in the hopes of keeping everyone entertained. She seems stressed, but she’s clearly trying to keep the peace.

⟡ It’s more than possible for members of one Guild to end up sheltering within another. Due to the distance between them however, someone stuck in Cheri won’t be able to simply teleport to the Lum Archives, and vice versa. Long Distance Teleporters are too focused on the clinic!

⟡ Grumpig Pearls will be working perfectly despite the blizzard, due to their use of Psychic energy rather than anything that relies on a signal - because of this, characters may feel free to get creative about how to use their Pearls to entertain themselves and others.

IT’S SNOW MUCH FUN!

When the winds and snows of the blizzard settle down, Bottlecap Bay and Skull Town wake to a beautifully sunny landscape covered in white. It’s just warm enough during the day that snows start to melt, and trees drip water and handfuls of snow onto everyone’s heads. (Sometimes entire heaps come sliding off at once - if you’re a smaller Pokemon, careful you don’t get buried!) The ground cover is far too deep to disappear completely, though, so the first order of business everywhere is digging walkways through the snow.

Once that’s done and everyone’s had a breath of fresh air, though, Pokemon find ways to take out all the pent up energy of being snowed in! It’s very easy to find a snowball fight, or join in on building a fort - or both! Or if all that’s a bit too frivolous for you… there’s rumors going around of a giant snowbeast that’s been glimpsed around the borders of Bottlecap Bay, ducking in and out of forest. Descriptions aren’t consistent, so it might just be gossip that’s been blown out of proportion, but maybe it’s worth investigating?

Over in Skull Town, Lurantis flits to and fro frantically, visibly stressed. The harvest was practically done, so very little has actually gone wrong. However, it’s very early in the year for such a bad snowstorm, and she has terrible feelings about what it might mean for this winter. Pokemon who don’t seem busy with something else might get pointed toward collecting more firewood, or better insulating Skull Town buildings, or other winter preparation tasks.

On one particular day, one of the mountains around Crowncork Valley experiences an avalanche - snow shears off near the top and tumbles down in a giant sheet, piling up at the bottom and invading the very edge of the valley. It’s an impressive sight - nearly all Pokemon in town pause and watch in awe before returning to their tasks. Good thing that wasn’t closer! Hopefully no one was out there…

EVERY DAY I’M SHOVELIN’

⟡ There are numerous ways to get rid of snow, with some Pokemon moves more effective than others. While Fire is strong against Ice, it results in a lot of snowmelt that gets everything wet - Pokemon will find that as long as they can push the snow elsewhere, it’s a lot more effective than trying to just vaporize it.

⟡ Pokemon who investigate particularly deep into these ‘Snowbeast’ tales will find themselves incredibly confused - at least until the end of the month, where one such ‘beast’ finally slips up. It appears a group of Solosis were inspired by scary tales of something their Uncle Reuniclus saw just at the end of October. A big, tall monster, with frozen clouds at its feet, and horns of ice…what could that be?

⟡ Those who help Lurantis won’t receive any points for their guild, but she’ll be incredibly grateful for the assistance given how new she is to her position! She’ll speak to any such volunteers individually, and while she admits she can’t give them anything now she tells each one to come visit once spring is here.

✩ OOC NOTES.

⟡ TDM CWS: Skeletal Remains, Hard Wintering conditions, Pokemon Typical Violence

⟡ 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.

⟡ Rough Timing on the prompts are as follows: the Blizzard will begin on November 20th, and lasts until the 23rd for a full three days. The avalanche in Crowncork occurs on November 27th. Thank goodness it didn’t happen to the town somehow right?

⟡ 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

[tempredmental]

Keith turned his head just enough to stare at her.

"It was your fault," he said. "You shouldn't have accused me of something I wasn't doing." At least he didn't feel sick or out of breath anymore. And the cough was slowly clearing up as he was also given some berry juice. Thank goodness they hadn't had to use a Revival Herb on him.

[gimmeeyeballs]

Ironically...that was the closest to an apology Catrina could've given there. She just narrows her little yellow eyes orb things.

"Whatever nerd, you have no taste in cool skeletons at all." Catrina huffed a bit, how she does it without lungs is a mystery. "At least you're still alive and not the latest skeletal edition to that volcanic hellhole. You'd be a pretty lousy skeleton to look at."

[tempredmental]

Keith almost laughed, but then that turned into a coughing fit instead.

"Yeah..." He closed his eyes for a moment. "I mean, who wants a skeleton with weird hair, right?" He gave a weak laugh, before setting off another coughing fit. The Chansey nurse that had been helping him with the berry juice offered up the straw again, and he took another few sips between coughs.

[gimmeeyeballs]

Catrina sips her berry juice as she watches the coughing laugh break out from Keith. She wasn't about to correct how wildly rare it is to find a skeleton with hair out in the volcano hellscape.

"Yeah, just a skeleton with awful hair..no one wants that." Catrina joke da bit before freezing at the sight of Nurse Chansey....frightful creatures those Chansey are. Clearly they collect the skulls of their victims, she has no doubts about it. Catrina is gonna bid her time before attempting a break out, likely with Keith too should he be well enough to escape this place.

[tempredmental]

The berry juice they'd given them was made from some of the healing berries, so it was definitely helping a bit. Keith's was a mixture of poison healing berries and regular HP healing berries, so that helped even more for him.

He eventually sat up, giving himself a good shake.

"Thanks," he said quietly to the Chansey. The large pink creature nodded and let him be, leaving behind the last of the berry juice. He worked on finishing it up, understanding it was more than just berry juice. It was medicinal. No opposable thumbs, he still managed to maneuver the cup with those cat-nudging-things skills, not pushing it off the edge of the bed, but moving it within reach for easier sipping. Yay for straws, right?

"So, uh... what... what are you?" he asked.

[gimmeeyeballs]

Catrina was definitely looking less horrifically and partially half melted, she was still a heinous gremlin of sorts though. She was relieved that the dread pink beast called 'Chansey' was gone, good riddance with that!

"Something called a 'Litwick', used to be an ahuizotl before the whole candle thing happened. Upside, I'm made of wax instead of tallow! I can live with that...I think." Catrina has the scrunched up pug like face on the waxen surface, her remaining braincells are clearly being made to go on an Olympic marathon of sorts, "So...the hell kind of cat are you? You definitely lucked out on candle town."

Catrina was thankfully learning there are more than one kind of cat Pokemon out there...that was a positive note...woah...

[tempredmental]

"I think... Litten?" Keith didn't sound so sure, but it seemed right for some reason. He shrugged. "I was human back home. Well, half, at least. But I looked full human." He then scrunched his nose a bit in a thoughtful frown. "What's a hooey zottle?"

Yeah, he wasn't good with certain words or names. Sorry, Catrina.

[gimmeeyeballs]

"Sick, we both got 'lit' in the names. You're similar to my old captain, Throk, he's mostly human with some orc ancestry."

Woah, new word just dropped!? Catrina has been promoted to Hooey Zottle Necrophiliac by Keith. Truly what a magical day this has turned out to be as Catrina opens up her mouth.

"...That sounds like something my brother would want on either his clothes or tattooed with his mozzarella tramp stamp. It's chill though dude, we're basically really awesome amphibians with hand tails and toxic flesh, we mostly stay on the river or fresh bodies of water."

[tempredmental]

Orc... sounded like something out of that Monsters and Mana game Coran liked to play.

"Toxic... flesh?" Okay. So, depending on if certain traits carried over into this place, Keith made a mental note not to touch the candle girl.

[gimmeeyeballs]

"Yep, toxic flesh, a total hit at parties. Why? Wanna hug?" Catrina being..good grief, Catrina, holds her horribly little wax arms opened for a hug.

...Yeah best not test and see if the candle is toxic or not...Catrina why do you have to be this way!?

[tempredmental]

Keith winced a little, his ears flattening back against his skull.

"Uh... no thanks." He wasn't really a hugger as it was, but adding the idea of potentially toxic flesh after what he just went through made the idea even less appealing. "I don't need to get poisoned again."

[gimmeeyeballs]

"Fine, party pooper, no maybe or maybe not poisoning for you."

She jokes, but Catrina really didn't want to poison Keith, again. One near fatal poisoning was enough for the rancid candle as she sips the berry juice.

"Think they'd make Sorbet for us if we ask?"

[tempredmental]

"Mm..." He put his head down on his paws, watching everything around them. The tip of his tail twitched slightly, that and his watchful eyes the only indication he as actually not all that comfortable being stuck here while the berry juice took effect and healed him.

"Out of the berries?" he asked. He did his best approximation of a shrug. "The worst they'll probably say is 'no'." Go ahead, candle girl. Give it a try.

[gimmeeyeballs]

Catrina sucks it in to summon the dreadfully awful hell beasts in pink called 'Chansey' over. It'll be worth it! Just don't scream when Nurse Chansey comes in...Nurse Chansey has definitely seen better days, tired as can be with a look one can tell could definitely use a cigarette right now.

Nurse Chansey wasn't too thrilled to be dealing with Catrina, again, though is relieved it wasn't met with horrified screaming...it's an improvement?

"Alright, I bite, what do you want this time, Catrina?" Nurse Chansey wasn't gonna risk another escape attempt from this rancid candle creature.

[tempredmental]

Keith smirked slightly.

"She thinks we need a sorbet..." That was like some sort of ice cream or something, right? Keith wasn't all fancy about that kind of stuff. Just as long as it wasn't from sour berries.

[gimmeeyeballs]

There's a near eyes rolling back into her skull as Nurse Chansey heaves a very exhausted sigh at this. Of course this little mutant candle wants a sorbet! How naive Nurse Chansey has been before getting on the tell tale customer service smile.

"I'll see what can be done then, I'm sure one of the staff has freeze dry ready and available."

Catrina's awful little orb eyes light up at the prospect of getting the fabled Bottlecap Bay Sorbet. Clearly it'll make things better!

[tempredmental]

Keith looked dubious, that maybe the Chansey was just playing along and they weren't going to actually get a sorbet. He just wanted to be cleared to get out, honestly. And he was hoping for that soon, sorbet or not...

[gimmeeyeballs]

As did Catrina, but not everyone gets that wish granted. No, karma wanted Catrina to suffer with the horrid pink beasts surrounding her. All Catrina could do was sit, wait, and moment she has energy...stage a grand escape from this hot mess.

"Think it'll be pecha berry?"

[tempredmental]

"I don't know... what's a pecha berry?" Keith asked. Hey, he was new here. He didn't know what berries there were here. He was thinking strawberry, rasberry, blueberry... you know, normal stuff.

[gimmeeyeballs]

"I think it's like a peach but sweeter somehow...maybe like one of those gummy rings." Catrina was making a ball park sort of call there in how to describe Pecha Berry. She had it once, just once, and good grief the candle liked it.

[tempredmental]

"Sweet, huh?" Keith didn't normally like sweet things, but, for some reason, that sounded good? "What other kinds of berries are there?"

[gimmeeyeballs]

"Well...only other berries I know besides Pecha was the guild names like Cheri, Oran, and Lum. Not sure what those are like, but I'm betting they're like gummy worms."

Catrina is most definitely incorrect on this...Cheri would be like the warheads candies....

[tempredmental]

"Are all the fruit a gummy texture?" That sounded weird to Keith.

[gimmeeyeballs]

"Nah, some have the normal texture while others have a weird wax texture. It feels cosmically wrong to eat now given my candle based situation." PokeBerries be weird Keith, they be weird fruits.

[tempredmental]

...Wax? Ew...

Keith made a face when she mentioned wax.

"That sounds gross," he said. Then he wondered if Lance had ever been tricked into eating wax fruit...