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riverview: july test drive meme

Welcome to Riverview's test drive meme! Feel free to dip your toes in on the test drive meme to try out your character in the setting, play out a mission, and get samples for your application at the same time!
● There are currently 5 Character Slots available.
● Applications open on August 1st and will remain open until such time as there are 30 or more character slots available at one time. Applications will be processed on a first-come-first-served basis. Any applications in excess of available spots will be placed in a queue and processed as drops or activity sweeps happen.
● Providing all parties are amenable, threads on the test drive meme can count as game canon, as the plot in the prompts presented is game canon, and may continue while applicants are waiting on the queue (including spanning multiple TDMs).
● TDM threads do not count for Activity Check, but they do count for Activity Bonus Points, so long as all characters involved are accepted into the game.
● Threading on the TDM is intended for prospective new characters, so top-levels should only be posted by players of these characters. Since the events in the TDM are considered game canon, characters currently in the game are free to use the TDM prompts for logs and posts on the regular communities.
Feel free to use the prompts below or create your own scenario. The setting is built to be flexible, so feel free to make things up as you go.
information resources
premise ● arrival ● setting ● ask a question ● calendar ● navigation

So you thought that the impending summer and the great weather meant the end of the stormy spring season? Not so much. Just like the storm back in February, though, this one isn't exactly natural.
Early in the morning on July 20th, the portal switches to a different reality, and almost immediately, an ominous greenish mist starts to seep through. Though the Perimeter Guard tries to contain the spread, it's next to impossible to stop an intangible foggy mist, and as it rises, it contaminates the clouds. By the early afternoon, a storm is brewing. As the rain falls, it's the same musty, unnatural green as the mist, and it quickly becomes obvious that the rain burns any living creature like acid. Thankfully, it's very mild acid - a few minutes of exposure will only result in non-living biological matter disintegrating, like hair, fingernails, and the outer layer of horns. But stay out in it much longer than that, and any exposed skin will start to itch and peel and then burn and sting like a bad sunburn. Feel safe with your umbrella or raincoat? Good luck, because stay out in the rain for more than 15 minutes and it will start to erode even synthetic fabric and plastic, though it seems completely ineffective against metal, stone, glass, and plant matter like leaves and wood.
Unless you're really creative, the only safe places are indoors, under the eaves of buildings, inside vehicles with solid tops, and anywhere else with a solid roof - hope you're sharing the closest hidey-hole with someone you really like!
Unfortunately, while most of the electricity in the city runs through metal wires, a few key components of the power grid involve synthetics like plastic and other materials. About 25 minutes into the storm, right when these materials start to be eroded away by the acid rain, rolling power outages start to occur at random in the city. While the whole city isn't affected and the fences remain at full power, many places will suffer a complete drop in power. As the storm intensifies, the temperature starts dropping until it goes from a nice warm summer day to something distinctly chillier.
Here's hoping your characters can keep themselves warm and entertained until all the digital comforts of the modern world return - time to break out the candles, board games and cards, or swap some stories. And maybe swap some body heat.
Bonus: there is a ton of free ice cream being handed out before it melts? Not helpful?
Thankfully, with all the genius minds in the city, someone was quick to come up with a solution after a couple hours of examining an acid rain sample. It's pretty rushed, but as the storm clouds coalesce into a sickly green-and-charcoal swirl in the sky, an experimental machine is put together that will blast a compound into the sky that will nullify the acid storm. It only takes a short time to put several more units together, and then the Perimeter Guard is recruiting heavily through every channel available for teams to take the devices out into the woods so they can be aimed properly to shoot their payload into the clouds.
Teams can consist of anywhere from two to six people, one of which should be a driver, and the rest of which will be needed to help clear any fallen trees. These teams will be fitted with coveralls and helmets that will (hopefully) protect them from the rain while they're outside of the vehicle.
Two canisters full of the compound straight into the eye of the storm clouds are expected to clear up the ever-building thunderhead clouds and stop the rain, but more definitely won't hurt.
Isn't going out into the woods dangerous? Oh. Right. It definitely is. Each team of explorers trekking out into the forest is going to need some protection. A call is also going out to the general population requesting that anyone who is a strong, experienced fighter please accompany the teams out into the forest to protect them from monsters that are willing to risk the rain in search of a lightly acid-tenderized exploration team shaped meal.
The protection teams should expect most of the danger to come in the form of giant, ravenous monsters that look like either massive elk or boars, and seem completely immune to the rain - probably because their backs are protected by thick layers of grass, moss, tiny saplings, and thick slabs of bark. With their backs all coated in moss and grass, they're also well-camouflaged in the murky green fog and rain, so they seem to appear out of nowhere, bellowing and trying to either spear the teams with their horns and tusks, or eat them whole.
Armed with super stylish full-body suits that should (theoretically) protect them from the ravages of the acid rain, these fighters are exactly the muscle the exploration teams need.
Whether your character is posting up a silly word game to distract people from the dangerous mission going on, trying to get hold of a friend, or putting out feelers for people to go out into the fray with, the network is going strong.
Alternately, an offer for a free app is popping up on new arrivals' devices - Friendr is a friend-finder and/or dating app. If characters choose to install it, they will fill out a short bio and parameters for what they're looking for, upload a snap of themselves, and then proceed to browse for matches. This is a typical swipe-left-or-right type app.
Friendr base code is by photosynthesis.
The code in the textbox is for the default color scheme, but the Friendr app has a wide variety of themes, so feel free to customize with colors and patterns as you see fit, but do not remove the credit line out of respect for the creator of the code.
Whether or not this month's mission solution is actually threaded out on the Test Drive Meme, the acid rain will let up in the late evening of the 20th. Blackouts will continue for a few days afterward, and there will need to be considerable time spent cleaning up the city in preparation for this month's celebration. Feel free to thread out any of that, or use the wildcard prompt to choose your own adventure and do whatever else you like in the setting!
no subject
[ tris gestures with an opened arm and with that opened arm is a swath of blanket spreading out. tristan looks him up and down for a moment, noticing the little holes in his shirt, some of them bigger than others. from what he can see in the dimly lit light, however, there's no blood, no abrasions or wounds. he squints a little bit. ]
Looks like the rain had its way with you. You look pretty chipper despite it.
no subject
Yeah I uh... didn't burn. I mean, I can't? [He shrugs.] I didn't realise it was eating my clothes until I had a hole in my jacket and well, you can see how that worked out. [He pokes a hole in his jeans, knowing that he'd pretty much have to throw the clothing out.]
no subject
Yeah, talk about an accidental almost-peep show. Good thing you're made of tougher stuff.
[ he offers him a smile and then moves the carton of ice cream forward. A Gift ok. he's already been attacking one side of it and it's very firmly stuck in the middle. it's a little melty, but definitely not soup just yet. ]
Hope you like Neapolitan because we've got a gallon of it between us...
no subject
When Tris was shoving ice cream over though he smiles a little, tentatively grabbing a spoon and using the moment of reprieve to just shove a mouthful in his mouth, humming a little in pleasure.] At least they have good ice cream, I'm totally up for the challenge.
no subject
he grins at the carton. ]
I haven't had that much ice cream handed to me since... well, ever. It's like a kid's dream come true about a decade too late.
no subject
[When the lights float closer to him and more importantly bring warmth, Thom grins widely.] Wow, that's useful! You're like a one-man radiator. [Thom's face spins towards Tris with a sense of wonder.] Are you sure you're not a superhero?
[Thom takes another mouthful of the ice cream which is left even sweeter now that he himself isn't freezing to death.] I guess I'm still kinda a kid considering its still a dream. I cut mint choc chip out of my diet like two weeks ago.
no subject
[ tris lets the lights linger, they'll fade eventually, but not for an hour or so. he's been spacing out his magic evenly (and the ice cream helps too). he settles in with his part of the blanket, content to watch thom devour some of the ice cream. ]
You are much stronger than me, okay. I could never do that. Ever.
no subject
[After a spell of devouring ice cream that pales in comparison to his past ice cream eating abilities Thom has to stop, settling back into the blanket with a sigh.] Okay, that hurts... [He sighs, rubbing his stomach.] The things I do just to be a superhero. [Because physical training meant binge eating entire pints of mint choc chip while crying about his lack of love life were a no-go.]
no subject
Here, give it over, I gotta keep the lights on somehow. Magic comes with crazy metabolism.
[ he takes the ice cream from him, not quite going at it with enthusiasm, rather, spooning from around the edges of the container and popping each spoonful into his mouth. ] You've done pretty well, hero. I am a satisfied citizen. Thank you for all of your hardwork.
no subject
He tries not to let his eyes watch the path of spoon to container and back to Tris' mouth because that was potentially considered creep after all. Instead he just smiles a little at the other boy's comments.] No problem, I can patch you into my Decoder ring and you can just summon me in an emergency! [His smile is practically twinkling, the little beacon of superheroism.]
no subject
[ the smile though, that's cute. very cute. tris leans back just a bit, stretching his legs out and giving a little bit of a hum, a thoughtful look in his eyes. ] Wow you're super legit if you've got a ring and everything. [ he winks, playfully ] And you're gonna put me on there? You're sweet. You're not gonna start saying that to all the boys you help out with copious amounts of ice cream, are you?
no subject
Thom was grinning.] Super legit, that's right. [He lifts a hand to show Tris the unassuming ring, it was a little gold number with an L in the middle of it.] I was kinda joking about patching you in though, I have literally no idea how this works. [He takes it off and eyes it a little.] I mean they probably disconnected it when they kicked me out.
no subject
[ tris scoots closer and leans in to look at the ring a bit and squints a little bit before pulling back. ] Well. If it can be connected to something, maybe it can be reconnected to something else. Could find someone who might be able to help you patch it into something here. Might be useful right?
no subject