Fall Test Drive!

[spaceshipit]

THE FALL TEST DRIVE MEME
(Or Spring Test Drive for you Southern Hemisphere folks!)

Got someone you want to try out before you app? Well this is the post for it! Feel free to use anything that fits in the setting of Drift Fleet! Want to play bumper shuttles? Want to go wild in a med bay? Play around with the current plot? Have at it!

Threads from the Test-Drive may be made game "canon" but DO NOT count toward AC!

FOR NEW PLAYERS: You DO NOT NEED an invite to participate in the TEST DRIVE! If you decide to APP into the game, ONLY THEN will you need an invite from a current player!

Helpful Info for Ideas!:

October's Star System

Game Details

Test drives are posted SEASONALLY, so the next one will be in late December!

Comments

[nugqueen]

[Almost instinctively she freezes. That nickname was usually between her and Riona and yet this woman used it so easily, her voice soft like a caress. It made her stomach drop. Had this been how Alistair had felt not knowing Riona? This caged feeling of dread. She couldn't imagine hurting Riona by not knowing her but this person - she didn't know her. What was she to do with that?

It had been amusing to imagine her with a Warden mage, an Amell, as Alistair had told her, but this woman wasn't an Amell. She was an elf and a fierce and prideful woman by the look of her. She knew her own strength and in that Leliana saw bits of herself reflected back at her. We must have been close...]

He could be connected to some slave traders I've been investigating.

[She keeps her expression neutral, her words as cool as a pond that rippled outward around her. She didn't want to hurt this person, whoever she was. She could still remember the relief on Riona's face when she realized that she knew her. She didn't want to cause someone else pain for that relief.

Wheels still turning in her head, Leliana approaches, resting a hand against the back of the man's neck with a soft yet sinister curve of her lips.]

Talk, or I would be worried for the state of your spine. She could mean what she says.

[bryces_pup]

[Riona grimaces slightly at the crack, but otherwise says nothing until after Lark deals with her thief.]

I would not get my hopes up. The people on this station have no qualms about resorting to base means to make a living.

[She regards the elf for a moment.]

So you're from Thedas as well, I take it?

[pain_train]

Makes sense. There's some interesting stuff around here. Want company?

[curadh]

[ It feels as though she has lost too much of her strength, and there's a strange, awkward exhaustion that wraps around her - and she doesn't know what to do other than to accept it. She can't reach out with her mind to find her connection, and she feels a rush of discomfort as she tries to wrap her mind around it... But she can't. None of it makes sense, and her teeth clench together as she breathes out a hard noise.

She doesn't like this, and the tension rolls over her before she snaps her head back to her companion. ]

Wood or metal, neither matters. I have done it before.

[ Turning back, she looks at her companion, glancing at her up and down before she huffs a noise. ]

I am helpless. My dragon is gone.

[recipio]

If you want to, I guess.

[ He doesn't exactly have a knife or a gun for self-defense in case someone else gets a bright idea, so it's probably the right move to make for now. ]

[reflectedblight]

[Something was wrong. There was something in her lover's eyes that bothered her, but it needed to wait until they were done here.

Leliana speaks softly to the man, but Lark can hear the daggers in her voice. Another thing different. Leli had always been dangerous, no doubt, but she wore it like a cloak now rather than a hidden current under her usual demeanor.

It was different...but Lark had to admit it was also kinda hot.]

No! Please! I've got names. I can give 'em to ya, just call off your damn dog.

[The dig at her made Lark press the sharp metal edge further into the kin of the man's neck, causing him to yelp when a thin trickle of blood pooled over the rough edge.

Still, Lark looked to Leliana for her verdict all the same. If it were her call, this man would already be dead or damaged, but that satisfaction would have to wait.]

[reflectedblight]

Too bad for them.

[It just meant she might be breaking a few more arms before they were done here.

Her expression brightened a touch at the mention of Thedas, but then fell back to caution. The familiar was comfortable in all this dank unfamiliar, but there was still reason to be cautious if this human was from Thedas. She'd just dealt with a thief, she didn't want to deal with some shem who thought she could walk all over her and get away with it.]

I am. I'd heard there were others around, one of them would be you, I take it?

[nugqueen]

Let's hear it, then. Information first and then your attempted victim can decide from there what is best to do with you.

[She was more than happy to let this elven woman do whatever she thought was necessary punishment.]

Are there still more slaves waiting to be bought and sold?

[She releases his head, drawing her hand to rest over Lark's wrist as a silent word of caution. The last thing they needed was a dead man on their hands.]

[reflectedblight]

[Disdain turns Lark's tone sharper.]

You are only helpless if you allow yourself to be. I don't know how you 'have' a dragon, but it can't be all the strength you have.

[No one threw themselves against a door like that and could be called weak.]

Have you tried using something other than your shoulder to get out?

[curadh]

[ Silvana scoffs, shaking her head. ]

She is my partner. I have her strength, her mind and her eyes. I am unused to having my own power without hers to share it with me.

[ She feels helpless, in a way she hasn't for a long time. She has to wrap her mind around the sudden loss of her strength, and she purses her lips before she leans forward, gathering herself. ]

They have taken my sword and my daggers. There is nothing on the door for me to pick.

[reflectedblight]

[The man promised to talk and talk he did, blathering on and on about every small thing he could come up with. It was pathetic, but predictable. As soon as he'd sworn he'd told them all he knew, Lark spun the man around and punched him square in the face with the hand that held the metal piece, knocking him out cold.

She dropped the scrap to the ground, a bit of her blood now on it too from where it had dug into her hand. Creators, she missed her daggers. She shook her hand out, the knuckles sore from punching the man but she turned a cheeky smile to Leliana. For just a moment, she forgot there was anything wrong.]

Hope you were done with him because I sure was!

I admit, I was a little afraid you weren't here with me.

[Cheeky smile flashing briefly into something brighter and more earnest, Lark stepped into Leliana's space, intending to lean up for a kiss.]

[reflectedblight]

[Lark doesn't understand and she suspects there wasn't really a way for her to. Whatever sort of relationship this woman was talking about, the elf couldn't begin to imagine it.

That last bit, however, she completely understood.]

We are in the same situation there, they took mine as well.

[She looked around and went to one of the walls to run her hands lightly over the strange seams in it.]

Maybe there's a weakness.

I won't sit idly by and wait for something else to determine my fate.

[curadh]

[ It's something that's familiar to her - the lore of her world is epic and widespread, and she knows it; she had seen how people accepted her word and her strength simply because of what she was. Now... Now she feels like nothing, and it's a struggle to grasp that.

Huffing an angry noise, she shifts forward. ]

I'll destroy them.

[ As soon as she can get her hands on them, of course. Shifting, she pushes herself up and moves over, dropping to one knee by the door. ]

There are no traps here, at least. I examined the room.

[nugqueen]

[The man collapsing to the ground is immediately forgotten when the Warden stepped into her space, their breaths mingling for only seconds before she feels the brush of her lips against hers. It was like having a bucket of ice come crashing over her head.

The last anyone she had been so intimate with had been Marjolaine and that had gone crashing down in a glorious bout of flames. She'd been young and foolish and awed by her tales of intrigue only for it to bite her in the end like the viper she was.]

I- [She would definitely be seen as amiss for her complete rejection, but it was best to get it out of the way.]

I'm n- Maker how did Alistair explain this...? Probably stumbled all over himself, damned it all... [There was no way she made sense, but it was clear she was not in a mood for kissing. She puts a gentle hand between the two of them, resting against the woman's chest as she steps back.]

I'm not- I'm not her - the Leliana you remember. This place - it has a way of bringing people from different times, different versions of the same world. In your world you remember me as a lover but I-

[She takes a deep breath, removing her hand from the woman only to bring it over her face.]

I'm so sorry. This is a mistake of some kind. I can't- how is that even fair to say...?

[She laughs bitterly, looking off to the side as if she could find all the answers in the dilapidated stalls around them or perhaps Riona would magically appear beside her with comfort and guidance.]

[bi_otic]

[He wanders over to take a closer look at what she's working on]

Doesn't look too different than the standard-issue rations from back home. Not that those are anything to write home about.

[He misses real food just as much as the next person, let's be honest, but synthetic foods like this aren't something he spares a second thought about]

Are you looking for a guinea pig?

[bi_otic]

[It's the like the universe always has a unique new way to kill you. It's probably sad that he's used to that idea by now.

This, however, is kind of a new one.]

...Right. And...have you always referred to your shadow as if it were a person?

Forest

[wolfuncaged]

[Fenris has never been a big fan of nature. City elves tend not to fare well in the wilderness. He learned, out of necessity, but he never liked it. He'd much rather have grimy city streets to grassy knolls.

He's wandering the place, as he is won't to do- following the trail of the wreck, mostly to spite Atroma than anything else. They didn't want him here, so here he will go.

He soon comes across the elf flopping around in the grass and pulls a face. Dalish. ]

Something will likely stand on you, if you carry on like that.

[thebestseller]

They're the best. Wait'll you meet The Vision, too.

[He then softened.]

Do you know which ship you're on? I just... I need to see you in person, baby.

[mysterygirlcastle]

Cue me curious! [She's smiling.]

Not yet to be honest but someone did mention I could get my hands on a shutter if I don't land on your ship, so if we're not placed together I'll visit as often as I can.

[bb_wolf]

[He holds his ground and nerve and Big respects that. He settles down on the ground, lying down and still hidden, but the eyes drop of something like human eye level at least.]

You'd probably be right. You're new to the Fleet. I'd know your scent if you weren't.

[Oh yes, the monstrous thing in the shadows is part of the Fleet.]

[reflectedblight]

That's more like it.

[It was a more productive attitude for sure and she didn't feel like playing caretaker for someone's hopelessness right now anyway. Motivating was kinder for them both.]

They think they don't need them. Perhaps they think we wouldn't bother trying to find a way out or perhaps they think we simply aren't clever enough for it.

Their mistake.

[As much as she believed her own words, finding something to actually work on would make her feel better.]

[reflectedblight]

[There it was. The moment Leliana wasn't rushing to meet her, that was the confirmation she needed. It was her words that finally spelled out the details. That was what was missing from her eyes: recognition.

The pit of her stomach fell out and her heart clenched painfully. 'I feel safe in your arms. Accepted.' Her beautiful bard...she'd opened up her heart to her and now...

She couldn't stop the pain, it hit full force and winded her. It was too many questions and uncertainty and confusion and her mind spun- but she would not let this place get the better of her. She was not weak and, no matter what Wynne thought, heartbreak would not make her falter.

A smile slipped onto her face, it was weaker, the pain still fresh in it, but it was not forced. Her hand came up as though to stroke Leliana's cheek, but she hesitated and set it on her arm instead.]

I will take comfort in the fact they did not take you from me fully. We are both still here, even if you do not know me as I know you.

[A bit more bold, her fingers came up to stroke a bit at the ends of that soft red hair as her eyes darted around Leliana's face to take in every detail.]

You're older...but you are still just as beautiful. Just as strong. [Her hand fell, hopeful her open affection did not scare her bard off.]

[reflectedblight]

[She very nearly didn't hear him, his steps were as quiet as her own, he spoke near at the same time she finally realized someone was approaching and it still made her fight or flight instinct flare up. In barely a blink of an eye, she was up and in a fighting stance, ready to take on whoever had tried to sneak up on her, daggers or no daggers.

That he was an elf did not make her falter.]

I would like to see it try.

[A challenge. With no one else around, she had to assume he meant himself. There was no way of telling if he were friendly, surely not his tone.]

[nugqueen]

[She felt as if there was something stuck in her throat. For months she had felt so vulnerable, unable to fully articulate her feelings of anger and grief, and lashed out at others like Anders and Justice, at Adawolfe. She hadn't trusted the latter for the things he had told Riona and yet here she was not sure if this woman should even trust her, given their introduction. Instead she was showing complete faith in her. It hurt that she couldn't allow herself to ask the same of those who did know her here, even if she knew she had such faith and devotion from Riona as well.

Letting out a huff of air, she doesn't pull away even if instincts tell her that this is someone unknown touching her so casually. Instinct told her to step away.]

A lot has changed... ten years since the Blight, in fact.

[Part of her wants to know if this woman lives through the Blight too, if they are happy together despite their duties inevitably pulling them apart. She was a chantry sister and her duties lay with Justinia for so long and before now she had never regretted or questioned that. Now? She wondered if perhaps that she had a different fate. Had they gone together and had adventures? Had they been so madly in love that they never left one another's side? She had so many questions that had no answers. Yet her romantic heart wanted to know. Just the thought made her pulse speed up a bit when she touched the ends of her hair.]

[reflectedblight]

[Ten yeas was a long time. Half Lark's own lifetime. People changed in ten years, no exceptions. Her expression turned soft. Something only for the woman in front of her to see. The only person she'd ever trusted enough to be soft around.

She held out her hand.]

Hello, Leliana. My name is Lark Mahariel, Hero of Ferelden. I'd love to get to know this you as well, if you'll have me.