//TESTDRIVE6.0.EXE

[reparator]

//TESTDRIVE6.0.EXE Tonight, We're Going to Party Like It's 1899 With Hallow's Eve rapidly approaching, the famed Cerealia night club Niteo has been transformed into a Victorian gothic wonderland for its Masquerade party sponsored by CERES' CEO Julius Vincere. Everyone is required to attend with at least a mask on (though full costume is preferable). For those who don't have any, they will be given a mask at the door. Several young women and men in Victorian-era clothing will be moving around, handing out drinks and pulling guests to dance out on the ballroom floor. Don't be shy, come join them. Anachronistic techno music will be blasting through the speakers, and the side tables will be stocked with all sorts of candy and treats for guests to snack on. As you first enter, a mysterious masked employee is the first to greet you: "Welcome, one and all, to Niteo's All-You-Can-Eat-and-Drink Night of a Thousand Ghouls. Tonight, we'll be treating you now that the ghosts have all vanished. But where have they gone you must be wondering? It's a mystery indeed. They couldn't have just vanished like that. Someone had to have gotten rid of them? …I wonder… While you think on it, relax and have a drink or ten. Don't let a couple of hauntings stop you from having a good time. Tonight is a night to celebrate excess and indulgence. Let us surrender to our baser urges."

//SCENARIOS.EXE PHASE I [ 2000 ] The evening begins promptly at 8:00 PM. There will be crowds gathered, lining up to get in. Everyone will be allowed, children, adults, the living and flesh-filled, the robotic, and the undead. The music will be thumping as far as the sidewalks outside, and the first thing everyone will notice would be bowls of candy everywhere as far as the eyes can see. They'll be sitting on top of the tables in all their innocent glory. For the most part, they are harmless. But not the candy corn. Never the candy corn. Within it is a secret chemical that causes those who consume it to exhibit attraction to the nearest object/person to them, whether it be inanimate or otherwise. They will feel compelled to be close, to kiss and touch whatever is around them, though the effects only last an hour or so. Consider it a low-leveled aphrodisiac of sorts. PHASE II [ 2122 ] You're dancing. You're moving to the music. Or you're clinging to the walls and wondering why you're even here to begin with. That's when the holograms start playing around with you. The image flickers frequently until a face appears. You can swear it's talking to you beneath the music. 'We need you. We want you. Join us. Come to the back room. Number 005.' The closer you get to the hologram screens, the louder the voice becomes until it disappears completely, leaving you to question how real it was. PHASE III [ 2217 ] For those brave enough, you go into Backroom #005. What awaits you there is a room full of masked and costumed figures. You don't know if they are human or not, but they watch you eagerly, inviting you to join their private party. Unfortunately, if you chose the backroom, you chose wrong. You chose very wrong. The door is going to be slammed shut and locked, and all the figures will then pull off their masks and reveal faces familiar to yourself. Faces from your world. They'll ask you accusingly why you haven't saved them yet. What's taking you so long. Did you forget them? Their eyes will glow as they crowd in on you, yelling and growing more caustic until the lights flicker. When you can see clearly again, the entire room will be empty save for a single glass of wine sitting on the table. You'll be sure someone was inside just a moment ago. You were definitely talking to someone. You can't be going crazy, right? PHASE IV [ 2345 ] Fifteen minutes to midnight. The music is getting louder and more intense. You've been eating candy or drinking all night (or avoiding food entirely if you're wise enough). Yet the music lures you in with its haunting tone, and you spot in the middle, a masked figure dancing more hypnotically than the rest. He's waving his chainsaw around as he puts out his lethal dance moves, and you are being drawn by the music into a violent dance off. You can fight the feeling, you can try and run. Unfortunately, none of the other natives and robots see the masked man but you. Only outsiders can see him, and the closer you get, the more you reach out to touch him- you discover he's only a hologram like any other. Your fingers move through his shape, and distort it, but you're still so sure it's real. BONUS [ whyo'clock ] One of the back rooms has a beautiful fortune teller by the name of Aria. She will be seated inside, welcoming individuals or groups of people to give them their fortunes, and she will be giving them bizarrely specific and intimate details about their life from their underwear preference to how many partners they've slept with and how many moles they have on their ass. Prepare for awkward embarrassment. Ah, but what does the future hold in store? She'll smile when asked, and then her face will fall apart until a drill protrudes from the center to try and stab through your face. If your reflexes are fast enough, you can dodge it. If you're too slow, prepare for a hospital visit to the CERES Medical Facility. Once that ordeal is over with, her face will reconstruct itself back to normal, and she will smile and say your future looks very bright in CERES. [ Remember to apply proper warnings on threads with trigger-y or inappropriate material and do let a mod know if your thread careens off into maiming or canoodling so we can lock the meme. ]

//RUN.EXE Welcome to CEREALIA's sixth Test Drive Meme. For your convenience, we have compiled a post detailing everyone's arrival experience and a FAQ that should explain everything in more detail. Please read them thoroughly before playing. Thank you!

Comments

Katsushiro Okamoto | Samurai 7

[unideal]

PHASE II:

[So despite, as Masamune would say, being at the age where he should be doing nothing but partying (a sentiment Katsushiro fully disagrees with), someone's a stick in the mud. Leaning against a wall, Katsushiro frowns with his arms crossed, instead of trying to enjoy the party.]

This is a waste of time! Why was this event made mandatory?

[He'd really rather just be training right now, thank you. Though maybe that weird voice is worth checking out—]

PHASE IV:

[You know who's extremely devoted to protecting others and rather emotionally unstable to begin with? Yeah, Katsushiro is.

Needless to say, he is not left in a good state when the figures vanish. Should you make the mistake of entering the room while he's like this—well, he'll immediately be withdrawing his sword and swinging in your direction with a yell, his eyes wild and unseeing.]

BONUS:

[Aaaaaaand guess who's still a stick in the mud.

That said, the woman reminds him of Gorobei, and though he has no interest in such things... the nostalgia makes him a bit wistful, perhaps, and so he finds himself approaching her.

Still a stick in the mud, though.]

I have no interest in such sorcery. You, as well, should consider putting your skills to better use instead of this nonsense.

phase iv;

[deontology]

[Awhoops, incoming sword. Honestly? Sousei's not even surprised by this anymore. As soon as he hears the tell-tale shing of a sword being drawn, Sousei's drawing his own sword, bringing it up to neatly block that sword.

A glance at the other's face reveals that...he's really not looking good, is he.

Uh oh.]

Get a hold of yourself.

DARN IT that should be phase iii

[unideal]

[His sword was blocked. Did they return? It was a sword, so not Shichiroji, which means it has to be Kanbei—]

Sensei...?

[While not lowering his sword, Katsushiro doesn't make any movements either, remaining still as his head clears. Eventually, the ghosts in his mind clear, as he stares at Sousei with the look of someone who doesn't quite know where he is.]

... You're not Sensei.

shhh shh it's okay

[deontology]

[Definitely not Sensei. Sousei isn't going to be the first to lower his sword, though, since this guy was the one originally being aggressive...though he just tilts his head slightly, because.

Well, that's obvious.

Focus, friend.]

My name is Abe no Sousei. You were alone in here.

cries

[unideal]

[Slowly, Katsushiro lowers his sword, though he doesn't look relaxed just yet.

He can still hear the blame ringing in his ears.]

But... I saw...!

[deontology]

[... And in return, Sousei neatly sheathes his sword, inspecting Katsushiro thoughtfully.]

...You may have. But there is no one here now.

[He can't deny it when crazy things happen here, really.]

[unideal]

[He glances around, still looking as if he might jump at any unexpected sounds, before looking back at Sousei.]

What do you mean by that?

[deontology]

Things are often not as they seem here.

[You know....weird and crazy and not quite right.]

Don't let it shake you.

iii don't worry i gotchu

[sunshrouded]

[Well, that's odd. Tenka didn't expect his life to be put in danger at this party.

But his weapon of choice is at least a lot more easily accessible than most, so he doesn't hesitate to withdraw his metal fan from his coat pocket and it'll meet the the other's sword with a clang!]

Whoa there, buddy! Can you settle down for a second?

oh dana is so good to me

[unideal]

[Katsushiro remains as he is for a few moments, his breathing heavy as he slowly regains his senses (or as much of them that are left right now, anyway—it'll be a while before he fully recovers).

Blinking a few times, he stares at Tenka.]

... Who are you...?

i understand you, jan

[sunshrouded]

Not an enemy, that's for sure.

[With that he withdraws his fan and is already moving back to put it into his coat pocket as he gives a smile, back to being as easy-going as ever.]

Also the name's Kumou Tenka.

uguu

[unideal]

[In contrast to Tenka's easygoing smile, Katsushiro still looks wary—relaxing has never been his strong suit. He lowers his word, at least, though he doesn't sheathe it just yet.]

... Another 'guest' at this event, I assume?

[sunshrouded]

[It's alright, Tenka deals with a weirdly paranoid guy everyday.]

Yep. Another casual party-goer much like yourself.

[But more importantly-]

You doing alright though? You looked pretty spooked.

[unideal]

I'm not a 'casual party-goer'!

[Correcting that, first. He doesn't want people to assume that this is the kind of thing he enjoys, because it isn't.

He frowns, sheathing his sword. It's not the first time he's shown vulnerability in front of someone, but it feels more shameful, doing it in front of strangers, especially when he's no longer an amateur.]

I will be fine.

phase iii right u.u

[peacefulblade]

[She hates this dumb western dress they've made her wear-!! She also hates the shoes that go with it because she still feels like she's caged in by the whole outfit. Unfortunately when she goes to look around and explore she has a near run in with this boy's blade.

What is with this day and drills nearly stabbing her in the face and people nearly stabbing her?!

Kaoru takes a step back, holding up her bokken in both hands, a frown on her face.]

Stop!! I don't want to hurt you so just calm down!

lakjsd yes sob u.u

[unideal]

[He'll feel bad about this later, but right now, he's stuck halfway between reality and his own mind, and so he's in no position to be feeling apologetic just yet.

When Kaoru speaks, though, that at least snaps Katsushiro out of his stupour. He blinks, sense dawning on him again, as he points his sword away. He still doesn't look entirely in touch with the real world, but he's at least coherent enough to frown slightly.]

... What are you doing here?

[peacefulblade]

[Maybe she can distract him? So that he won't think to strike again, though he doesn't seem to be making any sudden moves to do so.]

I was having a look around when I found you. Are you alright?

[She certainly hadn't hurt him but something had.]

I want to help you.

[unideal]

[He's recognizing that the girl likely means him no harm, and so he doesn't mean her any—as unstable as he can be, he can still discern between friend and foe.

He stares at her for a few moments, before slowly shaking his head.]

... There's nothing to help.

[The only wounds here aren't physical.]

[peacefulblade]

[Well, he certainly was stubborn, she'll give him that. Smiling, she lowers her bokken back to her side and extends a hand for him to at least come with her. Though it might be dangerous for him to come too close if he's liable to try and cut her down again, she is willing to take the risk.]

Hmm. Well then lets start with introductions? If that's alright with you.

[It could keep his mind busy, at the very least, by talking to him casually.]

I'm Kaoru. I don't know what happened, but I really do want to help.... if you don't want to talk about it that's alright too.

[He was a bit older, but somehow he still reminded her of Yahiko when they had first met, though any young boy could easily bring out that maternal instinct in her. He had this air about him, as if he had gnarled thorns wrapped all up inside him. He needed to just take a breath and work the problem out for himself one step at a time, she thinks.]

[unideal]

[After some staring, Katsushiro elects not to take her hand, though his expression suggests that it's less about being paranoid and more that he's too awkward to take a girl's hand unless under dire circumstances.

Even if he has no interest in romance (not anymore, at least), that hasn't quite changed.

He sheathes his sword, though, trying to be at least a little at ease. It feels rude to be so wary when the girl is doing her best to be friendly.]

... Okamoto Katsushiro. [...] Your concern is appreciated, but this is something I have to deal with on my own.

phase i

[hotarumaru]

[ sakyou's hanging out near the wall too, partly uninterested in the excitement (this is more of enishi's expertise), partly observing the people (in case he sees someone familiar) and mostly sulking (because he should be killing someone right now and yet he's stuck here).

at least someone else shares his sentiment. kinda hard when you're a wet blanket and you're all alone. ]

Did they say it's mandatory? [ well, he guesses it is since he was dragged against his will but ... his sight follows one of the passing masked guests, his expression contorting into a frown at the music and its subliminal message.

back room ] ... Number 005.

[unideal]

[He glances at Sakyou, frown still present on his face, though not at the other party.]

I was made to come against my will, at least. I have better things to do than loiter around scenes like this.

[At the last part, though, he gives a start, his eyes widening.]

—Wait. You heard that as well?

[hotarumaru]

[ sakyou simply shrugs and doesn't return his glance, opting to keep his gaze in front of him. so they're in the same boat then, both unwilling guests of this festivity. still, that doesn't give him a clue as to how they even come upon here or how to leave.

it's only after the other male exclaims at the last part of his comment that he turns to him, expression impassive. so it wasn't just him then, and it wasn't just his imagination that he's hearing weird things that doesn't seem to belong in the music. ]

Back room. Number 005. [ he pauses, eyes flickering back at the crowd. then quietly: ] Do you know where this back room is?

[unideal]

... I don't.

[A pause, before he then continues with—]

But perhaps it is worth seeking.

[Much better than standing around, in any case.]