TEST DRIVE MEME 001

[larkers]

> TEST DRIVE MEME #001

Welcome to the Meadowlark test drive meme! After waking up in strange and rather worrisome conditions, characters will need to begin to live their lives in this new world. All TDM threads take place after the arrival process, so please assume that the initial adjustment period has passed. Now it's time to see the bright sights and sounds that New Amsterdam – and beyond – has to offer. All Meadowlark test drive memes will not be game canon. Please feel free to carry on relationships that make sense, but if your character is off on a colony researching terraforming or in jail because they vandalized corporation signage with Morningstar's emblem, that will be a little harder to transfer into game. All applicants can use threads from the TDM for their samples.

> RESOLUTION DAY FESTIVAL

One day a year, everyone the whole system over participates in the annual celebration of Resolution Day. It's not explicitly stated what Resolution Day actually is; there's no reason to declare what everyone already knows, and characters may find themselves experiencing some intense culture shock as they stumble into the festivities. The celebration starts early and finishes late – very late – so whether you choose to join in the fun, learn more about the history of the festival, or take advantage of the revelry for other, more nefarious goals, you'll have plenty of time.

> NEW AMSTERDAM

The festival sprawls wildly throughout the streets of New Amsterdam, giving even the most desolate parts of the city new life with bright lights, noise, and plenty of food. Most businesses are shut for the day, giving their workers the time to enjoy the celebration, but some might consider this one of their most profitable days of the year – if you've gotten yourself a restaurant, rickshawing or corporate PR job, you might find yourself stuck on a double shift. Better snatch what small moments of enjoyment you can! > 001: ENJOY THE FESTIVITIES Anything you'd think it would be at a festival in the year 2511 is definitely at this festival. Care to play a game? All attendees can play for free. Some games – like the hoverblade racing, the augmented reality fightboxes and the street-wide bouts of laser tag – involve a partner or a competitor, so you better hope someone's willing to do you a solid or bring out your competitive side. Or maybe it's time to try the delicacies of New Amsterdam. Hundreds of food trucks have turned out today in droves with high hopes that they'll come away turning a profit. Down for some Mexi-German fusion? Or perhaps you're hoping that pad Thai still tastes the same with grasshoppers? Share your food – or give away whatever you don't like. Food trucks are the hub of activity, and the busiest ones might be worth the time, but you'll be standing in line for a while. > 002: HISTORY LESSONS Aside from your typical booths of free samples, charitable causes, volunteer applications, and white chocolate-covered beetles, you'll find an opportunity to learn about Resolution Day’s history. There are various stands available where you can view video about the origins of the festival, and what, exactly, everyone's celebrating. Take a moment or two at any of these stands, and you'll soon learn that this is the day that the humans successfully put down the AI uprising. If you'd like to feel like a hero, the UNA are running several virtual reality simulations where you can be taken to the battlefield to fight alongside fellow soldiers, working to bring the AI to submission. The virtual reality simulation interacts with your neural implant to give you the most realistic experience possible. If you don't ground yourself enough, you'll be certain that the sights, sounds, and smells around you are real as you march in formation toward the brutality waiting up ahead. Feel free to team up with a partner on a side mission, or maybe try to keep someone from plugging in for what could be a traumatic experience. Eerie, heart-wrenching music plays when you die, but is promptly followed by the image of several corporate logos reminding you that they sponsored this day and this event. If you're uncomfortable with this information, no one will understand why. AI sympathizers are not present among the native population. Will you risk trying to change their minds? > 003: USING DISTRACTIONS There are other opportunities in the city being flooded with festival-goers. It's a time for everyone to come together, after all, and in all the crowds you may be able to find that one elusive corporate exec you've been wanting some time with for weeks. Whether you're hoping to pitch an idea for some new tech or are more interested in seducing – or squeezing – some information out of them, following them into the next bar or karaoke booth may give you the perfect chance. But you might want a lookout to watch your back, a co-conspirator to keep them plied with drinks, or maybe you'll need a voice of reason to stop you from squeezing too hard. Just remember that whatever you pitch won't have a contract attached. Whatever exec you pin down may not have your best interests in mind.

> THE LOWER LEVELS

The festival's reach is wide, spreading through the whole city, but traveling down from the hectic main city streets reveals a different side from the gloss and promise of New Amsterdam. Economic disparity runs rampant throughout the city, and while you won't find any festival streamers or booths in these streets, people still have their own ways to celebrate. Some neighborhoods have spilled out from the doors of their cramped apartments, holding noisy street parties between their homes. Some quieter corners and unused doorways have become temporary shrines commemorating the many lives lost in the war. And from darker shadows, the illegal activities which plague the city respond to the celebration by spreading, taking advantage of the countless distractions available to operate in plain sight. Whether you're here exploring, working a favor for Morningstar, or following up on something for your own piece of mind, you'll find that Resolution Day may be the best time to explore the less glamorous parts of New Amsterdam. > 004: CRIMINAL ACTIVITY Organized crime still has a strong foothold in the world, with gangs and more established families working drugs, weapons, property and black market cybernetics, to name a few. These organizations are sprawling units that regularly recruit new members into their ranks, so long as they can prove themselves by passing the intensive hazing. Maybe you'd like to have a role in such a powerful organization. Or maybe you'd like to use your relative anonymity to burn it all down. One way to get an in is through their numerous clubs and illegal gambling dens, where to get past the door you have to know a guy who knows a guy who knows a guy. Don't know a guy? Feel free to try to use brute force or some chicanery to make them believe that you belong among their numbers. Just don't get caught doing anything they don't like – which could be breathing the wrong way, if you're unlucky enough. Best to have an escape plan in place, like perhaps stealing one of the many hovercars or hoverbikes parked outside the establishment. If you've got the skills, you'll be able to weave through the chaos of Resolution Day and make a clean getaway – just don't let the chase run for too long, or you'll have law enforcement on your ass as well. > 005: FIGHT CLUB No matter the occasion outside, New Amsterdam's fight club events are held every evening. The bouncers at the door don't have too many scruples on who they let inside. All they care about is whether someone has the money to pay the cover charge. The interior of the fight club reveals the sophistication of a business that's used to uprooting itself regularly. All the fights take place in a fighting cage in the center, and you remain on your feet while you enjoy the show. There is a special VIP section if you've been lucky enough to receive an invite or bribe your way in. Regardless of where you end up, there is one rule: what happens in the fight club stays in the fight club. This tenant is law, and everyone's heard stories of the different (and sometimes extreme) lengths which have been taken to maintain it. Maybe you're here to sign up and test your chops against other fighters. Everyone's fired up from the Resolution Day celebrations, and many of the fighters boast illegal cybernetic enhancements, so it would be a really good idea to have someone on hand who knows some first aid. Maybe you'd prefer to just enjoy the show, or take the opportunity to grill the bartenders for information. Just be careful not to make a fool of yourself. Asking too many questions might catch the wrong kind of attention – the kind that might find you being thrown into the ring, whether you wanted to be there or not. For all the blood spilled, these fight clubs thrive on discretion, so whatever you do, try to keep it quiet.

> SPACE

Humanity isn't limited to only Earth in this new universe. Whether you'd already made your way off planet, or are now looking for an escape from the hustle and bustle of the megacities – and the truth about Resolution Day – all you need to get out and explore space is the means. You probably don't have them from the start, but you can improvise, right? > 006: STOWAWAY Trips out in space are monitored and regulated, and unless you've signed up on the government's incentive scheme, passenger tickets aren't going cheap. Want to get off planet untracked, or don't give a damn about proper regulation and insurance? Freight flights are many and plentiful, and in all the excitement (and lingering intoxication), it just got a lot easier to slip past one crew or another. Of course, you'll be catching a ride with stacks of water containers, or fermented beans and canned pickles. Better hope that they keep everything secure, or it might get a little smelly – or cramped – in there before long. But most importantly, don't get caught. If you do, you better make sure you have a damn good story, or perhaps just knocking out whoever caught you would be safer than risking a quick flight out of the nearest airlock. That's not saying that sneaking on board is the only option. Perhaps stealing a ship for yourself would be more to your tastes. It won't be easy – all spaceships are monitored and carefully regulated – but there's plenty of rarely used fancy private shuttles parked up at the space port. Evading the guards, breaking past security and piloting out of there is all a bit much for one person, so you'd better have brought a buddy to help you with the wild ride ahead. > 007: THE COLONIES Coming to space might have seemed like an escape from the mess of society contained in the megacities of Earth, but it turns out the colonies aren't the shining new frontier all the advertisements and billboards made them out to be. Whatever brave new world you'd come out here hoping for, waste management probably wasn't at the top of the list. That's the job of a greenie, though, and it means you won't be getting any time off while everyone else sneaks away to join in on the festival fun. You and your current partner in custodial engineering have to clean up the mess. With everyone... "preoccupied," waste management takes on a whole new meaning. Without anyone else to tag in, you're the only two left to respond when one of the now all too familiar warning sirens start wailing. The problem this time? Yet another part of the colony's water reclamation systems is breaking down. It may be worth trying to fix it yourselves – god knows you've seen it done enough times in the couple of weeks since you started here – but the mechanisms are dangerous, and you could potentially drown or lose a limb or two in the process. Hesitation is understandable, but the work needs to get done. Your job is on the line, and if you fail, the lives of the people in the colonies could be at stake. On the other hand, failure – or doing nothing – may appeal to you. Chaos begets change, doesn't it? It's clear something needs to happen.

> THE WILDCARDS

> 008: POWER AND CONTROL For some people, getting a new power is just a day ending in Y. But even if you've had a power before, you haven't had this power. Without a good idea of precisely what's now inside of your body, you might find yourself wishing that you'd been making more of an effort to find out exactly what happened. These powers can either lie dormant or come out at moments of high emotion, and as the Resolution Day festival fills the streets with a crush of bodies, noise and lights, it might be very easy to get stressed, confused, scared, or maybe even angry. To get things under wraps, you'll want to duck away to somewhere more private or hidden. Thankfully, there are numerous underpasses, dark corners, and currently-empty shops, but you'll need to be quick to avoid raising any eyebrows – or avoid hurting anyone. You might want to see if there's any friendly faces nearby, as a helping hand to get away quietly and get things back under control might very well be necessary. > 009: GO NUTS Resolution Day isn't all there is to explore, so feel free to branch out! Visit a doctor about some advanced cybernetics (on a day that isn't a holiday, of course). Get used to the technology. Make a bold declaration to set out into the wilderness and become a llama farmer. Use the SETTING for inspiration and choose your own adventure. Of course, you may just want to reach out: physically or technologically. Perhaps an accidental brush of hands has brought the new EMPATHY BOND to light, or you want to use the NETWORK to make sure everyone knows how you're feeling about these new discoveries. Surely everyone will care about your thoughts on cricket chowder soup, right?

> NAVIGATION

Comments

Wrench | WATCH_DOGS 2 | ota

[wrenchinald]

[A. TRY AND PARTY (001)]

[Coming here had been, well, pretty annoying! Especially the fact that he didn't have any of his shit. Running around without a mask sucked especially. But he's been around for a little while now, and he's got himself a new mask. It's not exactly a technological marvel, but it's spiky and face-covering so it'll have to do for now.

And like hell he's gonna skip out on a party. He won't go corporate, but he's figured out some good sources of income, and now he's hanging out by the food trucks.]

Some of this shit looks terrible. Wanna try it?

[B. UNDERBELLY (004)]

[So the most important thing to do around here, Wrench has decided, is to try and get some information. And then he can use that information to either go home, and if he can't, to fuck with people. Collecting information works best in the underground places. Like this club.

Apparently this means trying to dance.

He should never try to dance.

When he's not looking ridiculous, he might be trying to strike up a conversation with someone else who might be a bit... off from the normal clientele.]

I think the music choices could be a little better. I think I heard this one like three times since I got here.

[C. NETWORK @ WRENCH WRENCH]

Yo, brainternet. Anybody have a massive shitton of paint? It's urgent.

[Clearly important use of network.]

[D. WILDCARD]

[anything else you wanna do? there's a lot to do, so just pick something, or ask me!]

@TAKAMAKI

[whipcords]

(oh fuck, graffiti, SHE'S READY.)

No, but I might be able to figure something out.
There's a price for that kind of help, though.
Which means you'll have to let me in on the plan!

[wrenchinald]

I just got a lot of THINGS that need a lot of PAINT.

Usually I don't do too much that's elaborate but I feel like this place needs some work. I GUESS if you want in that'll be cool. The more the fucking merrier.

[whipcords]

I've never done any at all, but when in Rome.
AKA when in the bed intruder flavoured Amsterdam in the distant, mildly post-apocalyptic future lol.
Let's light this place up!

... I still don't know where we could find paint though.

[wrenchinald]

Oh MAN if you meant literally I'd be SUPER all for it.

But METAPHORICALLY's good too. I got shit to build that needs decoration and this whole place needs some to go with it.

Wanna rob a hardware store?

[whipcords]

(well, she is a thief. ... so long as no one gets hurt? she's in.)

As much as I'd love to see this Hell look the part, there are civilians to think about, you know?
Don't get crazy.

If we're gonna do this, you have to promise me it won't do damage to anything but the city.
Agree and sure thing, let's rob that sucker!

[wrenchinald]

Hey, just because I like to blow shit up doesn't mean I like to hurt people.

I know better than to do more than EXTREME PROPERTY DAMAGE.

But hell yes let's get ourselves some FREE SHIT.

Hand over the PAINT and nobody gets PAINTED ON.

A

[mercurio]

[prompto can't decide what he wants, because none of the foods sound familiar and nothing looks half as appetizing as ignis's food. he's being picky for no reason, really.]

[he turns at the question.]

You buying?

[oh, and also getting a hang of money keeps being the one reason for ruin in his life.]

[wrenchinald]

Yeah, dude, sure. Nothing like treating some rando to some terrible food.

[But it's not like he says it hostilely; it sounds cheerful enough. If he had a mask that functioned right, he could display his lack of sarcasm, but alas, for now he'll have to make do.]

I'm thinking of braving the ice cream, see if those are sprinkles or ants. Any bets?

[mercurio]

[prompto grins at that.]

As you know, the best kind of food is free food. And that's a fact.

[he squares his shoulders with this kind of air of Know-It-All and crosses his arms. he's in a good mood, enjoying the other guy's attitude. he's used to rolling with the punches of sarcastic and ironic dudes all around. not to mention that he was constantly the butt of the joke.]

Don't have much to bet on... [thinking face,] but, bet you they're ants coated in whatever glossy thing sprinkles are covered in.

[wrenchinald]

Hypothetical bets, dude, bet all the fucking fake cash you want. I've got my own sources.

[And sources they are. He's pretty good at figuring out a way to survive without doing the whole corporate bullshit thing. The work might not be so consistent, but who needs consistency?

And I'm guessing... normal sprinkles, but the flavors are gonna be shit like gravy and meatloaf.

[Gesturing for his new buddy to follow, he moves to the line for the ice cream truck. After a few moments of waiting, he leans to try and see if he can get a glimpse of the sprinkles past the people in front of him.]

...Guess everyone fucking wants ice cream today.

[mercurio]

[prompto follows along easily, like a puppy that has found a new playmate. this is your life now, wrench.]

Guess so.

Bugs are icky though. [is he five? he scrunches his nose, making a face] So I'll pass on the sprinkles. Even if they aren't bugs, I can already feel them crawling on my skin.

[he shudders, rubbing at his arms in sympathy for himself.]

[wrenchinald]

[Well, at least he's got someone to talk to. Even if that someone's gonna be following him around for the next who knows how long.

He... really didn't expect the 'icky' comment though.]

I don't think these guys are gonna be crawling anywhere, bugs or not. But I'll try not to knock them over on you when I get dramatically horrified by the flavor options. You think I should faint that way, or that way?

[He makes vague gestures to go with the question.]

[mercurio]

Preferably? That way.

[and prompto offers a definite finger pointing to their left]

Where I'm from, yeah, we got the tiny bugs. But we also have huge ones! [he gestures with his arms, making circles in front of him, the size of a basketball] Bees this big! Killer bees! And there were also centipede-esque ones, but they're at least two feet long and, ugh, they would sneak up on you without warning and bite down real hard!

[he's having war flashbacks]

...I want the lemon sorbet. [btw]

[wrenchinald]

I'll make sure to do it that way, then.

[He points in the opposite direction, because he just has to be contrary.

He's got to admit, the big-ass bugs sound kind of startling. But no matter how big a bee is, it can't be as bad and untrustworthy as a puppy, right?]

Can you ride the giant centipede bees? If you can't, there's no point.

[He leans out again to see how far the line's gone. It's moved... some.]

I want the most ridiculous thing they've got. I am here for wacky fucking future snacks. Gotta see what hell they've unleashed on ice cream kind.

[mercurio]

[why you gotta be like that? prompto snickers.]

I'm telling you, there's no point to them. Bugs are just the worst.

[a sense of finality as he scoots when the line moves some.]

Half these foods have a name that I'm not familiar with. What's chicken? No idea. Could be a mushussu for all I know, and those things are disgusting. ...I miss home food.

[wrenchinald]

[Wrench is about to say something else about the bees, but the chicken thing just knocks it right out of his head. Wait, what?]

You don't know what a chicken is?

[Okay, fine, it makes sense that a place with giant centipede bees wouldn't have chickens, but still.]

It's, you know, a bird. Very tasty, especially fried. A little too fucking normal. They better have like seventeen legs by now.

[mercurio]

Oh, like daggerquill...?

[he says that softly, mostly to himself, because he gathers that there is a huge disconnect between what prompto knows to be food and what wrench does. it's a little disconcerting.]

What's the point of seventeen legs though? No one wants to eat bird legs.

[he makes a face at that]

Unless you're into bird legs.

[wrenchinald]

You never had a chicken leg? Or, uh, suspiciously similar bird leg? You are missing out, dude. You're gonna have to try one, if they still make the shit.

[It's still so, so strange talking to someone who doesn't know basic food birds. He wants to know what the hell shit looked like out there.]

But okay, seventeen wings then. People eat that shit too.

tbh i never expected to love these two being confused about food

[mercurio]

What if I told you that I have a picky cook friend who didn't seem to like bird legs at all.

[never in his life did he see ignis coming up with a new recipe out of bird legs. it's weird, now that he thinks about it. he hums to himself thoughtfully, arms crossed and taking another step forward as the line moves.]

Flying would be the worst.

...but that'd be a solution to hunger, I guess. Is it bad that now I want more of this chicken stuff than ice cream?

the thing that brings people together

[wrenchinald]

I guess I'd believe it, but dude, you gotta eat some other shit than picky cook friend shit.

[Maybe he's lucky he doesn't have a picky cook friend of his own. Who knows what kind of thing they'd make.]

Hey man, you should absolutely get some. Me, I still want ice cream. If this line ever fucking moves in a significant fucking fashion.

mutant chickens

[mercurio]

[the guy speaks funny, and prompto finds amusement in it. it's comfortable in a familiar, rebellious way.]

Yeah? Fat chance with that.

[a group of three are now ordering their choice of ice cream, so hopefully that'll get it moving a bit faster even if just for a moment.]

--oh, forgot to say, my name's Prompto.

the most mutant of chickens

[wrenchinald]

It has to happen eventually. Hooopefully we can find a line for chicken that isn't that bad, and you can discover the marvels of it.

[It's not that exciting, but it's the first time he gets to introduce perfectly normal food to someone, which is a massive novelty.]

Wrench, [he says, holding a hand out.] Nice to meet you and your weird bird options, dude.

[mercurio]

[he's expecting greatness from chicken at this point]

[prompto extends his hand as well, taking wrench's in his and shaking it. he's grinning.]

Wait til we start talking about catoblepas and flans.

[wrenchinald]

[Well, it's definitely not bad, at least where Wrench comes from, but who knows what they did to it in the many years since then.

He pulls his hand away, taking a few steps forward after a large group leaves. He's pretty sure he can see the finish line.]

Is this the part where you make up a thing and combine it with a real thing and try to get me to figure out which it is? Because I think I know what flan is but the other thing sounds super fake.