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Entry tags:
TEST DRIVE MEME 001
⚰︎ ⍢ ⌲ ⍚ TEST DRIVE MEME:
CONTENT WARNINGS for this game include: monsters, body horror, dub-con, non-con, religion, blood/violence, and marking/branding, loss of autonomy/self, and mental influences.
This log additionally has warnings for: nudity, spiders, waxplay, character death, and references to children in proximity to sexual situations.
✧ ✧ ✧
Welcome to RUBILYKSKOYE — a dark, horror-smut game where player choices will drive a mod-run storyline about the world and its NPCs. For the first round, this test drive serves as characters' arrival into game.
THESE THREADS CAN BE GAME CANON if both players are accepted into the game and agree to it. However, if players who'd prefer to start fresh are welcome to reuse these prompts in their own personal logs upon acceptance into the communities.
If you have QUESTIONS about the test drive prompts, please ask HERE. Questions about the game itself or the general setting should be directed to the FAQ.
FAQ ✧ SETTING ✧ CALENDAR ✧ RESERVES ✧ APPLICATIONS
This log additionally has warnings for: nudity, spiders, waxplay, character death, and references to children in proximity to sexual situations.
Welcome to RUBILYKSKOYE — a dark, horror-smut game where player choices will drive a mod-run storyline about the world and its NPCs. For the first round, this test drive serves as characters' arrival into game.
THESE THREADS CAN BE GAME CANON if both players are accepted into the game and agree to it. However, if players who'd prefer to start fresh are welcome to reuse these prompts in their own personal logs upon acceptance into the communities.
If you have QUESTIONS about the test drive prompts, please ask HERE. Questions about the game itself or the general setting should be directed to the FAQ.
AWAKENING IN PAJAK WOOD
The chirping of partridges in the treetops rouses you. Light barely filters through the canopy, just enough to suggest warmth of the sun. By the time it reaches the forest floor, the daylight has taken on a sickly green tinge. You lie amongst the mosses and ferns, the soil cold and just a little damp on your bare skin. Wherever you were before this moment, whatever you were doing or wearing, when you awaken in this forest, you find yourself naked and helpless as the day you were born.Fortunately, you seem to be alone. The birdsong continues as you sit up and get your bearings — aside from a brief wave of disoriented nausea, you seem to be no worse for wear than you last remember. Amongst gnarled oaks and moss, you see nothing around. No sign of civilization or sentient life. Movement flickers at the corner of your eye, but it's just a curious animal — brave squirrels or lizards who have come to see what stirs in their home.
Then, like the rippling of the horizon at noontime, the ash-gray soil around you undulates. Sea, not earth. Something else has come to greet you — their grey bodies blended in so easily with the floor, but as you stagger to your feet, you see them. Thousands of spiders roll like waves underfoot. They crawl towards you from the darker edge of the forest.
attack
Individuals who attack the spiders will find the small spiders are easy to kill, but the pheromones released by their corpses draw larger spiders in their place. Huge, blood-red spiders the size of hunting dogs drop from the treetops. In addition to their venomous bite, which contains a fast-acting paralytic, these creatures are clever: they will attempt to use their webbing to handicap any trespassers, binding limbs together or to trees. If you're unfortunate to become fully cocooned, you don't have long before this forest will be the last thing you see.
hunt
Any aspiring monster-hunters enterprising enough to try to follow the spiders to their nest will move eastward. This way, the forest grows darker and darker — though the sun never grows warm red-gold with sunset.
In the void, the birdsong is replaced by the click of mandibles and the skitter of many legs, but soon it is impossible to see. Even with the brightest magical light does not reach further than a few inches. The air grows heavy and thick, as if it were not air at all but some more solid mass. Almost like liquid-smoke, it presses down upon you. Slowing your movements. Soon, you cannot move at all.
Turn back while you still can — collapsing out here is dangerous. The void can play tricks on your senses. You may find yourself reliving unhappy memories or hallucinating your worst nightmares.
In the void, the birdsong is replaced by the click of mandibles and the skitter of many legs, but soon it is impossible to see. Even with the brightest magical light does not reach further than a few inches. The air grows heavy and thick, as if it were not air at all but some more solid mass. Almost like liquid-smoke, it presses down upon you. Slowing your movements. Soon, you cannot move at all.
Turn back while you still can — collapsing out here is dangerous. The void can play tricks on your senses. You may find yourself reliving unhappy memories or hallucinating your worst nightmares.
But flee the spiders westward and you will discover that the wood is well-populated with the survival resources that someone might seek — berries bushes and trees bearing stone fruits; sticks and dry leaves to aid in the building of a fire; rocks big enough to fashion into crude weapons; small animals that can be hunted or caught; hike long enough, and you might just find the freshwater stream that runs north-to-south, populated by both poisonous toads and delicious crawdads.
What's more, you may run into others with stories just like yours. Some may have already formed clumsy nudist hiking parties, others may still be naked and confused and processing how they have no memory of how they got here. They all stagger vaguely, as you do, with only the sun for a waymarker — and even that won't last long.
Now is a good time to overcome any hang-ups you have about modesty, as it's going to be a long hike. If you sneak a good look at your new companions, you may four varietals of marks on their bodies. Maybe someone will even point out that you have one, too.
EVERY DAY LIKE THE ONE BEFORE
Hike far enough — or long enough that the sun does go down — and signs of life come into view. The glow of fires and lights, the smooth curve of a stone wall. A town sits at the edge of this wood, a reward to the survivors.The fifty-foot wall of beige stone protecting the town's perimeter has only a single entrance — an iron gate positioned on the southern edge. When you arrive, the gate is already open, welcoming people into town from the winding dirt road. Attentive eyes may note that the road itself bears the mark of many wagon wheels and horse hoofs, but not cars.
guards
The guards grant entry to anyone who attempts a conversation with them. However, if your character is more likely to attempt to sneak in, overcome the guards, or attack them, please reach out HERE.
Inside the wall lies a quaint, historic town with a population around five thousand. The streets are cobbled, and their signs are lit by gas lamp. Wooden shutters protect otherwise open-air windows on the buildings, which are all under three stories with gabled roofs. A number of businesses hug the main street — a clockmaker, a cobbler, a bank — while residential homes sprawl outwards towards the wall. At the far end of the main street, visible about a mile to the north now that the trees and the enormous wall is out of the way, sits a castle with three towers.
No matter what time you pass through the gate, the streets are full of people. The climate of the bustle befits a night market or a busy friday downtown — plenty of people to ogle at your exposed body. But despite any efforts on your part to hide or make excuses, the locals don't seem offended by your nakedness. Even families with children don't gawk or look twice. In fact, the further into town you go, the more you may notice that they all wear revealing clothing that, to your sensibilities, may seem sexually suggestive. Some individuals openly expose their breasts and nipples, while some others may incidentally reveal when they turn around to tend to their errands that their dress is backless — entirely! If anything, they seem to be under the impression that you're naked to participate in the evening's events with the rest of them.
Those still determined to find proper clothing will find that modern clothing stores aren't a thing here. The closest this town has is a tailor's shop, which is closed for religious observance, and a stand in the central marketplace selling scarves and blankets.
Fortunately, the people of the town are very generous! The locals will gladly share what they have with those who ask politely — but those items are as revealing as what they're wearing. You might get a mesh bodysuit or drape outfit. Remember not to be ungracious! it's only appropriate for the occasion.
steal clothing
Anyone unwilling to ask nicely for help could break into someone's house or yard to steal some of their clean laundry. Notably, inside their homes, the people of the town also appear to own some more modest apparel. Be sure to alert us HERE if your character pursues this option.
And what is the occasion? The locals are excited and flattered by any interest in their ordinary weekly prayer: the folks dancing and selling their wares are all offering their energies to give thanks and ask for their god's patronage! The abstractions are all familiar — fertility, harvest, peace. Smalltalk makes them eager to chat and draw you into those festivities — including some ceremonial wax-dripping on the exposed parts of your body!
Anyone who chats at length with the townspeople will gather that the locals feel it's better for the newcomers to dive into the deep-end because, since you'll be settling in here, they expect you'll want to participate down the line. They seem to be under the impression that the new arrivals are a boon from their god.
In addition, many of the locals' choice of clothes reveal the same four types of marks on their bodies as the folx who were wandering out in the wood!
ROOM AND BOARD
Once you're tired out, the locals will help you find a place to stay. The boarding house is several stories tall and spacious, accessible through an embellished iron garden gate and obscured by hanging plants, trees, and vines. 
Beyond the overgrown yard is a bright red door, which opens into a spacious cottage.
The house has clearly been empty for some time — dust has gathered on various furnishings — bedding, sofas, curtains, wooden tables. According to the locals, it has remained empty since its last occupant passed away, and that's all they'll say about that!
Each floor of the house has a shared sitting room, but only the first floor has a kitchen — large enough to support feeding the entire household. Here, a few of the townspeople will help out — they stock the kitchen and help make dinner for the new arrivals.
Get a good night's rest. By the light of day, locals will help get the new arrivals set up on the coal stove with breakfast. You may notice they're dressed in a way you would almost call normal — at least, in a manner befitting 19th century Eastern Europe. As you find your way around town to get your bearings, folks are eager to help you find a place to apply your skills so you can contribute to your new home.
Beyond the overgrown yard is a bright red door, which opens into a spacious cottage. The house has clearly been empty for some time — dust has gathered on various furnishings — bedding, sofas, curtains, wooden tables. According to the locals, it has remained empty since its last occupant passed away, and that's all they'll say about that!
Each floor of the house has a shared sitting room, but only the first floor has a kitchen — large enough to support feeding the entire household. Here, a few of the townspeople will help out — they stock the kitchen and help make dinner for the new arrivals.
finding roommates
Don't spend too much time in the dining room going for seconds, though. You'll want to claim a bedroom quickly because each one only has two full-size beds, and there aren't enough spaces for everyone. The last people upstairs will need to double up to squeeze in. Roommates will not be mod-assigned; players should coordinate directly with one another to determine their living arrangements.
Get a good night's rest. By the light of day, locals will help get the new arrivals set up on the coal stove with breakfast. You may notice they're dressed in a way you would almost call normal — at least, in a manner befitting 19th century Eastern Europe. As you find your way around town to get your bearings, folks are eager to help you find a place to apply your skills so you can contribute to your new home.
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she reminds alina of zoya. the kind of beautiful that's just a little terrifying — made moreso by whatever is wrong with her hand. alina's mouth falls open for a brief moment, but that shock is nothing next to her clothes. ]
Where did you find clothes? [ and ... what the hell were they made of? alina's brain keeps coming back to bone to name what she's seeing, but that just doesn't make any sense. ]
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And I made them. [Huh. That was a lot more thalergy than Ianthe normally picked up from other people. It seemed this woman had risen above the spiders to become the second least important thing.]
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[ she speaks slowly, sure she'll regret the answer, somehow. she'd thought that the woman's general dismissal meant that she couldn't possibly be a danger to alina, but if that really is bone, then she might just be as bad as the spiders.
or she might be materialki. one of the darkling's? she's certainly unpleasant enough to be in the service of the black heretic. but no one at the little palace had seemed evil.
well, except ivan.
and zoya.
that makes it hard to say. ]
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Do you like it? I can make you one - a better one even. [She then chuckled low and extended her bone hand, beckoning the other woman.]
I'll just need your patella.
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[ materialki then, surely. but she'd never heard of any of them doing the kind of things that ianthe had done. none but ilya morozova, at least. the bonesmith.
it's enough to make her shudder. ]
Where did you get the bones for yours?
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[Ianthe certainly will~
In response to the question, she gestured down at her own knee that still sported some dried blood.]
My own patella. It is the largest sesamoid bone in the body and fairly easy to remove.
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oh, this woman is very crazy, then.
alina is quiet and still for a moment. her eyes dart around the landscape, as if hoping to appeal to literally anyone else who may be around. but it's just the two of them in this stretch of forest, and a woman who maimed herself. ]
How ... enterprising of you. [ she starts with two uneasy steps back. it's better, she tells herself, than the alternative. she hadn't taken anyone else's bones. ] Good luck with that. With your ... bones.
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Hahahaha... You should see your expression - ahahaha. [A tear was wiped from the corner of her eye.] It grew back. See? [Ianthe flexed her knee and rubbed more of the dried blood off.] Not even a scar. It's just flesh and bone. What, are you squeamish? Does all that extra thalergy you possess not allow for fast healing?
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Thalergy? [ she shakes her head. she doesn't recognize the word. ]
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Yes, thalergy. To grossly simplify it, thalergy is life energy. All living things possess it. It's what allows for growth and healing and procreation. That sort of boring shit.
Now the other side of that - [and intensely more interesting from her tone] - is thanergy: death energy. When living things die, energy is released as its thalergy converts over.
[As Ianthe spoke, she innocuously approached the other woman, hoping her lesson would distract enough that the lessening distance between then didn't register.]
And thanergy is what we necromancers use.
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[ clearly, this is the way of talking about it that some other nation's grisha have. words found outside of old ravkan, the kinds of terms they evolved to talk about their power when there was no shared vocabulary. ]
Odinakovost and etovost. That's how we talk about the small science, in Ravka. It sounds like you're describing the same thing.
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If you understand these concepts, albeit by another name, why were you so shocked by my usage of bone and balked at the needed material to craft your own? Do you not have adepts skilled in bone magic? Which House do you claim blood from?
[A storm of questions as Ianthe's mind worked the moment.] I don't recognize the name Ravika.
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The Dominican Empire. It spans many planets and several galaxies. If your planet has developed necromancers - your grisha - then it must be far from the Empire or we'd know about you. Is this your planet? [Ianthe thought this was a thalergenic planet but that Void made her uncertain as to the true balance of energy.]
If so, what do you know of the vast inky blackness to the far east in the forest?
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[ there's a cluelessness and bewilderment about her that sufficiently answers that question. she has never even begun to think on that kind of scale. sure, there are people in ravka and its neighboring nations who are interested in the world beyond theirs, but it's so abstracted that it would never touch the life of an orphaned mapmaker, not even now that she had become a saint. ]
I — [ she sputters. ] I thought it was. [ now she has to wonder. ] But I've never seen this forest before in my life.
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I'm going to find some form of civilization. You may come along if you wish.
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but for the time being, at least, she seems to be on alina's side. better to take advantage of that than squander it. she hurries after. ]
What's your name?
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Various titles and sundry accompany that, but until I reach civilization they don't matter.
[Sometimes she caught the hypocrisy before it came out of her mouth. Sometimes.]
And yours?
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Alina.
[ but she does, still, watch ianthe for a reaction. ]
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[The words were spoken rotely without even the slightest hint of recognition; that name meant nothing to Ianthe. She didn't even bother to look over as she picked her way through the forest.]
So what's your specialization if bones magic is beyond your fingertips?
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[ she treads carefully, tiptoeing to avoid putting her foot directly into saying she's the sun summoner — hopefully without making it too obvious that she's dodging it. of course, she's never excelled at subtlety. ]
In Ravka, we have orders of Grisha. Etherealki are summoners who control the elements. Materialki build things—fabrikators, alkemi. What you can do, we'd consider that like Corporalki. Heartrenders and tailors and healers. Though I've never seen one do what you've done. I would have guessed a corporalki would still need help from a fabrikator for that.
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[Ianthe showed her peace just enough to allow Alina to catch up. Her interest had been piqued, and she rarely passed up an opportunity to feel superior. Or demonstrate it.]
We do specialize in one, but that tends to be the one our House is known for. Some lack the talent to branch out beyond that and not all see the three schools as equal.
What elements do you refer to? Traditional folklore, periodic table, or something more esoteric?
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[ she frowns, thinking over it. it's not the kind of chemicals, after all, that an alkemi would work with, or a bomb-maker. ]
Fire, air, water, darkness. [ a beat. ] Light, too.
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Useful. Such versatility, having all those elements at your fingertips.
Are Grisha of equal standing? We have the rare necromancer that has ascended to become lyctors and serve the Emperor directly.
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