Fall 2015 Test Drive

[raisednpcs]

Hello, and welcome to the test drive for Fall, 2015! Similar to last time, one of our test drive prompts is the same as an event presently going on in the game! And that's not all; both players in the game and out of it can treat everything that happens with these prompts as canon to the game, and that they happened concurrently with what's going on on the main community. So, if you're looking to apply to Raise the Earth, here's a chance to get in on the ground floor of what's happening in-game!

---

[A - Factor Industries Charity Event]

Even for Benjamin Factor, arranging this charity event had been something of a challenge. Just as he held great influence in Gateway City, Thunder Corp's influence in Locke was great as well. But with time and money, all things were indeed possible in this case, and the Memorial Dance Hall was playing host to the night's events. It was a glamorous affair: politicians, captains of business, dignitaries, and celebrities had been invited. For whatever controversy that existed, the world legitimately wanted to heal the wounds left by the invasion, and that meant there were a lot of people who wanted to use events like this to either advance that cause, or to make themselves look good.

But they weren't the only sorts of individuals who had received an invitation.

Benjamin Factor had also made it so the Numbered would be invited to his little party. Arrivals through the teleporter would be greeted by drivers at the community center, and the same courtesy was extended to anyone who might live in Locke. The only stipulation? Was that anyone who came make an effort to make themselves presentable. If that was a problem, or anyone arrived without knowing, they had clothes on hand for people to change into.

Indeed, it seemed that the Numbered would be well provided for tonight. That being said, their presence would get people to talk, given the presence of news crews making live coverage. Nevertheless... "getting people to talk" seemed to be exactly what Benjamin Factor wanted to happen.

[This prompt is the same as this current event. You can have your character start a general mingle thread, but we ask that your character not serve as an event speaker for the test drive, as that's a rule best suited to characters already in the game.]

[B - Pest Control]

Beta testing. "A trial of machinery, software, or other products, in the final stages of its development, carried out by a party unconnected with its development." A crucial, important step in ironing out the "kinks" in something, to ensure it's ready for whatever it has been designed to do.

In the last weeks of October, someone is beta testing. Just what are they testing, you might wonder? Diminutive little robots with powerful, fangy jaws. They appear to be designed for pest control, and their hardware includes tracking software. Indeed, they're apparently being deployed in secret, acting autonomously in Gateway City, Locke City, Woodend, Christchurch, Tokyo, and even Shepherd's Haven. No one would see who is setting them loose, beyond nondescript men and women who disappear as quickly as they first emerged.

The robots are autonomous. They seek out their prey with zeal, without being controlled by a central source. Alone, a single machine is far from a threat, but they have been loosed in sizable groups, making them fairly dangerous. And it seems there's a bug: all animals are targets for these things, and they're not all. It seems they're capable of identifying another, more unique target: Anyone who might be Numbered.

[C - Sudden Storm]

Rain wasn’t planned today. The forecast had called for sun and minimal clouds, and a warm breeze. Instead, the falling drops seem to sparkle in the sunlight peeking through the clouds. Out a window, strolling down the street, sitting at a bus stop, it’s hard not to feel the drops coming down. And should you stop to stare at the rain for a bit, something seems to shift. A hollow feeling, a certain vertigo, that passes in a moment.

As it clears, something changes. A new memory, from a life that isn’t familiar and doesn’t make a whole lot of sense; a tingling at your fingertips of some new energy; a certain knowledge of the world that shocks you with the new information it provides; something in your hands you weren’t holding before. Maybe you’ve already had an Echo somehow, and you recognize the feeling; maybe you haven’t, and it brings back memories of the people talking about “pulses” on TV, what seems like forever ago. If the latter’s true, the fading sense leaves behind a number, that seems to worm its way into your mind and not leave. Does this mean… you’re Numbered, now?

[D - Network]

The number stuck in your head refuses to go away, so to work it out of your system, you decide writing it down on something is a good idea. Maybe you punched it into your phone; perhaps it’s on a piece of paper, or a mirror, or almost anything else.

The thing it’s on comes alive, filling with text and images. None of it was there before, and you can interact with it. Hundreds, maybe thousands of posts, all tagged with a number that looks similar to your own. Tales of fighting, of betrayal, of loss and sacrifice; stories of heroism, of gain, of victory and the elation attached. Questions about life, about the network, about the future of the Numbered. Idle conversation, videos of stupid things. Three years of history, from the beginning to the original incident on April 1, 2013, through to today.

You could add something. Clearly, it need not be profound, and if you don’t put a name, a face, or a voice to your number, nobody would ever know it’s you. It’s there, at your fingertips. What would you say…?


[E - Wild Card]

Don’t feel pressured to stick to our prompts - you’re welcome to do whatever strikes you. Lighthearted, serious, dangerous, mundane, spectacular… Raise the Earth is a game designed around everyday life getting a lot more interesting in a hurry. Play around with things!

Comments

[enflammen]

Trust me. Knock-knock.

[solvethepuzzle]

... Okay.

Who's there?

[enflammen]

Banana.

[solvethepuzzle]

[... The joke is going to come out of finally getting a different answer, isn't it?]

Banana who? [This actually feels kind of stupid.]

[enflammen]

Knock-knock.

[Roll with it, Nathan.]

[solvethepuzzle]

[He is rolling with it. Hence why he's only thinking it's stupid instead of saying it. And still continuing.

[Some people might have sighed in exasperation at this point, but Nathan is nothing if not patient.] Who's there?

[enflammen]

Orange.

[solvethepuzzle]

[Oh, good. They must be finishing now.]

Orange who?

[enflammen]

Orange you glad I didn't say "banana"?

[He grins, and makes a jazz-hands gesture at the camera. Ta-da.]

[solvethepuzzle]

Ah. [Yeah, that's kind of it. Sorry, Micah. Overly-analytical minds tend to kill jokes given enough time, and this one went on for a while.]

[enflammen]

Hm. Maybe knock-knock jokes aren't the best place to start.

[Micah shrugs. He tried.]

So what's the deal with Thundercorp?

/whoops switching to Private now

[solvethepuzzle]

[You tried, Micah. Knock-knock jokes are a bad place to start, probably. They give Nathan too much time to think.

[Aaaand a sudden switch over to a private feed, now that he might going into detail. He possibly should have done this from the start, really. Not that there hasn't been anything publicly said on the network, but . . . Caution in all things.] I should have asked this first, but . . . has anyone from the company recently approached you?

private.

[enflammen]

[It takes Micah about half a minute, but he figures out how to mirror back the private transmission.]

No ... nobody's approached me. [He gives the camera a skeptical frown.] What would they be approaching me about, anyway?

perma-private

[solvethepuzzle]

[It isn't a complicated process, merely inputting the number attached to Nathan's replies. Easy to figure out even for those who aren't as smart as they are.]

The company . . . before the invasion, they were in league with the aliens and a threat to the Numbered. They've publicly claimed to have changed, but we've been given reason to believe otherwise. A means to find even those of us who aren't public with their identities has been found, and they've evidently been offering jobs.

[He might know slightly more than this. Might have someone on the inside (much as he sort of wishes he didn't, given the dangers involved.) But not even Lazarus knows about that.]

perma-private as well o/

[enflammen]

Huh. [Micah absently chews on the inside of his cheek while he listens to Nathan speak.] That's a smart way to bring people to your side. What kinds of jobs are they offering?

[solvethepuzzle]

Or to keep eyes on them. There's . . . admittedly a lot we don't yet know. I would like to assume that any who have accepted any dealings did so out of naivety and honestly mean no harm. [Or to spy on them, like Tony is.] But on the chance that not all of them are like that . . . you can understand why I prefer to discuss this privately.

I can't say what kind, having not been approached. Any individual offers would have come after the press conference lauding their own efforts in Locke and calling for our co-operation while attempting guilt tactics. Approaching people individually would then give the option of tailored pitches suited to whatever talents any of us might possess.

[This is sounding like a pretty far cry from the guy who was kind of fumbling around a few minutes ago, isn't it?]

[enflammen]

Yeah ... [nodding] If you wanted to keep tabs on people, what better way to do so than make them think you're on their side? I mean, that's a pretty classic strategy. And if they are watching everyone like a bunch of creeps, you definitely would want to keep hush about what you know, or what you suspect. I get that.

[It sounds a little paranoid, but it fits neatly with what Micah tends to believe, what he's seen - that people will, more often than not, do their worst, if given the chance. It's why he tends to keep people at arm's length, why he can be friendly or sociable but never truly allows anyone near his heart. He's been burned one time too many.]

Well, I can definitely say that no one approached me about my job. I went looking for it myself, and that was months ago, anyway. They wouldn't have a way to tell I'm one of you until now, right?

[There's a definite difference, now that they're on a private channel. Maybe it's just the fact that it's private.]

[solvethepuzzle]

[Nathan is better about that these days. He is not the most trusting person, having grown up in adverse circumstances himself, seeing how unkind and unfair the world can be. But he's made family he cares for and trusts among the Numbered. He does not worry about the intentions of those people. He worries about their safety.

[But there are new people he does not know, and even if he doesn't like it, he can't be sure of them completely. Whoever else besides Tony has accepted a deal, he doesn't know who they are. He might have put himself forward in opposition, but not to the point where it's known that he's investigating the matter. He's barely a blip on the radar to most, and that is his best protection.]

We do not know precisely what it is that they've latched onto in order to identify us. Whether it has to do with accessing the network or simply having the number. I . . . wish I could be more reassuring on the matter.

[That it's a private channel is part of it. There are other factors. Like how they seem to be getting on relatively well despite Nathan's initial fears, and how they've moved on to situational analysis instead of socializing. Nathan isn't deliberately unfriendly or unsociable; he's just bad at socializing. But analyzing and theorizing? Those, he can do. Those, he is good at.

[Even if he can sound a bit on the paranoid side. It's kind of an anxiety thing.]

[enflammen]

[Micah definitely feels less weird now than Nathan has more or less relaxed (what he imagines passing for relaxed, in his case) into the conversation, despite the oddness of the subject.]

Well ... don't stress about it too much. Either you'll figure it out or they'll find a way to kill us all while we're sleeping, right?

[Micah grins halfway. Gallows humor - it's the only way to go.]

[solvethepuzzle]

["Relaxed" hasn't been much of a thing for Nathan lately. It's been a rough few weeks.]

... I suppose. [No humour in his voice, as if that is any kind of surprise at this point. Yes, he does know it's a joke. But still.]

[enflammen]

... That was a joke, too.

[Just to be safe.]

[solvethepuzzle]

I know.

[enflammen]

Just checking.

[Micah resists the urge to sigh loudly. Nathan is definitely different. It's not a bad thing, just something he isn't used to.]

So is that the only reason you think Thundercorp's a threat? Because they mysteriously know who we are and seem to be trying to collect us?

[solvethepuzzle]

["Different". And all that without the toys. Well. That will come later.]

There's been a bad history between them and the Numbered since before the invasion. They were involved with paving the way.

A few weeks ago, one of their people managed to get on the network somehow, despite not being one of us. [So they said, at least.] They are the one who's informed us that their leadership has not truly changed, they have a way to track us, and that the more recent chaos is a result of their experimental technology. [Something about his voice edges into more sombre territory, here.] This person was . . . killed during the course of the message.

How much of it is accurate, I do not know, but the fact that some of it has been means the rest needs to be at least considered as well.

[enflammen]

Well, that's shitty. [He quietly clicks his tongue.] I can definitely see why you wouldn't trust them. It's a little too coincidental, having the messenger turn up dead like that.