TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

[thediadem]

Test Drive ∞ May 2025

The First Collision

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Jump ⇅ :: Arrival — Panorama — Fringes — Invite Request

The Diadem is an invite-only panfandom game set in a retro-futuristic world where uprooted souls find themselves deep within an eerie wasteland of roads and highways frequently assailed by cosmic storms. Three united strongholds keep the population. Its capital is Panorama, a large metropolis at the planet's center.

Soon, you realize you aren't alone. Calling themselves fluxdrifts, the "locals" have similar stories to you, either for themselves or their ancestry. You speak to an old woman who claims she hailed from another star. You meet a young man who says his great-great-grandfather knew a strange language everybody spoke "back home." As you explore, you stumble across a coin you recognize or your sister's locket. How did it get here? What does this mean? That's for you to discover.

But first, you need to find a ride.

No invites needed to play on the TDM. Everyone's welcome! Use the Invite Request thread below to request an invite from another player.

∞ Summary ∞

IC-wise, arrivals are scattered throughout the month. Events described on the TDM are also ongoing throughout the month. If you'd rather jump right into the action, you're free to begin in media res with your character having already been on the planet for several days.

Post-impact, characters will wake up in a med tent by the Scrapyard. From there, they must accept a vehicle on loan and make the 2-hour drive to the nearest city, Panorama. If they refuse the car because they don't want the loan, they'll be in debt for medical bills instead...so just take the car. It'll come in handy.

Some things to keep in mind when bringing in your character:

• Pick an injury. At minimum, they got knocked out; at most, whatever they can recover from. Medicine is decently advanced so they'll heal faster if not painlessly.
• Decide items kept. Reasonable items on their person only: photos, keys, clothes, costumes. No pets or animal companions. Wildly out-of-place tech and personal cell phones will be damaged beyond repair.
• Select a weapon. Do this only if eligible. Guidelines about weapons and powers are on the FAQ.
• Choose a vehicle. Decide whether your character gets 2-3 options or if they're stuck with something they hate. Players can pick directly from our collection or source their own images. Anything under a similar aesthetic will work. If your character needs accommodations for driving, they can have them. Ask us for details.
• Get a phone. Characters have to obtain a phone (and a SIM card) themselves. If they've got one from home, it's damaged beyond repair. Phones are cheap. It'll only take a couple of weeks to afford one. You need to know the number before you text or call anyone. Read about phones and the Forum before you hop on it.

TDM threads can be canon if characters are accepted. Top-levels made to the TDM should be open to all.

TDM Questions? Here — Game Questions? FAQ

Setting — Taken — Reserves — Applications ::: ⇅ Top

Fluxdrift

Arrival & Introduction

Date: Throughout May

You've tumbled over a cliff. You were fighting for your life. You're on the cusp of death. You slipped in the shower. Whatever the catalyst, you struggle to cling to consciousness. As darkness overtakes you, a swirling vortex warps light and shadow in a way that defies all physics. A dark wail etches into your very bones. You couldn't describe it if you tried. You can barely comprehend what it is.

Then you open your eyes.

Through the figure's mask ©, you swear the face is grinning down at you. The tent you're in smells of antiseptic, and scratchy blankets line your cot. Injuries you've sustained have been bandaged. In the corner, you spot a MedBot that's fixed you up. Depending on the extent of your injuries, the doctor on duty might give you some painkillers before you go. Thankfully, your belongings are by the exit. Sorry if anything's damaged. Your landing was pretty rough.

You follow the figure outside. They are Yom Crook, here to lend a hand to fellow fluxdrifts like yourself. Their car's parked beside them. Actually, there are lots of cars around, but Yom Crook's stands out with its painted shark mouth. They explain they found you, unconscious, in a diffusion zone and brought you here. The nearest city is a 2-hour drive northeast. Forget about walking. You'll never make it. Also, you owe the doctor a lot of money for patching you up. But you're in luck: they've got some wheels for you and if you accept the vehicle on loan, Yom Crook will cover your medical bills. That's a good deal, right? It's not the shiniest car or motorcycle, but it'll do. If fortune favors, you'll get to choose between two or three options. Plus, if you need accommodations to drive—like adjustments to your seat height or modified controls—you'll receive all that for free.

Take the vehicle. (And the loan.) Yom Crook assures you that you'll have six months before collectors come around. Any time you're ready to pay a part of it down, return here to the Scrapyard. You'll get a receipt and everything. Paying off the loan in six months isn't impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Just don't get too lax. There's a good chance you'll be juggling multiple loans as you try to get by.

You either know how to drive, or you'll have a bare-bones manual to get you started. Road rules are more a suggestion than enforced, so just hit the pedal and go. The car has some basic features. The built-in compass will help you navigate.

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: a flat tire; a body on the road (is it a trap?); a fender bender

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Panorama

Explore & Settle In

Conditions: Warm spring temperatures, light showers

After 2 hours on the road, you find civilization. The largest of the strongholds, Panorama is where the economy thrives. Massive power plants glowing red make it visible from a distance. The city is divided into three districts. For now, you can access the Pavilion and the Blocks. Don't worry about the Sanctum; they're not letting you in.

You only need to know two things about Panorama: 1) it's big, the size of a modern metropolis, and you'll need your car to get around; 2) anything goes as long as you don't pick a fight with the wrong person. Street smarts will get you far. Despite its geographical size, the population isn't huge. With roughly a million people in a city designed for over twice that number, Panorama is far from deserted, but nor is it overcrowded. It's a good thing. Resources are limited as it is.

The Pavilion: Free Samples

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Like any large city, Panorama features a couple of supermarkets. The stock's not as consistent as a proper supermarket. On occasion, shelves can remain cleaned out for a week or two. Regardless, the long tradition of free samples remains. If you're not already shopping, you'll notice the crowded parking lot and clusters of lines inside.

Try samples, push through the crowds as you shop, or give yourself a five-finger discount. If you're cautious, you can pocket a few small items without consequences. The Pavillion doesn't have the infrastructure for surveillance; unless someone sees you, you won't be caught. Steal from the store or pilfer someone's wallet. Maybe you even make a new friend if you bump into another fluxdrift. Or, start a fight with somebody who cut you off in the cheese line. Don't make too much of a ruckus, or you'll be thrown out.

As you look around, you'll see posters advertising temporary positions for the cash register or graveyard shifts in the warehouse. Seems they might've lost several employees recently (how'd that happen?), which is good for you! It's just a 6-week position, but it'll get you on your feet. The city has temporary positions like this all over. Permanent ones are harder to come by when you're new.

Samples include: steamed cabbage dumplings, synthetic cherry juice, cheddar cheese, and chocolate-covered alien eggs (it's crunchy and weirdly tasty). They're served in the usual throwaway paper cups with little toothpicks.

The Blocks: Power Outage

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Power's finicky in Panorama, especially in the Blocks. Saint Margery's Hospital, located in the same area, has priority for power so the first to go are the motels. Maybe you've been in your room for a couple of weeks, maybe you just got here—and by the way, every motel desk is happy to put the fee on your tab if you don't have the money upfront—but all the motels on the east side are in a blackout, leaving only the west side motels up and running.

What do you do? You have three choices:

• Risk leaving your room and head to the other side where there's power. Knock on some doors and negotiate with another to share the room. They might shut the door in your face, ask for a favor in return, or be nice enough to help you with no strings attached. There's no guarantee your unattended room will be untouched, though, and you'll be on the hook for any damages an intruder causes.
• Sit in the dark and deal. It's not the worst idea, but the TV's down, the vending machines are powered down, and with the entire place plunged into darkness, you risk getting robbed. If you struggle with defending yourself, you might want to find some trustworthy company. You can also sneak out of there and let them take your leftover pizza. It's not like you've got a ton of valuables, right? Plus, clobbering someone in the face with a frying pan sounds great until you realize you've gotta do something with the body. And what if this person's got a friend waiting?
• Get in your car and drive (or grab a friend for a road trip). If you scroll the Forum, you might notice reports on diffusion zones southward. Besides, these motels are hardly your forever home. The city can only provide so much. Why not go for a ride and see what you can find out there?

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: clean up on aisle 3 (what is that goo?); a knock at your door but no one's there; you hear screaming or a commotion down the hall

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The Fringes

Quad 3: Lockdown

Conditions: Stormy, with flooding roads

Felix Bjurstrom
> Date: 125-05-17
> Time: 02:15:57

> Emergency road lights have been reported in Quadrant 3! Please, can someone go see what's there? When last we chasers investigated emergency lights, a whole truck filled with sour candy had tipped over. Our stores were stocked for weeks! Oh, be careful - reception looks bad in that zone.

Whether you end up here on your own or you were following a tip on the Forum, the outcome is the same: you come to a stop in front of a 2-story office building that's flooded several inches deep. Emergency lights from a roadblock flicker through the stormy night. Stepping out of your car, you're soaked within seconds. When you check your phone, you don't have any bars. No calls in or out.

Through the open windows, a computer awakens and displays a cheerful smile. The lights inside switch on.

Pick your scenario role below. Your thread partner doesn't need to take the opposite role! They can join you in the same scenario (i.e. trapped together). Players are also free to create a generic NPC for the other side to facilitate the thread.

After characters escape, they'll find one bottle of antibiotics in their pocket or car, whether they remember taking it or not.

A: Sealed In
As you peer through the windows, you see crates of medicine floating around. Antibiotics in the diadem are valuable. Hospitals and doctors are always buying. You can keep it for yourself or make a quick buck. Or maybe you're compelled to help somebody back in the city who's in need. Whatever the reason, you decide to take the risk and step inside.

Water splashes around your ankles. The lock buzzes behind you. If you try to break the windows, you discover they're unnaturally resistant to shattering. With the whole place locked tight, the water begins to churn. Then the computer lights up again.

Warning, it flashes in large, bold text. Quarantine in progress. Release code required for exit.

• To find the code, you'll have to search. Duck under the water, go through sopping envelopes and sticky notes or pick the locks on the filing cabinets and desk drawers. You can also try hacking the computers. Use your computer knowledge or fall back on the age-old trick of seeing who wrote down their password.
• The files, notepads, and emails start innocuous, but as you look through them, disturbing phrases jump out at you—a dark thought you've had or a cruel taunt from someone in your past. The longer you're fixed on the terrible words, the higher the water begins to rise. Only another can break you out of your trance.
• With the rising water comes fear. And the more you're afraid, the more the water also rises. You begin to see faces in the water, bobbing like balloon heads. Do you recognize them? If you move to take a closer look, they will sink back beneath the surface as if never there.
• If you manage to swallow your panic, you can eventually find a triple-laminated binder with the release code and instructions. Bad news: you need someone on the outside to punch in the 6 strange symbols in order. The instructions explain that the code panel is located at the back of the building.

Let's hope a friendly face comes along.

B: Set Free
As you peer through the windows, you see not just the crates of medicine but someone trapped inside. They look like they might be in trouble, and from your vantage point, you notice that the water is bubbling strangely. It's definitely not normal rainwater. As you watch, the water rises unnaturally, stopping and starting. It's as if the water level is responding to an external stimulus.

• The glass is soundproof. You can't hear what the person inside is saying, so you'll have to communicate with each other another way. Try charades, typing on your phone, or whatever you think of. Eventually, you determine that they're stuck and that you need to enter some sort of code onto a pad located—according to your trapped partner—at the back of the building.
• Around the back, shadows swallow your surroundings. The panel must be pried open, but a slippery substance makes it hard to get a good grip. Each time the substance touches you, you grow uneasy. You swear you see eyes watching you, though when you turn around, nothing's there.
• You can't seem to keep the instructions in your mind. And those symbols...they burn into your retinas. Through them, you glimpse an incomprehensibly massive figure unfurling in the darkness, pulsing as if in a deep sleep. When you snap back to reality, you realize you've injured yourself, slicing your hand on a sharp edge or a bruise you can't remember getting.
• Once you manage to release the doors, the water inside the office drains upward into the sky as though sucked out by a giant hose. The darkness spreads. Get out of there fast before the shadows drag you or your partner into the void.

Of course, you don't have to help anyone. You can leave the individual there, make a deal, or outright extort them. But remember, you're not the only person on these roads. You might want to play your cards carefully, even if altruism isn't your first instinct.

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Comments

[faithfall]

Oh? My apologies. You reminded me of an acquaintance of mine, is all. Something of your manner, I suppose...

[ Would Emil balk at being called a friend? Perhaps not, but Adrian tries not to presume too much, even now.

He doesn't fuss when the man moves to stand over the bed. He isn't in the way, and doesn't seem intent on causing any trouble. He understands, even: they're virtual strangers, and he too would want to ensure that nothing nefarious was being done. ] Our patient took something. I can't say what, but it's not done him any favors, internally... I'm stabilizing his condition now, so he'll be up in a few hours — unhappy, perhaps, but up. For however long he'd like to be.

[ The puncture wounds knit themselves together, staving off the beginnings of a nasty infection, but the bruises remain dark and the man continues to sleep. There was a time when he would have poured all of his power into trying to fix everything, but not now.

He straightens, rubbing at the back of his neck. ] You're not a werewolf, but it sounded as if you were fighting one in your room before all of this. I haven't got much to offer, and you appear to be uninjured, so I'll help you tidy up. As payment. Come along, Mr..?

[ Is he just going to walk out of his room and into Logan's without an invite? The answer is yes. ]

[carcajous]

[ Logan's still looking at the guy out cold. Smells like a junkie to him. Sounds about right. He doesn't know about leaving the patient here to wake up in a strange place with even stranger men looking down, but the doc doesn't seem too bothered. Not his room, anyway. Logan shrugs it off. He's ready to head back to his, finally catch some more sleep, when— ]

Hey— [ Jesus, pal, you can't barge into a man's room like that. Logan stops at the threshold, one hand on the door frame as his new walking headache is already inside. His lips thin into a line, exasperated. ] Just—fuck off on back, I don't need anything.

[ Goddamn it. He brushes past and picks up the scattered bottle on the ground. His room's. Fine. He knocked a couple things over, okay? The rest is him not giving much of a shit about cleaning up when he's not gonna be here long. It's a couple of pizza boxes stacked in a corner and a makeshift ashtray that hasn't been emptied in a few days. It's a bloodstained shirt balled up on a rickety chair. It's too much booze for one person lying around. Hard to tell if he's been paying for that stuff or he's been taking it. (The answer is both.)

But there's a distinct absence of weapons. In place of them, he's apparently amassed some books, the random ones you'd find in a Goodwill for fifty cents. Whatever. He needs something to do when he's wide awake at 3 A.M. ]

[faithfall]

[ Adrian lets himself into the room, apparently not at all concerned with the very large and annoyed man grumbling after him. If Mr. Fuck Off was going to do anything violent, it would have been before Adrian set foot in here to begin with. Probably? Someone else might have a real plan to contend with that, or might have been entirely sure of how the man would react, but the truth is that Adrian has little in the way of defense against a sudden physical attack, even an ordinary one, and this is just a gamble that has so far fallen in his favor. If he dies, he dies.

He likes to have faith in people. Even the ones who may have stumbled on their way. ]

You can call me Adrian. From the looks of this place, you definitely need 'anything'.

[ For all his prim fussiness, only the furrow between his brows betrays Adrian's opinion of the man's room. He has no idea how this man is standing upright if he drinks this much in the ordinary course, but he's known enough men who'd drink themselves to stupor to know that moralizing or pleading will be a largely pointless endeavor.

He takes it all in with an otherwise clinical expression, noting the lack of a second body to explain all of the noise earlier, the lack of weaponry, and the stacks of books. Curious. Perhaps his natural inclination was right about this one.

Whether the man is collecting bottles to help or just to make a point, Adrian smiles at him, wry... even if he does side step to ensure that they don't brush against each other. ] Worry not, Mr. Fuck Off, I will be gone before you can miss me.

[ He stops at the ashtray and passes a hand over it, fingers contorting in sharp, specific gesture. ] I pray for your cleansing grace. [ The ashtray empties, perfectly cleaned. ] Look at it this way: there will be less people to bother you if you aren't indebted for various damages to the room itself.

[ He's already moving to gather the boxes so that they can be disposed of. He pauses at the sight of that bloody shirt — at least, the opacity of the stain indicates that it's likely to be blood. Difficult to be sure when he can't see colour in the dark. ] Is that your blood? You're not injured, are you?

[carcajous]

[ Y'know, he wishes he'd been fighting a werewolf or a burglar in his room. Be easier to get rid of those than. This guy.

He's getting a headache. And it's not the whiskey, because despite the empties lying around, Logan is strangely—to somebody who might not know his deal—stone cold sober. Doesn't even look an inch hungover.

—Seriously. You're gonna pray his ashes away. Okay, fine, that'll work. He'll take it. He tosses the bottle into the trash basket where he'd been in the middle of collecting the rest. There's shards of glass inside from the bulb, though the lamp's been put back upright already. Shade's a bit crooked.

He squints. Oh, yeah. That. ] Nope.

[ No, it's not his blood? No, he's not injured? Both? Doesn't matter. Logan makes no effort to clear that up, just sighs and stands in the middle of the room with his hands on his hips. Adrian, huh? ]

Listen, smartass, the only one bothering me is you. [ Because he can physically throw everybody else out of his room. Probably make them think twice about coming back. He doesn't have the heart to kick Adrian out. It's—whatever. The kid's earnest. Annoyingly earnest. He's trying a different tactic, okay? Charles would be real proud. ] I don't know what things were like back home, but out here, you're gonna get yourself killed if you keep this up, understand?

[faithfall]

[ Very informative, this one. He doesn't look any more injured than he does drunk. Adrian gives him a flat look and moves to deposit the pizza boxes by the door so that he can carry them out later, and just working around the man like he's a big angry floor lamp in the middle of the room. The glass shards get swept away by the same murmured prayer and prestidigitation, disappearing into the weave.

He does throw the man a briefly sympathetic look, though it's perhaps undercut by the fact that he doesn't cease in the bothering. ] With all due respect... Your cautions would be more effective if you weren't attempting to drink yourself into an early grave. And anyway, aren't you doing just the same, letting a strange man into your room to fuss with your things?

I can look after myself. [ Adrian lies.

He collects the shirt from the chair, opening it to see if he can find any telltale holes. ] Do you know what I don't understand? You stink of alcohol and cigars — no offense. You've clearly been consuming both in excess. Yet you are completely sober, and you don't appear to be suffering the ill effects of sudden sobriety. Is it magic? Or something else? If you aren't human, you needn't fear — neither am I.

[ Human is his best guess — it's what he tries to pass as when he can. Though non-human species are common in Faerûn, it doesn't mean they're all as welcome as the ubiquitous humans might be.

Perhaps he should be more cautious, but at the moment he can't say that he's terribly intimidated by a man who, thus far, has seemed to be a danger only to himself. Much like Fern, he's been more than accommodating despite his growling. ]

[carcajous]

[ The look Logan returns is equally flat. Uh-huh. Where's Kitty to send him back in time twenty minutes so he never opens that damn door? ]

Nothing early about my grave, trust me.

[ Also, he didn't let Adrian in, he wants to put that on the record. It's. Never mind. He apparently is letting him clean up now. At this point, he might as well. The kid's already put his hands on all his stuff. (There are several holes in that shirt.) The least he can get out of it is a cleaning service he didn't ask for. Not as if these motels have got anybody doing the rooms.

He isn't tipping, though.

Not human. Yeah, he's already figured that much out about Adrian—an easy assumption for him when his world's divided into two explicit categories. Maybe that's why after a beat, he decides to answer. He picks up a little stack of paperbacks. ]

I heal fast. [ Technically, that's an answer. He's not keeping it a secret, and he's sure as hell not afraid of being found out. Just don't feel like getting into it. The books are plopped down on the nightstand. ] What about you, you're just a walking dustpan?

[faithfall]

[ He does have a weary air about him, as if the world has been weighing on his shoulders for far too long, though Adrian can't even begin to guess how old he must be. He certainly doesn't look a day over fifty. Adrian refrains from saying that aloud. ]

A dustpan? [ He wrinkles his nose. Certainly not the worst thing he's been called. ] I'll take that title under consideration, but at the moment I'm what you might call — plane-touched. It's a bit complicated but all there is to know is that it was accident of birth, even if others might see it differently. I'm nothing particularly special.

[ He cleans the shirt while he has it, and a prickle of pain at the back of his neck tells him that he ought to use his magic a bit more conservatively. Adrian rubs at it, irritated. ] I can't mend your shirt, but perhaps someone else will, now that it isn't crusted with blood. You must heal very quickly indeed...

[ He folds the shirt before setting it back down where he found it. He does look over at the nightstand, snooping just a bit. ] I'll admit, I've never heard of such a knack, but it is nice to know I needn't worry about you quite so much... At least, not for that reason. Your taste in novels, however... [ Adrian smiles. ] Will you tell me your name before I go, if nothing else?

[carcajous]

[ Logan's eyebrow arches. Actually, yeah, he'll take the simple explanation. There's not much more to him, either, other than accident of birth. One of nature's little flukes. ]

Well, now you have. [ Heard of it, that is. If he's supposed to offer more about what his deal is in return...he's not.

By the time Adrian's getting into his books, Logan's patience has run out, which is saying something considering it's probably been feeling, to Adrian, like it ran out about fifty years ago. But it's only now that he starts shooing Adrian out, corralling him toward the open door. ]

It's Logan. [ He pulls the door open even wider in case the hint's not obvious enough. ] C'mon, let's go. Get outta here.

[ He'll disappear the next morning, anyhow—a two-day trip that ends up with him returning to the other side where there is power and where he inevitably bumps into Scott and Charles. ]