diademooc | TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

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TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

Test Drive ∞ May 2025

The First Collision

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

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

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.

Main Navigation ::: ⇅ Top

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

A. The Junkyard

[ Fortune does not favor Arlecchino as it rarely does, and so she's only given one choice of vehicle: a beat up old motorcycle that looks one crash shy of a baker's dozen. It may have been a sleek little thing once, but no longer.

This isn't the first time she's been strong-armed into a bad deal, so she takes it with a certain amount of grace. Involuntary grace and certainly not her first choice of reaction, but it's the one that will get her in the least amount of trouble. So here she is. Calmly reading the user's manual to her brand new piece of junk. Dressed in a full suit with sharp manicured nails and punishing high heels, Arlecchino makes an odd partner to her motorcycle as she leans lightly against it.

Every so often she glances up at the other fluxdrifts unfortunate enough to be in the same situation, watching unabashedly with crimson-cut eyes as they test out their own vehicles. Her intense gaze and serious expression may make a certain impression, but her tone is conversational enough as she greets whoever may be freshly stepping out of their vehicle. ]

Pleasant ride?

[ She asks regardless of how smooth or wretched the test drive seemed to go. ]

B. 🎵On the Road to Panorama City🎵

[ The road to Panorama is a long one, no doubt filled with a number of sights to break the monotony. Here's one more:

A heavily built car, nearly a truck, crumpled on its nose in the middle of the road. The impact it made was enough to leave an impression in the asphalt, the incident recent enough to leave a faint rise of smoke. The occupants of the car? Obscured or unrecognizable -- tough to tell through the mess in the windows.

Arlecchino idles nearby, she and her motorcycle enjoying the shade of a lone tree beneath the high sun. She seems to be calmly enjoying a sip of some beverage from a bottle. A "borrowed" bag hangs from one handlebar.

Stop to investigate? Be her guest. ]

C. Wildcard

(( Something else?! I'm easy breezy, hit me! ))

[ As luck would have it, Vi's ride is something similar to her own: a rugged motorbike that's definitely seen better days, with peeling paint and tires that don't quite match. The state of it barely made an impression. Among all the bullshit of today, getting a vehicle out of it is the least worst part. It helps, a little, to speed her frustrations away.

Vi has never driven, but she's a quick learner. With her excellent balance and general lack of what one might consider a healthy amount of caution, it feels easy. The engine rumbles and sputters unevenly, tires streaking the road when she takes the turn too fast. ]

Shit-- [ The bike nearly tips, but she's got fast reflexes. Vi kicks out her leg to push up from the ground, revs the throttle, and jerks forward enough to right herself before hitting the brake and coming to an erratic stop near the woman who's been watching her. ]

Hm. Getting the hang of it.

[ Arlecchino does prefer to learn from other people's mistakes, so the other woman's battle with her own motorcycle is of particular interest. The woman seems capable enough, bold in a way that suits an athletic vehicle. A good example to learn from. ]

I'm pleased to hear it. Normally, I would expect machinery like this to take quite a bit of training to conquer.

[ Though as she speaks, she knows that the concept of training must be a joke in the Junkyard. The whole place is a comedy. ]

Was that your vehicle of choice?

[ She disembarks with more grace than she parked, hunting around for a few moments for the kickstand before nudging it into place. Vi looks back over, rolling her shoulders and neck to try to work out the kinks. The soreness isn't from the bike. More likely related to the brace on her wrist and the bandage above her already scarred eyebrow. (Apparently it's common for fluxdrifts to arrive injured, she was told. Though she wishes she could remember exactly what happened.)

Well. At least this one person isn't immediately being an asshole. Refreshing.

Vi approaches with a tentative smile. ]

Yeah, actually. Wanted something... versatile. I liked this better than the big one. [ She nods toward some parked pickup trucks. ]

Guess I got lucky.

Though if you're hoping for lessons, keep looking. It's my first day.

[ While she's aware that she doesn't make for the most inviting of presences, Arlecchino is at least on her best behavior for now. There's no sense in antagonizing those who have been preyed on in the same manner as she — not without fair reason.

In lieu of a return smile, she gently closes her user's manual when the other woman approaches, setting it aside. ]

Is that so? [ An affected little sigh. ] And here I thought you looked the kind, charitable soul. It seems I'll simply have to endure looking the fool instead.

[ There's a hint of drama among the even tones of her voice, yet she remains straight-faced. Her odd little version of a joke, maybe. She straightens, black hands and sharp nails lightly dusting her coat where it rested against her motorcycle. All precise propriety next to the other woman's relaxed approach. ]

If I can't have a lesson, perhaps you'll at least grant me an introduction. I am The Knave. [ Fourth of the Fatui Harbingers... she doesn't say. A habit suppressed. ]

(( ooc: sorry for the delay! happy to handwave or overflow if you've got one. ))

[ Vi snorts, but it comes with a twitch of her lip in a crooked smile. She doesn't mind a little sarcasm. ]

Oh, I could be charitable enough. Here's what I can teach you: I've figured out how to make it go. And mostly how to stop. Most of the time.

[ Nothing against an introduction, either-- but the other woman's attempt at one makes Vi pause. She cocks her head. That can't possibly be a name. Is she being insulted somehow and she doesn't get it? ]

...first name "The," surname "Knave"? Your parents must've lost a bet.

(( ooc: no worries! I'm down to keep going for now over here! ))

[ So they're in Panorama now. Sprawling city, much bigger than even the winding streets of the Court of Fontaine, with buildings rising far taller than he's used to. And with any big city comes....well, a certain amount of crime. It's not really his job to take care of things - they have Gardes for that, or as the locals call them, 'Enforcers' - but it's hard not to notice the occasional purse swiping here or the suspicious figure in the shadows there when so much of his life had been spent in the company of exactly that.

It's only when he catches sight of a well-dressed gentleman leading a little girl away from her parents that he bothers to intervene.

'Intervene' but it's more of a redirection of his original path, his afternoon sweet treat forgone in favor of following this odd pair that no one else seems to think twice about. Casually, hands tucked into his jacket pockets - his ostentatious coat and vest combo has since been swapped out for a much more unremarkable red hoodie plucked off the rack of an unassuming thrift store - he follows them, waiting until they merge into the shadows of a small back alley to make his presence known.

Except, as it turns out, he is not alone. ]

[ In the blackest shadows of the alley, a van is parked. White. Unmarked. ~~Cliche.~~ The well-dressed gentleman is guiding the girl toward it, speaking to her in sugary sweet tones. And then, he slows. Sensing something off. He drops the child's hand, eyes darting, survival instincts awakening.

Black hands emerge from the shadows and slowly, tenderly, place themselves over the child's eyes. The little girl startles slightly, but the voice that fills her ears is utterly calm, gentle. Soothing, if it weren't so cold. ]

Now, child. You've played for long enough. But before you go... would you like to see a magic trick?

[ The well-dressed gentleman is frozen now, shocked to silence by the well-dressed gentlewoman suddenly in the alley with them. But Arlecchino doesn't look at him; instead, she turns her head to look at Wriothesley, her eyes bright crimson in the darkness. ]

Our friend here is very good at disappearing.

[ Tendrils of baleful black and red seize the well-dressed gentleman's head completely so that he can't make a sound, no matter how he tries to claw the tendrils apart. ]

He may even vanish, as if... he was never here at all.

[ "That doesn't sound like a very good trick," the girl complains.

Nevertheless, Arlecchino invites Wriothesley with her eyes. Every magician needs an assistant. ]

[ Some would say that a life lived on the ocean floor might lead a person to become cut off from the rest of the world. But Wriothesley has always liked knowledge, even chased after it where his predecessor had been happy to sit and lounge on his throne, and it's that knowledge that leaves him with a precise awareness of just who it is that appears before him, despite the unfamiliarity to the even keel of her voice.

No time now to grapple with the questions of how and why The Knave might also be present in this strange new land. Between "magic trick" and the pointed glance she sends his way, he can put two and two together.

With his hands still in his pockets he crouches down until he's closer to eye level with the little girl, adopting a friendly smile that scrapes off only a little bit of the intimidation that comes with a larger build and visible scars on his person. ]

Well, you haven't seen the whole trick yet, now have you? Everything takes a little bit of patience and a whole lot of belief, magic included.

[ Stretching out one hand, he motions for her to take it. ]

Why don't you come stand here with me and close your eyes? And then we'll see if we can't make a bit of magic happen.

[ Apparently childish whimsy is enough to overcome her doubt; after a few moments, she does as instructed, migrating over to his side and dutifully closing her eyes. That's his cue to glance back at Arlecchino. Time to pass the metaphorical baton back to her. ]

[ Let it be said that she offered Wriothesley the opportunity to dispense justice himself. Though he clearly isn't associated with the law in this world, he must surely have an opinion on how charlatans should be handled: with severity or sympathy, in due time or with prejudice. The Knave certainly has her own strongly held beliefs.

And while normally she'd like to take her time with these things, she does have an audience. She can't profess to have Lyney's showmanship — why, she might even profess to being stage shy — but she can still manage a little something.

Crimson crosses pierce the darkness. Before Wriothesley's very eyes, the well-dressed gentleman takes flight. Shoots straight in the air, disappearing in the blink of an eye over the neighboring rooftop in complete silence. (The eagle-eyed might glimpse silken flashes wrapped around the man's neck in the moment before he disappeared.)

The Knave grants her audience of one a jesting bow and a smile, a crueler shade of Lyney's proud stage bows. ]

And... voila.

[ As promised, a vanishing act without a single trace left behind. ]

[ The smile fades from his face as he watches The Knave perform her little trick. Such a disappearance might not have been his preferred method of 'disappearance' but he's realistic enough to know that words, no matter how sternly delivered, aren't always enough to turn someone off their chosen path.

With Arlecchino's magic trick performed and done, the little girl opens her eyes—and then boggles at the realization that the strange man really had disappeared—without a trace or a sound. There's an oooooh of awe and a roll forward onto the balls of her feet as she excitedly asks how it was done. Since he is just the assistant here, Wriothesley keeps his mouth shut.

Mostly. ]

A magician never reveals her secrets, right? Though maybe this one will be kind enough to tell you on the way back to your guardians.

[ They're going to be the suspicious looking ones if they loiter in this back alley any longer. ]

[ Ah, the satisfaction of a job well done. Of course, Lyney might take umbrage with her calling that a magic trick when she hasn't bothered to make the disappeared party reappear... but this is why he's the professional, and his "Father" merely the amateur.

Arlecchino's expression mellows to neutrality as she addresses the little girl. ]

As the gentleman states, a magician cannot reveal her secrets. But hurry quickly enough, and I may just perform another trick for you.

[ The little girl's disappointment is quickly supplanted by an excited, "Okay!" Off she trots in the direction of her parents. Arlecchino passes Wriothesley an expectant look before following after the girl at her own pace. ]

arlecchino (the knave) | genshin impact

the junkyard.

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wildcard.

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a is for AAA, the insurance that clearly doesn't exist here

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