TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

[thediadem]

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

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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.

Main Navigation ::: ⇅ Top

Comments

❧ ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴠᴇʜɪᴄʟᴇ

[stonethrow]

( one moment gustave was fighting a nevron in the caverns of stone wave cliffs, and the next—here he was, a migraine blossoming on the back of his head (did he get hit by the nevron, fall unconscious?), none of his fellow expeditioners nearby. disorienting is one way to put it, and his panic almost gives way to a stream of bile out of his empty stomach. some medicine they give him, and although he feels the electric tingles of anxiety under his skin, he's... better.

whatever 'better' can be defined as.

a solution is given to him, though: the idea that those he is looking for might very well be found at the end of the road, in panorama. it's not a certainty, but there's not much he can do, as yom crook (what an unpleasant name, he thinks) basically tosses him off to find his way, he's got other things to do.

after picking out a car that supplies his endless engineering curiosity with questions, he trails off to the side of the scrapyard, manual in hand, hesitantly handling the keys and passing the pages with a cinched brow. does the author of this manual accept feedback?

stepping to the side, he sits down (tumbling back a little, this cinder block was lower than he anticipated), checks his backpack to make sure he still has all his items with him—his journal, the lumina converter—before he starts poring over the pages of the manual. )

Automobiles — place the key onto the ignition...

( his words trail off as he glances up, realizing something that seems pretty important. this is a standard manual for every vehicle here. so— his arms droop between his knees, helplessly, speaking his grievances out to nobody in particular. )

Aren't these all different types of vehicles? How does one manual fit all?

fyi I'm good with spoilers up to act 2!

[frighteningly]

I believe, although the shell is unique, the inner workings are all quite similar.

[ With grease on her hands (and a streak or two on her face), and her hair shoved messily out of her face, Nadiya looks far less like a queen than she did a few weeks ago. Aside from food, her main purchase of significance has been a tool belt and a slow gathering of old, cheap tools; she wears it the way others might wear their most beloved jewelry—consistently and with great care.

Assuming by his uniform that this man is a soldier, she speaks crisp Arnesian and not High Royal. It'll be a minute before she figures out it doesn't make a difference.

Wearing a small smile, she asks— ]

Do you require some assistance?

ty for heads up! will mark if anything comes up <3

[stonethrow]

( emotion often overrules his critical thinking, the logical side of his brain, and all the while he hadn't necessarily expected someone to listen and give him room for a genuine conversation.

he takes a deep breath, glancing up at the woman. )

That'd make sense.

( he figures, closing the manual and rolling it up in his hands. there's a shakiness that he can't quite control just yet, but flexing his knuckles helps. it helps enough for him to notice the tool belt she carries, the tools toted from it.

with a breath of a laugh, his shoulders relax a touch. )

Sorry — I am usually more on my toes. Perhaps I do need some.

( the smile offered, it's friendly; he mirrors it, then motions at the car he's chosen as his own. )

Are you familiar with these vehicles?

[frighteningly]

Only very recently. They're fascinating, are they not? Back home, we did not have anything nearly so efficient.

[ If being here didn't mean Nadiya was separated from her daughter, she might want to stay forever.

Crossing the aisle of the scrapyard, the herm of her dress has clearly seen better days and she's cradling a carburetor's accelerator pump in one hand like it's one of Ren's guinea pigs to be ferried out. If she looks like an expert: she isn't. Not yet, anyway. But there's a comfort in the way she moves through the scrapyard and a keen, polite curiosity in her gaze. ]

You have your keys, yes? We can start there.

[stonethrow]

( he appreciates this, being able to have a conversation to focus on. gustave has never done to well lingering in his own feelings, but—keeping busy? bouncing off of others, intellectually and otherwise? it heals something lonely and broken inside him. )

In mine, we created many different kinds of transportation vehicles. Nothing—ever—like this.

( he motions at that car, and now, finally, places his mechanical arm on his knee and pushes himself up to stand, presenting her with the keys he's been given along with the car. )

Oui. Were you given such a chariot, too? ( he raises a brow— ) I see you've found yourself a set of tools.

[frighteningly]

My chariot is quite unique. I have been told it is called a hearse in some townships.

[ Nadiya enjoys the exaggerated trunk space and the way a few cars have pulled over to let her pass when she's been driving. Not many, but enough that she isn't assuming it is a coincidence. One day, she'll learn what that word means. For now, she's filing it away with other words she's learned recently: car, truck, petrol. ]

Like you said, your key goes into the ignition. It's a type of physical password. Your vehicle will not turn on without it.

[ A gesture toward his car. As far as she's concerned, they're not going to learn much by staring at it from five feet away. ]

Would you like to try?

[catharses]

You're asking the very question I was thinking earlier.

[ Because Sunday's also here studying this manual very carefully just a car over as he's seated inside the one he's now responsible for with the windows rolled down since the weather's rather nice. It'd seemed prudent to figure out if the paperwork he was provided - and the same this man's also received from the sound of it - held anything he should know before working on remembering how to drive. Parts of it are familiar, but the lack of technology he sees before him... is not.

That lament avoid aloud got his attention from looking for the switch to turn the car's lights on (safety first, after all) to look over to where the man's seated. ]

You've driven others before, then? I'm used to self driving cars myself though it doesn't seem we'll be fortunate enough to be provided those.

[ But it'd sure solve some problems (or just Sunday's) if they were! ]

[stonethrow]

( safety first and all, sure, but the switching on of the headlights onto gustave has him covering his eyes with his right hand, squinting between his fingers to put a face to the voice.

figures this kind of situation was likely to happen.

so, he inches himself up to stand up fully, reaching over to the open window of the automobile, where the gray-haired man sits. he looks young... despite the hair color. )

I have never seen or used any of these before. ( his home, in lumiere, has need of no such things. ) What do you mean there are 'self-driving' ones?

( suddenly, his interest is piqued. )

[catharses]

[ It's only when the man's hand comes up Sunday realizes the unfortunate aiming of the lights, and just as quickly reaches to flick the switch back to the 'off' position. He's absolutely going to pretend that nothing happened unless asked.

His attention instead turns to the man as he now approaches, studying his face for a moment even as his own reflects the mildest of surprise in a shift from the rather serious one it'd had before. ]

These cars specifically, or cars in general?

[ A genuine question, but - the follow up question rather answers that so Sunday shakes his head, one wingtip brushing against his shoulder. No need to answer that when he can keep right on talking. ]

The self-driving ones were a bit - [ an understatement - ] of a luxury among the cars I was familiar with. Or rather, was a passenger in considering if it wasn't the car driving itself then there was a driver handling that piece. A superfluous detail to what you've asked, though, which is that the technology existed to make such a thing possible. It seems that here the technology is... not the same.

[ To say the least. ]

[stonethrow]

( after a moment's breath of listening to the other man speak about 'luxury' and cars, of the idea of something automated enough to drive itself blossoms in his mind with potential intricacies that would be worth exploring, gustave lets out a quiet laugh. )

Incroyable. I suppose it can definitely be possible.

( he is thinking with elements that he understands; should there be something akin to chroma here, perhaps it could be fused together with what rudimentary technology is already here, combine the two. the lumina converter was only a dream until it became reality, after all.

there's an extension of excitement growing in him, despite his first impression of a guy down-in-the-dumps. )

Would it be much to ask — what you do know of cars? There seems to be an engineering element to make it run, but there are other... aspects. ( gustave motions at the dashboard, the knobs, the buttons, switches. ) I assume it all holds a function connecting to the engine.

( principles of engineering and all. )

[catharses]

[ Sunday notes that shift, gradual as it is up until it reaches the tipping point where the cars become something exciting rather than something onerous. To the other man, at least, since Sunday's still oblivious to the Car Struggles in his near future and rather happily so with enough other distractions in the meantime. This included, technically, though he finds he does not mind at all. It's always good to be of use. ]

I must confess I will be of little to no help in explaining the fine details, [ he begins with chagrin in his tone, the close-enough-to-an-apology for his lack of knowledge meant rather genuinely, ] as my life before was more in administration than mechanics on top of mainly being a passenger. There may be some similarities enough as I recognize some of what's here. If you'd care to...?

[ With a wave to the other half of the rather large bench seat since the passenger door is unlocked if that would be easier to go over what's here; otherwise, Sunday will continue on. ]

The engine powers most everything else once the ignition is started, and in the cars I know what's here controls everything else. How fast you go, which direction you want. Oh, and do stop me if I repeat anything you've already read. My sister says I have a habit of going on about things.

[godjr]

( Jack is still deciding between a car and a motorcycle. He wants the motorcycle, they are cool, and he thinks Dean and Sam would be impressed, but he doesn't know how to drive one, and he does know how to drive a car. But none of them are cool. It's a hard decision. He is puzzled as he looks back and forth between them, and he turns his head when he hears someone talking to themselves. The man is sitting on the ground looking through a manual.)

It's smart. Jack didn't see anything in the manual that would make more sense of the motorcycle so it's not helping him. He nods his head in reply to the question. It doesn't make sense, does it?

I don't think it does, they're not very safety worried here. I was thinking of a motorcycle, but it doesn't explain that at all.

(Jack points to the one he's considering.)

I don't know how to use a bicycle, I think it's important that you do.

( But he wants it. It's illogical and unsafe but Jack's never gotten to be cool a single day in his (albeit short) life. He wants to be like the Matrix where they zoomed around impressively. Maybe he can even get a long coat. He decides to just sit down next to the man.)

Cars are easy though. You put the key in the ignition and then you aim the wheel at where you want to go, and you put your foot on the gas. Then you just move forward. I've driven twice, it's really nice.

[stonethrow]

( oh.

he's not exactly expecting his woes to be answered so earnestly, figuring that he's just complaining into the air until he wraps his head around leaving his more emotional instincts and focus, instead, on learning how the damn contraption actually works. it's not not appreciated, though, and gustave considers the young man for a moment.

a bicycle? well, that he knows. )

Really? I suppose bicycles are mostly about confidence and keeping your balance.

( not overly complicated, though, if asked, gustave would say, after gazing upon the motorcycle being considered, that it looks rather impressive... 'cool', as the young ones might say. )

I think I'm trying too hard to understand how it works, rather than just working out the basics of it.

( hmm... this actually is useful, to realize that he was overcomplicating things for himself. )

—would you mind a quick demonstration? This is the first time I've encountered these 'cars'. We can sort you out on your motorcycle, to return you the favor.

RIP some of my html last tag

[godjr]

Are they? I think I have pretty good balance!

[ Jack's not clumsy, it would be very bad news for everyone if he was clumsy with everything else that he can do by accident. He frowns thoughtfully at the thought process of his new friend though, crossing his arms as he considers. Jack is not much of a car guy. He usually is just a passenger in the Impala, with Dean always being the driver, and he's been allowed to drive, but no one explained how cars are made or how they function. ]

I don't know how it works, actually, I guess I've never thought about it.

[ If Gustave is going to have to wait to drive until he understands it, that would probably take a lot of time. Jack nods and gets back up to his feet, brushing his clothes off and offering him a hand up. He can't explain how the car functions but he can show him the practical side of putting the key in and driving forward and back. He's not an expert but he can do enough. ]

So that's called the passenger side, it's where other people go, if you want to sit there.

[stonethrow]

( gustave takes the hand without hesitation; he usually has a good take on people based on what feeling they give him, and he thinks faking all this enthusiasm and friendliness isn't entirely something someone could easily do.

so, up he goes— )

The passenger side, that does make sense.

( 'enough' is what gustave needs right now. the rest, he'll learn in time. he moves around the car, towards the passenger side's door, and gets in. )

I'm Gustave, by the way. Thank you for your help.

[godjr]

( Jack is terrible at deception and if he tried to lie to Gustave, he would know immediately. He doesn't see a reason to. His new friend seems very nice and just lost on what to do. Jack often doesn't know what to do, so it's exciting to be the knowledgeable one for once. Dean would be proud, hopefully. He gets into the car and glances over.)

Okay you need to use this handle to decide whether to drive or reverse. It is marked with a D and R.

( He jiggles it to show him. The car is different from the Impala but he's pretty sure everything is exactly where it should be. Hopefully. He might need to play around with some of the controls.)

This puts the window wipers on if it is raining. ( He flicks that and it goes far too fast and intense for a few seconds until he hastily pulls it back.) And the lights if it gets dark.

( He'd only driven in the daylight but he knows what to do if not. He likes being in a car. It feels right, given how much travel they did.)

And then down by your feet you have pedals. The one on the right makes you go forward. The one on the left makes you stop. You need to be ready to hit the brake really hard if something is in your way.

( That lesson given, Jack puts it into drive*** and looks in the mirrors, he doesn't want to crash it. He drives very slowly around the Scrapyard so his friend can see him move the wheel.)


[*** if you don't imagine an automatic just imagine he taught him how to do the stick shift instead!]

[yeahmagnets]

[ Jesse's just finishing his third slow lap around the busted-up van Yom handed him, he's not sure how many days ago. It's some Frankenstein’d piece of shit, but it has charm. It needs an alignment, though, hence his return to the 'yard. He hears a voice cut through the scrapyard din. Jesse turns, clocking the other guy hunched on a cinderblock and flipping through one of those useless-ass “universal” manuals they handed out like candy. The frustration’s written all over him. Jesse recognizes it. Hell, he’s lived it.

He crosses the gap between them. There's a hitch in his walk that he doesn't bother hiding. Too many nights sleeping in a car, too many mornings waking up somewhere strange, still healing from injuries from his arrival and from...before. He stops just a couple of feet away and squints down at the book in Gustave’s hands. ]

Yeah, good luck with that. Thing's like tryna learn brain surgery from a damn cereal box, man. Might s'well be written in Klingon.

[ He offers up a lopsided grin, one that’s half sympathy, half amusement. This guy’s clearly out of his depth, but Jesse’s not mocking him. If anything, he kind of gets it. Lost, overwhelmed, looking for something solid to stand on. ]

I can probably walk you through it. If you want. Got the keys?

[ There’s an ease in the way he talks, the way he moves. Being useful? That's a drug all of its own to Jesse. For a moment, he’s not a fugitive or a burnout or someone one bad decision away from an overdose. He’s just a guy who knows cars. And maybe that’s enough for now. ]

[stonethrow]

( he looks up at the young man speaking to him, uninvited but certainly not unwelcome. the fact that this kind of frustration and sympathy for how very useless the information they've been given seems to be a not-just-a-gustave-problem puts him at ease, truly.

(brain surgery? cereal box? klingon???) )

Ah—

( the offer comes forth without prompting, catching gustave by surprise. he recovers easily enough to fetch them from his pants' pocket, presenting the keyring. )

I do have the keys. ( but, ) You aren't busy, are you?

( to be fair, to gustave, he seems a little jittery, like he's got things to get to. perception might be wrong, though. )

[yeahmagnets]

Nah, man. I got time. Waiting on my ride to get fixed. Had a little, uh, incident the other day.

[ Jesse rubs the back of his neck, cringing a little. He'd rather not recall being run off the road the same day he got here, but it is what it is. Long story short, no, he's not busy. His shoulders still carry the buzz of aimless motion, though, a restless edge behind the way he shifts his weight from foot to foot. That isn't the same as having something better to do, though. That’s just Jesse. He's wired for movement even when there’s nowhere to go or nothing to do. He can rarely sit still, even when it's necessary. Doing something with his hands, though? Helping someone else make sense of the mess? That’s as close to peace as he gets. ]

C'mon. Bring the keys.

[ He walks toward Gustave’s vehicle, something boxy and foreign-looking, all sharp lines and clunky promise. The heat from the sun is brutal on the scrap metal around them, the air carrying that familiar tang of scorched rubber and rust, like the whole yard is holding its breath between fires. Jesse swings the driver's door open with a creak and motions for Gustave to get in. He walks around the car to the passenger side, climbing aboard and leaning over slightly to look at the dashboard. ]

Have you driven any type of vehicle before? Or this a whole new world kinda thing?

[ There’s no judgment behind the question, just curiosity and gauging how much direction he needs to give. ]

[stonethrow]

( he will take help where he can get it, which is why gustave gets up at the young man's prompting and heads on over to the car. he offers a merci as the driver's door is opened for him, taking a seat inside and waiting for his new friend to climb in.

there is no tinge of embarrassment as he answers the question, just a sense of quiet surrender to the circumstances; this is not his home, his world, and he is completely out of his depth. his words are quiet, a lilting french accent to his tone. )

I'm afraid not. The most I have been in charge of 'driving' is a ship, but I'm sure many would say it is probably for the best that I wasn't in charge.

( a bit of a humorless smile paints his face, thinking of his friends—

no. focus, gustave.

he presents the keys, sitting on his palm. what next? )

I am an engineer, though. This doesn't seem too out of the realm of things we would plan and design with enough time to sort out the mechanics. These keys turn it on?

[yeahmagnets]

Well, a ship's better than never driving anything.

[ Jesse settles into the passenger seat, the door creaking shut behind him. Everything here is strange, even the familiar. The layout, the feel of the thing. It’s like someone took every car he’s ever known and scrambled the pieces, leaving just enough behind to make him think he could still figure it out. He shifts, stretches one arm across the dash, then lets his hand fall back to his lap. ]

Yeah.

[ Jesse replies, nodding toward the ignition, voice a little rough from the heat and the dust. ]

You put the key in here.

[ Jesse demonstrates, taking the keys from Gustave's open palm and pushing it into the ignition slot. ]

Okay, now look down by your feet and you'll see two pedals. One on the right is to go and the one on the left is to stop. You gotta hold down the left one when you turn the key to start it. You'll hear the engine kick on and then you can let go of the key.

[ He explains. It feels kind of nice to be the one explaining how something works. Most of the time it's the other way around for him. Some might take this opportunity to belittle someone else the way he's been, but Jesse does the opposite. He tries to explain things the way he would want someone else to explain it to him. Outside, the scrapyard hums with a low, metallic kind of patience. Somewhere distant, something crashes. A dropped engine, maybe. Wind snakes through the open windows, carrying the scent of sun-scorched rubber. Jesse lets it roll over him, anchoring himself to the here, the now, the rhythm of small steps that might still lead somewhere. He tries not to think of home, of Mr. White. Of everything he might have left behind. ]

[sawel]

[Rune doesn’t imagine that this guy was taking to him specifically, but he looks just about as tired and shaken as he feels, and he could really use a moment or two of not being in his own head right now, and so he answers.]

Who the hell even knows. Technically, they really aren’t supposed to, but I guess if you get down to the basics, on some level it’s all the same.

[He straightens from where he’s been poking at one of said vehicles in question. It’s a little hard to do, all things considered, with one of his arms strapped to his chest in a sling the way the doctors had left it, and honestly, he probably looks like shit. He feels like shit, and he’s questioning whether he should honestly be driving with the drugs they’ve given him, but that’s neither here nor there.]

I take it you’ve never driven a car before.

((ooc: just as a note for my own purposes, i only really know the game up into the beginning of act 1 so i'm a beginner haha but always fun to learn canons through cr!))

noted on your game point! no spoilers here :)

[stonethrow]

( something about the approaching man worries gustave, and it's just the thing, really, for him to get out of his own head. here is an injured man, speaking a little more slurred than perhaps he realizes, and it spurs gustave into action, picking himself up from where he's sitting. )

I haven't, no. I was hoping the manual ( —which he has by now left on the ground with his other belongings— ) could offer some more technical advice than the very basics of it.

( but... more importantly... )

Are you alright? You are — stumbling a little.

( he reaches with his hands, hesitantly, just in case. )

I would extend the same courtesy but idk how much you care about his obscure book canon haha

[sawel]

[Rune blinks slightly. Somewhere between point A and point B they have stopped talking about cars and started talking about him and he’s. Well, he’s not doing great, to put it mildly, but is that really any of this stranger’s concern?

He waves a hand, awkwardly — his one free hand, since that’s all he’s got — as if to suggest that he’s fine, really, don’t worry about it, but just looking at him one can clearly observe otherwise.]

I’ve, uh. Seen better days. [Understatement.] If I had known I’d find myself in a place like this, I might have stocked up on Healing spells but, y’know. Hindsight is 20-20. [He offers an awkward, half-hearted smile and a shrug which is a bad idea because his shoulder is definitely nowhere near recovered from the attack. Rune sucks in a sharp breath of pain, curling in on himself slightly. Motherfucker, that stings.]

:') i'm all good ahhsdhf

[stonethrow]

( gustave's hands go down at the wave, because while he's willing to help, he can also respect when others want to have a say. he'll just be extra watchful.

the mention of healing spells does remind him— )

It's no healing spell, but I... have a healing tint. It might help ease your pain.

( especially since it seems to be really getting to him. )