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

⇅ Top

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

⇅ Top

©

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

[stonethrow]

( verso just about makes it outside enough to fall into the line of sight of one of the trio, who elbows the leader of the group, pointing at him. their attention shifts from gustave, in front of them, to verso, to their right. they grin and snicker to themselves, a plan forming in their minds.

maybe verso looks like an easier target, or one they can take on? it should be insulting.

—or at least that's what gustave figures. )

No, no, ( he says in a tiny burst of air, stepping closer; oh, verso will hate this, how gustave steps in for his sake— ) leave him out of this. You want my arm, don't you?

[reverso]

[He absolutely hates it. His very soul rails against it, and not because he is indignant or prideful or because he doesn't think he requires the aid of anyone else. It is because it is Gustave; the man he could have saved but chose not to, or the man he condemned to a permanent death by damning the Canvas to its ultimate fate. Gustave should not be helping him like this, despite his seemingly kind nature. His selflessness is a cruelty, he just doesn't know it.

And perhaps that is its own brand of indignity, just enough to tear Verso out of his reverie, and he immediately steps forward before either party can continue.]

No.

[Without warning, one of his blades is summoned — the largest of his sword, as the smaller weapon is now missing in this world. But it appears with the usual smoky flare of chroma, materializing in its hand, and he immediately grips it by the hilt and lifts it to point the steel towards the troublemaking group.]

Leave him be. Or you'll find yourself in more trouble than you can handle, I promise you that.

[And if that's a bold declaration, not knowing what the residents of this world are capable of, well. He's stared down scarier.]

[stonethrow]

( this is a little unusual.

(just a little?)

the flare of chroma the blade appears in is all too familiar, and that much forces gustave to react, doing the exact same. in a swathe of gold light, a similar sword appears in his hand, and he is not as bold as pointing it towards the offenders between them, though it remains steady at his side—ready.

he has many questions, but they can wait—for after. right now, he tries to reason with the trio before this actually escalates. )

You are not well-equipped for this fight. Go, and we ( WE!! ) won't follow.

( that only seems to enrage the leader, who spits out a command to the other two, and gustave catches flashes of metal from under their coats; they, too, have weapons of some kind. it's but a matter of seconds, really— )

Fais attention, they have guns!

( which can prove, to them, a disadvantage, with just their swords. he curses not having his own gun at hand since arriving here; gustave quickly lunges forward, the hilt of his sword slamming against a moving arm, hitting the elbow, with enough force to dislocate it. a second tries to catch onto gustave by his shirt, topple him over; the third—the leader—aims for verso, instants from pulling the trigger. )

[reverso]

[Yes, no doubt Verso is just making things more confusing for Gustave, and adding to the chaos for all. But best to get strictly to the point—even if that point is one of steel—and end this. If it's going to turn into a fight, he'd rather get it over with. Or if the others are going to be smart about it, turning heel to run, then he wants them out of their sight so he can deal with... Gustave and all that his presence implies.

In the sudden moment where things escalate, he can't help but think to himself, Suppose they're not all that smart, after all.

Yes, they have firearms, but Verso is quick on his feet, and it seems that Gustave is much the same. The leader aims to fire at him, but Verso ducks down low, dashes forward in a surprising burst of speed, then collides into him shoulder-first, intending to knock him over to buy time.

A gunshot rings out. The leader has indeed staggered and fired it only into the air, falling over and slamming his back into the ground. Verso spins around, his sword arcing to take up the space between him and the other goons, having no qualms about slicing right across the guy who's trying to grasp onto the other Expeditioner.]

[stonethrow]

( gustave barely manages to take note of it, even as he manages to hit the second with the flat end of his blade and send him careening to the ground. but it is clear, the sound of a gunshot, alarming in the silence of the blackout, all but a few distance lights and the beauty of the chroma in their blades dotting around them. )

No!

( and his voice is clear, too, tinged with anger, as he deflects the stranger's blade with his own before it connects with the man. the angle is poor for gustave, and that much causes the blade to slice at his forearm—nothing too deep, but enough to draw blood and sting.

still, he doesn't act in anger to the stranger because of it. )

They're children! ( in the dark, it really is hard to tell, but gustave has a feeling about this; not that they're literal children, but they're young, perhaps a little bit older than maelle—with so many years to live.

he reasserts, sternly. ) We don't kill them.

( the sight of blood plus all the mishaps of their attempt to take on both verso and gustave have the three assailants cower, fear in their faces at the blood, and turning tail, picking after each other.

gustave breathes himself down from his ire, his eyes not leaving the man. unbothered by his bleeding arm.

he doesn't dismiss his sword. )

You're an Expeditioner.

[reverso]

[Shock runs through his wrist, his blade connecting with something he never accounted for — Gustave's own sword. It spares the assailant from a nasty wound across his back, though it presents the other Expeditioner with a fresh cut. Not nearly as bad as it could be, but not at all Verso's intent.

Merde. Really?

His attention remains squarely on their attackers, even as Gustave chides him for his actions, and he doesn't shift his awareness fully to the other man until they've run off. Eaten up by the darkness, and their scrambling footsteps fading.]

He wouldn't have died from a cut like that. And the scar would've reminded him to think twice before he pulled a similar stunt again.

[Maybe Verso was a tad bit emotional. Maybe his moral high ground is not quite as high as Gustave's. Both can be true, but it's clear he doesn't particularly regret it.

...He sighs, tired yet veins still throbbing with adrenaline. He lowers his arm and does dismiss his sword.]

I am. And I'm very surprised to see another one here.

[to say the least]

[stonethrow]

( though it smarts, gustave pays no heed to the cut on his arm, as this man—this stranger—berates him instead. he figures there is sense to that, to have a mark to remind one of what shouldn't be done, but that's just not how gustave operates. the other point of how he operates, is that he really will not fault nor blame the man at all for the cut on his arm.

this was a choice gustave made, and he will deal with the consequences, without resorting to ire.

he finds himself with the need to dismiss his sword, too, when the trickling blood catches his attention and he has no choice but to put his mechanical hand to the cut, a quiet assessment of it. )

Permanent scarring shouldn't be a prerequisite for learning a lesson.

( so would the man without one arm say, to the man with a scar across his eye. they can do better for the younger generations.

(he'll need bandages; for now, he just straightens down his arm, and lets the darkness aid him in not drawing unsolicited aid.)

he glances at the profile of the man, making something out of his features and profile in what little light there is at this time, but cannot necessarily discern much. gustave is wary, because... he doesn't know the man, yet he seems to be from lumiere, with all that gustave has seen. )

'Very'? Considering this place's nature, I don't know that it would be an impossibility. I'd say you should expect more.

[reverso]

[They can argue about the morality of attacking those who'd attacked them first all day, but Verso will not linger on what's unimportant. It's impressive, really, how quickly and easily he replies to Gustave's not-quite-fishing.]

Maybe I'm just not used to the impossible being possible. [TO SAY THE LEAST] Adjusting to this city hasn't been easy. Seeing another Expeditioner was like a slap to the face on top of it all.

[And this isn't untrue, either.

Verso nearly doesn't know what to make of this, really. If Gustave is here, then the powers that drive this world—whatever they may be—can do more than just undo death. They can undo non-existence.

Though this shouldn't be news to him, either, given his own state.]

You're hurt. You need to be bandaged.

[That darkness isn't hiding the obvious, Gustave. And Verso's healing chroma can only apply to himself, not others.]

[stonethrow]

( whatever fighting words are on gustave's tongue very quickly die out at the man's response, as he's left to think—like a true scientist—about the possibility, then, of the impossible being made possible. a new sense of curiosity wraps around his mind; who this man is, not as a potential threat or enigma, but an opportunity to questions to go answered.

if he is an expeditioner, perhaps he is from one of the expeditions before him. as someone who has studied so vehemently the detail of them, this would be an excellent opportunity to have questions answered—to learn more.

these thoughts are removed from him at the statement of needing to be bandaged. )

—ah, that's...

( he glances down at his arm, blood spilling down in a nonstop line of red, noticeable even in the dark.

sure. )

I'm Gustave.

[reverso]

[Gustave. Yes. He knows.]

Gustave, with Expedition 33. I'm aware.

[There are secrets that he must hold onto, kept in a steel trap. There are other revelations, however, that are useless to keep caged in the same manner — they'll fly free soon enough, especially if there are any other Expeditioners that have been pulled from the Canvas to this world. His familiarity with Gustave is one of them.]

Come on, we can talk more in my room if you like. I've got a bandage or two there to keep you from bleeding all over the floor until we find you something better.

[stonethrow]

( the mystery expeditioner seems to know of him, but provides no name in return, leaving gustave further in the dark. there's a gnawing sense of suspicion, as he is prone to have with others that he is unfamiliar with, but this place has taught him, in the few days he's been here, that people can be kind.

still, this in specific is shrouded with something that feels much darker, much more relevant to... himself.

so, gustave goes along with this not-quite-stranger back to his room, in silence, trying to assess him more so than anything. he sits on a chair, watches the glow of a candle on the table, before pushing his eyes towards the man, the amber glow making it difficult to make his shape out. )

So... you know me?