TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

[thediadem]

Test Drive ∞ May 2025

The First Collision

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

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

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

But first, you need to find a ride.

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

∞ Summary ∞

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

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

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

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

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

TDM Questions? Here — Game Questions? FAQ

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

Fluxdrift

Arrival & Introduction

Date: Throughout May

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

Then you open your eyes.

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

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

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

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

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

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Panorama

Explore & Settle In

Conditions: Warm spring temperatures, light showers

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

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

The Pavilion: Free Samples

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

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

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

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

The Blocks: Power Outage

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

What do you do? You have three choices:

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

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

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The Fringes

Quad 3: Lockdown

Conditions: Stormy, with flooding roads

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Let's hope a friendly face comes along.

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

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

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

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Comments

[godjr]

[ Jack's seen a lot of monsters, also angels and demons, and there are plenty of humans that do seem as bad as the rest of them. It's hard to know who to trust and how to judge harshly, and who just needs a second chance. He's someone who has needed second and third chances after his actions, so he tries to be forgiving. The shadow monster for example, that maybe was its home, and they stepped into it not knowing that. It wouldn't have stopped him from hurting it to protect them.

He can see that Bob is still nervous but that is understandable, no one handles that kind of situation well. It might take him a few minutes before he understands he's safe now. Jack has been trained on how to deescalate civilians, but he's not very good at it. ]

Yes, I'm from a family of monster hunters. We also sometimes fight demons, angels, and other creatures. It's a dangerous line of work, but people need protection.

[ Jack from the day he was born worried about doing the wrong thing and shifting his focus to helping was good for his fears. If he just tried hard enough to do good, maybe his nature could change, and saving lives made it all feel worth it. With great power comes great responsibility. Wrong franchise, but same energy. ]

Your wound closed up quickly. I don't see that often.

[didthedishes]

[ If only the Void were a sentient being that could be reasoned with. He doubts he is. Bob had thought to try - briefly - but then had seen how the darkness had swallowed up the whole of a city and the lives that resided there and whatever little will he'd had to try anything had been snuffed out in a similar fashion.

It's not in his nature to dissuade someone more capable than him though. In fact, his eyes seem to light up again with that same puppy-dog look when they had successfully managed to get unlock the quarantine room. The smile he gives him breaks across his face like the sun peeking through the clouds.]

Woah. I've never heard of you guys but that's really cool. I thought aliens were the only thing we had to worry about, but guess not.

[ But before he can ask what he and his friends called themselves (and maybe make a poor joke about them being the New New Avengerz) the attention turns back towards him. ]

Huh? Uh, [ His brain stutters. There's a quick glance down to his arm, warmth creeping up the back of his neck. He's never been a very good liar but he tries anyway. ] yeah. Weird. There was some goo on that control panel back there. Maybe it healed it.

[godjr]

There are a lot of creatures that mean harm, but not all of them. Sometimes it's hard to tell the difference. It wasn't okay the monster tried to kill us though. It could have just asked us to leave.

[ So Jack would have fought it if he had to. He really doesn't enjoy killing things. His family is a lot more cutthroat than he is, Sam and Dean would have likely tried to find it and kill it so no one else could get trapped in the room. Maybe he should do the same, but he tries not to smite people if he can help it. Besides, his friend is safe, and they got out. He glances toward the building with some concern but decides to let it go. If they see someone heading that way, they can warn them.

Jack is terrible at lying but even worse about picking up on lies of other people. He is deeply trusting despite being told several times that he had to stop that. Still, Bob seems like a nice person, and he sees no reason not to believe him. He nods understandingly. ]

That makes sense.

[ Does it? Enough for him. Although he's a little sad, it would be nice if they could both heal quickly, then they'd have something to bond over. Jack wants to desperately to bond. ]

I'm glad we go medicine out of it. I am sure the hospital could use this to help people.

[didthedishes]

I guess. [ Weakly, he smiles. ] Good thing we don't have to find out though, right?

[ Bob is certain he knows that Void well enough to know that asking was not in its nature. It cared little for his feelings let alone anyone else's; all it really wanted was to consume and drag everyone else down into the void with it. Selfish, really. But somewhat unsurprising that it hadn't asked.

Then again, he isn't entirely sure that what they had seen had been the Void. Was it something else taking on the form of a thing that terrified him? Or had the Void evolved somehow, shedding its need for him and the tether to his body? Thinking about it too long would only induce panic.

To his credit, he feels bad for lying. When Jack simply accepts it a mixture of relief and guilt flit across his face. ]

Yeah. I guess we should go deliver it. [ The lingering image of the Void(?) stalking towards them though remains fixed in his mind, drawing open the gaping loneliness in his heart and then quite suddenly he blurts out - ] Hey, uh. Maybe after that we can go get some food? On me. For saving me that is.

[godjr]

Right! It's a good thing to know, though. That there may be creatures out here past the city we have to worry about.

[ Jack was told that it could be dangerous out in the wilds, or the drifts, whatever it was in the quadrants outside of the city. He just didn't know what to expect, thinking that perhaps it was about the raiders or humans that couldn't be trusted. Now he knows better and it will keep him wiser when he's out here. His hunter mind may be tagged in so he's better prepared to protect his new friend.

His eyes widen at that offer and he looks visibly startled before a bright smile crosses his face. ]

Really? Together?

[ Jack so rarely gets to interact with people outside of his immediate family or the hunters, and his attempts to connect have usually not worked out well. He is much better at presenting himself as a person now than he was in the start, but he will always be a little too awkward. It didn't occur to him that someone who is also awkward would mind less. He expects to save people and have it stay at that, not to have gratitude to last longer than a short conversation. ]

I would like that very much!

[ Having food with another person? That would be so exciting. ]

There is a dumpling place in the Pavilion, we could meet there?

[ They'll have to drive back to the city to get there and Jack will probably be thrilled and drive a little too fast so he can spend more time with his NEW FRIEND. ]

[didthedishes]

[ That there may be more creatures out there lurking had definitely crossed Bob's mind when he had set out in an attempt to collect medicine. But had it stuck? Truthfully? Not really. His more pressing concerns had always had more to do with the demons that lay within. But now that Jack mentions it...maybe he should be a little more concerned about external threats that could trigger internal ones.

Thankfully the genuine surprise that flits across Jack's face is enough to startle Bob momentarily in return. Had the offer been that shocking? A part of him is about to backpedel but then the brightest smile cracks Jack's face wide open. It's hard for him not to smile right back in return. ]

Yeah, man. Together.

[ Friends (long-term ones, ones that will stay), are still a new concept for Bob but no less welcome of a thing. It's how he finds himself trying to hold back the smile that threatens to stretch across his face as they sit across from one another at the hole in the wall dumpling joint. With their orders in, all that's left is to wait. ]

So how did your family get into...monster hunting?

[godjr]

[ Jack is genuinely excited. He's smiling ear-to-ear. He's had meals with his family and the hunters before, but never with a brand new person, not like this. It feels so normal and thrilling. It does occur to him that he isn't well-versed in small talk, but luckily he's said enough about himself that Bob might have questions about hunters, like he does, instead of talking about the weather. ]

It's inherited. Dean and Sam, two of my fathers, their mother was one before them, and her father before. I don't know how far it went back, but I think a few generations. They took me in and raised me after my mother died at my birth.

[ There was never any paperwork because his father was evil, his mother was dead, and he wasn't a real person in a specific citizen sense. So Jack was just taken in and while Dean was very against him in the start, eventually he warmed up and he was accepted into the Winchester fold. Jack's very proud of that and of earning his place with them, after some serious ups and downs on the road to get there.

They didn't have much of a choice, it was kill him or raise him, but Jack is still grateful for it. ]

What about you? What do you do in your world?

[didthedishes]

[ For what it's worth, this is new for Bob too. Before the Thunderbolts or New Avengers(z?) or whatever it was they were going by these days, he hadn't really had many long-lasting, genuine friendships. Childhood friends had either written him off or had no way to contact him, and any "friends" he'd met along the way either weren't good for him or had their own share of troubles.

So sitting here in this diner is weird. But in a good way.

Despite how hard he can be on himself, Bob is, if nothing else a good listener. He nods, absorbing the somewhat strange family tree but otherwise passing no judgement about it. Two dad's was perfectly normal as far as he was concerned and nothing to blink at or question - especially when they had taken Jack in after the loss of his mother.

That question has him faltering. Or at the very least pausing to think about what exactly it is that he does. Of course he's part of a team, but he doesn't exactly do anything superhero-like unless he counted changing the air filters out the other day heroic (which he doesn't). Self-doubt begins to creep in from the peripherals of his mind but he manages to settle on, ]

I look after my friends. Or try my best to anyway. They're not hunters, but they look after our city - they're still work shopping the team name.

[godjr]

A team like ... superheroes? Or like the A-Team?

[ If they look after the city and they're a team it seems like they might be one of those things. He didn't say soldiers or that would've been another guess. Jack's very interested in other people's lives, he's always been curious to learn about them but shy or awkward about asking. There weren't a lot of social skills taught in the Winchester household.

Bob feels easy to talk to though, it hasn't been difficult to figure out what to say or what not to say. Maybe they just have the same level of awkward. Jack goes right to superhero because Bob wasn't that surprised about him and not even that surprised about monsters maybe existing. Like he knows that there are other things in the world and has already accepted them. ]

How do you look after them?

[didthedishes]

[ Bob can't help but let out a slight laugh. Not because the suggestions are stupid (actually the "A-Team" isn't too far off from their current naming conundrum that they've found themselves in), but rather he can't help but immediately see how each of his friends would react to the being called "superheroes". He thought they were. But Bob also understood that each of their lived experiences made it complicated to accept what came with the weight of being called that.

All the same when he speaks next, fondness and affection softens his expression. ]

Yeah. Though they mostly just punch and shoot. But that doesn't make them any less super or heroes.

[ The next question however still has him stumbling over his thoughts, mild embarrassment creeping up the back of his neck at what he eventually lands on in terms of his answer. ]

I do the dishes, groceries, help out around our living space where I can, you know? They helped me out and it's the least I can do.

[godjr]

That's cool! Do they know karate? I was taught to fight but not very well.

[ Jack does a playful punch combo to the side, away from where he could accidentally hit anything and break it. It wasn't Bobby's fault that Jack wasn't that good at combat. He lacks the heart for violence, which is funny considering how very good at it he is. He learned enough to be able to punch and kick out of a problem, but it always comes back to his powers.

Jack brightens at the description of what Bob does for his friends. ]

Me too! We live in an underground bunker and had a lot of people with us once, and I liked to clean and get groceries for everyone. My fathers never think about that.

[ He loves them very much, and they're good at a lot of things, but remembering to mop or do the dishes, not so much. It's quiet there and while they only use a few rooms when it's just them, Jack got in the habit of helping out the same way that Bob did. Especially during the time that he was still learning how to use his abilities and he lost them altogether, so he was utterly useless during the latter and this was his way to do something helpful. After that, he started doing it out of instinct. ]

No one believed my fake ID though so I couldn't get alcohol, Dean didn't like that. But I enjoyed doing chores. It makes me feel like I'm taking care of the people I love, you know?