doingtheuglycry | CAN CRY: FIRST TEST DRIVE

CAN CRY: INITIAL TDM
Welcome one and all to the very first test drive meme for Can Cry! If you're unfamiliar with the game, then you can check out the interest check, FAQ, world & setting info page and the powers and abilities page to get up to speed! Since the game is still very much under construction, this is just an initial test drive for people to dip their toes into the water and see which characters they'd like to consider for the game. In order to not spoil the opening of the game for players, the TDM is not canon to Can Cry and will take place in a slightly wonky little AU just over to the left. Characters have awoken in Purgatory after their deaths and been conscripted as Executors by Rei, the sole other Executor in Purgatory. The population of dangerous spirits has gotten out of control and she needs some allies to help her keep things under control. Characters on the TDM will have access to all of their starter powers as outlined on the powers page as well as two unique abiliites to play around with as you please. Some prompts and location details have been provided below for you to play around with but please feel free to go hog wild and have fun!
LIMBO
Limbo is the Executor's main base of operations as it is the top level of Purgatory and the one most populated by non-violent spirits. Distorted by the cognition of all the human souls here, Limbo has taken on the form of a hazy, dream-like recollection of a town. It's full of winding paths that go up, down and all around and the geometries of the town and its surroundings don't always make much sense. Stairs might lead loop back around on themselves or a door to the outside might end up leading right back indoors. It's a bit of a headache, so it's usually best not to think about it too hard. The town is mostly functional, mostly thanks to all the human souls here. Players are free to invent any additions to the town that they would like for their threads, but here are some to get you started: ⚝ Conbini: A seemingly normal Japanese convenience store, full of the sort of fare you'd expect from a cheap 24-7 convenience store. There's only four aisles and everything's a bit clustered together, but it's not overly claustrophobic. Things start getting a bit weird when you try and go to the back of the store, though – no matter how long you look, there is always just one more aisle for you to browse and the further back you go, the stranger and more abstract the items on the shelf will look. If you walk too far or turn around you will suddenly find yourself back at the first aisle in the blink of an eye as if you were rubberbanded back there. ⚝ Hotel: A so-called luxury hotel that towers over the rest of the buildings in the area. Even if you don't have a reservation, all you have to do is approach the desk and the Spectre there will apparently recognize you and hand over a key to one of the rooms. Except... you can't quite read the number? It seems to fluctuate whenever you try. Not that it matters, because the key will open any of the hundreds of doors in the building, though no one door will ever open onto the same room twice. The layout of each room is subtly off in a number of ways, with the dimensions of the room not seeming quite right no matter how you try to work it out. The decor is luxurious through and the extravagant room service is free, so it's a nice place to relax. Be warned, though – if you misplace your key, you'll find yourself lost in the mazelike halls until you eventually stumble out into the reception with no way of knowing how you got there. ⚝ Bathhouse: An enormous Grecio-Roman styled bathhouse for you to relax in after a hard day's work of dealing with Revenants. There don't seem to be any workers here that you can see, so feel free to let yourself in and make yourself at home. Interestingly, even without anyone around, you'll find the water is always adjusted to a temperature and a fragrance that's most appealing to you and drinks, towels and anything else you need will appear within reach by the side of the baths whenever it occurs to you that you might need it. When in doubt: Just get weird with it!
QUESTS
Since it's up to Executors to maintain order in Purgatory, this also means they need to resolve any issues that crop up for the Spectres occupying it. You can come up with any sort of quest you like, but here are some ideas to get you started: ⚝ A lost child will request your help in reuniting with their mother. It's a bit of a struggle for them to communicate with you as they are a freshly-awakened Spectre and it's also not entirely clear if their mother is, in fact, in Purgatory with them. Eventually, careful questioning of the child Spectre and some of the other Spectres around Limbo will lead you to a bookshop where mother and child will be reunited. Happy end! ⚝ Two Spectres are causing a ruckus in town with a screaming-in-each-other's-face tier argument. Calming them both down is going to be a task all on its own, but if you manage to, it turns out the first Spectre is missing a precious object and has accused the other of stealing it. The second Spectre insists the precious object never existed in the first place. Uh... good luck with this. ⚝ A uncommunicative and kind of creepy Spectre is accused by others in the town of being a Revenant in disguise after some of their neighbors disappear in the night. Investigate and uncover the truth! Feel free to NPC Spectres as you need for this TDM!
THE UNDERSIDE OF LIMBO
Though it's the most peaceful level of Purgatory, Limbo is not without its dangers. Directly below Limbo is what's known as the Underside, a darkness cast by the city above where Revenants and malicious spirits linger. It appears as a dark, mirror-reversed version of Limbo, though the geography is much more twisted and confusing. If left unchecked, Revenents from the Underside would attack the town and consume any number of Spectres. It's up to the Executors to head down there and see to them! This is a general prompt for combat-oriented testing, to allow characters to experiment with their new powers as Executors! Because of that, and because combat will function slightly differently in-game, this section is pretty loosey goosey. Like previous posts, you are free to invent locations and NPC Revenants to make things more fun and exciting! Because Revenants will function in a unique way in-game, players are encouraged to invent their own Revenants to fight for this TDM. If you would like some ideas for what sort of Revenants to battle, you can check out this video to see what sort of enemies exist in the original game, but beware that it does contain spoilers for Crystar.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[She attempts to catch the can and grunts slightly as it hits her in the ribs, but she manages to grab hold of it without either dropping the can again or falling off the shelf, so it's probably fine? She doesn't seem at all concerned about being smacked in the side with a high-speed chunk of metal, at least.]

Thanks!

[Having selected the pringles primarily for reach, she briefly considers how to get the can to actually connect with the ceiling without hopping up to hit it, then seems to hit on an idea. She opens the tube of chips, dumps out the pringles inside, and stuffs the can of beans into it. The end result is sort of like a medieval mace, if you stretch the definition to the point of total meaninglessness.]

[But it's long enough to hit the ceiling with, so whatever.]

Oh, this is much better. I really want to crack this place open so I can see how it works! Engineering isn't really my specialty, but just observing how I physically react to whatever is in there could be really valuable data all by itself.

[That... probably doesn't mean "I'm gonna touch stuff and see if I die", right? Right???]

[...no who are we kidding it absolutely does.]

Or maybe it's more of a physics problem... is space warping or just our perception of space? Oooh, I hope it's neurological manipulation, that would be amazing.

[It would have been far more satisfying if that had clocked her firmly in the head and sent her toppling to the ground below...but alas, we cannot have everything.]

You hope that it is an external entity manipulating your thought processes.

[Said in a tone that clearly implies: "you are an idiot for thinking this."]

How novel.

Absolutely! [Said in a tone that clearly shows she completely missed any disdain in their reply, and is genuinely delighted.]

If it's not biological in nature, then I'll only be able to make very limited guesses. But if it is, then I can do all kinds of experiments on it! It's been so long since I've done any really interesting brain surgery, I'd just love to cut open a skull and find something fascinatingly anomalous going on in there.

Of course, they're all amazing in their own way- everyone's beautiful on the inside, once you get down to the bones and guts- but it's just so much fun to find something new and surprising, you know?

[She doesn't even stop hitting the ceiling while she's monologuing. She's actually managed to visibly crack the tile by now, although not enough to get it open yet.]

Edited 2020-02-20 04:31 (UTC)

You don't manage to get very much done, do you?

[Chara's tone is one of bored indolence, though they do watch as she fractures the ceiling with something almost approaching interest. In an attempt to veil even that much (though it's doubtful that she'll even notice), they drop their gaze and make a show of perusing the shelves instead.]

I can't imagine that you do, in any case, always sticking your hands into every little thing that attracts your erratic interest.

Oh, I know- so much to do, so little time. [She's actually managing to chip away chunks of tile now, widening the crack. Idly, she picks one up and examines it. Nothing about it seems particularly unusual, so she puts it in a pocket for future testing.]

I keep trying to publish my results, but most of them don't get printed. The nice men from the CDC said something about a public safety issue? But even all the discoveries I have made are such a tiny fraction compared to all the incredible possibilities out there! It's so hard to know where to start, I normally just pick a favorite organ and go.

[She briefly recalls something about an old lecture on social interaction, someone telling her she needs to ask people about themselves instead of just talking about her own interests the entire time.]

What about you, which organ is your favorite?

[...She tried.]

The skin.

[What? Were you expecting them to say the heart?]

[Honestly is best reserved for situations that merit it.]

There's just so very much of it. [They could wander off and leave this stranger to her devices, but they're learning that the more they keep her talking, the more she has to say - and the more she says that might be useful. Besides. They're interested in seeing where the ceiling goes.]

[They're doing an excellent job of pretending they're not the least bit interested, however. Busy browsing the shelves and not seemingly paying much attention to this conversation at all.]

[Let's be honest, it's not as though people not being interested in what she's saying has ever actually made this girl stop talking. She's here to ramble about cool science and she will do so whether you're curious, bored, or actively trying to escape. The only hope of getting her to shut up would probably be to pick up another can of beans and try to successfully concuss her this time.]

Ooh, a strong choice! [She nods happily, tilting her head slightly to one side to avoid getting chips of broken ceiling tile in her face.] It's such an underappreciated organ, I'm glad someone sees how important it is. Where would we be without it? [A brief laugh.] I mean, that's a rhetorical question, obviously- we'd be spread out all over the place, that's the whole point.

Like a kind of viscera jello mold that somebody dropped on the floor! Hilarious, but so unsanitary.

[Thud, thud, whack, CRUNCH-] There we go! [She's finally managed to get a wide enough crack in the ceiling tile to reach in and yank a chunk of it out with her hands.]

[Finally able to take a look, she squints curiously into the resulting hole, trying to make out anything in the darkness.]

Wow, that's a lot of cobwebs- there must be so many spiders up there! I wonder what they're all eating...

Perhaps viscera.

[Interesting. Chara briefly abandons the pretense of not giving a shit in the interest of watching the stranger bludgeon the ceiling open. They'd not assumed that would work, though that assumption would really be their own fault. Rather than admit this, they skate right on past that mental hurdle and instead address the most intriguing part of this person's endeavor:]

Or perhaps a way out of here.

[That statement is a tad more pointed.]

Maybe! [She looks pretty pleased about the possibility, surveying the store curiously.]

Hmm, what does this place sell that makes light... cigarette lighters, maybe? Open flame might not be the best plan, but I don't see any flashlights.

[All right. This has officially surpassed the threshold in which Chara can continue to avoid acknowledging any interest in the proceedings whatsoever. Abandoning their basket of pilfered snacks, they begin to scale the shelves with the deft aptitude of someone who has learned to get into all sorts of trouble in spite of their diminutive size.]

[And up they go, until they're peering at the hole Mercy has left in the ceiling.]

Not necessary.

[Chara opens their palm, and a simulacrum of a bright red knife manifests in the open air. It exhibits a very faint, crimson glow - not much in the way of a searchlight, but capable of illuminating their immediate surroundings regardless.]

CAN CRY: FIRST TEST DRIVE

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