Round 2: Test Drive

[cordibus]

Welcome to the second test drive!

Please don't worry too much about using your Personas correctly or following the prompts exactly. They're meant to give you starting ideas, but by all means, go wild and add more options!

The objective here is to try out characters and see who you could have the most fun with in the game's setting. However, feel free to follow this link to request a Persona be generated for you as if you were part of the game. (Please try to limit this to only one of your test drive characters if you can as to not overwhelm us! Never mind generating Personas is a pretty fast process! Request for as many characters away as you like!)

If you have questions about the test drive itself, you can ask them here! If you want to play an AU don't forget this entire post can be used for you to get AU scenarios set up and see who your character might have been related too or know before Awakening.

Now then, let's begin...

Prompt 1 - Flower Festival

The Festival of Flowers is in full bloom in the city! As an inhabitant of Eddan, you're excited to go and attend some of the activities! But unknown to you, something else might be starting to beat in the deepest, darkest depths of your heart.

The festival log prompts can be found here. Please note that you can use these to post in the test drive, but not on the player log itself!

Additionally, if both test drive player and game players agree, the festival test drive threads can also become game canon! As long as the test drive character is played as being completely unaware of what has happened in the game up to this point. Keep in mind that they would NOT have had a message on their phones. Two Test drive players can also make these game canon if they get accepted (and they keep the same requirements as above).

Prompt 2 - From Dawn to Dusk

The city has been abuzz for the past few weeks. A new string of murders is making front page news and serving as a grim reminder why the nightly curfew is so important. As families, perhaps even someone close to you, mourn, pressure continues to rise at the many police stations and at city hall. The people are afraid and they’re demanding answers.

There's not much time for you to dwell on this.. Like everyone else in the city, you have a lot to do, and a tight schedule to do it in. You don't even notice the application that has appeared on your phone's screen. The headache that follows, however, is strange and disorienting, and it brings with it an odd sensation that something is wrong today. You’re just not sure why.

The day passes by and soon, it's close to midnight. Your body, if you're not in bed by now, is completely exhausted. Despite your best efforts, you'll find yourself closing your eyes. Too bad it's quickly interrupted by a strange noise, and movement like something pulsating softly.

It's your phone, or at least you think it's your phone, but it's never glowed this orange before. There’s mist rising above it almost like fire...something's definitely bizarre about this. Despite your fears, you forces yourself to open it, and click on that strange snake-like icon.


It opens revealing a single statement and blank box;

To begin, please write your name.

Your fingers move on their own. Before you have time to really think about it, and as the pain inside your head becomes so terrible you start breathing rapidly and sweating, you've entered a series of letters and pressed enter. Now you're in a large chatroom with many others...but your 'name' you've never even heard of it...have you? It almost feels like you have...

Prompt 3 - Awakening

The last rays of the sun disappeared over the horizon almost an hour ago, yet here you are, walking through the apple orchards located behind one of the campus wings. The strange app that's been sending you strange clues the past seven days now says you're ready to face the truth. It told you to come here tonight, but never to travel alone. Repeatedly, it warns you to make sure to have someone close by if you're to survive…but besides some friends, what else did you bring with you? Did you pack for this, or did you figure you'd make it up as you go? Are you in a position to be able to bring weapons with you that no one would suspect?

Something is out there, and it's getting closer.

Before you can think, you see it: a large, blackish mass, almost like slime, slithering along the ground resembling a vaguely humanoid shape with glowing yellow eyes. When it roars again, it reveals rows and rows of teeth. This was a mistake your brain warns. The strange name from the chatroom, the days leading up to this...you're fairly certain even if you are prepared that you're going to die.

And yet, something inside you stirs. Even as they move closer, you find yourself charging instead of running, as your heartbeat increases. A voice inside is guiding you, each movement bringing forth a surge of memories of a past that you had lost. You’re angry and confused, but your pain, your fears, your rage for all of this… all of that needs to be taken out on those creatures.

All you need to do now is to tear out your heart.

Prompt 4 - A new, old life

Now that you have your memories back, the strange veil of this world has been somewhat lifted. Things that seemed simple now seem strange. You have so many questions, but not enough answers. Then there's the new weapons you wield and the strange creature inside of you...your Heart Persona.

During the day, you are encouraged to continue to live as you did before, but with old and new memories together, sometimes it is difficult to keep acting like you did. Will it cause issues in your job or school life? Will it change your reactions to whatever life you had here? Do you notice others like you who have awakened?

Maybe it would be a good time to send a chatroom message, just to ask others what they are planning to do. Maybe you should set up a meeting to fight shadows at night. Maybe you’ll organize a plan of attack or set up a club to escape the strange looks others have been giving you. Maybe you just want someone's opinion on the best place to have pizza. Hey, no one said you had to use the AppleNET just for serious things, after all.

Comments

[touketsu]

[Kouyuki stares at his screen and makes a face. He should have anticipated this. It's after midnight and he's in a chat room. If soft trolls like him are hanging around at this hour, of course there'd be the gutter variety, too.]

Shirou Fubuki: ...nope, I don't think so.
Shirou Fubuki: That's probably the ghost. Maybe it doesn't like you?

[possedere]

Mukuro Rokudo: Possibly. But it's not censoring my words.

[It was curious though, and while it was certainly late and he should go to bed if he wanted to function properly tomorrow, he had to know.]

Mukuro Rokudo: Is there another way to say what you wanted to? I'm curious just how far this censorship goes.

[touketsu]

Shirou Fubuki: But why would it censor your words if it didn't want you to know what I was saying?

[Still, it really is curious. He'd only been trying to discuss the food in the school's cafeteria and his track-and-field practice. Why should either thing be redacted? It doesn't make sense.]

Shirou Fubuki: Anyway...
Shirou Fubuki: I'm not sure there is another way.
Shirou Fubuki: At least not one that won't sound just as misleading.

Shirou Fubuki: Hmm...
Shirou Fubuki: What about you? Have you experienced anything weird?

[possedere]

Mukuro Rokudo: It's difficult to know. Every search I've done on this app has come up empty, which seems impossible given how nearly everything is online nowadays.

[As for the other question... Well, Mukuro wasn't too keen on giving out more information than necessary to a stranger. Especially not when he couldn't be sure it wouldn't come back to haunt him later.]

Mukuro Rokudo: I can't say for certain. It may be a case of just imaging the symptoms so they happen.

[touketsu]

[Guess who never bothered to research the app?

Kouyuki saw it, questioned it for a second, and then that second had passed him by and his concern was replaced with curiosity. He'd immediately begun investigating by diving in headfirst, entering in a name when prompted (he maintains that it's not his name) and observing the goings on of the chat room he'd been logged into.

It wasn't very exciting, or at least not in the way he was used to being excited, but the fact this wasn't an isolated incident and that other people were reporting experiences similar to his own...

Well, that's something of a mystery. Maybe even one worth pursuing in lieu of teasing about ghosts?]

Shirou Fubuki: It could just be that it's new or even in testing stages, so its developers haven't promoted it.

[Truthfully, it really could be possible, but Kouyuki hopes that it isn't. He didn't sign up to be a test subject for any apps. Let the kids in the computer club take on that challenge, he just wants to run.]

[possedere]

[There was no shame in that, considering Mukuro liked to be thorough in all aspects of his life. He hated being caught off guard, being uninformed, or unaware, and while he could normally blow smoke with the best of them, knowledge was always better than being ignorant. Especially when it concerned odd phenomenon. He was fastidious about his personal information and what was on his phone, a paranoia he couldn't explain, so to have something appear on his phone without his knowledge, bearing a name that wasn't his, was disturbing.]

Mukuro Rokudo: I can't claim I'm very good with computers, but it seems strange that there's nothing to say who is behind it. I'm wary of anything that would download itself, especially since it seems to mostly target students.

[If the forums were anything to go on. Still, he might also be uselessly concerned.]

Mukuro Rokudo: In any case, if anything else odd happens, I'd appreciate it if you let me know. I'm going to start gathering information about this to see if anyone else knows more.

[touketsu]

[He doesn't want to help. Not because he is unhelpful or wishes ill on anyone, but because the more he hears other people talk about this app, and the more he talks about it himself, the more he starts to wonder if this is the kind of thing he wants to get tangled up in. The app can't be a problem if it's never used, right? It can't target him if he doesn't let it. And maybe, if he ignores it long enough, it will go away?

Alright...that's probably wishful thinking. Even Kouyuki realizes that. But it doesn't make him any more willing to want to invite problems into his life. He's got a good thing going for himself. He's got good grades, he's popular, and a star athlete. Getting wrapped up in some...conspiracy. Or whatever. Seems like the sort of thing that'd set him back two steps for every one he took forward.

But can he really say no to helping when he's been asked as directly as this app allows?]

Shirou Fubuki: I don't think I can promise anything, but I can try.

[Like some sort of afterthought, Kouyuki adds afterwards...]

Shirou Fubuki: Did you feel strange, too?

[Because that's totally the kind of question someone who wants to remain uninvolved should be asking. And yet...the temptation to ask seemed impossible to resist, his desire to know manifesting in less careful ways than those of his chat room companion.]

[possedere]

Mukuro Rokudo: That's all I ask. [And then, quickly because he didn't want them to get the impression he was just here for the information ( even though that might be wholly true ).] Though don't do anything that might endanger you. I'd prefer you only do whatever you are comfortable with.

[That being said, it was a lot more difficult to ignore his question. He valued his privacy in all things, even in silly small areas that shouldn't be anything to give up. It wasn't as if this name was tied to his actual identity, and yet...

Well, perhaps he should divulge a pittance just so that this might seem reciprocal.]

Mukuro Rokudo: Yes. Perhaps the reason I was so drawn to your use of the word 'possession' was because I felt possessed when I opened this app and typed in this false name. It is a small thing, surely, but if whatever is tied to this app can do that, what else can they make people do, I wonder?

[touketsu]

[The phrase false name stands out for reasons Kouyuki doesn't want to talk about. Specifically, the ways in which the name Shirou Fubuki and his own are similar.

One meaning white blizzard, while the other...

He's never really thought about it before, to tell the truth. His name, while a little on the effeminate side for a boy, had always seemed amusing to him. Artificial snow hadn't seemed so bad — not until he'd discovered this app and, presumably, other people like himself.

Or maybe they're the ones who are fake? All of them, the chat room, a part of some AI and make-believe story. A program meant to take advantage of the unwitting. That has to be it, right? It must be.

Because...he's real. As real as he's in control. And he'll prove it.]

Shirou Fubuki: This app might be able to keep us from doing some things, but
Shirou Fubuki: it can't make anyone do anything they don't want to do.

[Never mind that he doesn't really recall writing this name, only knows that he'd written something when prompted because — because why? Of some deep-seated sense of curiosity? A need to know? Since when did he care about things like that? It was better not to get involved in things that might interfere with his academics or athletics, better to focus on having fun rather than making waves...wasn't it?]

Shirou Fubuki: This isn't my name.
Shirou Fubuki: I'm [INFORMATION LOCKED]!!

[possedere]

[That was a bold statement to make, considering Mukuro had the strongest will of anyone he knew, and yet he had still been compelled to open the app and type in the name that wasn't his own ( or was it? those recent memories made him question everything, these days ).]

Mukuro Rokudo: What makes you so sure?

[The next few lines dispelled the serious nature of the conversation quite nicely. He couldn't help but laugh at the great timing of the censorship of the app.]

Mukuro Rokudo: What an interesting name. If I were you, I would prefer Shirou Fubuki.

[touketsu]

[A bold statement, and probably very foolish, too. But in Kouyuki's opinion, it's defeatist to think this app has any power over them, and even if it does, he isn't going to relinquish control without a fight. He is his own person!

Or at least...he'd like to believe he is. Wants to believe running this app was his decision, that if he'd preferred, he could have ignored the strange glow, rolled over, and gone back to sleep.

But that's not true, is it? He'd been as compelled as everyone else claims to have been.]

Shirou Fubuki: I'm not in the habit of accepting things I don't like.
Shirou Fubuki: And I *really* don't like losing.

[There is a brief pause, immediately followed by an exasperated, or perhaps mildly embarrassed...]

Shirou Fubuki: I also *really* don't like this app.

[possedere]

[Ah, perhaps they were kindred spirits in that respect. While Mukuro didn't want to believe anything had power over him, there was no point in blind and willful ignorance. He would accept for now, that this app could somehow compel him to a certain degree, and he would go to any length to figure out how it was done so he could stop it.]

Mukuro Rokudo: Simply not liking something doesn't make it untrue. While I can understand your frustration and distaste at all of this, it won't help in the long run. I'd rather find out how and why it's controlling us so it isn't able to in the future.

[And maybe that was willful arrogance, sometimes worse than ignorance. To believe that he would be able to stop what was happening simply because he didn't like it.]

[touketsu]

Shirou Fubuki: Yeah.
Shirou Fubuki: That's what I mean.
Shirou Fubuki: I don't like it, and I'm going to change it.

[But how?

He can't very well remain uninvolved and take down whoever or whatever is behind this app, and if he does choose to fight, what does he have to offer? The majority of his time outside of school is reserved for track, he doesn't have financial resources he can spare, and while he's smart, he's not exactly up to the task of taking down someone smart enough to program an app that can worm its way onto devices of random (or seemingly random) people of its own accord.

Then again, if he does nothing, isn't that the same as rolling over and giving up? Admitting defeat? And accepting that he's nothing more than a willing guinea pig?

Maybe it's already too late. Maybe he's already involved and there's no going back now. And if that's the case, it really can't hurt to ask...]

Shirou Fubuki: Do you have any theories?

[possedere]

[That was the crux of the problem, wasn't it? Mukuro had a few theories, but none of them could be validated ( for some reason, he couldn't help but think of that odd masked girl and her tirade about machines rising up ). He tapped his fingers against his phone thoughtfully, frowning. He didn't like to appear ignorant, but in this case perhaps there was no real way around it.]

Mukuro Rokudo: It's a sad day when possession of a phone and people is the most likely theory. But it's too early to say. It might be best to ask around and see if anyone else knows more than we do.

[touketsu]

Shirou Fubuki: Yeah.

[Except that seriously asking around means attracting the close scrutiny of others, and while Kouyuki doesn't ordinarily mind being the center of attention, this isn't the sort of thing he wants people to fixate on him for. If he wants answers and wants things to go back to normal, though...what choice does he really have?

At least if he asks people on the app using this name he might be spared the awkwardness of disrupting his everyday life. That's something to be thankful for. And, more importantly...]

Shirou Fubuki: We're stronger together.

[possedere]

[Honestly this sounded like the sort of thinking Mukuro hated the most, where people who weren't capable of anything on their own had to band together in an effort to be useful. More often than not, they were only that much more useless, but until he knew more, he'd have to swallow that bitter feeling and go along with it.]

Mukuro Rokudo: Of course. Let me know if you hear anything, but I'm logging off for now. It was a pleasure to meet you, Shirou Fubuki.