𝔄𝔩𝔩 𝔦𝔰 𝔴𝔢𝔩𝔩 𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔠𝔬𝔲𝔯𝔱 𝔬𝔣 𝔥𝔢𝔩𝔩 𑁍 [FALL TDM]

[gorelord]

Welcome to the Test Drive!

The TDM is welcome to current players and anyone who wants to play in the setting and is encouraged to be used by prospective players. If you are interested in joining the game, you will need to obtain invite from the mod or through an existing member.

For information on the game premise, setting etc, please utilize the navigation pages below. Questions specific to the TDM prompts or the setting can go to the comment thread. Anything else relating to game mechanics can go in the FAQ.

Threads in this post can be considered game canon as long as both parties agree. This TDM event occurs in between chapters I and II.

Please make sure to identify yourselves in your top levels as either current or new player/characters.

GAME PAGES

premise
setting
faq
rules
glossary

i.
arise:
Hell is empty, and all the deovels are here.

It begins with a nightmare, the details of which have slipped through your fingers. Only the curling echo of its dread lingers in your chest. Something has snapped you out of a catatonic state: the shudder of thunder that claps like the hoofbeat of warhorses, a cold chill running down your spine, the call of your name through an empty hall. Whatever it may be that brings you back to your senses, you find yourself in an old, moldering estate lost to a bygone time. Every chamber empty, leading to more locked and broken doors. Rain pours softly out windows jammed shut, pushing you on a path deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of the fortress. Farther and farther, you descend to darkness, following the sound of revelry murmuring behind closed doors.

You are not alone.

The giggle of a woman leaps over your shoulder and you feel the tightening of a ribbon around your skull and the heaviness of a mask presses flush against the meat of your cheeks. A woman with a mask the shape of a moth spins around you, smelling of the sweetness of roses and rot, as she slips away into the flush crowd.

No longer do you stand in a decaying ruin; you find yourself amidst a dark masquerade. For this one night, the Lonely Fortress has been restored to the state of its former glory— or some echoed version of it. The devils have come to roost for a night in the Martyr's Crucible. It is now up to you and your fellow exiles to make host with them in their celebration of the spirits.

What are you supposed to be? A New Kid on the Block?

(cw:mood alteration, master/servant dynamics, potential elements of dubcon/noncon.)

Do not fret if you were spirited away in your plain clothes; this illusion has graced you with the finest courtly attire of an older time. Gauzy silks, satins, and velvets in dark and brooding colors. Your mask fits snugly to your face, double-knotted to uphold the most raucous of partying (or determined tugging).

If you are lucky, you were assigned a 𑁍 Voyeur's mask. This mask has no discernable decoration beyond disguising your features, allowing you to blend in with the crowd at no cost to yourself. You are allowed to spectate the events of this night, and none expect you to take part of it.

If you are potentially unlucky, the mask you receive plays a role, and with it bequeaths a strange effect upon its wearer and treatment throughout the masque as a whole:

𑁍 The Sacrifice: You represent the maiden, fair and pure. A gift worthy of giving to the gods. Tonight, you are chosen, and this celebration is for you. Your mask takes on the shape of the lamb, deer, dove, or unicorn. Unlike the rest of the unholy court, your pale colored garments leave you feeling targeted throughout every room you enter.

Those in the presence of the Sacrificed will feel an inexplicable attraction and devotion towards the mask wearer. Enamored by their perceived perfection, their presence creates a genuine, yet terrifying, devotion in others.

𑁍 The Justiciar: You represent the lord and master, strength and dominion. This is a celebration for the spirits, and you are here to see devotion is paid. Your mask takes on the shape of a lion, bear, bull, or dragon.

Those in the presence of the Justiciar will feel compelled to serve and obey their every command. Those under another's control are still limited by their physical and intellectual limitations.

𑁍 The Devourer: You represent the vices, unbidden from chasing your desires. Tonight, you are here to consume the revelry and become a true eater of sin. For the glory of the spirits, you will live a life unleashed for the entertainment of our guest. Your mask takes on the shape of a hound, boar, rat, or hare.

Those with the Devourer's mask will find their pleasure in the service of others . They hunt the party, feeding vicariously on the pleasure and pain brought by their hand. Sweeter than any tonic, the more they taste, the more they want.

𑁍 The Temptation: A representation of the devil themselves, here to pull others into the dance with the macabre. Your mask takes on the shape of a goat, bat, serpent, or vulture.

Those with the Temptation's mask can corrupt others by their touch to feel waves of bliss, catatonia, arousal, or agony. The effects of which only last as long as the temptation is touching them, building and building the longer they remain.

Drop the Act

Removing your mask is possible, but it doesn't come without consequences. The illusion of this night resides in the mask. When it is removed, the uninvited courtiers appear like corpses of moldering flesh and open wounds. Uncovering the truth will not go well for you. Those who are caught going "faceless" will incur dissent against them by the undead courtiers. Either put the mask back on or they will designate you a better one.

Those who dissent but are incapable of running are given a new mask, made to spend the rest of their night at the mercy of monstrous courtiers.

𑁍 The Wretch You now represent the fool, left to the mercy of all other courtiers to entertain through profound humiliation. A metal mask moulded as the face of a gargoyle. A bridle bit fits into your mouth to prevent from speaking. This mask comes with a bell and collar, drawing the attention of others who relish in the wretch's humiliation.

Those with the Wretch's mask will feel compelled to obey any command the other masks give them or incur the heat of the metal mask sear into their flesh when they refuse.

Those who escape are of the lucky few to break away from the echo's thrall. The hellish courtiers will continually hunt for faceless to punish until the festivities subside.

It's a wise time to keep out of sight and keep moving, but escaping the fortress is easier said than done. The corridors have gotten all turned around, windows and doors jammed shut. Some paths, which should inevitably lead away from the festivities, somehow end up looping back into the festivities from another side. Take heed, for every risk you take elevates your chances of being marked a Wretch.

ii.
revel:
Maggoty Malfeasence.

The festivities seem inviting, tempting easily to get swept up into its fray. Those with a strong gut may sense the underlying foulness of deceit and malice that runs under current of it all. Perhaps you let yourself get carried away by the magic of the night, perhaps you play along for your own safety. After all, how often do you find yourself at a ball fit for a court of the damned?

Dance! Dance until you die!

(cw:nsfw, bdsm, potential for cannibalism.)

The celebrations have spread its festivities across the heart of the Lonely Fortress. Each hall feeds a different vice, drenched in a different color. All are welcome to and from hall to hall, dared to delve deeper and deeper into their depravities until the night's final hour. Each hall is full and brimming with laughter and life, men and women who don masks of every shape possible.

𑁍 Great Hall: For dancing and fanfare. The candle's flame bathes all in a merry golden light. Players and singers have been forced onto the tables and the chandeliers to drum up a sleazy tune and a beat to dance to. Stacked flagons and casks wheel out seemingly endless amounts of wine that penetrate even the deepest of inhibitions. The energy in this room is infectious; some who begin to dance may find themselves unable to stop.

𑁍 Banquet Hall: The light in the banquet hall appears almost violet, sucking the color out of most of the food. Everything that can be found on the table tastes decadent: the rich cakes, succulent meats, sweet fruits. Your fellow exiles may be spotted being used as platters and furniture here, trussed up for display and entertainment as the hungry pick cakes and caviar off their bare skin. So long as the food they serve doesn't run out, no forks or knives will be turned against them.

𑁍 Velvet Parlor: For those looking for a place to feed carnal appetites, they will find a large parlor room draped entirely in lush pillows and heavy velvet curtains. Tonight, the room glows under a deep crimson light as courtiers slake their lusts in a garden of intertwined bodies. The heat of arousal is palpable through the diffusion of the egregore, a symphony of moans echoing from one end of the parlor to the other.

𑁍 Long Gallery: If it's a dangerous sport you crave, look no further than the long gallery — a wall of windows on one side let in a dusty blue light of the moon. Up and down the corridor, courtiers race each other riding on the backs of Wretches, swatting their hinds with makeshift crops. Others are made as pedestals to hold apple targets for knives and axes to be thrown at them. A crowd gathers around a game of knives, waiting to see who draws first blood. The iron of blood seethes into the air here, chasing after the play of pain.

Eyes Wide Shut

(cw:human/ritual sacrifice.)

In the dark before the dawn, the festivities slowly begin to turn sour. Activities grow more violent and vicious. The illusions start to fade on their own as the courtiers become gradually more and more bedraggled. The sweetness of rot grows stronger, attracting the buzzing of flies. Their façade slips away to reveal the legion of undead carousing among the living.

One masked lord rises above all in a toast to announce the culmination of the night's celebrations.

"Now cometh our rise," drones the gold devil's mask. "Our tribute to the Sleeping One, our venerable host, shall be paid in blood."

The deovels roar, their frenzy rising with the heat of the room. If you possess the Sacrificed mask, the blood tribute is...well you. After a long night of salivating, it's now the deovels' turn to come for you. You are hunted to be thrust atop a makeshift palanquin, jeering as you are carried to the fortress's lonely chapel as a living sacrifice.

Those under the spell of other masks may be urged to lend your aid in fetching, tormenting, and processing of these sacrifices. With any luck, you can free your compatriots, or perhaps bloodlust urges you to participate in their dark rituals. Dissenters will face the risk of being sacrificed themselves or placed in the mask of the wretch to do as they're told. In the chaos, escape is possible, but not all will be fortunate enough to make their bid for freedom.

Courtiers drone in their infernal chanting. Fresh blood is used to carve runes and sigils into the stone. An opening in the floor unfurls into a giant pit lined with jagged edges like a lamprey's mouth. One by one, each remaining sacrifice is urged to jump into the maw and down the throat of the hell itself.

For most, this is the end.

For the few, surviving your fall into the stomach will land you in the Undercroft; corrupted by vines of blood and sinew that run along the stone walls. The tunnels under the fortress is a labyrinth of its own, may you wander the dark until the exit can be found. You are not alone down here, for the lost servitors of the keep meander in the dark for their next meal, but hunted by the deovels no more until you can find your way out.

iii.
respite:
It's just a bunch of hocus pocus!

With the breaking of the dawn, the terror of the night is swept away as light fills in the shadows. The hellish court and its massacre are gone within the blink of an eye, leaving the Lonely Fortress back in its regressive state of damp and dark solitude. No trace of dark ritual or aggressor remains. The echo has come and gone, leaving the fortress in a dead and uneasy silence compared to the raucous frenzy that had possessed it a blink before.

The spirits have come and filled their bellies. Where did you end up?

Another Glorious Morning

If you survived the night: Wherever you are, whatever you had been doing by the end of the night, it matters not. Just like that, you jolt awake from a long and restless sleep. The morning light pierces through old, musty curtains in another hazy day in the Crucible. No traces of your courtly garments or mask remain; the events of the night echo in your body, groaning like a hangover. You may find you are tucked away perfectly into bed, fully dressed and in dirtied boots...or you may have woken to missing clothes altogether. Any injuries accrued at the hand of other exiles remain, lending to some part of the night being grounded in truth.

If you are lucky, you have awoken in a room assigned to you, but that may not always be the case. Sleepwalking is a common affliction to exiles old and new, so lets hope any unanticipated bedpartners are forgiving of the company— they too are in need of recuperation. Relish in this moment. You survived.

Deep asleep in thy wormy bed

If you had died at any part of the night: You will not have woken in any bed (unless you were slain in one), but instead rise in the part of the castle where you fell; not a trace of injuries left, only the discomforting memory of death the strangeness of your awakening.

You may be questioning if the night's events were real at all. The sourness of death, blood and bile, lingers as a bitter taste in your mouth. Additionally, you are missing memory. A cut on your palm, but no memory of its accrual, suggests something was bargained for your return. Any trace of such a devil's deal escapes your memory.

Breakfast is served for those who still hold an appetite, but the dining table remains uncomfortably quiet beyond the scraping of forks. The food tastes dull compared to the decadence of the masque, even duller for those who made their brush with death.

Rest now, relish in your continued survival, for who knows what awaits at the next turning of a moon.

Comments

[bloodrops]

[ what was that about father issues? duty? his ears nearly perk up with curiosity. any more of that and Louis might lose the plot and focus on this man instead of their mark. ]

Think we'll win a prize for being the fastest? [ well he already knows what he wants. ] No, all right, I get you. Let's go. Let's get him to the pit.

[nepotist]

[Relieved and disappointed all at once, Cesare nods and gives Louis' shoulder a squeeze, fingers and thumb massaging the tendons there to show camaraderie. The Borgia has always been tactile. He gives Louis' back a quick, encouraging slap before resuming their chase, sprinting down the corridor, eyes wide, searching for where their prey is hiding.]

[bloodrops]

[ so manly. almost made him feel like one of the guys. Louis gives Cesare a headstart before he moves after him. he'll catch up pretty quick but together they'll have an easy time corner their mark. ]

[nepotist]

[Their prey is dressed as a bird, Cesare doesn't care which type. All he sees are large panicked eyes and a silly little beak. He doesn't waste time, quickly lunging for the young man, aiming for the throat to pull him into a fireman carry.]

[bloodrops]

[ Louis appears from the shadows like he stepped out of nowhere and frightens the dove right into Cesare. his flight ends short and he goes down with a pitiful whimper. ]

That's it?

[nepotist]

[The dove, pulled over Cesare's shoulder, begins to kick and scream. The Borgia tightens his grip and casts Louis a glance as he begins his walk back to the hall.]

That is what?

[bloodrops]

[ the dove mask is askew, so their eyes don't meet when Cesare walks past him, but the victim attempts to get his attention and begs for help anyway. Louis simply looks through him at the Borgia. ]

I'm used to hunts being more... well, dragged out.

[ Lestat loved to come up with elaborate and cruel games. ]

[nepotist]

[Cesare casts Louis a confused, mildly unimpressed glance as the man on his shoulder shrieks and screams.]

By choice? I am not a sadist... [Cesare wants to win. Whatever results in the greatest victory, he is in favor of.]

[bloodrops]

It was the company I kept.

[ a slight, dismissive shrug as he also shrugs off his own responsibility for the cruelties committed in the past. Lestat didn't force him to do those things, there was a part of him that yearned for it. ]

You're a soldier. [ he notes as he moves to follow the other man, shifting the attention from himself. Cesare is efficient and deadly, good at following orders. surely that must be it? ]

[nepotist]

[The boy on his kicks and shoves, throwing Cesare off balance. He staggers back and gives the boy another toss to get him back into place before continuing his conversation.]

I am a cleric. [He corrects warily, secretly thrilled by the assumption. He so desperately wants to be a soldier, to lead an army and claim all that he can. But instead, he is relegated to the cloth.]

[bloodrops]

[ curious to pry more out of this stranger, Louis can sense his yearning and dashed hopes, but he doesn't understand them. ]

You're a man of the cloth? Wouldn't have guessed. Neither would he.

[ the way Cesare is handling the poor guy on his back isn't very christian. ]

You serve at the military?

[nepotist]

I have friends that do... [Not soldiers, but assassins. It's complicated. The more he can get away from having to explain it, the better. ]

A man is more than his profession. [How much Cesare needs that to be true.]

What are you? [What Cesare saw was not human after all.] Is that a skill you can teach?

[bloodrops]

Some might argue that doing the job you do is a calling, not a profession.

[ ah, now they're taking turns explaining things they don't want to explain. Louis finds it darkly amusing. ]

You want it? [ Cesare's strong desire for power doesn't go unnoticed by the vampire. ] What use would you have for it?

[nepotist]

It would make carrying him easier... [He gestures to the boy writhing on his shoulder. Why isn't Louis helping him? But it's a wry, defensive answer. If Cesare had that strength and speed, he could solve so many problems. All his family's detractors would be gone by the end of the week.]

[bloodrops]

[ he flashes a dry grin at Cesare's comment and continues to ignore the wriggling of their shared catch. ]

As an answer to your question. It's not a skill, it's who I am.

[nepotist]

That is convenient for you and disappointing for me...do you take jobs? [ Anyone has a price, but Cesare wants to find out if he can afford to get Louis on side.]

In this strange, foreign world, I might have need of a friend.

[bloodrops]

If you have something I want, I can just take it.

[ it was a funny proposition though, so he's not serious. he pockets his hands as they walk, seemingly giving up on helping him in any way. deep down his thirst remains and he'd love another chase. ]

What happened to real friendships? Friends you don't have to pay for?

[ either this guy has too much money or too many enemies. ]

[nepotist]

[ Both! 🙂 But Cesare does have friends, only some of whom he pays. Not that he thinks of them. When Louis speaks, Cesare's mind goes straight to family, of his infuriating little brother, of his sister he would destroy the world for if she asked. Those bonds are greater than anything.

The shrieking boy who is being carried splutters something about wanting to be a friend and Cesare gives his cheek a half pat/half slap on the cheek to get him to quieten down.]

I suspect I would still be paying you for your friendship. Just not with money.

[bloodrops]

[ Louis shrugs at the captive man. like sucks to be you, sorry. ]

Do you even know how friends work?

[ payment is not usually involved. he laughs a bit, entertained with the type of person he's apparently dealing with. ]

Besides, I have a feeling you'll do just fine.

[ Cesare is strong and clever from what he's seen. he might not need others for protection. ]

[nepotist]

Then you can educate me. I have learned much already: friends do not accept payment. Friends do not help with the hunt...

[He flashes a playful smile and gestures his chin up towards the boy struggling on his shoulder. For a guy who said he would join in, Louis has really done very little.]

What is your name? [Who is this man under his mask?]

[bloodrops]

Wouldn't you like to know?

[ Louis has been open with him only because of his hidden identity. he'd like to pretend to be a human for a little bit longer. ]

We're friends in the dark. Companions for tonight only. I'll be gone when the sun rises.

[ in a sense it's true. he'll be asleep, far away from the chaos he's caused. ]

[nepotist]

[A ghost then. Cesare shrugs, disappointed and unimpressed.]

My name is Cesare. [He has nothing to hide, not yet, especially not with someone who shares the same aims as him or the boy on his shoulder who will be dead by the end of the night. If Cesare is clear and honest, perhaps it might prompt an improved response from his secretive friend.]

I arrived here from Rome.

[bloodrops]

Rome? A cleric from Rome?

[ the green eyes under the mask light up visibly. he's never been to Southern Europe, but he's always been fascinated by the mythology. yes, he's always thinking about the roman empire. ]

Really?

[nepotist]

[There is a reason why Cesare always says he is from Rome, not Saragossa, nor Spain, nor Italy. There is a romance to "Rome". He likes the reminder that he is walking on the same ground as the ancient emperors that he admires. But he doesn't expect Louis to share that interest.

The Borgia visibly stiffens, confused by the apparent appeal.]

That is where they tend to gather... [It is the home of the church, after all...the home of his Holy Father.]

[bloodrops]

That it is. [ an understatement of the ages. Louis smiles at the dry humor. his depression may be all consuming, but deep down he's still curious about things. the arts especially. ] I'd like to see your beautiful city one day. I've read tales of its magnificence. The Pantheon. The Colosseum.