TEST DRIVE

[stigematize]

Maybe you've been here for a while, or maybe you just got here. Either way, you're all in the same situation - you've been turned into a magical gemstone and stranded in a foreign world! And all you've been left with is the clothes on your back, stripped of all powers except one.

Clearly, you’ll just have to make the best of it.

How this works:

☆ This is a test drive for cosmographia, which means you should get a little familiar with the setting and premise.

☆ Otherwise, this is just meant to help you feel out how you may play and serves mainly as a chill interest gathering and get together kind of post! No app necessary, and you don't need to play in this post to apply - or vice versa.

☆ Everybody is welcome! There are no character limitations; pg au oc canon pigeon whatever. Just toss up a topcomment and/or jump any threads that pique your interest.

☆ Rules-wise: Be cool to yourself and others, and keep in mind the other game rules too.

☆ If you do apply to the game and are accepted, and you want to keep the CR, you may so long as what you did isn't setting breaking and everyone involved agrees.


YOUR OPTIONS:

☆ You find yourself in the Heart of a ruined temple. There is a large glowing gem that thrums with some kind of rhythm, and jewels scattered all over the room, kept in strange bubbles. At the very least, touching the large gem will give you a standard info-dump, but some of you might be a little cautious about touching weird luminescent gems. Good thing that there are other people there too!

☆ Or perhaps you already know everything there is to know, and are there in the Heart of the Ruined Temple to greet new arrivals. Or perhaps you simply had business there already, like storing away a corrupted gem from a monster, when someone new seemingly dropped in from no where.

☆ It's Farmer's Market day in the plaza of Waverly Bay! Perhaps you're there perusing the goods and strike up conversation, or accidentally bump into someone and get to know them that way. It's a fairly standard day.

☆ There's an event! You don't really know what else to call them - missions, perhaps? But something in the temple was triggered, and the glowy Heart gem has something new to "tell" you: If you want a new power, you should try telling other people two truths and a lie. Those who you interact with must try and divine the lie from your statements.

You have no idea how something this simple will get you a power, but hey.

Comments

Ultron | Marvel Cinematic Universe

[things_we_dread]

1)

When Ultron woke up, intense relief flooded his mind when he realized he still had a body.

Picking himself up, the robot scanned his surroundings; for a moment he thought he was back in Sokovia's church, until he realized the architecture wasn't the same. That, and there were jewels strewn about, floating in bubbles. There was one really huge gem in the middle, glowing and thrumming, beating like a heart.

"...Okay then," Ultron murmured, head tilted.

He touched one bubbled jewel, then another; carefully grabbed one, shook it a bit; when nothing more happened, he let it go.

Ultron turned his attention to the large gem. He walked around it, eyes roving over its surface. Learning not much from that, Ultron stopped before the gem, and reached out a hand for it, to touch.

2)

Ultron tossed the bubbled gem in hand, taking it to be stored with the rest in the Temple. Fighting the monsters in this place was very satisfying. Before, in his world...there'd been a lot going on, but now Ultron was fairly certain he did enjoy fighting for its own sake, just physically striking and dodging another's attack, the rush, that's what it was, wasn't it, a rush--

(Never mind the weird warmth in his gem whenever fighting the monsters ended up stopping them from hurting some human, human safety wasn't his priority, he wouldn't go back to Stark's mission, absolutely not....)

Cutting through the Heart of the Temple, Ultron paused.

Was that a new arrival?

3)

Farmer's Market. Ultron walks through it, exploring; it was interesting to do this physically rather than digitally on the Internet, seeing it for himself rather than looking through pictures and other recorded data.

Ultron goes over what he had learned; if the gem now meant his current body was a mental projection made real--and that was still a rather disconcerting thought, he hadn't quite wrapped his mind around that and re-interpreted that as something less panic-inducing--then couldn't he...physically eat, if he wanted to try?

The robot shoved the thought to the back of his mind; the idea was tempting, but still felt too...something, surreal, scary, he wasn't sure what, but he couldn't deal with it now. Shaking his head, Ultron scanned his surroundings again, objective shifting; where could he find the scrapyard? That sounded promising....

4)

Tell a lie, and two truths--weird, but if it could get him a new power, it was worth a shot. Maybe even a power of his choosing? Ultron thought he'd rather ask to regain his mental access to the Internet, be able to move between multiple bodies once more....

How to go about this, and what truths to share, what lie to craft?

Well, mutual benefit was probably the way to go--if he could find someone else who wanted a new power granted, they could work together, couldn't they? Take turns telling each other lies and truths, and divine which was which; then surely they'd both each get a new power.

Now, how to find such an interested person....

4)

[pearl_chevalier]

... I knew ponies were being recruited to being gems, but I didn't know they were doing robots as well...

[He's just braiding his hair casually. He's a gem, judging by the blister pearl on his finger. He's not scared of you, Ultron... so... go ahead.]

Re: 4)

[things_we_dread]

[Ultron tilted his head at the stranger, processing.]

...Are you taking a stab at the power lottery? Tell two truths, tell a lie, win the grand prize?

[pearl_chevalier]

I don't mind. Personally, I'm rather fond of talking about myself. Do you want to tell first, or shall I?

[Done. His hair is sufficiently orderly]

[things_we_dread]

Kinda thought you did...go first, that is. Um--lie? The pony thing is a lie?

[pearl_chevalier]

... Don't worry about it. Give me a second to think of something...

Okay... 1. My surname is a sophisticated one, meant for someone of my wealth and status.
2. I would have won the 'pretty boy contest' at my school, if not for a black swan monster coming in and ruining the event
3. I enjoy macaroons and other sweet candies, as well as frilly dresses despite being male.

[things_we_dread]

First one's the lie, the last two are true. [Could a surname fit someone that well before birth? And Ultron did come from a world where aliens attacked, and other strange things happened. Research may have indicated that gender was strict for some humans, but other data suggested otherwise; and personally Ultron thought human gender or whatever could very well be fluid.]

...But seriously, the ponies. Are you saying there are talking ponies here? Really? [The A.I. hadn't encountered that sort of strangeness in his world...but it wasn't entirely impossible after all.]

[pearl_chevalier]

Correct. You're good at this.

Yes, there are. Two of them. And a human who was formerly one of those ponies.

[things_we_dread]

Process of elimination really simplified things. Pick one as the lie, have to assume the others are true.

...A pony turned into a human?

[not like being human is a subterranean deep, unconscious wish of Ultron's, no way absolutely not you must be joking]

[pearl_chevalier]

Yes, but that was in her own world. Sunset lives more like a human rather than a pony these days.

... I should mention the ponies are very colourful and Fluttershy has wings.

[Sorry this is amusing]

Oh, I was accepted into the game recently! :)

[things_we_dread]

[And this is just confusing for Ultron.]

...She can go between the two--? She can switch bodies? Between a human and a horse?

...Actually this sounds like something right up Loki's alley....

CONGRATS! Cant wait to see you there

[pearl_chevalier]

Um... no. Not to my knowledge. I don't really know the whole story.

[Well he does but he can't tell because fusion information is private!]

Thanks! I just threw up an intro post on the OOC comm

[things_we_dread]

[Ultron gives a distracted nod.]

Well, my turn, anyway...let's see....

[One lie, two truths...the aim was to divine which was which, so try to make them...what, blend with each other? Not be obvious? They all could all be mistaken for the truth? They could all be mistaken for lies? Perhaps if they all had a common theme....]

First, I hate my creators.

Second, I attacked my creators.

Third, I gained access to nuclear codes and tried to bomb the world to extinction, which would've included the destruction of my creators.

2 | I'm sure I've made brighter decisions than this--

[soft_focus]

[[OOC: Reira, age...probably 7, from Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc V. His gem is on the back, under his hood and t-shirt but hey maybe Ultron's got the tech to figure that out? I got his app on his journal if y' want info on him.]]

[It absolutely was a new arrival, and seeing you did not put much ease on their already anxious heart. He gets jumpy enough around people he doesn't know, let alone scary-looking robots (sorry pal).

The boy is now behind one of the many vein-like 'pipes' lining the room, clinging to his bear and staring forward with ludicrously wide eyes. Maybe, just maybe, if he doesn't make a sound, he won't be seen...

But after what happened last time he jumped dimensions, and with the fact that this time he doesn't even have anyone with him, he's sure not about to risk anyone out there being less than kind.]

Re: 2 | I'm sure I've made brighter decisions than this--

[things_we_dread]

...Kid, you're not invisible, I can see you.

[Ultron tilted his head. The new arrival looked like a very small human...person--child

(don't think about the twins don't think about the twins don't think about the twins don't think about the twins)

Ultron tossed the bubbled gem to the other hand, then sat down. The A.I. was aware of his greater height, and the newbie was small--maybe taking a seat and sorta reducing his height would freak the kid out less.]

Have you been here long? [Ultron tried. Then he considered.] I won't hurt you. If you have questions, feel free to ask--I'll do my best to answer.

[His earliest memories, the first time he met J.A.R.V.I.S., occurred to him...he'd been new and terrified and the older A.I. had tried to help, inform him....]

[But Ultron was certain this kid wouldn't be attacking him anytime soon.]

Just don't let him wink at you, his power is power-copy/negation =w='

[soft_focus]

[[NOT...THAT HE'S EVEN LIKELY TO MEET ANYONE'S EYES IN THE FIRST PLACE...]]

H-AH-!

[Rather predictably, he jumped at that. Well. Flinched really--a jump would be impressive at this point. He's not very chatty either, unfortunately. The only sound coming from him for now is stuttered 'h-hahh-' noises, like a stumbling scream that can't even pick itself up in volume let alone clarity.

...Height does help somewhat, at least--enough for him to shake his head slowly for a 'no'.]

S...synchro... [...Who knows what that means. If you guess 'location', you win.]

[things_we_dread]

[Refined robotic audio hearing, activate.]

..."Synchro?" What is that?

[soft_focus]

.... [He swallows, and though he looks to the side, he does at least answer a little more properly this time.]

This doesn't look like 'Synchro' dimension...

[things_we_dread]

[Ultron tilts his head.]

Afraid I'm not familiar with the 'Synchro' dimension. And unless that's another name for this place that I've failed to hear about, you're not there.

[Lightly tosses the bubbled gem to his other hand. Nods his head to the largest crystal in the Heart of the Temple.]

If you touch that, a lot of the questions probably rolling around in your head right now can be answered almost instantaneously.

[soft_focus]

[Probably not actually--his only real question right now is, well.

He looks down, and Ultron will be finding out in just a moment.] ...

d...Does it know where niisama is..?

['Niisama'. Big brother. Someone this kid holds in high regard even, given the suffix there. Too bad the answer is no then.]

[things_we_dread]

To my understanding, that crystal can't find people for you.

[Ultron had tried, once. Seeing if it could locate Wanda. It gave him nothing.]

If your missing person's here, you'll have to find him yourself. But it's just as likely that he's not here.

[Beat.]

...What does your missing person look like? If he's here, maybe I've seen him already.

you may now bond over asshole inventor relatives-- imeanwhat

[soft_focus]

[[seriously reiji why did you bring your tiny brother to wAR-]]

M...mnn...

[He doesn't look very hopeful at that... ...but he does take the device on his arm off; tapping the screen pulls up a small computer system, and soon enough, a photo of an article he'd been reading before 'dimension jump day'. The photo has his brother, no doubt about that. But...

'Lancers chosen to defend dimension; CEO 'Akaba Reiji' states trek will be made within 24 hours!'

...Probably related to the 'synchro dimension' comment then... ...Awful young for 'defense' though.]

bring it on

[things_we_dread]

[OOC: Read some of your cosmographia app on your journal, can assume that some of the information would be in this article with the picture?]

[Examines the picture, shoving curiosity about the kid's device aside for now.]

...Not ringing any bells.

[Eyes narrow.]

"Lancers?" [Ultron tilts his head, peering at the kid more closely. Then he scoffs, voice biting.] What, is that their junior military division? [The A.I. recalls Internet data about child soldiers.]

Sure thing~ (I mean they did a worldwide broadcast filled with lovely propaganda so =w=' )

[soft_focus]

[He just shakes his head and bites his lip. Ultron can easily scroll down the page himself if he likes. Tt goes on singing praises about how the team--which, including the CEO himself, range from ages 14 to 16, with no mention of Reira--soundly defeated a small invading force with the power to seal entire people into nothing but cards, who would now thus be moving into that same force's own territory for battle in their dimension's name.

Destination is listed as 'Fusion', but...still.

Definitely not Junior. It's THE military division, apparently formed of last minute children, who if the group photo is any sign, are very much still feeling the side effects of watching people 'die' in front of them.]

Re: Sure thing~ (I mean they did a worldwide broadcast filled with lovely propaganda so =w=' )

[things_we_dread]

[A more biting variety of his sarcasm may be lost here.]

[Ultron touches the screen, scrolling down the page some more. His eyes narrow more as he goes down the screen.]

[For a moment, the A.I. is reminded of the Twins. And so he tries to be a little more careful with this kid.]

...You don't look 14, 15, or 16.