TEST DRIVE

[calloperators]

> Hello, you have reached the 1-800-HOTLINE Test Drive. We are currently unable to take your call. Whilst we put you on hold, feel free to play around for a while...

***

Waking up
Where the hell were you last night? Maybe waking up in an unfamiliar bed with a blacked-out memory isn't so unusual for you, but that buzzing in your head is. The phone beside you rings with a 7:00 AM wake-up call, and a message left behind:

Go downstairs, to the lobby. Meet the others. Don't get attached, and don't mention this call.

The AC is busted and in this hot summer, you probably won't want to stay in your room forever.

What's new, Pussycat?
Of course, there's much more around here than just the motel. Stepping out and hitting the town will give you plenty to do. There's stores aplenty, but that's nothing to say of the good residents of the stores; your friendly neighborhood bodega cats. They're content to laze around the aisles, though the more playful sorts may swat at your wayward accessories as you pass by.

Don't mind that they seem to disappear - and reappear - with a blink. That's just something cats can do.

Hungry?
Of course you are! There's plenty of places to eat here, but why go to some no-name joint when you can go to McDonalds? They've got burgers, they've got fries, they've got McPizza, and they even have a playplace! ...Though you're probably too old for the ball pit.

Regardless of what you order, if you even order, the cashier presses a small toy into the palm of your hand. Don't you feel a pair of tiny eyes on you?

McMurder
For fuck's sake, someone only went and killed a guy in the McDonald's parking lot. Maybe his head is smashed in under that chicken mask, or maybe you'll want to check? You could do the right thing and work out who did this, or you could make off with his baseball bat. The choice is yours.


Night life
What good's a city that goes to sleep? When the sun goes down, the lights go up. The city becomes aglow with every colour of the neon rainbow, with bowling alleys, nightclubs, karaoke bars, arcades and soon-to-be-extinct roller discos competing for your attention until the sun comes up. You're here, there's no curfew, it's time to make the most of it.

Wildcard
Have something else in mind? Go wild, and party like it's 1989.

Comments

Taako "From TV" Taaco | TAZ: Balance

[forgottwin]

»Waking Up«
Actually fuck this heat? If you're gonna drag a dude into the goddamn Fantasy Sahara at least give him some warning so he can take some seasonally appropriate clothes, you know?

[Taako is sweating profusely in this heat, and he is a very unhappy elf as a result. If his hair starts to get too frizzy, someone's gonna die and not because of the murdergame.]

I could've had an awesome fashion montage, get a couple chumps to do the thumbs up or head-shaking thing. I mean, I don't CARE, I know I look fuckin' amazing, but it's tradition, right?

[He taps a foot impatiently, fanning himself with his broad-brimmed wizard's hat.]

...so did anyone else get some weird faux-threatening phone-call, or was that just me? Anyone?

[Fuck yo' implied threats, phone person.]

»McMurder«
Ew.

[Just. Gonna prod at that body with the tip of his umbrella a little.]

...So this is gross as shit, but normal for Mickey D's, right? The fry jockies can probably handle it, they probably see this shit like four, five times a week. We don't have to care.

»Night Life«
[The sun goes down, and the city lights up. And so does Taako's face.]

[He is absolutely ecstatic.]

...I take back everything I said about this trash heap, this is AMAZING.

»Wildcard«
[Hit me up]

»Waking Up«

[teiaiexecutive]

Hm... I can't recall ever experiencing such an event, myself.

[This answer was of course, complete bullshit. Menacing phonecalls were practically a cornerstone of Tonegawa's average work week. Something he could set his watch to. The only reason this particular menacing call stuck out in his mind is that it didn't come from the chairman of the company, and perhaps because of that, its instructions were concise and definite. He saw no reason to disobey orders from this invisible authority, especially not ones so neatly laid out for him.]

[Which is why he restrained himself from acknowledging his wardrobe. Tonegawa was not particularly blessed in this regard, either (tweed was a material meant not for hot, arid climates), but to acknowledge this shared suffering might lay the foundation of solidarity between the two strangers, which of course, was utterly unpermissable.]

...however, judging by your own attitude, whatever "faux-threat" you received must not have been too severe if the most pressing concern weighing on your mind is your current state of dress. [He gives a wry, condescending smirk.]

[...and begins tugging at his collar, desperately hoping that pure spite and determination will be enough to keep the heatstroke at bay.]

McMurder

[thegreenhornet]

[Britt looks a bit uneasy, but not as much as someone encountering a dead body should be]

I'm not sure getting rid of dead bodies is something minimum wage covers.

[Britt says that, but he doesn't sound sure. Maybe it does? He doesn't know how things are like in the fabled land of McDonald's employment protocols]

I mean, you're not supposed to touch dead bodies and food shortly one after another. That's gross.

[Not the point, Britt]

McMurder;

[jushinkan]

Is it normal for Mickey D's?

[ A genuine question, he doesn't make a habit of frequenting these types of places normally, considering they don't exist where he comes from. ]

I imagine someone more equipped will take a look at it eventually.

[ So no, they don't really have to care as far as Xelloss is concerned. ]

The Pyro | Team Fortress 2

[rainblower]

Waking Up
[Pyro barely reacts to getting the call--this motel looks like half of the motels up Route 66. The heat doesn't seem to bother them, either, as they slowly totter their way down into the lobby. They don't have much to offer--they just watch and observe from behind the glassy eye holes in their mask. Lots of people they don't recognize, talking about boring stuff. Boring. Where's the team? Where's the fire?

Eventually, they get fed up and turn their attention to one of the flickering vending machines in the lobby and try to push all the buttons at once, watching as each selection pops up on the screen. Their gloved finger hovers over the Coca-Cola button and--

Oh. They're, um, punching the vending machine now. And shaking it. You might want to step in.]

What's new, Pussycat?
[While at the convenience store, you might spot Pyro with an armful of little plastic lighters, crouching next to the counter and gazing carefully at a cat lying on its side. The cat eyes Pyro carefully before licking its paw and starting to clean its face. Pyro lets out a muffled giggle, then pats the cat gently on the head. They then catch your eye and point gleefully at it--]

Mmmrhph!

[The cashier coughs. Pyro still hasn't paid for their lighters.]

McMurder
[Well! This is just like being back on the team! Pyro gazes sadly (?) towards the mangled body, their head tilted to the side like an inquisitive dog.

Then, they slowly turn to the person closes to them and hold up a lighter in suggestion.]

Hmrmh mmrmph?

Wildcard
[Hit me up at wolfnoir if you have any further ideas!]

mcmurder [cw: cannibalism joke]

[neverstudied]

[Oh, Jesus.

Venkman's probably seen a dead body or two before. It kind of comes with the line of work, you know? You hang around a bunch of ghosts, eventually you're gonna see That Which Comes Before A Ghost, IE a dead human body.

Still, this is gruesome. Venkman very lightly kicks at the body with the tip of his shoe, grimacing, and tries to roll it over so he can get a better access to the guy's pockets- to look for an ID in his wallet, of course, God- when he hears the muffled voice. He turns around and looks from the gas mask- creepy- to the lighter they're holding out- even creepier. He takes an automatic step back and holds his hands up placatingly.]

... Uhhh. I feel like burning a corpse outside a McDonalds might give people some weird ideas about what kinda meat they're preparing in there.

Waking Up

[thegreenhornet]

You should stick your hand in there. [He points at the hole where the soda can would come out from] Try to get two.

[Looks like Britt isn't particularly concerned about keeping the vending machines intact]

Waking Up

[beardcheck]

Oi, hey, knock that shit off.

[Sorry Pyro, you're being physically pulled back from the vending machine. By a dude that's about on par with Heavy's height.]

...That's some amateur hour shit, check this out.

[And Grog just hauls off and fucking punches the machine as only a high-level barbarian can. RIP Vendy, they had such a future of cola dispensary in front of them.]

[malpractices]

[Medic resists the urge to— okay, no, that's a lie, there's nothing stopping him from pinching the bridge of his wrinkling nose at that... thing Pyro is making over. Cats. They'd be wonderful creatures if they didn't make prey out of birds. Unforgivable.]

Pyro, bitte. You don't know where it's been. It could and very well may be diseased.

[And then he turns to the cashier, makes eye contact and glances at Pyro again to scowl mightily.]

Pyro! Manners!

[And then he just fatly reaches out and pushes the cashier aside by his shoulder, pointing at the rack of lukewarm hotdogs slowly turning on the roller/grill thing behind the counter.]

You didn't ask me if I wanted anything.

Britt Reid | The Green Hornet (Film)

[thegreenhornet]

Waking Up

[It's unusual for him to wake up in a place he doesn't know, but not unexpected -- he can definitely imagine such thing happening to him. Still...why is it so hot in here? Britt receives the call, shrugs, and steps outside]

Whoever's in charge of the AC should take a look in here!

[He doesn't even bother to find out if someone heard him. Better do what mysterious messages say, just to not get in trouble. Meeting others will be useful, at least to have an idea of how bad things are and how much he should be worried.

He can't mention the call, though. He was warned, and although Britt isn't too afraid of danger, he doesn't want to immediately put a target on his back. The plan of action is simple: be sutble, don't show you're worried. With this plan, Britt approaches someone he considered may answer, and asks:]

So...been threatened lately?

[He's not mentioning the call, this is completely not infringing the warning, he swears! Way to be subtle, Britt.

Hungry

Receiving a small toy with the meal at McDonald's is kind of weird. So these are the toys that are supposed to come with the burgers...

He's not sure he likes this thing. Britt looks around]

Doesn't anyone else think this is very weird?

[Night Life

Not bad! That's a lot of activities. Glad he's not going to get bored, Britt walks around, examining the attractions. The roller discos in particular seem interesting]

Oh, this is old. This is the kinda stuff you hear about when old people talk about the good ol' times. Come on, get in here. Let's take a look.

[He doesn't want to be alone in such a place, that'd be sort of embarrassing. It won't be so bad if he has someone to be with during that]

waking up

[fuckingdelicious]

[Val gives this guy a sharp look-over as he approaches, and folds his arms lazily as he takes his sweet time responding to his question.]

Not physically.

[But, Val got that phone call too. Either this guy was some really obvious plant to test if he'd break, or he was just an idiot.

...Either way works for him.]

You looking to change that?

Waking up

[ghoststanning]

[Oh hey stranger! He guesses that's what that call meant by "the others".]

Besides that weird phone call, not in the past week. Why?

[Ray apparently doesn't mind the possibility of having a target on his back... or casually implying that he does frequently get threatened.]

waking up

[ichimacchan]

...

[ That's one hell of a question but it's far from unreasonable, all things considered. Ichimatsu may not be making direct eye contact with this guy but he's. Trying. To answer the question. Because how do you do the communicate-y thing with strangers. ]

Yeah.

[ Nailed it. ]

Ray Stantz | The Real Ghostbusters

[ghoststanning]

Waking Up

[Ok so waking up in a room he has no recollection of falling asleep in. And... heck he has a strange gap in his memory too. And that mysterious phone call, honestly this whole thing was really strange to him.

But! Ray was far from someone to camp out in his room wondering what happened to him the previous night, especially if there were apparently "others" here too.

Most likely he will approach your character first, clearly confused but not worried about this situation.]

Hey! Did you get that strange phone call too?

[Yeah he's just... ignoring that detail that he's not supposed to tell anyone about the call entirely.]

McMurder.

[So.

This isn't the first time Ray's seen a dead body. You can't have a job that revolves around ghosts and not see a few dead people in your time.

Still seeing a guy with his face smashed in wasn't really his idea of a good time, especially when he just wanted to get some ice cream from McDonalds (And the machine is broken AGAIN.)

Ray gingerly crouches down besides the body, actually looking pretty uncomfortable for once.]

Should we tell the police about this? ... Are there police here, actually?

[This is fine.]

Night Life

[Of course Ray wants to check out the night life here. There seems to be so many fun attractions here that he couldn't resist the idea of checking everything out for himself.

He was honestly planning on just idly checking out most building until he eventually runs across a karaoke bar and his eyes light up.]

There's karaoke here?! I've always wanted to try that out, come on, let's see what it's like!

[Ray is just... gonna drag your character into the karaoke bar with him, regardless of if you actually know him or not.]

karaoke

[neverstudied]

People are dying, Ray.

[Still, it's good to see him look so cheerful, especially after the McDonald's Corpse Incident. And Venkman has never been one to deny himself the chance to sing in front of a captive audience. He lets Ray take him by the arm and pull him inside.]

Night Life [cw: smoking?, alcohol]

[teiaiexecutive]

Get your damn hands off me, you- [Tonegawa tries to tug back to break the bond of this handhold, but his efforts bear no fruit against the death grip of Ray's enthusiasm.]

[He can't help but feel the coarse callouses in Stantz's hand scraping against the skin of his own palm. This, and the plain beige jumpsuit both tell Tonegawa all he needs to know about this man: a common laborer. In fact, judging by the stench of motor oil emanating from him (so much so that Tonegawa can make it out through the tobacco odor that went hand-in-hand with entertainment districts such as these), Tonegawa could even hazard a guess that he was specifically an auto mechanic.]

[And that made his friendliness all the more bizarre. Tonegawa has never driven a day in his life, relying on public transport or one of his subordinates chauffeuring him where he needed. He's had no reason to enlist the services of, or even interact with, a car repair man. Unless this was a debtor to the company? But that would make even less sense. No one in their right mind would be so carefree around Tonegawa, period. Much less someone owing money to Teiai-]

[...he was so deep in thought attempting to identify this stranger, that he had stopped putting up any resistance, realizing it all too late as they were both already inside the establishment. Great. He eyes the bar, far more invested in the prospect of blacking out than in making a fool of himself, or suffering the foolishness of this stranger.]

Night Life

[forgottwin]

Hey, hey! Hands off the merchandise.

[He's just kind of swatting at Ray until released.]

Careful, this outfit's worth more than your total net worth.

[Probably not, strictly speaking, unless one accounts for ego in the pricing.]

Ichimatsu Matsuno | Osomatsu-san

[ichimacchan]

- Waking Up -



[ fucking hell WHY IS IT SO GODDAMN HOT

And... why is he in a bed? He doesn't sleep in a bed. In fact, where are his brothers?? What's going on?!

...

To be honest, this is far from the first time Ichimatsu's ever been kidnapped so he's not quite as concerned as he should be. Instead, he's more exasperated than anything. At least he's not strapped to a chair this time?

Eventually he does end up reading that phone message and then leave his room. Not that the message needed to tell him to leave, he would have done it anyways because fuck this heat.

And when he's at the lobby, well... ]

Ugh. It's too fucking hot.

[ He's mostly just muttering to himself.

Approach? ]

- What's new, Pussycat? -



[ Well, Ichimatsu's hanging out at the convenience store, because hopefully they have some kind of AC running in here.

And then he notices all the cats and, yeah, he's gonna be here a while, petting cats and just hanging around them. Maybe this place might not be so bad after all? ]

There, there.

[ Right now he's sitting on the floor, petting a cat curled up in his lap.

The cashier's giving Ichimatsu a look. Not that he cares. ]

- McMurder -



[ Okay, who the fuck murdered the local chicken-mask man?

Ichimatsu's just. Staring at the body. What kind of skit is this? A murder mystery parody? Why?

This... has to be a skit, right?

He's not gonna kick the body or anything. Instead he's just gonna back slowly away from the corpse. ]

...Oi.

[ Is this for real?? ]

McMurder

[fuckingdelicious]

[Unfortunately for Ichimatsu, he backs up right into Val, who places a hand on his shoulder to push him forwards, craning over him to look at the corpse.]

What's the matter? Never seen a body before?

Yukio Tonegawa | Kaiji

[teiaiexecutive]

Waking Up
[Tonegawa is a man who lives to follow the orders of his higher-ups, no matter how shady or malicious the authority giving them may be. He's taken the suggestion of not getting attached so much to heart that he isn't even going to waste his time striking up a conversation with the riffraff, simply opting to sit back and size up the strangers surrounding him. Of course, you'd probably like to bug the old wallflower, anyway.]

Hungry?
[This establishment was hardly one he would patronize under normal circumstances- but beggars can't be choosers, even if in this case the "beggar" is a wealthy businessman. He's disassembled his Signature Crafted® Mushroom & Swiss Artisan Grilled Chicken Burger, cutting the bread and chicken into smaller chunks and stirring it all together like some sort of heavily-sabotaged Cutthroat Kitchen contestant about to thoroughly abuse the word "deconstructed" while describing his dish to the judge. The component parts are still "fast-food", but the presentation he's given them has at least elevated it to the respectability of "quick service".]

[He takes a casual sip of his McCafé® Iced Caramel Latte, and smacks his lips, staring down Sarge McNugget with absolute contempt.]

Trying to claim power over me is the last mistake you'll ever make. I could snuff you out in an instant.

Night life
[He was relieved to discover the roller disco was truly as vacant on the inside as it appeared to be on the outside. Having spent the better part of an hour gliding around the empty rink in the least-colorful pair of rollerskates he could find, leaving his coat behind, his tie flaps freely around as he twirls and thrusts to the music. ...surprisingly, by the genuine wide smile on his face, it looks like he's enjoying himself. It would be a shame if someone interrupted this moment.]

Wildcard: Settle your debt
[For whatever reason, you borrowed money from a shady loanshark in the past. A shady loanshark that it just so happens is associated with Teiai. And as fate may have it, one of the other people stranded in this bizarre place with you just so happens to be a high-ranking manager of the company! What could possibly go wrong?]

hungry? on a friday night? god, you're pathetic

[junosteel]

[Listen--when you live on Mars, you get used to not having...you know, what people on Earth would consider to be real meat. It's not particularly sustainable to raise livestock on a commercial level on a planet that has no access to natural water or vegetation, nor is it seen as particularly ethical. Hell, since the beginning of space colonization, humans relied on insects for their protein intake--thus, the rise of Martian staples such as cricket pad thai. After a few centuries of work, cloned meat had also reached the point where its structure and taste was practically indistinguishable from meat sourced from a living, breathing animal. So unless you were a rich CEO who wanted to flex on someone for having spent millions of creds importing a literal live cow from Earth, there was no reason for anyone on Mars to eat "real" beef.

So the idea of having a hamburger patty come from a real cow that lived and actually ate corn and was pumped full of antibiotics is mind-boggling to him. Juno is in the middle of pulling apart a hamburger and poking the meat when he hears Tonegawa speak. He glances up, almost expecting the guy to be staring him down and cracking his knuckles--half of the people he meets tend to either want to punch his lights out or...yeah, mostly just punch his lights out.

Juno stares at Tonegawa for a few moments, as if verifying that, yes, this large and imposing man did threaten a small, nugget-shaped toy. His cybernetic eye whirs quietly as he watches.]

Maybe it can't hear you because it doesn't have ears. [A beat.] Because it's a toy.

Medic / Team Fortress 2 [cw: gore text]

[blutsauger]

Tom Jones is Scout's Dad

[Ok. At first it was kind of cute how all the cats seem to want to follow Medic. Now it's just getting annoying.

He's not surprised, of course- cats seem drawn to him, probably from the Constant Scent of Birds that practically radiates off of him, at least to other animals. Dogs are similarly interested in him. But now it's reached a point where he can't go anywhere in this place without a cat trying to trip him up. They seem to show up out of nowhere, too, which isn't helping.

Even worse than that, though- it's scaring all the local street pigeons away from him. Medic finally manages to coax one onto his hand when a tabby darts forward and rears up on its hind legs to get a better look at the bird, placing its front paws on Medic's leg. Understandably, the pigeon flutters away in shock, and Medic glares down at the cat.]

Do you mind? I am in the middle of something very important.

Tf2 Cosmetics are Wild

[At first, Medic surveys the body with a casual disinterest. There's no use checking a pulse or anything- that head is fucking shattered. That much is obvious even under the chicken mask.

... Wait, chicken mask. Hold up.

Medic crouches down next to the body, eyes narrowing. His eyes slowly trail from the chicken mask to the baseball bat.]

... Scout?

Graverobber At Large

[Luckily, after some thorough examination["thorough"] Medic determines the body isn't that of his teammate. Which means he doesn't give a single fuck about this corpse, which means-]

Hello, you there- would you happen to know where I might be able to obtain a saw capable of cutting through bone? I appear to have misplaced mine upon waking up in this city.

Tom Jones is Scout's Dad

[ghoststanning]

[Ray just gently approaches Medic while carrying a little black cat in his arms.]

Aww, but these guys are so cute!

[But huh he can't help but wonder what "very important" thing he's in the middle of.]

What are you doing, anyway?

Kimberly Ann Hart ("Ranger Slayer") | Mighty Morphin Power Rangers Comics

[rangerslayer]

Waking Up

[ After living in the cold, unfamiliar space of another dimension for forty-some days, waking up in a strange hotel room should be welcome. Hell, after twenty-some years of life under a ruthless dictator, anything should be welcome.

Kimberly Ann Hart learned to stop seeing the glass half-full a long time, ago, though. She almost crushes the phone...except that'd need Ranger powers, and those are limited until they can figure out--wait, no, those are gone. ]

...Alright. So, kidnapped and robbed. Sounds about normal for this place. [ Fine. Just fine. Door isn't locked, she isn't restrained--so the first order of business is to carefully get a handle on what sort of planet (or overheated ship) she's on.

Her whole ensemble's a little much for this kind of heat, so as she's slipping out of the motel room, she's tugging on her collar a little, all the while trying to look for anyone else who might've gotten grabbed from the Prometheus, or... Or anyone who appears here against their will, to begin with.

Jaded as she is, she can't turn away from someone in need...and if you look like you're having a hard time, she'll abandon the pretense of sneaking about and approach, nonetheless. ]

Hey. You. [ Hands raised as a gesture of peace. ] Are you a refugee of this place?

Night Life

[ It's been a long time since Kimberly did anything remotely close to "fun" -- unless you count the brief afternoon after she'd broken from Drakkon's spell, in past Angel Grove, but it ended so abruptly that doing so feels silly. Still, reconnaissance? That she's well acquainted with, and when the sun goes down, the scout comes out. Whether she was fighting against or for Drakkon's forces, she always excelled at late night hunts.

...But then, none of those took place in a technicolor kaleidoscope of light, looking to be brighter than the Rangers, in the old days.

It's...strange. To say the least. Hard to get herself into the shadows, so she's stuck channeling a relic of the past--the social butterfly that fluttered oh-so-close to young Kim, like a clingy puppy. As out of practice as she is, maybe that girl's glee can rub off on her again, from memory.

All this to say, there's an awkward-looking woman, pulling a grimace at a roller disco-arcade combo. ]

So not only is it loud, and flashy, and hard on the eyes, it's a Frankenstein-combo of relics past.

Wildcard: Take Aim

[ A time-honored tradition for dystopia survivors: Scavenging and crafting your own weapons. After everything Drakkon did to her, there's no way Kim's accepting one of those from someone here, someone she can't trust.

That's just a recipe to get yourself mind-controlled, after all.

So, since she's some practice in the subject, it doesn't take longer than a day to locate the right materials and get to crafting. She can be found at the back of the motel, testing the pull on various materials for her string, or...well, notching back a stick-like arrow. It's rough? But from how she stares ahead at the target she's painted on the wall, eyes narrowed, it looks like it'll do. ]

Take Aim

[ghoststanning]

[Hey what do you know? Ray's been scavenging for material too! He seems to mostly be searching for scrap metal and wiring, but he stops his search when he Kimberly.

She seems like she needs something, and Ray wasn't one to ignore people if they need help.]

Looking for something?

[... He's not putting down the armful of springs and old electronics, however.]

Ladd Russo | Baccano!

[boxingbuff]

[Waking up]
[When you take a flying leap off a speeding steam engine, you don't really expect to wake up in a stuffy hotel room with your girl nowhere to be seen, and some annoying gadget ringing next to the bed. Ladd couldn't remember the last time this had happened, to be perfectly honest.

He's a tough one, though, and he quickly shrugs off whatever that buzzing in his head is before checking on the other one. The lobby. Others, huh?

Well, it'd be rude to keep people waiting, and Ladd's looking for some answers himself. He makes his way down there posthaste. He basically skips into the lobby, hands in his pockets and suit jacket slung over his should because honestly it's just too damn hot.]

Yeesh, did New York decide to get super stuffy just for me?

[It should be noted that his clothes, presumably supposed to be all white, sure do have spots of bright red on them. Yes, especially the jacket.

Grin fixed on his face, Ladd turns to the nearest person, head tilting slightly.]

Hey. You look like you don't work here, but seeing as there's no one else that looks like they do, looks like I'm stuck here a while. And it just so happens that I've got a really important question.

[His grin stays, but anyone looking closely enough will note how his teeth grind together.]

You see a woman round here? Blonde, real dame. Probably still in a white dress?

[McMurder]
[Ladd strolls over to the body with more vigor than when he discovered exactly what a "McDonald's" was. He can't stop himself from getting his hands on that chicken mask, inspecting it, but not removing it. Yet.]

Well, would'ya look at that? First day here, I get to try some of the best food I've ever tasted, and now I get to just happen upon a dead guy in the parking lot!

[He chuckles giddily while he looks over the body.] Damn, you really took some hits then, didn't you? Must've been quite a fight. Or not. Maybe you're stupid mask got in the way, or you were too scared to react.

[Ladd audibly laughs, jumping to his feet. Either he doesn't notice all the blood smeared on his hands, or he simply doesn't care. Possibly both.]

Ha! Get it? Sucker's a chicken. He probably got spooked by someone else and they made it quick on him. What a sap.

[Night Life]
[Chicago's got nothing on this.

The lights, the colors, it's all like nothing Ladd's ever experienced before. He just wants to stand here, awash in the glow of nightclubs and whatever else they have around here. He's downright ecstatic.]

Ohoho, yeah! This is it! Man, I gotta come back here sometime, bring the boys, and Lua of course! So much to do! So little time, and so many colors! I don't even know what to do first!

[Don't pinch him, he doesn't want to wake up.]

waking up

[pkemeter]

[Well, Ladd, you've just approached the stuffiest, most serious person in the room--a nerd named Dr. Egon Spengler. Spengler gives him a cursory glance, taking in the red splotches on his jacket, his speech mannerisms, his callous and otherwise overconfident posturing. His expression barely shifts from its deadpan state, and his voice seems to match--barely rising above a dull, flat drone.]

No. I haven't seen any "dames" around here. Nor have I seen any of the motel staff.

[Early 20th century American slang. Spengler adjusts his glasses, careful not to make direct eye contact with him. The circumstances surrounding his appearance in this place only seem to grow stranger by the minute.]

Judging from my observations, this place does not appear to be New York--at least, the New York that I know. [He gestures to the nearby window.] For example, New York does not have the sufficient climate to grow palm trees. I would guess that we are currently located in some sort of sub-tropical zone somewhere in America, as the United States are the few countries that actually use motels, and the fact that most of the signs outside appear to be in English. Unless I can get a better look at those palm trees, I would narrow down our location to either California or the southeast coast.

[Sorry you got a five minute lecture on geography]

Clover Field | 999

[fourleafcleaver]

[ooc note! clover is being taken and test driven from a canonpoint that 1) is preeeetty spoilery, and 2) immediately follows a severe break from reality on her part, so please keep that in mind before tagging!! for playability's sake pls assume all prompts take place after allowing nonzero amounts of time to settle in]


a. nya nya nya nya nya nya nya nya nya nya
[Clover's got like four different cats getting underfoot on her way through the town because all those pom-poms bouncing off her legwarmers make the perfect cat toy. She's been sort of uncomfortably...out of it since everyone's arrival, and she spends a while just sort of dazedly walking around her furry tag-alongs like they aren't there. Nothing in particular seems to startle her into awareness, though; she just sort of abruptly crouches and reaches out a hand.]

Hi, kitty... [Purr purr purr, and she seems content to just scritch one cat under the chin—until the cat isn't there anymore.

Another half-moment, and the cat reappears, face pressed against Clover's hand where she reached it out towards the empty air, but that just seems to alarm her further.

Urgently, turning to anyone in the vicinity—] You saw that, right?


b. mcdonald's
[Is Clover too old for the ball pit? Probably. Is she too big for the ball pit? Absolutely not, she is 4'9" of pink fluff and bad decisions, and currently buried completely in the play place.

A little tuft of pink pigtail sticks out, just so; the only hint that something might be amiss—but whether or not you're adventurous enough to come investigate, Clover waits until she hears someone passing close by to jump out of the ball pit with a yell and throw herself into the protective netting like a wild animal trying to eat alive someone on the other side of the cage—she's absolutely just here to startle people, Clover don't be mean???]


c. mcmurder
[yeah so Clover found the body first and, instead of informing anybody or treating the situation with proper gravitas, she's currently doing a frankly fucking terrible job at subtly hiding the dead dude's baseball bat by stuffing it down the back of her sweatshirt]


d. wildcard
[follow ur heart i'm flexible]

mcmurder;

[ultimatetalent]

[ It just so happens that Izuru ended up wandering nearby and now is witness to Clover attempting to steal the baseball bat--his quiet may have gone unnoticed for sometime if he didn't so happen to kick a nearby soda can in an errant manner.

He's also just going to not say anything because he just doesn't care enough to, but chances are, he's caught her attention now, hasn't he? ]

juno steel ( the penumbra podcast )

[pistolsatdawn]

waking up.

[When they write the Great Tales of Juno Steel, Private Eye, the first volume will probably start with a morning exactly like this one.

"One day, Detective Steel woke up somewhere unfamiliar, nursing a hangover, and with a mysterious call from an unidentifiable stranger that almost definitely wished him harm."

He may not recognize the model of comms the call came in on—the wires seem really inconvenient—but the idea is familiar. He's been in enough situations like this in his life. He's got a long history with the Kanagawas, for crying out loud. If he didn't know any better, he'd assume he was kidnapped by Cecil himself.

But that doesn't line up with what he knows. A quick press of his palm against his right eyesocket confirms it. Just bandages. Beneath, just an eyelid. Empty space inside.

It's weird that, at this point, that's a comfort.

Juno definitely does shake down the entire room for any signs or traces left behind of whoever brought him here. If it were Jacket, he'd leave a more specific note. Juno doesn't know much about the guy, but he does know he's very, very precise.

But eventually, it's all dead ends. His pockets're empty. Room's spotless. Well, there's some dust, but nothing telling.

So, fine, alright. He'll go downstairs and meet whoever it is. At this point, what else is there?

So hey, there's a grumpy lady in a trenchcoat and bandages over his eye sulking in the corner of the lobby, arms folded. The second he notices someone else wander in, it's pretty obvious he's already on edge.]

Hey, I'm taking surveys. Just one question: kidnapper or kidnappee?

[It's probably a good thing he's never worked a call center.]

it's not unusual.

[Catch one one-eyed P.I. staring down a cat in a bodega like it's the most horrifying thing he's ever seen. He's keeping a safe distance, but every once in a while the cat notices he's staring at it and it starts to wander nearer to ask for pets. Sometimes it teleports, which doesn't surprise Juno as much as it maybe should, considering.

Juno reacts by gracelessly skipping to the side to dodge when it comes near.]

What. Is that. It almost looks like a cat but it's all...

[He makes a vague gesture around his face, looking absolutely grossed out by the whole thing. Where are its extra eyes!!! Its tentacles!!! The fuck!!!

Meanwhile, the shop owner is most certainly trying to pretend someone didn't just come in and start calling their cat ugly.]

mcmurder.

[Juno definitely isn't familiar with the great kingdom of McDonald's, but he is familiar with dead bodies. And yet, he'd still rather not happen upon one while he's basically still digesting french fries. Juno is the type who hates surprises, especially when they're bloody, dead, and left out to dry right in front of him.

At least it's fresh and hasn't started to smell yet. Though that doesn't stop Juno from quickly turning and dry heaving into his hand at the sight of the pooling blood.

Eugh. Still, he's... he's pretty much got to do something about it. At least ineffectually attempt to identify the body.

So he walks over, all business suddenly, and peels back the chicken mask...

Okay. Alright. Yeah, it was definitely the baseball bat that did it. Ugh. Juno is mostly averting his gaze, but he does try to take in more clues from the corner of his eye.]

wildcard.

[Do whatever. I'm not your dad.]

McMurder

[ghoststanning]

[Ray frowns as Juno pulls off the mask, not so much looking sick, but he doesn't look like he's having a good time right now.]

I can't believe someone would wanna kill someone here. Do... do we have any leads on what happened besides what killed him?

[Is this how you solve murders?]

Arataka Reigen | Mob Psycho 100

[techniques]

waking up to ash and dust

[Reigen is an absolute light-weight when it comes to alcohol--he gets drunk just from drinking a lemon sour, for pete's sake. Even so, despite waking in an unfamiliar motel, the panic and suspicion doesn't truly set in until the phone call: at least then he could have argued that maybe he had been too drunk to make it home and had booked a motel for the night. The phone call, however, implies it was someone else's doing.

So when he arrives in the lobby, adjusting his collar and tie in the face of the humidity, he takes one look around before he speaks.]

So... does this motel normally have vaguely-threatening wake up calls, or is that just considered complimentary along with the breakfast buffet here?

[... Reigen you were not supposed to mention the call, you just got here and literally broke rule 1 already.]

hungry

[He would really prefer ramen right now, but Mcdonalds is the next best cheap alternative when you're in an unfamiliar city and have very little money. He gets some burgers and fries, and while he is not a child that would appreciate the playplace, he does eye the toy he's been given with some amount of consideration.

Maybe he could pass this off to Mob as a gift once he's able to return back to Seasoning City? It kind of has a bad feeling to it though, so maybe he should make sure there's not a ghost that needs to be exorcised from it first. Or maybe he'll have that be part of the gift itself? Yes, that sounds valid.

In addition to the toy, he's... uh. Also pocketing the salt. Like, swiping all of the salt packets and dispensers here, for some reason??]

mcmurder

[Murder is way outside of Reigen's wheelhouse, so he's not even going to bother getting all detective sleuth here trying to solve it. Instead he waits... and waits... and waits to see if the police shows up, and when finding a payphone to call them doesn't pan out, he comes back and instead takes some wet floor signs from inside the McDonalds and props them up around the body like a barrier.

It's fine, nothing to worry about or see here. He's doing his bare minimum civic duty to make sure we're shielding any potential children on the Mcdonald's playground from seeing it and without tampering with too much evidence. And so people don't come over here and slip and fall from the blood like idiots... then again--]

Now that I think about it, how much would someone be able to get in a lawsuit for slipping in the blood of a dead man?

[... Is this the sort of thing you really want to be wondering about out loud Reigen...]

wildcard

[Hit me up with anything else you wanna do here! Hit me up via PM or wailords if you have any questions!]

hungry

[rainblower]

[Probably one of the oddest residents of the motel is the person wearing a full asbestos suit and gas mask. They're at the McDonalds right now, holding the Cowboy McNugget Buddy in their hand and staring down at it. The design reminds them of Engie. Maybe they should consider giving it to him when they get back to Teufort.

Tucking the toy into one of their many pockets, they notice a man taking...a lotta salt. How odd. Pyro wants to know what he's doing. And, of course, instead of going up and asking, they're going to watch what he does and see if they can extrapolate anything from that.

Don't mind them. They're just going to stand over Reigen's shoulder, breathing heavily and staring unblinkingly down at Reigen's actions.]