TEST DRIVE.

[speirmod]

TEST DRIVE.

LOG #1: PLACEBO. Congratulations! You've passed your interview. After successfully walking through the rather fancy and posh Welcome Door from the Doorman's Hallway, you've now found yourself in a section of PLACEBO. When you step out into PLACEBO, the first thing you'll notice is that you're feeling very warm. Don't look up, though; the sun's a little too bright at the moment and needs an adjustment from the Architect, so it's highly recommended you grab an umbrella, hat, or a pair of sunglasses. The second thing you'll notice is that it's bustling with activity. The town centre has people dressed in various clothing and styles walking around who greet you with a quick wave and a friendly "Hi." These are the people of PLACEBO. Most of them are nice. Right now, they have no opinion of you. If you ask these people any questions, they'll be as helpful as they can be, but they don't have all the answers. Some of them will do their best to assist you while others… won't. Nevermind the cold shoulder. Did you see the hot dog stand offering free hotdogs? Grab some food (it's delicious), go explore, perhaps get a nice pair of shoes? If you put your hand in your pocket (don't have pockets? you do now!), you'll find a little business card in it that has your new address on it. This business card is made of thick plastic and is unbreakable and does not burn. If you lose it, a cat will bring it back to you. This is your temporary key card. This might also be a good time to test out your new power. Just be careful of the cats—there's plenty of them running around town, sitting in trees, on tables, and sleeping in chairs. You don't want to make a wrong first impression. LOG #2: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE. cw mentions: drug use, dangerous animals. Welcome to Jumanji, better known as Earth-95. After Michael briefs everyone in on this mission, you walk through a door covered in vines with leaves poking through the thin gaps between door and hinge. You step foot into a beautiful jungle. Everyone starts in the same area—a thick canopy of trees, bushes and still vines—before wandering off in all directions. It's humid. The leaves around you are damp from a recent rain. The grass beneath your feet is ankle-high and thick and vines from trees slither out like long, unwieldy snakes at the pace of a sloth moving across the road. Remember how Michael said something about appropriate footwear? He was right about one thing: Van Pelt isn't here. It seems like the intrepid explorers of S.P.E.I.R. have been dropped off on Earth-95 before Van Pelt's time. Curious. You'll still need the weapons you brought in your backpacks—and if you didn't bring a backpack, you'll carry them in your hands or pockets. The jungle isn't safe for anyone. Watch out for the alligators in the water, the monkeys in the trees, and did we mention the snakes slithering through the grass? Try not to be bitten by any insects. Their bites have very intense hallucinogenic properties that can last from an hour to half a day if you're not careful. The jungle is also the home to many flourishing ripe fruits. Remember when Michael said not to come on an empty stomach? He really meant that. Eating the fruits of the jungle will lead to a few (and perhaps unwanted) side effects… Red berries: Roses are red, violets are blue, have you ever felt what someone else is feeling, too? After eating a red berry, you'll find yourself forming an empathetic bond with one or more people. You can feel their feelings. Gross. Purple berries: This is your NSFW option. It's getting hot in here, so get Nelly with it. Banana: Do you feel compelled to act on your urges and to say what you think? Bananas make characters more susceptible to being honest. How honest they are is up to you. Red apples: They're just deliciously sweet, beautiful big red apples. There's nothing wrong with them. Except for the fact you can suddenly hear what everyone's thinking. But don't let that distract you from the mission at hand. The fate of Jumanji (or Earth-95) is at stake here. Find the ruby red jewel and return it to the earth. Sounds simple, right? If you want your character to find the ruby red jewel, note that there are many of them out there. They look like a glass pomegranate and are the size of the Rock's palm and are found all throughout the jungle—in trees, ants nests, wasp nests, buried half in the dirt, in the mouths of giant hippos… All you have to do is bury it in some dirt. Super simple when you think about it… NETWORK #1: A/S/L. Did you check your other pocket? Or perhaps your bag? You'll find a very slim looking iPhone that instantly activates once you look at it. This phone will connect to you the wider S.P.E.I.R. network. It's fully encrypted, only requires a little charge every now and then, and has a few cat photos already in the album. You can't delete those. Why would you? The phone has a changeable username and a little profile picture of you. It's your best picture. No, you can't change this photo. How about you say hi on the network? Reach out to your fellow S.P.E.I.R. comrades? Pose an interesting, thought-provoking ice-breaker? Maybe you just want to show a picture of a cat (who doesn't—they're so cute!). @michael Did you know your universe is considered to be 104% perfect if Beyonce exists on it? Discuss. OOC. 'Sup. Welcome to SPEIR where cats rule and that's okay. This is serving as an interest check. SPEIR, as you guys know, is intended to be a chill gpsl. It's not meant to be hardcore like a game, but it is intended to be active—like when your cat awakens and chooses to play with you for 30 minutes and then promptly goes back to sleep. Hopefully the tdm has given you an idea of what the tone is going to be like for SPEIR whenever it opens. Please make sure you mark for any NSFW content. Most importantly, have fun!

NAVIGATION • speir • speirnet • speirooc

Comments

marcos diaz ( the gifted )

[heliophilous]

▶ 01. PLACEBO

---

( marcos' first thought is that he's not wearing the right clothes for this. his jacket and hoodie are way too much and he's sweating but he doesn't take them off.

it feels like a shield of a sort, a remnant of who he was before so despite the heat, he keeps them on. he doesn't try and talk to anyone that he passes but he does stop to get something to eat.

his stomach rumbles so he knows it's the right thing to do even if he has no idea if this food's going to kill him or not. he's eaten worse.

as he's about to take a bite, he finds a cat watching him and it just...creeps him out. )

What?

( oh good, he's talking to a cat. )

▶ 02. NETWORK

---

@ diaz

Does the sheer amount of cats creep anyone else out?

▶ 03. WILDCARD

---

( feel free to throw anything else at me! )

@elena

[descendent]

I think they're kind of cute.

Although, I think one was stalking me a little earlier. I didn't realize they didn't make a sound when they moved.

[heliophilous]

Yeah, they're cute until there's fifty of them watching you eat. I'm not a fan.

[descendent]

Wow. Are you that interesting when you eat? Maybe I should join them.

[heliophilous]

You don't even know me. Why would you wanna do that?

[descendent]

Because something tells me we're going to be here for a while and I figure it's best to use this time to make friends than to be alone.

It's fine if you don't agree. I just won't agree with your disagreement.

[heliophilous]

Why do you think we'll be here awhile?

[descendent]

There's a Multiverse, which means there are multiple universes, and I figure that this is just one of them. There's plenty more out there that I think we get to see.

You don't find that a little exciting?

[heliophilous]

I find that a little overwhelming. I got enough trouble in my own universe to think about other ones.

[descendent]

Maybe that's the point. We help with the troubles here and maybe our personal problems might be fixed.

[ it's very intense wishful thinking on her part, but she hopes for it to be true. ]

I'd like to hope that's the case.

[heliophilous]

Very optimistic.

You always think that way?

[descendent]

Honestly? Not really. But after a series of unfortunate events, I challenged myself to look at the bright side first.

So, bright side. Surprisingly, there's a few to be found here.

[heliophilous]

I don't really do bright sides.

So, why don't you tell me what bright sides you've found so I can keep up.

[descendent]

There's interesting people here. And really good food—the donuts are really cinnamony, which I like. You don't have to pay a plan for your phone. And I've never been anywhere outside of Virginia.

A few bright sides.

[heliophilous]

I've never been to Virginia so you have me beat there.

I'm glad someone's a glass half full person. I'm not very good at that.

[descendent]

Do you like your glasses half-empty?

[ she rereads that. ]

That meant to come off witty. I'm definitely a glass half full non-witty my-jokes-fall-super-flat person.

[heliophilous]

You don't have to try so hard to be witty with me. It's fine. But yeah, I like my glasses half empty. Especially if it means I've already finished half my drink.

( look, he can try and be funny too. )

[descendent]

And you tell me I don't have to try so hard.

[ she laughed. she'd "lol" him but she wants to come off completely cool. ]

What about food? Are you happy when your plate's half-empty?

[heliophilous]

No, but I'm kind of used to it.

( street kid and all. )

[descendent]

[ elena isn't so sure, but she thinks she may have steered them into an uncomfortable corner. either that, or he has a very dry sense of humour. ]

I'm Elena. I figure we should know each other's names if I'm going to be watching you eat.

[ ... yes, she hates herself. ]

[heliophilous]

Marcos.

( wait. )

You're going to watch me eat?

[descendent]

Are you a shy eater?

[heliophilous]

No but that doesn't mean people need to watch me eat.

[descendent]

So, what do you do when you go on a date? Do you sit with your back to your date? You don't go out to eat?

[heliophilous]

I don't really date.

( he'd been with lorna for awhile and they hadn't really gone out on dates and then she'd left and he was just...too busy. )