AUGUST 2022 TEST DRIVE

[jigokumods]

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1. SHUTEN TERRITORY - Muscling In

art by tohdraws

In the aftermath of the curse crisis, the Shuten Clan forgave a bunch of protection payments in the region, and helped cover the costs for rebuilding. Unfortunately, some of the street gangs in the area are much less civically minded. They have used the Shuten's relaxed policies as an opportunity to turn their own screws on the local business owners. These unaffiliated youth gangs have been much rougher with the locals, and have been asking for even larger collection fees. This has pissed off the folks who are just trying to get their lives and businesses back on track!

Unfortunately, the opening of Sai no Kawara in the underground drew so much of the clan's focus and manpower, that the issues up top just slipped through the cracks. Until now! Toraguma is in a bad mood and is looking for people to take it out on: the youth gangs will do just fine.

Volunteers are being solicited to join the regular Shuten enforcers in driving these interlopers out of Shuten territory. The gangs are wise to the usual Shuten tactics, though, and they're prepared for a fight. They are also appealing to the influx of Lost Souls: they act as though they're the victims of the factions' power struggles! They propose that taking up arms against the Shuten Clan will win them favor with the other groups in the city. (It will look less good with the Shuten Clan, should you be assigned to them.)

Fight with the Shutens, or with the gangs. Either way, a fight is coming.

2. TAMAMO TERRITORY - Throat Goat (NSFW)

at by akai riot

This prompt is overtly sexual in nature. Please use the proper NSFW labelling in your top levels and threads.

While the Palace of Sai in the underground is doing well, that doesn't mean the other businesses in the Tamamo Clan's collection have been slacking. One of the least "classy" soaplands has decided they're going to hold a contest to drive up business for themselves! They are partnering with some of the other sex clubs in the area for the sleaziest of events.

The Hyottoko Cup is looking for volunteer participants! The competition is pretty straightforward: a ruler is drawn on the throat of each participant and an array of members is presented to swallow. Whichever contestant can take the guests deepest and longest will take home the "coveted" Hyottoko Cup! Ok, there's a little judge favoritism involved too, so put on a show.

The guests have likewise been pulled in as volunteers, with instructions that they don't have to make this easy on the participants. Guests are provided with special seals that they can use for the length of the competition to enhance their natural assets. For those lacking the equipment entirely, there's a seal for that too.

Have fun and play nice.

3. TAMAMO TERRITORY - Strike a Poise (GEN)

Other businesses looking to jump start this month's earnings are also getting in on the spirit of competition! Businesses less oriented towards sexual service have come together as a means to draw in the high dollar clients, and one local club has proposed something old school.

Sign up for the Poise Contest, where contestants are placed into more and more ridiculous geta while tasked with serving drinks to the guest. Spills are expected, and the guests are cheerfully kitted out with cheap club-branded ponchos to protect their clothes. (Marketing, am I right?) While spills are expected, the contestant will lose points for each of the spilled drinks. Try to keep your balance as you attend to increasingly absurd drink orders. The intensity of the traditional footwear will only make your job that much harder.

Do you have what it takes to pour a champagne fountain while wearing teetering tengu geta? Prove your balance and dexterity is the best and the take home prize is some sweet cash. For Lost Souls freshly in the city, the chance to win some extra money can't really be passed up, huh…

4. SUTOKU TERRITORY - Jigokucho's Got Talent

Ever since Moonday's beloved singer – Ringo-chan – was kidnapped at the Tanabata festival, the band has had to cancel all of their scheduled gigs. Unfortunately, they were a hugely popular act, booked solid in most of the Sutoku Alliance's various nightclubs. This has left a ton of empty spots that need to be filled quickly, before the crowds get upset and demand… refunds.

That's where you come in, Lost Souls! Desperate promoters and talent bookers are literally grabbing Lost Souls off the street and begging, pleading, with them to perform a set for the night. They just need to have something to fill the space Moonday would have otherwise occupied. At least give the crowd something to see!

Acts do not need to be of the musical variety. Any performing talent is accepted, no matter how esoteric or bizarre! If it can fill out a 15-30 minute set, the club owners will be happy and the customers will at least see something interesting; even if it's a bad kind of interesting. So get on stage and show this city what you've got!

( Help us fill our time slots, please! We're desperate! 😩)

5. DEPARTMENT OF THE ENMA - Sticky Paws II: Outta the Bag

The Enma Department is busy: they have a kidnapping to investigate, a primordial god to pin down, and the crisis of their ever-shifting public image to manage. However, crime never sleeps and is always there to add to the troubled Department's workload. Worse still, we thought this little crime spree was over six months ago! But here it is again, much to the Enma's chagrin.

Cat cafés are a popular tourist attraction all across Jigokucho. About six months ago, a gang of bakeneko infiltrated several of the cafés to rob customers occupied with kitty bliss. Wallets, jewelry, and anything else those sticky paws could snatch away were being picked in droves. The cat capers are afoot once more!

Are you a hapless victim of these furry thieves, or are you helping the Department of the Enma track down these cat burglars? Unfortunately, the bakeneko are exceptionally clever and are using a seal to disguise their secondary tails. This makes them look just about like any normal cat. Better make sure your lead is good, or you'll be chasing down an ordinary Felis Catus. Soft to pet, but not going to return your pilfered cash.

Of course, the café staff might be in on this caper too… It's never easy to tell who's getting a cut of the profits. Be careful who you trust out there.

6. ALL OVER - The 100 Billion Yen Man (PLOT RELEVANT)

The local TV news has been announcing that Kaberou Kannazaki – the legendary finance wolf and the father of kidnapping victim, Ringo-chan – will be making an announcement this week. People have flocked to television sets throughout the city; at the squares, around TVs in bars, electronic stores, each other's phones, and any other venue with a connection. The kidnapping has been a highly public ordeal and the talk of the town. Many of the locals were present at the festival and witnessed the crime. They want to hear what the word is!

The public doesn't have to wait long. Wolf-eared Kaberou sits at a press desk, surrounded by microphones, and dazzled with flashbulbs. He clears his throat and, as he begins to speak, he is direct and to the point; not unlike a wolf lunging for the throat.

"As of today, I am issuing a bounty on the man known as the Iron Bear, who has claimed responsibility for the kidnapping of my daughter, Ringo Kannazaki. The payout to the party responsible for bringing me Iron Bear, dead or alive, is 100 Billion Yen. Individuals or groups, I don't care. Just bring my daughter back to me, and the money is yours."

Well! The Department of the Enma's hopes of an orderly investigation have been dashed, but this is certainly an opportunity for anyone brave enough – or, more accurately, stupid enough – to traverse the Wasteland. Maybe one of you out there will find the legendary Iron Bear and bring him to some form of justice.

Local businesses are quick to leap at this opportunity, too. They begin to aggressively push sponsorships at would-be bounty hunters. Weapons? Armor? Survival gear? All at discount prices! Each faction has their interest in collecting the massive bounty as well. They will all be putting a lot of pressure on recruits to get ready to head out to the Wastes.

If you just got here? Well, it would definitely be in your interest to start finding gear, and finding people willing to collect that bounty with you. It could mean a big step forward toward your eventual contract, after all.

Welcome to the test drive meme!

• First of all, big thanks to our discord chat for the "Throat Goat" prompt idea. Stay golden, gang.
• IF YOU'RE TOP-LEVELING A NEW CHARACTER, post it here!
• Characters already in the game can top level as well.
• Threads here can be considered game canon.
• Characters can be recruited to do work for any faction until they're given their official assignment.
• If you have any questions about the TDM content, please ask them here! You can find information on the story so far here!
• If you have questions about the game itself, please check out the premise, FAQ, and rules pages.
• Reserves are open until September 5th.

Comments

[fibrillate]

Well... it's definitely not exactly the same, but I'm still trying to figure out what it is the Daitengu wants for me, you know? So far all my assignments have been to gather information, and a lot of that has been walking around at night, going to seedy places like this one—[they lower their voice as they say it, in case they offend someone even though they're sure that people will freely admit that this place is extremely seedy.]

And trying to learn everything I can about... well, everything I can. And that does have a lot to do with what goes on at night. But... [they don't really know why they feel uneasy about this. maybe it's because of how good a thing the night is for nazuna, or maybe it's because they're getting nostalgic about the ways that they used to be able to live. they gnaw at their lip instead of taking another drink.]

I'm not sure. Maybe that's how this place works. I know that it isn't how the NSO worked, and the philanthropy I did was almost round-the-clock, but it was just... all of it was different. Do you know what I mean? [they're not sure if they're saying it very clearly.] I... the way I want to live is something that needs to take place in the daylight. I think.

[they don't know that for certain. in fact, it goes against everything else they've said so far to insist that it all has to happen in the sunlight. the "i think" carries weight behind it, the same as that genuine question about what kind of place this city is.]

[nightcalling]

...right, but why?

[ it's not intended to be rude. it's a real question. she's not mad, she just doesn't get why levi's saying it, you know? she takes a longer drink, swirling the beer around at the bottom of the mug before continuing. ]

It doesn't sound like your job is a nine-to-five dealio. And you haven't really sounded like a salaryman or some OL. I can't imagine you sitting around in an office and doing paperwork. [ siiiip. ] Guess I just don't really get it.

[ she pounds back the last bit of the beer, wiping her mouth with her sleeve before clunking the mug back on the table. ]

Well, if it's what makes you happy, it's what makes you happy, you know?

[ the real question is: is it what makes levi happy? ]

[fibrillate]

[the one thing that levi notices before anything else is that nazuna really does like beer. (they're barely halfway through their own.) but that's just something to, like, distract from the reality of things. because what really matters is that one little question.]

[why?]

[they don't know. they don't have an answer, or maybe they do but it's not one they're comfortable giving voice to in the moment. they look like they're thinking very, very hard about the right way to say something. if nazuna gave them a real question, they want to give a real answer.]

I just look at the way that our factions work... how everything seems to operate on what's expected... but then I look at people like you, or my friends who named the musical group they're in after the hour in the middle of the night when they all get online and work together... [this whole thing seems to trouble them. they reach up one hand behind their neck and rub it gently, and it's not where any of the marker is, which would at least make sense.]

I really don't know. I don't know why I need to do these things in the daylight, and I just wish I had a better answer for you.

[nightcalling]

You really don't know, huh...?

[ it's not said unkindly. it is said in the tone of someone who might have a thought or two on the topic she's keeping to herself. and instead of trying to say those out loud, she waves to the nearest waitress and calls out: ]

'scuuuusie! [ she grins wide, raising her empty mug in the air. ] More beer, pweeeease?

[ the waitress from earlier runs over, glancing down to the now-pocketed piece of paper before smiling and taking nazuna's mug. nazuna, on the other hand, just grins back to levi. ]

Hey, if it works for you, it works. Just try not to place too much on what people expect, right? Oh Leviathan, "creature of the deep."

[ it's teasing, but not mocking. sometimes, that's just how it is. ]

[fibrillate]

It... certainly works.

[they say that part in a low voice, unconvincingly, while they continue to contemplate things. it's hard to tell where they're going to end up falling. there's certainly a lot to be said for nazuna's embrace of the night, and the very loud part of them in the middle of all of this is, of course, insisting that levi has already embraced the night in everything but name. it would be stupid to pretend otherwise. but they feel so lost, sometimes, thinking about their place in Hell and what it really means, and...]

[none of this comes through at all, of course. they don't speak it. they're having a good time with this new vampire, and they don't want to ruin the mood with their overthinking. they return to the world around them with a subtle shudder, little more than a tiny shake of their head.]

Well. One way or another, it's what my life is for the foreseeable future, and I'll simply have to get used to it. And everything that may follow with it, including vampirism and swallowing contests. [as though proving a point, they take a much longer drink, all but draining their beer. that might be a problem later, but for now, it's going just fine.]

[nightcalling]

Right, right! That's the spirit!

[ the next beer comes and is drained much like the first. it's barely ten minutes later when leviathan pays and nazuna stands, brushing off her coat like she didn't just drink a liter and a half of beer. ]

Sheesh, this place really heats up after the second beer, huh? [ a joke! it's a joke. nazuna reaches up, undoing a single button with a clean and quick motion, then throws her coat open. suddenly, the impression of a vampire is much stronger: a cloak, buttoned and tied at the neck, billowing open around her. suddenly, the impression of nazuna nanakusa is much sexier: thigh-highs, shorts, and a top that feels more like underwear than any sort of reasonable clothing. the waitress from earlier looks over; she stares, flushing a bright red. ] C'mon, Leviathan. It's getting past your bedtime, right?

[ another prodding tease - this one a bit more targeted, but still not intended as cruelty. she doesn't bother to wait for an answer, walking out the door before turning to wait expectantly. ]

[fibrillate]

[levi stands, and for a moment, they are stunned. their face turns as red as the server's, and they share a conversation through glances alone. one says "oh my god", one says "I know", and they do not share a word. leviathan doubles their tip, then stumbles on the way out the door with their heart pounding in their ears.]

No, I think... I think seeing you like that has woken me up a little. [this is as honest as they are going to get about it, or at least as honest as they plan to. the alcohol loosens their lips, though, to the point where they don't quite realize their monologue has gotten external.] Why are all my friends so attractive...?

[nightcalling]

Hmmm? Ah, is that so? [ even if levi's little monologue hadn't kept going, nazuna would be fully aware of the impact she'd left. the unfortunate truth is this: she's not an idiot, or at least she's not that kind of idiot. she knows full well how she looks, and she knows the sort of effect that has on people - even if she hadn't quite expected levi to be one of those people. ] Blame it on meeting a vampire. Or genetics. I look a lot like my mom, apparently.

[ she stretches once she's outside, grabbing her elbow and raising one arm high above her head. lookit that tum, levi. look at it. and then she stops - looking at leviathan for a moment, from head to toe. ]

Hey. [ she sounds... well. not serious, exactly. but not as flighty as usual. like she's making up her mind on something. ] Do you mean that? We're friends?

[fibrillate]

[it gets levi's attention. the question, not the tum. well, yes, nazuna's body, too, but—that's not the point. that's so far from the point. when they answer, it's deliberate, like they're focusing on the words instead of something else. like they're pulling themself back to a normal that shouldn't be difficult to return to.]

Yes. Yeah. [they repeat it, knowing how un-casual it sounds.] I know that we've only had one conversation, but this has really been... exciting. I'm comfortable calling you my friend if you are. And I would be glad to help you get acclimated no matter what faction you end up with.

[nightcalling]

[ the smile on nazuna's face... that's genuine. genuine in a way that levi might not have seen much of this whole conversation, between nazuna's pointed teasing and innuendos and beers. ]

Friends. [ she repeats it, that same smile on her face. ] Yeah. Yeah, I think I can make that work.

[ she approaches levi, calm and steady in her stride. as she draws near, she stops for a moment- ]

-ah. You asked for warnings, right? So... Consider yourself warned.

[ -then crosses the distance between them, places one palm on leviathan's cheek, and leans up to kiss them.

it's not sexual - at least, past the eros of a petite figure suddenly brushing against leviathan's own. it's not romantic - at least, past the inherent heart murmur that comes from a beautiful woman kissing you. and it's not invasive - at least, past the invasiveness of an unexpected kiss from someone you've met an hour or two prior. it's a short kiss, closed mouth, soft lips against soft lips. nothing more to it.

she pulls away, still with that same smile on her face. ]

See you around, Leviathan... My first ever meta-human friend.

[ she doesn't stick aroud. she turns, looking up to the rooftops surrouding them - and then leaps, grabbing onto the edge of a building and flipping over to the top. and just like that, she's out of sight.

probably not out of mind, though. ]

[fibrillate]

[there is a moment, there, where leviathan is worried that nazuna is going to do something far worse. there is a moment where they want to run away, to retreat back to the safety of the ocean bed. there are moments after moments all in sequence where they realize they could pull away but their body keeps them locked in place. where they could simply elect to abandon this conversation, this friendship, if it gets too much for their heart to handle.]

[it is the safe thing to do. it is the smart thing to do.]

[they stand there, and they let nazuna kiss them, and they don't know how else to react. their heart thrums, their thoughts buzz. they watch this vampire spring away, proving every single word of what she's told them so far tonight, and their mouth hangs just slightly open. their face is red and they can feel that warmth, but as nazuna gets further away, they touch their lips with their fingertips like they can't believe what just happened. like they can't believe that they let this vampire whom they had just met, and whom they had met under the strangest of circumstances, kiss them like that. with such lucidity, too.]

[their hand falls to their side again, and it takes them a moment to remember how to walk. as they take the short journey back to their apartment, the whirring mechanical fan, the rumpled sheets, the exposed metal radiator that they'd moved their bed to be right beside, they don't realize that they already know why they stayed.]

[it's later that evening, with the haze of the sun a fading memory on the horizon, that it hits them. why they let that happen to them, and why they didn't take every opportunity they had to stop it, and what it is that they're going to end up doing next.]

[in no long period of time, they will embrace the night as the old friend that it truly is.]