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TDM #1

TEST DRIVE MEME

This Mess We're In The city sun sets over me...

You awaken slightly disoriented on a beautiful, smooth stone floor. A look around will tell you that this place is a hilltop temple with a good view of the beautiful city below. On opposite sides of the temple are genderless depictions of deities. One is clearly powerful, made of onyx, held up in an imposing stance with one hand holding a gilded flogger and the other outstretched with an open palm as if to enforce a command. The other, made of polished white marble, has taken a knee to the dominant statue across from them. One of their hands is a vase for fresh flowers and you can see that new ones have been placed there today.

The music of an unseen harp begins to play and a golden light permeates the temple. Suddenly, you know what is happening here. The duality that is worshipped here, the figures in the temple, they have a name. The onyx one is Ceannasach and the marble one is Cuiristeach and together with their combined power they are the ones who have brought you to Parthas.

What is Parthas? Parthas is paradise! You have either been brought here because Ceannasach believes you contribute to your world in some glorious way and deserve to be honored and served or because Cuiristeach believes that you would be excellent in a service role, perhaps they even feel sorry for the state of your life back home and want to show you something better.

The deities here also brought you because they need lik which is the energy that allows them to exist. Lik is created in small amounts when you interact with other people, in greater amounts when you grow fond of certain people, and in greater still amounts when you begin to use physical affection. However, when you orgasm, that creates the purest form of lik there is.

Ceannasach and Cuiristeach reward you in a special way. When you have sex with your soulmate or your hjarta, your vördr, or spirit, leaves your body in a time-frozen moment to commune with the deities and ask for something big or small that you might like. Sex carries on as usual and only you will know that you asked for something. If you ask to be sent home, the deities will send you into a hyperaroused state when you least expect it. Hey, you offended them.

The deities also believe you should know of something they have placed in Parthas for your benefit. There is a river in a valley in the middle of housing that will give and take anything you like from your body if you should so wish. This can mean a illness, sadness, a memory or anything else, but be careful because this river runs on fickle magic.

As the harp music continues, you become aware of a new power of yours. You can hear any thought that any other person sends your way, even the ones sent accidentally, and you can see images and moving pictures, as well. Don’t limit yourself to one person! Send that thought to everyone!

The harp music comes to an eventual end and you are left with the knowledge the deities gave you. Your intuition leads you down a southbound path towards a city where a celebration seems to be taking place, if the colorful banners are any indicator. Welcome to Parthas!

Dancing Barefoot She, intoxicated by Thee; She has the slow sensation that He is levitating with She

There is indeed a celebration going on in South City as this is the month of Feabhra. Where it was daylight when you left the Main Temple, now that you have reached the city the only lights are colorful paper lanterns strung up across smooth stone roads. The warmth of the daytime has cooled, so it might be smart to snuggle up with someone in one of the city’s various gazebos – each of them has a swing made for two (or three if you snuggle close enough.)

Harps, flutes, guitars and drums play lively music for everyone to dance to in the city square where garlands of brightly colored and white flowers hang for people to do with as they will. A stately woman dressed in black and wearing a brooch with the face of Ceannasach stands off to the side, her dark hair pulled back in a chignon. Whispers circulate, getting to you and informing you that this woman is E’ara Fraoch, owner of the most successful brothel in South City, and she is paying 50 gold pieces to the best dancers and 100 more if they will come work for her at Where The Wild Roses Grow, her establishment.

I Feel You I feel you, your precious soul, and I am whole

Food and drink is plentiful at this celebration and some of it is even free! The vendors believe that this is a good promotion for their stores during the rest of the year. They wheel their carts about, humming jaunty tunes and offering delicious things to you, the new arrivals, and everyone else in the city.
There is a man named Sam wheeling his cart of beverages and chocolate dipped waffles through town. If you catch him, he’ll probably suggest you order the alcoholic drink The Spirit of Feabhra. This drink does not come without side effects. It tastes like a fancy gin cocktail, sparkling and sweet with the flavor of berries and mint hitting your tongue, but the moment you get close to someone you actually have feelings for, you start to feel it… Them. Their thoughts, their emotions, their dreams… It’s as if they have melted into you.

Is This Desire? Is this desire; Enough, enough; To lift us higher; To lift above?

You have been told repeatedly throughout the night by smiling (creepy) faces not to wander out of the city limits into the wilderness, but now that you are here you just don’t get it. Lichens and fungi light up the night with a soft glow from the tree trunks, seemingly drawing you in.

In the forest, the music fades and the chittering of small animals creates a different tune. You don’t seem to be in danger. You might come across the healthiest, most beautiful apple tree you’ve ever seen. It is completely free of pests and only the dew clings to the apples’ shiny surface.

Should you pick one for yourself, you will feel a strange compulsion to bite it. Go on. Do it. If and when you have, you will find yourself incredibly aroused, but you won’t be able to bring yourself to orgasm – another must do it. If you didn’t bite the apple, maybe you gave it to someone else. In that case they will be unstoppably attracted to you with arousal to match. If you chose to plant it near your home, a tree like the one it came from will grow there and you will ICly receive a special reward.

Dead of Night When delirious fun; Has seriously begun; You'll be down on your knees; You'll be begging us please

Now you’ve done it. You’ve wandered into the woods without a spiritual guide from the temple. Now the vættir have been awoken and they are ready to fuck shit up… Sort of. Right now, these spirits kind of only want to ruin this party, but who knows what they’ll do later?

A low-lying cloud of black smoke crawls down the hills from the forest to the city until it covers the smooth stone roads and reaches up into everyone who is either of weak constitution or just simply tired and possesses them. It doesn’t take total control, but rather influences them, and causes them to destroy decorations, vendor carts, and do wild things they wouldn’t ordinarily do. Basically, these spirits want to cut through the façade and see you party like a rock star.

The only way to exorcise one of the vættir from a friend or loved one is to call on the deity of light – Cuiristeach. They accept demonstrations of service as the highest form of prayer, so get on your knees for your friend and get this done!

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The whispered suggestions in the back of his mind are similar enough to the Matron of Ravens' directives it's easy to lose the thread. It's less death and more mischief, far more harmless, and without his sister to ground him it's harder to object. It's reckless abandon, fun and chaos for the sake of both, and gods, when was the last time he had any real fun?

But there's suddenly a giant of a man in front of him, blocking his way, and it would be easy enough to get around him but he stops for the moment.

"What is enough though, my friend, really?" He laughs and reaches up to tug the much taller man's beard lightly, and with a wink he's off again, pausing for long enough stretches for him to keep up but staying just out of reach.

The impish look in the man's eyes makes him feel a bit warmer. It's been a while since he's had fun either. He can when he has the chance, but there's never enough time for it before he's on to the next town and the next people who need him. He should let go and have some fun too. But he still doesn't want anyone else to get hurt from it. He'd hate to see this turn into a fight, though he does have a feeling the younger man could easily slip around most danger with the way he was weaving about it before.

The tug of the beard brings a laugh, unbidden. He's too slow to try and get a meaty hand on the man. He's gone, like smoke and all Reinhardt can do is turn and try to grab for him, his considerable reach still not enough. So his only option is to chase after, to make sure that none of the others decide to give hurting the younger man a try.

"Wrecking people's fun!" He calls out, charging after. It's a bit like a charging bull, shoulders down just slightly, hands positioned for a grab. He's nowhere near as fast as this young man, but he's faster than a man of 60+ should be. Reinhardt is going to pretend that this game of tag isn't going to make him ache later. That's a problem for Future Him. Present him has a mission!

His mission, to at least manage to touch this man. Just touch him! "You! You're fast, my friend!" He's already laughing though, a booming boisterous thing that fills as much space as he does. Tag is fun. A challenge is very fun. And maybe he angles himself and his rushing charges to try and herd the smaller man away from the heaviest crowds. Less collateral damage (see Ana, he does lean...eventually).

It's easy enough for Vax to dodge, to dash away at the last moment, faster than the larger man can turn. He knows brawn isn't his strong suit, he's always operated on outmaneuvering, on outsmarting his opponent, finding weaknesses and attacking just the right points, and tag is just more of the same in a lot of ways. He leaves just enough lead time so the man can touch his cloak now and then, but his mind is just clouded enough by outside influence that he's not quite sharp enough to evade completely. It's a game, some mischief, and it's only fun if the pursuer continues to pursue, so the other's efforts succeed in their goal, the pauses to steal and trip and smash lessening as he finds himself herded increasingly away from the biggest targets.

To the point where he ultimately finds himself backed against a wall and out of enough stamina to just dart between his legs like he might have otherwise.

So instead he just grins up at him, settling for dodging reaching arms the best he can at his normal speed, which is quicker than most but not supernaturally so.

"Who's wrecking anything, big man? Gravity's a hell of a thing."

For such a large man, Reinhardt is still pretty agile on his feet. But he's not made for the sort of maneuvering that Vax is doing. He's a man who stands and delivers, a full frontal assault before soaking as much damage as he can for the others on his team. Going after this man, chasing him around is a thrilling challenge, so different than the sort of battles or training he has done.

He misses the rocket boosters on his back that would have propelled him forward at ridiculous and reckless speeds. He'd surely get more than a single fingertips brush. As it is, he can feel the slide of the cloak, just out of his grip.

He feels a little victorious because at least the diverting worked. He is smiling so broadly his face hurts when he gets the agile man trapped between himself and that wall. But his efforts are pretty obvious. Keeping up with this younger man has him winded little. His breath comes in slight pants and there's sweat clinging to arms as big as some men.

He has the dignity not to lean against his knees. He won't show such weakness. Instead, he remains firm, a second wall, head slightly turned to keep the smaller man to his sighted side.

"Gravity did not take those ales. I saw you, my quick friend. Where I am from, taking a man's beer is a serious offence!" It's not. He's laughing too hard for that to be the truth. "It's better for you to just ask. Someone would surely just give you one."

He takes a step forward, looming not because he's trying to be intimidating but because being as tall as he is, that sort of comes with the territory. As he does, he reaches out, once more to just attempt a touch. Even a brush would be enough. He'd be happy to have managed that. "We don't know the people of this town. We don't know what offends them. I'm sure they're good people." Because everyone is that...until they prove to him they aren't. "But a good first impression is important, yes?"

Vax feels at the wall behind him, the texture of the bricks, trying to determine how easily he'll be able to scale it like this. A jump, spring off the man's arm, maybe, arm to shoulder then jump for a better handhold, but he's too winded for that much himself, only smirks up at the other, settling for dodging side to side while he catches his breath, golden light outlining the details of his armor before blinking out again, confirming the chase is at an end.

"You sound like a friend of mine," he says breathlessly with a reckless grin, the gleam in his eyes maybe a little too-bright under the influence of the vættir. "Where's the fun in asking for a mug when you can just take it?"

His next dodge is a shade too slow, the older man finally managing contact, no matter how brief.

"I've been making bad first impressions since I was a child, why start something new now?"

It wouldn't be the first time someone used him as a platform to spring off of. He's not expecting it though. He's not certain what he's expecting but not that. He's also not expecting the light on the armor to go out. That's curious. He wonders if it's a sort of nano armor, something light, not like the full suit the Crusaders would wear. But there's a more important thing. His dodging playmate is slower.

Slow enough that he feels his fingers brush over the man's shoulders. He doesn't grab though. Instead he lets out the loudest cheer. "HA! I DID IT!! DID YOU SEE THAT! I'M UNSTOPPABLE!!" It's a fully volume roar of delighted victory. He really is that pleased with himself.

But that bombastic merriment is short lived. His huge smile fades into one of soft concern. His heart immediately hurts for this stranger he never met. "Now now, none of that. I'm sure that isn't true at all. And if it is, does it matter now? We're here. This is a chance to begin again, right? A new place to be the best we can be." He doesn't mean to lecture this young man with his idealistic prattle but it's what he truly believes with all his heart.

"So my quick friend, how would you like to try again? Where the dancing and drinks are?" He holds out his hand. "And if you are still feeling energetic, we can always play tag again. Only. this time, it won't be just a touch. This time, I'll actually catch you."

The sudden burst of sentimentality, especially so close after the loud shout, sets him off-kilter, has him frowning in confusion as he looks up at the other. The hand is offered and Vax doesn't know what to do with it, but he takes it anyway on impulse, before smirking at him and giving him a wink.

"Plenty of ways to burn energy, a big man like you. But you're assuming I care about what others think."

He'd lost his regard for the opinions of others long ago, outside influence or not. Since his father's disapproval and disappointment, since the disgust apparent in the faces of far too many self-important elves.

"But another game of chase sounds fun. Much more interesting, anyway. What will you do once you catch me?"

"You might not care, but I do. I care if someone gets hurt on my watch. Not them and not you."

The wink has him just a little flustered. He's sure the young man is just teasing. He's positive that it's not really flirting because it's been far far too long since anything like that has happened for him. He's sure this is just a playful young man that's had it hard in his life. He can't be all that serious about flirting with a huge scarred veteran.

It's still fun to act like he's still in his prime. Still young and blond, in the height of his glory. "Me. When I catch you." Not if, but when. He's too stubborn not to think he'll be able to do more than just touch this young man. The height of his once youthful arrogance returned for just tonight. Perhaps what has possessed this young man has a few tendrils in him too in a way. "I don't know. I would say a kiss, but I won't force anyone like that. So maybe I'll just keep hold of you until this is over and we all go to where we're going to be staying. To see that you stay out of trouble and see you to our new homes safely."

Vax grins at the answer, a challenge apparent in every line of him. Normally just the challenge would be enough, if he even bothered with games, but the proposed terms only seemed to sweeten the proposition.

"A kiss, hmm? I could accept those terms. Especially depending on what you have in mind for 'keeping hold' of me if you catch me."

He chewed his lip, at once challenge and allure; it wasn't his way to be so blatant usually, at least not unless it was with Gilmore and the man had already initiated the verbal dance, but something whispered under his skin, loosened his reservations. Was this how Scanlan felt? Perhaps, but he couldn't find it in him to examine too closely.

"Then that is what will happen." He's not certain about how he'd keep hold. Likely a hug of some sort, but first, he'll have to catch the young man again. Which means he must chase again.

Reinhardt takes a breath and shuffles to the side to give Vax room to leave the alley. It will still be a tight squeeze past such a large man. But there's an honest expression on his face when he states, "I won't start until you have room. I can even count if you'd want. Give you time to get ahead of me. I promise. I'll not cheat and grab you as you go by. On Zehn, I go after you." He means it. He even closes his one good eye and starts to count in German. "Ein..."

There's not an answer, or even a suggestion, so he winks in something like agreement, and promise, and challenge, something thoroughly flirting, accompanied by a wolfish smirk as he looks the older man over, taking every inch of him in greedily, and then he's off with a giddy laugh, ducking under his arm and sprinting away.

"Good luck, big man!" He calls after him, eyes open for a good place to hide, handholds to get away with, but not straying too far ahead. Just enough to make things interesting.

"Luck?" His head turns towards the sound, eye squeezed shut as promised. "I don't need luck. I have skill!" But he still keeps his promise. He still counts. Once he gets to ten, then it's time to chase.

He sprints after Vax, his goal to catch hold of the man. It's not an easy task at all. If anything, this was a bit of good training, but more than that, it's more fun than he's had in such a long time. He laughs.

"You can't get away from me, my fast friend!" He doesn't try to steer this man this time. Instead, he lets Vax lead. He'll chase where the other goes.

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TDM #1

Re: 003. Let the spirit move you

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