August Test Drive!

[rubycitymods]

Thinking of apping a character but not sure they'll fit in the city walls?

Have no fear, a meme for you is here.

Directions:

• Use an RNG to choose a location and prompt, or wait for someone else to tag.


• Post with your character with their name and canon on top!


• If you'd like, leave contact info for people to get in contact for plotting and other such shenans.


• Tag around! Make friends. Don't be afraid to chat OOC while tagging.

Locations

1.TRAIN STATION - The place where everyone gets dumped off at. Your first view of Ruby City, complete with informational posters telling you all about where you've ended up.
2. THE BEACH - Lovely year-round, though in the winter months, you're probably not likely to dip your toes in.
3. THE BLACK STALLION - A rather quaint bar. Supposedly, the burgers are great, but you don't see anyone immediately who's willing to serve you. Maybe you're meant to get it yourself.
4. THE OBELISK - The tall monolith in the center of the city marks the gathering place of many events, though right now it seems to be cold and dark.
5. THE CLOCKTOWER - Offering an impressive view of the city, several residents come here to clear their heads, if they don't mind braving the narrow staircase.
6. THE COFFEE JOINT - the front windows are warm and welcoming, and it seems there's always someone friendly enough to fix you a cup when you wander through.
7. THE CATACOMBS - Intrepid, aren't you? Those weird holes may beg exploring, but go too deep and you're going to be in a lot of trouble, considering the viciousness of the creatures held within.
8. THE CITY STREETS - All told, Ruby City is a lovely place, once you get past the fact that several of the buildings look derelict and on the verge of falling down. There's no harm in doing a little sightseeing.
9. THE PARK - You thought it'd be a lovely stroll, but the park is anything but friendly, if those approaching wolf-like creatures are any indication.
10. CHOOSE YOUR OWN - Don't like what we've come up with? Feel like picking your own place? There's a whole host of lovely locations to choose from in the City.


Scenarios


1. NEW ARRIVAL - Step off that train, walk down the street. People usually latch on to newcomers to try and help them out. Even if you look shy, the other residents probably won't be!
2. WATCH TALK - Feeling lost? Disoriented? Don't worry, everyone feels that way on their first day. Fortunately - if the signs at the station are to believed - the watch in your pocket can be used to talk to whoever else might be here.
3. BAD WEATHER - Aw, man. Whether it's snow, or rain, or just plain cold, today was definitely the wrong day to get dumped off in a City in the middle of nowhere.
4. A RUN-IN - Maybe you weren't watching. Maybe they weren't. Either way, you just bumped into someone. Perhaps apologies are in order?
5. HELP, IT HURTS - Clumsy, aren't you? Perhaps wherever the train brought you from wasn't so friendly, or you just tripped and twisted your ankle. Either way, you're in a bit of pain. Hopefully someone will notice your booboos and help patch you up.
6. HUNGRY - It isn't very obvious sometimes that restaurants are what they are, especially in a place like Ruby City. Where can a person go to get a bite to eat around here?
7. MISTAKEN IDENTITY - Hey, there's someone you know! --Or maybe not.
8. BEING FOLLOWED - Maybe you're just being paranoid, or maybe you've got a reason to be afraid. Whatever it is, it feels like there's eyes on you...
9. CURRENT EVENTS - None at the moment, but feel free to look through our event tag!
10. CHOOSE YOUR OWN - Don't like any of these ideas? Feel free to come up with your own!

Comments

[lapidarius]

[...That glow seemed strangely familiar too. Where had he seen something like that before?]

[Never mind. For now, Kakyoin simply took off his sunglasses and held up his hands to show he wasn't intending to be a threat. It would be a pretty miserable welcome for anyone to immediately get into a fight.]

I understand, honestly. So the first thing you should be aware of is what I'm informed is common knowledge here: if and when one leaves this place, it's to the moment in which they left. Which is to say, time- [That sentence got a split second's hesitation, like he really didn't want to say this.] -...effectively stops, while we're here.

[beatofmyblood]

[...that's not something he's expecting: both the notion of stopped time and the scars running across the boy's eyelids. Young men didn't just get potentially traumatic injuries like that out of no where (trust him, he knows from experience), but he has other things to focus on at the moment.]

So you're saying...while I'm here, nothing will happen?

[It sounds impossible, but...it does get him to relax a little. The boy seems trustworthy, as if Jonathan's ever one to scrutinize, and at least Erina isn't in any more immediate danger than she already is. That doesn't mean he can just sit back and relax, though.]

Just what is this place? Obviously it can't be in the middle of the Atlantic, but are we near Britain? America?

[lapidarius]

Well, that's...another problem. This city's location isn't so easy to pinpoint.

[Satisfied he wasn't about to get punched, Kakyoin lowered his hands and slipped his sunglasses into a pocket.]

There's no simple answer to this, so I'll be direct: It's not really anywhere so much as it just exists. It's more of an alternate world entirely its own as far as I've been told.

[beatofmyblood]

You're...serious. An alternate world?!

[This is like something out of a storybook. Just to check, he feels around his neck to make sure he hasn't suffered significant blood loss. All that's left are two dark scars where he was injured before, though Jonathan has yet to notice the tears and bloodstains on the back of his suit where shrapnel used to be.]

This is difficult for me to fully comprehend. If this place exists, for whatever reason, outside the barriers of time and space, how are we standing here instead of where we're supposed to be? All of this should be impossible. Unless...

[He shakes his head, shrugging off the darker thought he just had. Besides, vampires and zombies should be impossible too, dingus.]

I have to get back to Erina. Even if time is stopped, I can't just leave her there alone with Dio!

[And now he's looking around for a train schedule, unaware that the name he just mentioned offhandedly is gonna wreck this kid.]

[lapidarius]

I know. I honestly do understand the problem at hand, but for the momen--

[Kakyoin's sentence was cut off with a choked sound of disbelief. He did look familiar, didn't he? And that peculiar glow of light, hadn't he seen it used by...]

[Shit.]

I'm...sorry, what...did you just say?

[beatofmyblood]

[He turns around again in front of the posters. At least he knows the name of this place now. Ruby City. It's deceptively quaint-sounding.]

"I have to get back to my wife."

[Wait. Something's wrong, he can tell by the expression on his face. He looks...terrified, and Jonathan can't help but focus on the wave of sympathy that runs through him.]

Is...something the matter?

[lapidarius]

N-no, the last part--

[Kakyoin took a deep breath, forcibly maintaining what little composure he had left. He was the clever one of the group more often than not, and it was that which was leading him to a disturbing conclusion. At the moment, he was trying not to be obvious about the fact that he was internally measuring this individual's height against his memory of Dio's...and he was not liking the result.]

You...mentioned a name, just now.

[beatofmyblood]

Are you referring to--

...no, you can't be...!

[No. No. No, please, no. He can't--he was supposed to purge his evil from this Earth. How does this young man know his name at all?!]

Tell me. Where you came from, is "February 7th, 1889" in the future or the past?

[He isn't angry with Kakyoin by any means, but his face has become deathly serious, hoping, praying for one option out of the two.]

[lapidarius]

[Ohhhhh, this was bad on all sides, wasn't it.]

It's--that was nearly a century ago from my perspective. It was January sixteenth, 1988 when I came here.

[Goddammit, he hated being right.]

You're...Jonathan Joestar, aren't you?

[beatofmyblood]

1988...that's almost a century ahead of my time!

[After reiterating the obvious, he might need a place to sit down sometime soon, because oh good god, this is getting to be a lot. The boy in front of him is terrified by the name "Dio" almost a century after he should have been dead for good, had mysterious injuries across his eyes, and somehow knew who he was in spite of all the odds against it. Jonathan is forced to acknowledge a possibility he didn't want to confront.

...had he...failed? Was it all for nothing?]

Yes, that's my name. How do you know it?

[lapidarius]

...I guess the shortest way to explain it is 'I'm friends with your descendants'. Specifically, your grandson Joseph and great-grandson Jotaro.

[He'd heard the name from Joseph, Kakyoin remembered now--in the unfortunate context of what Dio's state was from the neck down.]

My name is Noriaki Kakyoin. I'm afraid things have gotten complicated back home, regarding our...mutual acquaintance.

[beatofmyblood]

...

Pardon me?

[Forget Dio for a moment. Did he just say descendents?]

You're saying....I have grandchildren in the future?

[Getting back home or stopping his nemesis isn't remotely on his mind right now, because...he has family. When he thought he was truly the last of his name, it flourished enough where he could say that at least one hundred years from now, the Joestar blood was still going strong. And inevitably, this meant he was a father. A grandfather. A great-grandfather, and so on, and that came as a shock to his system most of all. He's beaten down vampires with his bare hands, but fatherhood is an all-encompassing responsibility that he's honestly a little nervous about tackling.

But -- but he's so proud, and a shaky smile spreads across his face for the first time since arriving here. He just wishes he could see them, just once, this Joseph and this Jotaro and the family he's wanted for so long.

He wishes his father could have seen them, too. Had the lump in his throat always been there?]

[lapidarius]

Well...yes. Now that I think about it, I'm sure I've heard the name 'Erina' before--I think your grandson must have mentioned her at least once.

[It was difficult to recall, with how much Joseph Joestar never shut up. God bless him, the maniac.]

I can't claim to have more than a vague idea of what you must have come here from, but that must mean she'll be fine, doesn't it?

[beatofmyblood]

Yes, that must mean...oh, thank goodness. Forgive me if I came off as insensitive earlier. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Kakyoin.

[Jonathan reaches out for a handshake. He'd accepted at that point he was going to die, no matter what else happened, but Erina - thank god, Erina - at least she would be safe.]

Now, please tell me. What is Dio doing to cause you trouble?

[He's expecting an answer along the lines of "everything," to be fair.]

[lapidarius]

No, not at all. [He answered with a smile--obviously, Kakyoin understood being stuck here in the middle of an incredibly pressing situation. So he shook Jonathan's hand without hesitation, brushing off any potential insensitivity without a second thought.] It's truly an honor to be able to meet you.

As for that, it's...a very, very long story I can only really summarize as 'everything one could possibly do to cause trouble.'

[got it in one, jonathan.]

[beatofmyblood]

That certainly sounds like Dio.

[He narrows his eyes just slightly. So he'd managed to survive even the boat exploding, somehow, and he had a decent idea of how - but a chill runs down his spine as soon as it pops into his head. That's a thought for another day.]

Where is he right now? Last I heard, he was going to America, but one hundred years is enough to change many peoples' minds.

[lapidarius]

He's in Egypt. Cairo, to be specific. How exactly he got there is a little beyond me to figure out, but that's definitely where he is.

[He paused, uncertain of what to say or how much information to give without being directly asked about it.]

...I don't think that he'll be around all that much longer. Not with my friends after him.

[beatofmyblood]

Cairo, Egypt? That was far from my first guess.

[He quirks an eyebrow, wondering how the hell Dio got to Egypt from America metaphorically. They didn't seem to be that tangentially related, but personally, he's a little jealous. There are surely some great archaeological dig sites in Egypt, right?

But once again, Kakyoin catches his attention with something unexpected. So he didn't just know of Dio. He was actually...going to confront him directly.]

Now, when you say friends...from what you've told me earlier, that must mean my descendants are on this journey as well.

[He's filled with pride once again, but he can't help but feel distantly worried, a burning instinct in his chest to protect them at all costs.]

[lapidarius]

I'm really not sure how or why--you'd think someone like him would want to avoid sunlight, but I guess he just ended up there somehow.

[At the mention of his travel group, Kakyoin momentarily went quiet. Oh boy, where to start.]

There was a group of five--no, sorry, six of us. [Five and a dog. He wasn't really anywhere near equipped to explain Iggy.] It's a long and complicated series of events that led us together, but the shortened version is this. We all have a similar ability, and it's something Dio gained at some point as well. People with that ability are the only ones who stand a chance of defeating him now.

[That sounded like the best way to summarize it while leaving enough room for further questioning. But there was something else that probably needed to be stated, too.]

Your descendants--Jotaro and Joseph are both fine, last I knew. I don't have a single doubt in my mind that they can absolutely defeat him.

[beatofmyblood]

[A similar ability? Then his descendents and Kakyoin must also be Hamon users - no, wait. He said Dio could use it too, and that would probably destroy him from the inside out. (what the fuck even is with straizo who fucking knows.) But then...what else could stand a chance against Dio and his evil minions?

...wait. Hold up. Jotaro. Joseph.

He chuckles and mutters under his breath,] Erina, you magnificent devil! [And turns back to Kakyoin.]

After a century, it only seems fitting that our blood would clash again for the final time. You speak of it like it has yet to happen, but let me say that I wish you and your friends as much luck - and pluck - as I can give. Not only because you are a friend of the family, but because you have chosen to do what is right against all odds! At such a young age, as well...goodness, there's nothing more admirable that I could think of.

[He coughs, seeming not to notice that there are flowers sprouting up between the cracks in the floor directly beneath him.]

There was one thing you mentioned that perplexed me, however. The ability that you mentioned...it cannot possibly be Hamon.

[lapidarius]

Admirable? I really don't know about that, I kind of just...stumbled into this whole thing and went along with them. That's another long story, I'm afraid-...?

[A little confused, he glanced down at the flowers before looking back to Jonathan--that was certainly something different.]

That's...oh! Do you mean that glow you had around your hand earlier? I've seen Jotaro's grandfather do that, but you're right: it's not the same thing at all. I can show you what I'm talking about, if you'd like.

[beatofmyblood]

Kakyoin...

Do you think I wanted to fight Dio?

[He shakes his head.]

It was to preserve the honor of the Joestar blood. It was to protect the people I held close to my heart...and even if it was difficult, it was to protect the world from his kind. Dio had to be destroyed, and my group was the only one who could accomplish that. My journey was fraught with tragedy, and while I may have grieved along the way...I'll never regret doing what I did. Not for a second, because if I do...well, he would consider that a victory, and we cannot allow him even a single one.

[The flowers at his feet bloom, and then abruptly stop growing.]

I've spoken about myself for too long. Please show me what you are using to defeat Dio! If it isn't Hamon, does it at least have something to do with life energy?

[lapidarius]

[...that he could certainly identify with on all possible counts.]

I understand. Sorry, I just- [...was used to selling himself short? Knew all along this trip was abut far more than him? Any other number of things with a sense of self-worth at rock bottom?] --never mind, it's not important.

As for that--yes, that's exactly the case. What it is, more or less, is a manifestation of one's own soul formed from energy and projected to fight and protect its user. Because that's the case, they're all vastly different in both appearance and function. I'll show you right now, so...please, try not to be too startled.

[With that fair warning, Kakyoin called up Hierophant as easily as breathing: a single coil wrapped around his arm and extended behind him, twisting and forming into the Stand's faintly glowing humanlike upper body.]

As it's an apparition that stands beside its user, it's simply called a 'Stand'. The name of mine specifically is 'Hierophant Green'--or just 'Hierophant', it's a bit shorter.

[beatofmyblood]

--Fascinating!

[Jonathan stares down at Hierophant with wide eyes, utterly astounded. It looks so much like a human, and yet it's a being made of pure energy? He's never seen anything like it before in his life, and this is a man who watched an Italian stranger hit a frog with all his might and not injure it. The color-themed naming gets points from him, too. His gaze follows Hierophant around, analyzing its every movement.]

Just what are these "Stands" capable of? If they are a being who represents your soul, what happens if they are injured in combat?

[Because as we all know, when Jonathan Joestar is truly interested in something, he fires off questions at a million miles per hour.]

[lapidarius]

Injuries inflicted on a Stand are also suffered by their user. It's easiest to think of them as a direct reflection of their user in that respect. As for what they're capable of, that varies as much as their appearance. Some are short-range--that is, they can't travel far from their user--and specialize in close combat. Others don't have much of an application in a fight at all, and have other skills entirely.

My Hierophant is a long-range Stand who fights by firing projectiles--emeralds, actually. [Kakyoin seemed only too happy to talk about his favorite subject. As he spoke, the redhead held his hands together a few inches apart, his Stand moving in unison with him. Between Hierophant's hands formed a faceted shard of emerald, glowing faintly.] He's also well-suited to scouting and stealth, more than direct fighting.