you don't scare me, huge ackman!

[maskormods]

TEST DRIVE MEME

Considering apping into MASK OR MENACE? Want to dip your toes into the setting and get a feel of whether your character will fit into it? Or maybe you're just cruising and want to play around? Then you've come to the right place!

Pick any of the following scenarios below or feel free to make up your own, but don't be afraid to throw yourself at someone else's thread, either!

And remember to have fun!

01. Your memory might be a haze still and you might even feel frustrated or anxious by the sudden news that you are no longer in your own world and that the Porter scientists and military cannot send you back. You don't get a chance to linger long in the underground Porter lab, but something is clearly amiss; light patches on the floor indicate something else used to sit in that spot in the room. Parts of the wall, floor and the tables look as if they have been refurbished in the past few months -- something happened in here some time ago. Something big.

You're ushered out quickly and then suddenly, you're enveloped in a faint blue blue light before you find yourself under the bright Floridian sun. Another soldier steps toward you with a smile, directing your attention to a car near a large gate. She mentions she'll be debriefing you soon, handing out a brown folder and a pamphlet. You don't see the digital tattoo on your wrist, but it's quickly explained on your way over to the car as you realize there are other confused faces nearby, all holding files of their own.

02. The city of Heropa is what one might expect from a small, bright and cheery place. The locals are friendly enough and local shop owners might offer a free drink to help cool you down in this awfully nauseating heat. Some of the locals might thank you for always lending your service to the nation and others might not say anything. In fact, some people might back away from any imPort who quite obviously looks like they aren't from around the neighborhood. Once in a while there's a look of disdain on someone's face and hushed voices. Something about "the outbreak" and "the government's gotta crack down on their medical files". "Some of them can't be right in the head" says another.

03. De Chima, Virginia, is a large city with a healthy economy, and though it's quieter, there are just as many citizens awed at your presence. Heavy winds have people grasping at their newspapers and constantly brushing hair out of their faces, but that doesn't distract them from crowding you in excitement if you're obviously from a different time or world, or just let it slip that you're a newcomer. Children and young teenagers are especially likely to ask for an autograph and a photo.

Some locals seem less enthused to see you. They never make an approach, but they can be overheard scoffing and muttering something about cameras. "Who do they think they are?" or "I don't like it... it reminds me of the government corruption back in the eighties." What could they be talking about?

04. Maurtia Falls, Pennsylvania, is normally known for being a little more on the apathetic side, but there's been tension in the atmosphere lately. Nobody will outright state what it is that's rustled their jimmies, though you might find a newsstand with articles on recent and aggressive vigilante behavior within the city. "ImPorts: loyal to the cause of their own?" reads one newspaper article.

People are not as friendly in this city and go out of their way to avoid walking down the same sidewalk as the more obvious looking imPorts pass through. Local cops say nothing, but they scowl at those imPorts and utter something about "no badges" and "acting like authority figures".

05. Nonah, North Carolina, is the liveliest of all cities. It's loud, busy and there's some kind of energy in the air that gets everyone buzzing with excitement. Anyone who they come to determine an imPort is bombarded with all sorts of offers; job offers, advertising gigs, spokesperson for advocating children stay in school, etc. Anything and everything! You name it. Shops offer discounts for food and clothing, whatever they need. People flock in droves with questions, but they all say the same thing. Thank you for your service to this country, Hero. You saved a lot of lives. Wow, feels great to be a hero, doesn't it?

Comments

george o'malley || grey's anatomy

[puppydoctor]

01. cape canaveral

[The sun is too bright. Everything is too bright, and too blue, and George can't figure out why. There's a folder in his hand, and some gibberish about a port, but all he can think about is the blood-red pain and the trauma room fading to black and-

And then what?]

H-hello?

[He stumbles awkwardly on the pavement, blinking around at the other bewildered faces. He's in shock - perhaps not medical shock, as his heart seems to be circulating rather fantastically for someone who just died, but most certainly mental. That's undisputed. Wiping absently at the dried blood on his collar, he lets out a single awkward laugh, turning about to try to make sense of the scene.]

Am I- [George clears his throat awkwardly] -is this some sort of afterlife?

[He isn't sure if he expects anyone to answer. Nothing here feels real. Then, maybe none of it is, and death is just a long, convoluted dream, with Florida and too much blue and elevators-

Wait. Shit, where is she?!]

02. heropa

[Once he gets to the city, he'll be searching frantically all over town for something - or someone. From top to bottom, like he's running some sort of clumsy, caffeinated marathon. Of course, it's hard to scurry for too long in the muggy heat without almost bumping into someone face-first!]

Agh- excuse me, I didn't mean...

[Someone just cut him off and put him out of his misery. This kid is clearly a total mess.]

02

[superposition]

[Well, George could be excused for running into someone who literally appeared out of thin air just now. Or at least, out of a portal that appeared out of thin air (and disappeared right after). Qubit stumbles back a step at the impact, almost equally startled.]

Watch it-! [... wait no, wrong reaction.] Ah - no, sorry. That was my fault. You all right? [The guy does look pretty upset.]

[puppydoctor]

[George jumps back, startled and bewildered. He just somehow didn't see this guy, right? He didn't just appear out of nowhere, because that would be ridiculous. Completely absurd. Just as completely absurd as dying and winding up in freaking Florida-]

No, no I'm- I'm- [what are words] -totally, completely fine. Everything's fine. Especially me, I'm like the king of fine right now.

[The faded bloodstains on his clothes are really indicative of that.]

Listen, you haven't seen a tall, blonde girl walking around, have you? I mean, she could be blonde- or she could be bald, maybe. I don't know what she was wearing, I just-

[Please shut him up.]

[superposition]

[Florida is Hell, that's the secret. Yeeeah no this guy is not fine. Whose blood is that? Did he just come from a fight? Maybe not just, the stains aren't fresh and he doesn't appear to be injured, but combined with the frantic way he's acting, Qubit's on alert. Getting attacked in the street is not on his agenda for today.]

Slow down, slow down. Let's get out of the way here.

[They're not really in the way, as the sidewalk is pretty wide here and people are giving them kind of a wide berth anyway, but better not to take chances. He takes George by the upper arm, firmly but not painfully, to steer him out of the way and under the shadow of the parking garage they happen to be in front of.]

Now. Who is it you're looking for?

[puppydoctor]

[George lets himself be steered, his feet shuffling over the pavement as he goes. He's horribly overdressed for the warm weather, but there's still a shake to his shoulders and his jaw. Steady, steady, steady, goddammit O'Malley.]

My friend, Izzie Stevens. I think-

[He can picture it still - the doctors around him fading to black, except not black. Silver. The gunmetal of elevator doors, and his best friend waiting for him in an evening gown.]

I think she's dead, too.

[Because he is dead, he knows that. There's no other explanation for this.]

[superposition]

[Too? More than one victim? This is sounding more and more like something the local police should be handling, Qubit doesn't really do the whole detective thing.]

Where and when did this happen? Have you spoken with the police?

[puppydoctor]

[George just. Stares.]

What?

[His confusion level has about maxed out, and he just freezes there in the shade of the garage, looking more like an upset puppy than ever.]

We were in Seattle. She has cancer, w-why would I tell the...

[But his words lock up, and he raises a hand to wipe at his sunken eyes. If he could just lie down on the sidewalk and wish this all away, he would.]

[superposition]

What? [For a moment there he has Qubit confused, too, but then in the shade he notices the faint blue glow from the man's wrist, just like his own. From there, the pieces start falling into place.]

You're an imPort.

[puppydoctor]

According to the folder, yeah.

[George starts to lift it up to demonstrate, but realizes quickly that he must have left it in the car. It was useless, anyway. All the words kept swimming together from the sheer panic of this whole clusterfuck.]

But none of it makes sense. Is this where everyone goes? I mean... after?

[superposition]

[After - oh. His expression softens, sympathetic.]

No. No, I'm afraid it's not. This is just a parallel universe.

... It's not impossible, but I doubt your friend is here.

[puppydoctor]

[A parallel universe. Like in comics. George almost feels like laughing, because that is just enough.]

No. No, that's not-

[Possible? Acceptable? He feels a pulsing anger in his stomach, but he doesn't know who it's directed at.]

I died, and I saw whatever's on the other... She was there, but now I'm-

[In alternate Florida. Which doesn't even sound like a thing. He can't even die right.]

... You're not dead, then?

[superposition]

[Shakes his head] Not the last time I checked.

[It's an interesting case, from a scientific standpoint. The blurb about the nanites claims they can bring the dead back to life, but he hadn't considered the possibility of someone being brought through the Porter as a DOA and subsequently resurrected. Is that even possible? Was he actually dead to begin with? How does it work?

Not that he can ask all these questions right now, though, it's pretty obvious the poor guy would have no earthly idea.]

Given that you're walking and talking, I'd be more worried if you were dead. But apparently the nanites they've pumped us full of have remarkable restorative capabilities. That'd be my guess. [An oversimplification, but still.]

[puppydoctor]

[George doesn't even answer at first. He opens his mouth, then closes it - then opens it again, only to shake his head and look down at his hands. He starts to reach for his cell phone, but finds that his pockets are both empty.]

Crap.

[This just keeps getting better.]

Is there a parallel Seattle here?

[superposition]

[Qubit frowns. He has an idea what George might be thinking of.]

What are you planning to do?

1

[mightthinkthat]

[Francis is much more relaxed about coming back to life or whatever this is. His clothes don't have blood on them, though he supposed they must have done when he'd been shot.]

A peculiar sort, if so.

[puppydoctor]

[George whirls around, blinking dumbly towards the new voice. His nerves are completely shot, and he feels like he's just about to near the bend to complete catatonia. This has so not been his day at all.]

Well, people are always saying Hell is hot. They never said anything about humid.

[mightthinkthat]

I believe they talk about fire, not moisture.

[He takes in George's current condition.] Also endless torment. Are you... tormented, at the moment?

[puppydoctor]

[George shrugs, his eyes fixated on some middle distance around his feet.]

Mentally, maybe. Not, like, demonically.

[mightthinkthat]

[He suspected as much.]

I take it's more than simply... being kidnapped or taken or whatever you might choose to call it.

[puppydoctor]

I was having a bad day already. This part is just overkill.

[He doesn't want to spill his sorrows to a stranger. He's not going to be That Guy. At least not until he meets a stranger who isn't so stern-looking.]

[mightthinkthat]

Generally, people greet the news that they aren't dead with some gratitude, even if, as all things do, they come with a price.

There's not much the dead can do of use, after all.

[puppydoctor]

[He shakes his head.] No. No, I think-

... I think I'm definitely dead. What I don't get is how I got here. You can't kidnap a dead person.

[mightthinkthat]

Actually, I imagine it's a good sight easier to kidnap a dead person than a live one. The charges are usually significantly less as well.

You're breathing. You're having conversations. You feel the ground beneath your feet. I know I was killed before here as well. But I also know that I am not dead. Or if I am, it no longer matters, because I am now hot and I am breathing and I am talking.

I suppose I could have a metaphysical conversation or doubt my very existence. But I'd rather just keep living. Wouldn't you? For practicalities' sake, if nothing else.

[puppydoctor]

[Another shake of the head. He stammers just a little.]

I don't mean to argue, sir, but- ...I'm a surgeon. I know what the human body is capable of, and miraculous recovery is one of those things sometimes, definitely, but not... not like this.

And yeah, I can feel the ground, and my breath, but I can't just keep living and not ask how. Because I know what happened to me. I know how bad it was, and to not even have a scar? It doesn't make sense.

[mightthinkthat]

[He gave him a wide-eyed 'are you even serious with this?' look.] I'm afraid I have several nitpicks, if I may.

First of all, it may astonish you, but being a surgeon is not a qualification to knowing what death feels like. Unless it's radically different over in America, it's not considered standard to kill medical students to give them a decent understanding. Hell, I was a soldier. We weren't!

Secondly, it's out of the realms of scientific knowledge where I come from to transfer individuals to separate universes, much less give them extraordinary gifts. Sufficed to say, it would be quite reasonable to assume something extraordinary is going on, wouldn't you agree?

Thirdly, you've not asked 'how' once up until now. You've immediately assumed that you are dead and now in hell. Now, begging your pardon, as I am not a scientist, but I have met several, and they do like to bang on about things such as 'the scientific method' and it's the religious types who tend to jump to hell as explanations.

Now, I'm not one to arbitrarily divide the two but patronising me rather than accepting my efforts to convince you that you're not about to suffer eternal damnation seems rather poor form? Your current condition is something you would, in your experience in both being a surgeon and alive, describe as 'living', is it not?