etcelsior | sure, jan

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sure, jan

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 anyone's thread, either!

And remember to have fun!

01. Your memory is hazy and you might feel increasingly frustrated or anxious, or maybe you're excited as soldiers march past, barely glimpsing you. One second you're somewhere underground, the next you're enveloped in blue light, and suddenly you find yourself directly under Flordia sun's bright and burning glare. A female soldier steps toward you with a wide smile on her face and directs you to a car, ready to debrief you. You realize you are not the only one, surrounded by equally confused or eager faces... and you're all sporting a digital tattoo on your wrist.

02. Welcome to Cape Canaveral, where the smell of the ocean is in the air and locals are more than pleased to see new imPorts roaming their streets. They wave, they cheer, they ask for pictures as politely as they can. The more inhuman you look, or if you're wearing a costume, the more likely locals are to approach. Hey, enjoy the moment! The popular malt shop is offering you a free drink if you need it.

03. The technology in this world is certainly something. The cars are clearly modeled after popular 50s cars, but they hover several feet above the ground as they drive down the street. There are digital jukeboxes in restaurants, motorcycles also hover through traffic, advertisements can be seen on a digital projector on the taller buildings. Even kids on skateboards appear to drift a safe ten feet off the ground while playing!

04. Wherever you are, you can hear the loud revving of an engine, distance at first before you finally see it: a hovercar bursting around the corner, going beyond the maximum speed limit and just barely making its sharp turn. It doesn't appear to be slowing down any time soon, not with two police cars trailing it... and uh oh. Those skateboarding kids don't have much time to get out of the way as the car comes speeding down the road. You've been brought here for a reason Hero — so you better act fast.

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I see.

Yes. I arrived recently. It's--taken some getting used to. [ Anyone could guess that - or see that. It doesn't help that he doesn't really view it as his body. His real body belongs in a network; his real body is data. ] The level of technology is...similar. In some ways. So it helps. I don't know why things are so blocky, though.

You had a different form before, didn't you?

And the technology... I assume because it's more efficient? [The technology she's used to is from the 1920s, this is all pretty impressive to her]

It's... interesting. Do you know how they make things fly through the air?

Yes. Not hard to figure out, is it. [ His tone is rueful. ] This body...is full of new things.

I was pure data before. Just energy. Streamlined.

In my own world things are sleeker. But things are no less efficient here. A strange path.

How they fly? Depends on what flies. Planes have engines to keep them up. The hoverboards and the cars...have something else as well. Hover technology of some kind. But that isn't my expertise.

Like a spirit? [It's really the closest thing she can think of.] I have some experience with those. And with airplanes- I was more interested in the cars.

Being in a fixed form must be strange.

Something like that. Bound to technology. Not graves or remains. [ It's a simple enough explanation, though it's fundamentally inaccurate. It aids in understanding, and that's enough. ]

The cars...There might be workshops around. Imports have status here. You could ask.

Being human is strange. Yes. I didn't change in my other form, but there is more to take in. More to keep track of here. [ Heartbeats, breathing, the constant sense of being alive. It's almost painfully overwhelming. He's not afraid to admit that, even to a stranger. ] Many more senses.

Definitely not like spirits in my world. Their very presence makes technology stop working.

[When he mentions that it's strange, Sabriel frowns.] Do you need help with it? I assume you didn't need to eat before.

And I'm afraid I haven't introduced myself- my name is Sabriel.

That sounds irritating. [ Something that's completely anathema to technology? Ugh. ]

I will need to eat. And drink. And rest. But not all at once, and not right now. This world is just...loud. Cramped.

No heartbeat or breathing to deal with when I was myself, either. [ He sounds slightly miffed. He's okay with programs running themselves in the background and everything, but being able to hear his heartbeat when he stresses is Not Cool. ]

Sabriel.

My name is Magicman. [ Obviously not a human name. ]

Well, it only matters when they show up in Ancelstierre. Technology never works in the Old Kingdom, even without their presence.

Well, you'll learn to ignore those in time. Everyone does, but... I hope dreams aren't too alarming to you.

It's a pleasure to meet you, Magicman. Your name- it sounds like a description. [An odd one, for someone so connected to technology.]

Still. I assume they play some role in the Old Kingdom as well. Probably not benign.

Dreams... [ Oh boy, he'd forgotten about that possibility. Navis dream, too - but it's a memory reel, a flashback. They don't come with the ability to dream like human beings. ] ...I will have to get used to it.

It is. In some ways.

...It's better if I can show you. You have a communicator. Like this one? [ He holds up his phone. ]

That's right. They cause a lot of problems- and it falls to my father, and to me. [The last part is added reluctantly.] To protect people from them.

[Sabriel holds out her own communicator.] Yes, they did- although I'm still not completely sure how it works.

You don't like it? [ There's no judgement, just curiosity. Netnavis have certain roles depending on their job. Humans are presumably more complicated. ]

Ah. That will do.

I may be able to assist you in showing you its functions. [ He looks at the device - putting his own back in his pocket - and touches it, and concentrates.

There's a flash of blue light, and he's gone. There's a little loading circle on Sabriel's screen.

Something appears on the screen, a short while later. ]

That's better. [ He sounds, immediately, much more comfortable than he did a few moments before. ] Now, you wanted to know how this device works, right? What has you confused?

My father is- he's being held captive, so I have to fill in for him. Some have told me that he's already dead, but he isn't. I'd know if he was.

[Sabriel boggles for a moment- and then she grins.]

Oh- is this what you were before? [No wonder being human was so strange, if he's used to living inside of phones.]

Well- They showed me how to make the different posts, but I don't understand the camera on this- I mean, I know what button to push to use it, and how to take pictures, but everything else is just confusing.

Yes. This is my original form. It's surprisingly spacious here, actually. Similar to what I'm used to. [ His voice is smooth, with none of the hesitations, the stops and starts, that he had as a human being. ]

So you'd like to know about how the digital camera on this phone works, is that correct?

It's quite similar to a conventional digital camera, except more compact. There's an image sensor that converts the light processed by the lens into an electronic signal. It's then processed by the hardware inside the phone to form an image in a viewable format.

...Unless that's not what you meant, in which case...I suppose you know how camera phones work now. [ He sounds vaguely apologetic. ]

Magicman, I'm used to Ancelstierrian cameras- they use film. But- thank you. [And he seems happier inside her phone than in the physical world.]

Although- could you tell me how to change the focus? [Because the last few times she tried to take pictures, everything was blurry.] Or- any of the other features on it?

[ Being like this is basically his function and his entire world, after all. He'll have to go back to human eventually, but for now he's content. ]

The focus...Usually phones like this have a function where you touch the screen while using the camera. Tap the area you'd like to focus on in order to tighten the focus of the image.

[ He brings up the camera app and disappears from view. ]

There's also options for filters. They change the way the camera takes photos by tinting the colour of an image or imitating the effects of other lenses that might be used on a traditional camera.

Thank you! That helps so much! [Get ready for Sabriel to (politely) request help every time she has a problem with technology. Don't worry, she'll happily repay the favor... somehow.]

So is this what you did, in your world?

[ Well, it's one of his functions. If he didn't know the ins and outs of most technology, he wouldn't be a good netnavi.

He's honestly just happy to be helping again. Despite his dubious moral compass, this feels comfortable. It's what he's used to, even if Sabriel isn't his operator. ]

Yes. Net navigators are partnered with a human. Usually for their entire life span. They help the operator to remember daily tasks, take care of viruses in their equipment, and perform internet-based errands, like leaving online orders.

In return, the human operator takes care of the netnavi, treats them well and helps them to grow mentally. If the netnavi is damaged or otherwise has problems in some way, it's the operator's duty to fix them or help them.

Netnavis and human beings live alongside each other as partners. We're independent with our own thoughts and choices, but we choose to aid each other.

Though... [ Ah, right. He almost forgot. ]

My operator isn't here. But...that's fine. Some things, I have to do by myself.

[ It isn't fine, but he's not admitting it any time soon. ]

What did you do in your world? You mentioned something about spirits.

Ah... So it's symbiosis? [Aside from actually being independent beings, they sound almost like Sendings. Or like a more helpful version of Mogget.]

I'm... I suppose you would call me a necromancer, but I don't raise the Dead- I make them truly die. My family protects people from Dead spirits and Free Magic. Before that, I was a student. [But she's not anymore. It feels strange to say it.]

Something of the sort, yes. [ Not as powerful as something like Mogget would be, and in some ways they're limited; they can't touch the physical world directly except in special circumstances. ]

You lay them to rest, then.

I assume that restless spirits are a more pressing problem for your world than my own. [ Yeah, he knows about ghosts. They have ghosts. Of a sort. ] What is Free Magic? If you don't mind me asking.

Yes. And if I can't do that, I bind them.

Well... there are two kinds of magic. There's Charter Magic, which is orderly, and tied to Life- and Free Magic, which is chaotic, and connected with Death. Necromancy is a subset of Free magic, and I use both kinds to do my work.

Free magic can be powerful, but it's also dangerous- it corrodes people who use it, body and spirit. Though since I'm also a Charter mage, I'm... resistant to its effects, as long as I'm careful.

Interesting. [ There have been weapons like that - Free magic, in any case - tested by navis. Usually corrupted data was involved. It never really ended well.

~~Dark chips are a better analogue but they haven't been made yet.~~ ] The Charter...what is it?

I don't think it means the same thing to me as it does to you. 'A grant of authority or rights' doesn't really seem that magical.

The Charter is the force that contains, describes, underlies, and joins- everything in the Old Kingdom, although I can access it here as well. People who've been baptized with a mark can reach into it, and use it to work magic.

Most mages see it as an endless sea of symbols, joined together in a never-ending flow. [It's something she's more comfortable discussing.]

A connection to everything...that sounds comforting. [ It may be a surprising answer, but it reminds him of home. Everything is connected. The world inside machines, and the world outside of it; through the medium of technology, humans and netnavis reach one another. ] What is it like? Connecting to it.

I'm not sure how to describe it. It's- reaching into something so much bigger than you are, and if you aren't careful, you'll be overwhelmed and swept away by it. But it's also- well, it's comforting, being connected like that. [Sabriel smiles faintly and looks down at the screen.]

I can't show you what it looks like, but you'd have to come out. It... doesn't mix well with technology.

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sure, jan

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