sure, jan

[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 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.

Comments

[janebond]

[ It sparks a small lightbulb; she files it away for later perusal. ]

We don't have them, but we do have heroes.

[ She's thinking about Ryan as she says it. He's no fighter, he had a cushy desk job and a well-lit office, and he was willing to go to great lengths for her. Michael does the same and always has, next to her with his boots on the ground, but it takes a man of extraordinary courage to keep Division open the way he has. ]

[thephix]

I suppose most worlds must have at least a few of those.

[Max thinks her world only has one; she's no real hero, but Atlas is, even if the longer she spends with him the more she twists him into something for her own use.

Or maybe that's just Asteria talking.]

[janebond]

I'd like to think we've still got hope no matter where we are.

[ Maybe that tells a little too much. She shrugs. ]

Even that has to be taken sometimes.

[thephix]

[Hope isn't something that Max believes in, but saying that would definitely be admitting too much.]

I can't say you struck me as an optimist.

[Considering they met about fifteen minutes ago, it isn't as though Max could form a full opinion of her.]

[janebond]

I surprise even myself.

[ A wry smile. And on that note they pull up in a part of town that's quiet this time of night. It's a respectable neighbourhood - Nikita has no doubt Max knows her way around those but she'd stand out too much at this time of night. So Safehouse C it is: a small two room apartment. She opens the door for Max. ]

Here, up the stairs, right at the end of the corridor.

[ It's a defensible position: corner, with nearby buildings and a well-maintained fire escape. ]

[thephix]

[Max offers a smile, but doesn't say any more as she climbs out of the car and heads towards the apartment. She's glad Nikita gave her directions, because she makes a point of going first, so that Nikita doesn't have to turn her back to Max.

She can be threatening if she has to, but right now she'd rather but Wildflower at ease, if only because it makes getting information a little easier.

Once they're inside, she looks over at Nikita.]

Do you mind if I smoke?

[janebond]

[ The room is bare. The bed looks like it came out of a prison: metal frame, plain white sheet, brown blanket. The windows have the blinds drawn down. There's a table pushed next to the kitchen sink, instead of plates there's handguns in various stages of disassembly on it, and one Glock 22 which Nikita picks up and puts facing the window nearest them. The couch has seen better days too. ]

[ There's no exposed gunpowder in the room, so Nikita shrugs. ]

Go ahead.

[thephix]

Thank you.

[And she means that; she wouldn't have smoked if Nikita didn't want her to, but sometimes she just needs to be doing something with her hands.

So she delicately lights a cigarette, taking a few drags before she speaks again.]

You never really answered my questions about why you need guns.

[janebond]

[ A soft laugh, after discreetly noting the brand. ]

Self-defence. [ hmm ] I suppose they look ridiculous, but they're serving my purpose for now.

[ Combined with the power she supposedly has (she doesn't trust it or want to rely on it), she's good to go. ]

[thephix]

I wasn't aware we needed that much self-defense.

[She says it like do you know something I don't? but what she really means is that she isn't sure she believes that answer.]

[janebond]

It pays to be prepared.

[ look she just feels safer with something familiar around ]

[thephix]

I imagine it also pays not to be caught with illegal guns.

[There's always a trade off; she's curious about what made Nikita choose this particular kind of safety.]

[janebond]

Also true. [ she shrugs ] It can be liquidated in a pinch.

[ There's always somebody around in need of a bazooka. She comes to sit down upwind of Max. ]

[thephix]

[She notices where Nikita moves, and rather than responding to her comment, she raises an eyebrow.]

I can put it out, if it bothers you.

[janebond]

[ Shaking her head, ]

I'm fine, just not used to it.

[thephix]

[Max nods, accepting that answer.]

May I ask where Wildflower originated?

[Some people are sensitive about this sort of thing, but Max is curious.]

[janebond]

[ She answers without hesitation; there's no reason to hide this. It's not as though Max knows Carla or can trace her. ]

Someone I [ loved like a mother ] knew chose it, because they save their strength for the right moment.

[thephix]

[Something like approval flickers in Max's expression; she doesn't think this woman needs any approval, but it's still a good name.]

It's a far nicer name than many I've heard.

[janebond]

[ She smiles. ]

And why Sphinx?

[ Not really a question she felt the need to ask: only so many reasons someone would pick a codename that belonged to a creature of mythology that ate those who failed its riddles. It just feels polite. ]

[thephix]

Sometimes the world needs monsters.

[Her answer always changes depending on who she's speaking to, but that never makes them lies, just different pieces of the truth.]

[janebond]

[ Something almost akin to sadness flickers in Nikita's expression. She doesn't answer immediately, just gets up to fetch them both glasses of water, and puts one near Max. When she sits, she crosses her legs under her, settles against the couch so that she's more relaxed. ]

What about this world?

[thephix]

That depends on how well the heroes do their job.

[There's no reason not to be honest here; Nikita might know Max's face now, but Max knows hers, and they both have something on the other.

She finds mutually assured destruction is always a good strategy.]

[janebond]

[ A simple, but sound strategy. Nikita sips her water almost idly, like Max has just told her it's about to rain. ]

They have enough firefighters. Time for a few hunters?

[ No person is an island, she and Max both have skills that'd benefit the other. ]

[thephix]

[Max hears the implied offer, the suggestion, and tilts her head curiously, regarding Nikita more thoughtfully as she takes a drag of her cigarette (she's let the ash spill on the floor, because she knows a disposable safe house when she sees one).]

I could be anyone.

[Why would Nikita offer to hunt with someone she barely knows.]

[janebond]

[ Wryly, ] Call it optimism.

[ Hardly. Trust is scarce and alien to her, but necessary for survival too. Max has had ample chances to kill her tonight, or call the cops or a cape, and she's done neither. There's always the risk of a long game but - I don't hurt women. As far as Nikita knows Max has no reason to destroy her, and thus she won't. ]