etcelsior | 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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[ Walt shakes his head quickly and the calm dissipates just like that -- turning into a bitterness he harbored toward Jesse in that moment; the moment when Walter truly wished him dead. ]

But does he know? Does he know you killed him?

He's not -

[Is this a test or something?]

He's not dead.

[Is he..?]

I mean, he was paralyzed when he showed up, but I took care of that and - I mean - Christ, I wouldn't do that, Mr. White. He gets up in my shit a lot but I know how much your family means to you, so - I'm not Gus, okay? I wouldn't ever.

[If this is a test, it's cruel. They should be past this stage of doubt. But when Jesse thinks about the bullet that appears to have killed Mr. White, and his fear that he himself pulled the trigger, then a narrative starts to form - the story of a future in which Jesse truly lost it. For all that he wants to believe himself incapable of a blind, murderous rampage, he knows that he is capable.

Mr. White knows it, too.]

[ His expression twists and his words are acid. ]

You were a coward.

[ He doesn't elaborate any more than that, wanting Jesse to face that doubt, that uncertainty about what he had done. But more than that, he wants Jesse to face the full responsibility for it. Jack might have pulled the trigger, but Jesse killed Hank by leading him there. ]

Hank is here, and you introduced our product -- my product to this world? Of all the idiotic things you've done, Jesse! Of course he's going to think you're Heisenberg if you and him are the only common denominators in this.

[ Walt gets up and starts to pace. ]

I need to talk to him. I need to try and set things straight.

[Jesse doesn't know what to say. Things have taken a turn so quickly that he's stunned. You were a coward. This isn't a hypothetical. If Mr. White wasn't so obviously hurt and angry, then Jesse would demand the details - but he isn't owed anything, is he? If this is as true as it sounds.

Jesse doesn't so much as breathe while Walt speaks. He's shaking again, but he wouldn't be able to name the emotion he's feeling. Part of him wants to die. The other part of him is afraid he's about to be killed.

He finds his voice enough to whisper:]

He doesn't know you're involved in any of this.

[There's no point in Mr. White blowing his own cover.]

[ You feel that, Jesse? What it's like to not be able to breathe? That crushing devastation? Your world collapsing from underneath you? Remember that. Feel it tenfold. ]

For now.

[ But even so, Walter can breathe a little easier about this. If Hank knew, he likely would have said something to Jesse -- after all, him and Jesse were buddies, pals toward the end. ]

I plan to keep it that way. Hank stays out of this.

[ He stops pacing, stifling a cough in his sleeve. ]

But I need to know one thing --

[ Walter looks at Jesse dead on, watching him in his emotional conflict and struggle. ]

-- are you with me this time, or against me?

[Does it make a difference if Jesse swears his loyalty when he's so clearly incapable of controlling himself anyway? All the best intentions and none of the will to keep himself from hurting people. Psycho, coward, traitor... He's learning so much about himself today.]

...I'm with you.

Whatever happens - or happened, I guess - it... I don't know why things went the way they did, Mr. White, but I never wanted to hurt you or - or anybody. Especially not your family. I can't ask you to forgive me but you gotta know I didn't want any of this. The last thing I remember is you and me were good. We were -

[It was what Jesse always wanted, the way things were between them.]

We were friends.

[ Things are where Walter wants them. Jesse becoming a loose cannon shouldn't happen as long as he doesn't find out the one thing that tipped him over the edge. ~~As long as Saul keeps his mouth shut~~ It's a chance to start over.

He sighs, his face weary. ]

It's the past. At least for me, it's the past. All you can do is move forward and learn from your mistakes. Now, at least, you know what happens so you can keep it from repeating itself. But there's no reason for any of this to go down that road.

[ He makes his way toward Jesse, settling beside him and resting a tender hand on his shoulder. ]

We are still friends, Jesse. We're more than that. We're family. I forgave you for what you did because I realized my part in it as well. Hank never would have become a weapon for you to use against me if I had never started cooking in the first place.

[Jesse flinches when Walt touches him, anticipating something less... tender. When pain doesn't follow, Jesse raises his eyes. His remorse hasn't left them, and nothing Mr. White says is going to ease the guilt he's feeling. He's something truly evil. How does he go forward, knowing that?]

Let me heal you, Mr. White. Please...

[If it wasn't obvious which one of them deserved the death sentence before, it's obvious now.]

[ Walt's fingers twitch on Jesse's shoulder before he pulls them away. He doesn't know if Jesse has to directly touch someone to make it work or if it can be a passive touch, but he doesn't want to risk it. ]

Absolutely not. This is my burden. Not yours.

Don't you wanna be with your real family?

[Because the words are nice and all, but Jesse isn't really family. Can't and never will be. Because you don't forgive the person who killed your family and then invite that person into it. He knows it's impossible.]

It should be me. No loss, you know? I could do just one good thing.

Well...

[ Amusement flickers on his face for a brief moment, trying to lighten the mood. ]

...there's only so much of Hank you can take at a time.

[ With a dry laugh that becomes a cough, Walter's expression grows serious. ]

I think you're focusing on the wrong thing here, Jesse. You're concerned about doing good for me, but what about doing good for yourself? Take what I told you and learn from it. I already told you, you have my forgiveness. There is nothing to atone for. You've done more than your share of atoning...

[ Walter sighs, squinting as he tries to remember what point in time Jesse's from. ]

Do you remember Todd?

The guy from Vamonos? The one who found the nanny cams, right?

[Jesse can't begin to imagine why Todd, of all people, is coming up in this discussion. The confusion is a welcome distraction at this second.]

[ So not even the train heist. Jesse hadn't even experienced that. If Todd were to show up tomorrow, Jesse would probably greet him with a smile. ]

Yes. That Todd.

[ Maybe some things are better left unsaid, so all Walt will offer is a bit of vague advice. ]

Don't trust him.

Okay.

[No hesitation. That sounded like an order. Jesse wants to ask why, but once more, he's afraid of the answer.]

[ Good boy, Jesse. Good boy. ]

Is there anything else you wanted to tell me or wanted to know? Or would it be all right to borrow your shower and change?

[There's so much. But Jesse gives a jerking shake of his head and waves toward the bathroom.]

Go ahead.

[He has to take this opportunity to make a phone call.]

sure, jan

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