etcelsior | safety first

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?

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ N O P E.

This is where Wasabi flat out refuses. This is the point in which he can no longer scramble to ground this situation in reality. He can almost feel his mind grinding to a halt, and even the nagging in the back of his mind about the tiles on the tabletop being crooked goes silent.

When he speaks, it's not to the supposedly-familiar figure just out of physical reach. He's half afraid that it's a figment and half afraid that it's real, and he doesn't know which one would be better, and he doesn't know if he's ready to figure it out. He feels like he needs to say something, though, just to break the silence that's growing more and more oppressive around him. This place is busy. It shouldn't be quiet. ]

I-- This can't be happening. This really can't be happening. It doesn't make any sense.

[He stops mid-pay when he hears the voice. Six months and he's fine tuned his hearing for any voice that sound remotely familiar and Wasabi's is no exception to that rule. Tadashi turns looking for him and there he is, staring at him like --

Like...

Ah.

His face softens from surprise to an almost sad understanding. Six times now, he's seen that look on a friend or family's face when they see him. He already knows what it means. Tadashi finishes paying and then comes to take a seat in front of him. Not settled though, just to sit in case Wasabi decides he can't deal with This along with all the other things happening to him right now.]

...If it means anything, it really is happening.

Oh, man.

[ And, yeah, he has no protocol for this. No amount of preparation can really prepare somebody for something like this, so... He takes a deep breath. This is fine. He's just got to work through it.

Okay, so it's not fine and he has no idea how to work through it. He lifts a hand to set it to his head. ]

Did I hit my head or something? And how hard?

[ Is this some kind of head injury thing? Is he dead? ]

No. You-- You didn't, promise.

[He reaches to take a couple sugars (even rearranges the ones left to make them even - old habits die hard) for his drink.]

You didn't read the packet, huh?

[...God he's being casual about this. He pinches the bridge of his nose a minute.] Sorry... Sorry, I-- [Deep breath.] The porter that brings people here. It likes to pull people randomly from different points in time sometimes. Guessing for you, the ... expo already happened.

Yeah, I... [ Yes, he's from after the expo, after the fire, and-- ] I am, and I did read the packet, thank you, but that-- That could be part of the same delusion. I don't know how it works.

[ But it's not a delusion. It's really not, and Wasabi scrubs a hand over his face. He feels like he might cry, for at least four different reasons, and he really doesn't want to. He takes in his own deep breath, slowly and through his nose, to try and quell it, to welcome calm serenity or whatever. It works a little, but not as much as he wishes it would. ]

Okay. Okay. So this is really happening. [ Now for the big question, really, if you ignore all of the other big questions. ] What now?

Uh.

[Slooooow stir of his drink before he takes a sip.]

For starters, we look at your paperwork and find out where you work and live, and what powers the porter gave you. Go from there.

[And just like that, he's smiling.]

Right. [ So it's weird, and it's lacking in any real conclusion, but at least it's a plan. Wasabi offers his own shaky smile, but he finds it difficult to keep his eyes on Tadashi. They slip down to his half-empty glass instead, and he uses his straw to idly stir the diminishing ice cubes inside. ]

Right. I can do that. I mean, I-- I already did some of it. I have a place I'm supposed to live. I left some stuff there before coming out to look at the town. I just... I had to do something, you know?

[Honey's good at making him feel guilty just from her sheer cute-factor.

Gogo and Fred can't really do that to him.

Wasabi... is just so big and genuine and honest, he can't help feel bad seeing him like this. He takes another sip of his drink while he mulls that over. He understands it, he does. He finds a particularly interesting pattern on the table in front of him to keep his eyes on, his voice low.]

It hasn't happened to me yet.

[ Wasabi supposes that's a given, considering that Tadashi's sitting right in front of him. There's not really time to think about the various hows and whys here, he just-- He wants something to say. He wants to say the right thing, but it's impossible to put his finger on what is right here. Tadashi is supposed to be dead, and that's bad enough, but... To be made aware of that fact, to know that your time's going to be cut short? ]

It's... I'm sorry. I really am. I can't imagine how you must feel about having that knowledge, and-- [ Maybe it's selfish to be glad that Tadashi's here, if it's causing him a certain amount of distress. Maybe the borrowed time is a good thing, though. It's too hard to tell. ] I wish more than anything that we could've done something. You just-- You got caught up in something that had nothing to do with you. It wasn't right.

[He knows what'll happen. He knows it's his fault for running in, for trying to help someone who, in the end, doesn't even need it. And if knowing what he knows now, Tadashi were presented with the same scenario?

He's not sure what he would choose.

Wasabi's words cut right through him and he looks up; Callaghan sort of apologized, but. It's the first time he's actually heard those words. Directly to him, for this event. Somehow, he's not surprised it's Wasabi that would say it, but he's surprised to hear them.]

...I know. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry it happens.

[ Wasabi nods, solemn and silent for another beat. Tadashi's "I'm sorry" is only acceptable in one context. He can be sorry on his own behalf, if that's what he means. That's fine. If it's meant to be an apology, though... ]

You did the right thing. You did the only thing you could've done, because that's how you are. If saying you're sorry is supposed to be an apology to us, then you should know that you don't have anything to be sorry for.

[ He clears his throat and tries to lighten his tone after all of that. ] Of course, if it's not an apology... Then yeah. I can't blame you.

[ He'd be sorry all around if he were in the same situation, after all. ]

[Wasabi never letting him actually apologize. Typical. He smiles a little, shifts a sugar packet wrapper out of place. Then back. He's not that mean, not right now.]

That's... Really good to hear.

But I meant sorry, you have to drink the tea here, it's not as good as Aunt Cass'.

safety first

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject