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

Or something. Not everyone draws their power from the supernatural. Have you read the pamphlet, or anything else they gave you?

[Who do you think you're talking to Kaneda?]

Good. Then you won't have to do as much adjusting as I did.

...

[His eyes dart away a minute, thinking about the 'not everyone' part, his mind partially elsewhere for the moment.]

Uh--not really.

[You're giving this kid too much credit. He slowly unclenches his fist from the pamphlet and delicately tries to make it straight again.]

You mean this? I uh...no. Things were kind of emotional when I got here and all. A guy's got to have his priorities.

[Why yes, he put his bike above his location and 'what the hell is going on'.]

Trust me, what's written on those papers matters far more than your bike. [Sabriel's expression twists into a wry grin at that.] I- and many others- are in the same situation as you. It'll be easier to explain if you've read the pamphlet, but... we've been brought here from many different places, we can't go back, and all of us have some kind of power- if you didn't before, you have one now. [Obviously, there's more to it, but that's the barest of bare bones.]

Edited 2015-07-01 03:03 (UTC)

[His eyes span the pamphlet as she explains, vigorously reading (don't tell his teacher that--he might start expecting things from him) before realizing something.]

This pamphlet. It's...English. But I can read it.

[He rereads over another sentence. Of course, the thought of 'hey I'm speaking it too' doesn't come to mind, but little steps.]

Different places. Somehow I get the feeling you don't just mean countries....you're talking crazy things like dimensions.

Obviously? You're speaking it too... Keep reading. It may make more sense then.

Dimensions, worlds... whatever you want to call them. I hadn't even heard of America or Russia before my arrival here. And no one here knows of the Old Kingdom or Ancelstierre.

[And as if on cue, his hands go to his mouth, just realizing that yes--he is in fact speaking English. WHAT WILL HIS SCHOOL THINK OF THIS?]

...Wait a minute. This is all crazy I mean--there's really other worlds out there?

With...powers like this?

The English is probably due to the nanites- read the pamphlet. All of it. I won't claim our hosts are trustworthy, but almost everything in it is true, as far as we can tell.

As for powers... [Sabriel holds out her hand, tracing a mark in the air. It hangs there, glowing, until she dismisses it.]

I'm a mage. Others here have different powers, some stranger or more useful than others.

Can't fault 'em for being honest, then. Guess I'll see just how much of a trap this all is. Not like I have much of a choice.

[Although his eyes widen at the mark glowing in the air. A little too close to home with everything that's happened.]

A mage? You mean like...wizards and witches? Things like that?

And sorcerers and warlocks and all the rest.

Listen... Finish reading your file. It should tell you what your powers are- I take it you didn't have any already?

[His gaze looks down a minute, neatly opening up that pamphlet and straightening it to try and read.

No. Nothin' out of the ordinary. Except maybe a thick head--teachers always said I had that.

...[Give him a moment as he looks this over]

This'll say what my...'powers' are?

No, the file, not the pamphlet. And... we don't know how they get the information they have about us. Or- or many other things- like how people are given powers if they didn't have them before, or why only people brought to this world have them.

Edited 2015-07-02 00:51 (UTC)

safety first

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