etcelsior | The power is in your hands

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

[And when he opens his eyes, he's in the past. A little more than five seconds, he can tell -- his waitress is once more setting his burger down.

Marty just kind of... stares at first.]

...woah.

[Lourdes, back to drinking both her milkshakes at the same time, raises her eyebrows.]

Woah what?

Are you going to show me your powers or not?

I, uh-

[Give him a second. He's no stranger to time travel, but he's never been able to do it himself. It's a bit... well. It's kind of mind-blowing.

He blinks, trying to get his mind back in gear.]

Sorry, Lourdes. So can you tell me who Adam Whitney is?

The kid who sat in front of me in English sophomore year? How--

[Her eyes widen.]

Is that what we did? Is that your proof?

Yeah. Yeah, that's what we did. You told me your name and the name of someone from your world.

[He leans back in his seat and laughs a little, his anxiety about time-travel and her mind-control powers and being stuck in a weird world all over again momentarily gone.]

That was crazy.

[Lourdes is just relieved that she gave him such an inconsequential name. She's not sure what she would have done if he'd said something like Can you tell me who Dillon Cole is?]

What's crazy is that that's the first time you did it. You should use them more often.

[He straightens, smile still on his face despite his words.]

I told you, you can mess up a lot of stuff if you treat time like a plaything. I probably shouldn't have even really done that.

Sure you should have. I'm glad you did - and I think you are, too.

Don't get any ideas -- that's definitely not going to be a regular thing.

What ideas could I get? It's not my power. I'm just glad I got to see it.

Yeah, but you were pretty eager to get me to try them out. Though I guess I should thank you, otherwise I wouldn't have known that I could actually manage it.

Just hope I never have to use them.

[She shakes her head.]

I don't understand that mindset at all.

[But even though she doesn't want to admit it, she does understand it. She'd chosen to abuse her gift. He'd chosen to use (or rather, not use) his wisely. Part of her is happy about that, but another part of her wants to see him doing what she does. Then she could be sickened by him as well as by herself. She wouldn't be the only monster.]

You have to tell me something about yourself now. I told you something about me.

To each their own, I guess.

[He picks up a fry off his plate and eats it, almost forgetting how hungry he was.]

And alright, my name's Marty. I told you that in the future, but you wouldn't have remembered it now, so... [He trails off.] I live in Hill Valley, California. Or I did, you know, until I was brought here.

I lived in Long Island, New York. That was a while ago, though. The last place I lived was a cruise ship.

[She's not counting the various camps she and the angels had made in Italy.]

A cruise ship? Nice. What's it like living on something like that?

Luxurious. I gave myself the best cabin on the ship.

You have people that waited on you hand and foot, too?

Lots of them. And people that entertained me.

[She still feels a pang in her heart at their fate - not for most of the people who'd gone down with the ship, but for the ones that had mattered.]

[He can only imagine that kind of life.]

Sounds like something out of a movie. Bet you're missing it already.

It sank.

...oh.

[Awkward.]

What happened?

I don't really want to talk about it.

The power is in your hands

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