etcelsior | The power is in your hands

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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

Erm - no, they do.

[ Somehow, that just made him look even more miserable. And, somehow, guilty. She holds up a hand without really knowing why - a gesture like she's trying to soothe his frazzled nerves. Hold on, there, it's all right. ]

I just saw - You're an imPort, yeah? I thought maybe dollars and cents were new to you. You just looked really...worried.

[ Oh. Thank God. His heart can stop trying to burst out of his chest now.

Adam knows how his face must look, features arranged in an approximate amalgamation of abject misery. He tries to school it into something calmer and hopes it doesn't cause a Quasimodo effect. ] Yeah. I'm kind of having a moment. I think maybe it was the soldiers with guns. Or the being lost thing.

I kind of don't know what to do next?

Well...

[ God, this poor boy. He just looks even worse now. He's got good reason to be miserable, though, hasn't he. This is just a terrible situation.

So: she smiles at him, quite suddenly, and says firmly: ]

Then you're very much in luck, because I've got a widely-acknowledged talent for bossing people around. Come on.

[ And she jumps up off the bench. ]

[ He looks surprised and then slowly a small grin grosses his face. ]

Seriously?

[ He's used to people sweeping him up in to their actions, it's not new, and it's not necessarily bad. Maybe it's even a little bit relieving. ]

Okay then. [ He stands, all tall teenage limbs and awkwardness under his skin. ]

[ Good. Kitty likes people who are game for things; she likes people who are willing to take action to improve their situations rather than sitting about in misery. She likes people who let her tell them what to do. So her smile turns a little less artificial, a little more genuine, and then she turns on her heel. ]

First step is to get you something to drink. After that, decent clothes. You look completely miserable in that, and I can dress you up so that people won't be able to tell you're an imPort. [ She looks back at him, smiling wryly: ] You don't strike me as the sort who'll get all puffed up and pleased when people ask for autographs.

[ He thinks about the change in his pocket and what little he has on his debit card before glancing down at himself. Decent - doesn't he wish. ]

I'll be okay, seriously. [ He doesn't get angry because this is the first time he's met her. Instead he feels the itch of old wounds all over him. ]

But no. I uh, really don't want to do that.

[ Huh. Her smile turns curious - unoffended, but curious. ]

Really? Because you look like you're half frozen. And I promise I won't buy you a jacket like mine, if you're worried about that.

[ She plucks at her leather jacket, scuffed up and old and very lived-in. ]

Edited 2015-08-23 18:41 (UTC)

[ He smiles a little. ]

I like it.

[ Or maybe he just likes people who wear jackets like that who knows? ] But no, I'm okay. It's not that cold. [ It is cold. It's very cold. But he's going to brave it because he can't take charity from his best friend, let alone strangers. ] Do you live here?

[ Her skeptical look fades just a bit when he compliments her style. But - not that cold is nonsense. It's pride, isn't it? And, she reminds herself, not unreasonable pride. If she had someone insisting they were going to buy her clothes, she'd get prickly. And she's not even all that proud about taking charity. Though she's also lived a life of poverty...What about him? She glances down quickly at his shoes, checking to see their fit, their make, how scuffed-up they are.

Okay. New approach. ]

I live in Heropa, actually. I like to be near the Porter.

[ Honesty. And then: ]

You will let me buy you a drink, at least. I won't stand for you refusing, because this is what I always do - I buy new arrivals drinks so that they feel indebted and bring me coffee later on. It's terribly cunning of me.

[ His shoes are what you might expect of a teenager putting himself through private school, working three jobs just to do it because his parents have abandoned him. Meaning they're dirty and scuffed up but he can't afford new ones. Beside which, they're not falling apart yet. He's got another couple of months of wear in them at least.

Her next offer is easier. Her next offer promises Adam paying her back and cleansing his soul from the debt. ] Yeah, that sounds good. I could do with some coffee.

[ Yeah. Clothes lie. You can do a lot to disguise the shittiness of your clothes. But shoes tell the truth. She looks at them, and she understands a little bit more about this boy. And she chats as she takes stock, trying to figure out how best to continue to approach him, to talk him into letting her help him.

Gee, Kitty, why do people think you're overbearing? ]

I thought as much. I could do with some myself, actually. There's a place not so far from here - it's a chain, actually, of coffee places, and their lattes are ridiculously overpriced but their regular coffee is very good and very cheap. And it's just...coffee, too. They're not doing that irritating pour-over thing - have they started doing that in your world? The pour-overs?

[ She has not reached Richard Campbell Gansey III levels of overbearing yet, she's fine.

And also she says the magic word - cheap. ] Mostly I just drink coffee from a vending machine at school. [ And instant when he's at home. ] What's a pour over?

Oh, it's the stupidest thing.

[ She takes to this topic with ferocious cheer. She's not just trying to be sociable - she has opinions about this particular sort of coffee. ]

It's coffee brewed by the individual cup, by hand. So the barista, or waitress at the perfectly decent cafe that has regular coffee that's really quite good and can be poured out very quickly - [ A quick thump to her chest, as though it was remotely ambiguous who she was talking about - ] Has to stand over the grounds, fussily pouring more and more water over the grounds until finally it all drains into the cup, and a process that used to consume no time suddenly starts consuming five minutes per customer. It's maddening. And the coffee's not even that much better!

Yeah, I really don't think I have time for all that.

[ Rushing from school to work to Cabeswater to sleep and back around again doesn't leave time for luxury coffee. ] As long as it has caffeine in it and it's wet that's all I really need.

And that's all most people need! But certain cafes just want to reinvent themselves as being higher-end. Fancy.

[ An irritated, huffy sigh. Anyway... ]

My name's Kitty, by the way.

[ He'd like to be higher-end and fancy if he could. He doesn't see the harm in it. But then that's personal, that doesn't involve having to wait for coffee. ]

Oh, Adam. Adam Parrish. [ He gives her a little smile because it's not like offering his hand to shake is normal. ]

Hullo, Adam.

[ She flashes him a broad grin. ]

Anyway. This place just does coffee coffee. It's good.

So - what's your world like?

Uh.

Kind of ... normal? [ Except for Welsh Kings and ley lines and magical forests. But Adam is not Gansey and so he hoards the reality of his world until he knows he can trust her. ]

I'm from Virginia. That's why I came here. I thought I could get home that way.

Well - everyone's from a normal world from their perspective, aren't they.

[ She says that cheerfully enough. Though: ]

That must be a bit hard, though. Coming here and seeing all this.

I thought I could get home. You know, hitch hike or something? Only then I asked a bunch of people and they told me Henrietta didn't even exist here and it kind of ... sunk in.

[ Which resulted in the almost nervous breakdown on the park bench. ]

[ A sympathetic nod. ]

Yeah. Are you going to stay here, do you think?

I guess I don't really have a choice?

[ They've taken him from his home. He can't get back. The tiny little apartment above St. Agnes doesn't exist here. ]

Do you know if there's like a hostel or something? [ Maybe she'll think he's a backpacking hipster instead of broke. ]

[ Huh. Pride is one thing, but - turning down government housing for it? Living in a hostel instead? Kitty had left the house they'd assigned her, but that had been out of fear and paranoia, not pride. Does his go that far? ]

You're...not going to live in the imPort housing?

What?

[ It's okay, Kitty. He just didn't know. ]

Oh. That's a thing?

Oh!

[ She relaxes just a little bit. Okay, so then maybe he won't die starving and frozen on the street. ]

Yeah. You get free housing from the government. A job, too, and a stipend. If you register. Which basically just involves saying that you'll cooperate with them even though you don't really have to.

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