etcelsior | THE GREATEST POWER OF ALL

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THE GREATEST POWER OF ALL

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 there's only one rule in Test Drive Meme Club: have fun!

01. The city of Heropa is what one might expect from a small, bright and cheery place, where locals are friendly enough and local shop owners might offer a free drink to welcome you to their fair city. Some of the locals might thank you for always lending your service to the nation, while others might not say anything -- but if you have something nasty to say, better not say anything at all, right?

Unfortunately, tragedy has struck today. Outside a local 24/7 diner featuring waffles and other breakfast food, a large crowd has gathered while several fire trucks keep a steady stream on it and the buildings nearby. The diner is obviously destined to burn, and its waitresses, in bright yellow, stand outside watching with no small amount of worry reflected in their eyes. One of them complains, again, that she'd left her purse inside - and now a good $100 is going up in flames. For what? Won't somebody help her out, at all? The police are so inept! Just the worst!

The windows burst and, clear as day, one can see an alligator trapped inside the entrance, trying to make its way out but dissuaded by a patch of fire in front of the door. EMS and crowd alike gasp and wonder aloud, what can they do? Will no one save this poor Florida swamp cat?

02. De Chima, Virginia, is a large city with a healthy economy, and though it's quieter than Heropa, there are still large numbers of citizens to be awed at your very presence. Look at you! Organic wonder! Science and technology are the lifeblood of this city, so you're likely to come across a good many locals taking your picture with the newest of devices. The imPort craze remains high here, and you may find yourself cornered by overzealous imPort fans, media wannabes and opportunists alike, shoving cameras in your face.

Their questions are likely to be fairly mundane, however; get ready for an interview about your taste in romantic partners, personal underwear choices, favorite foods, and more!

03. Maurtia Falls, Pennsylvania has had its ups and downs since imPorts started reappearing. Several imPort heroes have put focused efforts into cleaning up the streets of this somewhat infamous city, while others have swooped in to help the criminal industry thrive. More so here than the streets of any other imPort city, the battle between good and evil looks more like a war of escalation than a heroic tale. That might make the less than warm welcome imPorts are given in the city a little more understandable. The emergence of locals with superpowers is hardly helping. While some of these individuals have turned to crime, many locals seem more inclined to defend their native powered drug dealer than help the non-native hero bring them to justice. Who are you to tell them how to live?

It's not quite spring yet, but already flowers are popping up—in the form of seven-foot sentient musclebound daisies! A local criminal known as Flower Power has set them on the city, and they're going on a rampage, but a number of citizens have taken advantage. Do you go after the bushwhacking blossoms or the local looters?

04.Nonah, North Carolina, is the liveliest of all cities; loud, busy and there's some kind of energy in the air that gets everyone buzzing with excitement. To be American is to be part of a melting pot, and that there’s more money to be made by the thriving local industries hardly hurts.

Natives may gather around new arrivals and ask both personal and broad questions about life as an imPort, what they are looking forward to, what their favorite article of underwear is. A few night clubs offer free entrance - just this once! And they are bound to notice that a man has taken up a spot in a local street, eating pancakes off of a fold out table and holding up traffic. Many people are taking pictures and more interested in whether or not this is performance art than ushering him out of the way. He does have an extra chair and table, however, and will welcome and feed company, especially imPorts.

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a. Heropa

[ Matt wanders down a road, contemplating the bottle of cherry cola some cheerful shopkeeper just GAVE him. His initial instinct is to be suspicious. Why is everyone so friendly here? The streets are relatively clean and safe looking, people seem to care about the well being of each other... a far cry from Neo Gotham. And Neo Gotham is probably the safest city in the country as far as he knows.

He's thirsty though. Maybe he can trust the soda? It's sealed and all so it's probably safe... Is that smoke? Curious, and with not much else to do he quickly comes across the source. ]

...Is that a crocodile?

[ He knows not the difference between gator and croc. He's never seen one in person. Always wanted to, they're cool. But he never thought he'd see one quite like this. ]

What it's even doing in there?!

b. De Chima

[ At first it was kinda fun when people took pictures and asked questions. Matt kinda felt like a celebrity. Someone important. But now? Now it's getting bad. And some of the questions? ]

Romantic partners?! I just turned THIRTEEN.

[ Plus his world had kind of gone to shit and all so crushes and the like are kind of at the veeeery back of his mind. A couple more questionable questions fly and Matt blanches and rummages around for the one smoke pellet he still had from the few he nicked from the Bat cave before finding himself here. ]

Look I... gotta go.

[ He tosses the pellet on the ground and attempts to make a mad dash away in the confusion. ]

c. Maurtia Falls

[ In hind sight maybe he SHOULDN'T have tripped that looter. Or called him a dreg. But when he saw the dude trying to make off with ill gotten goods it was almost instinctual for him to stick a skinny ankle out in his path. And that's why he was being chased through some alleys by said looter and a couple of his buddies.

Thank goodness he's fast! But he can't run forever. So he bolts out of the alley, takes a sharp corner, dives, and rolls under a car shouting a quick 'You didn't see me!' to anyone who might have, in fact, seen him. And not he just hopes the thugs didn't catch sight of him either. ]

[Just another day in Maurtia Falls, this time with a madman stealing flowers. As if they had any value! Gemini has bigger fish to fry, and as she wanders through the streets, she ignores what's going on around her until a young man dashes out nearby, obviously being pursued, and takes refuge under a car. Smiling a little maliciously, Gemini arranged her borrowed face into a mask of concern, and leaned over to smile inquisitively at Matt.]

What are you doing under there? [Look he's over here violent looking looters!]

Edited 2017-03-26 16:08 (UTC)

[ ...Oh you have GOT to be kidding? Did she not here him?

A panicked expression flashes across his face. He shakes his head and makes slashing motion with his hand. ]

I'm hiding.

[ And he can here the thud of the thug's heavy footsteps now. And his buddies. Plural. Great. This wasn't his day. ]

Just tell those dregs you saw me heading down the street!

I see, no problem.
[Gemini doesn't smirk at his panic, no matter how much she wants to, instead she puts on an understanding look and nods sympathetically, straightening up as the men arrive.]

If you're looking for someone he's not that far away. He's hiding under there.

[She tells what looks like the head goon, and then nods to the underside of the car, a vicious little smile playing at the edges of her mouth. Somebody's not escaping a beating after all.]

[ Really? Really? This is a thing that is happening right now at this very moment. Matt curses under his breath. He should know better. His mind is running a mile a minute to formulate a plan as he tries to scramble backwards out from under his not-hiding place.

Which wasn't working so well on account of a large hand reaching under to close around his wrist. Moments later he's dangling in the air staring at the big ugly he tripped up to begin with. He was saying something about turning him into a pancake or something, blah blah blah...

Matt isn't paying attention because he finally knows what to do. Without even thinking on it a moment longer he kicks. His boot connects with the looter's crotch. A particularly cringe inducing 'crunch' sound fills the air. Matt finds himself on the ground again, the thug doubles over in pain and his buddies just look surprised. ]

Thanks a lot, lady.

[ And he turns to bolt again before the thugs give chase again. ]

[Gemini laughs at the kid's spirit, watching as the big goon drops to the floor in agony and watching him roll around in pain with a distinctly vicious smile.]

No problem, really. [She says loud enough for the fleeing boy to hear, watching as he prepares to run again. Not so fast young man!

Her hand lashes out, so quick that anyone watching might think their brain is playing tricks on them, her elongated arm stretching so that she can grab his ankle just for a moment and trip him so that the adversaries will catch up.

[Shortly after Matt slips under the car, the sounds of more than one guy getting their butts handed to them can be heard not far away. After a few seconds of silence, a familiar sight crouches down and offers the kid beneath the car a hand.]

They're gone.

[It took everything Terry had to keep his voice neutral. In truth, he'd been stalking the looter from the rooftops, his plan slagged the moment he saw the bystander trip him. While he was running through which scenario would be best to save the kid, he heard the word "dreg" hurled at the looter. It shot through him like an arrow. No one said that here. From all the running, he never got a good look at the kid's face, couldn't be sure, but his gut told him he already knew who it was. It was that instinct that led him to change back to his civvies before intervening.

He's just waiting for Matt to come out to be certain.]

[ Matt winces and crosses his fingers that whoever's delivering the butt whooping is friendly. Because he really doesn't wanna tangle with someone even tougher then the looters chasing him down.

His breath catches. He never thought he'd hear that voice here. A grin spreads across his face and he grabs the offered hand. ]

Terry! Man am I glad to see you. I thought I'd be all alone again...

[ He dusts himself off. Aside from a new rip on his pants and freshly skinned knee courtesy of his dive he's none too worse for the wear. And he's also most definitely Matt! Though there's probably a few big differences his big brother will likely notice right off the bat. Like him being quite a bit taller then he should have been. And older, like a middle schooler as opposed to a kid in elementary school. ]

Thanks for getting rid of those guys. Even though I definitely had everything under control and all.

[Oh, he notices all right. The little twip had grown into a weird cross between how Terry looked when he was that age and Bruce's twip Damian. Why Damianof all people came to mind when he's trying to place Matt is a mystery. His best guess is that it had to be the age. They appeared to be about the same age. What else could it be?

Matt's voice had changed too--not to something unrecognizable, but enough that it kept him from recognizing his own brother at the sound of it.

Terry knows without a shadow of a doubt that it's Matt now, though, and he pulls the little twip in for a non-negotiable hug.]

As if you could be left alone, twip.

[Still, he absolutely catches the "again," and stores that information away for later. That isn't a conversation to have in the middle of the street.]

Of course you did.

[Finally pulling away, he reaches up to muss his little brother's hair, muscle memory aiming lower before he quickly course corrects to Matt's new height. How many years had past for Matt that Terry had missed?]

Come on, we're grabbing a slice.

[And more importantly, getting off the street in case those guys had even more friends Terry didn't know about. He pauses to grab his ever-present beige backpack off the ground beside the fallen looters--he'd dropped it there in his haste before kicking their collective posteriors--and slides it over one shoulder.]

Edited 2017-03-28 02:52 (UTC)

[ Non-negotiable hugs really should count as a super power. Matt has personally witnessed Mr. Wayne himself failing to avoid one. Not that Matt minds that much. He's relieved enough to see his big brother in this strange new world that he just hugs him back.

Honestly he can't think of a better person to get stuck with. Though... he frowns just a little as he reaches up to run a hand through his hair in attempts to fix it. There was something... a little off about Terry. Different. Not bad or alarming like he was talking with an impostor or anything. He just can't quite put his finger on it.

He certainly brightens right back up at the prospect of food though, small worries banished for the moment at least. ]

Pizza? Really? I haven't had that in forever!

[ Ration supplies in Gotham were good but they didn't always allow for anything too frivolous. ]

Forget about a slice you're buying me at least an entire pie.

Look at you, not even here five minutes and already draining my bank account. I don't work for Mr. Wayne here you know, so I don't have that Wayne money rolling in like I used to.

[Terry slings his arm over his much taller but still little brother and starts heading towards a good place he knows nearby.]

You're just lucky I like you.

[As they walk, Terry steals glances down at Matt, as if staring at the top of the pre-teen's head would expose all of his secrets. Things Matt's saying just isn't adding up right. "Alone again." The look in his eyes as he heard the word pizza. The fact that he hadn't apparently had it in "forever" despite the fact the Matt he knew practically lives at Cheesy Dan's. He's no Bruce, but he can still tell something's off. Something major happened in those missing years between the two of them.

And Terry isn't sure he wants to know what.]

[ He laughs and punches Terry in the side. ]

C'mon you can break the bank a little for your favorite brother.

[ Something major is an understatement. The war Brother Eye waged... it changed the world into the picture of a post apocalyptic wasteland. Gotham of all places is considered the safest place left, and not because of a sudden decline in crime or anything. That's just barely scratching the surface of the stuff the poor kid's gone through.

Not that he let that dampen his naturally cheery attitude. Much. He has his moments. For a while he'd been in a really dark place. Hard to believe as it may be looking at him now. ]

And I want double toppings of everything. 'Cept mushrooms and green peppers.

[Just to make Matt feel good about himself, Terry flinches at the punch.]

You can only get away with saying that because you're my only brother.

[He thinks that kind of talk requires his hair to get mussed again. Terry just got you back, and he's not planning on letting go anytime soon.]

What did I just say about not having Wayne money anymore, twip?

I heard ya! 'S why I'm not asking for mozzarella sticks too.

[ He sticks his tongue out and tries to duck under Terry's hand and fails. He JUST finished refixing his hair too. ]

Ah slag it Ter, just you wait 'til I'm taller then you.

[Terry's response is deadpan, but his smile betrays him.]

Gee, your generousity astounds me.

[Oh no you don't! Terry is relentless in his pursuit to mess up Matt's hair.]

Never gonna happen.

Edited 2017-03-29 22:48 (UTC)

[ He huffs and swats at Terry's hand. He notices the smile though, and takes it as a clear tell that he's won the pizza battle. Hair battle? Not so much. Someday though, someday. ]

'Nother two or three years you'll be looking up to me.

[ Huh. Speaking of time. ]

So did ya just find yourself here this morning too? I'm still half convinced I'm asleep.

Edited 2017-03-30 00:30 (UTC)

Neeeeeeeeeever gonna happen, twip.

[For the first time since realizing it was Matt under the car, Terry's smile falters, but only for a moment before it's back, albeit strained a little.]

I've actually been here since October. Time's weird here, best not to think too hard about it.

...You've been here for half a year?! How-no never mind.

[ He just groans and rubs his temples. Of course it's this. Of Course. ]

More time travel crap then.

Hey, watch your mouth or mom'll have my head.

[The words come out almost automatically, Terry instead stuck on the rest of Matt's statement. ..."Again"?

Another question to be stored away for just a little longer. The pizza place in question was right up ahead; one of your no-frills pizza joints with minimal seating since most of its orders were take out or delivery. Once inside, Terry hands Matt a twenty--seriously cash is still kind of weird to him but when in Rome or whatever.]

Go nuts just this once. And only because you were just basically kidnapped across dimensions. Seriously, mom will kill me if I don't at least sort of watch out for you.

[Not that he needed to hear his mom tell him that in the back of his mind. The second he saw Matt come out from under that car, he planned on keeping an eye on his baby bro.]

[ Matt goes oddly silent at the first mention of their mom. He turns to give Terry a weird look but keeps walking on, trying to distract himself from the comment by thinking of pizza. ]

Thanks...

[ The second mention though has him looking like he's been punched in the gut and he just can't quite seem to muster up the same excitement he had earlier. Why... why would Terry say something like that. He didn't say 'would've' he said 'will' like she was...

Terry said said time was different here, right? And timeline conflicts were something he actually experienced... Some pieces were beginning to click together. And it'd explain why there was something about his brother that just felt a little off. He mulled over it as he numbly ordered his everything pizza. ]

Hey Ter, what do you remember last? Before you got here months ago I mean?

[Terry's blood almost runs cold at the expression on Matt's face when he brings up mom. He almost prays that he's wrong, forcing himself to focus on the conversation.]

After you order, Matt.

[The middle of the restaurant isn't the place. Terry slips into the booth farthest from the counter, hidden from the sight of the employees. This sort of conversation needed privacy.]

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THE GREATEST POWER OF ALL

Matt McGinnis | DC Comics Future's End

Maurtia Falls

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