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etcelsior2017-05-25 08:16 pm
maskormods) wrote in etcelsior2017-05-25 08:16 pm
Entry tags:
WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE
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?
Today it's not just imPorts that are making a scene. Given the relatively high approval rating imPorts still pull in here, maybe it shouldn't shock locals and imPorted arrivals alike that new native metahumans are using the city to debute their new spandex and catch phrases while they try and take their own bite out of crime. You know what they say about those darn kids these days though, too much time watching TV instead of say, oh, learning about martial arts or surveillance techniques. Or that the world doesn't actually pause when they start their dramatic entrances like it does on the small screen. There are five teenagers today, each one dressed in elaborate costumes modeled after different birds of paradise (click one of these if you really need examples). And you better believe each one has a dramatic entrance speech concerning truth, Justice, and the American Way, a dramatic pose, and a polysyllabic name to go through before they all strike a team pose and shout 'Birds Of Prey, Uncaged!'
During this time the lone criminal they had swooped down to stop has long since stared running away. Early in the morning, they did this whole production to stop a litterer. Mid-afternoon, a jay walker. Finally, in the evening, they actually try stopping a mugging. Of course the thief and the stolen goods are busy getting away during their intros, a fact the robbed citizen keeps shouting at them through the whole two minute long affair.
It's up to you, dear imPort, to catch these escaping misdemeanors or thief and bring them to actual justice (or, if you're really kind, hand them over to the birds), to stop and tell these kids to get off your darn lawn, to give them hero-ing tips or a real villain to fight against, or to just keep walking and pretend this whole mess never happened. The choice is yours.
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!
These questions are better asked inside, however, as a tornado warning has been released for the county. No, they haven't had one here since the 90s, but you can never be too careful! With the torrential downpour currently hammering the city, some enterprising business people have taken to offering storm themed sales of food, drinks, and appliances. Is there any better way to send the rainy day than on nickle shot night at the local bar, where you cannot only get dangerously intoxicated but also ride the newest in fun and games, the Freudian Mechanical Bull? Come one come all and see how long you can stay clinging on as the bull bucks you physically and emotionally, spitting out catchy psychological phrases like 'do you think this will make your father love you?' or 'riding me for five minutes will never fix what you've done.' The bull will detect which sentences seem to get the best effect and keep barring down on that path. Sensitive about your mother? Better believe the whole bar is about to hear a lot about it.
Or if you're not up for that much fun, you can aid worried citizens in securing their homes and businesses against the possible storms. Help them board up holes in roofs, cast wards on their windows, or just point them towards the nearest insurance agent. Surely you wouldn't take advantage of them and sell them devices they don't need or learn where they keep their valuables and how to reach them at a time like this would you?...would you?
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?
Today is the semi-annual (that no one can quite seem to remember ever happening before) balloon festival. From dawn until well past midnight imPorts and natives alive can pay a small fee to ride in a beautifully colorful hot air balloon solo or in pairs. There is also wonder fried food and face-painting for the whole family. If this seems all a little too innocent and family friendly, don't worry. This being the Falls, there's always a chance for the morally flexible (or horribly naive) to make a little extra money. Some balloons are offering special, 100% totally free in no way catch-possessing deluxe rides to certain 'winners.' Strangely, it appears to 'win' all one has to do is agree to ride the hot air balloon over to another city, drop off one of the 'sand bags' attached to the side at a designated place, pick up a few new 'sand bags' and fly back! Those that can pilot their own balloon rather than needing a guide will be paid extra- they mean, win an extra special prize.
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!
But you'll have to excuse the mess. See, a little while ago the city was a real zoo. Animals running everywhere, smashing store windows, eating aquariums, you know how these things can go. In fact, there are still a few stay old world monkeys jumping around, and maybe a baby gator or two in the sewer or prairie dogs in the parks. A small reward is still being offered for their rounding up.
4 ♥
It's only after a moment and when she finally catches sight of the person in question sitting in his wheelchair and talking to an audience of animals that she stops and stares. Here she thought she wouldn't see him again despite Erik's claims that Charles had a penchant for disappearing and reappearing at times, at least in terms of this place and yet... she almost finds it hard to believe, wondering to herself if perhaps this is simply a trick her mind has decided to play on her what with her having to adjust to the loss of that familiar connection within the mind.
Professor...?
She reaches out with telepathy at first, gently nudging at his mind in some thinly veiled attempt to try and catch his attention before she finds her feet carrying her over to him and she comes up alongside him, staring a little in disbelief.
"Is it... are you really here?"
♥!!
The little monkeys scatter to the park - with the bag of dried fruit, those little rascals - as his concentration is fully focused on locating her. A smile spreads over his lips as he spots her and he reaches up to take her hand in his when she's close enough for physical contact.
"I am very real," he says with a chuckle and nods towards the bench, inviting her to sit where just a moment before sat a row of monkeys. "I didn't expect to see you here," he admits with a small frown. "You were also brought in through those strange contraptions?"
no subject
"I... yeah," she nods, chewing on her lower lip for a moment as she takes a seat on the park bench, still staring to him as if in disbelief of his really being here. "You were here before..." she starts, fingers tucking a few strands of red hair behind an ear. "I mean... yeah, you were. Not that long ago either. You were here when I came here and then one day you just... weren't."
She remembers that day and how disconnected she suddenly felt with the loss of the one mind she took comfort in and knew could ease her own when things became too loud, too hectic, too frightening even for herself. But she smiles as she tries to settle those emotions. She told herself she would become stronger and capable of handling everything on her own without the professor, best not to slip back into her shell now.
"Erik's here," she adds then, thinking that maybe it's something he might want to know if he somehow doesn't already. "I've been staying with him since you left. I just... it's comforting to be around people who... aren't scared of you."
She purses her lips and looks to him a little more then.
"What do you remember last, professor? Before coming here I mean."
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He brushes his thumb over her knuckles and squeezes her hand. "I met Erik, he told me about my disappearance and how time is confusingly twisted around the details of our history in this place. I'm sorry for leaving you here alone. I know that mustn't have been my intention."
It's hard for him to organise all this information in his mind and come to understand everything in a way that makes sense. But that's definitely not Jean's fault and he doesn't want to worry her with his own confusion, which is why he pushes those feelings down and hides them firmly.
"I'm glad you could take refugee with someone from home." Whatever unflattering things Charles could say about Erik, he would make sure Jean is safe and help her if she would need it. He also can assume that the conflict with El Sabah Nur saw a completion that must have made Erik at least a neutral force in her eyes if she settled to live with him.
"I remember Egypt," he says quietly, searching her eyes and gives her a mental nudge, the last words he spoke to her through the telepathic sending in Cairo. Those with the greatest power, protect those without. He can't quite hide all the worry that he feels because he's been yanked out of that moment, left behind others to deal with it in his stead.
no subject
But he's still the professor, still the one she seeks comfort in telepathically and who can tame her restless mind when she feels overwhelmed with everything and everyone around her... that much hasn't changed and would never change... she hopes.
It's when he gently touches her mind with his own that she allows her gaze to wander for a moment, pinpointing just where exactly in time he had come from... and it seems to be her past. Granted, it's not by much and not anything concerning years apart from where she was pulled out of. But... it means that he hasn't yet seen the things she's capable of when letting go, as he'll eventually ask her to.
There's a brief moment of hesitation that comes over her before she flicks her gaze back to Charles and allows her thoughts to gently slip into his.
El Sabah Nur... I killed him.
Even as she says this to him with her mind, she allows the images- her memories concerning the moment in question to gently push their way into Charles' mind, letting him see what she's experienced and what will eventually come to pass from the point in time that he's from. The glowing burn of fire flowing off her as 'Apocalypse' himself is blown apart with her power, the others assisting her with keeping him pinned down so that she can stop him... so that she can kill him.
There's a look that Jean gives as she allows those thoughts to slip into the professor's mind, seeming concerned almost with what he might think, even if he's the one who asks her to let go and stop him by any means necessary; she doesn't want to concern him.
I had to... to save you and everyone else.
no subject
He lets the memories flow into his mind and studies them to get a better picture of what happened - or will happen. Her reluctance assures him that this hasn't damaged her beyond repair, which is a relief beyond measure.
Jean, he murmurs into her mind, pushing his chair a little bit closer to her and reaching with his hand to cup her cheek within his palm. You did what had to be done. I know it's not easy to see it that way and taking life is never - should never be - easy. If it becomes easy, that's when you should worry.
There's a small smile curving over his lips, a smile that holds very little mirth but all the tender feelings in the world. I'm sorry I failed to protect you from that. But you've done a remarkable job at controlling yourself and helping others with your power. Do you remember when I told you that you have nothing to fear when you learn that control? It's not a matter of what you can do but what you choose to do. We're all capable of extreme acts of cruelty and extreme acts of compassion. What becomes of our measure, is what we choose to do.
no subject
So she chooses to smile instead and quickly dismisses his apology with a shake of her head.
You don't need to apologize for that. There's some things I need to do on my own, right? Because as much as she relies on the professor and looks to him for guidance with her 'gifts', she knows that she can't always use him or rely on him to help her out of things... something she had been learning when he had disappeared from her. Thankfully, she had Erik to go to.
But I can't say that it's not nice to hear again. To have his voice speak within her mind.
That's when she reaches forward and wraps her arms around him in a gentle hug, chin pressed to his shoulder as she sighs. She doesn't need to allow her thoughts to push into his to let him know how glad she is to see him, to be able to speak with him like this.
"It sounds really weird to say I've missed you but... time's really weird here in general. It kinda takes a bit of getting used to," she smiles and gives the Professor just a little more of a squeeze. "Erik says to look at it like a vacation of sorts." She makes a bit of a face at that, but still smiles some. "I just wouldn't really expect any drinks with those little umbrellas in them to be handed to you on this vacation."
no subject
She leans in to hug him and Charles wraps his arms around her, squeezing her gently, one of his hands moving up to the back of her neck, holding her before he brushes his fingers through her hair. "No, I heard that from Erik, too. I wish I hadn't been brought here but the fact that I can share your vacation makes it slightly better," he laughs and lightly kisses the top of her head. "I'm sorry I disappeared, Jean," he whispers to her. "But I trust that you would be able to deal with all this own your own too. Happily you don't have to do that."
It's really awful of him to think he has a pet student or whatever the kids call it, but Jean has always felt the closest to him because she shares the gift and curse he has. Knowing what everyone else is thinking is definitely not always the blessing that people might think it is. She has the same struggle ahead of her that he did, choosing the kind of person she wants to be. Charles wasn't always so sure of himself, after all.
But he's also spent the most time with her for these exact reasons. It's natural that they'd feel close to each other.
"Tell me," he says when it seems it's not completely misplaced. "What have you been up to here?"
no subject
The room that he previously had when he was here before is still in tact, Jean having been in there a few times and having taken a few things for herself into her room that Erik had done up for her but... she figures she'll leave all of that up to Erik to explain, if he hasn't already.
Right now? She's just glad to have him back.
"You mean aside from moving in with Erik?" She smiles some and pulls back after a moment, wanting to be able to look to the professor. "I haven't really been here that long... maybe a couple months by now?"
She grips the edge of the bench she sits on, fingers curling under and teeth dragging over her lower lip for a moment as her gaze wanders for a moment, only to return back to the professor.
"I've been trying to help others that are having a hard time with their powers... especially telepathy." She smiles, knowing it's what the professor would do and it's in part why she's been trying to do so on her own... it's also because she knows how it feels and if she can help someone as the professor has helped her, well, it's something. "I've had someone reach out to me and I'm going to try and see if I can help her. I mean... it's not anything like you can do but, I was going to try and use some of your tricks."
She smiles a little more. The student attempting to play teacher with others around her here.
"But I mean... I can always just send them to you now if you want. I don't wan to steal your thing or anything." She's teasing, just a little.
no subject
His brows arch up in a pleasantly surprised manner when she speaks of helping others and he leans back in his chair, looking at her with new eyes.
"I feel almost obsolete," he jokes right back without even a hitch. "No, Jean, I'm impressed and incredibly proud of you. I would be curious to hear about your notions about teaching. Perhaps it is something you should pursue in the future."
He tilts his head curiously. It probably is even therapeutic for her to help others with problems that are at least mildly similar to hers. Encouraging to overcome her own lack of confidence.
"Have you thought about it?"