Mask or Menace | MODERATORS (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
maskormods) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
etcelsior2017-08-25 07:25 pm
maskormods) wrote in etcelsior2017-08-25 07:25 pm
Entry tags:
KEMOSABE, JUMP ON IT!
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?
No matter how you feel about imPorts, there is one thing the community all must suffer through together: the weather. And time. Two, two things the community must suffer through together. However many things there are, today is celebrating the Dog Days of Summer. Literally. There is an adoption fair for every kind of dog you can imagine, and a few that really take imagination to call them ‘a dog.’ Like cats that have had doggy ear-shaped hats placed on their unwilling heads, or fish with decorative dog art painted on their bowl. Or that baby alligator on a leash with fur (glued? It looks glued) on its back. So while it’s a fine day to come and meet a new friend- or drop one off and run, hoping someone else will take it- it may also be a good day to stop the smaller animals and some wandering children from getting eaten by some of the more carnivorous creatures a few of the local eccentrics have decided to try to pawn off on the public. Or grab a snack from the fried food and ice cream stands and watch the madness. Whatever your choice, welcome to Florida, heroes.
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!
Wasn’t the forgiveness day festival wonderful? What, you weren’t in this world yet to attend? Well, never mind that! There’s still time for those willing to part with a few dollars to show your love for this new world and sympathy for the natives and imPorts alike that have been harmed in it. How? Why with a flower festival, of course! An entire block has been closed off for the seemingly endless sale of flowers of every shape and color. Technically, all the flowers have meanings and a few wandering guides are more than happy to help you pick out the bunch that may speak your true feelings to your intended target. It has all the potential to be a nice, sweet smelling day where you can express your love or eternal hatred or total ambivalence with living flora.
Of course, this is the science city. It can’t be something as simple as only normal, natural flowers. Some of the stands are nice enough to keep their technological wonders neatly labeled and separate from the rest of the foliage. Others aren’t so nice. The best way to get people to try a new thing is to spring it on an unsuspecting public, right? Right! Also for sale are roses that, if you prick your finger on the (oddly able to pierce through even superhuman strong, unbreakable skin) thorns you are compelled to spend the rest of the day with the first person you lay your eyes on. Never seen them before or hate their guts, it doesn’t matter. You simply feel awful when more than three feet away from them. To the point you will pass out if you’re away from them for more than five minutes. Hope you’re good at making quick bathroom runs.
There are also lilies that make birds flock to you and snap dragonsthat offer you supportive messages given in a squeaky voice every time you smell it. For those liking slightly more visibly engineered flowers, a multicolored daisy turns you into a Technicolor wonder, your clothes, hair, eyes, and skin changing rapidly from color to color without any apparent rhyme or reason (or respect for clashing). Putting the flower down will stop the changes, but you’re stuck in whatever random pattern it landed on until an hour passes and the effect wears off. Good luck with the festival!
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?
To say all is not right in the streets of Maurtia Falls is to more or less state the obvious, but this time, the criminal nature of this foe is a little... sillier than usual. One gentleman gifted with the powers of superspeed seems not to have grasped the true potential of his powers and instead of spending his time robbing banks or big businesses, he's decided to be the world's most efficient pickpocket. He zips through the street, pushing people over at superspeed and picking their pockets and snatching their pockets, leaving only a brown blur in his wake, evidently having lost the memo that primary colours are all the rage for costumed heroes and villains.The more heroically minded among you may want to go after this villain or save a grandma or two that have been unintentionally pushed straight into traffic... but the guy has to stop to rest sometime, and he's really begging for a beatdown with this kind of behaviour.
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!
Today the word on everyone’s lips is branding. It’s not enough to slap on some spandex or hand stitch a mask these days. That’s so 80s. Now is the time not only to get your hero/villain costume professionally made, it’s time for sponsorship! Why should natives be limited to just having some registered imPorts actually working at their place of business? A cape is basically a big, open banner just waiting for a logo. Or ten. Now, they can’t really promise money up front for anyone agreeing to wear their logo and work their slogan into a witty quip during an arrest, but they can do one better: free products. Get all the free socks you can wear by only fighting crime in Jane’s Honey of the Earth socks, underwear, and bras. Or negotiate for free dinners for life if you wear the logo and agree to only appear on dates eating at Overweigh burger shack.
Of course, there’s nothing like an unlikely team up to really get the media spotlight on an imPort (and the brand they now represent). If you fall for the hype or even just get herded over to an audition station (if you are walking down the road today, chances are you’re going to get unwillingly pulled in at least once), get ready to meet your new partner: this random stranger! The company will give you 10 minutes to get to know each other, then it’s time to grin, bear it, and think of the free merchandise as they ask you to perform at least one heroic feat as a team for their cameras. What that is, exactly, is up to you.
no subject
His eyes found the camera. Even if the camera wasn't blatantly obvious in the room, he still locked eyes with it because he knew exactly where to put them, how to hide them, and where they most likely were. ]
You struck me as that sort of man, but this is far more kinky than I expected of you. All right, then. Get on with it. But let it be known I will be leaving you a one star review on Welp.
no subject
This is a hospital, Herr Starr, a psychiatric hospital. [One star review on Welp, indeed.] You had threatened my life and attempted to sell me on the black market -- I have enough legal grounds to hold you for those exhibited violent delusions alone.
[Enough legal grounds for seventy-two hours, anyway. Chilton had some astounding sway as a professional, but he couldn't be judge and juror. Starr had not been convicted of anything, nor had he technically been charged.]
Your head isn't going to enjoy the bright lighting, I'm afraid. I had spiked your dosage, your side effects will be agonizing.
no subject
[ He craned his head to look around him once again, a mild grimace on his face afterward -- but the tension was clenched between his teeth which was, fortunately, hidden by the hideous muzzle. ]
You could have fooled me. This seemed more like a sex dungeon.
[ His eyes closed again, attempting to shield out the agonizing light. ]
Do you go around locking up everyone who threatens to kill you? I imagine it must be a very common greeting once they've heard you speak, and yet it seems I am here. All alone.
no subject
[He flipped the intercom off, storming out of the surveillance room. It was another ninety seconds before he waltzed into the containment center holdings, his silhouette cut by the burning bright light behind and before him. The fluorescent sting was meant to unnerve.
Chilton entered, and took a seat in a chair placed before the containment cylinder.]
Herr Starr. [He was beginning to wonder if the man had a first name.] If you do not cooperate, I fear I will have to subject you to some very unpleasant tests. Because one way, or another, I am going to get my answers from you.
Understand?
no subject
[ He spoke rather flippantly and would have waved an arm if one was currently free. But his eyes opened again, attempting to focus in on Chilton -- although he saw him in double. His bald head leaned back against the wall behind him and he wearily resettled onto the floor. ]
You plan on torturing answers out of me. But you will find I am not so easy to crumble. So ask your questions and I will decide whether or not I feel like answering them.
cw references to sexual trauma
Well hopefully you are in the mood. Let's see -- ah. You've brought up how you are not sexually attracted to men, often enough to qualify as defensive, in fact. Have you in fact had sexual intercourse with men, Herr Starr? And if so, was the experience... Traumatic for you?
[An easy question to baseline, he figured. Chilton was as interested in the reaction Starr might reveal as he was curious to know what Starr would say. Denial was simply to anticipate, but Starr had an odd frankness about him... He might yet surprise.]
I know this topic might be difficult... So, please, take your time.
no subject
[ Herr Starr answered almost immediately. Perhaps as a means of proving it was not terribly traumatic for him, although it was. The things that happened that day, he could never forget. ]
So I am sorry if it was your hope to be the first. I do hope you will at least wait until my nausea subsides before you proceed to put your own penis inside of me. And be quick about it. I have a job interview in the morning to attend.
[ Because he was still convinced this was a sex thing. ]
cw rape mention
[But he didn't look too sorry. Chilton was positively beaming -- whatever sympathy that might have been socially acceptable for a psychiatrist to express regarding the confession of his patient's rape was wholly ignored. He jotted down a few notes, things that he would not illuminate for Starr's benefit.]
And during this, ah, incident. Was it violent? Have you noticed any change in your behavior since? How you interact with people?
[His utter lack of surprise regarding "this incident" might have betrayed what he had already assumed about Herr Starr. Chilton crossed one leg over the other, intently watching his patient for reaction now.]
cw mention of watersports
[ He closed his eyes both in irritation and because it hurt like hell to keep them open. He might have been blind in one eye, but it could still see light and dark. Which did little to help his migraine. ]
No.
[ He answered Chilton's questions with one singular 'no.' And he didn't specify which question that was an answer to -- if it served for all three or if it wasn't an answer at all and instead an outright refusal to answer his questions. ]
I assure you, I am one hundred percent fine, in control of my actions, and not in need of your forced therapy. Now, if you would come closer, I would like to urinate on your face.
[ All of this said in the same, stoic tone. He was probably serious. ]
no subject
Cleaner. For him.]
You are not in any position to expel your bodily fluids upon my person, Herr Starr. I am sure you can appreciate the precarious nature of your current holding -- a lot depends on how I consider your mental state to be. Your freedom, your medication or lack thereof.
[He ticked off the two with a finger each.]
This is my domain. And everything, everyone within it? Is mine.
no subject
[ Herr Starr opened his eyes once more to fixate an unsettling stare upon Chilton. ]
And here I thought you said this was not a sexual thing.
[ Holding a claim on people was certainly about as sexual as it came. But he cocked his head to the side, an expression of contemplation knitting in his brow. ]
But what would you do if I were to take this domain of yours?
[ It wasn't that Herr Starr even wanted a mental hospital. But Chilton seemed so proud of himself here. It was clearly the only time the man was probably in control of anything -- so the threat was mostly made to strip Chilton of his control. ]
no subject
[Sneering, proud Chilton stated with his most obnoxious air of authority. But his posturing wasn't hollow; he was more than confident in his position in this structure -- he believed in his own power within these walls. He believed these walls would stand for him.
When it came to rattling Frederick Chilton, he needed to see it to believe it.]
So, about your interest in godhood, and how that relates to the imPort condition. Are you, what, looking for a messiah? And his disciples? What's the game plan?
no subject
[ Asked Starr, looking over Chilton to see what his defenses were -- what made it a quote unquote impossible hypothetical. But it seemed as though the man wouldn't say. Just as Starr wouldn't say what techniques and abilities he himself housed that could make a staged takeover a possibility.
He drew in a deep breath, audibly sighing. The damn muzzle was pretty uncomfortably warm. ]
Unless you believe you fit the criteria to be this world's new god, there is little to discuss about my search for the Messiah here. Or lack thereof.
[ His head lolled to the side, hanging heavily. ]
Although that Sam Merlotte. Now he has potential.
no subject
[Chilton leaped to his feet, enraged and unwilling to mask it.]
Sam Merlotte?
[A touchy subject. Now, Chilton himself had been subjected to Sam's whispering -- there was godly power in that, but all imPorts possessed godly power. That was the point of imPorts, wasn't it? Such was Chilton's philosophy: they all represented the manifestation of human existence in various facets.
But if there was one to embody it all, oh, Chilton would not deign it to rest upon Sam's shoulders.]
He is -- undeserving.
[But he was beloved, and he already had a nemesis. Maybe it wouldn't be too far a stretch to make Chilton a celestial nemesis.]
no subject
Is he?
[ The question tossed out into the air, lingering. ]
The fact that his very name can evoke ire from the king in his psychiatric castle should be proof enough of his ability to move people to his whim. But it is not his personality nor his well-endowed body that serves as the inspiration the people need.
Surely you've experienced it. His power. And I am not talking about the one that allows him to turn into disgusting canines.
no subject
[Not that Starr was wrong, it was just such a... Precise thing to say. Chilton cleared his throat, uncomfortable as he stood.]
This is a control issue. You like what he can do. To people. What he can make them do.
[Adjusting the knot of his tie, Chilton glanced to the side.]
Which means he has used it on you, and you're not afraid of it. You must enjoy it, to some capacity. Worth discussing, isn't it, Herr Starr?
no subject
[ Though not on a personal level. ]
It unsettles you, does it not? His power. His control. His dominion over you. It should unsettle you. He could bring the world to their knees, and they would gladly prostrate themselves before him -- thanking him for it if it was his desire. Unfortunately for him, it does not seem to be his desire.
But also unfortunately for him, he has me to show him the way. I have experience in this sort of thing. And now it seems he and I have a common enemy.
[ A pointed glance at Chilton. Something to bond with Sam over. Because Chilton's dislike is no doubt mutual. ]
no subject
Starr was far more malignant, far more sinister than Chilton had initially presumed. And now he had to do something about that.]
Delusions of grandeur. Anti-social tendencies. Low empathy. Propensity for violence.
[A checklist. Verbalized.]
Psychopathic behavior.
[Chilton walked to the glass cylinder, pressing his palm against it.]
My recommendation is immediate electrotherapy. Followed with twenty-four hours of sensory deprivation in solitary confinement.
no subject
Do you believe I am a stranger to torture?
[ Leaning back against the cylindrical holding in order to help himself stand once again, he rose to his full height. ]
Do you believe your torturing will break me? You are a fool if you do. Many have tried. Many have failed. You and your sex dungeon slash mental hospital will not be any different. I will get out of here, and when I do...
[ There was a pause for suspense. ]
I will kill you.
no subject
[Seemed like a fluid enough solution, thought Chilton. Every attack was countered with a sedative streamlined consequence.]
And -- I'll have you know -- that is not my only ability.
[Chilton walked around the massive test tube, circular movement guiding him to Starr's resting back.]
Besides, it isn't torture. [In fact, it was.] I am here to moderate your verbalized violence. [He was not.] It is therapeutic. [Unverified.] And for your sole benefit. [Outrageous lie.]
You know, Starr, I like you. You're something of a... An Ahab figure. Seeking that which you will never actually achieve. That one thing you want most.
no subject
[ Said of Chilton's 'threat' about the sedation not being his only power. But as the psychiatrist got up to move, Starr kept his eyes on him. And when he could turn his head no further, he turned his body to face him again. ]
That sounds like the sort of thing I would say to my employees.
[ And it would be a lie because it absolutely was torture and not for anyone's own good but Starr's. Although Starr typically didn't torture and simply went for the kill when his underlings displeased him. ]
An Ahab figure? Is that so? And what is it you believe I want that I will never achieve? I have achieved a great deal in my many years.
no subject
[Chilton tapped on the glass, taunting his newest exhibit.]
All you're missing is the peg leg. But the white whale you're hunting for, your messiah? You will never find him in Sam Merlotte. You'll never find him whatsoever. And the logic you have mentally manifested in him, the order you want to be inherent in this world, the something that validates your life with meaning... It is a lie. A false hope.
[Chilton grinned widely, more sharply than before, tilting his head.]
There is only humanity. Your earthly peers. And we are a cruel and monstrous bunch.
no subject
Tell me. What frightens you more? Sam Merlotte himself? Or the prospect of a modern god stepping into the role in this world? Merlotte's ambassadorial success was but a test run. And the audience very openly welcomed him, arms spread and ladies' crotches open. People are always looking for something higher than themselves to believe in, something to distract them from how shit stained their own lives have become. So I ask you this.
Why not Sam?
no subject
[If Herr Starr were not the one nearly nude and captured in a straitjacket, pinned behind glass and depowered, then Chilton would have asked that question with less amusement. But as he considered himself to have the upperhand, he took pleasure in the words.]
Oh, no. The prospect of a modern god? You must be highly dissatisfied with the state of your world to carry over that intention. Disenchanted.
[Chilton took a step back to thoroughly look Starr up and down, he wanted his patient to feel the appraisal.]
You know, proclaiming yourself a godmaker... It is megalomania in a most sanctimonious hue. You are pragmatic, yes, decisive. But that comes from... What? A sense of injustice? Anger?
no subject
Why not boredom?
[ Throwing out a suggestion to Chilton's list of suggestions. ]
Like I am now. Bored.
[ And with that came the first attempt to test the structure that contained him. Starr reared his foot back and gave a mighty kick at the plexiglass. Likely, it resulted in him breaking his foot rather than making any sort of dent. But the pain was only met with a furrow of his brow. ]
There. Now I can sue.
[ Although as soon as he left the power nullified containment, any injuries would swiftly heal. ]
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)
(no subject)