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etcelsior2019-07-25 03:27 pm
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DANCING WITH MY HAPPY FEET

T E S T D R I V E M E M E
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 ON THE TEST DRIVE MEME!01.The city of Heropa, Florida 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?
They are, however, in the middle of some awfully hot weather, so some good samaritans have gained the approval of the government to close off a few of the streets for some good old-fashioned fun. They've equipped everyone who steps in with water guns of varying quality, and there's also access to water balloons, a slip n' slide, and more! Why don't you grab an ice cream cone, watch the festivities, and cool off? But you'd better be careful - there's always a munchkin or two here to spray any unsuspecting onlookers they may find.
02. De Chima, Virginia, is a large city with a healthy economy, with large numbers of citizens waiting to be awed by 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!
On this lazy summer day, the biggest buzz comes from a group of teens and tweens who are all taking part in a massive scavenger hunt spread via social media! What are they gathering? You! ImPorts are likely to be targeted and asked to pose for pictures in which they demonstrate their powers, video clips in which they share fun facts and secrets about their home worlds, and much more! If you're not interested, you better hurry home -- they're persistent!
03. Maurtia Falls, Pennsylvania has had its ups and downs since imPorts started disappearing. The city's political core now gutted with its mayor and supreme ambassador exported out, the streets have returned to the hands of the local people -- and incidental, the local criminal element. 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.
As your character walks down the street, they may find themselves thrust within what appears to be an organized protest and a smaller counter-protest. There's shouting, there are chants. You pick up rhythmic beats of THE END IS NEAR, GET THEM OUT OF HERE clashing against the clumsier counter-chants of IMPORTS ARE PART OF US. You probably don't know why, but there are sects of people who believe your kind is bringing about the end of the universe. You'll probably learn why, in due time. But given the scorching tension of the situation you have found yourself in, it's probably a good idea NOT to use your powers.
But even keeping your powers on the down low, you're of keen eye, or at least today you are, as fate would have it. You see a boring looking man, perhaps in his mid-20s, with a cluster of boring looking companions (three or four at most) wearing backpacks as they all uniformly step back and don black masks. The protests are crossing the street ahead of First National Bank. These men beeline towards the bank.
They are going to rob it, and people are going to get hurt, you're sure of that. They're probably armed, given their backpacks. What do you do?
04. Nonah, North Carolina, is the liveliest of all cities; loud, busy and there's always some kind of energy in the air that gets everyone buzzing with excitement. You may find yourself in the midst of a few closed-off streets for some occasion or another - whether it be a food cart festival, no-car day, or something else! - and surrounded by the hum of people, the waft of food being served on the street, and plenty of attention
Today there's a big lemonade stand on one busy sidewalk, staffed by a group of industrious kids. Aww, isn't it sweet? Wait...is that a cookie stand a little ways down, also run by elementary-to-middle schoolers? Heck, the entire block is full of kid-run mini-businesses — a gathering of pint-sized entrepreneurs! And they have their eyes on you, hero, because as a celebrity imPort, your pockets are full of $$$, right?
05. Jeopardy, Nevada by all rights shouldn't exist. A glowing neon city smack in the middle of the desert, the only reason it's still here is that the central nuclear power plant has tapped half a mile down into a subterranean lake for its water supply. So though the desert around it may be barren, the occupants of this small city are happily self sufficient. Those weird figures you see out of the corner of your eyes? Don't worry too much. Probably just weird radiation after effects. Jeopardy has a lot of those.
What's that sound? Why, the Church of the Ancient Web Mistress's choir is putting on a performance! A sizable contingent of the congregation's musically-minded members has gathered downtown, attempting to forge a spiritual connection through the power of song. Sure, these hymns sound a little spooky to your ears, but the sincerity is what matters, right? And the churchgoers, who are also handing out lyric sheets to interested participants, are sincerely interested in getting some imPorts to join in as temporary members of the choir. Never hurts to get a little more press and tithes, right?
ikr i'm sorry I COULDN'T RESIST
And it's undeniably John Murphy, the living human cockroach. But he's also a tiny scrawny teenaged version of the one she knows. His face younger and clearer, not aged with everything they've been through. More like back when they first met. Back in those awful first days. (Bullets tearing through steel, ripping through her leg—)
Raven stares at him. ]
I'm from the Ark, you idiot. We just never met when we were both up there. I'm from Mecha Station.
[ She's still watching him carefully, but there's no flicker of recognition in his eyes. Fuck. ]
Do you really not recognise me?
omg idk how i fucked that up
I meant were you with us, when we got to the ground. I don't remember seeing your face. [ Murphy shakes his head. ] Are you going to tell me what the hell is going on here?
[ Whoever she is, she knows things. And has obviously been through a lot given that brace attached to her leg. He pays it little mind. ]
np :*
I wasn't with you guys on the dropship, but I came down to the ground later, on my own. I'm from later in your timeline, I guess, because this place doesn't like to do anything the simple way.
[ Raven notes when his gaze drifts to her brace and then away. Still no flicker of recognition. Just the usual automatic attention she's used to, and that any stranger has about her disability. A muscle in her jaw tightens. ]
I don't know for sure what's going on, but I know that we've both been taken from our universe and dropped here by the government. World-wise, this is an improvement on our own, if that's any consolation. Even if the people here are— hey, seriously, back off, give us some space— [ And she turns to shooing the byspanders and their cameras away, angrily, Raven all steely-eyed annoyance and chin raised. Between the two of them, they manage to shake off a few of the fans. ]
tyvm uwu
On your own? Why? [ Murphy's eyes rover around her face, wanting to pry thoughts out of her mind. Fortunately, for her, that is something this place didn't bestow upon him. ]
You do understand you're not making any god damn sense, right? [ He steps forward, slowly closing the gap between them. Murphy is close enough to take her by the elbow and ushers her to move. ] I need to get out of here before these assholes get violent.
no subject
[ Raven jolts slightly at the touch; she can't tell if she welcomes it or hates it, but starts walking by Murphy's side anyway, the pair of them ducking and weaving their way through the crowds to get to an emptier street. ]
And yeah, I know, it sounds completely insane. But I'll try to lay it out for you. Other universes exist, and the people here have the ability to pull others through them -- it was that big machine that you came through, when they welcomed you here. Time is a dimension, too, so we're not guaranteed to come through at the same time. Just think of it as really advanced technology.
[ They've seen wonders back in their world, after all, virtual realities and radiation-protective blood and consciousnesses transferred via chip... but no, of course, this younger Murphy hasn't experienced any of it yet. Which is really super unhelpful.
She's also completely dodged the question as to why she flung herself planetside. She'd prefer not to linger on it. ]
I knew you, back home.
hey! i turned in an app if you were wondering
The crowd thins out and soon it's just the two of them walking down the street. His attention ticks between the stores that they pass and Raven. Everything she is talking about goes clear over his head and the look on his face shows that Murphy is completely baffled.
Something occurs to him and abruptly he stops. ] So, wait. You had to have crashed on the ground after they hanged me. Right? That means I didn't die? [ And then his eyes fall back down to her brace. ] And I am assuming the landing was rough.
YESSS EXCELLENT im still testing out / mulling over raven but will defs throw my other char at you!
It was, but I pulled through because I'm awesome. And you didn't die, either. You live for years, actually. You're pretty goddamned good at it.
[ This is so, so weird. The complicated, tangled knot of Things She Thinks About John Murphy is hard to define, but six years went so far to repairing it. And now it's all... gone, wiped away, leaving her with that same little shithead who killed people, who tried to hang Bellamy, who shot her. But she knows there's someone better lurking underneath. Or will be, eventually.
The stranger from Mecha Station still hasn't introduced herself, and it's so bizarre that she even has to. That they don't already know each other with the intimacy of there only having been seven of them, goldfish in a tiny pond and climbing the walls and driving each other insane and coming through for each other and seeing him spiral down into depression and then come back. ]
I'm Raven. Raven Reyes.