Mask or Menace | MODERATORS (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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etcelsior2020-04-24 06:52 pm
maskormods) wrote in etcelsior2020-04-24 06:52 pm
Entry tags:
WHO WAS THAT MASKED MAN
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 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.
Unfortunately, tragedy has struck today. It seems like the entire Heropa PD is parked out of a local, popular grocery chain. A huge crowd is amassed in the parking lot despite the best efforts of officers to get them to leave. They whisper about excitement and shame, and you don't have to ask if you just listen in a bit...
"What do you think he'll do to the employees? He sounded so serious..." "He really wants that pussy, huh?" "If I left my man for cheating on me, I'd take the damn cat, too!" "How does he think taking her and her coworkers hostage is gonna make her change her mind about him being a bad boyfriend?" "My wife is pregnant, please - if I don't get her favorite deli sub I might as well not go home!"
Domestic disputes! Tragic. The police aren't too sure how to handle this hostage situation, claiming the man only has a box cutter and isn't actually waving it around at the moment, but...are you an imPort? They'd really appreciate the help, okay. Get in there and counsel the unhappy couple. Or not!
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! Synthetic wonder! Whatever you might be, those words have meaning here. 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.
Today in De Chima, there's the unveiling of a brand new invention in the convention centre park! With a simple scan, it will print out your Closest Love Match of the other individuals present, along with your percentage of compatibility and a free coupon to get lunch with your new date if you match 90% or higher!
A little odd that it seems that nearly every couple has 90% or higher, isn't it? What's the probability that the scanner is broken?
03. Maurtia Falls, Pennsylvania has carried a reputation for ups and downs ever since imPorts began reappearing again, just those few years prior. Several imPort heroes have put focused efforts into cleaning up the streets of this somewhat infamous city, while a handful of others had 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. Everything from the classic bank heist to brutal bloodbaths can happen around the corner. You have to keep your eyes open and your mind sharp when you live in Maurtia Falls, and hostility against imPorts can spike. The emergence of locals with superpowers is hardly helping...
Despite the lack of gratitude that's in it for you, you may want to step in once you see a very, very sad supervillain wandering Maurtia Falls' streets. Dressed in a cape that appears to be a large swath of fabric purchased from a nearby sewing store, galaxy-themed leggings and no shirt is a man who runs right into your vicinity before striking a pose and yelling, "Everyone, stop before me and my wrath! I am Mister Mars, and provided you give me what I ask for, nobody needs to get hurt!"
At which point Mister Mars snatches an old woman's purse, loudly laughs in her face, and begins to float upwards. By the time he reaches the height of the tallest building in the area, he's beginning to look slightly panicked as he fails to really be able to move anywhere but up. Meanwhile, the old woman has begun shaking her cane at him and screaming quite an assortment of alarming expletives.
Maybe you should help one or the other out? If not, just lean back and enjoy the show.
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.
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.
Despite the weird constant hum and the creepy cultish bingo, Jeopardy is usually a pretty calm place. A safe place. But not today. Today, someone has released a couple hundred tiny praying-mantis-like robots into the city, and the place is in chaos. Shops are closed up early because though these little destructive creatures don't have bullets, they do have some weird arm appendages that like to just crunch everything in existence. Like a locus swarm of cockatoos, anything made of wood or plastic is being crunched up and left for scrap. But at less than six inches high apiece, rounding them up is proving extremely difficult. Luckily, the mayor in her wisdom is giving out titanium nets to any imPort who wants to help round up the trouble makers. And, in the spirit of the city, she's offering the imPort that catches the most robots a free meal for two in the swanky Radiation Galley - Jeopardy's top tier, five star restaurant.
Get catchin', imPorts!
no subject
[What did Reno say Cloud did now? Delivery work? He couldn't remember what it was exactly. He took a step closer to Cloud, eying him closer. Definitely younger.
Interesting.]
The last time I saw you, you were different. Older. How is this possible?
no subject
Saw me where? [ but that's not the mindboggling part. he's trying to keep the hard edge to his voice but...
did rufus lose his mind? is that the sabbatical the news kept talking about? ] Older how?
no subject
You're similar to the Cloud I met on the Shinra building a few years ago.
[Yes that sounded insane to him as well. Everything still felt surreal, perhaps he really was losing his mind.]
Strange that we're not from the same points in history.
no subject
[ ... did they meet in the building when he was still with the company? he tries to think back, but like any other time he has, he... immediately stops. some part of him just cuts that off immediately, refusing to let that thought go any further.
so.
different points in history. they... are in another world, so anything is technically possible, right? a lot plays across his face as he tries to process this. ]
Do you need to sit down?
no subject
There is a lot that you missed then. [There is a moment of consideration, his lips still in a thin line.]
If you have any questions about the future, I will do my best to answer them.
[He could at least offer Cloud that much for defeating Kadaj and the other remnants. The last of Jenova and Sephiroth was hopefully gone for good now. And it would be a peace offering he was willing to offer here.]
no subject
he follows, not entirely sure why - this could be a trap. but rufus has been nothing but cordial and - dare he say - even a little friendly. so once he's seated, cloud just crosses his arms. ]
Your old man's company just killed a bunch of its own citizens to squash a few bugs. Not sure I'm interested to hear what else they've got in store.
[ unless he can change it. ]
no subject
[That much was true at least. He knew he had a lot to atone for but he knew that it would take more than donating to both the construction of Edge and to the World Regenesis Organization. He had every intention that his new empire would take a different shape to what it was before.]
There is nothing that can be done about it here. However, I have a proposal for you that would benefit us both.
no subject
... what. A new, gentler Shinra Power Company?
no subject
[Focus here, Cloud. Rufus expected that disbelief and distrust even if Cloud was from his point in time. But he pressed on, knowing that this was necessary.]
I'm not sure how much you realize it yet but we have a common enemy who could end up here. If we're here, if you're from a different period of time, that opens up the chance for others from our world to end up joining us.
no subject
the truth is like a splash of icewater. he was right and sephiroth is still out there. feeling like he's being watched, those glimpses of silver hair and mad green eyes out of the corner of his vision. ]
Tell me everything. [ it's demanding. there's maybe an undercurrent of panic, or raw anger. hard to tell. ]
no subject
Even now, he almost half expected Kadaj to show up once more. But he refused to give in to that fear. No matter how many times Jenova or Sephiroth came back, no matter what form, he would do everything he could to defeat them.
That meant making sure Cloud was prepared.]
Even after you managed to defeat him after the destruction of Sector 7 he was able to return- at least, his remains did. Jenova was able to infect the bodies of many people, rot them from the inside out.
I don't know what Jenova, Sephiroth, or his remanents would be able to accomplish here but I know we should be prepared for the worst.
no subject
it's a bolt of pain straight through his skull, hands curling to fists at his side before lifting to his aching skull. he can hear sephiroth's voice, terrible and proud of all the destruction he'd wrought in that name. ]
He survived Nibelheim? With... that thing?
[ and there's more to come. and more after that. ]
no subject
[He wasn't sure if the Lifestream was present here or if this planet even had one. He wasn't going to count on it. That meant that it was up to them if Jenova in any form somehow arrived here.]
The remains of Jenova, the last of Sephiroth have been cleansed at my point in time. But I don't have to tell you that there is always the potential of a return.
I'm not asking that you trust me but I'm suggesting that we at least work together to make sure they cannot gain a foothold here.
no subject
( and in ways he doesn't even know )
but even they hadn't accounted for sephiroth. ]
Fine.
[ and then, almost reflexively reflexively. ]
But if you want my services or my protection, it's going to cost you.
no subject
Rufus couldn't help but laugh at Cloud's statement, amused by the whole situation that they found themselves at the moment.]
Naturally. I appreciate the offer. If I have need of your services I'll make sure to compensate you fairly.
no subject
but can he... really kill sephiroth? five years ago he sure as hell tried, but - he can't remember how that one ended. there's no way they were on equal footing. no way he won when those swords crossed. his brows draw together, confusion settling across his face, confusion that starts to shift towards pain as he tries to push deeper.
it's not worth it, something says. his fingertips come up to his temple.
when he stops trying to dig, it stops. he drops his hand, deciding it isn't important. it's been... a couple've minutes since he last said anything, but he doesn't seem to have noticed. ]
I still have questions.
no subject
[Rufus won't promise him the full truth. He was sure Cloud wouldn't just accept or trust anything that he had to say but he could still explain some things.
He was silent as he watched Cloud carefully. This Cloud was different- he would be more difficult to work with. Not that working with Cloud was easy, to begin with. It was necessary, that's what Rufus told himself and not for the first time.]
If there is anything I can answer, I will.
no subject
... how much of his lifespan had he given up when he'd signed on to be a solider? ]
What happened that night in Nibelheim exactly?
no subject
[Which wasn't entirely a lie. The record of the incident at Nibelheim had been sealed even for the Vice President. He only knew a few of the details and even then, he was going to be careful about what he was going to reveal to Cloud right now.]
From what I recall, Sephiroth was thrown into the Mako pit in the reactor but somehow survived or came back from the Lifestream later. He was officially declared missing in action. Professor Hojo was involved in the aftermath but I'm not aware of the full details of that.
The town has been rebuilt now and the records are still sealed.