Mask or Menace | MODERATORS (
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!

going with western order since that's dw standard
[Ryuko's experiences at Honno City definitely aren't universal, but it's hard to shake her instincts after months of dealing with Mataro's antics. Just because none of these kids have tried to swipe her wallet yet doesn't mean she shouldn't keep an eye out.
She raises a single eyebrow at the odd moniker before answering with,] Ryuko Matoi. And you?
👌
Hizashi Yamada, good to meet you yo! [he fires of a couple of fingerguns to punctuate his enthusiasm.] Guess this all means I owe you one huh?
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Yeah, I guess. [Ryuko's second eyebrow joins her first sitting high on her forehead.] Maybe you could calm their parents down for me? [She jabs her thumb at the growing sea of angry guardians marching towards Ryuko, clad in a uniform scowl.]
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So, he claps a hand on her shoulder, friendly like]
I'll HELP you diffuse the situation, Matoi. Deal?
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Fine. Just gonna warn you that I have zero experience dealing with the PTA brigade, though.
What's our angle of attack?
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[He reaches out and pats her on her upper back, right at her shoulderblades.] Try and relax a little and follow my lead, you dig?
[he turns his attention to the parents, and lifts a hand to wave.] Heeeeeeeeey there moms and dads! Looks like we've had a bit of a misunderstanding, but I've gotta say you've got some real bright kids out here working their businesses! They've gotta get all their entrepreneurial skills from you lot!
[He elbows Ryuko] Yeah? Hard to keep a hold of our money when the kids are so convincing!
[[ooc: late, we can keep this if you wind up apping in, or if you'd rather we can drop the thread!]]
well i got in so let's keep going!
[Ryuko tries to relax.
Her relaxing looks like a delinquent slouching to try and avoid attention from the cops.
This might be the most challenging mission of Hizashi's hero career.
At his cue, Ryuko startles, then coughs to clear her throat. Right. Being civil. No swearing in front of this kids. This was totally doable.]
Yeah, the l'il b- the li'l guys sure are persistent! Ha ha. Ha...
[Or not.]
Congratulations!
Funny how parents can sometimes understand that teenagers can be prickly little bastards.]
Hahaha, persistent is one word! Tenacious, unrelenting and determined! But we really ought to take our leave, you dig? We've got some business to attend to in Heropa, and if we don't get going we're totally going to be late!
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Yeah, uh, he's gotta take me to... school registration! Because he's my dad.
[Not that dumb!]
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Step dad! [He's steering her away from the startled looking parents at this point, shooting a glance over his shoulder.] We're totally going to be late, thanks for being responsible parents!!!
[Ryuko I hope you're good at retreating, because that's exactly what they need to be doing right now, while the getting's good.]
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As soon as they're a safe distance away, Ryuko bangs her head against a nearby wall and groans.]
I panicked, okay?
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Hey, don't sweat it little listener, It was a pretty intimidating situation to be in! You were in the hot seat.
[He claps a hand down on her shoulder in a friendly way.] Messy or not, guess I kind of owe you one. One favor, from me to you!
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Well as luck would have it, I might be your guy! I'm pretty used to teaching teenagers. [he offers a grin, holding a hand out for her to shake.]
Pro Hero Present Mic, Nice to meet you!
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This might be an issue.
Ryuko winces, as if she just got dragged in front of class to give a presentation before anyone else. (A look Hizashi should know well at this point.]
Thanks for the offer, but... [As Ryuko searches for a good excuse, she absentmindedly rubs her arm. The sleeve of her jacket rolls up to reveal a few letters: "VIGI-" before cutting off.]
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Hey, yo. No problem. Why don't we talk about this somewhere more private, little listener? Before we get someone overhearing.
[Vigilantism isn't a foreign concept, but Hizashi isn't about to clap cuffs on her and turn her in to the police either. She's a kid, and honestly considering the fact she's likely really far from home, is it even fair to label kids like this?]
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...
...one trustworthy adult in her entire life. And even then, Mrs. Mankanshoku lost a lot of her cred just through proximity to her husband. So forgive Ryuko if she's a bit leery, Hizashi.
But she'll give him one chance. One.]
Alright. Where do you have in mind?
i had thought i sent this but i was a liar sandwich
There's a cafe not far from here I wanted to try. It's got big windows. [Very public, but they can also have a PRIVATE conversation that's not in the middle of a neighborhood.]
I've got the cash, lunch is on me. What do you say?
Re: i had thought i sent this but i was a liar sandwich
You had me when you said lunch is on you.
[When they arrive at the cafe, Ryuko gravitates to a corner booth, and orders black coffee with a shot of espresso—that much Hizashi probably predicted—and a croissant... which she seems vaguely disappointed by when she sees it on her plate.
(Look, "croquette" and "croissant" totally sound similar, okay?)]
...I don't trust the government. [Ryuko says this surprisingly quietly, even considering the fact that she's supposed to be keeping this conversation on the down low. There's none of her usual bluster.] Giving powers to people then putting them on a leash for them to use, it-
It's a recipe for disaster. If somebody hasn't already figured out a way to abuse the system, they will soon, and I don't want to be one of the people who's easier for them to target.
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For now though, he listens to what she has to say. He can't disagree with her concerns, not really. Especially as an adult, he's perfectly aware that blind trust in any sort of institution is something that you have to be careful with. So, he's not really in the position to scold her or tell her she's wrong.]
And if you get caught or put in jail? What good are you going to be then, Ryuko? Assumin' you're gonna want to help if something big like that does go dow. I'm not going to tell you you're wrong, yo. But think about the road ahead.
[He keeps his tone hushed, frowning as he says this, brows knit together. Being under the government's thumb is a disadvantage in some ways, but in others, an advantage, at least the way he sees it.]
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[Aaaaand another piece of the puzzle clicks into place.]
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Well, it's your choice to make little listener. If you get yourself into a fix you can always call on me to come get you out. But keep what I said in mind, yeah?
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[Maybe.]
You seem like decent people, at least. Lot better than most adults I know.
[Other than Mrs. Mankanshoku. Bless her.]
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Not sure I like the sound of that. [in the context that he's better than MOST adults she knows. That implies a lot.] I'm here to listen if you've ever got a chip you need to brush off that shoulder of yours.
I can give you my number just in case you get into trouble. And if you seriously need heroics lessons, I'll consider it, as long as you can promise me you won't use what I teach you to break any super important laws.
considering you're canon familiar you can get the joke
LMAO FUCK