NOVEMBER TEST DRIVE

[modormenace]

TEST DRIVE MEME
MENACE WITH YOUR MASKS

01. 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.

It's time for the annual sand castle building contest! Heropans have taken to the beaches to flex their creative talents. Though they're really stretching the concept of "castles" with some of these designs. There's also a beach bod contest. Participate and earn your season pass to free meals and coupons.

There's an extra way to win this year! If you post to the ImPort network and work in a little shout-out, they'll consider it free promotion and give you some merch to wear.

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. 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.

The holiday season is upon us! And oh, De Chima's holiday shopping is something to behold. Every new fangled gadget you can possibly imagine is on display. Rocket boots, jetpacks, fully articulated robotic tails - there's something for everybody! And you're welcome to take it for a test drive. Just don't try to leave the shopping center, or you'll find it stops working.

The custom boutiques are eager to pull in any ImPorts with a unique look to model their tech. And anyone who looks strong may find themselves guilted into running security. You're assured that there is no chance of anything happening!

And yet, Frostmaker Industries is showing off its new driveway cleaner. A highly unstable invention that malfunctions midway through the demonstration. Now, every snowflake has sentience and is connected in a hivemind - uh oh, better brace yourself to fight snowzilla.

03. MAURTIA FALLS, PENNSYLVANIA has carried a reputation for ups and downs ever since imPorts began appearing. 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...

Even the dour people of Maurtia Falls seem to be brightening up as the year draws to a close and celebrations fill its streets. While they still aren't keen on ImPorts, they are excited about the leaves changing color. They have their own city festival to celebrate it. Leaves are a really big deal.

People wear bright outfits mirrored after fall and early winter. They share festive drinks and free food is given out on the streets. It seems like even crime is taking a break today. Maybe this is a good opportunity to do some good? Or perhaps the peace and quiet is just what you need to kickstart your own criminal empire.

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.

This year is no different. The mall is jam-packed with people rushing to do last minute shopping. Now the best deals are on as merchants try to offload their overstock, but the usual energy of the city is in overdrive. Perhaps that's why it's no surprise when someone cuts the lights to the mall, rappels down from the skylights, and gleefully informs you that you're all hostages in the greatest heist of all time.

(Bwitter is blowing up with #bestheist there is a chance that this is a Bluetube prank gone too far.)

This is your big chance, though. Do you play hero? Or do you go along and help these wannabes live out their tropey criminal dreams?

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.

There's even more neon around than usual as the festivities ramp up. According to tradition, their goddess lays down to sleep during the coldest months of the year. And so, tradition demands that they party long and hard to give her sweet dreams. There are a number of bizarre celebrations happening. A lifesize game of pin the fly on the web, forture tellers at every corner eager to tell you what the Ancient Web Mistress dreams for you, and celebratory bug flavored snacks. The dress code appears to be anything goes so long as its silk, and if you don't have any, don't worry, they can hook you up.

At midnight they set off an array of fireworks. They say if you hold hands with someone as the moon sets, your destines will be entwined forever... and since your hands are getting a little sticky from all the webbing around, you may find yourself accidentally attached to a stranger.

06. The HEROIC HALL is a state of the art combat dome in De Chima. Engineered by the best and brightest on the planet, its futuristic holograms are as real as they come. There are safety features in place to keep things from getting out of hand, and they usually work. Usually. But any scenario you could possibly dream of is at your disposal to use. There are a number of pre-programmed options for you to choose from, ranging from the mundane like saving a cat from a tree, to the extreme such as stopping the apocalypse. There are even convenient scripts so you don't have to come up with your own zingers, and every session is recorded so you can watch your own greatness!

Uncertain? Well, the hot ticket this month is SCENARIO 34. Have you ever wanted to fight a Yeti? Here’s your chance! Scenario 34 features the greatest hits. A hulking yeti rampaging through town, a (poorly programmed) love interest relying on you to save them, and a (equally poorly programmed) romantic rival who is trying to steal your Yeti research! Of course can’t do this on your own, this script was written for two! Find your new teammate and stop the menace!

Once it’s over, don’t be surprised if you’re approached by the eagle-eyed talent scouts that refuse to take not interested as an answer.

Comments

[qinghe_oriole]

"Sometimes you can miss what is before your own eyes," Nie Huaisang says. "He is very devoted to you. I know you have known that for a while." Half the cultivation world had stood on the steps of the Jinlintai and watched Hanguang-Jun declare his devotion for Wei Ying. "What did you tell him?"

[chenqing_player]

That should have been a clue..but maybe he just hadn't wanted to see it. Afraid to commit to anything given the burden that being around him seemed to be to everyone.

"Well..remember it was the me of that place..which it's like I'm seeing this all play out through his eyes after it is all over. He says things that I'd hope I never would. But basically I agree to being with him for one night and then after that he has to let me go."

That other him pushed everyone away in an attempt to protect them. But he still doesn't know what he was protecting them from. He wonders if he will ever get the full knowledge of that world.

"And so..we went back to his room and we..they..had their one night."

[qinghe_oriole]

"Oh no," he says softly. "One night only? And he agreed to let you go?"

[chenqing_player]

"That was the promise. Which..I died not long after that in a battle that I never quite got all the memories of. So even if he didn't agree to is there wasn't much choice in the matter."

He sighs and lifts up that third glass to his lips but instead of drinking he sets it back down. "He remembers everything since he was actually there in that moment. And yet when we got back here he never said a word about it. What if I had never had those dreams?"

[qinghe_oriole]

"Are you angry that he kept it from you?" Nie Huaisang asked.

[chenqing_player]

"I don't think angry is the right word. I guess I just wish he would have told me like he had told that...other me. Why did that one get to find out from him, while i had to find out from some strange dream that I wasn't even sure was real?"

He sighs..even after everything it is still easy for him to just talk to Huaisang. Perhaps in this place he has been able to forgive a little. Considering they are all stuck in an unfortunate circumstance.

"But at least now I know the truth and after some prodding he told me here as well. But I don't want things to go the same way they did in that other place." he doesn't want to jump into bed and then find himself dead the next day.

[qinghe_oriole]

Nie Huaisang rested his elbow on the table and his chin on his hand. "What do you want?"

[chenqing_player]

He swirls the wine around in his glass, watching it as he thinks about his answer. Then turns his face with a small smirk on his lips at he looks at his old friend. "To be wined and dined and romanced of course." There is a playful lift to his voice to say that he is slightly teasing in what he says. Perhaps he does want Lan Wangji to court him properly and let him experience what it is liked to enjoy every moment of this. Not that there is anything wrong with the hot and steamy unexpected tumble in bed.

But then he shrugs and lifts that glass to his lips, "I just want to know I am going to live long enough to enjoy it." And down goes glass number three.

[qinghe_oriole]

It's hard to see the icy Lan Wangji as a romantic, but Nie Husaisang knows quite well that people have hidden layers. "No one's managed to keep you down yet," he says lightly, and finishes off his glass of wine.

[chenqing_player]

"I do seem to keep springing back. I wonder how many times I actually have to die before it sticks." He really doesn't want to find that out. He's died at least twice at this point and that is way more then anyone should have to experience.

He isn't going to describe it but Lan Wangji's romantic side does seem to exist. It's a little more subtle but that is to be expected.

[qinghe_oriole]

"I don't think you should test that," Nie Huaisang says. "I don't think Lan Wangji would like that very much. Besides," he wrinkles his nose, "it would probably hurt."

[chenqing_player]

"Yeah I don't think he's like me finding out. As someone who has experienced death I can tell you that it does and I don't recommend it."

He also doesn't recommend transferring your golden core, falling into the Burial Mounds or getting stabbed in the stomach by a family member. He should really be immune to pain by now.

[qinghe_oriole]

Nie Huaisang tops off both of their glasses and lifts his in a toast. "To long lives full of romance," he says.

[chenqing_player]

He laughs and holds up the glass, "To all of that." Romantic life was definitely simpler in those novels they used to read as teenagers. He'll slowly have to figure out out how it actually works for his life.