TEST DRIVE MEME #1

[neosapienmods]

JANUARY TEST DRIVE

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1: SPRAWLING WASTELAND, GLOWING IN THE DARK

No sunlight reaches the Underground, but there is rain: grey, oily droplets that slowly trickle down from the city above, seeping through layers of concrete until they drip from broken light fixtures onto the aptly named black markets below. The glow of neon signs keeps the shadows at bay, just barely. What was once a system of utility tunnels and basement bunkers is now a warren of tiny shops offering reprogrammed ID chips and back-alley cybernetic upgrades, where hitmen and slave traders operate with lawless impunity. But someone is always watching... the eyes of Yakashbah, graffitied in bioluminescent paint, stare unblinking from the walls.

People come to this place for only two reasons: they're either looking for something, or they're trying not to be found. Whatever your reason, the Underground welcomes you.

2: A MIND OF DARKNESS, A HEART OF LIGHT

Outside of manicured parks and glass-enclosed vertical farms, green space is rare in New Gate City, so the elites flaunt their wealth in private rooftop gardens. Fragrant, exotic flowers bloom amidst strings of lanterns, and real grass - an extravagant luxury - carpets the ground beneath partygoers' feet as they sip champagne and admire the dark cityscape below. Tonight, one of the Douman Zaibatsu's myriad charity organizations hosts its annual fundraising gala... but this year, the special guests attract even more attention than the celebrities and fashionistas in attendance. Representatives from the Neo Sapien Organization have been invited to speak on the topic of Human/Meta-human relations, and to raise money on behalf of job placement programs for impoverished Metas in the Last Ward. Of course, most within the Douman Zaibatsu would prefer that these "job placement programs" send Metas to the farms far outside New Gate City (or better yet, to the lunar strip mines), but at least for tonight, members of both factions hide behind false smiles and false words.

3: AS FEAR'S REPLICATING, YOUR WORDS RESONATING

Someone gasps, and everyone looks up. Arcadia's central shopping district goes silent, save for the distant sound of pop tunes played over tinny speakers, as a massive black banner unfurls down the side of a building. A crudely drawn eye fills the banner, bisected by a line of white paint... the unofficial symbol of the Meta rights movement. People start to whisper, and somewhere, there's a cheer. Police drones buzz through the air above.

Meta rights protests aren't uncommon in this part of New Gate City, even though they're soon dispersed by local security forces. This banner, too, will be quickly taken down and destroyed, but the photos and videos of the event will be harder to suppress. Already, the bystanders are murmuring to each other, some in support and some in fear. Others keep their heads down, wary of expressing their true feelings about the rising numbers of Meta-humans. And as security forces move to block off the area, others are frantically trying to disappear.

4: A NEW HOPE GLISTENS OFF THE STREETS

The blocks surrounding the Neo Sapien Organization's headquarters in the Middle Ward are like an oasis at the center of an otherwise inhospitable city. Old buildings have been renovated into bright and cheerful apartments that accommodate a variety of Meta-human physiologies, Meta schools and Meta-owned businesses are flourishing, and Meta-friendly shops and cafes line the streets.

The best coffee in the Middle Ward can be found at The Mean Bean, just across from the NSO building, where the shop's fire-breathing Meta owner personally roasts every batch. NSO employees and and other patrons of the popular cafe congregate to discuss local news and gossip: a proposed Meta registration and identification law, rumors of vigilante gangs near the border with the Last Ward, and rivalries between NSO university sports teams. Arguments occasionally grow heated (especially when it comes to sports), but overall the atmosphere is friendly and congenial.

5: WITHIN THE CHAOS, I KNOW I'M NOT ALONE

The Last Ward's electrical grid is reliably unreliable, but blackouts on this scale are rare. Half the ward has been dark for the past three days, save for a few emergency generators and dwindling battery backups. As winter winds batter old, drafty concrete apartment blocks, the residents grow restless and frustrated. Police have already put down several riots, but there's no stopping the spike in looting and other petty crimes.

In the Parish, many people have opted to barricade themselves inside their homes until the blackout ends, but others are taking advantage of the chaos. Most, though, have chosen to band together to protect each other throughout the long nights. The people of the Parish may not have much, but at least they have a sense of community.

Comments

[failinglight]

[Barriss is a little bit tipsy, but it's something she has allowed, not purging the alcohol from her system with her powers. She wants...no...needs it, in a way, especially if she's going to be faced with Yang looking like that. Still somewhat awkward, the public nature of all this fraying her senses a little, she keeps up her gentle smile without trouble though.]

So it would seem. This is a rare enough opportunity, certainly. Strange, too, given the tensions.

[burndownforwhat]

Yeah... [ at the word "tension", Yang gives a pointed sidelong glance at one individual with a microphone. her mouth forms a thin line. ] Had a guy ask me what I thought of registration laws.

[ she takes a sip of her drink, then smirks. ] Don't, ah, think he liked the look I gave him.

[failinglight]

I have had the same. Though, I don't think they much cared about my opinion.

[She reaches up, running a finger across the speckles marking her cheek. And calling attention to her skin, of course.]

I can't exactly hide, and my opinion should be obvious.

So why bother asking at all, if they know what we think? We all know they don't want the change, so what's the point of this charade?

[burndownforwhat]

Mm, hypocrisy. Deflecting criticism. I dunno. I can't get in the heads of people richer now than I'll ever be in my whole life, who can't even be honest about it. [ Yang's gaze had followed the gesture and lingered there. ]

And besides that point - People do all kinds of things to their body after the fact, right? Tattoos. Plastic surgery. Skin grafts, cybernetics. Why should just being who we are brand us as freaks?

[ their words, not hers, spoken with a sneer that she swiftly replaces with a smile. Yang lifts her glass. ] A toast to being beautiful and original.

[failinglight]

[Well, Barriss's cheeks would color a little, if...they held color the same way. They do not, thankfully, so she manages to merely look awkward at the tale end of that at least.]

To being as mother nature intended.

[She can drink to that, and so...does.]

Why'd you come to this, anyway, Yang? Just because the NSO sent you an invite?

[burndownforwhat]

[ a drink it is, then! Yang takes her eyes off of what she more or less considers to be Barriss's really fancy freckles as she downs the rest of her glass.

that follow-up doesn't have the same kind of enthusiasm behind it. ] I, uh. You know. Always hoping someone clues in to what it's like living on the - the other side, I guess.

[ it's not the whole story. Yang rolls the stem of the empty glass back and forth between her fingers with the faint scraping of metal. a gentle sort of ring that draws her eyes downward. ] Plus I heard there'd be cameras. Figure... someone out there might see me.

[ Yang's not all that shy when it comes to talking about her mom. singular mom. she's always far more reticent to discuss the woman who wasn't even around long enough to form a memory of; someone she only knows through anecdotes and pictures. ]

[failinglight]

I...see.

[Barriss smiles sadly, offering a sympathetic hand, reaching out to touch Yang's biological arm gingerly.]

I know that kind of thing can be hard.

[She has some inkling at least, and, well, she's in a similar position having been taken into the Order early in her life. Her "mother" was her Master, and she'd disappeared alongside the rest of the Jedi some time ago.]

...But, perhaps it's best to not dwell. And perhaps be seen? We could always make use of the dance floor. I'm certain you'd draw a camera.

[burndownforwhat]

Yeah, that's a good point. [ the night represents a lot of converging concepts Yang prefers to not spend too much time thinking on, but if she had even just a chance at being recognized, then having the upper class look down their noses at her and probe her mind with questions they don't like the answers to will have been worth it.

she'll just have to get all this restless energy and pent up distaste for the atmosphere out of her system later. work tomorrow better run her ragged is all she's saying.

Yang smiles at the reassuring touch, but the expression melts into one of confusion as she parses the full suggestion. ]

Oh, uh... [ she runs her other fingers up into her hair and chuckles awkwardly. ] I don't mind, if you want to dance, but I'm warning you this kind of music isn't really my speed. [ quite literally, she prefers things with a higher bpm, lower lighting, and the kind of close quarters moves you don't get away with in a ball room. the idea of clubbing is to lose oneself in the crowd of others aiming to do the same. (unless they're creeps, then Yang introduces the dance floor to their faces.) ]

[failinglight]

It's fine.

[Barriss has no trouble with a statement like that. she prefers a less party atmosphere and this works well enough for her purposes right now. She'd like to get into the middle of the room, to surreptitiously be able to sweep the room for hostility with her powers, and also it would be a good way to relax Yang.]

I know how to dance this way. Don't worry.

[The Jedi, or...former Jedi...offers her hand.]

It was important to know, in the Order. We...had to socialize sometimes.

[burndownforwhat]

Alright, then. [ Yang sets her empty glass aside and takes that hand before moving in the direction of the designated dance area. ] You lead, and I'll try not to embarrass you too much.

[ a chuckle. it'll probably be passable at best. Yang is at least familiar with the general concept of what it means to "lead" in dances like this. even if she doesn't know all the steps, so long as Barriss doesn't go for anything complex things ought to work out.

worst case scenario, at least any bruised toes won't stay that way for long...? ]

[failinglight]

It will be fine.

[Barriss, quiet and odd as she could be, knew what she was about. She stepped into the motions very easily, taking the taller woman's unfamiliarity into account when she began to move in time with the music.]

Imagine you are standing in a 3 by 3 box, and you simply have to stay within the box to win a prize. Move clockwise, and don't worry about looking at my feet if you feel lost. It's fine.

[Notably she doesn't get too close, not wanting to crowd Yang.]

Once you've warmed up, we can try some more complicated steps.

[burndownforwhat]

Box. Clockwise. Got it. [ Yang is good at listening to directions. she's got a pretty good feel for her own personal space, too, but being in an unfamiliar environment, undertaking a new set of moves, while wearing clothes she isn't fully comfortable in all adds up to make the execution of those instructions stilted and strange. no doubt it's going to be noticeable. ]

Sorry... [ that's as much an apology as the look on her face as she smiles over at Barriss. she does indeed peek down a few times. likewise, glancing around them, with a turn of her head, to make sure she isn't going to take a step and collide with any other dancers. luckily, the far more experienced crowd is giving them space, having sniffed out the total novice that dared enter their midst. ]

You know, if this was a squaredance, they wouldn't be staring at me like that. [ there's a couple of beats. ] I'm joking. I haven't done that since I was like 12.

[failinglight]

You're doing fine.

[She is. Everything is fine. It helps that Barriss's powers let her know what steps to avoid, preventing some bruised toes. Helpful, that.]

Just relax, roll with it. Forget there are other people, and focus on me, Yang.

[Not that there's much to focus on, Barriss is tiny.]

[burndownforwhat]

Alright. I can do that. [ it's good that Yang didn't even try to lead. she does her best to relax, and put her attention squarely on Barriss. in close quarters like this that's very easy to do. ]

This is going better than I thought. ...That's your doing, isn't it?