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neosapienooc2019-12-30 12:51 am
neosapienmods) wrote in neosapienooc2019-12-30 12:51 am
TEST DRIVE MEME #1
JANUARY TEST DRIVE
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.2: A MIND OF DARKNESS, A HEART OF LIGHT
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.
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.4: A NEW HOPE GLISTENS OFF THE STREETS
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.
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.5: WITHIN THE CHAOS, I KNOW I'M NOT ALONE
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.
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.
no subject
Ordis is nominally on party security, slowly wandering though the crowds to help keep an eye on things, although not visibly armed in any way.
Of course security should be a silent presence, cool and reassuring. But Ordis is a friendly sort, and every so often gets the feeling that some light discussion might help ease the sometimes tense atmosphere a little. Or maybe you look at him a little too long for one reason or another, which Ordis interprets as an opportunity to chitchat.
He sighs wistfully, the faintest electronic echo to his voicebox. "Isn't it lovely? Exciting, too, to see so many celebrities here. Oh, my word! Isn't that fellow from the Love, Simon remake? I must say, I thought he was fantastic in that film."
Is security robot(?) soliciting your opinion on celebrities? Well, it's at least staying out of the more tense meta discussions, that's for sure!
B. AS FEAR'S REPLICATING, YOUR WORDS RESONATING
Ordis looks up, and although his helmet doesn't show emotions, his worry is apparent from voice alone.
"Oh dear."
"Please, sir, madam, it would be best for you to vacate the premises temporarily. There may be disturbances in the area and Ordis would hate to see anyone get injured."
That's not a veiled threat or anything, despite the corporate security logo stamped into Ordis' glistening white plating. He sounds quite genuinely concerned, adding to his words a delicate little shoo-ing motion with his hands, a little incongruous relative to his six-foot polished robot chassis.
B
Her many red tails spiral behind her, a tell for anxiety. One large triangular ear is locked directly onto Ordis, while the other scans for threats or screams for help. She hasn't morphed in claws, not yet.
"So would I," she answers, honestly. "But I have a metahuman healing talent, and a job to do. Will that be a problem?"
no subject
The costume says it all really, but he's trying, here. He is 99.9% certain he would prefer to avoid conflict if at all possible, so avoiding thinking about the obvious conclusion to be drawn. "You can be assured that anyone in need of care will be given medical treatment. You assistance is not required at this time."
It's not really an assurance he's too certain about, at least if he's not there, but again, he's trying.
no subject
She's going to turn tails and head in. It's likely Ordis will feel obligated to try and stop her, but. She had to try the peaceful way.
"I'm doing nothing illegal. Don't get in my way, I won't get in yours."
no subject
It's not metas that he has a problem with, or the idea of her healing anyone that is hurt in possible protests arising (although surely taking them to hospital would be better?). But any kind of vigilante action is simply unacceptable, and if he could keep an eye on her, that would be fine, wouldn't it?
no subject
"I am aware of the danger. And where it comes from."
She thinks for a moment.
"Fine. Come with me if you have to. I promise if you see someone doing something illegal, it won't be me. But what will you do if it's the Zaibatsu caught in the act?"
no subject
Or if technically illegal, it could only be justifiable, for some reason or other. He loved everybody else working for the Zaibatsu. Surely nobody working there would do anything wrong.
It was really not something he should even think about. Another topic, perhaps, as he follows along beside her. "The colors of your outfit are very... unexpected. My sensors are - bleeding - pleased." His voice glitches midsentence, just a single stutter-y and distorted word interjected before continuing as if nothing had happened at all. "A personal selection?"
no subject
That glitch is... interesting... but she doesn't know what it means.
Discussing her sartorial choices are indeed a much safer topic. "I always preferred the pastel primaries," she confirms. "The subtractive primaries. As long as I was going to don a mask and bright colors, they would be those ones."
She looks at his chassis. It was clearly designed by someone with a sense of style. "I'm guessing that's not an off-the-rack model, either. Your choice, or a practical one?"
A
He jumps again when he realizes who addressed him: one of the faceless security androids patrolling the party. As the heir to a major food processing company under the Douman Zaibatsu, Huaisang has spent most of his life surrounded by security... but he's never known them to make idle conversation about teen romantic comedies, or really any sort of conversation at all. The strangeness of the situation brings a faint smile to his lips, and some of his tension dissipates. Gossip is familiar territory for Huaisang, unlike everything else about this party. "You know," he begins, snapping open a paper fan to hide the lower half of his face as he leans in for a conspiratorial whisper, "I heard he was dating his co-star! No wonder they had such good chemistry."
B
Jamie's been adjacent to this kind of intense police activity, but never really in the middle of it like this, and he's a little frightened. He looks around for a good escape route, but this way there's a bunch of angry-looking people, that way there's some cops and protestors bristling at each other, and everywhere else there's just people rushing to evacuate in thick, jostling mobs.
"Uh - what's the safest way out of here?" He glances from the mounting chaos around them up to Ordis, wide-eyed and a little panicky.