redmarsshit | test drive meme: february 2020

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test drive meme: february 2020

Redshift: Welcome to the v͖͕̺̲̘̱̜͎o̴̦̣̠̦̘̹͞i̯̖d̛̪̬͈̱̦̝͍̕.

▶ Click here to read what characters will experience when arriving in Anchor.

▶ All TDM threads can be considered game canon, and current players are welcome to either top-level on the TDM so prospective players can tag them, or use the prompts for logs or network posts on the communities. All threads on the TDM can be used for Activity Check.

a. a more colloquial situation with a few robo-friends.

Something odd has happened overnight. A plant stalk, festooned with flowers and crowned with an enormous bud the size of a minivan, has grown up out of the center of the park and almost to the top of the dome. And down below, at its base and in the field around it, there's a whole lot of commotion.

The robots are at it again, and by at it again, we mean they're gathering in the park and adorning tables with... robo-treats. There are cups of lubricant, motor oil, a "massage" table for repairs. The terrible robo band has gathered again, and they seem to have been practicing, because they're rolling out some good tunes, some for waltzes and some fast-paced jams that are more along the "throw yourself around and pretend it's a dance" line.

The robots, in fact, are dancing. Sometimes in pairs, sometimes in trios, but they're trading partners and showing off their moves in what appears to be a bot-run robo-celebration.

Of course, Anchorites aren't excluded. Though it might be a Bring Your Own Food kind of event, the bots have left a table out for people to do just that. There's even water and a ton of orange juice available courtesy of the bar bot, who seems to be enjoying a day off at the repair table. Maybe it'll be good for him.

And if you seem to want to dance but can't find yourself a partner, a bot is likely to volunteer with a sympathetic, "Ah, meatsack, you cannot find a corresponding fleshbag. Allow me to partner with you."

b. weeds & flowers.

There are also cushions scattered around in loose circles, each one centered around a hookah. An inhale from some will make dancing look fun. From another, and affectionate kisses might be in your future. Some are packed with herbs to instill calm. Take a deep enough inhale and you might find yourself settling in for a nap on those cushions, looking up at the flower-covered stalk of the plant with its huge leaves. It's shedding petals gently and almost constantly, turning the clearing around it into a delicate flurry of shades from deepest blue to bright orange.

There are flowers almost everywhere, in fact, in bouquets, yes, but also in little pots meant for those who want to spruce up their personal space with something bright and beautiful. The petals come in every imaginable pattern and shade, from delicate white-edged purple flowers that look like roses to clusters of tie-dye daisies. Go one, take one - they all smell lovely, and are hardy enough to survive the brownest thumb.

c. the city and the beanstalk.

For those uninterested in the party, there is another option: scaling the monstrously huge plant that sprang up like Jack's beanstalk overnight. It's possible to climb out on the enormous leaves where they protrude from the stalk, if you just feel like going up high to take a nap away from the noise. Of course, the more adventurous or curious might want to take the opportunity to get a closer look at the dome that protects and powers the city.

A better look at the dome, and a better look at what's outside on the horizon. There are normal outcroppings of rocks, the remains of the ship that crashed and threw Santa through the windshield, the slowly growing martian strip mall, and some bits of things left behind by the red shifts here and there. A part of a car. An old transistor radio. A pulsing green gooey thing that you might want to stay away from - even odds on whether it's acidic or poisonous or both.

Look farther, though, and there's a vast smudge on the horizon. Using telescopes, binoculars, or special abilities will give you a better look at what it is.

A city, seemingly dead, seemingly empty, stretching almost from horizon to horizon. It's too far to make it on foot, and if you took one of the vehicles out of the garage it would get you there--but not all the way back. Of course, you can try to get there anyway, but a sandstorm is bound to whip up somewhere between here and there, a precursor to a proper hallucinatory red shift. Wouldn’t want to be caught out in that, would you?

d. the network.

Need to get hold of someone, call for help, ask the city at large a question? Need to ask a friend to back you up to take out the toothy voids? Maybe you need to hold your sat phone up to whatever crazy thing you're seeing and send out a recording to double-check if your eyes are deceiving you and what you're looking at is real?

Whatever the reason, the network is going strong, so feel free to include a post to it in your top-levels.

Navigation.

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i. flower crowns
She might have tried every single hookah pipe there is.

Granted it takes a lot for her to feel the effect of anything for a long while. Between a life of impossible horrifying drugs that let her rip apart reality with her mind, to her increased metabolism and muscle density, she'd have to do a hell of a lot more to really mess her up.

But what it does is make her very content, gathering up petals and flowers and beginning to weave together flower crowns. That she makes them and dresses in them. It's not quite as good as living like a feral animal in the forest, but it was probably more palatable.

"Come here," she croons soft when she finds company. Her voice is soothingly sweet. "I have something for you."

She holds the petals like jewels, as they fall around them, catching around her horns and hair and fur. Maybe in another life, she could have been this peaceful always, but she is now, and how grand that is.

ii. do robots do the electric waltz?
Angel dances neither well or with much skill.

But she is deeply enthusiastic to make up for it. Doesn't particularly need anyone as an excuse, spinning about in circles with her arms out. Her hooves clipping - more like the stories of forest satyrs and nymphs than she'd think she was than what a Minotaur was strictly meant to be - as she went about. Half mad from the pleasant feeling smoke.

Just as quick to take someone's hand, no more bothered by the robots - of course they wanted to dance, so happy that they got to, as Cl4p-TP had always wanted. Free to enjoy themselves and be liked. Spinning about madly free, hand in hand with whoever joined her.

That stay with her long enough for it, she doesn't think very much when she kisses her partner. Not deeply or needily. But a soft peck on the mouth, where her lips are tangey from the orange juice, and she shakes off the petals that have clung to her with a flick of her mane and laughs to run back and onwards into the throng of people.

No, she's not much good at any of this, but she is certainly happy enough to make up for all of it with boundless laughter that trickles out of her constantly.

[ At this point, Qubit's pretty sure he shows up at these festivals out of habit more than anything. It's hard enough to let his guard down and relax under normal circumstances - although the robots doing something bizarre and alien plants exploding out of the ground overnight are normal circumstances around here, come to think of it. At least it all seems to be nontoxic this time.

Still, he's a bit of a wallflower this time around. The refreshments are bare-bones, and he's not interested in vaping or dancing or falling to his death, thank you, and that doesn't exactly leave much in the way of entertainment. He's just made up his mind to leave when suddenly-

His hand flinches involuntarily as Angel's closes around it, but she's much, much stronger than he is, and before he knows it he finds himself stumbling onto the dance floor behind her. He tries to dig in his heels and pull away, but yeah, no, he can't compete with that kind of grip strength. ]

Hey! Do you mind?!

[ she drifts, like these petals, tangled in leaves and flowers that drip like gems around her throat, from her wrists, woven in ropes between horns.

Rolled and driven out of the earth half mad. She smiles and as he pulls, she catches his fingers. Soft, she is so soft, no scars, no marks, as she brings it up to her cheek. Brushing against the palm of his hand, to take his scent, his texture, in turn. A connection so utterly appreciated, as she turns her black eyes, deep as the space between stars, that look back up at him. ]

Dance with me.

[ His scent is markedly different from that of Angel's usual cohorts - there's the usual organic base, of course, and the smell of whatever product keeps his hair like that, but the rest is steel and machine oil and ozone, the sort of smell that suggests he spends more time around machines than people. His hands aren't exactly soft - he's earned a few scars in his time, though maybe fewer than he deserved, and his fingers are dotted with the remnants of many a nick and solder burn, most old, a few more recent. But they lack the thick calluses of a fighter or laborer.

Qubit himself, though, doesn't see this encounter in any sort of poetic terms. One could make a case for saying "her touch sets his skin aflame," maybe, but not in a good way. See, there's a reason he tries to keep skin-to-skin contact to a minimum: to him, it actually feels like burning.

Rather than putting him at ease, the gentle contact makes his arm tense up, and he meets her soft gaze with a pained grimace. ]

I can't -

[ He cuts himself off mid-sentence, as if he's said too much. The grimace mingles with an indignant glare as he makes a full, concerted effort to wrench himself out of her grasp. ]

Let go of me!

Edited 2020-03-06 01:55 (UTC)

[ That scent, that scent more than anyone or anything - is intoxicatingly familiar. The flesh and metal, gears and blood. Of a room, far away, crackling with electricity, power, that searing of bodies that burn, nosing against his palm as she enjoys contact for what it is, and in that, enjoys herself for the glory of what she is and nothing less and braces -

- the screaming that follows, that always followed, when she lost control, when she extended her limbs, her mind, empties her lungs and filled a room of everything that poured out of her, purple and light, toxic sludge and -

- always the screaming.

Let go of me!

Angel's gaze snaps up to his, stricken in wide-eyed fear. It was possible, certainly, for things to move faster than her, but they weren't human, that was for sure, and it is at that inhuman speed she drops his hand. Like he had burned her, not the other way around. The words babbling up so familiar. ]

I'm sorry!

[ Sorry isn't good enough, Angel, look what you did. Look at it. You did this. Now face the consequences, I'm sick of having to baby you about this -

She turns on the back step, sprinting with that speed in an effortless weave between moving bodies. Had to get out of here, had to get out of here now. ]

[ She drops his hand so suddenly that he stumbles back a few steps. The familiar pain lingers in his palm like hot needles, sending twinges up his wrist - but the sheer terror he saw in her eyes lingers, too, even as she whirls to flee. ]

Wait-!

[ He reaches out after her, but it's too little too late. By now, the commotion has drawn the accusing optical units of some of the robots in attendance (and maybe even a few people). Qubit glances back and forth between them, mind racing. Damn it all, he didn't want to make a scene - Did he overreact? She looked so frightened just now -

It's not her fault. He's got to make this right. Shoving his way past a pair of robots, he takes off in pursuit. ]

Angel, stop! I can explain!

[ She doesn't, but that is probably predictability to that. Because suddenly, as much as it had been encouraging, it is all too much. She does her best, she tries and learns and throws herself until she scrapes her knees and palms in the effort of falling, to get back up again.

But this - this there, she will crawl until she is bloody to run from. This one and permeating fear that she does everything she can to put behind her.

This time at least, she can run, she can put space that cannot be caught up with by a human alone between them. His good intentions can't catch up with that. ]

[ Physical feats have never been Qubit's forte. They've never had to be. He can tell as soon as he's moving that there's absolutely no way he'll catch up to her on foot. (God, he misses teleporting.) He loses sight of her in seconds, and of her horns a few seconds later.

Still, he keeps going until he reaches the edge of the gathering, where the park meets the plaza. It's there he slows to a stop, casts agitated glances in all directions, tries her name one more time - ]

Angel!!

[ No response. No sign of her. Honestly, he's not even totally sure she came this way. She had plenty of time to veer off. She could be anywhere.

Frustrated, he runs a hand through his hair, spends a few seconds catching his breath while he figures out what to do from here. There's the temptation to just let it go, apologize the next time he sees her, but... no, no. If he doesn't do it now, he's just going to end up letting it fester like he did with Peter. Best to clear the air as soon as possible.

He takes his comm out, finds her username, and shoots her a voice message. ]

Angel? It's Qubit. Please respond.

[ He wants to be supportive. He wishes he could be one of those people who could watch these intimate and important moments in other people's lives without feeling unsettled. Charles is reunited with his friend, with a man that he loves like a brother.

Jacob should feel something other than awkward. Standing a little way away from the two as they embrace, he realises he does feel something else besides.

Not that he likes this any better. Why is he jealous? Because he has to share Charles? Because currently he's not where he believes he belongs, in his arms? Because his place is usurped?

He doesn't know. It's his own issue, he won'truin this for Charles. That's why he ends up wandering away from them, to give them privacy.

That only means he's closer to the dancing, to the scene that unfolds on the opposite side of the twirling robots and humans.

Angel. Running as fast as she can, looking scared as hell, with some stranger chasing after her.

Its instinct that forces him to chase after them in turn. Angel needs him right now and Charles does not. Whatever that bastard has done to her, Jacob will make him regret it.]

[ Ratonhnhaké:ton isn't here for the party. The beanstalk is far more interesting, and he's examining it from the ground when the commotion reaches his ears. He turns in time to watch Qubit run towards the exit yelling Angel's name, and sees Jacob following after him.

This can't be good.

He follows too, because there is fire in Jacob's steps and he's not quite certain why. Angel's nowhere to be seen. Did she run? ]

[ Qubit starts pacing as he waits for a response, restlessly flexing and extending the fingers of his other hand. The pain's faded to an uncomfortable heat and tingling now, but it'll still be a minute before it's gone entirely. He's got to be missing some context here - why did she bolt? If she'd just waited ten seconds, he could have explained himself. Maybe he shouldn't have raised his voice, but that hardly warranted -

It's at this moment that he turns, and sees a top hat.

And beneath the top hat is a man with murder in his eyes, barreling toward him at full tilt. ]

What the -

[ Now, Qubit's teleportals don't work in Anchor. He knows this. He's known this since the day he arrived. But old reflexes die hard. His hand flies to his wristwatch automatically, but of course that's not going to help this time, and he's just used up both of the seconds he had left to react. ]

[ Jacob doesn't slow down when he sees that the same has stopped. He simply tackles the man to the ground, using his weight and muscle to hold him down. Why he was chasing Angel, he has no idea, but he has no desire to ask why or how.

He jumps to the conclusion that Angel has been hurt, frightened and his immediate reaction to hurt him in return.

So he punches. He punches hard in the man's face, once and then again, teeth gritted.]

You. Leave. Her. Alone!

[ Of course, Jacob immediately resorts to punching. Ratonhnhaké:ton picks up the pace, jaw tense and brow furrowed. ]

Jacob.

[ He reaches out, arms wrapping around Jacob's torso to forcibly lift him off and, if need be, hold him off. ]

[ The tackle is no contest; Qubit goes down like a sack of middle-aged bricks. ]

Gah! Who-

[ - and he's interrupted by a series of fists to the face. Luckily, his force field reduces the blows to an annoyance - from Jacob's end, it's probably like hitting a wall - and Qubit's not about to take this kind of treatment lying down, despite that being literally what he's doing right now. ]

Get off me, you lunatic!

[ He grabs the arm holding him down, trying to free himself, but it's pretty evident that melee combat's not his strong suit, either. Then again, it doesn't have to be.

In a place like Anchor, Qubit is never truly unarmed. He's constantly aware of the electrical systems buzzing behind the walls, beneath the floor, inside the eccentric robots. And for a second, as he reaches out, his eyes start to glow bright blue -

But then someone else intervenes, pulling his attacker off of him. Yeah, okay, that works too. He wastes no time scrambling back and to his feet, putting some distance between them. ]

[ Punching walls is not something Jacob is inexperienced in, and he would redouble his efforts to break Qubit's nose if Connor hadn't pulled him back at just the right moment.

He growls, fighting against the strong hold on him, trying to get at Angel's pursuer again before he can get away. He doesn't know where she's gone, but hopefully away, far away, where this arsehole can't follow her.]

He was after Angel! I don't know what he did to her, but I'm going to bloody well make him regret it!

[ That's the snarled explaination Connor gets as Jacob tries to pull free once more and then calms himself down. Connor is here. Connor will help him beat this guy into a pulp.

He takes a breath, no longer struggling to get out of Connor's grip. He won't manage,
so he just has to get Connor to release him. Best way to do that? Behave. ]

Edited 2020-03-11 17:14 (UTC)

[ Even if Jacob calms down, Ratonhnhaké:ton doesn't remove his arms just yet. He keeps a firm hold as he looks over Jacob's shoulder at Qubit, whose face is familiar but someone he hasn't talked to yet, searching for any signs at all of guilt, any clues to what happened between him and Angel.

This is one of the people who talked to Angel about her ... monster problem. He'd seemed kind enough, willing to help, and listen. Did he say something that frightened her? ]

Why did she run?

[ Qubit straightens up and smooths out his coat, never taking his eyes off the two men. He recognizes them both, now that he's gotten a good look at them. Angel draws attention out in public, but he's also noticed the handful of toughs who tag along at her hooves - and here are two of them.

That complicates things. His "rescuer" may be willing to ask questions before he shoots, at least, but he's not by any means impartial here, and Qubit's having trouble getting a read on his stony expression. He'll have to treat them both as threats, just with differing degrees of certainty.

... Though that doesn't prevent him from also treating Jacob like the unruly child he's so determined to be. He's addressing only Connor when he answers, pointedly talking around Jacob. ]

I was about to ask her the same thing. [ You know, before SOMEONE interrupted him. He's still mad about that, incidentally. ] I didn't hurt her, though, on the off chance it matters.

[ Jacob is not impressed by the fact he's ignored. Nor is he very happy that Connor is still holding onto him like he's a dog on a leash.

But he doesn't lunge for Qubit despite the urge to do so. He could just get another good smack in, break his nose, and that would be enough. It'll have to wait and he'll have to feign interest in the man's reply.]

If a girl runs off upset, you chase her?

[ He frowns, and carefully removes one arm from Jacob entirely, while the other moves to clasp his shoulder with a slight squeeze, at the same time as he steps around Jacob enough to look him in the eye. ]

If one is concerned, why would one not follow? I have. There is no reason to assume the worst.

[ There are many things that might frighten Angel, many of which are hard to predict even for someone who knows her well. With some, she might be able to fight the urge long enough, and if she's with someone she truly trusts, it's not impossible to talk her down from it.

However kind Qubit might be, she's only just met him. ]

Thank you! At least one of you can be reasonable.

[ All right, Connor's earned a downgrade in threat level (from "could attack at any time" to "probably won't though"). At the very least, Qubit decides he's safe enough to move in and pick up the comm he dropped in the scuffle, even if this technically does put him back within melee range of Jacob. ]

[ Being in melee range of Jacob is normally a very bad thing. It doesn't matter that Connor is momentarily between him and Qubit, he could very easily get at him if he wanted.

But Connor has cautioned him against further violence and as much as Jacob would love to ignore that request, he respects Connor. If he thinks they need to try something other than violence first, so be it. Jacob can easily beat the man into a pulp afterwards.]

Tell us why she ran off, and maybe we can all be reasonable and you can keep all your teeth.

[ He shakes his head briefly. From what Qubit said, he's not so certain he can say why. However ... ]

If you tell me what happened, I may be able to figure out why she ran.

[ I said I don't know why, he almost snaps - he has a theory, but that's not the same as knowing - but his knee-jerk bristling subsides shortly. They're willing to hear him out, if reluctantly, and that's a definite improvement over thirty seconds ago. ]

What happened is ...

[ He's going to have to watch his phrasing. He wants to defend himself, but if they think he's trying to paint Angel in a bad light, he's not going to get anywhere. The objective here is to get them off his back. ]

... she startled me. And my reaction to that may have startled her, I think. I was following to try and clear up any misunderstanding.

[ And then, you know, Jacob happened. Qubit checks the comm while he talks, but no reply just yet... ]

[ Jacob wants to believe that's unlikely. Angel and he have driven sports cars at breakneck speed into walls, led their gang into fights and seen off a whole host of weird and wonderful threats.

But maybe the difference is that with him, with Charles, with Connor, she's not scared. She knows them. Trusts them.

She's not had the time to really do that here.

Not that he's about to be logical about all this.]

What was said, exactly?

Edited 2020-05-09 04:19 (UTC)

[ Qubit frowns. His patience with Jacob was thin to begin with, and now he's starting to press for more specifics than Qubit's inclined to give. Sure, he remembers their precise words - there were barely a dozen altogether. But he has no idea how they'd respond to the content of that brief interaction, and besides - ]

I fail to see how that's any of your business.

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mustact - 2020-05-13 14:09 (UTC) - Expand

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nothinglikefather - 2020-05-14 06:04 (UTC) - Expand

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