Piper 90: Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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goneawaymemes2020-12-15 11:59 pm
goneawaymod) wrote in goneawaymemes2020-12-15 11:59 pm
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TDM #3
![](https://i.imgur.com/ZGm7AQ5.png")
TEST DRIVE #3
So it's your first day at your new job! Welcome to the Jorgmund Family™! It's time to settle into your new workplace on the Piper 90 rig, the coziest place of employment this side of the Livable Zone. A leader in its industry, Jorgmund is excited to have you join them in enthusiastically envisioneering team-driven paradigms.
The Piper 90 rig's mission is not only an impressive undertaking in terms of impactful customer-oriented deliverables, it's providing a vital backbone to the Livable Zone by creating a safe region for citizens to live, work, and play. Jorgmund's "outside the box" thinking means they understand the importance of wisely investing in their human capital - you! You'll soon find that you'll take pride in this vital work - and the benefits can't be beat.
Rest assured, Jorgmund's multidisciplinary approach to our world's period of recovery means we know how to keep it real when facing this opportunity for restructuring and growth. Jorgmund: Even if most of the world has gone away, we can make a world of difference!
Synergy!
USEFUL LINKS
It is recommended you check out the following links first for info on the rig, rig conditions, game mechanics, and the intro and slideshow your characters would have to endure that takes place chronologically before the Test Drive Meme:
SCENARIO
It's been a bumpy and cold ride, accompanied by questionable music such as midi remixes of Mmmbop, We Built This City on a trombone, an a capella version of all of Brahm's symphonies, and a 21 kazoo chorus to cover The White Album. And, of course, every fifteen minutes the music's interrupted so an excited intern can tell you about the glorious mission and opportunities of JORGMUND, where you're all family.
Looking at the guy using up everyone's vomit bags, that's a questionably desirable family you got there.
But the mission briefing is, at least, clear. It seems that, after Disney learned that there might be a war, it built a new park far away from any possible targets: the frozen north pole. That's right, Disney pulled an eminent domain on Santa Claus to build a massive, sprawling theme park, even importing a mountain from Europe to provide a decent landmark. Disneyland Arctic is now the only active Disney park in the world, run by the tattered remnants of the once mighty mega-corporation. But, somehow, it still draws massive crowds, despite not quite being in the Livable Zone.
It seems that Disney's so far refused to allow Jorgmund to operate in their territory, for fear of ruining the 'magic'. Technically, Jorgmund's forces, the New Hires that is, aren't even allowed in the park. They're banned. Which is why it's all newer employees on this trip: Disney might not have identified them yet.
That said, all of their power is now spent on the park, a massive, city-sized complex with nearly every environment imaginable included, full of cartoonish buildings and costumed people, many of whom don't even work there yet! That's right, some people still pay to come to enjoy the warped nostalgia of Walt's empire. But many of them don't survive the trip to or from this isolated wonderland, so exports are... rare.
And this comes to their mission. Jorgmund wants Merchandise. And lots of it. A few loads of genuine memorabilia will, once it's been sold off to the right people, fund the corporation's operations for a good, long while. After all, who doesn't want to be the person who eats the very last Redd Rockett's Pizza? Or have the only surviving complete set of Star Wars action figures? Or one of the few people to be able to jam to the forgotten tunes of Halyx?
However, there's something more for the New Hires to do. Not everyone there is happy in the Happiest Land on Earth. And Jorgmund can't ignore the plight of the people if so much attention is called to it. They'll grit their teeth, but not even the upper levels of management will refuse if some people find themselves freed from the shackles of the mouse.
PROMPTS
a) IF THE SHOE FITS
The wailing and moans of agony filling the air are probably warning enough about the horrors the New Hires are about to see. Forced into a line by armored soldiers wielding pole-arms, a raggedy group of wastelanders are shivering in the cold. Kept in line with brutal shoves and harsh words, they're in no shape to put up a resistance. Some of them show signs of already having done so, and judging by the way they flinch away or glare sullenly at the oddly mincing guards, they've learned their lessons.
The chamber they're being led to is dark, lit by flames, and smells like a charnel pit. There are reasons for that. There's only one size of shoe left in the Happiest Place On Earth, and a glass slipper is being used to see if they truly fit or not. Any foot that doesn't fit within the slipper gets... trimmed.
Jorgmund would want the shoes. They'd want the glass slipper itself. They'd have no use for the Wastelanders, but with the eyes of the Livable Zone on them, they can't just abandon the people.
b) THE GREAT WHITE HUNTERS
Once upon a time, a vain queen discovered that she wasn't the most beautiful of all. In response, she ordered her greatest huntsmen to bring her the heart of the fourteen year old girl who outshone her. It's an old tale, with many echoes, even today. The park has many shadows, and within them lurk the hunters. They search for beautiful men and women, to claim their hearts for their ravenous queen, who feasts in one of the many halls on a diet of muscle marinaded in fear and adrenaline.
There are cups Jorgmund would like. Cutlery. Themed plates. A reward is what they've promised for the gathering of them. But the easiest way is probably to follow a Huntsman as he delivers his prize, clasped in an Elsa-themed cooler.
c) THE RED RIDERS
Wolves can be seen in the wilderness, but they're not the true dangers. The dangers are the little old ladies who are oddly hairy, have such great fangs, and such large ears. No one sensible would be fooled, but children desperate for love? Any sign of hearth and home? Desperation has an odd way of filtering reality, and the wolves in Grandmother's nightgown are very good at finding feasts.
Especially with no Huntsmen about to bring out the happy ending.
Some of the wolves will call out to adults. Not all of them are capable of seeing things as they are either, after all.
d) HERO OF HEROES
An enraged roar. A man with a bristling beard, shining red eyes, bulging muscles, and glistening thews hurls a pillar into a crowd, screaming his defiance of the world in ancient Greek, nearly unintelligible in his rage. Heracles brings no pride to Hera today, not lost in a berserk rage, poisoned by hatred. Around his shoulders, and over his head, is draped a lion's skin, impenetrable by claw or blade or bullet. Lost in his fury, Heracles recognizes no friend, no ally, no neutral party. And, weakened as the transition has made many of the people who enter the Gone Away World, none live who can stand against the prince of power. The tactics beloved by Athena, misdirection, wisdom, deception, will be the only way to survive an encounter with the maddened godling.
Behind him are many offerings, accepted in calmer, saner moments, when he isn't maddened by pain and loss. Action figures, posters, clothing-he's made his shrine out of a gift shop and once accepted other such offerings. Jorgmund wants them. They sell for top dollar on the Livable Zone's markets.
e) RICHES TO RAGS
It had to happen. One of Jorgmund's other New Hires, a nervous, mousy looking man is confronted by a casual looking man in red, leaning casually on a sword and eating an apple. "You know how this goes, wageslave. Drop your goods, leave your riches behind, and return to your masters. Tell them that other people are needier than this." He smiles winningly.
The mousy man sputters, drops his sack, and pulls a gun, only to drop on the spot as an arrow suddenly skewers his head. The man in red clicks his tongue and drags the sack closer to him with his sword, before glancing up and smiling. "Greetings! Oh, I hope you didn't know him. If you did, it's a pity, but you'll get the same terms from Will Scarlet. You are surrounded, my gentle people, by my oh, so fair cousin, Robin and his very merry men." He smiles, twirling his mustache, then sketches a bow. "Surrender your goods, gentle people, or have them surrendered for you."
f) AN ATTITUDE ADJUSTMENT
Good workers aren't easy to come by! Especially in an area with as much stress as Disneyland! But that's fine, Disney's management figured out the solution long ago. Whenever they need more people, they simply grab someone and drag them into one of the many doors that aren't doors in the vast amusement park. Inside, there's invariably a chair and a set of monitors. The chair straps the victim down and, from there, patches are applied and a special, Very Magical helmet is dropped over their heads.
Strains of "It's a Small World" can be heard from the helmets.
They'll scream. Oh, they always scream. But only for a while. When the helmet comes off, they're no longer street trash or a lonely tourist. Now they're one of the few, the proud, the people who keep the park running! And for the special folks who have just the right looks, they become Characters. Ariel, Mulan, Gaston, Peter Pan, Luke Skywalker, they're always popular sights. They'll be worked even harder than the rest, but the Characters know better than to object! After all, it's such an honor to represent Disney!
The New Hires can either save Wastelanders waiting in line to be brainwashed, or might need saving from other New Hires themselves. If a New Hires is successfully brainwashed another can possibly save them. It takes some time for the brainwashing to "set." New Hires can save others by using one of several methods: using an emotional connection between the two characters, reminding the character of their past or usual personality, or - if they don't know them - using lots of Disney unfriendly language until the brainwashing shorts out.
g) NIGHT ON SPACE MOUNTAIN
The looming mountain shudders, and the castle on top cracks. Bulges. A dark and terrible being shatters his chains within the castle's heart flexes his black wings, baleful eyes glowing in the night. He stretches his arms out and the shadows come alive. The horrors come from those shadows. Imps. Bats. Vultures. Ghosts. Goblins. Demons. Death himself rides the night, swinging his scythe to and fro, and silent witches ride nightmares through the murky sky.
The Dark God underneath Disney's pride and joy lives. Finally, the world has become corrupt enough to allow him to live, to breathe, to bring fresh horrors to the world and ensnare the souls of mankind He pays little mind to the tiny people underneath, content to torment those directly around him, to create life from the fires of the volcano and then twist and torment them before ending them in the very flames they'd been birthed from.
It's only a matter of time before Chernabog bores of this play and turns his attention to the park, or beyond. But a hurried communication, a man calling himself K, says that he can be contained again. The stories that had trapped Chernabog before have been corrupted by corporate greed and twisted by the media mentality, but there's still a way. Somewhere in the ruins of the castle, maybe even scattered about the park itself, are clear crystals. They need new stories, ones that haven't been tainted by Disney's touch. With a new generation of fables and tales, Chernabog will be imprisoned again, at least for a while. So get to work and save the day already!
h) WILDCARD
I mean, it's Disneyland. There's always something to do. And, true to Disney's approach in the past to these kinds of of things, the park's open throughout the entire crisis and even directly afterwards.
➤ Feel free to play around with powers. If your character has powers from canon you want to play around with, go for it. If you'd like to test out possibilities for game powers, also go for it. Feel free to change it up from thread to thread if you need to. This can be handwaved as exposure to Stuff making characters' powers shift a few times before settling.
➤ Potential players may use test drive threads as their log samples. However, at least one post in their thread must fit the requirements for apps, both in length (200 words) and in quality. If you do plan on using a thread as a sample, please make sure the writing throughout your threads is a good example of your writing skills and has some solid examples of the character's voice.
➤ Players can eventually count TDMs towards AC. They can only count towards comment-based AC proofs.
➤ Potential players can opt to keep these threads as game canon when they app in, or start over fresh, based on preference. The Stuff bringing them to the game universe can fog their memories, if players don't want their character to remember TDM threads when introing into the game.
➤ The game is invite-only. Players without invites are allowed to tdm since some of them may know someone in game to ask for one, and since some people enjoy TDMs just for fun in games they don't plan to app into. But an invite is required during the apping process.
➤ The has a cap of 30 players. Apps are rolling apps that have a wait queue if the cap has been exceeded. Currently the cap is 24 of 30 players.
no subject
[ He can't see Wash's smile with where the other man is standing, but does spot a glint in an open room they're coming up on, on the right. Slowing down a bit just in case someone's in there is when he notices Wash deliberately stays in his blind spot, not just on that side to cover him.
The other man doesn't trust him, and York is actually hurt by that. He frowns a little at the realization of what's happening here.
They check the room -- empty, but that is a crystal in the corner, a lucky find. York goes over and kneels beside it and speaks to Wash softly before he begins a story with the other man playing lookout. ]
I'm not going to attack you, man. Cross my heart.
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[But talking to Tucker causes a strange gush of emotion he doesn't have control over. His own feelings, whatever part of his brain that still remembers his recent life, is trying to tell him to trust him. It keeps saying "friend who would die for you."]
[Whatever he built with those Sim Troopers - and apparently Carolina (which also sounds fake??). Is something he never got to rebuild with his other old friends.]
[They died before he ever had the chance. The dying means maybe they would have if they'd gotten to meet again, maybe if Wash could extricate himself from the nightmare that was his life. But since they did die, it means there's no reassuring, subconscious feeling countering his paranoia.]
[Wash is quiet for a moment. And notes that York hasn't turned it around on him. He hasn't gone for instant distrust, accusing Wash of trying to sneak up and get the best of him. It does earn him some good will.]
[It earns him honesty. Wash keeps watch as York does his occasional whispering, still keeping sight of him in his peripheral.]
I didn't think Maine or South would try to kill me, either.
But Maine tried to kill me just like he -
[Fuck, he doesn't know how or when to drop the "ps you're dead, but I'll try to help you fix that." Not now, not while they're trying to fix something.]
- Just like he killed quite a few agents.
And when I tried to cover South so she could get to a ship and get Delta back to base before Maine stole him, she shot me in the back after I'd taken two steps.
[The way he says it all is...alarmingly hollow and matter of fact. Like "old friends might randomly try to kill you, such is life."]
And that's not even getting into everything the Director did.
So you'll forgive me if I'm a little slow to trust someone I haven't had contact with for a while.
[Yes, he'd been closer to North and York (because South was a miserable bitch even before the program imploded). But who's to say they care about that friendship. That they haven't changed. That the good will won't run dry the second their own necks are at risk.]
[People don't look out for him. Fact. Survival is a perfectly understandable reason for that but there will be things to survive in this world, too.]
no subject
I knew about Maine, we were on the run from him. It's his AI, we think, Sigma is creepy as fuck. But that's how South got D? I ran into her earlier and she refused to hand him over.
[ He hadn't wanted to let her leave, was ready to fight her after they took out the brainwashing group, but she'd used that weird invisibility-esque trick and had gotten away from him. Leaving York with the gaping wound in his psyche where his AI had been, his little buddy that he missed more than anything right now.
He tries not to focus on it, gives Wash his full attention. ]
Yeah. I forgive you for being slow to trust me. But I'm not going to hurt you and I won't leave you behind again, Wash.
[ Then, he hesitates. There's no use not talking about it. He's alive here and that's what matters right now, he can't change the past. ]
And I know I'm dead. You don't have to dance around that, I'm just glad Delta survived it. Even if he's with that bitch right now.
no subject
[He doesn't like that York knows because he was immediately about to die, or dying when he got tempest-tossed by reality, somehow healed up, and washed up this world's shore like a dead crab.]
[There's fear and/or pain in that Wash wishes he hadn't gone through before the second chance. Same with North.]
She got Delta from me. He was in my suit when I answered North's beacon.
When Maine attacked, I gave him to South to take back to base.
[Only to later destroy recover him and destroy him with an EMP but...that was complicated. He's not sure what happened in that moment, either, when the Alpha jumped into Maine. Had they all rejoined into? If not, had Church had a chance to ask for their agreement permission? Had he bothered? Wash thinks with how...limited he'd become that they probably could've overpowered him, but they didn't.]
[But that's a talk for another day, because it involve digging into the entire mess that is Church. And if Delta and Theta are alive here there's at least a chance to keep them that way. Wash isn't opposed to that.]
I was on recovery.
[Recovery had been a role even before the program imploded. They couldn't leave gear in the field if they could help it. It was just handled differently then and was far more necessary after.]
[And that explains more about the flat tone, the coldness. You don't go play vulture to all your friend's dead bodies without winding up pretty dead inside.]
I was the last recovery agent left active by the end.
[As far as he knew, because he hadn't quite figured things out about South even now. He had his suspicions but there was a chance she'd just gone rogue to steal Delta.]
[But for most part, for the agents he was closest to, Wash had been the only one answering the beacons. A lovely picture, isn't it? The formerly earnest rookie who tried to reassure teammates no matter how many times it blew up in his face, blowing up and incinerating all the dead bodies.]
no subject
...North, too?
[ And Wash had been on Recovery. He'd still been with Freelancer and they'd sent him out after his friends' corpses. Shit. Again, he finds himself trying to refocus from what, right now, feels like grief overload. Focus on Wash and what he's been through instead of himself, because that's easier for York. He'll pick apart his own issues later. ]
I'm sorry you had to handle all that.
no subject
He's on the rig. Pulled from...a similar time.
[So it's not hopeless.]
[And a little more hope.]
Also, according to the Sim Trooper I met, Carolina is alive. Back home.
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Carolina's alive..? We looked, I've... I knew it.
[ He hadn't just been wasting his hope all this time. ]
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To be fair he also says she's slumming it with a bunch of Sim Troopers and a wash out [ignore the pun] but I'll believe anything at this point. Besides, the words "intense" and "scary sometimes" have been mentioned.
[And that sounds right.]
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He steps closer and Wash is about to have to dodge a hug, because York is having a lot of confusing feelings and they have to come out somehow. ]
no subject
[His forebrain and his hind brain have a quick and stupid conversation where they talk past each other. His hind brain says "Harm, kill!" His forebrain says "No, you idiot, the mood was good, he got good news, he's happy and showing affection!" His hindbrain responds "Sounds fake, threat, kill!" His forebrain says "For fuck's sake, don't just murder a friend."]
[They compromise by making Wash reflexively punch York in the mouth with Carolina-like reflexes. They are only Carolina-like, but still, they're very good, considering she's the reason he has them, thanks to all the drilling and sparring. Even if some of his other recent memories are blocked, his present-day muscle memory is still there.]
Aah, sorry! Sorry!
[And that sounds a little like the idiot he remembers. That is a very "I forgot to pull the pin on the grenade" sorry.]
[Slightly shrill, before York can protest:]
What about anything I told you suggests sudden movements are a good idea?!
[At least it wasn't a full punch, just a surprised "get away from me!" tap.]
no subject
I'll move slower.
[ Or just wait and see if Wash will come to him. His expression is open and earnest. ]
Thank you for telling me, I needed to hear some good news.
no subject
[So Wash doesn't go to him but doesn't move away. But he also doesn't hug back. He just sort of stiffly lets himself be hugged so overall it makes for a really awkward hug, about as impersonal as hugging a tree and about as reciprocal as hugging a teenager in a mood.]
[It's a little comical but...]
[The way his shoulders hunch up; the way he tenses; the way there's a small, sharp intake of breath; like he's fighting off panic by someone getting close enough to knife him in the ribs without him stopping it, they...paint a picture. So does the gun shot scar on the neck that's a lot more visible up close.]
[But he still allows it, because you can get be twitchy about affection and miss it at the same time. He tells himself he doesn't need affection anymore, but...]
[He tells himself a lot of things.]
[Wash clears his throat awkwardly after the hug has overstayed its welcome and that's very shortly into it.]
Why don't you tell the crystal a story about Carolina?
A fearless leader, valiantly rescuing her knights when the evil grand vizier tossed them at enemies they shouldn't have been fighting, because they sometimes needed her to save them when they were idiots.
[They should...probably stop chit chatting like this and get to work, but having a cosmic evil outside feels so unreal it's hard to remember this isn't a video game or something. And they...there's... a lot has happened.]
no subject
He knows what it's like to tell yourself you're fine, that you don't need friends or human contact, and for it not to be true. They'll work on it. The old Wash is still in there, he saw a glimpse.
If he's gonna be stuck here, he might as well do some good for someone who's actually still alive. ]
I've got a better story about her. One you don't know either.
[ He kneels in front of the crystal and clears his throat, remembering how fairy tales usually start. ]
Once upon a time, on a planet called Reach, there was a ridiculous club called Errera and a soldier who'd been abandoned there by his friends...