TEST DRIVE ∞ May 2025

[thediadem]

Test Drive ∞ May 2025

The First Collision

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Jump ⇅ :: Arrival — Panorama — Fringes — Invite Request

The Diadem is an invite-only panfandom game set in a retro-futuristic world where uprooted souls find themselves deep within an eerie wasteland of roads and highways frequently assailed by cosmic storms. Three united strongholds keep the population. Its capital is Panorama, a large metropolis at the planet's center.

Soon, you realize you aren't alone. Calling themselves fluxdrifts, the "locals" have similar stories to you, either for themselves or their ancestry. You speak to an old woman who claims she hailed from another star. You meet a young man who says his great-great-grandfather knew a strange language everybody spoke "back home." As you explore, you stumble across a coin you recognize or your sister's locket. How did it get here? What does this mean? That's for you to discover.

But first, you need to find a ride.

No invites needed to play on the TDM. Everyone's welcome! Use the Invite Request thread below to request an invite from another player.

∞ Summary ∞

IC-wise, arrivals are scattered throughout the month. Events described on the TDM are also ongoing throughout the month. If you'd rather jump right into the action, you're free to begin in media res with your character having already been on the planet for several days.

Post-impact, characters will wake up in a med tent by the Scrapyard. From there, they must accept a vehicle on loan and make the 2-hour drive to the nearest city, Panorama. If they refuse the car because they don't want the loan, they'll be in debt for medical bills instead...so just take the car. It'll come in handy.

Some things to keep in mind when bringing in your character:

• Pick an injury. At minimum, they got knocked out; at most, whatever they can recover from. Medicine is decently advanced so they'll heal faster if not painlessly.
• Decide items kept. Reasonable items on their person only: photos, keys, clothes, costumes. No pets or animal companions. Wildly out-of-place tech and personal cell phones will be damaged beyond repair.
• Select a weapon. Do this only if eligible. Guidelines about weapons and powers are on the FAQ.
• Choose a vehicle. Decide whether your character gets 2-3 options or if they're stuck with something they hate. Players can pick directly from our collection or source their own images. Anything under a similar aesthetic will work. If your character needs accommodations for driving, they can have them. Ask us for details.
• Get a phone. Characters have to obtain a phone (and a SIM card) themselves. If they've got one from home, it's damaged beyond repair. Phones are cheap. It'll only take a couple of weeks to afford one. You need to know the number before you text or call anyone. Read about phones and the Forum before you hop on it.

TDM threads can be canon if characters are accepted. Top-levels made to the TDM should be open to all.

TDM Questions? Here — Game Questions? FAQ

Setting — Taken — Reserves — Applications ::: ⇅ Top

Fluxdrift

Arrival & Introduction

Date: Throughout May

You've tumbled over a cliff. You were fighting for your life. You're on the cusp of death. You slipped in the shower. Whatever the catalyst, you struggle to cling to consciousness. As darkness overtakes you, a swirling vortex warps light and shadow in a way that defies all physics. A dark wail etches into your very bones. You couldn't describe it if you tried. You can barely comprehend what it is.

Then you open your eyes.

Through the figure's mask ©, you swear the face is grinning down at you. The tent you're in smells of antiseptic, and scratchy blankets line your cot. Injuries you've sustained have been bandaged. In the corner, you spot a MedBot that's fixed you up. Depending on the extent of your injuries, the doctor on duty might give you some painkillers before you go. Thankfully, your belongings are by the exit. Sorry if anything's damaged. Your landing was pretty rough.

You follow the figure outside. They are Yom Crook, here to lend a hand to fellow fluxdrifts like yourself. Their car's parked beside them. Actually, there are lots of cars around, but Yom Crook's stands out with its painted shark mouth. They explain they found you, unconscious, in a diffusion zone and brought you here. The nearest city is a 2-hour drive northeast. Forget about walking. You'll never make it. Also, you owe the doctor a lot of money for patching you up. But you're in luck: they've got some wheels for you and if you accept the vehicle on loan, Yom Crook will cover your medical bills. That's a good deal, right? It's not the shiniest car or motorcycle, but it'll do. If fortune favors, you'll get to choose between two or three options. Plus, if you need accommodations to drive—like adjustments to your seat height or modified controls—you'll receive all that for free.

Take the vehicle. (And the loan.) Yom Crook assures you that you'll have six months before collectors come around. Any time you're ready to pay a part of it down, return here to the Scrapyard. You'll get a receipt and everything. Paying off the loan in six months isn't impossible, but it will take a lot of work. Just don't get too lax. There's a good chance you'll be juggling multiple loans as you try to get by.

You either know how to drive, or you'll have a bare-bones manual to get you started. Road rules are more a suggestion than enforced, so just hit the pedal and go. The car has some basic features. The built-in compass will help you navigate.

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: a flat tire; a body on the road (is it a trap?); a fender bender

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Panorama

Explore & Settle In

Conditions: Warm spring temperatures, light showers

After 2 hours on the road, you find civilization. The largest of the strongholds, Panorama is where the economy thrives. Massive power plants glowing red make it visible from a distance. The city is divided into three districts. For now, you can access the Pavilion and the Blocks. Don't worry about the Sanctum; they're not letting you in.

You only need to know two things about Panorama: 1) it's big, the size of a modern metropolis, and you'll need your car to get around; 2) anything goes as long as you don't pick a fight with the wrong person. Street smarts will get you far. Despite its geographical size, the population isn't huge. With roughly a million people in a city designed for over twice that number, Panorama is far from deserted, but nor is it overcrowded. It's a good thing. Resources are limited as it is.

The Pavilion: Free Samples

©

Like any large city, Panorama features a couple of supermarkets. The stock's not as consistent as a proper supermarket. On occasion, shelves can remain cleaned out for a week or two. Regardless, the long tradition of free samples remains. If you're not already shopping, you'll notice the crowded parking lot and clusters of lines inside.

Try samples, push through the crowds as you shop, or give yourself a five-finger discount. If you're cautious, you can pocket a few small items without consequences. The Pavillion doesn't have the infrastructure for surveillance; unless someone sees you, you won't be caught. Steal from the store or pilfer someone's wallet. Maybe you even make a new friend if you bump into another fluxdrift. Or, start a fight with somebody who cut you off in the cheese line. Don't make too much of a ruckus, or you'll be thrown out.

As you look around, you'll see posters advertising temporary positions for the cash register or graveyard shifts in the warehouse. Seems they might've lost several employees recently (how'd that happen?), which is good for you! It's just a 6-week position, but it'll get you on your feet. The city has temporary positions like this all over. Permanent ones are harder to come by when you're new.

Samples include: steamed cabbage dumplings, synthetic cherry juice, cheddar cheese, and chocolate-covered alien eggs (it's crunchy and weirdly tasty). They're served in the usual throwaway paper cups with little toothpicks.

The Blocks: Power Outage

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Power's finicky in Panorama, especially in the Blocks. Saint Margery's Hospital, located in the same area, has priority for power so the first to go are the motels. Maybe you've been in your room for a couple of weeks, maybe you just got here—and by the way, every motel desk is happy to put the fee on your tab if you don't have the money upfront—but all the motels on the east side are in a blackout, leaving only the west side motels up and running.

What do you do? You have three choices:

• Risk leaving your room and head to the other side where there's power. Knock on some doors and negotiate with another to share the room. They might shut the door in your face, ask for a favor in return, or be nice enough to help you with no strings attached. There's no guarantee your unattended room will be untouched, though, and you'll be on the hook for any damages an intruder causes.
• Sit in the dark and deal. It's not the worst idea, but the TV's down, the vending machines are powered down, and with the entire place plunged into darkness, you risk getting robbed. If you struggle with defending yourself, you might want to find some trustworthy company. You can also sneak out of there and let them take your leftover pizza. It's not like you've got a ton of valuables, right? Plus, clobbering someone in the face with a frying pan sounds great until you realize you've gotta do something with the body. And what if this person's got a friend waiting?
• Get in your car and drive (or grab a friend for a road trip). If you scroll the Forum, you might notice reports on diffusion zones southward. Besides, these motels are hardly your forever home. The city can only provide so much. Why not go for a ride and see what you can find out there?

OPTIONAL PROMPTS: clean up on aisle 3 (what is that goo?); a knock at your door but no one's there; you hear screaming or a commotion down the hall

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©

The Fringes

Quad 3: Lockdown

Conditions: Stormy, with flooding roads

Felix Bjurstrom
> Date: 125-05-17
> Time: 02:15:57

> Emergency road lights have been reported in Quadrant 3! Please, can someone go see what's there? When last we chasers investigated emergency lights, a whole truck filled with sour candy had tipped over. Our stores were stocked for weeks! Oh, be careful - reception looks bad in that zone.

Whether you end up here on your own or you were following a tip on the Forum, the outcome is the same: you come to a stop in front of a 2-story office building that's flooded several inches deep. Emergency lights from a roadblock flicker through the stormy night. Stepping out of your car, you're soaked within seconds. When you check your phone, you don't have any bars. No calls in or out.

Through the open windows, a computer awakens and displays a cheerful smile. The lights inside switch on.

Pick your scenario role below. Your thread partner doesn't need to take the opposite role! They can join you in the same scenario (i.e. trapped together). Players are also free to create a generic NPC for the other side to facilitate the thread.

After characters escape, they'll find one bottle of antibiotics in their pocket or car, whether they remember taking it or not.

A: Sealed In
As you peer through the windows, you see crates of medicine floating around. Antibiotics in the diadem are valuable. Hospitals and doctors are always buying. You can keep it for yourself or make a quick buck. Or maybe you're compelled to help somebody back in the city who's in need. Whatever the reason, you decide to take the risk and step inside.

Water splashes around your ankles. The lock buzzes behind you. If you try to break the windows, you discover they're unnaturally resistant to shattering. With the whole place locked tight, the water begins to churn. Then the computer lights up again.

Warning, it flashes in large, bold text. Quarantine in progress. Release code required for exit.

• To find the code, you'll have to search. Duck under the water, go through sopping envelopes and sticky notes or pick the locks on the filing cabinets and desk drawers. You can also try hacking the computers. Use your computer knowledge or fall back on the age-old trick of seeing who wrote down their password.
• The files, notepads, and emails start innocuous, but as you look through them, disturbing phrases jump out at you—a dark thought you've had or a cruel taunt from someone in your past. The longer you're fixed on the terrible words, the higher the water begins to rise. Only another can break you out of your trance.
• With the rising water comes fear. And the more you're afraid, the more the water also rises. You begin to see faces in the water, bobbing like balloon heads. Do you recognize them? If you move to take a closer look, they will sink back beneath the surface as if never there.
• If you manage to swallow your panic, you can eventually find a triple-laminated binder with the release code and instructions. Bad news: you need someone on the outside to punch in the 6 strange symbols in order. The instructions explain that the code panel is located at the back of the building.

Let's hope a friendly face comes along.

B: Set Free
As you peer through the windows, you see not just the crates of medicine but someone trapped inside. They look like they might be in trouble, and from your vantage point, you notice that the water is bubbling strangely. It's definitely not normal rainwater. As you watch, the water rises unnaturally, stopping and starting. It's as if the water level is responding to an external stimulus.

• The glass is soundproof. You can't hear what the person inside is saying, so you'll have to communicate with each other another way. Try charades, typing on your phone, or whatever you think of. Eventually, you determine that they're stuck and that you need to enter some sort of code onto a pad located—according to your trapped partner—at the back of the building.
• Around the back, shadows swallow your surroundings. The panel must be pried open, but a slippery substance makes it hard to get a good grip. Each time the substance touches you, you grow uneasy. You swear you see eyes watching you, though when you turn around, nothing's there.
• You can't seem to keep the instructions in your mind. And those symbols...they burn into your retinas. Through them, you glimpse an incomprehensibly massive figure unfurling in the darkness, pulsing as if in a deep sleep. When you snap back to reality, you realize you've injured yourself, slicing your hand on a sharp edge or a bruise you can't remember getting.
• Once you manage to release the doors, the water inside the office drains upward into the sky as though sucked out by a giant hose. The darkness spreads. Get out of there fast before the shadows drag you or your partner into the void.

Of course, you don't have to help anyone. You can leave the individual there, make a deal, or outright extort them. But remember, you're not the only person on these roads. You might want to play your cards carefully, even if altruism isn't your first instinct.

Main Navigation ::: ⇅ Top

Comments

INVITE REQUEST ∞

[thediadem]

If you don't know anyone in the game, or everyone you know has used up their invites for this round, you can request an invite here. An existing player (including the mods) might extend you an invite. Each TDM gives you a chance to request an invite.

We will respond to accepted TDM invite requests privately via PM. Please check your DW inbox. You will only get a response if you are invited. We'll process all outstanding requests to be accepted before reserves open, but will continue to look at additional submissions until applications close. If you don't hear from us by the time applications close, you're free to try again next TDM!

For the opening round, an existing player is any player with an initial mod-extended invite.

Interested parties who are already friendly with existing players should approach those players and go through the standard invitation process. However, if everyone you know is out of invites, you may use this section.

Before you request an invite for yourself:

• Participate on the TDM so other players can get to know you.
• You must have a way for us to judge if you'll be a good fit. This can be a musebox, meme/psl threads, or other games you were in. We'd like to see examples of how you RP and engage with other players.
• If you get an invite, you'll hear from us through PM before reserves open. Be sure to check your DW inbox.

Before you invite a TDM player:

• Reply to the Invites page for the player you want to invite.
• We will PM the player with an invitation if approved.
• Please do not reply to invitation requests directly yourself.
• By default, we will not disclose who invited whom, but you're welcome to let the person know on your own!

Request Form
<b>Player Name:</b> <b>Contact:</b> (A Plurk or Discord is a plus, but journal PM is acceptable. Our main emphasis will be on your visible RP history) <b>TDM Participation:</b> <a href="URLHERE">Link</a> (either a top-level or tag-in is fine) <b>RP History:</b> (Link to past threads, a musebox/open post, and/or previous communities you were a part of.)

QUESTIONS ∞

[thediadem]

Permissible Actions
Actions you may take for this TDM without mod pre-approval:

• Ignore the car and hitch a ride with another character into Panorama. You'll still owe the same amount regardless since Yom Crook won't cover your medical bills if you don't accept their vehicle. You'll also need to double your loan if you want a vehicle later.
• Beat up or even kill a random NPC, especially during the power outage. Keep in mind three things: 1) all major actions should have narrative consequences; 2) NPCs in the Diadem are scrappier than average, likely armed, and potentially possess unique or powerful abilities themselves; 3) communicate and don't go overboard.
• Same goes for theft or mugging. Have fun, but keep it balanced and don't disrupt the spirit of the game.
• Raiders can be anywhere in the Fringes. Add them to the prompts if you want extra danger. Characters can also murder raiders.
• Force your character's vehicle to have ridiculous decals or color schemes they'll hate.
• Give your character a low-level job.
• Steal a phone. Just know the SIM card is separate so they'll either have to risk stealing that, too, or resign to paying for one.

If anything is unclear, please ask!
This includes if you're having trouble gauging appropriate consequences or the limits of certain actions. We're happy to guide you.

Charles Xavier | X-Men Movies

[thetruefocus]

ARRIVAL AND DRIVING

Charles wakes up in pain and without the steady arm of his right-hand man around him, both of which are troubling details that make it confusing before the masked person attempts to explain the situation. He might have been skeptical of the information given but it doesn't take much for their surface thoughts to reach him, and it is with cold acceptance that he asks if they have any wheelchairs on loan. It is sturdy but far less comfortable than the one Erik recently destroyed.

The only bright spot in this truly unfortunate situation is when there is a van option that is well-suited for him and his needs. It seems like a bit of a joke, the decoration on the sides fitting the young man he once was and no longer could be, but it works. And that's the first bit of good news. Once taught how to use it, Charles finds himself behind the wheel after years without and more than a little rusty because of it. He used to love driving his collection of cars on sunny days.

He is not the best driver now, as if all that experience went out the window. It is a learning curve and a van is both styled like the 60s but futuristic to him too so he stops and stalls more than once as he steers with his hands and accidentally hits the sudden brake rather than the gas. Perhaps someone is following him and doesn't expect the brake, bumping into him, surprised by someone stopping for no conceivable reason. Perhaps it's you who ends up on the receiving end of an unexpected bump as he hits the gas rather than the break, cringing at the sound of a crack of metal. Either way, he sticks his head out of the window, expression apologetic. "Terribly sorry about that it's ... been some quite time since I drove."

PANORAMA

Arriving in the city is actively a nightmare. The sudden incoming wave of chattering minds, emotional or sturdy, makes him grit his teeth and clench the wheel, continuing on very slowly as he starts and stops more than once. After setting up in a truly horrifyingly unimpressive motel, Charles goes to find these free samples as apparently he has access to no funds. He is a practical if frustrated man and waits his turn, although he might accidentally wheel over someone's toes or bump into them when the line goes forward but then stalls. "Bloody hell." He puts his head in his hands, massaging his temples with an open expression of pain crossing his bearded face.

"Oi, no cutting!" he tells someone if they try to muscle their way in, his tone sharp. He moves his fingers toward his temple but then thinks better of it and stews instead. "Hopefully they aren't going to run out," he says with a forced smile to whoever is in line with him. Eventually, he wheels his way out with a lap full of what he could scrounge, enough samples for him and at least one other person.

On the way back to the motel, which is frustratingly out of power, he runs into a pack of miscreants who have decided to skip the line and take what he's gainfully gathered. Charles doesn't seem afraid in the slightest as three men surround him, sighing as he eyes them. "Truly, my friends, I assure you, this is not what you want to do today. You can go now and forget about this." Yes, he tries to reason with them first. No need to go right to aggression when he holds the cards, although from the outside it appears they're picking on a helpless man.


THE FRINGES

Charles didn't know what to do when he first arrived so he started volunteering at the hospital, one of the rare places that seemed to be an easy option while he settled in. When news got around that there were surprising antibiotics showing up in the newest situation, he was already getting into his van to go look into it. Charles however is not someone who goes in alone. He will try to recruit people he sees. "The hospital could use some help, and I'm afraid it could be dangerous, and there is no obvious reward, but ... it would do good for people who need it. Please consider joining me."

Once he finds a partner, Charles makes a face when he makes it out of the car and water is already lapping at his tires. It could rust if this goes on too long. If he and his partner find themselves both trapped in the room together, Charles thinks quickly once it shuts down, glancing around them. "We must find the code." He sorts through the papers looking for an answer, and while focused at first on that, his mind starts to wander.

He blinks, confused, as unexpected but familiar words appear on the page. Names of people he used to know, but are lost now, and he flips back and forth between two single pages. Where were you, Charles? one says in bold letters, and he stops going through them abruptly, staring. He is entranced as a horrible pit drops into his stomach, and he freezes unhelpfully, as the water begins to rise past his ankles.

If his partner is separated from him, Charles will find the codes on his side, but realize there is nowhere to put them in. He will shout through the window as best as he can the details or use other means to end this.**

[**OOC note: he would use his telepathy to converse with the other person and help them, if that is something you would allow please give permission in the response.]

WILDCARD

Charles can be found helping at the hospital, miserably dealing with the cheap motels, trying to get around while wet from the storms, and struggling with his new wheelchair.

For other psychics or telepaths, they may experience his mind accidentally touching theirs, from either searching for people he knows or struggling with control after being surrounded by more people than usual. His pain is evident and perhaps it can be felt by someone unexpectedly touching his mind. He is not reading minds on purpose, this is solely open to characters who want to connect with him on the psychic plane.

Otherwise, hit me with whatever! Please feel free to message me on plurk @ theskyisnew or dm me with any questions.

Jack Kline | Supernatural

[godjr]

ARRIVAL & DRIVING

Jack is very, very confused when he wakes up. He is used to being confused, that's his natural state of being most of the time, but this is new. He has been to another universe before, but it was just another version of his. He doesn't think that's the case here. He politely listens to everything he is told, nodding along, but brightens visibly when they say he can have a vehicle! "I like your mask," he tells Yom Crook politely.

"I have driven twice. It was very fun." He strikes up a conversation with anyone else who may be looking at the cars, unafraid of chatting with strangers. "I have seen movies with motorcycles, they look cool. I could probably drive one, right?" Jack can't see why not. He thinks immediately that Dean would be impressed with a motorcycle, he would think they're cool. There are other cars but none of them strike him as something the Winchesters would pick, and he is one of them, so in the end, he picks a blue motorcycle and a matching helmet.

Jack makes it only a little bit outside of the area before he crashes the motorcycle. It doesn't break but it does slide from underneath him more than once, and he then tries to be creative and make eights to get control, and then he falls off it some more. The strange thing is that every time he falls, and some of the time it looks like he should be severely injured, Jack just pops back up like nothing happened, adjusting the helmet on his head. It takes him five hours to drive the two-hour length to the city because he keeps crashing or driving in the wrong direction, but he's all smiles when he makes it there. Overall, a successful attempt, since he got there!

PANORAMA

Jack gets into the line at the supermarket because he sees the line and assumes it's for something important. "I wonder what is at the end of this. What do you think we're waiting for?" He says to anyone nearby. When he's not in line he is wandering the aisles, picking things up and looking at them with obvious confusion before putting them back. He may bump into someone while trying to take and put things back on the shelf, waving hello in a friendly way. "I don't think I know any of these brands. That's interesting, isn't it?" Otherwise he can be seen enjoying a sample outside the supermarket, looking delighted like it's the best thing he's ever tried.

He looks very seriously at the posters for jobs, tilting his head. "I wonder if there's an FBI here. I don't have my badge with me." He ends up offering to work both as a cash register and a graveyard shift, seemingly easy to convince and train.

When back at the motels, Jack looks surprised when a few suspicious-looking people corner him. Young and naive, he is an obvious mark for someone who knows what to look for. "Oh, I'm sorry. I can't give you any money, it's for me. But you could get a job at the supermarket with me." One of them has a bat and slaps it down into the other hand, but Jack looks at them without a shred of fear in his eyes.

THE FRINGES

Jack sees the message and curiously goes to investigate. 'Chaser' seems like a good title and he probably should be something better than a check-out guy someday. He doesn't think there's any hunting to be done here. After parking his motorcycle, he doesn't give a second glance to the water at his ankles and goes inside. "Oh, medicine! That's good." He sees it floating through the window.

When inside, Jack just looks around at first, wondering where the medicine is so he can bring it to someone, when he realizes someone appears to be trapped inside the room. He goes up to the window and knocks on it, slamming a fist with a heavy rattling, and looks confused that it didn't break. He used his actual strength and it didn't break? Worrisome. "I'm sorry, I can't break it open." The person's lips on the other side are moving and he can't hear them. "Hello?" he shouts louder, as if that will help.

If the other person manages to message or get through to him what needs to be done, Jack immediately goes to look for the pad to get them out. The shadows are a surprise, spreading everywhere. Jack is confused as they surround him and then jumps when out of nowhere something slices into his hand. The healing in response is fast, but he doesn't know how it happened. His eyes glow a vivid white-gold moments before he rips the panel off, and puts in the code.

"Hello!" he says with a wave when he returns to the area where the person is trapped. "I think there are monster shadows that are trying to eat us, we should probably leave." He sounds very, very calm saying that.


WILDCARD

Open to anything! Jack is friendly and will strike up a conversation with anyone. Jack has extraordinary supernatural power and it is possible that other people could pick up on it, especially anyone with the ability or sense for divinity/angelic leaning. Please feel free to message me on plurk @ theskyisnew or dm me with any questions.

panorama!

[pse]

[ Although recovering from her injuries upon entry have left her with an uncommon limp, Kimiko doesn't hesitate to cut in on three men attempting to intimidate a man in a wheelchair. Lips unhappily downturned, she shoves her way past one of the aggressors—neither the biggest nor the smallest, so mid-sized by all logic—and stands next to Charles's wheelchair. Rather like a guard dog at attention, her shoulders are puffed up and her body language is nearly feral.

She makes a dismissive little gesture at the one she figures is the ringleader. Run along now, in all but spoken words.

If Charles catches any thoughts, they'll be in Japanese. But her emotional state isn't buried deeply. She's concerned about him, and both unhappy about and unafraid of his would-be aggressors. ]

𝐆ᴜꜱᴛᴀᴠᴇ ❧ ᴄʟᴀɪʀ ᴏʙꜱᴄᴜʀ: ᴇxᴘᴇᴅɪᴛɪᴏɴ 33

[stonethrow]

OPEN TO ALL ✴︎ EMP COMMENT FOR INFO & CONTACT ✴︎ BE WARY OF THREADS MARKED FOR SPOILERS
no spoilers for co:e33 will be mentioned in tags with non-canon mates

[thetruefocus]

[ It was probably on him to think that no one would cause trouble over free scraps of food. There will always be people who do that. The ringleader just smirks at him over his politeness and steps closer, planning on maybe playing with his captive for fun, but all three of the men shift their attention to Kimiko. They warily size her up. Each has at least one visible weapon on them.

Charles's attention also snaps to Kimiko and he's genuinely concerned. He can handle himself but the arrival of another person means he has to worry for her too, and he shakes his head, dark hair shifting with the movement. ]

You must be careful, the people here are not to be trifled with.

[ He has already been in their minds, he knows what they're capable of, what many people in this city are able and willing to do. Their thoughts writhe around him during bad times. He does a surface level observation of her thoughts and recognizes the language, but he is too polite to do more than that. He puts out a hand to block her from the others protectively, moving forward a little in his wheelchair to face the men. ]

Please, nothing I carry is worth this. You can still walk away.

Nadine Cross | The Stand

[nadine_he_loves]

Arrival/On the Road

Had Nadine lived a slightly more normal life, she'd have said that this was impossible. That she'd hit her head in an accident on a mountain road and all of this was some sort of coma-dream. She had been in some sort of accident, apparently. The memories of immediately prior to waking were a bit fuzzy.

A nasty gash on her head and a few badly bruised ribs certainly indicated an accident. She'd been suffering from dehydration, too, apparently.

But she hasn't lived a very normal life, and this seems about as possible as anything else that's happened to her. Sure, she was in some world that routinely pulled people into it via unknown forces. That's believable enough. Unknown forces have been controlling her life for the majority of it. Some stranger has patched her up and given her a twenty year old (by her estimation) station wagon on credit. A little harder to believe, but she doesn't have much choice but to accept it.

It seems to her there are two choices. Panic, focus on what she'd been doing before whatever had happened, what she was missing, how she'd be missed....or save all of that for later and just focus on the immediate while she figures out her situation.

The latter seems far more appealing in the moment. And practical. The practical thing is to focus on now, and getting to the promised city that lay a couple of hours away.

Which she'd be in the middle of doing, except her damn Volvo has blown a tire about forty five minutes into the journey. She's not sure what she ran over, but it had been impossible to see and punctured a neat little hole in the front left tire. She's on the side of the road, crouching by it to inspect it and wondering what the hell she's going to do about it. The few things she'd had with her aren't any help in fixing a tire, and she doesn't think she could change one herself even if the car has a spare.

"Damn it!"

Panorama - Apartment Blackouts

While Nadine is capable of living out of her car, it lacks certain things she considers necessities. Like a bathroom. Or a way to easily heat food. Or an actual bed. So she's shelled out some of her hard earner but meager savings to rent a room for a couple of nights. It's an awful room, like something out of a movie about the slums of New York or something, but it's an actual room. And God knows she's stayed in worse when she had to. And it has a television.

Besides, there's just something about being inside an actual building that gave the impression of better safety. It's likely an illusion, but it's a comforting one.

Or rather, it would be, if not for the sudden plunging into darkness that's just occurred. The hum of electronics that makes a steady background sound dies out, and there's something profoundly sad about the cease of the irritating buzz.

As quiet as it is inside, it doesn't seem to be the case outside. There's a bang against the door that makes her start, and she watches it for a moment before getting up. Before checking, she slips her handgun into the waist of her jeans, just in case. There's no second bang, like a heavy fist slamming against the wood, but she waits a moment longer before opening the door.

Nothing.

Frowning, she steps out, looking both ways for any sign of life.

Wildcard

[OOC: Feel free to throw a scenario at me! Also I will match tag style, brackets a-okay!]

Panorama >.>

[widows_kiss]

[ Having only just arrived in town herself, Natasha is still in the midst of getting her bearings, scoping out the area, getting the lay of the land. Everything in this place is weird and yet strangely familiar in an eerie sort of way. She has no idea if this is the work of the Stones or something else entirely and so far, she hasn't discovered anyone with enough knowledge to start giving her real answers to those questions.

But its in her attempts to scout out the area around the lodgings she'd found, that she comes across three large men menacingly cornering a guy in a wheelchair. ]

Really? [ she drawls as she saunters up to them, completely unarmed and a full head shorter than any of them. Her posture is completely relaxed, however, unbothered by the fact that her abrupt entrance now has their attention turning to focus on her. They don't look intimidated, one even leering at her as he eyes her up and down.

Idiots. ]

I really don't think this is the fight you want to pick today, boys.

[ She doesn't know the guy in the chair, but the fact that he doesn't seem all that alarmed to be surrounded is pretty telling, too. Not that she's expecting these guys to listen. They don't look too bright. But she's not the type that could just walk past, either. ]

Renoir ⚔ Clair Obscur: Expedition 33

[betenoir]

Open Threads ⚔ Closed on Request ⚔ EMP & Contact Info ⚔ Marked for spoilers
Spoilers reserved for castmates and prior discussion

❧ ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ᴠᴇʜɪᴄʟᴇ

[stonethrow]

( one moment gustave was fighting a nevron in the caverns of stone wave cliffs, and the next—here he was, a migraine blossoming on the back of his head (did he get hit by the nevron, fall unconscious?), none of his fellow expeditioners nearby. disorienting is one way to put it, and his panic almost gives way to a stream of bile out of his empty stomach. some medicine they give him, and although he feels the electric tingles of anxiety under his skin, he's... better.

whatever 'better' can be defined as.

a solution is given to him, though: the idea that those he is looking for might very well be found at the end of the road, in panorama. it's not a certainty, but there's not much he can do, as yom crook (what an unpleasant name, he thinks) basically tosses him off to find his way, he's got other things to do.

after picking out a car that supplies his endless engineering curiosity with questions, he trails off to the side of the scrapyard, manual in hand, hesitantly handling the keys and passing the pages with a cinched brow. does the author of this manual accept feedback?

stepping to the side, he sits down (tumbling back a little, this cinder block was lower than he anticipated), checks his backpack to make sure he still has all his items with him—his journal, the lumina converter—before he starts poring over the pages of the manual. )

Automobiles — place the key onto the ignition...

( his words trail off as he glances up, realizing something that seems pretty important. this is a standard manual for every vehicle here. so— his arms droop between his knees, helplessly, speaking his grievances out to nobody in particular. )

Aren't these all different types of vehicles? How does one manual fit all?

[pse]

[ For a moment or two, it seems like Charles's gentle voice and earnest words are enough to dissuade the men from making a scene. But hungry bellies win out over reason. Honestly, Kimiko has been there and can't blame them—but she's new to this city, new to its rules and cement and grit. All she sees is a man, his disability as visible as the coat she wears, being preyed upon. It's cruel and it's too familiar and she doesn't like it.

The men talk. They murmur and swear and shake their heads. They're desperate, perhaps, but they're also just as amused by someone they see as an easy target. And they advance another step, creating a tighter circle to ensnare not just Charles but Kimiko.

She sighs soundlessly. She gave them a chance.

With a soft, two-fingered touch, she gently moves Charles's hand so it isn't in her way. The man closest to her—Albert, let's call him for now—instinctively takes the opportunity given. One second, he has her in a hold meant to subdue someone of her side. The next second, his arm is twisted behind him in a grip so unyielding that his face grows red and wrinkled like a babe's; strong veins pulsing and protruding, tears coat his eyelashes. Kimiko doesn't want to maim him, doesn't want to cripple him, but—

But Albert here needs to be the one to give her a reason not to. Again, she makes a dismissive gesture at the other men. Fuck off, or something. ]

DUDE

[thetruefocus]

[ The last thing he wanted was anyone else getting involved, for their own safety of course, and because he still has an instinct in him to keep his invisible mutant power exactly that. He doesn't understand the lay of the land yet, and searching with his mind has only lead to constant headaches. He can still feel the edge of one now. His head turns toward the young woman who joins them and now he worries for her more than himself. Yet, he does notice the way she carries himself, with the same confidence that he does. Perhaps for a similar reason. ]

I would have to say the same. I doubt these paltry samples are worth the effort.

[ Although he does seem to be protecting them like they are. He hasn't yet been able to find a way to procure wealth and he isn't willing to steal, so food has been difficult to come by. He ate in the supermarket as well, as cleanly as possible, and he guards it now.

The three men consider both of them, not willing to leave just yet, as they're sizing up the potential threat. The leader has a bat and the other two knives, but nothing more sophisticated than that for the time being. These aren't high ranking criminals. Just here to rob a man in a wheelchair. ]

I am certain these men have better things to do.

verso 🗡️ clair obscur: expedition 33

[reverso]

((ooc; this is a spoiler-free top level for the game! certain threads might contain spoilers depending on the direction they head (most likely the ones with potential castmates), but I will try to remain conscientious and mark them accordingly!))

—one

[With a name like Crook, Verso’s not entirely surprised he’s been tossed out on his own with both a strange new vehicle and a debt to pay. Much of this is baffling, perhaps enough so that he might question the validity of all around him, but what is there to do but to either gawk uselessly, or try to give this new (it doesn’t look terribly new, all things considered) motorcycle a spin? Best to focus on the problems far more prominent, the ones staring him in the face — the storm in his mind can wait for now.

Anyway. It goes about as well as one would assume.

That is:

A: [You run into him before he roars off, awkwardly sitting atop his bike as he quirks a brow at you and your newly-acquired vehicle. A flippant, but friendly enough:]

Don’t suppose you’d take a passenger in yours before I make a fool of myself on this thing?

[Maybe you’ve got like an actual car? A truck? Maybe you can give him a ride and haul his motorcycle along for the ride.]

B: [He’s off like a bat shot out of hell, for how fast he’s going on this blasted thing. The road blazes by him in a blur; he clenches his teeth, fists in a white-knuckled grip. And from his exclamation down this long stretch of road, one can assume this is more via a lack of familiarity his vehicle, rather than a purposeful choice:]

Putain!

[Oh, he’s fast approaching another vehicle. Maybe if he swerves fast enough he can avoid either a head-on collision or the most embarrassing fender bender known to man. One that’s sure to send him flying.]

Hey! Hey! Careful!

[The screech of tires. He swerves. Just how badly does this go?]

—two

[Badly enough that Verso looks like he’s Had A Day by the time he’s made it to Panorama, and the atmosphere of the city isn’t doing him any favors. It’s maze-like and overcrowded—he’s constantly bumping shoulders with people who don’t seem to pay him any mind—and he’s found himself somewhat hungry.

But he’s lucky enough to find the supermarket, and thus indulge himself in the free samples since he’s not much of anything else to his name to purchase a proper meal. So, the cheese line it is. He grabs more than one sample. The cabbage dumplings are next. Then a sip of the juice. And when he gets in line for the chocolate-covered alien eggs—]

…Oh. [Well. Actually.] Those don’t look too bad actually.

[Perhaps you grab the last of the samples, however, which has him frowning, and offering a little cube of cheese.]

How about a trade?

—three

[Honestly? He’s happy to just remain here in the dark until things sort themselves out. When the lights flicker and throws his room into pitch darkness, he murmurs-]

Wonderful!

[-but otherwise doesn’t move as he listens to the hubbub of others panicking beyond the thin walls around his room.

That is, until he hears screaming.

Only then does he sigh a bit heavily, rise to his feet, and grope his way through the dark to open his door and peer out down the hall… for what good it does.]

You all right? What’s going on out here?

[ARE YOU BEING ROBBED?? DO YOU NEED HELP? Or is there someone else in that bleak darkness that needs assistance?]

—wildcard

[whatever your heart fancies!]

⚔ The Blocks

[betenoir]

[ Three strikes on the ground.

Three slow blows in succession echo around.

Three times the pattern repeats.

Until a lone figure emerges from the middle distance with his weight resting upon a wooden cane. Looking up at the heavens, comfortable walking in the openness of the night air rather than those crowded blocks in which everyone finds themselves. Those who announce themselves will draw his attention down to earth. Strangers are acknowledged with a guarded stare and cocking of the head. Those observant enough to notice will see this man has carried himself through dangerous situations.

But those familiar with this figure receive nothing but silence. They are observed with a cold and controlled stare: an ominous warning for those who remember their first encounter.

Or worse.

As for the one person more familiar with him than anyone? Well, that’s complicated.]

panorama

[heavymetals]

[ It's been a few days now, and it's become increasingly clear to Erik that everything happening here is very much real, and very much outside his expertise or scope of knowledge. To say that it leaves him concerned is putting it mildly; he's bordering on paranoia at this point, constantly looking over his shoulder, expecting something to finally happen that will explain all this insanity and make sense of it all.

But it doesn't. He's in some strange world, not even a place on Earth from the looks of it, and he lacks anything that could possibly help him get by.

Except his powers. He still has those, at least. It serves him well enough, giving him a slight advantage, as does the fact that he's had to survive worse than this. The lack of funds is practically a non-issue, since he knows how to scrape by and has no qualms about the occasional helping himself of items he needs (it's called theft), because as much as he wants to figure out what's happening here, he does need sustenance at the very least.

A few days in, and he's gotten the lay of the land to some degree, hopped between a few abandoned buildings, gotten a job at a warehouse of one of the supermarkets just to get by— enough money to buy him a night or two at one of the cheapest motels he can find. He'll go from there, but for now, it's enough to survive.

It's early hours of the morning when he gets off shift and finally gets to the room, the lack of electricity not something that truly bothers him. A bed and running water are an improvement at this point, even if it means having a cold shower, though he is tired enough that he might just pass out the second he steps through the door.

But instead, as he turns the corner of the hallway, he comes into the path of someone he knows. And at this point, he was not expecting a familiar face. He was definitely not expecting that familiar face to be the man now before him, sitting on a wheelchair that's clearly no remake of his old one, and Erik looks absolutely stupefied and at a complete loss for words. ]

Charles.

Rogue | XMCU

[mississippis]

Arrival and Introduction

One second she's being half dragged, half carried through the halls of what had once been the Institute, security lights flickering and strobing and leaving her disoriented. But as she stumbles, legs still weak from too long on an experimentation slab, falling face first against the metal grates below, things shift and everything goes dark.

The Sentinels had been right behind them, sharp spikes coming up through the floor, and she's certain this must be what death is: a jolt, a wail, and sudden darkness.

The next thing she knows, her eyes fly open and she's on a cot that's, amazingly, a million times more comfortable than what she's used to in the Lab. Though that's not saying much. She's used to nothing more than the floor and a blanket that's more holes than fabric. There's something -- someone? -- looking down at her and she thinks for a second that they must have been captured, that Bobby and Erik must be in a similar situation, all because they'd tried to rescue her.

Still, despite being so mind-numbingly used to being poked and prodded and studied, the unfamiliarity of the mask makes her shriek, and she's kicking back at the blankets, trying to get away from it.

The explanation that follows actually helps more than it should. It doesn't really clear things up for her, but the overarching theme, the one that matters most, is that she's not the Lab anymore. Whatever this place is, she's free to leave it, free to take a vehicle, on the hook for a loan maybe, but even that seems inconsequential compared to where she'd come from.

Rogue gets on the road as quickly as possible, not wanting to linger, certain that if she does, all this will somehow fade and she'll wake up back in her cell.

The drive is also more relaxing than it should be. It's been years since she's been behind the wheel of anything. Years since she's been outside. And the motorcycle she's been given provides plenty of that. She doesn't bother with the helmet, doesn't think she can handle the idea of being enclosed that way, and ends up speeding for most of the trip.

About an hour and a half in, she begins to hear a faint rattle, then a sputter, and her speed decreases. This is the catch, she thinks, because, of course, there had to be one. She'd known it had to be built in somewhere.

Pulling over to the side of the road, she climbs off the bike, messing with the mitten-like gloves that are part of her lab uniform so she can at least try to get a sense of what's gone wrong. Without tools, though, she finds herself groaning in frustration and kicking the back wheel of the bike before long.

So far, no one's passed by, but as she gears up for a second kick, she hears the familiar rumble of an engine that seems to be getting closer. As much as she doesn't want to draw unwanted attention to herself, it's not like she has a choice, so by the time the vehicle is within eyesight, she's waving it down.

Power Outage

A lot like the cot she'd woken up on, the motel almost seems lush compared to the lab. Even the power outage doesn't bother her much, even if it means that there's not much to do but sit and brood.

Rogue had gotten used to the dim, eerie glow of her cell, to having nothing but occasional visits to a slab to break up the monotony. Having to try to keep her mind steady when there's nothing to cling to. But she's not used to being in a place where she can interact with people, where, when she hears screaming, she can actually go to it, instead of futilely banging her fists on her plexiglass enclosure or huddling up in a ball while trying to drown it out.

So when she hears shrieking from what sounds like a few rooms down, she grabs the first thing she can get her hands on -- a lamp that's otherwise useless without power -- and races out of her room, dimly aware that she's ready to take a swing at the first thing she sees no matter who or what it is.

Set Free

If she has to pay back the loan for the bike, she might as well use the thing now that she's gotten it to start again.

She's gotten soaked on the drive over and realizes the bike might not have been the smartest choice, but what's done is done. Unfortunately, the building she's stopped in front of doesn't look like it's going to provide a whole lot of shelter, not when she approaches and realizes that the water comes up to her knees.

She'd be more bothered by each step splashing her with more water if the rain hadn't been coming down so hard, but maybe, hopefully, she can get inside and get to high ground. Even pulling herself up onto a desk for a little bit and trying to dry out her shoes would be a welcome relief.

With nothing but the emergency lights from the roadblocks to illuminate things for her, she has to get close to the windows to see inside. There are crates, bobbing around in the water, but, more alarmingly, is that someone seems to be trapped inside.

She raps her knuckles against the window, trying to get their attention, before moving to find a place to try to pull the window open.

Wildcard

[ Wildcards are more than welcome! If you'd like to plot something else out, feel free to contact me on Plurk (mississippis). ]

[thetruefocus]

[ Charles understands all too well the hunger that might drive people, considering it is the same thing that led him to wait in line for these treasured pieces of food himself. He does not have as easy a time finding a way to riches here and he cannot be choosy. He can sympathize, which is why he gave them an out, but they may also just be being malicious too.

He has been trying to not use his powers since arriving, due to a mix of keeping it invisible and because it makes his mind throb when he does, but this is quickly becoming a situation where he might need to. His gentle prodding can only go so far. He moves his hand away from her when she presses and sucks in a breath when she moves, liquid fast. It reminds him of Raven for a moment.

Instead of being scared off the men flip up knives and come for her, and Charles must act. His fingers touch his temple. ]

Stop.

[ They freeze in place, unable to move a muscle, their eyes suddenly blank. It causes him immediate pain and he flinches, their minds tumbling into him and he has to focus through it. Albert also stops writhing in her grasp even as it causes him pain. ]

You will leave now and forget both of us. And think about your actions and what your family would think of you for it!

[ The two men put their knives away, waiting for her to release their friend, standing at attention and not showing any expression otherwise. ]

fyi I'm good with spoilers up to act 2!

[frighteningly]

I believe, although the shell is unique, the inner workings are all quite similar.

[ With grease on her hands (and a streak or two on her face), and her hair shoved messily out of her face, Nadiya looks far less like a queen than she did a few weeks ago. Aside from food, her main purchase of significance has been a tool belt and a slow gathering of old, cheap tools; she wears it the way others might wear their most beloved jewelry—consistently and with great care.

Assuming by his uniform that this man is a soldier, she speaks crisp Arnesian and not High Royal. It'll be a minute before she figures out it doesn't make a difference.

Wearing a small smile, she asks— ]

Do you require some assistance?

❧ ᴛʜᴇ ʙʟᴏᴄᴋꜱ

[stonethrow]

Maelle!

( it's been a few hours, and gustave's general sense of being at peace in this place is nowhere to be found. he's constantly found in and around the blocks, calling out a couple of names, in intervals—maelle, lune, sciel—as if expecting to find someone. in fact, he needs to find them, and this 'maelle' with more insistence still. he knocks on doors of the different motels, annoyingly so, his left arm a dull metal echo against the furnishings of the place, until he's forcibly asked to please leave, he's disturbing others.

can one really be too mean to this desperate, sad-looking man? )

Merde...

( he grunts, as a sudden electric-sounding boom gives way to a power outage.

tiredly, he walks down the rest of the outer stairs down as tenants of the motel poke their heads out of their rooms and complain about the current state of affairs. the bile threatening to expel out of him upon his arrival feels like a constant in the pit of his stomach now, and he's sweating plenty under his expeditioner's coat. )

—hey, man. Nice arm.

( raising his gaze as he reaches the landing, a trio of hooligans approach him, eyeing his prosthetic arm. no such issues in lumiere, but here — well, it's not the first time someone has made a comment about his arm; some impressed, others interested in a way that he does not appreciate.

he grumbles, )

I don't have the time for this.

( or the emotional energy to respond accordingly. some help might be welcome, as gustave tries to assess the threat level of the trio. )

[thetruefocus]

[ This came at a particularly confounding moment for Charles. He'd been in a highly emotional moment with Raven and Erik, in deep pain from a certain someone dropping a stadium on him, and then there was sudden nothingness. A part of him wondered in those first few minutes if he found himself in the future instead, if he'd swapped somehow, and was doomed to live out the apocalypse.

Nothing so dramatic, at least not yet, but it did have a familiar ring of desolation. He has not been here long, but the voices have been louder and louder by the day. Charles has never been anywhere this populated, not for an extended period of time, and he cannot sleep. The thoughts and feelings flood through him at any hour of the day, and it's led him to be exhausted and overwhelmed. He looks it when he wheels forward, hoping to find some access to food this morning as finding a job has not come easily to him. This is the first time in his life he couldn't just reach into an endless bank for his needs.

Dark hair is stringy and unkempt, his beard grown in slightly more due to not having anything to shave with, and his blue eyes are rimmed with red from exhaustion and pain. So of course the last thing he expected, the last thing he wanted, was to find himself looking at Erik.

At first, he blinks. He squints. He cannot believe his eyes. His mind has been so overwhelmed that he wonders if he's hallucinating. ]

Erik?

[ He doesn't go straight for his mind, he sits there like a fool, gaping at his former best friend. He goes straight for suspicious after that. ]

Is this your doing?

on the road

[bananaclip]

When Dayna took the loan for her vehicle they'd supplied her with a rusted 4-door extended cab Chevy pick-up, a real workhorse, which pleased her. She doesn't think this vehicle will get very good gas mileage but that doesn't seem to matter here.

She's some way off when she sees the woman standing by her car on the side of the road, inspecting the tire. Dayna doesn't know if the woman knows how to change a tire, but she knows it's the kind of job that's easier with a helper. Besides, if the woman doesn't know how, Dayna can make quick work of it. She pulls in behind the other vehicle and cuts her engine.

She gets out, glancing down the road to make sure no one's right behind to hit her if she walks to the other vehicle, then approaches Nadine.

"You need some help?"

Jinx | Arcane | (will match style)

[alwaysme]

((Contact. Jinx's canon point is her last appearance in the s2 finale. A note that Jinx does NOT have her signature braids. It should be minor but I do have an opt-out post for her and I will cw anything that might dip into Bad.))

A. The Scrapyard - Arrival

[It's not the first time Jinx has heard voices.

Heck, it's not even the first time Jinx has had someone else in her head--no, that was a more recent event. Before this. Not that she remembers much.

Just another one to add to the growing pile.

She'd used to it.

Just like she's used to fighting for her life, though this time maybe it was less of a fight. She just didn't expect to wake up on another medical table, screaming, expecting a different doctor, expecting more Shimmer, expecting--

No. Silco wouldn't be here.

She took the pills offered to her and complemented Yom Crook on their car and instead finds herself sidled with--what? What's she supposed to do with this? Unlike Yom Crook and their matching with their car, Jinx in all her brightly covered paints stands out. Stands out in the entire Scrapyard, really. ] They wanted to give me this hunk of junk? No. It's fine.

[She turns away. Yom Crook has already long since left her vicinity.] I'll fix her up, I've dealt with worse. Did the doctor do anything to me? [She turns again, mumbling, then focuses on the nearest person and their vehicle and grins.] Oh, I see, you got first choice, huh? [It's hard to tell if she's serious.]


B. Panorama - Light Theft

She's quick. Quicker than most. Blink and you might miss it. Stare too hard and you might see the heat illusion of pink stretch and streak after her as though catching up with her body. She's used to growing up on the streets as a child, fending for what she might need. Less when she was older. More out of habit, more because she wanted it and no one could possibly question her without questioning Silco backing her.

If she stole it, they should have been better at protecting their wares, after all. Not very good at that, are they?

So perhaps you noticed her swipe from the stand, just two strange-looking vegetables that aren't out for sampling that she had her eye on when she first passed through here. You may spot her, but she spots you, putting a coy middle finger to her lips. It looks brass, unlike the rest of her fleshy fingers.

With her right hand she taps the small bag she hid the stolen food away and gestures at you before ducking down an alleyway.

You can either rat her out or follow and partake in her meal.


C. The Fringes - Sealed In (cw: past trauma, mental health)

[Look.

She was getting stir-crazy. And she wanted some parts. And she didn't want to take a job like sales clerk or whatever they kept posting for. And her room hasn't had power in days. And she's taken apart the TV and put it back together more times than she can count (they won't notice anything's wrong. probably.).

Point is: she's let herself become a shut-in when really she needs to get out there and explore and find a way to get money and get situated and some dumb text message is just an excuse.

So some meds? Easy. Cha-ching. Doesn't matter the world, drugs make the world go round. She knows that lesson very, very well.

And then the lock buzzed. And then there was water.

She's been almost drowned enough times, all by choice, that the rising water at first doesn't bother her. But there's something more at work here and as she says quietly no, no, no to a voice there's other faces bobbing in the water and those are new. Those don't belong to her.

But there's a different face that doesn't vanish under the water, beyond the glass. Your face on the other side.] HEY! Hey, can you help a girl out?!

𝓦𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐀 𝓜𝐀𝐗𝐈𝐌𝐎𝐅𝐅 ⬡ 𝐌𝐂𝐔

[carmesi]

OPEN TO ALL ✴︎ EMP COMMENT FOR INFO & CONTACT
wanda's canon point is post-civil war, being imprisoned in the raft

good with spoilers up to the mansion scene in act 2! also 1a, forgot

[pse]

[ Kimiko's vehicle is a large, black SUV with rust in the wheel well, a clear dent in the passenger door, and several cracks in the rear windshield. But it gets her from point A to point B while having the good sense to not resemble a bumblebee, so she certainly isn't going to complain. She rolls her window all the way down to give Verso her undivided attention, and then nods.

She presses the button to open the back hatch. Nothing happens. She presses it again. Nothing happens. After the third time, she gives up and climbs out of the vehicle. A small cloud of dust kicks up when her boots land on the ground and Verso will see for the first time how much the SUV dwarfs her, Maelle-sized as she is. With a wave of her hand toward the passenger seat, she gestures to his bike.

How good is Verso at charades, incidentally? ]