Test Drive Meme #6 (tw violence)

[spoofer]

Test Drive Meme #6

I want neither revenge nor relief.

INTRODUCTION ⇄ FAQ ⇄ APPLICATIONS

CRASH LANDING

Exit one dimension, enter the next. It was chaos: pressure against your ears, light bending in an impossible, unimaginable way. The very molecules of your body vibrating against one another. If you have windows, the view outside makes no sense. Even if not, your hands, your face, your feet seem like an uncertain thing. It's the feel of reality itself tearing apart, reshaping, reconnecting, thread by thread.

And suddenly, there's a beach— or ocean, whichever you land in. Smoke. Fire. Salt water churning up, fizzing around.


Maybe you crash, in a ship wrecking into sand. Maybe you merely stumble out of a portal, a ragged wormhole in space. Or maybe you fall off the back of an incredible steed, some creature that carried you into this place. Either way, there's pandemonium around you. Incredibly, severe injuries are far and few between— nobody's screaming about the dead. But you might have to help pull someone free of wreckage, or move quickly to salvage burning belongings from the landing craft. Maybe it's the crafts themselves, that you're trying to salvage.

Likely, you don't know them, these other strangers who arrived here^[1]. Maybe you don't trust them— you just came out of a dying world, after all. But you all have one thing in common: you're here now.

When you get a second to breathe, maybe you'll see it. The brilliant green forest across the sand. Beyond that, the glint of a faraway city.

BATTLE WITH D.E.S.T.I.N.Y.

November has barely begun, when chaos strikes again^[2]. Perhaps you've had weeks to settle in, finding yourself a new home and getting accustomed to the neighborhoods... or maybe you've had no time at all. Your daemon warns you of a massive invasion coming from the West, the ocean where you first arrived.

The enemy has come for you again. D.E.S.T.I.N.Y., the cosmic threat to not only your homeworld but the entire Multiverse.

When the violence makes land, it's shockingly similar to the exit from your original world, yet mashed in with the experiences and genres and world details of other refugees— soldiers in red armor wielding weapons of all kinds, both advanced and rudimentary; airships, bizarre monsters; firestorms and quakes that seem sentient in the way that they move, pursuing people through the beach and the forest. You see the injured and the dead, and people running in panic. Heat and gunfire break up the ordinary peace of wilderness, driving animals into stampedes and filling the sky with panicking birds.

There are children and doctors and engineers among the many refugees of Xistentia, and not everyone can fight back— but maybe you're one of those who can.

Think fast— that's a crimson spear launching at your head now.


The city's defenses are buckling too. While ordinarily, the civlization possesses unnatural physics that subvert violence, the onslaught starts to wear agains them. The only safe place is the Temple. Here, civilians and injured combatants are banding together to try and boost morale... which coincidentally also can boost the defenses of the land by with the energy collected from emotional connectivity. For better or worse, there is plenty of negative feeling to go around, the air thick with fear.

Whether you're recovering from injury or afraid to fight, you can still contribute here. Tell a story, sing a song, make a meal out of one of the cookfires started in the hallway, or even help with medicine. One thing is for certain: we're in this together.

NETWORK

Today, it's peace time. By now, the city of Xistentia has a population of over 500 people. Shops line the streets of downtown, and increasingly well-trodden paths will take you into the agricultural zones nearer to the forest or even down to the beach. There are still distinctive animal presences around— careful with that— but the most common critters you'll see are birds crapping on your stuff outside and tiny winged hairless people creeping your food.

One afternoon, you are taken from whatever you’re doing - taking a walk through the city, sunning yourself on the beach, running around in the forest shoring up defenses - by a message, appearing on your Daemon’s network screen. It’s a simple notification, that reads:

TEXT MESSAGE SENT

It would appear that your daemon accidentally sent a text message misfire.

CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE

hells yeah

Footnotes

1. Some of these can be nameless, plot-device NPCs to facilitate interactions! But even in this case, please avoid gore in describing their current state of being. Anyone dead or catastrophically injured will have disappeared by the time your characters make it to Xistentia. There are no corpses or dying here.
   
   
2. This is connected to the war plot, coming up in November. Please read the announcement for more information! Features include good, old-fashioned violence, hurt/comfort, and "drift compatibility."

Comments

[ crash landing ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Oh. Oh dear. Loki had been scavenging at the beach, hoping for materials and trinkets he could use to bolster his finances. And he is directly in line of sight with Thor and literally no time to cast a proper illusion but Loki starts creating one anyway just in case Thor has ideas. Hammer-happy ideas.

In the meantime, he dredges up a false bright smile, holding his palms up. ]

Surprise.

[drapes]

[ he stares. he blinks. he rubs at his eyes as if it's sand alone that's showing him his dead (for the like eight millionth time) brother standing here on the beach, while the coworker hero friends he should have around him are completely missing. he stares some more. nope, definitely the dead-not-dead brother. ]

'Surprise'? [ thor, in all his sandy, disheveled glory asks from the pit in the sand he's still flopped gracelessly in. ] I watched you die. That's all you have to say?

[ just gonna pick up a nearby shell or wandering crustacean and toss it at his brother's face. half to make sure he's actually there and thor isn't just high as balls on leaking super-plane fumes, and half because this is very upsetting. ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Instinctively he catches it with an involuntary hiss. Now Thor certainly knows he's here and any chance of slipping away will be difficult. Still doable, so Loki continues to shore up his magic for a quick getaway all the same.

( and not think too hard about thor's grief. loki, after all, is practiced at ignoring what doesn't suit him from moment to moment. ) ]

I'd ask how you got here but I know you have bumbled your way in as usual.

[drapes]

I was brought here by Stark's ship, while Midgard and all life on it crumbled to ash. [ he'd perhaps meant it to sound frank and bitter, but Thor's never had so much talent for concealing agony as Loki had. The sorrow and despair slips through, as solemn eyes watch the wreckage of said ship sinking into the waves. ]

And you're changing the subject.

[ said abruptly, without immediately looking to his brother. There's a thrill of happiness in him, at the possibility his brother is still alive, but it's a pushed back, cautious one. After all, this isn't the first time he'd had to mourn Loki, and Loki being here in the flesh would mean there was yet another stinging betrayal between them. His words come even and steady, somewhat blank, not wanting to give Loki the satisfaction in knowing he'd hurt him again in this. ]

How are you alive, Loki?

[dothelokimotion]

[ Oh. That explains a lot of Stark's attitude towards him. It's hard to muster up real anger and fear when all that you know has crumbled behind you. Loki has no fond memories of Earth. But he understands, a little more now, how dangerous D.E.S.T.I.N.Y is. After all, it is no mean feat to wipe out a realm. That is real power and he shivers at the thought of it. Destruction has never been his forte.

When Thor's question comes, Loki has no clever lie ready. It has only been a few weeks since he left Svartalfheim and the wound in his body still has phantom aches. ]

I don't know. Perhaps my monstrous blood helped tame the poison.

[ Loki shrugs, trying to downplay it. He's pleased to be alive, but less pleased with what options it left him with. ]

Does it truly matter how I survived?

[drapes]

[ it's somewhat of an information overload - the events of midgard, thor's landing in who even knows where, loki being suddenly present and alive. there's difficulty in sorting through it all, not to mention the emotion brewing for each tragedy and revelation therein. thor chooses to focus on what's more immediate and familiar - loki, and what the everloving fuck he's doing here. ]

Yes. It does.

[ he doesn't believe the 'monstrous blood' bit, because loki's always healed about the same as thor has regardless, save for some differences (in his memory, at least, which isn't exactly spot on), but the fact is he'd felt him die. watched the color leave him, felt the chill go through his body, the rigidity of rigor mortis setting in. he hadn't been dying, he'd been dead. Not to mention - ]

It's been over a year. Were you ever planning on letting me know?

[dothelokimotion]

[ His eyes flash, Loki's own temper rising. He has never liked it when his own words are dismissed. But it is the second part of Thor's statement that mutes it a little, letting Loki shelve briefly. Still his response comes off as bitter and sharp, ready for a fight. ]

What nonsense is this? I came here a mere few weeks ago. It has not been a year for me. Or do you think me a liar in that as well?

[drapes]

Since your supposed death, brother, not since your vacation began. [ a beat, and thor glances around, at the picturesque beach, the forest not far, the sand getting stuck in all the crevices of his armor. ] Odd a choice as it is for you.

[ loki never really struck him as the island paradise sort of person? isn't he going to burn? he probably looks like a lobster under whatever glamour he's probably putting up. thor does take some brief respite in imagining that. hurr hurr.

as for the liar part, well. the look loki's given a look somewhere between 'you know damn well i was not born yesterday' and 'is this the real life'. ]

Do you honestly wish me to answer that, brother? [ loki, you are the last person to pull the 'have i ever lied to you' thing, because yes, you have. a lot. it's sort of your thing. but, okay, fine, because his brother is miraculously alive and because, despite the third degree being given, thor is happy for that, he's giving the benefit of the doubt, deciding to compare stories rather than argue. tugging himself up from his sand pit, thor goes about expounding on the past year and change as he dusts himself off. ] I left Asgard after defeating Malekith. The year or so on Midgrad gave space to think, reflect. Stark's mad creations had only just been fought back when the red soldiers appeared. Now, this.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki crosses his arms, trying not to bristle like an angry cat. Something was not right here and he could feel it like an itch under his skin. Or it might just be seeing Thor again, alive and well. He had no idea how Thor would fare against Malekith but part of Loki is always the little brother, always believing in Thor. There is no one stronger, no one better even if his faith has fractured over the years. With a quiet exhale, Loki takes a moment to untangle his thorny feelings. No, he does not want to fight Thor, even if the urge is always, constantly there, to draw Thor into the cycle.

But Earth is gone. Asgard . . . who knows what state Asgard is in. It puts everything into a harrowing perspective even Loki can be cognizant of. ]

When I woke up, I saw no one. Not you or the Dark Elves. So I took the ship to find my way . . . back, I suppose. But I found myself here instead.

This place can confirm that, at least.

[drapes]

[ Something stings in Thor, imagining Loki waking alone. He hadn't wanted to leave his body behind, his brother deserved the same kind of grand funeral all asgardian heroes and royalty were given, but things had been dire at the time. Guilt lurks through his chest, now, knowing Loki had found a way back to the living only to rise alone in such a desolate place. even if it isn't entirely the truth, which thor's well aware it may not be, the thought still twists in him. ]

And no time has passed for you since, save a handful of weeks? [ Thor clears his throat, pacing over, with brows knit, still pulled between the chaos he'd left, the chaos he's now found, and the constant question that is his brother. ] Time must be warped around this place.

[ not the first time it's been heard of in the realms, some places are just bizarre that way. still, oddly convenient they'd show up just in time to reunite, yet at such different ends. a silence settles for a moment or so, thor looking over the man here, tension in his jaw, and a strain clear in him. in the end, he ducks his head, something of a nod given. ]

I'm sorry for my suspicions. It's been a rough day. Year. [ some of that relief he'd cautiously held filters through, a hand lifting to lay on loki's shoulder, squeezing, with a small smile daring to show. ] It's good to see you well, brother.

I love this <333

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki blinks, his lips parted in surprise. He had not expected Thor to say sorry. In fact, he had still expected Thor to be angry. Loki's life, after all, is another betrayal among a string of grievances. The hand on his shoulder makes him inhales sharply and he ducks his gaze to the side. No weakness, not for Thor. A part of him relaxes all the same. As if the world, insane and chaotic as it were, has come sharply into focus. Thor does that. He gives it sense when all lies have rendered it false.

Still, he forces himself to act normal, his quick-silver tongue back on hand. ]

I am surprised you are so pleased to see me. It must have been a truly awful year.

me too aahhh <333

[drapes]

[ part of thor is still angry, but that anger's become more reigned in during the years since they went crusading to jotunheim together. more reigned in, not completely, not nearly. but where loki is concerned, thor's learned he will never reach the point of completely complacent with him, and perhaps that's for the best. he takes the good moments where he can, the relieving ones, the small miracles. loki isn't gone from the universe yet, and that alone is something worthy of a moment of peace.

well, peace and wry smirks and dry sarcasm, anyway. ]

I did spend a wealth of time subject to Midgardian public transportation, and the ravings of Tony Stark and his love of numbers. Of which being insulted and stabbed is sometimes preferable.

[ jussayin. ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki shrugs off Thor's grip. He has to be careful not to lean on it. He has learned better to lean on Asgard, on his family, on Thor for respite. He learned it on a broken rainbow bridge not long ago. Still he is close by, eyeing his brother warily, still expecting a trick or some form of reprimand. Thor seemed far too forgiving for Loki's continued existence.

( or that was just loki, always expecting the worst, because the best never came through ) ]

Well. Just about anything is preferable to Stark, so I am not sure if that is complimentary.

[drapes]

[ another face is given to him. since when should compliments be expected between them? bro, pls. ]I said I'm relieved to find you alive. I did not say you're typically good company.

[ insulted. and. stabbed. he's known this is life with his little brother since like 8 okay he's used to it. and yet, for those many years, thor always sought out loki's presence, his counsel, his camaraderie. no matter how they'd fought, or hurt one another. even now, really, at odds as they are, and yet, is it really so different? right, gonna muse about that later, shove those feelings right back into the feelings corner, we got shit to do. ]

Tell me, then. What is this place?

[ if anyone is likely to know the most about what the fuck is going on around them, it's loki. he's always had a knack for finding his feet quickly. ]

/2

[dothelokimotion]

[ ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki shoots Thor a dirty look even as he responds. ]

Xistentia. A waystation between the different universes and realms. I assume you remember those from your studies.

[ A pointed tone there to illustrate Thor's ability to retain factual knowledge from their childhood. ]

It seems the multi-universes are crumbling due to an outside virus or organisation. Much like the Dark Elves, they wish to return to the nothingness.

[drapes]

[ SORT OF. A LITTLE BIT. REMEMBER WHEN YOUR GIANT ROBOT BARBECUED HIM? YEAH THAT WAS GREAT. anyway.

loki's shot a withering glance, voice a long suffering drawl. ] Yes, Loki, I remember. Waystations. Places in between.

[ mostly, anyway. he understands the gist of it, even if he couldn't get into as exact specifics as loki likely could. couldn't find all the secret pathways in between places. he knows the concept, not the practice. SEE? INSULT. but they have plenty of time to squabble, and have already devoted centuries upon centuries to it. about that nothingness thing. ]

A virus. Like a disease? [ or organisation, but he'd said virus first, and that means something. ] And this spread, how is it stopped? Is it present, on this waystation?

[dothelokimotion]

[ LITTLE BITS DON'T COUNT like Loki's fall and his weird miraculous recovery. At any rate, Loki merely smiles at Thor's answer because he knew Thor didn't remember all the details and his point was made. Thor was a warrior and as he grew older, that was all he concerned himself with, while Loki, too gangly to lift a sword gave up trying to achieve that ideal. Knives made for better weapons anyway. Still, his expression grows serious. ]

It continues to spread. No doubt that is what swallowed your precious Earth and its denizens. You were lucky to have survive. As to whether it can be stopped . . . [ Loki shrugs. He's not hero, but his survival instincts are intact. He is certainly not keen on dying. ] . . . that remains to be seen. I have not been here long enough to know. But the others speak of organized fighting militias, an upcoming war that may yet reach these shores.

[drapes]

[ THEY DO WHEN IT COMES TO DEATH AND NEAR DEATH. but okay yeah out of the two of them, loki has definitely almost-died more. much as thor dislikes that, and the part where here repeatedly mourns for years at a time. you dick.

something in the bluntness of earth's destruction irks thor, knowing loki's thoughts of the people who'd been lost. perhaps there's less bite to his brother's words that thor imagines, but he casts eyes both angered and still hurting at him. ]

There were friends among those denizens. Noble and good. Undeserving of this fate. [ to snuff out an entire realm so quickly and fiercely, the immensity of that death and sorrow is still a shock to him. the less glamorous burn in him for revenge still a fever pitch. the mention of oncoming war, while not something thor's proud of, does something to soothe that despair. if for nothing else than having something to do besides fail and flee. ]

Others? What others?

[dothelokimotion]

[ Friends. Loki bares his teeth like a wild dog before reigning himself in. Thor's friends, Thor's people. Thor's sheep lost to the slaughter. The old anger comes bubbling back, the gentler changed Thor who stayed for Earth, who defended it when not moments ago, would have slaughtered them all in the name of glory. The hypocrisy of it stings even now. Thor so keen on defending a race of helpless infants, Thor who came home and didn't understand what Loki was trying to do, what he was doing for them, for all of them. his brother would have understood. if Thor had never left, he would have understood Loki.

( or he would have killed him. everything is 50/50 these days )

He pulls his gaze away. ]

Stark is here. The Captain. A few children who hail from the same world.

[drapes]

[ calm your magic tits, loki, no one likes losing loved ones, even you, you butthole. thor sees it from the corner of his eyes, the venom that curls with loki's lips, unmasked vitriol that thor should have seen growing in his younger brother long before. maybe did, and simply chose to ignore it. while he holds his ground in their eternal argument, part of him can't deny there's blame that falls to him for who they came to this end. how loki did. regardless, it is what it is, and he won't apologize for mourning those left behind the same way he would loki or sif and the warriors from home.

while his eyes linger on loki's disgust for his sentiment, any commentary is held in. now isn't the time to rehash that old debate once again. instead, he takes in the information given. ]

Already? [ he stops midway through wanting to say he'd only just been in the plane with them, but then again, there's a year's difference between him and his brother. it falls in line with warped time. okay, but-- ] And children?

... You were talking with children? [ l o l . ]

[dothelokimotion]

[ His gaze skitters back to Thor, wondering what he's playing at with that remark. He can talk to kids, Thor!! He has some social skills!! ]

I was. What of it? Everyone is rather young here.

[drapes]

And they didn't run away screaming?

[ the mental image of loki doing anything with children outside of passing them by as if they don't exist just seems completely bizarre to thor, in an amusing kind of way. enough that he smirks a little, a sarcastic pat to the back of loki's shoulder as he moves off towards the forest, and the city in the far distance. which he's assuming is where the people and children are at. ]

If this dark sorcerer thing doesn't work out for you, at least you know you have babysitting to fall back on.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki huffs, his earlier venom draining away. Never gone, of course. Loki keeps his resentments close and they have never been addressed. Until then, Loki will always remember, will always make a note of it. No one else will. Still he follows closely at Thor's heels, unable to let him have the last word. ]

I don't want to hear that from someone who couldn't pick up his toys without breaking them.

[drapes]

[ if there's one thing thor can trust about his brother, it's that he won't be allowed to win an argument with him. which makes it very convenient if he wants to both investigate the city and keep his not-so-dead brother within sights. all he has to do is keep being difficult. ]

See? You already have the nanny tone down and everything. I think you'll have a bright future in this venture, Loki.

[ loki's school of hard knocks etc etc he'll make a lovely mary poppins some day. ]