[ Meme ] August-September Test Drive Meme (TDM)

[st_aff]

It's that time again!

→ Comment with a new character you'd like to test out in the game's setting. (put character/canon in subject line pls!)
→ You don't have to be in the game to comment! HI NEW PEOPLE LET US ENABLE YOU.
→ Tag around with new and old characters.
→ App all those characters
→ ???
→ PROFIT!

Holds for current players are here. Current cast list is here. If you're a new player and you'd like to place a 2-week reserve, you can do so here.

* * *

Here, have a few helpful scenarios for test-driving. Feel free to ignore them and make your own.

I.
Wherever you were, you aren't any longer. You took a turn, a step, blinked and you're somewhere else entirely. A long dusty road leads from nowhere to an oasis (or a nightmare, depending on your taste) of pink and bright light in the midst of the scrub desert and there's nothing and no one else in sight. If you linger long enough on the road, one of the Inn's residents will find you, but you feel noticeably drawn to come inside.

The pink and gold lobby looks like a bunny puked Easter everywhere, and the guy at the reservation desk looks a sort of silly putty shade of pinkish grey. He knows you by name and has a room reserved for you, but other than offering you fresh towels, that's all he has to say. Chances are, one of the residents will intercept you before you talk to Darryl the shade. They'll give you a guest basket with toiletries and chocolates and whatever else Caroline thinks a newcomer needs, and explain (nicely) that you're stuck here, but hey, it's not so bad. It's pretty safe, anyway. At least... so far.

II.
The red, gold and gaudy pink of the Copper Cafe overflows with residents. It's morning, the one and only time nearly everyone finds themselves in the same space for a short window before going about their day. The scent of fresh coffee laces the air, mingling with the buttery aroma of fresh baked pastry. The shade who serves as a cook, Kahni, awaits any orders that include chicken (chicken, not eggs), and Carlos has staffed one of the residents who can cook to make anything else you'd like. Kitty's pouring drinks -- no reason not to drink bloody maries or mimosas on your permanent holiday. Grab a spot at the counter or take a seat at an empty table, now that you're a resident too, there's no better way to start your day.

III. Network
[ooc: Our network is text-based and magic journal. No computers yet. You see this suspiciously well-painted image appear in your network-journal. Uh-oh. Someone taught Lillith to meme.]

Comments

Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

Nick remembered exactly what had happened after he sent out the emergency call. It was fucked up and he had no idea what the hell was going to happen, but if anyone could help, it would be her. But instead of nothingness (or the fiery pits of Hell like he assumed he'd be), Nick Fury found himself in some weird-ass dessert looking at some weird-ass Inn.

It didn't help, either, when the tall, one-eyed man walked through the lobby and saw all the pink and over-the-top decoration. He didn't look scared or startled or even surprised. He looked annoyed.

"What fresh hell have I found myself in now?"

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artliving]

"This is the Madonna Inn." When people started to arrive, Xavin had changed up her usual routine. Instead of settling near the coffee and waiting for people to ask, she made a series of small-ish cappuccinos, loaded them on a tray, and started circulating.

Hot beverages were calming, after all. "It is not hell, to my knowledge. Do you want a coffee?"

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

He looked over to the strange girl - pretty, but definitely strange. Most girls her age didn't exactly approach a one-eyed black man like him. He knew he looked like he was ready to punch someone and that was because he was ready to punch someone. His eye drifted to the coffee in her hand, then back to her face.

"Do you really expect me to take the offer of a drink from a stranger in a strange place without expecting some sort of trickery involved?" He paused. "If you can add whiskey to that, I'll take it."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artliving]

Xavin considered the request, then nodded. Many new arrivals wanted alcohol. It was a good idea. "Wait here, please."

She wove through people again, to the bar in the cafe, and took a bottle of Jack Daniels, shifting glasses on her tray until it would fit. Then, she returned to the large man and held up the tray again. "It is a sealed bottle. Open and pour as you wish, or keep the bottle if you like. Take a coffee or do not. I offer... limited trickery." Not no trickery. She was a Skrull in human shape.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

Fury picked up on the subtle difference in her words, but didn't react to it as he picked up the bottle and decided - fuck it, it was 3 pm somewhere - and poured more Jack Daniels than there was coffee in the cup. He took the cup from her then. "Alright. So now I've given in to -" He took a sip " - not entirely terrible coffee. You planning on telling me why I'm here and how the hell I can get back home?"

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artliving]

"I will not tell you either of those things. I do not know myself." 'Not entirely terrible' coffee was likely the best she was going to get, and it wasn't like he wasn't practically drinking straight whiskey, anyway. "This is a pocket dimension. We arrive, we do not know why, and we cannot leave. Sometimes some of us disappear. We do not know how or to where or why." Most people hoped they'd gone home. Back to where they came from.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

"Do you always speak without contractions?" Maybe he was just picking up on something that was a weird personal quirk, but man was it weird. He just got that sense from this young lady. It was bugging the hell out of him he couldn't place his finger on what it was though.

"So if no one knows why, then that means no one knows who's responsible. Yet." Now Fury had a mission.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artliving]

"It is easier for me. English is not my first language, and this is my own voice." One of her own voices, anyway. She concentrated for a second before speaking next, thinking through the shortened speech. Without quite meaning to, her voice when she spoke was subtly different, and not just from the contractions, "I don't have to, it's just what I like."

She shook her head and dismissed the alteration. "There are many who are trying to discover how to get out or how to find those responsible for bringing us here. Some few of us are not displeased to be here, but we do not interfere with those efforts."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_ellarnavigation]

A barefoot teenaged girl in a breezy sundress paused in the act of eating an apple at this exclamation. She looked over at the man, sizing him up with a wisdom somewhat beyond her years and shook her head. "Not hell. At least, I don't think it's hell. It's some other realm." Hell was not a concept she'd encountered before the inn, but she imagined it was something like the realm of monsters.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

"No. If this were Hell, my mother-in-law would have already found me." He looked at the girl intently. "What's your name and what's the name of this realm?" The idea of other realms did not seem to phase him.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_ellarnavigation]

Mother in law jokes were universal.

"This is the Madonna Inn in California." She liked the name of the realm. It flowed in ways that felt familiar. "I'm Moana of Motonui."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

Neither told Fury much of anything, but he took both of them in nonetheless. "Okay. Well, I'm Nick from New York. We both got great alliterations, but none of this tells me how the hell to get back home or if I'm dead."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_ellarnavigation]

"Not dead, at least, I don't think so. There are ghosts, so it seems like if they're dead, we can't be. But we also can't leave."

It was like being trapped behind the reef all over again, sometimes.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

"You know, Moana from Motonui, you're not exactly filling in the blanks here, or giving me much to work with." He could picture Hill's disapproving look and some sort of 'she's just a kid' comment, so he paused, sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Sorry, it's been a long day and it looks like it's going to get even longer."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_ellarnavigation]

Moana smiled slightly. "I'm sorry. There's not really any good answers to your questions. It's easier to learn as you go in my experience because none of the answers make sense until you do."

She turned and gestured toward the desk. "Everyone who arrives already has a room assigned to them. But you have to find your own role in the Inn. Nothing's set in stone."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_eadiesthefour]

"Not hell, monsieur. Although it seems almost witchcraft," Constance answered, her voice soft and accented, from her seat on a couch in the lobby, a bit of sewing in her lap. Her dress, with long full skirts, corset, and bodice embroidered with the fleur-de-lis made her seem as out of place as she felt here, but she was determined not to let herself be overwhelmed.

"They say this is the Madonna Inn," although what it had to do with the mother of Christ, Constance couldn't see. "In California somewhere in the Americas, from what I have been told."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

When he turned to face the voice that addressed him, Nick had not expected to find an extra from a BBC historical drama standing in front of him. Something about her, though, told him this wasn't an extra method acting. Something about her reminded him of Cap.

"My mistake, Madame." He tried to remind himself to keep the sarcasm to a minimum, but he was on edge and wanted some answers. "Unfortunately neither his being an Inn with a name or the location of California tells me how I got here or why I'm here. Although, to be honest, I won't be surprised if you tell me we're all dead."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_eadiesthefour]

Constance was used to musketeers and life at court. A little sarcasm didn't faze her at all. Especially when they were all on edge and at a loss, suddenly in such a strange place.

"I can't say we aren't." Such things were beyond a simple musketeer's wife. "But...as long as we don't know, might as well act like we're alive, hadn't we?"

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

He raised his eyebrow - the one over his good eye - as he looked at the woman. Something reminded him of the reports he read about Cap and his girl back in the day. Peggy Carter. Interesting.

"I guess so, but unfortunately for this place my acting alive is going to result in a lot of upheaval. Don't exactly do well with sitting around and doing shit-all. No offense and pardon my French."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

Tony was on his way out the front doors, looking somewhat the outdoorsman in the way he finally opted to utilize the camping rentals offered for an extended field survey of the surrounding turf when an unmistakable voice hit his ears like a freight train. He twisted his head to the side, nearly dropping the bag of gear in his hands at the sight of the tall and dark figure.

"Fury." Tony's voice was stiff, dispassionate, and revealed so very little of the sheer shock of seeing such an elusive human being suddenly appear in such a place with so little fanfare. Of all the times he felt like he was living a twisted dream during his time at the hotel, the surreality of this moment topped them all.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

Oh, he knew that voice anywhere. Despite being surprised by Stark's presence in wherever-the-hell they were, Nick didn't look surprised. In fact, he managed to look like he had been here for weeks by the simple way he carried himself and rather blank expression on his face - years of practice of looking like you knew what the hell you were doing and more years of weird-ass shit happening left, right, and center.

"Please tell me I'm having some sort of fever dream otherwise I'm dead and your dead and then the world is pretty much fucked."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

"Christ." That had been exactly what Tony did NOT want to hear out of Nick Fury. If it were any other other time the shoe was on the other foot, Tony would have had a hearty laugh. "This is the part where you reveal that this is some secret test of character to complete my ascent into adulthood or at least offer some--some enigmatic words of bullshit."

Tony just stared at the wall for a long few seconds before collecting himself. He had been spiraling enough over the last two weeks. He didn't need another bout. "Well. Alright. Welcome to the Hotel California. I'm about to go on a camping trip. Wanna join?"

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

"I'd like to think if you were having a vision from some spirit guide, you'd have the sense not to pick a one-eyed son-of-a-bitch." He almost smiled, but it was implied by the shift in his stance and the slight shine in his eye. He unfolded his arms and took in Stark's mannerisms. He had seen some of those tense muscles before, but over other things. Nick quietly took note of them.

"Camping, huh? Didn't think Tony Stark knew what camping was, unless you're proposing 'glamping'." And still, the idea of Stark in the wilderness by choice was an interesting picture in his mind.

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_arkravinghazelnut]

"I don't have access to my bank account, Fury." Tony tossed his hands up, still not relinquishing his grip on his gear. "You wanna see my penthouse suite? It's a cave. A literal cave. Quaintly accented with rat carcasses and kitten vomit which, by the way, are my favorite things about it."

Tony had taken his usual pains to groom in his overly particular style, even decked out in outdoors wear. Even if he was making himself adapt to the demands of the situation, there were some precious things he wasn't going to give up.

"I'm doing research. Taking notes. It's this or going quietly--or loudly--insane."

Re: Nick Fury | MCU

[st_artingateam]

He raised the eyebrow over his one good eye. Stark was not the first person he thought of that would have trouble adjusting. He would pin Banner there and then maybe Clint.

"I'd hate to have you lose your shit before we found a way out of here." This much was true. "So sure. Why the hell not? Just don't expect me to cuddle when it gets cold out."

He also could use the opportunity to catch up on the whole Inn situation and get the lay of the land. Plus, it had been a long time since he actually got to speak to Stark in any meaningful way.