[ 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.

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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

[conflictedsoldier]

"Nobody will come and intercede if they believe we are in the middle of something." His voice was soft, quiet. "Or, they'll be less likely to." Bucky shrugged his shoulders and reached out for a glass, wrapping his fingers around it. He stared hard at the glass, as if his eyes alone were going to wish it full.

There had been a method to his madness. Never sit with your back to the door of anywhere. Never sit where someone could approach you from behind. And never be anywhere without an exit strategy.

"People see what they want to see. You have to maneuver around that."

[st_ratagem]

"Exactly." Without actually prying, it was easy to sense that the dangerous sparking of tension was cooling down to something infinitely more interesting: the feel of someone who knew all about the careful steps of deception. Who took them into account as a matter of course.

Opening the bottle took barely a second, pouring an appropriate amount of scotch into each of the glasses not much longer, and their disguise - to the extent it was one, since they actually were just having a drink - was complete. "Maneuver around or show them just enough confirmation that they fill in the rest themselves. What do I call you?"

[conflictedsoldier]

Bucky nodded his head, pulling the glass toward him and staring down at it. He was quiet, trying to think how he wanted to answer the man in front of him. Slowly, almost hesitantly, he took a sip of it and felt the liquid burn its way down his throat. He shivered, a feeling long since forgotten. The last time he'd really had a drink and remembered it had been the war. Even then, while he enjoyed the taste, he knew he wouldn't get drunk.

Deception. Oh, he was good at that. He was very good at playing people and doing whatever he had to do to hide himself. For him, it was out of necessity more than actually wanting to cause a form of mischief. And yet, the two men probably had more in common then either of them realized.

"Most will look at you and make a decision before you even open your mouth." He looked up at Loki with a sad smile. "Two ears. One mouth. It's easier to listen, see what people say and then play into that. People say that they want honesty, but they don't always. It's... It's complicated. It always ends in a fight..." His voice trailed off, knowing he was getting on a tangent. And really, it was a useless tangent. The only person it would really make sense to wasn't here.

"Barnes. Bucky Barnes, that's my name," he murmured. "And you are?"

[st_ratagem]

Loki's answering smile was less sad, but there was a slight twist to it that made it more genuine than most of his expressions. Oh yes, he understood that one. People saw what they wanted to or what they expected to, and that was both useful and fun, but it never really ended well. And yet, what other option did you really have? Really? It wasn't like telling the truth ever ended better. "Loki. Patronymic currently undecided."

[conflictedsoldier]

Bucky blinked. Sorry, Loki, but he isn't as educated and the big words confuse him. He chooses to take another sip of his scotch, hands tightening on the glance. "Okay, Loki," he murmured, not really wanting to look stupid. He was sure that if he tried to tap into his HYDRA memories, he might know the word patronymic in his mind, but it doesn't ring any bells with him at the moment.

"Yea, well, I'll answer to anything, really. Had a few names over the years." He sighed. "This place. How do you cope? We... We're just taken with no say in the matter and no way out," he grumbled.

[st_ratagem]

"I've been imprisoned more than a few times in my life." Loki shrugged. "Perhaps I'm philosophical about it. I've always managed to escape before, I'll do it again. In the meantime, this is far from the worst prison I've ever been in."

[conflictedsoldier]

"There are worse prisons." His eyes closed and he pictured HYDRA and the cryogenic chamber. Visibly shivering, Bucky takes another sip of his drink, then pours himself some more. "Escape is doable with the right exit strategy. Gathering intel is key," he murmured.

[st_ratagem]

"Gathering intel and patience," Loki murmured, paying more attention to the shifting landscape of the man's mind from his outside vantage point. He was almost curious enough to peek and, maybe, rearrange, but... no. He had the feeling that he wouldn't be the only one who'd ever been in there.

Also, there was that pesky almost-promise to Thor. Even when he wasn't present, the god of thunder ruined games. "Sometimes the best thing to do is nothing. Wait for your opportunities, new friend."

[conflictedsoldier]

To be fair, if Loki wanted to venture into his mind, there isn't much more damage he could do that hasn't already been done to him. And no, Bucky isn't alone in his thoughts. it's almost like he has two sets of memories and two different people in there, Bucky and the Asset. He sighed, his eyes narrowing and his gaze shifting around them without actually focusing on anything in particular.

"Wait. I've done that. Few times. Hide out too." The corners of his lips turn up at the slightest ghost of a smile. Bucharest. Steve finding him. If only Steve had been able to get there sooner and they could have had a proper reunion. It always seemed to end up in a fight.

"So, uh... Where are you from?"

[st_ratagem]

"Asgard. Don't be too concerned if you haven't heard of it." There was no reason to lie about that, even if there were plenty of reasons not to go into the complications regarding not actually being from Asgard. He'd lived there well over a thousand years, it was close enough.

In the Inn, though, there were any number of people who didn't know Asgard or had odd ideas about it. Where a sensible if off-kilter fellow with a metal arm fit in that range, he didn't know. "You?"

[conflictedsoldier]

"Asgard..." Bucky draws the word out, as if it's triggering something in his memory. "Asgard..." It sounded familiar. He knew the word, but he couldn't remember where he'd heard it before. He's sure Steve had mentioned it on the airstrip while they had been waiting for the fight to begin. Something about someone being not there. His head nodded slowly. "It... It sounds... Familiar?"

Bucky took another sip of his drink with his good hand. Beside him, his metal fingers rapped lightly on the table. "Earth," he murmured. "Brooklyn, actually." Not that he even knew if this guy was aware of Earth or Brooklyn. "By way of Russia, Bucharest, Berlin..." He frowned. "I get around."

[st_ratagem]

"Most likely you've heard of Thor." Most humans associated Thor with Asgard. It made sense, no one wanted really wanted to think that the war criminal Loki came from the same place as the shining hero. "I've been to Brooklyn. Well, New York. I wasn't there long enough to learn the territorial things, and I was... busy at the time."

[conflictedsoldier]

"Sounds... Familiar?" He frowned, his brow furrowing as he tried to picture Thor. His head shook and he just didn't come up with anything. In time, maybe that would change, but he wasn't seeing it. Not yet. He thought that, maybe, he could hear Stevie saying the guy's name, but even that he wasn't sure on. "If I've heard of Thor, shouldn't I have heard of Loki too?"

Shrugging his shoulders, Bucky looked up at Loki. "Yeah, you've probably heard of Steve Rogers then." He'd been to the museum and seen all the information there when he was starting to get his memory back. "The city is an easy place to get distracted in. Lots of stuff to see and do."

[st_ratagem]

"I have heard of Captain Rogers, yes." Loki nodded, smiling. For all he wouldn't have repeated the Chitauri thing or New York (so clumsy! there were better ways, if he decided he actually wanted Midgard), it had been... not exactly fun, but soothing in a way. The destruction had bled off a lot of rage. "I should probably note that my time in New York was spent at the head of an alien army, nore or less flattening the place."

[conflictedsoldier]

"Wait, what?" He blinked, staring up at Loki. "You... You were in New York and you were trying to destroy it." One hand reached up, running through his hair as he stared at Loki. That, well, complicated things. His brow furrowed and he glanced down at his glass. If that was the case, well, he probably thought of Steve as his enemy.

He really couldn't judge too bad, especially all the bad things he had done. He was glad Tony wasn't here. "Well, we're a long way from New York, I guess..."

[st_ratagem]

“Long story. But yes.” Yes, both to New York and to being a long way from it. “At least one universe away from it. For the moment.” Loki sipped his own Scotch, watching Bucky. Did he realize how rare it was for someone to listen and think?

Likely not. It was pleasant all the same. “There’s no point in having enemies here. It might be fun, but we’re all in the same boat. A capsize hurts everyone.”

[conflictedsoldier]

Bucky wasn't the type to judge. Especially not after everything that he had gone and done. The pain he'd caused, the murder he'd done. Steve had risked his friends for the likes of Bucky. He still wasn't sure that Steve had made the right course of action. He knew better than most how stubborn Steve Rogers could be.

"No, but some want to shake the boat up and see how you fare with it," he murmured. "And some may just want to pitch you out of it." He frowned. Bucky prayed Steve's friends never showed up here.

[st_ratagem]

"A completely different situation." Loki flashed a smile. "Of course, in my mental estimations I'm the one on the offensive, but I have to admit there are probably a few people dreaming of pitching me." He tilted his glass, catching the low light in the liquid. "Allies could help with the latter, don't you think?"

[conflictedsoldier]

"Right..." He glanced up at Loki, raising an eyebrow at the man. There was something about him, about that smile that he couldn't put his finger quite on. Allies. The man was looking for allies. That's what it was, he was nervous about the man in front of him. Not so much distrust as mischief. Was he up to something? Bucky wasn't sure.

"You're not the only one who's made enemies," he whispered sadly. "Especially..." He sighed. "You... You haven't seen Steve, have you? Is he here?"