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TEST DRIVE MEME: MAY EDITION
TEST DRIVE MEME
A Confluence, capitalized, is the converging of one or more supernatural forces. Typically, a Confluence only occurs in one place at any given time. Typically.
These are not typical times.
Most of the Starfallen will arrive in Excelsior, Washington, slipping from the sky one by one, needing to be helped as they come floating down. To many citizens in Excelsior – individuals who are far from fond of metahumans – their arrival is a sign of bad things to come. It’s always a sign of bad things to come. This time, however, the bad things don’t come in the typical sequence. Instead, they’re dealing with a problem when the Starfallen begin to unwittingly arrive. What’s that problem? Plants with a rather problematic taste for flesh.
While Excelsior is hoping for spring to actually stick on the horizon, they’re warding off plants left and right. At least none of the plants seem to be able to spit fire – uh, yet?
In the midwestern part of the country, a huge barrage of rain has begun to settle over the land. Rain like this isn’t normal. Stormfronts usually keep moving forward, but this isn’t. And while rain isn’t a bad thing, this rain … is a deluge. A flood upon floods. Some Starfallen individuals will be showing up in the middle of this, arriving in both Little Love and Central City. Hope they can keep their heads above water!
Making matters worse is that everything seems a bit – planned? No, that’s not the right word. Like it’s all happened before. Or happening again. People all over are definitely noticing a strange uptick in déjà vu. Most worrying is how it seems to be happening everywhere.
These are not typical times.
Most of the Starfallen will arrive in Excelsior, Washington, slipping from the sky one by one, needing to be helped as they come floating down. To many citizens in Excelsior – individuals who are far from fond of metahumans – their arrival is a sign of bad things to come. It’s always a sign of bad things to come. This time, however, the bad things don’t come in the typical sequence. Instead, they’re dealing with a problem when the Starfallen begin to unwittingly arrive. What’s that problem? Plants with a rather problematic taste for flesh.
While Excelsior is hoping for spring to actually stick on the horizon, they’re warding off plants left and right. At least none of the plants seem to be able to spit fire – uh, yet?
In the midwestern part of the country, a huge barrage of rain has begun to settle over the land. Rain like this isn’t normal. Stormfronts usually keep moving forward, but this isn’t. And while rain isn’t a bad thing, this rain … is a deluge. A flood upon floods. Some Starfallen individuals will be showing up in the middle of this, arriving in both Little Love and Central City. Hope they can keep their heads above water!
Making matters worse is that everything seems a bit – planned? No, that’s not the right word. Like it’s all happened before. Or happening again. People all over are definitely noticing a strange uptick in déjà vu. Most worrying is how it seems to be happening everywhere.
EXCELSIOR
Ah, Excelsior – the city that doesn’t ask “why” something should be explored, but how quickly it can be explored. If only someone there had developed a swift measure to deal with a sudden influx of killer plants! The good news is that these plants haven’t killed anyone – not yet, anyway – but there is all the time in the world for that to change.
As the Starfallen arrive, they’re unlikely to notice the plants, and instead will see technological marvels all around them. Although Excelsior isn’t fond of Starfallen, they like the idea of welcoming them and getting them the hell out as quickly as possible. This philosophy results in all of the Starfallen being guided down to the ground, with further instructions awaiting them once they’re on two feet. (Or four. No one’s judging!) But once they land, they’re likely to notice that things aren’t the way they’re meant to be.
After all, someone in Excelsior failed to ask “why it’s bad to create an incredibly unlikely strain of plants that is genetically inspired by snapdragons, the flowers from those plumber games, and piranhas,” and instead went ahead with “how quickly can I do it?” Their experiment proved to be far too successful, aided by cutting-edge bioengineering technology.
Even though all Starfallen are encouraged to depart for the Midwest after they receive their teleportation devices, it’s apparent that the people of Excelsior need help. Right now, their chilly reception can easily be written off as a symptom of what’s happening. Dealing with newcomers at a time like this? Preposterous! People are injured from wild, flesh-eating plants. Obviously!
So, kind Starfallen – whether you’ve just arrived or came by when you heard word of the Confluence of trouble – will you give these dour folk the hand they so desperately need?
As the Starfallen arrive, they’re unlikely to notice the plants, and instead will see technological marvels all around them. Although Excelsior isn’t fond of Starfallen, they like the idea of welcoming them and getting them the hell out as quickly as possible. This philosophy results in all of the Starfallen being guided down to the ground, with further instructions awaiting them once they’re on two feet. (Or four. No one’s judging!) But once they land, they’re likely to notice that things aren’t the way they’re meant to be.
After all, someone in Excelsior failed to ask “why it’s bad to create an incredibly unlikely strain of plants that is genetically inspired by snapdragons, the flowers from those plumber games, and piranhas,” and instead went ahead with “how quickly can I do it?” Their experiment proved to be far too successful, aided by cutting-edge bioengineering technology.
Even though all Starfallen are encouraged to depart for the Midwest after they receive their teleportation devices, it’s apparent that the people of Excelsior need help. Right now, their chilly reception can easily be written off as a symptom of what’s happening. Dealing with newcomers at a time like this? Preposterous! People are injured from wild, flesh-eating plants. Obviously!
So, kind Starfallen – whether you’ve just arrived or came by when you heard word of the Confluence of trouble – will you give these dour folk the hand they so desperately need?
THE MIDWEST
Elsewhere, both Little Love and Central City are experiencing a flood of problems. Most of the problems are the result of the flood. While Little Love is known to be the quieter of the cities in this Confluence-ridden world, it finds itself dealing with a torrential downpour that it’s never seen before. Meteorologists quickly note that this is unnatural. All the way from Kansas to Illinois to Michigan there is rain, rain for as far as the eye can see. Flood warnings have no end in sight, and the people in these cities have asked for help from outside. If this rain doesn’t stop, all summer crops will be at risk!
The source of these problems? A Confluence. More specifically: a five-year-old girl who was born in Little Love just got news that her father died in an accident. Combine that with the incoming Confluence and the girl unwittingly unleashed her sadness upon the land.
Anyone investigating would learn that the rain began in Little Love, right before it began to spread upward and outward from the little town. Soon, Kansas, and then the entire Midwest, would feel the impact of her grief. Even when she sleeps, it doesn’t go away – her pain is a constant, after all. Finding her is key. No one can truly prevent a child’s grief, but perhaps they can help her realize her impact on the world and get her newly-arrived power under control.
The source of these problems? A Confluence. More specifically: a five-year-old girl who was born in Little Love just got news that her father died in an accident. Combine that with the incoming Confluence and the girl unwittingly unleashed her sadness upon the land.
Anyone investigating would learn that the rain began in Little Love, right before it began to spread upward and outward from the little town. Soon, Kansas, and then the entire Midwest, would feel the impact of her grief. Even when she sleeps, it doesn’t go away – her pain is a constant, after all. Finding her is key. No one can truly prevent a child’s grief, but perhaps they can help her realize her impact on the world and get her newly-arrived power under control.
DIADEM HOTEL
Whether you’ve gone to investigate the rather moist trouble or you’re just looking for some shut-eye, you’ve got a place that’s waiting for you. Need to clean up some plant-induced wounds? It’s time to hit the LUXURY HOTEL to ease any concerns.
The DIADEM HOTEL is usually reserved for the obscenely wealthy. Its rooms are enormous, the beds quite literally enchanted to offer the perfect night's sleep, and the food would usually cost your life savings for just a small taste. But given the circumstances, the Guilds feel its the least they can do to aid your transition into this world. EVERYTHING is complimentary, and everyone gets an ALLIANCE CREDIT CARD to spend on entertainment, clothing, and whatever other necessities they might need. The cards have an obscenely high limit and there doesn't seem to be an expectation for you to pay it back... though if they catch you abusing it, their accountant will be coming for your head.
There's a shopping center immediately across the street. It has an impressive array of outlet shops that cater to your every need. Food, clothing... and swords? If you can think of it, it's for sale. Although anything clearly supernatural or metahuman seems to be at a minimum and offered under the table. You can grab clothing made to withstand any superpower and a surprisingly mediocre Taco Bell order while you're at it. There's a Super Cinema in the shopping complex across the street that's showing a film called BARKS OF THE DEAD, a story about a zombified dog who protects a small family during the zombie apocalypse. Despite its taste for other dogs’ brains, this dog is fiercely loyal and will do anything for its owners.
The DIADEM HOTEL is usually reserved for the obscenely wealthy. Its rooms are enormous, the beds quite literally enchanted to offer the perfect night's sleep, and the food would usually cost your life savings for just a small taste. But given the circumstances, the Guilds feel its the least they can do to aid your transition into this world. EVERYTHING is complimentary, and everyone gets an ALLIANCE CREDIT CARD to spend on entertainment, clothing, and whatever other necessities they might need. The cards have an obscenely high limit and there doesn't seem to be an expectation for you to pay it back... though if they catch you abusing it, their accountant will be coming for your head.
There's a shopping center immediately across the street. It has an impressive array of outlet shops that cater to your every need. Food, clothing... and swords? If you can think of it, it's for sale. Although anything clearly supernatural or metahuman seems to be at a minimum and offered under the table. You can grab clothing made to withstand any superpower and a surprisingly mediocre Taco Bell order while you're at it. There's a Super Cinema in the shopping complex across the street that's showing a film called BARKS OF THE DEAD, a story about a zombified dog who protects a small family during the zombie apocalypse. Despite its taste for other dogs’ brains, this dog is fiercely loyal and will do anything for its owners.
EVERYWHERE: DÉJÀ VU
Less obvious and more innocuous are the strange stints of déjà vu all over. At first, it might seem like it’s a familiar thing you’ve seen before, but then you’re certain that you’ve ordered those chicken tenders before. Wait, you haven’t even been to this city before, much less this restaurant.
The feeling of déjà vu isn’t just that. Whole days will begin to feel like they’re repeating – surely they’ve solved that rain problem? Or the plant problem? Didn’t you hear that it happened?
Anyone keen to take notes might want to – assuming you haven’t just gotten that you did and they’ve been lost to time.
The feeling of déjà vu isn’t just that. Whole days will begin to feel like they’re repeating – surely they’ve solved that rain problem? Or the plant problem? Didn’t you hear that it happened?
Anyone keen to take notes might want to – assuming you haven’t just gotten that you did and they’ve been lost to time.
CLIFF NOTES.
➢ New arrivals will be appearing in Excelsior, Little Love, or Central City – with the bulk of them arriving in Excelsior. Their arrival will be expected and handled by a number of odd pieces of technology that help them as they fall from the sky itself. None of the locals will be happy to see the arrivals, but they’ll be so frazzled that they won’t be able to give them their usual chilly welcome. Vicious plants are on the loose and it’s not a meta’s fault. This might be meaningless to newcomers, but anyone who’s old hat at this will know that Excelsior can cause its own problems just fine, thank you.
➢ Arrivals who land in Little Love or Central City will arrive to a lot of rain. This much rainfall can impact the climate, daily life, crops – you name it. Arrivals will also be very, very soggy. If they’d like, they can ignore the trouble in favor of getting answers or heading to the hotel. No one’s obligated to lend a hand.
➢ Current Players are welcome to treat this as a bonus event. These events are canonically happening within the game but can be largely ignored if you'd prefer to use the month for personal plots. You can tag into the TDM, reference these prompts in network posts, or use them in your own logs.
➢ As for the time stuff, feel free to treat it as a wobbly time event! Mess with memories, get a character caught in the same day, or even just make someone feel like they’ve suddenly acquired precognition as a power. The sky’s the limit!
WILDCARD.
Metaheroes takes inspiration from all walks of comics. Take a look at the CITIES to get an idea as to what day to day life is like in the other cities. Perhaps you've encountered a supervillain (or hero) who needs to be thwarted, or a metahuman with unusual powers creating bizarre effects.
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[ She's starting to get used to this. Just a little bit! ]
That's an interesting thought. I don't have any ID on me, and even if I did it's not like I'd be in any databases here. There's no way for me to prove my doctorates.
[ If only she was still wearing her labcoat! That wouldn't prove anything but it'd be more convincing than her current outfit. ]
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[He nods in agreement.]
Probably one of the guilds would be willing to take you on after making you prove you actually had skills. I'm choosing to stay neutral in all that. I'm not a fighter. [He motions to her outfit.] Which you seem like you have some experience in outside of a lab.
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[ She looks down at herself and smiles sheepishly up at him. ]
Didn't used to be, but I had to adapt to the circumstances back home.
[ She pets the dog again. So soft. ]
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[He listens to her brief explanation.]
If you want to talk about, Pongo and I are willing to listen. I promise I don't psychoanalyze people when I'm off the clock.
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[ She thinks back to something Six said earlier. ]
Did you...grow those when you got here?
[ She gives him a smile at that. He seems like a very nice guy. ]
I appreciate that, but it's...a lot. The world I come from is an absolute mess.
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[He gestures questioningly to a chair.]
I've got time. And maybe talking it out with someone who's in the dark will help you work through some of it.
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How many times have you regrown them?
[ Holiday glances at the chair. Despite her insistence that Rex see a therapist, she'd never been a huge fan of the practice for herself. Bottling everything was easier. But this wasn't a personal story, he just wanted to know about where she came from. ]
You don't have anywhere to be?
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[He shakes his head.]
I was just getting up to stretch my legs. Pongo doesn't need to go out yet and he seems perfectly content to stay where he is right now.
[Pongo huffs his agreement.]
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Well...if you're sure.
[ She takes a seat. ]
About seven years ago, there was a lab explosion in Europe that infected everything on Earth with inactive nanobots. If the nanites activate, the living host will mutate into...anything. Could be barely any mutation, could be like your wings, could turn a person into a brainless, homicidal monster.
I've spent most of the last five years working for the largest nanite research organization to try and cure people who've mutated and prevent future mutations. Unfortunately, there've been enough incidents that I needed to be trained in combat.
[ Have fun with all that. ]
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[Give him a minute to process what you just said, Holiday, because that is a lot to take in.]
That is definitely nothing I've ever heard of before. And I've heard a lot of stories even before coming here.
[Which isn't surprising given where he came from.]
How has that been going? Your cure attempts, I mean?
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[ And she could not feel more guilty about that. Thank God that information hadn't leaked to the public, or the scientific community would rip her apart for somehow managing to save her own blood and no one else. ]
It was a complicated situation involving a conman and an unfinished piece of technology. But we don't need to get into the details.
[ Six didn't even know some of those details. ]
[ And now she's tempted to rant about how she hasn't even been able to work on the cure in months, thanks to Black Knight and Caesar. But she really shouldn't give away too much information in one sitting - Six would be ashamed. ]
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Thank you. It's really all because of my, um...a friend of mine, but he doesn't remember doing it.
Do you have any patients that deal with amnesia?
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[Though how much of David's amnesia was because of spending technically twenty-eight years in a coma and how much was from the Curse?]
I can't give you any specifics because of doctor-patient confidentiality, but I can answer some questions if you think it'll help with your friend.
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[ She'd been ordered to drop the subject of Six's amnesia, Knight not wanting to waste anymore time or resources on a lost cause. But Knight wasn't here now, was he? ]
I have one friend who's experienced total amnesia several times. Seems psychologically induced, I haven't been able to figure out exactly what kind of trauma triggers it but it's been a few years since his last bout. And he manages to get small pieces of memory back on rare occasions, just when he's exposed to extremely familiar situations.
My...other friend, he suffered exactly six years of memory loss due to a science experiment gone wrong. Not one of mine. And he's...he's got nothing. There's no hints or flashes of previous memories, it's like they were never there in the first place.
[ She'd done so much research on memory loss after Rex's adventure in Hong Kong, but fell out of it until Six lost his memories, too. ]
no subject
[He takes a moment to think.]
In regards to your first friend, without knowing the trauma involved, it's very possible he could relapse again. Whatever the original trauma was, it seems like his mind is attempting to protect itself by keeping the memory locked away. Unfortunately, for whatever reason it's going overboard. The fact that he gets flashes of memory, however, is a good sign that those memories are just suppressed, not completely erased. It's possible that once the original trauma is confronted in a controlled and safe environment that his mind will release those other memories, resulting in full recovery. If he were my patient, a step I might take would be hypnosis. [He raises a brow.] Which I know probably sounds unscientific given how it's portrayed in the media, but I wouldn't be attempting to make him quack like a duck or anything like that. Instead, I'd put his mind and body into a relaxed state and attempt to recover any memories that way, metaphorically putting some distance between his memories and his conscious mind in case one memory he recalls is the original trauma. That could potentially keep him from a relapse while facing it.
As for your other friend...it's possible that the memories are still there but any flashes would come back on rare occasions like your first friend. I'd attempt the same hypnosis to see if there's anything that could be salvaged, but there is a chance that those memories were erased by that experiment. The human brain is a very delicate piece of equipment. Even if I knew the full details behind the accident, how the brain heals itself can be unpredictable.
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[ She'd done plenty of research on pediatric psychiatry after White Knight explained why he wouldn't be hiring a therapist for Rex. But still not a real psychiatrist. ]
My...first friend would probably enjoy it, he's very open to any opportunities to restore his memory. My other friend would absolutely never try it.
No matter how much he wants his memories back, I just can't imagine him being that open-minded.
[ It was an interesting thought, though. Six had been a terrible patient when she did basic brain scans and ink blot tests, Holiday couldn't imagine trying to get him into a relaxed state like that. ]
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There's no watches or other silly gimmicks like that. I typically make the patient as comfortable as possible and talk them into relaxing. On more than one occasion, I used other little tricks like using an old Magic Eye picture to have the brain focus on something else while I eased it into a hypnotic state. I'd offer to demonstrate, but I don't think you'd be comfortable with me doing that to you, especially on first meeting. I don't use hypnosis on unwilling patients unless there's no other choice. It's unethical.
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Yeah - I'm not sure if I'm ready to try it myself. Maybe once I know you better.
[ After all, there's nothing sketchier than getting hypnotized by a man you just met in a closed room in a strange building. ]
Is hypnosis your specialty or just the most relevant treatment for amnesia?
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[Yeah, he is not taking that risk. Particularly since the guy who left your room looked scary as hell somehow.]
The most relevant treatment. Amnesia isn't something you can just prescribe a pill for. Sometimes just talking about things helps people remember or they get random flashes like your first friend, but sometimes a more direct approach is needed. I've had to use it to recover suppressed memories before, but obviously what they remembered couldn't be used as evidence in a court of law.
no subject
[ Thinking about Six's amnesia always gives her a headache. She likes Six plenty, but sometimes she still misses the old him. They just...knew each other better. ]
It's hard. I've spent years working on a cure for the nanite mutations, which has no easy fix, and then my friends deal with another problem that has no easy fix. I wish someone in my life could have a problem that I could solve with a quick injection.
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But you've had some success already with your sister. That's proof that a cure is possible with the level of technology currently available rather than past plagues where the cure was literally centuries away. It isn't just some pipe dream that might never come true. I don't know if you've published anything on what happened so far, but even though a lot of people would give you issues for using the one-shot cure on your own sister, a lot more would see that as hope for their own loved ones who they might have started to believe were lost to them forever. You having a personal stake in the cure would cement in their minds your dedication to it rather than thinking you might be someone trying to swindle people for money.
Even those without a personal stake would be grasping at that hope. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it sounds like with your world if no cure is found, everyone will eventually turn. Imagine being the last human left who has to turn off the lights in a world filled with monsters and people suffering with various mutations. How lonely and terrifying that would be. Right now it's just a nightmare but there's that knowledge in the back of your mind that one day it might come true.
Just because you don't have a syringe that can fix everyone's problems doesn't mean you aren't helping. And that's what's most important. Sometimes the honest attempt is enough until either you or someone else finally succeeds.
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That's very sweet of you to say. And to be perfectly honest, we don't know if everyone would eventually mutate. It's very likely, though some nanites could take decades to activate and we're still trying to learn what - if anything - triggers them.
But you're right. I need to think more positively. It's just been especially difficult the last few months; I've been working solo with no funding. The stress has been weighing on me even more than usual.
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[It makes him smile in return.]
It definitely looked like it. But you don't have to tell me everything right now if you don't want to. Just know that if you ever want to talk, I'm willing to listen. Doesn't have to be an appointment. Or if you just want to borrow Pongo for a while to pet him and talk to him.
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[ She appreciates how nice this man is being and wonders if she'll meet more nice people here. Six comparing this place to Providence gave her the assumption that the people would treat her similarly. It was nice to see that wasn't necessarily the case. ]
And I'd be happy to help you with your wing problem, if I can.
[ Probably not right at this very moment, since she doesn't have any tools on her. But she'd start thinking about ways to help. ]
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