TDM #003

[bequiet]

TEST DRIVE MEME
You wake, standing. A thick, muddy red dust coats your skin and clothes - it sticks to your tongue and blocks your vision. Inhale and it chokes you, exhale and your breath puffs out in front of your face in a transparent maroon cloud. It tastes of copper, tangy and harsh. Movement is difficult, every limb tingles and aches. Look to your left, your right. Evenly spaced in each direction stands another person indistinguishable in every way from the next. You're disoriented and lethargic, unable to grasp onto a single thought. A pinprick of light blooms ahead and grows steadily larger; a door has opened.

Hands grip your wrists, push at the small of your back and guide you out of the darkness into a room with four walls and a thin, sagging ceiling. The plaster is peeling, the air is musty, and the floor is slick. White plastic piping juts up from the center and curves into multiple spouts, clean water flowing in uneven streams. Those hands pull your clothes off and clear the dust from your body, redress you in handsewn jumpsuits.

A finger is pressed to your lips. Kind eyes meet your own and a single word is whispered - hush.

Led out of the room in a line, you’re taken down a short hallway and into another, much larger room. There’s a woman waiting for you there, a child hugging her leg, and a cloth bag in her hands. She reaches in and pulls out a device, passes one to each of you. Once finished, she begins to move both hands in graceful gestures, a language. One of the people who helped you lifts their device and the screen lights up, tracks the woman’s hands. Letters appear on the screen and you understand the device’s purpose. She tells you what she knows and it’s not much.

This world is haunted. Noise attracts them, so it is not allowed. Communication is through body language, soundless writing, and the device. She tells you that your feet must be light and your mouth never used. There is a community outside these doors, where you can survive together, but only if you agree to one thing: complete and total silence. You'll have time to talk it over. Acceptance allows you to journey outside. The ground is marked in pathways of sand, lining the paths to each building and everywhere in between. You notice that the locals hold their devices always, aloft and glance to it often. It will not vibrate or make a sound to signal a message.

Notices appear. Rules. Guidelines. Feet on the sand and never anywhere else. To open a door you brush your fingers along the hinges - oiled and you may enter. If not, take the brush from the can sitting nearby and coat the metal with the dark liquid. You're to settle into your new home.

Caught me unawares
Content Warnings: Confusion, disorientation
Themes: Survival, horror, it's like groundhog day

The ending of the floor has caught me unawares. This must be the reason why I’m falling down the stairs.

That night, when you fall asleep, you dream of your life before The Quiet Place. At first it's the happiest moments of your life played on repeat, over and over. Everything good and sweet and fun. The second night, it's much the same. You go to bed anticipating another restful and pleasant sleep. But on the third night it changes.

For everyone, it starts the same. There's a long hallway with a door at the end. You walk towards it with nowhere else to go. You twist the knob and when you step forward, the floor ends and you fall. Falling lasts for seconds, minutes, or hours and when you land, it's with a jolt and a cloud of red dust all around you. There's someone else next to you, stumbling, coughing and choking on that familiar dirt that coats your tongue and mouth. When your eyes meet, everything blurs and you're falling again - this time, when you land, it's inside that dream from the first night. Only you're not alone. They're with you. The only way out is to experience the dream together. And when you do wake up, for real, that same red dirt is on your hands.

Falling down the stairs
Content Warnings: Confusion, disorientation
Themes: Survival, horror, it's like groundhog day

The ending of the floor has caught me unawares. This must be the reason why I’m falling down the stairs.

That night, when you fall asleep, you dream of your life before The Quiet Place. At first it's the worst moments of your life played on repeat, over and over. Everything bad and sour and awful. The second night, it's much the same. You go to bed anticipating another restless and dreadful sleep. But on the third night it changes.

For everyone, it starts the same. There's a long hallway with a door at the end. You walk towards it with nowhere else to go. You twist the knob and when you step forward, the floor ends and you fall. Falling lasts for seconds, minutes, or hours and when you land, it's with a jolt and a cloud of red dust all around you. There's someone else next to you, stumbling, coughing and choking on that familiar dirt that coats your tongue and mouth. When your eyes meet, everything blurs and you're falling again - this time, when you land, it's inside that nightmare from the first night. Only you're not alone. They're with you. The only way out is to experience the nightmare together. And when you do wake up, for real, that same red dirt is on your hands.

OOC
From your mods:

Please remember to mark your content in your starters or subject lines as material comes up. The threads on this meme can be used as game canon. Feel free to thread out arrival style meetings as well! If you have questions, pp the mod account, use the faq or comment below. Have fun!

NAVIGATION

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Comments

[iisupergirlii]

[Kara nods and gestures for Diana to follow her. She takes her past the horseshoe of houses, past the fountain, and down a sandpath to the remains of a warehouse. It's been gutted and soundproofed and is still used for its intended purpose, even if it gets pretty sparse, especially right after arrivals start showing up. Of course, not everyone gets things from here - there's always scavenging. but at least this stuff has been soundproofed by the natives, and the quiet maintenance workers.

there's a few beds left, pre-assembled with cushioned feet and hospital mattresses on them, and on the back wall are a couple rows of shelves that house pillows and blankets. they're all pretty bland, but they're better than the floor!]

There's never much to choose from, but if you pick out what you like, I could carry it to your house for you! :)

[monomachy]

[As they go, Diana takes in the area around them--and the unnatural silence. It seems as if the woman in the chamber hadn't been lying. Her breathing seems so loud compared to the lack of noise around them, and she tries to keep it soft and even.

The warehouse is large, and she spots the beds immediately. Kara's message makes her smile, and she responds:]

Thank you, but I can carry it myself. If you would grab a blanket and pillow though, I would appreciate it.

[She does not wait for a response, placing the 'berry in her pocket as she chooses a suitable bed. Without hesitation or what seems to be any effort at all, she crouches, grips the frame, and lifts it over her head. Diana adjusts her grip until she is centered beneath the bed, and then turns to her companion, ready to go.]

[iisupergirlii]

[Kara's eyes widen. is this what everyone else feels like when they watch her lift heavy stuff? Because she is in awe. She was right! This woman definitely has to be a superhero! Right?

She grabs the blanket and pillow as asked and then rushes forward, catching up with Diana and typing on her device furiously before holding it up as she walks backwards so she can face Diana while they head out.]

That's so cool! How strong are you? Are you a superhero? Is Themyscira a planet? SORRY I know that's a lot of questions but this is so exciting!

[monomachy]

[Give her a hundred years, and she'll get around to the real heroing. For now, she's just a lady who can lift heavy stuff. And shoot shockwaves from her bracelets. No big deal.

Dark eyes take in the string of questions, and she can't help but want to laugh. But she keeps her lips sealed, shifting one hand to be centered beneath the bed so she can type with the other.]

Strong enough. What is a superhero? Themyscira is the island where I'm from. It's on the planet Earth.

[iisupergirlii]

[you know, just your average lady then!]

A superhero is someone who uses their abilities to help everyone around them, keep people safe and protect them from harm. They save the day.

WE save the day! :)

[monomachy]

[They save the day. The words are... hard to hear. Steve had saved the day, had died so she could save the world. But that's too much to think about right now, so she pushes it from her mind.]

Then I guess I am a superhero.

[iisupergirlii]

[Kara wonders about the fleeting look that blinks out of existence on Diana's face so fast Kara would have missed it without superspeed. It was sadness, though, she's sure of it. What could have happened there?

Still, Kara can't help but grin after a moment at the confirmation. She nods, bouncing on her heels.]

I knew it! I am too! Obviously.

[she gestures to the bed over Diana's head and then types a new message.]

Is everyone on Themyscira as strong as you?

[monomachy]

[The girl is... excitable. But it's refreshing. Amazons were more often than not stoic, especially those in the legion.]

Yes, all Amazons are strong.

[Diana is definitely the strongest of them, but her sisters had been the ones to train her.]

[iisupergirlii]

Oh, wow, an AMAZON? That's so cool!

[monomachy]

You've heard of Amazons?

[Rather, she believes they existed. Steve and the rest of his crew had thought she was mad for the longest time.]

[iisupergirlii]

(who has two thumbs and has not seen Wonder Woman yet and doesn't know anything about how Supergirl and Wonder Woman tie in together canonically except for that one SG commercial with the boots, IT'S MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE)


Well, I know what I've heard in fiction. And fiction makes them sound amazing. You know, badass women taking care of each other and just. Kicking butt ALL the time? Not needing men because they own their own agenda? It's fantastic!

[monomachy]

[idk anything about supergirl and ww's interactions either ayyyy]

[Diana grins at that, and has to hold back a laugh.]

That is an interesting way to describe us. There are no men on Themyscira simply because Zeus didn't make any male Amazons. But we are amazing and, assuming it's a good thing, badass.

[iisupergirlii]

It's a VERY good thing!! :)

[she eyes the bed still held aloft over Diana's head with a grin and signals Diana to follow her until they're outside Diana's new home.]

This is your house! I'm not sure what rooms are available, though.

[monomachy]

[The home seems unremarkable to Diana, but maybe that's because she'd lived in a marble and gold palace until fairly recently. Still, it looks cozy enough. She turns to Supergirl, smiling warmly.]

Thank you for walking with me. I truly appreciate it.

[iisupergirlii]

Of course! It's no problem!

Hey, if you need anything, just let me know! I'm flying around all the time. Or you can use these things! It was great meeting you. :)

[monomachy]

[Flying? How extraordinary. She grins widely, nodding.]

I will. It was good to meet you as well.

[iisupergirlii]

[with that, Kara's off, pushing off from the ground and taking off into the air. She looks down and gives Diana one last wave before soaring away.]