memesofeternity | TEST DRIVE MEME

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TEST DRIVE MEME

A. RETRIEVAL

Dreams fade slowly, and awareness returns in increments. The hum of machinery, the smell of recycled air, the murmurs of others waking up around you.

The interior of the ship has been outfitted with cots for those Biggs and Wedge retrieve from the Dream Width. Outside of the makeshift infirmary, windows set into the walls of the worn lounge area offer a view of space.

It’s time to meet your fellow new arrivals who have been brought together on Biggs and Wedge’s airship. None of you know how you came to be here or where you are going, and the door to the cockpit is locked as the pilots focus on navigating the treacherous obstacles of the Dream Width. You might as well take this moment to introduce yourself to your fellow travelers.

B. CURTI CENTER

There’s an almost overwhelming aura of excitement in the tower as researchers rush to document this unprecedented number of interdimensional travelers. Over the commotion, the leaders of the Center struggle to explain, ‘Welcome to Vaikuntha. We don’t know why you’ve been brought here, but this is your new home.’

The staff will do their best to help the off-worlders settle in. They answer the questions they can, provide maps and pamphlets about the world and the destinations within it, and even guide the arrivals to a neighborhood where housing has been provided for you. Yes, due to the strange influx of arrivals, you’ll be expected to share, but the Curti staff are doing the best they can under the circumstances.

Experiences like these bring people together. Perhaps you are the only one here from your world, but at least you are not alone in this experience. Others are right beside you, learning the same information, planning trips to visit the same new cities, checking out these Job things, and settling in to their new (temporary) homes.

C. UP IN THE SKY

There’s a whole new world to explore. It’s almost enough to distract from the fact that there’s one place you can’t go- home.

You are on an Airship, the main mode of transportation between the major cities of Vaikuntha. While the majority are owned by airlines, perhaps you hitched a ride with a friend that has their own. You can go anywhere in a matter of hours — One can only hope you don’t have motion sickness.

D. GUILDS

Proud representatives of the Guild are lined up, ready to demonstrate their skills for the new initiates. Make sure to stay behind the designated line, this might get dangerous.

So you want a new Job? You'll have to first travel to the Guilds, sign the papers, go through the orientation and introductory lectures, and get basic training. Afterwards, you can freely chat and practice with your fellow members, celebrating your new powers, and checking out your new wardrobe.

E. LET'S BE ADVENTURERS

Separated from all of your material possessions, connections, and everything you know, and really, what you’re left with is time. Better try to make the most of it.

Enough expository banter. It's explorin' time. Maybe instead of spending every day in your room, you'd rather spend it living it up in the city of Lavode, or betting on Chocobo Races in Sparks Goldsaucia. Or maybe you'd rather go and explore the caves and ruins near Arito. With Airships and Chocobos at your disposal, you can go nearly anywhere!

F. SIDEQUESTS

Maybe you’re telling yourself, ‘I didn’t sign up for this.’ But wait, you did. At least it pays.

It all started when you checked the Quest Board. All you wanted was a few gil to spend, and here you are in the wild, hunting for a Malboro Vine. Or maybe you are in some ancient and decrepit ruins looking for an artifact. Or you could be asked to be janitor for a week. Consider yourself lucky though, at least you don't have to do that alone.

G. GET A JOB (THE OTHER KIND)

You’ve got a Job, but Claire keeps sighing and muttering about layabout space-people not earning their keep, so it might be time to seek out Employment as well.

There are plenty of opportunities to earn some gil in Vaikuntha, no matter where you choose to settle down. Your iMog slate includes listing for employment opportunities. Hopefully you can find something you can live with so that you can start saving up for an airship or the security payment for your permanent housing.

H. MOGNET

*Ding!* You’ve got Mog-Mail!

Thankfully, you can instantaneously chat with your friends around the world thanks to you iMog Slate. And unlike old-fashioned Moogle Letters, you can even send messages to everyone in a blink of an eye! However, despite the change in technology, the old tradition of Mognet Strikes have never gone away. Nobody knows any more whether the Moogles have legitimate reasons to go on strike or if they are just lazy. But today, Mognet is down, and to get information you have no choice but going to the public boards or risk message corruption and mishandling.

I. RANDOM ENCOUNTER

The ground trembles, and out of nowhere, something hostile appears! ~~Is that battle music playing?~~

You were minding your own business walking around, and suddenly monsters attacked you! Time to put to use the skills you've learned with your Jobs! Will you try to fight on your own or seek help? And remember, you die in random battle, you die FOR REAL. There’s no shame from running from enemies that are a higher level than you!

J. WILD CARD

Feeling inspired to create your own prompt? The power is yours!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[H-Hey! That guy almost ran her over and... Oh... he's sick, huh? Well, that's okay. Oh, ew, that was... pretty meaty. That was some pretty motion sickness this poor guy has...]

[She couldn't help herself, before she knew it her hand was reaching over for the guy's shoulder and he gave him a soft pat.]

...um, are you alright, mister?

O-oh! Uh...

[ He jumps a bit at the pat on the shoulder, nearly bumping his head on the trash can's cover. The tone of his voice is more startled than sickened, and after a moment he starts to pull away from the sweet, departed calzone. ]

I think so? I haven't dealt with motion sickness for...

[ He pauses, starts to count on his fingers, then pauses again. How long has he been at this Voltron thing? Should he feel empowered after being called mister, or embarrassed because he's not that old? He just has so many questions about this, and one of them bubbles up to the forefront. ]

...hm, do you think exposure to interdimensional cosmic energy particles can change how fast we age?

[ His gaze snaps back to reality, and he looks this poor girl dead in the face, apparently expecting a response. ]

[And to think she was going to suggest finding something to drink and a place for him to lay down...]

[At the question, her eyes goes wide but she had the presence of mind not to ask him anything outright. The people at the Curti Center did mention something about pulling people from other places. Was this guy's home world really that far advanced?? Maybe she should be more careful with what she says in the future...]

[Oh right, the question. Well, hmm... she supposed that the best way to answer that is to be honest.]

...I don't think where I'm from we've gotten up to interdimensional cosmic energy particles...

[Oh, but she does remember something from physics...] ...but maybe the interdimensional travel part might? Einstein once said--oh! Um, er... one of the best scientists from where I'm from theorized that if we were able to go faster than the speed of light then we would start to see time slow down. Well, for anyone inside the space craft. He called it the Theory of Relativity.

[ Hunk picks up on her eyes widening, and as she responds he literally mimics the icon at her response. He politely nods as she mentions Einstein, because he's an intergalactic engineer trained by the Galaxy Garrison and a member of Team Voltron, so she's not telling him anything new but he doesn't want to condescend! ]

I... hm.

[ His eyes dart around the room, though not really observing the outside world. He's thinking. He's had one experience with someone from another dimension, so is that similar? Or, for all he knew, she's from another dimension that's far less technologically advanced than his, and they're from the same point in time across dimensions. ]

Sorry. If there's an allegedly infinite number of universes then there has to be one where we can have this conversation without reality unwinding or something. So we should be fine!

[ He laughs, albeit uncomfortably. As much as he was kind of tickled at getting to explore a weird fantasy world, the idea of accidental time travel was just so much more exciting. ]

I think I'm from Earth in the future! Or, well, a future? Is that too much?

[Yes Hunk, yes it was. So much so that Makoto has to reach a hand up to her face to suppress her surprise. Its a bit too late for that, though, as a meek little yelp passes by despite her efforts. She needs a moment.]

[The hand moves fluidly from covering her face toward a thoughtful pose...okay, so he's from Earth? And the future? That seemed completely crazy, but, then again, if his civilization was going into space then he is obviously familiar with space-travel. Also that talk about multiple universes got her think. Was this place another universe and were they drawn from not only different spaces but different timelines as well? That would have to be it, because if her world was already destroyed then there was no way that humans would have been able to master intergalactic travel. That is, of course, assuming this guy is speaking the truth...]

[But she doesn't really see a great deceiver, looking at those wide, child-like eyes.]

...aren't you being a bit too casual about this? What if you got rid of yourself in a weird Butterfly Effect?

[It was her awkward way of hoping that what he did wouldn't have any long-term consequences for him.]

[ He sees the realization in her face. Her eyes. And she brings up a good point about the time paradoxes, one he already considered, and... he strikes an authoritative pose, waggling a single finger pointed towards the sky... or whatever the Dream Width was. ]

But I'm still here! It's like a... [ Hunk pauses, choosing his words carefully. ] ...a stress test! Kinda like how way back, the Large Hadron Collider had some people freaked out. No way to know what happens until you do it. I mean don't get me wrong, we're on the cutting edge of theoretical physics and that's awesome, but...

[ He laughs an uneasy, dwindling chuckle before letting out a sigh, softly and wistfully. The smile looks a little forced. ]

We probably won't know if anything's weird until we get back home. If we get back.

If we get back... [The words rattle in her mouth for a second, and she is stuck in the moment. That is her greatest fear, along with the worry that her world and everybody in it was gone.]

[Mercifully, there was another thing that she could focus her attention on.]

Regardless, that was way too reckless! I don't want to have to witness an paradoxical correction with your sudden disappearance or black hole or... worse! I must insist I strictly forbid you from--

{She caught herself. Forbid? Strictly? Who was she to be ordering this person around? It wasn't like they knew each other. No sooner did that thought enter her mind did she raise an arm defensively.]

Th-that is. You should really be more careful. You really should be more aware of the danger that kind of thing really poses.

[ He visibly jumps at the shift in her tone, stressed memories of drill sergeants barking commands and derision forcing his spine to straighten. Hunk looks nervous, like his hand is caught in the cookie jar... at least until she catches herself. The rigidity, the tension is still there. ]

I weighed the options. Figured it was worth seeing if theory carried over to practice. If I don't, then someone else probably will, so no point in, y'know, staying home.

[ He exhales. A deep breath. His posture relaxes. ]

Besides, I'm the one from the future and I'm an engineer. You can trust me.

I see. [She backed off immensely, somewhat hoping to diffuse the situation further.] S-Sorry... I guess I'm just used to being the voice of reason for people who are a bit too... enthusiastic.

[She smiles a little at the mention of his expertise.] You're right, I should trust you. Though the position you found yourself wasn't exactly the best introduction to any of that.

Not that... was your fault, of course.

I've been there, the... voice of reason thing. [ He looks into the distance, thinks about Lance and Pidge and their time at the Garrison, and smiles. Wistfully. ] Sometimes you just have to... go with the flow.

[ He laughs. A real laugh! ] One time, my friends and I ended up in a parallel dimension, and we found a Swedish doppelganger of our missing friend. Between that and the actual space aliens I just have to accept that I'll never know what's coming next.

[ He looks meek for a quick second, looking around for temporal police officers or something equally absurd.]

But... yeah, I think we're safe. Got any questions about the future?

[She smiles at Hunk's story. A year ago, she would have dismissed a story like that as being completely ridiculous, but it was a long year. So many things happened that even the existence of THIS dimension wasn't that far out there.]

[She shakes her head at the suggestion.] No. I think I'm just going to... go with the flow. Mankind is going to get to where you are someday... er... assuming that the place I'm from is still there ... but I have to have faith that it is, and that we will.

[She then leaned forward in earnest interest.] But that story of parallel travel sounds like quite the story. How did you manage to get into another dimension? Did you go into a wormhole or get too close to an event horizon?

[Maybe there was a clue of how to get back!]

Edited 2018-03-21 23:38 (UTC)

[ Turning down a glimpse at the future? He's impressed, grinning ear to ear, and not quite sure he could do the same. And she looked about his age! ]

Your humankind might end up somewhere different, but for us...

[ The interest in his stories as inspiration is heartwarming, and with no time paradoxes, he's more than willing to share. ]

We found an ancient distress signal, and it came from a weird rift in space. But it wasn't a wormhole. I've been thrown through one of those and would not recommend it. We were the only people who could get through.

[ He stares straight at the ground, shifting around in discomfort. ]

It was a whole new dimension, where our bad guys were wiped out and... the good guys were the bad guys. Violent dictators, even. We made sure they couldn't follow us back to our dimension, but...

[Oh... She nods slowly.]

Its... strange, isn't it? How something as simple as thinking "I must make the world safe" can distort things into something dark and twisted.

[A hand raises to her chin and she looks around for a place for the two of them to sit. Seeing a small bench tucked toward the middle of the observation bay, she points it out to Hunk.]

I would very much like you to continue the story, but wouldn't you like to sit? I also don't think we ever got around to introducing each other.

[Her expression softens ever so slightly.] I can start, if it helps. My name is Makoto Niijima.

[ He sighs, shaking his head. "The road to hell is paved with good intentions" and all that. But her continued interest in his story is comforting. She cared more than the Curti Center seemed to, for sure. The grim facade falters when he realizes he doesn't know her name, and he barks out a hearty laugh. ]

Sure, sitting could be good, especially if we can get a little farther from... [ He frowns, a moment of green as the smell from the trash registers. ] ...the calzone.

[ Hunk scampers quickly to get away from his hubris, barely even waiting for Makoto. As soon as he gets to the bench, he smoothly plops his backpack down next to one side before turning back around towards her and extending a hand out for a handshake. ]

Nice to meet you, Makoto, I'm Hunk!

We will surely honor its sacrifice. [She said half-joking half-serious. Really, sometimes its hard to tell with this girl.]

[When they sit down and he extends his hand the gesture took Makoto off-guard. She had seen that greeting before, sure, but that didn't mean she was used to it. Her lost composure doesn't last long, however, and she gently reaches for her hand and allows it to be shaken.]

Hunk-san. Its very nice to meet you. [She said politely before waiting patiently for the rest of his story.] So what happened next?

We made sure they couldn't follow us back to our universe, and that was that. [ Glossing over the fact that the goal of the expedition was pilfered, of course. ] We didn't expect to find them, and they shouldn't be able to follow us.

[ He closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. ]

It was creepy. One of my friends in this universe was a ruthless, intergalactic Empress who took away people's free will so they wouldn't disagree with her! But it's just another day in the life, really, Makoto-

[ A beat of silence. She said Hunk-san. Makoto is a Japanese name. She's probably Japanese. Oh no, now he's mortified. ]

I'm sorry! Sh-should I use an honorific? My friend Shiro doesn't so I wasn't even thinking!

[She hears the story and she wonders about herself. Were it not for her friends, would she still be the person that she was now? If the worst thing happened on that... that day, would she not consider the possibility?]

[She shook her head at the thought. She acknowledged that the potential was there, but then so were her ideals. Her justice. A world without free will was not just. It couldn't be, no matter how pleasant the words were used to justify it. As she was thinking that, Hunk popped her reverie with a question.]

[She smiled, almost laughed even. No matter where she is, she just had to continue as she always did.]

Makoto-san. [She smiled.] You don't have to say that, though. I've gotten used to people not using the right honorifics. I just do because... well, its how I was raised and so it was a part of who I am.

Actually, if I were to tell you the truth, you're supposed to call me Niijima-san, since we only just met. But... I think we can let that slip.

You have a commanding officer who is Japanese? Shiro... huh.

[Her mind drifted to a vision of the future where there were Japanese intergalactic spacemen. It was a happy thought.]

[ He's taking mental notes on the honorifics, and flashes an awkward, mischievous grin when she just up and lets the honorifics go. She brings the conversation to Shiro and, well, Hunk just starts beaming. ]

He's pretty awesome. I wouldn't call him our commanding officer, it's a bit more casual. He's just the leader. [ He looks sheepish, even embarrassed. ] Shiro's the only full-blown soldier. The rest of us were cadets, except the space princess and her butler, but I feel like aliens don't count.

[ He grins, reaching a hand into his backpack while trying his darnedest not to focus more on his fumbling than a conversation. ]

The ability to do great things doesn't seem to care who you were, though, or else we wouldn't get anything done!

[Her expectations lower a bit once it was apparent that Hunk asked about the honorifics and immediately threw it out the window. Would it kill him to at least try a little before dismissing it out of hand? Oh well.]

[The thought passes quickly once she hears about her countryman being a kind and considerate leader. Shiro, was it? Makoto would very much like the opportunity to see this guy. Theeen there's the rest of the cast.]

You know, if it wasn't for the fact that we're sailing on what looked like a flying boat int he sky and I just saw what I think is a dog-person, I would call you crazy for including a space princess and space butler. But now I don't know what to think.

[Her attention did focus on the ability part, though. She was going to ask, but wondered if Hunk was going to discuss that in greater detail on his own.]

Niijima-san, you...

[ It felt weird to be so... formal, but he didn't wanna disrespect her culture. Besides, what's the point of asking about honorifics if he doesn't try? But he has more important things on his mind than formalities, so he doesn't let that pause build. ]

...Saw a dog-person?! Where?! Are, uh, are they more human than dog or do you think I can pet 'em?

[ It's the closest he's been to seeing a real dog in so long, and he's thrilled. ]

Y'know I can hear you, right?

[Some timing Red had in his sightseeing; He was just finally starting to shake that pile-up of concerns he'd built up about this strange new world and begin to lose himself in the expansive, panoramic view of the ground below... only to once again find himself the centerpiece of a nearby conversation.

On the plus side, Hunk had his chance to get a good look and see for himself.]

[At the sight of the dog-person Makoto's cheeks flush beet red.]

O-Oh! I do apologize... I didn't mean any offense!

[I mean, one of her best friends was a cat-person so there was that at least...]

{...o-or maybe the dog person can smell Mona? That's not a problem, is it?]

[ Hunk never expected a response to his question, at least not from a male voice that was definitely not from Makoto! So his more ignoble instincts kicked in as soon as his brain connected the dots, and his excited squeal turned into a terrified shriek. He didn't flinch so much as recoil away from the voice and send himself (but not that backpack, thankfully) tumbling off of the bench.

Splayed out on the ground with the grace of a dead fish, he began taking deep breaths, stopping to wheeze out a simple...]

S-sorry.

[ But he just screamed so loud, and if this guy is as much of a dog as he looks like, Hunk expected to feel even worse soon. ]

It's--

[He was cut off by the sudden shrieking just as much as he was by the clenching of his jaw; and by the time Hunk's response had finally abated, Red still had his ears yanked down in an attempt to muffle the noise.

It would be another few seconds before his fur stopped bristling, and his wince relaxed enough to speak a few words.]

C'mon, am I really that scary?!

[Makoto herself had to cover her ears as well. She could understand the sentiment, but she was standing RIGHT THERE.]

[Waiting for the dog-guy to speak was definitely the better idea, because her ears felt much better when he finally did.]

I don't think that was fear as much as it was... unbridled joy. Or maybe it was fear, I don't know.

[She then realized who she was talking to and felt a pang of embarrassment.] O-Oh um... not that I find you scary either. I... just am not used to seeing people of your... um... species?

Oh my god, I am totally botching this firs impression...

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this is the best development i never expected, thank you

whew, i was worried it'd be unwelcome

its all good this is amazing