TEST DRIVE MEME

[mourningstarmods]

LOOK AT MY UGLY, GRAPHICS-FREE MEME.

While Reserves are Open, there's no one in the game yet, so feel free to test out your muses in the setting here! Should you choose to app, you may pick threads you've done here to count toward activity (if all characters involved are in the game).

Some prompts:

1. Fetching or Vetting. Your character is either introducing an Inmate to the ship or is going to pick them up. Or they have recently returned from this endeavor.

2. Yeah, that rumble earlier? Not a big deal. Just a flood. (You pick how it affects your character.) Let somebody know if you start feeling a little funny.

Comments

Morgan Adams | Cutthroat Island | OTA

[gimmethemap]

Prompt 1:

Morgan didn't waste time heading down to the brig once she was made aware a new arrival would be waiting. They didn't always remember what happened immediately before arriving, and either way, it wasn't unusual for them to panic if they were alone for too long.

Contrary to a number of ships she'd been on in her past, the brig was clean and well-outfitted -- neither as fancy and futuristic as Level Zero had been on the Barge, nor did one stand ankle-deep in bilge. The cells were clean, with a cot for sitting and sleeping, the addition of a water pump over a drain for drinking and washing, and of course a place to relieve oneself.

To ensure she didn't interrupt them while any of those latter features were being put to use, she listened before stepping into full view.


Prompt 2:

The Captain's quarters were situated a little differently from those of her last two ships, but she didn't mind that much, but handsome enough for visitors. On being made aware that a new Warden had arrived, she extended an invitation for drinks and briefing in her cabin. The quartermaster carried out her wishes and let her know to expect them in short time.

Wine was not her usual preference, but it was nothing to sneeze at, and somber enough for these occasions. A battle or two sat on the table, along with a tray of bread and cheese. A little fancy for her old self, but several years on the Barge and meeting people who took all sorts had taught her to outfit these meetings with something that might be universally pleasing.

King Charles tittered from his perch near the door, a sign the Capuchin could hear visitors approaching well before she could. Morgan finished the notes she was making on the charts the Helmsman had brought down earlier that day and rose, straightening her waistcoat and waiting for a telltale knock.

Prompt 1

[bastardofipswich]

The last thing he remembered was fire. It surrounded him, engulfed him, and suddenly there was nothing. It didn't hurt as much as he'd expected it to. It didn't really feel like anything. There was this nothingness, this darkness, and then he woke up. It took Chase a few moments to gather his bearings, to come to grips with the fact that he was still alive. He would've celebrated, if not for the fact that there was something very wrong. The Power normally flowing through his veins, it was gone. He couldn't feel it, he couldn't summon up the smallest bit of magic. And, as he looked around to figure out where the hell he was, he came to realize that he was in a freaking prison cell.

No magic, and all locked up. This had to be Caleb's doing. Somehow, the other witch had done this to him. With a growl of rage, he picked up the cot and threw it at the bars, as if the little tantrum could somehow free him.

[gimmethemap]

"Easy -- the bars are temporary," Morgan offered as she came closer. She was probably an inch or two taller than him already, but the heels of her boots gave her at least another inch. As it was -- not bad. When she decided to do the vetting, herself, she tended to wait and see their body language before deciding how quickly she needed to get to the point, but that throw of his just reminded her why the bars were necessary in the first place. "Do you remember what happened?"

[bastardofipswich]

He stares at her, eyes narrowing. If he had his magic, they'd probably be dark right now, pitch black with the threat of using on her. But as it is, they're blue. His mouth is twisted into a frown, and his fists are clenched. Gone is his usual humor. The loss of his magic is too much for him to cope with right now.

"Let me out of here."

[gimmethemap]

She never really was much for being threatened, even subtly. "You died before you appeared here," she said plainly, "I'm sorry we couldn't have you fetched out to spare you the shock, but as I understand, your last hours didn't allow much for any additional visitors. Check yourself for any injuries you remember having. Then take a breath and talk to me, Mister Collins. You're safe, and what's missing will be taken care of."

[bastardofipswich]

Dead. So, Caleb really did kill him. Which means he was right: Caleb was responsible for his being in this place, which is, apparently, hell, if the woman's to be believed. He moves forward, although the cot's in the way of getting too close to the bars, but he grabs onto them all the same.

"What do you know about what's missing?"

[gimmethemap]

She nodded, closing her eyes in a way that suggested she was rolling them under the lids. "I've...encountered magicians enough in recent years to know when they're trying to stare at me to death." She also glanced at enough of his file to get the basics. "You're only down here because sometimes new arrivals panic when they appear, and we'd rather nobody get hurt before someone's spoken to you."

[bastardofipswich]

So, she knows what he is. That'll make this... easier, he hopes. Chase drops his hands from the bars, holding them up placatingly. He even smiles, even if it looks a little too much like a snake trying to convince someone it's not about to bite them.

"Okay. Fine. I won't hurt anyone. Tell me where I am and let me out."

[gimmethemap]

"You're on my ship, but you needn't be for long. We take passengers such as yourself because, lucky you, someone thought you deserved a chance at earning your life back instead of going wherever it is souls go when they die in your circumstances." She leaned against the opposite wall, crossing her arms. "So what happens now is I answer your questions about that that means for you, if you choose to stay, and if you decide you'd rather take your chances, we put you right back where we found you."

[bastardofipswich]

He listens carefully, watching her every movement even as he remains still in his cell. "What does this mean for me? Am I on the River Styx or something?"

[gimmethemap]

"Maybe? I've never heard the waters named, myself." She shook her head. "It's complicated. Some people have called it purgatory. Others think it must be what happens before reincarnation. Some don't have names for it. To keep it simple, though, you died damned. Someone thinks there's a better destiny for you than that, but you have to earn it. We only get the first one for free. So your time here, if you choose to accept it, is about working toward that."

[bastardofipswich]

"And what do I do to earn a better life?" he asks. There's some suspicion in his voice. He doesn't quite know where he stands on this whole thing. It sounds a little too good to be true, and he's certain that there's a catch somewhere. Well, another catch besides the thing where his magic's gone.

[gimmethemap]

"You become a better person." Despite her ire a few minutes ago, she was trying her best to let it all come slowly. She had a habit of falling into speeches because that was what Captains were good for when there wasn't fighting going on: rallying groups of people. She also didn't to hurry through just because she didn't want to deal with one attitude.

[bastardofipswich]

"That's it?" He arches his brow. "What is this, A Christmas Carol? I've got to pull an Ebeneezer Scrooge?" He leans closer to the bars, lips pulling into a frown. "What about my magic?" The most important thing here.

[gimmethemap]

She laughed a little, partly because thanks to places like this, it was a reference she understood. "Not in a single night. People change over time, based on experience, so that's what you'll get here. You become part of the community, help run the ship, and when we put in to ports you'll have the odd mission to fulfill, with guidance and protection. Over time your magic will be restored."

[bastardofipswich]

"How much time?" He shakes his head. "You don't understand, my magic is a part of me. I need it." What it is, of course, is a drug. He can't fathom a life without it, even if it's only temporary.

[gimmethemap]

"Then you will want to earn some of it back quickly." Morgan didn't have magical Inmates, so this was never a challenge she had to face, herself. "That will be up to whomever is assigned to you. However...sometimes the ship knows you're trying."

[bastardofipswich]

Chase crosses his arms, thinking over this for a moment. "So my options: work on this ship, be a 'better person,' and earn back my magic, get a second chance... or take a gamble and face death and see what happens." Well, this sounds like a no brainer. He's not about to go for oblivion. No, Chase is a survivor, even if survival isn't looking particularly pretty right now.

[gimmethemap]

"That's the short version, yes. You can ask whatever questions you wish." Because there were way too many twists and turns this voyage could take for her to lay them all down without waiting to hear what it was he needed to know, first.

[bastardofipswich]

"You mentioned someone being assigned to me," he brings up. "What's that, like a case worker?"

[gimmethemap]

"We call them Wardens. When you go off-ship, they're meant to act as a guide, but it's also their job to keep you safe. Here, they advise you and are your first line of communication if someone does something wrong to you. They also have first and final word on how you are disciplined if you make trouble. If you have a problem that involves your Warden, you report it to the 1st Mate and Quartermaster. If you die again, they're the only one that can bring you back."

[bastardofipswich]

"What do you mean die again? How often do people die again?" That, at least, is concerning. Perhaps more concerning than the fact that he's going to have a warden assigned to him, in charge of his every action or whatever. Dying once was bad enough. Chase isn't up for trying it more than once.

[gimmethemap]

"A lot of people don't -- I've had a few nasty ones myself -- but being alive again comes with that risk, you know. The point is that it's not permanent so long as you're here." She might have exaggerated on how few people experienced death again, or even for the first time, on these ships.

Prompt 1

[capriciousmirth]

There was someone quite demonic-looking in the brig.

This fucking guy.

For a new inmate, he seemed rather good-natured, sitting and kicking his purple-shoed feet with a vacant smile on his face. The rage he'd been in when Kanaya had killed him seemed to have been quelled by death...for the time being.

But a careful observer would note that his eyes were still red, and predatory. The Bard of Rage had not been entirely pacified.

Apologies for the delay -- I've been slammed with work projects for almost a week now.

[gimmethemap]

By now, Morgan was fairly familiar with tenants with unusual appearances, and she didn't have too much trouble staying unruffled. But for a few strange features, there was the bearing of youth there. Sometimes this meant they could be more volatile, others more curious and open to giving everything a chance.

"Have you been waiting long?" she asked.