ataraxioff | TEST DRIVE MEME 001

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TEST DRIVE MEME 001

T E S T D R I V E M E M E

A R R I V A L
You wake up, alone in the dark. There's a breathing tube jammed down your trachea, and you're suspended in a tube of clear blue fluid. Through the fog you can see shadows of movement, the muted sound of alarms crying. Upon registering your level of consciousness, the gravity couch drains the fluid surrounding you and retracts the breathing apparatus; the doors in front of you open, and you're suddenly dropped several feet onto the opposite wall.

It takes you several minutes to catch your breath and gather strength in uncooperative limbs; more time still to climb up through the debris to the hole in the outer wall high above. You emerge in bright sunlight, surrounded by an immense jungle. As your vision clears, you realize you stand on the hull of a colossal spaceship, crashed on an alien planet. There's a shout behind you, and as you turn, figures climb over the curve of the ship towards you: your rescue party, weathered and scarred by the efforts necessary for survival.

B A S E C A M P
A ramshackle spread of tents and shelters built out of resources salvaged from the ship and gathered from the jungle. Not sleek, not clean, but alive: people coming and going from tent to tent, heading out into the jungle or returning with freshly foraged food. Some are working to build more shelters or improvize working tech out of parts salvaged from the ship; some are cooking; some are just taking shelter from the sun for a while. Whether you find somewhere to help or apply your skills, it's probably a good idea to get to know your neighbors.

E X P L O R A T I O N
The jungle is dense and green, teeming with life, high calls and cries of strange animals and birds, the low buzz and murmur of insects. There are no paths or notable markings; go too far into the trees and you may not be able to find your way back. Dangers hide in the shadows but there's also food, water - or perhaps you're looking for more, pushing further in a search for answers about this planet you're now living on.

Or you can turn your attention to the crashed ship, the huge bulk of it balanced precariously on the edge of a cliff. It creaks and groans in its delicate position, audible from a distant but all the louder should you venture inside. Dark corridors made even more dangerous by the damage to the internal structure, debris and obstacles blocking progress, and any wrong step could cause it to collapse in on you, or send the ship over the cliff. But finding any tech, resources or supplies might just be worth the risk.

C H O O S E Y O U R O W N . . .
Hunt or flee from strange creatures in the jungle, take a try at rock-climbing down the cliff-face, or practise in-game gained abilities. Ataraxion is currently without a network until one is built, but test-driving on a prospective one is also totally fine!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Algidus tilts his head. The question is somewhat of an oddly masked one, but he still is fairly sure that he knows what she's getting at. What he needs to figure out is how to respond. Many of the clones back in the Box had a sort of unspoken alliance as they sought to overthrow their doubles, so it could be that she's looking for support after waking up on a strange, unknown planet full of unknown faces. The icy alien could sympathize with that. On the other hand, it could be that this is the original and she'd gotten wind of the uprising of clones... and is looking to put him down before he could pose a threat to her closest friend.

It's a slippery slope to navigate. In the end, Algiuds makes the decision partly based on the fact that he honestly doesn't think she could do much to harm him given his strength and powers... but more because of their shared history. He didn't like acting flakey or being dishonest with anyone; with someone like Jolene, it was near impossible.

"I know him," he answered, equally quietly. "I don't know how much that matters here. I didn't see him crawling out of the wreckage or milling around that miserable camp."

"Neither did I," AJ replies, and then, tipping her hand, she adds, "or the other one... or anyone else I recognized... but if you and me are here... we might have got moved. Shipped out." Literally. AJ purses her lips primly as she glares at Algidus. He looks so different from the alien she knew--that Jolene had known. And yet, he looks very similar, barring two or four major differences. Her eyes linger on his massive curling back spikes before she catches his eye again. "You still want a truce?" If not, she's about to fuck right off, because now that she knows that Algidus is around she's worried that that is going to compromise her ability to stay completely out of the shit.

When she was still Jolene, Glacius had been far too helpful for her to feel like she did not owe him anything; she'd even considered him a good friend, and that was not going to do if this one was going to get into trouble one way or another.

He's been puzzling over their method of transportation too; while he knew that the Technicians had access to all sorts of highly advanced technology and powers, he'd never seen them pull things in from beyond the stars. Was this a different branch, or did they have an alliance with some other group..? Neither seemed likely, given how desolate this planet was, so how did they get on the damned ship in the first place? It was just one question on a massive pile of other questions, and not having anything even resembling an answer made Algidus feel another spike of the frustrating that had him raving and ranting mere moments ago.

At least the tentative request is enough to pull his attention right off that track. Algidus' gills flutter and freezing mist escapes into the humid air, dissipating quickly--there's the answer to at least one of his questions. "You're the only other face here that I recognize. I don't know why, apparently, it was just you and me that got brought here, but it seems wise to take advantage of it."

AJ feels something akin to the need to melt back into the foliage as Algidus speaks, but she holds her ground. She doesn't need to feel emotionally connected to anyone, even if they're willing to form at least a truce with her, but this is decidedly harder to feel than it is to think.

She glares at him instead, then attempts to paste on a grin. "Well... good. You've got muscle and I've got at least a few braincells to rub together. Maybe we'll be able to get a few answers around here."

She flicks her gaze to the water turbulently rushing past, then returns it to Algidus. "Found out that shit's a river of death the hard way, huh?"

That serves only to make him scowl. Algidus turns back to the river and gestures to it vaguely, angrily. "As if the heat and the humidity isn't bad enough! This whole planet is nothing but a stupid mockery. Now I'll have to push further out in the jungle just to find some source of water."

"Well, it rains a lot, why don't you just spread yourself thin and soak it up like a big fucking boy?" She knows he can do a lot with that ice shell of his, but at the moment she's not sure how to address that without also calling to attention the source of their familiarity. It's something she doesn't want to get close to, especially considering her feelings over mutilating Algidus' double.

...The action itself, she could probably manage to get away with bragging about, but she's not sure that she could cover her discomfort over it all.

"That works when it rains, yes, but then you get these awful dry spells!" Algidus hissed, staring out unhappily over the river's surface. "It's like whoever or whatever brought me here is just mocking me. The heat is miserable and the only prominent source of water would just as happily burn me as the relentless sun would. Well, I won't have it. I'll find a way around this; no one makes a joke at my expense and gets away with it."

AJ watches his tirade roil to a low simmer, then throws another branch at him, this time with less intention to hit him directly. "Hey, cool your shit, G... uh," she nearly states an old name before she bites her lip. "You..."

That ended far more lamely than she had intended. She squares her shoulders, realizing she hadn't properly done anything even remotely in the way of an introduction. "You can call me AJ, by the way, when you're done spitting and hissing like an egg on a griddle."

Algidus merely continued to glower. Just like a human, to make light of his situation and sling insults at him. "If you are attempting to inspire some sort of camaraderie, AJ, I have some advice for you: mocking me is a poor way to begin. I had plans, plans to be reunited with my people, and now I have to start from scratch all over again. So excuse my hissing, this hasn't exactly been a wonderful relaxing excursion for me." Apparently this method of going about it hadn't inspired him to introduce himself just yet.

If he hadn't introduced himself for what he'd like to be called by--if he'd thought about it at all, at least he'd allowed for the human to try this particular combination of initials out. It feels strange to have someone else say it out loud, least of all in Algidus' voice (even if the tone was far different)... she thinks she might wind up being okay with this particular designation.

The rest of his grumbling, however, she takes to heart. She bites her lip on a few choice words, then considers, "you know, I don't think we're over the, uh, the basement anymore. Wherever this is... if we're lucky, we probably have at least a couple of weeks before anything fucking awful happens. That's long enough to steal some things and find somewhere secure to wait and watch and see. From there..." she considers carefully. She doesn't want to pitch herself in to his particular cause; it feels wrong somehow to offer her aid for him to get home when she knows full well that they're both unwanted clones. "From there, I'm not gonna do anything to hold you back..." She trails off, still feeling that uncomfortable twinge to speak a name that she doesn't want to assume...

"And I won't mock you. I mean, I'll try not to. Sometimes..." She scratches her neck, wiping sweat away that's been seeping down her collar and into the prickly bed of red material she'd woken up with. "Sometimes I say shit because it's better than being serious. I don't look like I could crush a rock when I flip my shit like you do."

"Not unless the Technicians have holds on various planets," Algidus agrees, but the thought makes him shudder. It was something he hadn't considered up until now. From there he's content for once to fall quiet and hear her out... and he is reminded of why this particular human had grown on him so much, even if she technically wasn't that same individual any more. There's an attempt of respect there that he doesn't often get from others... and even if AJ might only be offering it now because she's afraid of what he might do if she doesn't, that's good enough for him for the time being.

"You can steal if that's how you get by. Me, I plan on providing for myself as long as I am able to. Removes the risk of me having to put up with anyone whining if I get found out and keeps me from owing anyone. On a planet like this there's got to be some plants that can be harvested for the water they store between the rainy spells and some wildlife I can hunt down for nourishment." Algidus pauses for a moment, considering the human before him. "If you wish to come with me, I would abide it." Picking off a hapless animal or two could be a good way to begin testing this partnership they were proposing.

AJ watches him calmly assert cool logic to a situation he'd been flipping a nut to moments ago, and has to wonder if all of that has just come to mind. Does he do better thinking rationally when he's trying to brag? It's hard not to grin about that, though she manages to by biting her lip and looking down at the loamy forest floor. "I plan on fucking someone over until they spill about what the fuck this ship is about and where the fuck we are," she admits, voice going hard. "I was gonna do it sooner than later. It'd be satisfying."

Looking up at Algidus again, she adds, "but if you think living off of these plants and bugs and shit is something you can manage, I'll... I'll try."

What a surprise, a human dealing in misery. Algidus scoffs, but his gaze is not disapproving--far from it, in fact. It seemed that as long as the suffering wasn't directed at him or his people he didn't have the same disgust for it; all of the cruelty he'd been subjected to by humanity had hardened him. If that was the language they spoke then he would converse with them. That AJ was offering him a truce but willing to harass others just made him grin.

"That is also something I can abide," he nods, folding his arms across his broad chest. "If any of them give you trouble, I can keep them in line... providing you share what you glean from them with me."

"You're the poor fuck who wants to go home, not me," AJ shrugs. Dealing in misery feels like about the only thing she can do right; it's the one thing that feels inbuilt to her very core. Whether that is true or not is hard to say... but thought is a powerful instigator and shaper.

She emerges fully from under the fern to regard him, arms crossed over her chest. A shard of glass is wedged into her belt from one of the broken grav couches; a real-if small-blade through the opposite side. She's not nearly as tall as him, but she's projecting presence in the way she's got her shoulders squared and her legs slightly spread. Her half-tangled dark mane is adding some volume, too, much in the same was an angry cat might. She puts her arm out, palm splayed to the alien. "You want to shake hands on it?" And then, considering all of the other times he-no, his predecessor-would pause and grow confused, she elucidated, "it means we're in agreement, and if one of us fucks off, it breaks the deal and the other one has the right to track them down and demand to make shit right. Since I have no paper and we can't sign some kind of fucking contract... it's the next best thing. Unless you want to cut your palm open and swap blood, but I don't see you being the kind who wants a brother."

Algidus watched AJ emerge from the foliage with interest, not the least bit of fear despite the presence she was projecting. He was of the mind that his powers and strength put him well and above the other sentient inhabitants of this planet--likely the non-sentient ones too, in fact. The weapons that he could see on her also did little to make him feel threatened, given the natural armor he came sporting and his ability to call up more of it if situations became dire. That being said, the idea of her trying to make any demands of him made him chuckle quietly, but he extended his reflective ochre-colored hand to clasp over hers nonetheless.

"You can call me Algidus, by the way," he nodded, pulling his hand back once they'd completed the shake. "You're lucky. I don't offer my assistance to just anyone."

"I can fucking guess that, Algidus," AJ replied. She gave him a proper looking up and down before she thumbed at her dirty nose. "What happened to you, anyways? you just... get made different, or...?"

"What happened to me? Nothing 'happened'. My species simply changes over time due to exposure to different habitats and environments. Glacius had a freezer to retreat to during most of the winter, but I was forced to take respite in the cool of the ocean," he explains. He has mixed feelings about how he's changed, physically; it's nice to have that extra aspect of differentiation, but at the same time it had really worked against him when it came to blending in in the Box. He suspects that will be less of an issue here.

"What's gonna happen out here?" AJ asks, pushing for more because she's curious, not at all because she is concerned. (She's concerned, that's a lie... but she's not going to let that on if she can help it.) "You going to turn, uh..." She glances at the acid river, then decides not to push that far. "any different? Is that part of why you're pissed off?" Whether or not she meant to, she's noticed his mixed feelings.

"I..." Algidus pauses, suddenly realizing that he hasn't thought about this at all. Amidst all of the other huge problems he'd found heaped on his shoulders when he woke up here, physical adaptations hadn't seemed terribly pressing. The heat will also be a problem, but he's not sure how much he wants to discuss that weakness just yet. There is a part of him, left over from Glacius undoubtedly, that feels like she could be trusted with the information... but tossed into such a strange and potentially dangerous world, the alien is trying to stamp that down for the time being. He goes with a general answer that is still truth.

"This environment is drastically different from anything I have been forced to exist in before. My appearance may change again, in time. But it will be gradual, and will probably take months for the first signs to begin emerging."

"Well that's something. Shit. You look like you have the universe's worst sun burn to begin with. I'll..." she can't believe she's saying this, but she laughs and goes with it, "I'll bring you any ice I find out of that big metal dispenser we got woken up in."

Algidus can't believe she's saying this either. Back when he was in the Box, he felt like he had to pick his battles carefully and scrounge for whatever sort of support he could get. Here in... wherever this is, it hasn't even been all this long and he's already got somebody offering to help him. It pings off of a bond that had been forged before their differentiation, and the dark creature actually lets a smile slip through he tempers himself, trying to bring up a dubious stare.

"Alright, what are you trying to get out of me if I agree to this?"

"You've got muscle," AJ replies flippantly, her hand literally flapping descriptively over the length of him, "and you said it yourself, you're ready to go hunting the alien vole-hog things that live out here. Do I look like I'm fucking adept at swinging tree to tree to chase down my supper? Fuck that, there's going to be a time when I get caught for sneaking around that shanty shit hole. I could... you know, use support."

And the degree of a bond that they'd formed before their differentiation does not wholly account for it: "Anyways, you know how shitty things can get. When fuck-heads are in charge everything can go to hell and keep you crammed under its thumb no matter what you do. Nobody goes lone wolf on that and survives, not for the long run."

"Yes... I do," he rumbles, his gaze dropping as if he was considering the horrible machines that used to churn below their feet. That they were... supposedly free of that was definitely a relief, but there was no guarantee that this planet wouldn't play host to its own share of unique terrors. "You know," Algidus continued, his gills fluttering--something akin to a human wetting their lips, "I don't know why, exactly, it was just you and me that got dumped here out of all of the other ones but... I'm glad for it."

Edited (extra wordsss) 2015-08-25 02:50 (UTC)

"It's a start," AJ replies, hedging back a little. She's hesitant to play that card, she doesn't know where Algidus is taking this. "I don't fucking know if anyone else is... isn't real, I didn't know all the faces before... before shit." Thinking back on it is making her edgy. She glares at him and then turns her back on him and the river, stalking back to the jungle. "I plan on finding out, though. Gotta watch, take a tally. Should be a clearer idea of who's useful. You want a deal?" Much safer to stay on what's needed, what's at hand. "I'll trade you some of that information if you can find something edible out here."

"We're real," Algidus declares, his voice so adamant about that it almost sounds fervent. That has been a sore point for him ever since he realized his state of existence; it's something he continues to grapple with. Either way, the subject change is one he's glad for because he's not up to heaping his innermost conflicts on people just yet, even if he has ties to this one. "It's not an if, it's a when. I'll find something. Then we'll be eating better than most of the sorry humans in that scattered little camp."

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