TEST DRIVE MEME #1

[space_aces]

WHERE ANGELS FEAR TO TREAD

Your journey only happened because of your benefactor, so it begets that it starts at your benefactor as well. SUPERBIA, which is as much of a location as it is an entity, is where everyone's search for Fortuna begins.

There's not much of a welcome party: shortly after their fateful encounter with SUPERBIA, in which they swore to join the quest to find Fortuna, the new Privateers will find themselves afflicted by a sudden change in perspective. See, teleportation is a tricky process, so from SUPERBIA's point of view, why not make the target destination none other than itself? One highly disconcerting moment later, and the Privateers find themselves inside the belly of the beast.

The vast mega-structure is shockingly lonely, void of anyone other than the Privateers. Those who look off the metal satellite and to The Network for intelligence (or take a skim at the Space Wikipedia article) will find out that the surrounding space is clear for lightyears; rumors have it that the place is cursed. It won't take long to understand why.

1

Overclocked

The innards of SUPERBIA are that of an impossibly scaled up computer, and the Privateers start right in the middle of it. You are the spider living in the dusty PS4. Literal rivers of coolant, transistors the size of mountains, landscapes made entirely of circuitry. The sky, bounded by a distant metal ceiling, is constantly alight with coursing electricity that cracks the sky with lightning storms. It can be assumed that the Privateers are the first living things to set foot here, because such a place is not ever meant to be traversed by delicate, organic, mortals that worry about things such as "temperature" or "voltage". SUPERBIA needs not lifeforms to continue its operations; why design for them? Traversal itself is difficult: unscalable walls and perilous drops are common to encounter. The only company the Privateers will find are oddly adorable maintenance robots, which sadly seem too occupied by their directives of maintaining the massive machine to offer any assistance (or even acknowledgement of their new guests).

It is immediately clear that the most urgent priority is to get the hell out of here. Before your adventure ends at the starting line.

2

Skeletons In The Closet

If one stays inside SUPERBIA, either by getting horribly lost or losing all common sense, one will notice a peculiar pattern emerge as one gets deeper into the bowels of the mega-structure. Passages shrink and become more level, and the incredible hostility and danger of the surroundings fade away, until one comes across areas which were definitely intended for humanoid organisms to use at one point.

The construction of these areas is cramped, unfurnished, and dreary; they are reminiscent of artificial environments meant to handle harsh external conditions like a submarine or bunker, but they are entirely livable. One can eventually find distinct rooms, but everything in them has crumbled to dust and their original purpose is nigh impossible to discern. Deeper investigation may reveal the few items that have stood the test of time. While it is more plausible for life to have existed here, that doesn't seem to be the case now. What happened here?

3

The Shipyard

In the opposite direction, when one finally reaches the outer edges of SUPERBIA, they will be rewarded with the place to pick up a spaceship and a stunningly beautiful view of outer space. The outside of SUPERBIA has no atmosphere to get between you and the stars, and they shine brightly, like a beacon calling one out into the first steps of adventure.

The shipyard is already filled with countless space ships of every size, form, and function, all autonomously constructed by SUPERBIA's factories over the countless years. What's the harm in taking one or twenty out for a spin? Even if one has no intentions of permanent ownership of the vehicle, it's not like SUPERBIA will miss it. For a Privateer with a more specific vision, however, there are kiosks around the yard which will allow one to design their very own space ship down to their exact specifications. When the process is done SUPERBIA's matter printers will have it out and space-ready right before your very eyes.

If a Privateer has a ship, vehicle, or large item that they intended to bring with them, they will also find them here, neatly parked in the Shipyard. Why didn't SUPERBIA extend this courtesy to the pilot's themselves? The answer is revealed as soon as the owner makes a closer inspection: the inner contents have been rearranged, like a whirlwind was unleashed inside and assorted loose items thrown around. Now aren't you glad your transportation was given special attention, and the same didn't happen to your innards?

4

Hot Crewmates in Your Area

But how will a single Privateer man an entire space ship? No worries: when one steps into a ship, the strangely endearing maintenance robots will suddenly take acute interest. The robots will follow inside and immediately start assuming the duties of a spacefarer, eliminating the need for extra hands on deck.

Even still, there's just no eliminating the want for a human touch, though. Thankfully even that dilemma has a contingency plotted by SUPERBIA.

Communication devices are easily available on every space ship. They come in all shapes and sizes, ranging from huge stationary consoles to portable smartphone-like screens. But whenever a Privateer attempts to access the Network, a pop-up will appear, obscuring the whole screen.

Tell me a little about yourself. Are you a LEADER or a FOLLOWER? What is your best feature?
The device will be rendered unusable until one relents to the pop-up's demands and provides answers to its questions. What will these be used for? The mystery will be solved when a social media app mysteriously installs itself on the same device, with profiles preemptively made for every Privateer. Each Privateer's profile consists of their given answers, paired with embarrassingly candid photographs. SUPERBIA has eyes in many places it seems.

Comments

[fourhope]

"That's a very good word for it." Well, he is a performer. It only makes sense! At least it makes sense to Quatre anyway. Though he's long since been bemused by Trowa's propensity for spray and pray tactics.

They really are, aren't they? Quatre might have to consider his own showy habits later. Though less for entertainment and more for his own personal growth and reflection.

"You don't say!" Quatre laughs, knowing that there was some exaggeration to the story, but now curious to see just how strange this mobile suit was regardless. "Charging into melee? Like a rhinoceros." Which is still absurd, but there's almost a logic to it Quatre can follow. Who'd expect a charging, rampaging mobile suit?

"He what?" Quatre's eyes widen and he gasps, taking offense on Duo's behalf like a supportive best friend ought to do. Taking a step back he eyes the other pilot critically. "You look great." Then again, even if he had put on weight it'd probably be a good thing. His sisters have been complaining recently about how they're all far too skinny.

"So what'd you say?" Because the odds of Duo leaving after that without a word is pretty small. Not that he'd say so unless prompted, but Duo definitely has this habit about getting the last word in sometimes.

[braidedwonder]

"Honestly if that's how he fights I.. well. I guess I hope it works out for him? He explained it but I was way too distracted by the entire thing to really take in the theory behind it." And, well.. he didn't care, either, which is always the determinate factor in how much attention Duo Maxwell pays in any given situation. Sure, he'll take in what's being said, but how much he actually absorbs is questionable.

"Right?" Duo's hands throw up in slight frustration. Of course.. he knows that he didn't. He'd come from space with Howard, where he often forgets to eat because he's too wound up in what he's taking apart at the moment, or gets all of his calories in cigarettes and alcohol. But he will, again, stuff that away so that Quatre doesn't start fussing. "I dunno, he was on some shit. He also just started in asking me when I went to space, trying to figure out what I was doing like he hadn't just disappeared or whatever once the war was over."

But then, even though Quatre's asked another question, he remembers a bigger point.

"OH and - and - he tried to tell me that me, you, and Trowa agreed to self-destruct our Gundams together and had done it!"

[fourhope]

"It does sound rather strange." Despite the fact that Quatre's the one who suggested the idea. Then again 'stand here and shoot bullets until the enemy stops moving or he runs out' is kind of a weird tactic too, so it's not like their group has much room to judge.

"He probably didn't mean it like that exactly." Though it sounded... very Heero honestly. Blunt to the point of rudeness is kind of part of his M.O. But he's also not the sort to really notice something that trivial. So it's all very peculiar as far as Quatre can tell. There's definitely something strange going on. The more Duo talks, the more Quatre knows something is off. Because that's....

"He did disappear." Quatre agrees. But that's partially because unlike Duo who has clear ties to L2, Trowa who has the circus, and Quatre has... so much compared to the others. There's not really a lot left for Heero once the war is over. It's something Quatre's spent no small amount of time considering honestly. Not that he's come up with any satisfying resolutions to the matter. Not that he can do anyway. Given that he's... not Duo.

The last outburst makes Quatre freeze for just a moment. The slightest admission of guilt in a sense.

"I see." Quatre frowns the slightest bit, as he puzzles over what this could mean. "Trowa and I have been discussing it." He admits feeling more than a little like he's betraying them all by the admission. It's certainly a betrayal of poor Sandrock who's been nothing but a dear, loyal partner all this time. "It's hard to tell just what the right thing to do is as of now. I know how you feel about Deathscythe so I wasn't going to talk to you about it just yet." At least not until he has a better plan, not until he knows for sure if it's the right thing to do or not.

But adding the pieces together, he can only draw on one conclusion. "We were teleported to this place. It's not unthinkable that time means little to something with such capabilities." A future growth spurt might explain a comment about Duo's weight, but it would also explain why Heero knows about something he's as of now only talked about with Trowa in confidence. "I'll have to talk to him."

[braidedwonder]

The freeze is telling. Way too telling, actually, for someone that knows Quatre Winner all too well. All at once, he's staring at the blonde across from him, brows raised, a bit surprised, and a bit betrayed all at once.

So maybe Wufei was on to something with his theory that Heero was from a different timeline. He just isn't sure what the hell they could do to convince him to blow up Deathscythe like that. To him, now, there was nothing anyone could say that would be convincing enough to make him want to self-destruct Deathscythe for anything. His hands fall lamely to his sides from where they'd once been fiddling with something or other he's pulled from the depths of his hair, and in classic form the only and first thing he can think to say is classic.

"What the fuck, Quatre?" Yeah, forget the comment about talking to Heero or something else, he's not at all focused on any single bit of that.

"Total peace forever is some dick-pulling nonsense, you know that right? Like, humans are humans and they will find something else to fight about, sooner or later?"

[fourhope]

When he wants to, Quatre knows how to not give away his thoughts. How to mask his tells and let people see only what he wants them to see. But this is Duo and it's not a skill he's likely ever going to use on his friend. Because they're friends and friends don't do that.

Unless they have to.

"It's not like we've done it!" There's a certain amount of defensiveness to his voice, because the idea is new and uncertain. Even Quatre's not sure if it's the right idea or not. It's radical and has the potential to be more than a little stupid, but.... either way it doesn't matter. Because it's not like any of them have actually blown up their suits!

Which is good, since it means that hopefully Sandrock is just waiting for him in a bay somewhere. Which is good, because he's going to want to run some maintenance. Just because talking about blowing it up always makes him feel guilty. Which leads to more tinkering. Which leads to more guilt every time they talk about it. It's an endless cycle with Quatre really.

"Why do you think I haven't talked to you about this. Because I know it's ridiculous and liable to blow up in our faces. I know it's a foolish idea! I get that. I do." But sometimes it's nice to think about a what if where it would be possible. Or where if everyone just got rid of every weapon maybe peace would actually last this time. Yes, it's not rational. He knows that. But he can dream, can't he?

[braidedwonder]

“In Heero’s time we apparently have!” And he’s still very unsure of how the hell anyone talked him in to it. His plan had been to store Deathscythe with the Sweepers for the indefinite future, as it kept the Gundam constantly moving and, therefore, “hidden” in some fashion.

Hidden until they inevitably need it again, because he isn’t stupid enough to think that war could truly be over forever by any stretch of the word.

Thankfully they’re in this labyrinthine place, lest Duo already be on some stomping fit to leave. Even if he did make it past Quatre he’d have to stay ahead of him winding his way out of there, and frankly the thought alone is tiring. Instead he pinches the bridge of his own nose and wills himself to have a little bit of patience.. already a stretch to say the least.

“If you know it’s a dumb idea I don’t understand why it’s even still on the table.”

[fourhope]

"Contrary to popular belief, Talking about an idea doesn't actually manifest it, Duo. And it's just one possible action out of many that Trowa and I have talked about." Quatre's need to think through every angle, every idea, every approach to a situation lately warranted the conversation. Well, conversations, because it's not something they talked about just once. It's an ongoing debate about ethics, practicality, and a whole slew of other things.

And yes, it's actually a debate because Trowa does actually participate. Honest. Not that his propensity to philosophical conversations with Zero-Three is of any interest to Duo at the moment, clearly. The more... real implications being much more important.

"Then maybe at some point in the future we change our minds." Quatre's already shaking his head, because while that's true there are just too many other possibilities that could explain this. "Or he's from a different timeline. I know they say time is relative, but I'd never expected it to become something I'd have to concern myself over in a literal sense and not a practical one."

Taking a deep breath, he turns to center himself towards Duo's position properly, eyes beseeching in that way he's managed to master somehow.

"All I know is that it doesn't feel right for you to punish me for events that haven't happened to us yet." Quatre-speak for, Duo pleas be fair and rational.

"Just because I've talked about the idea, that doesn't mean I like it any more than you do, Duo." Goodness knows Quatre'd be in trouble if he's held accountable for every idea he's thought about or talked about with someone. His exploration of possibilities can be a little too thorough for his own good on occasion.

Then, in less polite-talk and more... just two guys being friends. Because Quatre does actually know how to do both.

"You and I both know I can't make you do anything if you didn't want to do it. We both know you're far too stubborn for that." A small smile, c'mon Duo don't stay mad at him about this stuff. Please? Anyways, who else is Duo going to come to for conversation and emotional support? Wufei? Heero? If grades were handed out on this topics Heero and Wufei would get failing marks on both! Let's be real here.

"Besides, you said it yourself - Deathscythe is here safe and sound, remember?"

[braidedwonder]

“You mean you talked and Trowa sat there and absorbed?” Because he has to say it or he might explode, in all actuality. This is still Duo Maxwell, after all, and snarking is his life blood.

Duo is… reeling if he’s honest. The confirmation that Quatre has been thinking about it, after he’s tossed Heero off and laughed at him about it, throws him for a loop. His mind is racing with the possibilities of why he would agree, of what the hell they would do if anything popped off again.

He’s busy thinking of everything his mind can spiral on, still, when Quatre centers in front of him. He can guess what’s coming, but it doesn’t stop the exasperated sigh anyway. Quatre’s folly is asking him to be rational in this situation, honestly, but he meets the blonde with a begrudging expression anyway.

“For now, apparently.” He’s troubled by all of this, clearly, but only around Quatre would he drop the mask long enough to actually frown and fuss about it.

“I guess right now what’s more important is getting a plan in order. Between all of us.”

[fourhope]

"Trowa talks." Quatre protests, even as he chuckles just a little bit. Jokes about Trowa's tendency for few words is a long running thing after all. "Maybe just not to you." Or most people for that matter, but it's more fun to tease his friend like this.

Look, it's not Quatre's fault that he's clearly got special privileges that mean he gets to hoard the majority of zero-three's words for himself.

Oh, Quatre's all too aware of the thin ice he's walking on asking Duo to trust him and be rational at the same time. But he's going to walk on that ice with confidence because he knows Duo and that knowing comes with a certain amount of trust.

Especially since everything Duo's thinking about? All those what ifs and disaster scenarios? Quatre's run through most of them in triplicate. Everything from 'yes this is dumb let's never do this' to 'well we can always just build new ones, we know enough about how they run we can probably manage' and in-between.

"For as long as you need." Quatre promises, cherishing this glimpse of how Duo's actually feeling instead of the pretense he normally shows to the world. It's something he tries very hard not to take advantage of - knowing what's beneath the mask. Figurately and literally in some cases.

"That'll be a start at least. We've got a lot of work to do and I'm not sure how much time we have to do it in."

Not that it's ever stopped them before.

[braidedwonder]

"Yeah yeah." Duo's eyes roll as if there isn't a particular pilot who tends to speak to him the most out of the other four, too. Leave it to him to make a very dramatic showing out of absolutely (nothing) everything that he can get his gritty little fingers on.

The lack of activity post-war has left Duo itching and in some cases a little paranoid. As annoyed as he got at Howard and Hilde both for pointing it out, his constant need to move and leave is a side effect of never feeling completely safe where he is. Or as though he's waiting for someone to come down on him by sitting still in one place too long. The additional thought of not having a Gundam for back up? Icing on an already pretty cruddy cake of his mind racing in circles for the moment.

Thankfully Quatre knows him well enough to know when to leave a subject to mull instead of pulling a Heero and hammering away at a sore spot anyway, instead spurring a little laugh from the braided pilot.

"Time crunches have never stopped us before." Hell, they practically lived and breathed a time crunch at this rate. Duo isn't going to pretend like he doesn't thrive being (at times literally) under the gun. "Guess I should stop ferreting around here and we can head back to gather the other two, mn?"

[fourhope]

A quiet huff of laughter is Quatre's only response. The eye roll and just general show of annoyance not really having much of an impact when there's no actual annoyance present. He knows Duo far, far too well to fall for that. Trowa might be the Actual Clown, but off stage Duo's more who you watch if you want a show let's be honest here.

Yes, Quatre does know for a fact that continuing to talk about this subject right now isn't going to end well for either of them. Which is why he's going to let the topic drop. They can talk about it later when things are more secure. Not... this weird new unsecure situation they're currently in at the moment.

"And they won't this time either." He's quick to agree, because it's true. They're so used to time crunches to the point that it might as well be all they know. "I think that'd be for the best, yes. As fun as poking around in the decay has been, I think we've learned all we're going to learn from here."

[braidedwonder]

“Yeah. There’s not a damn thing left that gives me any idea of what was going on here before.” Of course Duo is nosey enough to want to know that, once he’s stumbled on this place. And beyond that, if they can get a gauge on the people that were there before, or SUPERBIA itself …

Well, no losses there, right?

With those chances lost, though, he’s content to head back in the direction of the others. Will he still be mad to see Heero? Most likely.

But he did throw out all his cigarettes.

“Hopefully Yuy isn’t back in Deathscythe when we get back to the dock.”

[fourhope]

"No, there isn't." Quatre agrees. Not that it hurt to have tried. A failed attempt is better than no attempt at all and just blindly accepting the situation.

"Though as we travel, maybe we'll find more clues that will help us piece together this puzzle we've found ourselves in." He's certainly going to be keeping his eyes open for any hints of the people who've likely undertaken this search before them.

To be fair, Quatre might have done the same if he'd been in Heero's position. Sorry, friend. It's only because Quatre'd very much like for them all to live nice, long lives despite the constant danger and stupidity they throw themselves into on a regular basis.

"If he is I'm sure you'll find some way to take it out on him later." Quatre soothes, looping an arm around Duo and steering him back the way they came. "Maybe a wrench to throw."

Though the odds of actually hitting Heero Yuy like that.... Quatre doesn't need the zero system to compute those odds. But if it made Duo feel better, that's what counts.