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

[retributing]

01a. It's a Gundam! [Shipyard]

Gaelio Bauduin is somewhere between being disgruntled that their gracious host dumped him in a less than gracious location upon arrival, and admitting to himself that he enjoyed himself just a little bit in making his way here to the shipyard. Still, he wouldn't say no to a shower.

First things first, though: there are other mobile suits (Gundams?) here he does not recognize, but his own is the most important. Getting into the Kimaris Vidar's cockpit is admittedly a lot easier in zero gravity, but Gaelio manages. Only, he finds the interior in an incomprehensible state of disarray. Gundams are meant for active and highly mobile combat, there isn't exactly much that can be thrown around.

Anyone walking by might hear Gaelio's dismayed voice. "Ein! What happened to you?" followed by a miscellaneous bit or bob that Does Not Belong being haphazardly tossed from the cockpit. Uh, look out below?

01b. It's all about the details! [Shipyard]

Once Kimaris Vidar is in satisfactory order, Gaelio can finally work on what he's meant to do here in the shipyard: finding a ship, obviously.

The existing ships get a cursory glance, but the moment he discovers a kiosk where he can customize his own ship, Gaelio opts for that immediately. He has settled hunched a little too close to the screen for his own good, swiping through technical specifications with a very critical eye for someone that only really knows a tiny bit more about spaceships than your average joe.

He's also alternating between quietly talking to himself, the display, and someone who definitely isn't there. "It's fine if it's not too big. Armor and speed are the necessary things. As long as there's space for you, right Ein? ...Eh? Something this size can only have one weapon? There's definitely room. How big can these be?" He got teleported here, a technology people have only conceptualized. Surely SUPERBIA's space vessel capabilities aren't that primitive, right? A little morosely, "The Sleipnir has missile launchers and anti-air cannons on top of the main guns." Sigh.

02. Popup ads? In current year? [The Network]

The little helpers are strangely endearing, even if it takes Gaelio a moment to realize what they're doing. It's strange, though. He's used to a crew of trained men and women, not robots. Which leads to... the Network! And a popup that will not go away. Finally, Gaelio relents, opting for speech-to-text.

Tell me a little bit about yourself.
"My name is Gaelio Bauduin. ... That's all."

Are you a LEADER or a FOLLOWER?
"That depends, doesn't it? There's a time and a place for both. Knowing which is the important part."

What is your best feature?
"Ah? Well—"

It seems Gaelio has paused long enough that his best feature will never be known! You could ask him, if you like. Or just ask him about the blurry photo of him clearly quipping at someone just off-screen, mouth open in an unflattering way and one eyebrow that you can just tell is twitching.

03. Choose Your Own Adventure!
{{ Pick something else, or message me on this journal or ricorori to work something out! I will happily match prose or brackets. }}

[futuradelita]

[ It was a good thing Adelita was a short woman, because she has enough time to stop after seeing a heat sink fall from above and crash loudly against the ground. So of course she looks up to ask him not to drop stuff. ]

¡Fíjate de lo que tiras a lo pendejo, pinche baboso!

[ It was something too rude to translate. ]

[ But, the thing it dropped from, it makes her pause. Her eyes widen. Is that a... no, it's better maintained and way too big to be a WildCat Mobile Suit, or even a 'Spearthrower' Mobile Artillery Walker. ]

[ Is it a suit from Terra itself? The people that exiled them? ]

[ Her expression softens for a moment in shock, before she tries to find a lader to climb up, and ask questions. ]

[retributing]

[ It's the crash that gets him to pause first— ah, right, gravity. The cursing is what makes him peer over the edge of the cockpit's hatch, brows raised and eyes a little wide. He knows just enough Spanish (Spanish? He thinks that's Spanish.) to know that was uh, very angry - not that one couldn't tell that by tone. Even Gaelio can admit it was deserved, though. ]

Ah!

[ No ladders here, but Gaelio quickly climbs down to check on the poor woman he just unintentionally threw a heat sink at. It's a little easier for him than it might be Adelita, given that Gaelio is a slightly absurd six and a half feet tall, although he doesn't seem exactly used to it. With both feet on the ground, he turns to the woman, tone a little worried. ] Are you alright?

[futuradelita]

[ With the absence of stairs, she had instead tried to find other ledges to climb up from, which is all kinds of not safe. That the huge man finally comes down is at least far more polite than she expected... though neither his size and circumstance make her change her disposition too much, if at least for pride's sake. ]

[ In stark contrast, 2Cpt. Adela is a short woman. One meter sixty-five, make that a little more than five feet and a half inches. She has the stamina of a veteran (if the connected three-bars symbols over her uniform don't show it), and the strength to carry a stationary heavy machinegun (which she leaves on the floor), but she notices the height difference. ]

[ Because of her pride, though, she glares up, hands over her hips with the suicidal pride of a hothead. ]

Yes. No thanks to you.

[ She then leaned her head to look behind him, at the Mobile Suit he had been on. ]

Where is that thing from, anyway? It's too big to be worn as a Mobile Infantry suit, and way too new to be from my world. [ She then straightened back to look up at him. ] How does that thing work, anyway?

[retributing]

[ Gaelio can be stubborn at inopportune times, but this is, thankfully, not one of them. ] I think I'm too used to working in zero gravity, [ he admits, an almost sheepish smile curving his lips. Seriousness returns, though. His upbringing has instilled a very specific set of manners in him. ] Still, that's no excuse. I am sorry for being careless.

[ Ah, but the 'thing' she's referring to— Gaelio lifts his head to follow her gaze. His expression becomes a fond one. ] This is Gundam Kimaris Vidar. One of the Gundam frames from the Calamity War, although it has been refitted.

[ Most mobile suits he's aware of are around the height of the Kimaris, so he's not entirely sure what she's referring to. And- ] Your world? Are you from... Mars? [ He sounds openly curious, not judgmental. ]

[futuradelita]

[ From where she's from, it's almost expected that the git making the mistake would double down, scream back even louder, and shout all the way until the cops would need to be called. So having him apologize is shocking. So much that 2Cpt. Adela is befuddled and doesn't know how to respond. She clears her throat, and nods in acceptance of the apology. ]

[ That said, the mention of a 'Calamity War', new kinds of even more terrifying Mobile Suits called 'Gundams' being deployed, and with the assumption either of them might be from the Sol System? That... well, that makes Adela uncomfortable. ]

¿Marte? I think that's Terra's turf. Way far from where those fuckers exiled a lot of us. [ She takes a second look at the gigantic suit beside her. ] I'm from the Aztlán Sector, in Puerto Nuevo Vallarta. Can't tell you which government now. WildCat Mobile Suits where I'm from are little more than two meters tall where I'm from. And even they don't see as much use.

[retributing]

[ Pwhereto? Not a name he recognizes. If she's from further out... Oh! ]

Is that in the Jupiter Sphere? [ He's aware of trading companies out there, primarily because of Tekkadan working with the Turbines, and that colonies do exist, but little else. A SAU colony, maybe? Sorry, humanity hasn't expanded beyond the solar system yet, where he's from. ]

Ah, the Gundams don't see much use anymore. Mobile suits and mobile workers are common, though. [ He would've assumed they were the same in Jupiter and around the asteroid belt, but maybe not. ]

[futuradelita]

[ She shakes her head. ] Nombre. That's still way too close to Terra's reach. We'd get shot the second we came near to their systems. I'm some systems around the Tonatiuh star, in the Giraffe Constellation.

[ Adela then tips her hat up in surprise, scratching her head, as she comes to a realization. ] I don't think you can't get there without an Alcubierre Drive.

[ Mobile Suits and Mobile Workers being common, and these 'Gundams' not seeing much use? And he's not even familiar with her? Definitely something odd. Then again, the fact he's not some fucker claiming she doesn't deserve citizenship nor independence is better than the alternative. ]

[retributing]

[ Gaelio simply blinks for a moment, attempting to process what he's just been told. Assuming she's not lying - and he's not really sure what she'd get by doing so -

Finally, it clicks. ]

Ah... earlier, I met someone here who was from a different time than me. [ As in, to Gaelio, the man was dead, only here he's very much not dead. ] I don't really understand how that works, but maybe that explains it? For us, even getting from Earth to Mars takes weeks of travel.

[ But enough about the boring timey-wimey stuff! Gaelio leans in just a little, clearly interested in something else. ] How does an Alcubierre Drive work? How quickly does it travel? We use Ahab Reactors, still.

02. | @mcgillis.fareed 😘

[wresting]

You didn't complete your profile.
But perhaps you don't need to as your best feature is on display.

( so writes the man whose pfp is "just heard his knees crack." )

[retributing]

[ Is McGillis gonna bully him? It feels like McGillis is about to bully him. Maybe he's being defensive, but can anyone blame him? No! ]

Oh? And what would that be?

[wresting]

( McGillis is a sweet, innocent angel of a man who has never done anything wrong his life ever. )

Your profile picture.

[retributing]

[ Goddamnit, McGillis. ]

At least we have that in common.

[wresting]

Yes, it's good to have things in common with my "big brother."

( Gaelio can imagine, if not hear, McGillis's smug little chuckle and the "ah" preceding his reply. )

[retributing]

Don't call me that.

[ It's even more weird now. He doesn't like it!! ]

[wresting]

Of course.
Lord Bauduin.

( it's easy enough to relent when you're the one winning. 😌 )

[retributing]

Not that either!

Just. Gaelio.

[ Swear to god if you call him "Just Gaelio"— ]

02.

[jumpedship]

Is one's best feature meant to be quite a mystery, then?

[retributing]

What? No. I guess it timed out?

[ Look you can't just ask a man his best feature out of the blue like that and expect an immediate answer! Right? ...Right? ]

[jumpedship]

( he'd ask what it means when something has 'timed out,' but it doesn't seem terribly urgent, whatever it is. )

Won't you time it back in?

[retributing]

[ ...Hah? Time it- okay, that's a new turn of phrase. Gaelio guesses it makes sense. Kind of. ]

I guess? It's probably not important anyway. It doesn't have anything to do with why we're here. [ That is to say, he doesn't know to put down for an answer. But no one has to know that. ]

[jumpedship]

( it's okay to say it makes no sense. we'll accept that. )

I'd imagined this advertisement of sorts was meant to convince others to join our crew. Was I right in assuming that? If so, I'd have to agree with your assessment.

One's best features rarely shine through when the seas are rough and the nights are dark.

[retributing]

[ Well, okay, yes. But he has the spirit!

That's... nicely poetic. It makes Gaelio feel a little better, anyway. ]

That's what it looks like. Although the user interface could do with some work.

I am used to having personnel... [ The robots are cute, but it's kind of strange. ]

[jumpedship]

Servants, you mean? Gods, I know. Sometimes I wonder how I’ve managed to dress myself without my manservant’s assistance.

Are the buttons meant to go upwards or downwards?

[retributing]

I meant crew, really, but I know what you mean.

[ Kind of. The Bauduins have servants, but not knowing how to dress himself is a little... much. Gaelio is not unused to the whims of the very wealthy, he is himself and grew up among them, so he's being polite. ]

Depends, but either generally works.