  
WELCOME TO THE TEST DRIVE and thank you for your interest! Though the game hasn't started yet, we've put together a mini-mission with a few different goals for your characters to pursue. In the interest of flexibility and allowing players to experiment with the game mechanics, we invite you to pick your own broodmates, experiment with abilities and specializations, talk to each other and maybe make up some pre-established cr, and generally play around however you like. This test drive will not be game canon, so take this chance to go nuts!
For the full experience, we strongly encourage players to write up a short blurb about what their fellow characters might know about them either through shared time on the Station or through the Nest mental link. Handy links can be found at the bottom of this entry if you have any questions or want to place a reserve.
HELINOS TOZ
...is the smallest galactic empire located in the second disk of the Silver Halo Galaxy. For thousands of years, the neighboring CONFEDERATE OF BAL and INIVIAL COR(P) have eaten away at Helinos Toz's territory and now have reduced the once-great empire to a single moon ruled by the Last Empress. Though she is a child who owns little in the way of property on the galactic stage, the Last Empress still holds a precious seat in the shrinking Galactic House of Chairs. From this seat she and her allies have managed to keep a stranglehold on the throats of Bal and Inivial’s expansion efforts into the fourth and fifth disks of the Halo. She has accomplished this task by viciously excising loopholes in galactic regulation. Paradoxical though it may sound, the outer rings view the Last Empress as one of the few remaining heroes for the common man against the absorption of either the Bal or Inivial, a symbol of the dangers the two great empires present and a name and a heritage that even today commands respect. While Bal and Inivial may have radically different galactic goals and famously spend their time hounding one another in the house of chairs, they can agree on one thing: the Last Empress and her tiny moon kingdom are a thorn in their side. In an effort to pluck it, Bal and Inivial have joined forces to do away with the Empress and her moon forever.
While a direct attack on the ground empire moon would be an undeniable act of war, and would result in heavy sanctions which would only serve to set their goals back further, there are ways to destabilize the moon without actually putting boots on the ground. Inivial has decided to sacrifice one of their own assets to achieve this: the planet which the moon orbits. Helinos Prime is a cold, dead rock, without it's own atmosphere, as well as the site of a significant Inivial mining operation. It's this very operation that Invivial intends to utilize. By mining directly to the planet’s core, they will harvest a massive amount of heavy elements, cutting heavily into the planet's mass and degrading it's orbit in space-- making it a risk to surrounding inhabited worlds. Galactic regulation demands such a threat be absolutely absolved- by total destruction. Further, it states that these dangers must be dealt with in no more than eight hours, regardless of any other sanctions or treaties. The act itself is quite sterile: a beam weapon located in the first ring which is capable of destroying most planets in a single shot as long as alignment is correct. And once the planet goes, so too does the empire moon.
But even getting rid of the empire’s last land holdings wouldn’t do away with the Empress herself, which is why the Confederate of Bal’s massive armada has opted to choose today for a sprawling training exercise in their space above the empire moon. As is their right under the Secrets and Sanctions treaty, they have refused the operation of any other space traffic in that sector until their exercise has been completed. The paperwork is filed, notarized, and finalized. Under the guise of the Bal and Inivial’s mutual animosity, the two super powers mean to trap the Last Empress with the very rules and regulations she’s spent her young life manipulating to keep them both muzzled.
In summary: the Last Empress and what remains of her small royal envoy are stuck quite literally between a dissolving rock and the hard place of the Confederate of Bal’s guns with no diplomatic wiggle room. Should the empire of Helinos Toz fall, the majority of the house of chairs will turn in favor of expansion and it won’t be long before the Halo’s outer rings become the stage for a vicious war between Bal and Inivial. Those citizens of the outer rings will find their lives drastically changed as those two powers dash to make opportune land (and space) grabs. If the Last Empress can be saved, she might be able to successfully reveal this act of aggression for what it is, and use it as a way to rally the rest of the house of chairs, around her and the interests of the outer rings she stands for, against Bal and Inivial.
YOUR MISSION is to help the Last Empress escape the empire moon before it can be vaporized by Inivial, and to slide her and as many of her retinue as possible through the lines of Bal’s armada undetected.
PROMPTS
ONE • DEBRIEF: NOT AS SEXY AS IT SOUNDS
You've been given your mission file (see above) and outfitted with the appropriate gear to see it through. Today that means thermal suits designed to withstand face melting temperatures and a small cadre of ships that seem awfully familiar... if you're not mistaken they're the same ships currently in formation above Helinos Toz. You can ask Prince where he got them or Cathaway for some flying advice, but you probably won't get answers that makes any sense. Hopefully some of you know how to fly. Hug your friends, say your prayers, and wave Station 72 goodbye because it's time to...
TWO • HITTING ROCK BOTTOM
...sabotage a giant plasma drill! Down on Helinos Prime, Inivial's massive mining operation is a veritable labyrinth of tunnels and substations. Luckily you've been provided with schematics (if you feel like using them), and with some trial and error you should be able to navigate your way to key points in the mining operation. It won't be possible to completely stop the machine from coring the planet, but you just need to buy a little time. Suggested targets are the drill's targeting interface, its coolant systems, and its auxiliary stabilizer vents. How do you do that? Time to use your imagination. On the plus side, no one's around to stop you. Inivial already evacuated their on-site personnel which, come to think of it, might be a bad sign.
THREE • HURRY UP AND WAIT
With Inivial's drill momentarily on pause, it's time to rescue an Empress. Does she even know you're coming for her? Well, she'll find out eventually. There's room for six extra people on the ships provided, meaning you have exactly enough room to smuggle her and her closest advisers off of the empire moon. You've got six hours before you can (and really SHOULD) leave. Right now it looks like there's time to kill. Get to know the locals, the moon's bustling trade port, or its local population of cute dragonbirds. You have a collapsing planet below you and a veritable wasps nest of ships above you. Enjoy it while it lasts-- or bypass it all and wait for your window of opportunity with the Empress and her envoy.
FOUR • INTO THE WILD BLACK YONDER
The stealth ships can travel invisibly while in atmosphere, but there's no tricking the sensors of the Bal's ships. Luckily you fit right in-- almost. Pretending to be Bal ships might make the most sense, but what if someone notices you're out of drill formation? Even worse, what if someone detects you leaving the empire moon? No Bal ship is supposed to be down there. You could always try finding another ship to take into space, something with a little bit of stealth or maybe a harmless trading vessel. Then again, no one's supposed to be coming off the moon and into this space at all. Think fast, talk faster, or hope your pilot is really good.
FIVE • WILDCARD
Honestly? This is your show. Go surfing on some subterranean lava flows while stalling Inivial's mining efforts, try to take all the Empress's gold leaf dining room chairs with you when you evacuate the empire moon, or maybe you're done with this whole mission alltogether and want to try hijacking a ship from the Bal's armada and flying it out into space until this whole thing blows over. There's a whole galaxy out there; what else could be waiting for you?
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emptynesters2016-02-03 09:43 pm
no subject
The reply to his answer makes him groan, low rumble in the back of his throat, coupled with a petulant eyeroll. Not that Parker is any good at jokes either. To be honest, if they stand too close a black hole where all humour goes to die could be created. ]
I don't belong to one. [ Words that make his insides churn and stir and tangle uncomfortably, denying a desire that he has (no, no, doesn't, not him, the thing inside him, the same as the other thing inside, the thing that, when he goes over the limit, makes him crave for meat that is barely cooked, flesh--). ]
Whatever this mission is, I'll do it. But don't think for a second it's anything other than my will.
no subject
This, though? He would not entertain.]
I do not care what you do with yourself, but as much as you would deny what you are you will not deny them. They did not ask to be part of yours, and I will not allow you to endanger them.
[There was no quicker way to earn his ire than to risk those you fought beside. Parker would not and could not understand it yet, what it was to be in a brood. Even if you were as Prince, and had drawn your line in the sand, they were yours. And, like all allies, like all comrades, their lives were yours to protect. It went beyond a tie you did not ask for.]
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While he is not one to let others around him die, he doesn't trust others easy. He doesn't find the concept of a brood, an instant connection, plausible. It is a nightmare, really. To fight beside one, to become part of a group, for him, is about facing challenges together. It's about building the trust. No-one earns that just because some parasite is crawling around your brain that connects you to others. Unwillingly so.
He knows he has struck a nerve when the words spill out. And much of them struck his. Parker stops, abruptly so, and turns on his heel slowly, anger in his face. He is not broad nor tall like him, but that does not make his presence slight. His jaw is set, his eyes cold. ]
I didn't ask to be part of them either. I still don't. That doesn't mean I'm throwing them off a bridge. [ And then, accusatory: ] I'm still human. [ He's not a rotting, undead corpse yet. ] I don't need something in my brain telling me to help others to do it on my own.
no subject
[Calling on his heritage meant little to Prince. He'd met enough humans in his time to know their dedication to protecting others was suspect at best. Some had done well. Others had left their brood to die and known only when it was too late what that would cost them.
Humanity was not what defined a person. Action was. And the only actions he'd seen from this boy had been childish, defensive, and without the slightest thought to the health of the rest. Prince hadn't needed the symbiote to know responsibility. Perhaps this one did.]
You are weak. If you die, it will cost them more than you know. If you are very lucky they will take the weight you will not carry.
no subject
But the thing is, he doesn't want to protect them all. Not really. He won't let them die, but he isn't willing to go out of his way to risk his own life for them. Not yet. He doesn't know them. He doesn't know if they are themselves or accepted to be part of this-- hivemind. He can be as selfish as he can be giving. It is not Prince's disapproval or distaste that will change him. If anything, he will keep pushing against the tide just to push him away.
He grits his teeth. You are weak. He refuses to accept that. Anger seeping through his pores. ]
Then go worry about them, asshole.
[ He turns again, faster steps to the rooms. Trying to keep his distance, as always. More so now. ]
no subject
[And he usually was, although is concern was rarely the sort that others welcomed. Not gentle or soft. Not caring in the way most would understand. He was not the right person to speak to this boy. Could not impress upon him the safety and comfort the Nest could provide, nor could he sympathize with his selfishness- and that is what it was, for him. But there was no one else, anymore. Him. Cathaway. The rest were busy, with bigger worries than one childish Host's angry rebellion.]
What do you think to accomplish with this denial? Will you convince yourself you are as you were?
[It didn't matter how weak his mind, or how strong his will, or how sanguine his flows balanced. He couldn't trick himself to forgetting something that was as much part of him now as his own beating heart. More the fool to attempt it.]
no subject
As for rebellion, well-- Parker is very predictable when it comes to that.
Prince's words only make him stare. The answer to that is very personal. Too private. There's an angrier buzz rattling his skin, taste of metal in the back of his throat. His fingers curl into a fist, nails digging into the palm of his hand. ]
That's none of your business.
[ He could stop pushing all his buttons at once, too. ]
no subject
That is a goal very few pursued.]
You made your choice. The universe turns and nothing remains forever unchanged.
[Unspoken: deal with it.]
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His fingers dig harder. Nails almost breaking skin. Shoulders so tense they could snap the muscles under the tight skin.
He doesn't say anything to him, then, having reached the nesting deck, where he beelines to the bed that he has used - further refusal to ever set foot inside the pod. Makeshift thing, probably not comfortable, but then again, he has forgone comfortable many years ago. Crouches next to his bag, an old, dusty, dirty thing, flopped over the blankets, checking the inside (old habit, rechecking everything). Makes sure he keeps his back to the man, blocking his vision as he checks the antidote (he still pretends it is a secret, even when told it is not; he has always been stubborn). A pang tugs in his chest; the number of antidotes keep plummeting.
He talks over his rummaging; like a distraction from himself. ]
Are you trying to sound like Cathaway? Because at least she sounds weird enough with all the "we". You're not very good at these speeches.
no subject
So he stands like a sentinel at the doorway, watching the boy, his furtive, silly little attempts to hide his nature.
The jab, and that is what Prince takes it as, for all of the wrong reasons, does pull a reaction, albeit not the one Parker might expect. A raise of his eyebrows, expression dubious. Not that he could see it, hunched over as he was.]
This isn't a speech. This is my job. One which I have done for cycles. You think you are unique in your position, but you are not.
[And he means that. With certainty.]
no subject
Finally, he looks up to him, face twisted in an ugly expression, lip curled, nose slightly scrunched up, one eyebrow raised. ]
I think you need a couple more cycles, because you suck at your job.
[ And he presses past Prince, shouldering him as he does, fingers wrapped around his strap tight. ]
You can say whatever bullshit you want. I'm not becoming like you.
no subject
But he did not wish them deep in the nest. He did not wish upon them the state of being that Cathaway represented. Whether he would press upon them his state- the constant reminder of how much easier, more pleasant, less lonely he could be- well. It didn't matter. All that he wished of them was that they learn enough go control their abilities. To be quiet. To survive, whatever that required of them.
And, most important, to not risk the survival of the rest.]
If you are so intent on your own destruction, then, have the courage to do it before you bring the rest down with you.
[He steps aside at the press of Parker's shoulder- not for fear and certainly not with the expectation the boy would be capable of upsetting his footing, but because he did not wish contact with him. Not wholly successful, and the mild blowback from it has his lips narrowing.
That was an unfortunate disease indeed. He cannot imagine what Cathaway is thinking, (he could, if he wanted to), to leave it unchecked.
And if Parker could hear past his own thoughts, the slightest brush of Prince's consciousness across his. Irritation and concern and the slightest undercurrent of exhaustion.
Hr had been doing this a long time.]
no subject
His words make him stop. Fingers tighter around the strap. He skirts the line between life and death twice a day. He already has to deal with that. He has already lost part of him because of that. He nearly lost himself completely more than once. He doesn't want to go through that again. Losing himself to some-- symbiote. Brood. A collective. No. He's been running from that ever since that day and he won't stop now.
He turns around to him. Feels like punching him in the face. Repeatedly. Wants to break the bones of his hands in violence. But that primal violence is just part of the virus eating away at his brain. He pushes back, barely, but the buzz is-- loud. ]
You don't know me. I don't care how many people you've met, how many you've lost, how long you've been around. [ And then, he punctuates every word: ] You don't know me. [ His jaw clenches. ] And get out of my head.
no subject
[Insignificant is not the proper word for what they were. They were very significant to the ones who hunted them. They had sacrificed more than most could imagine in their attempt to find and eradicate the Nest. Countless hundreds and thousands of cycles. And it was a battle the Nest was losing. Slowly but surely. Their forces had dwindled even in his comparatively short time. No matter how much you trained, no matter how strong you became, no matter how much of yourself you gave, if they found you alone you would lose.
So they ran, and they hid, and they came out only long enough to strike key blows, to sabotage the plans that their enemies laid, to undo their works in some small way. To stem the tide of their malignant growth. The last sentinels.
None of their survival was guaranteed, but it could be improved.
Could be, if a Host didn't spend all of their time fighting the only chance they had for survival.]
As for your head, I have no interest in it. You are the one who made contact. Do not do it again without my permission.
[There are more reasons than one for the careful distance Prince kept in most situations. His mind was not as quiet as it could be.]
no subject
But he doesn't want to fight this fight. This isn't his battle. Not his war. Regardless of the calling, a constant but distant voice in the back of his head, a feeling he wants gone but can't rip out. ]
My true enemies are not picked by you.
[ If he could clench his jaw any more than it already is, he would. As it is, any more pressure would probably break the bones and split his teeth. Feels sick to be told that. He doesn't want any contact. He doesn't want to connect his mind to anyone else, regardless of the helpless chirp in his brain chiding him, telling him it's nice, it's comfortable. Telling him his nostalgia for human contact could be made so much better if he gave in-- but no. He doesn't want that. He's not some freak alien. He just has one inside his head. ]
I didn't-- [ He cuts himself off. He didn't do it on purpose. It's just so loud sometimes it's hard to hold back. Parker just gives him a hard stare. ] Whatever.
[ Ah, yes. Mature. ]
no subject
No one chose them boy. They chose you, and your denial will not protect you.
[He was a fool if he wanted to pretend the death he had faced before they found him was coincidence.
As for the rest- if he had not learned to keep his hands to himself by this point Prince reminding him of it would not help. It was only a reminder to himself to force distance when Parker would not.]
no subject
[ Is the great retort to Prince's words, coupled with the same hard stare and clenched jaw. But what he says does not resonate with Parker in the least. Especially not when these enemies don't seem to be anywhere, sound like an elaborate lie to make them comply - much like the ones he had been fed back in military camp before seeing the world outside its protective, comfortable walls where people struggled, faced the injustice of either submitting to martial law, arbitrarily decided by those in power with no input from anyone else, or survive outside the safe perimeter and face dangers, but face them freely.
It was a shitty choice. And this too is a shitty choice. ]
What do you want, Prince? [ A name and a title that tastes bitter in his tongue. ] I'm not taking your word for it. [ All this enemy talk reminds him of the bullshit fed to him and others by the military. ]
What do they want, these enemies? [ He says the word with mocking intention, like he is speaking of the monsters in the closet. ] This-- thing inside us? They can take it.
no subject
[When faced with a force such as that, a force that threatened your whole world just to get to you, you could only know your own weakness. There was no other truth. They were stronger and they were many and running was the only option. Which is why they took it. To save themselves, to save their worlds from being so much collateral damage.]
If they did, you would be as good as dead. Mindless. Not that they would leave you alive. [As much of a shell as he would be without the symbiote, they would not care. Not out of sympathy, certainly, and not even out of cruelty.]
They want you dead. They want us all dead. They would have killed you before you became a Host, and now that you are one you at least have the chance to strike back.
[Which is the reason for this mission. For every mission. The smallest chance to land a blow, to injure a great beast in some small way. To harry it, as small birds harry a great raptor.]
no subject
At first, Parker just turns his back to him and goes back to walking, like trying to shut him out. But what he says, it boils inside him. It's easier, nowadays, to tap into that two primal instincts, violence and hunger, ever since the virus has been in him. And to think about how easy it is to feel himself riles, that makes him even angrier. Like he blames him for it. Blames everyone but himself. That it's unfair and it shouldn't be like this and he doesn't deserve it, he's just someone trying to survive, tired and--
And then he says what he says. Parker stops, turning harshly back to him. ]
I was already dead long before any of you came.
[ It erupts out of his mouth with such strength that he feels the words vibrate violently in his chest, even though he doesn't scream. He basically hisses it out, between gritted teeth, as it creeps up to him without warning, explodes in his head with such strength that he can barely hold back the way his whole body tenses up, veins in his neck thick and face red in anger.
He knows they know. Most of the time, he just likes to avoid that subject. But some things just eat away at him. Being reminded of how constantly close to that mindless state, worse than death for most, leaves him sick. Feels a dark panic grow in the back of his head. The reason he had taken the end. Over death. His fear of becoming nothing but a mindless zombie. ]
So why? Why do they want to kill us? Can you answer that? Or that's your answer? They want us dead? That's it?
no subject
And he's not surprised when Parker snaps, and this time he stops with enough distance, as unimpressed as he continues to be. This boy presented no threat outside of mild discomfort.
It's not true. He lived. How much longer that would last depended on how long he would continue to be too stubborn to speak to them. Too stubborn to ask for help. They wouldn't fix the problem without permission-
With it, his disease was a simple, simple problem. Find the right place, find the right time, and slip through. A single ship in the darkness. One mind of many. Find what was needed, and return to them. Whether this would happen remained to be seen.]
We don't know. [And that is flat, even. Honest, although many doubt it.]
Some think that we are the only threat to them, but no one knows for certain. They have not told us.
[There's a tinge of something. Wry. Bitter. They have taken much.]
no subject
And it doesn't matter if his disease is, to them, a simple equation, because for him, giving up a virus to just fall into another kind of hive-mind mentality is not solving a problem at all. They are too close to each other. The loss of self. The will of the collective, not yours. Even if one is all about being some kind of hippie community and the other is violence and hunger. To be fair, he doesn't know which is worse.
So, he just scoffs. ]
And you accept that? [ Almost as if mocking him, hard stare. ] How long have you been here again? Have you ever tried to learn for yourself? Or you just listen to them?
[ Whoever they are, his tone implies. ]
no subject
[It is not an opinion in his mind. It is not a reprimand, either, it is a statement of fact, said as such.]
We have all done everything within our power to discover more. We hunt [We, but he doesn't, his mind is not with them. His place was here while the others from his time were either dead or far away searching for answers. Finding threads such as the one that had lead them to this universe, this galaxy, this mission. Untethered and bold. This was the best place for him. It did not mean it was the place he wanted to be.] for even the most insignificant details about our enemy. Better people than you have done this for more cycles than even I know. And we do not know. There is no them, there is only us.
[It is true- although the Nest was deeper and wider than they understood, the parts of themselves that even Cathaway could not touch were too distant to mislead. And the words could almost convince someone that Prince was part of them, that Prince embraced the mind. He didn't. It wasn't for him. The symbiote was, as always, a tool. But these people who fought beside him were his allies. They defended him and in turn he defended them. It didn't matter if he could not feel their minds at all time. He didnt need to yield to the silken soft call in his mind. They were still part of him.]
no subject
You know, your view of better people is clearly not mine. [ He doesn't think it's just his, either, thinks it's part of the collective, which only serves to diminish his opinion of him.
And, to be fair, it is not like he has ever paid mind to be a better person. His struggles have always been to look for the truth and keep those he considered his safe. He never cared to become more than he was. He still doesn't. ] You didn't do everything. There is always more you can do. You're just stuck to your ways.
[ There's a pause. His fingers twitch, then curl. ]
You think your fight is the only important one. That's fine. But don't ask me to think the same. I don't give a shit about any of this.
[ His punishment for running in fear out of his world was to be thrown into this one and he knows he has to live with that weight. He is too stubborn to ever let that one go. ]
no subject
[A fundamental misunderstanding. The Nest was always changing. Always evolving. The new minds that became a part of it brought their own new feelings, thoughts, experiences. It was terrifying in that way. Prince himself was a creature of habit, steady and inflexible. A stone where the Nest was a river.
None of which was anything this boy would understand.]
If you will not prioritize this fight you will die. If you will not heed my warnings then it will not be on my shoulders when you do. If you put the others in unnecessary danger as a result of your weakness and your stupidity, steps will be taken.
[And just like that it is no longer a conversation. His back is straight and his chin is level and everything about him radiates the same superior attitude he was raised in to.]
Go back to the hanger. The rest are no doubt ready to leave.