TEST DRIVE MEME #8

[sailmods]

1. but times have changed for sailors these days

[you wake up.

it doesn't matter where you were before. going to bed? dying? opening the door to face a great evil? same result. you wake up in a soft bed with starched sheets in a cool, darkened room, sunlight peeking out from behind thick curtains. maybe you're alone; maybe you aren't. maybe you immediately notice the folded paper on the bedside table near your head. if you don't, you better fix that real quick: you won't be able to even open the door before you read it.

the note itself is written in a neat hand on white card stock; there is a stylized logo of a ship with the words SERENA ETERNA printed underneath. the note reads as follows:

Dear Passenger(s),

As your cruise director, it is my great honor to welcome you aboard the Serena Eterna, your destination for fun and adventure! We know you could have chosen any cruise line for your vacation, and we're very grateful you chose ours! On behalf of the Captain, I would like to assure each and every passenger that will we do whatever it takes to fulfill all your needs and desires during your journey with us.

At your earliest possible convenience, please attend the mandatory lifeboat drill by the end of the day. I'm sure everyone is very eager to get started on all the fun and sun, but safety always comes first! You can find your life jacket in your cabin's closet; carry it to your assigned muster station on deck one, where I will take you through the drill. If you can't find me in the crowd, just look for the gal with the winning smile!

See You Real Soon!

Sincerely,
Gal Friday

you walk to deck one. you have no other choice: every time you try to step in a direction some unseen being considers "not towards deck one," you find your legs no longer move, staying stock still, frozen. whether compelled quickly by curiosity, or delayed by pure stubbornness, the result is the same, and you are left milling around with other similarly curious or stubborn people.

you see someone in uniform near the front of the crowd. she seems to be a gal, but is missing the winning smile, along with most of her other features. she seems to see you, though, rushing to your side and placing a lei around your neck with great formality. a voice, cheery but artificial, sees to come from nowhere and everywhere.]

Welcome aboard! I'm so happy you could join us!

[you touch the lei. rooster feathers, lotus seeds, and a carved circle of something white and hard, linked onto a silk string.

after the drill is completed, you are seemingly free to go. or, well, your legs work, now. and maybe that's as good as it's gonna get.]

2. tried to amend my carnivorous habit

[the space inside John's where the piano normally sits is mysteriously vacant today. as a matter of fact, the entire piano bar is silent, without so much as a muzak-inspired interpretation of Uptown Girl to hum along to.

the piano itself seems to have disappeared... for the most part. unlucky, unsuspecting passengers who enter the cabin hallway, step out onto the lower decks, or find themselves in one of the other narrow corridors of the ship, may find themselves suddenly facing down a silent, unmoving grand piano. it takes up too much space to squeeze by comfortably...

and then, the cover lifts, exposing what looks to be... teeth?

yeah. yeah, those are its teeth. and it's coming right for you.]

3. that American creation on which I feed

[it had been a difficult October for bahamanuel, the bahamanal. its territory had changed utterly, becoming alien and strange. new predators were encroaching on its hunting grounds. its position in the natural order is under threat. and so, nature finds a way.

the old timers know to be wary of large piles of clothes, but even they won’t think to look twice at the tiny lumps of garish kids’ swimsuits and sundresses - until they feel something latch onto their leg, and then several more things, and anywhere from ten to twenty balled up clothes piles try to take down their prey.

the young must learn how to hunt, after all.]

Comments

1

[not_the_last]

That lost, pleading look makes her flinch, with a complicated emotion that's only one part sympathy.

"I don't know any Lord Osborne," she says, "but maybe I can help? What does he look like?"

A bar exam

[businessorlibation]

Johnny's at Hurikane to help himself to a mixed drink, when he notices Max. Sharp suit, but less sharp demeanor, at least at the moment. There's a moment of thoughtful consideration before the shorter man sidles up to take the stool beside Max.

"Under other circumstances, I'd play coy, but I'm feeling fairly blunt today. You look like hell warmed over, pal."

Library

[redlightgreenlight]

Valdis too wanders the library. It's become a place where she can find peace and quiet from the rest of the ship. There's only fiction here, but it's still fun to find new novels to read and devour them in one sitting. Sometimes she takes them back to her room to finish them there. Today though, her peace is interrupted by the barely contained anxiety of someone else wandering the shelves. The kind that screams 'I don't know what to do'.

She lifts her head to see the man in the suit. "Looking for something in particular?"

[maximumcake]

Max gets halfway to the counter before he realizes he's in the company of more than just spirits. He goes full deer-in-the-headlights, frozen in place with his lips forming an unspoken "oh" of surprise. There's a man behind that counter. And he's beautiful. Oh no.

"S-sorry. I can come back later..." he's already trying to back away, but then he accidentally bumps into a chair and flinches when it screeches against the hard floor. "Ah, shit."

[maximumcake]

He flinches when she does, already thinking he's done something wrong by asking.

"I'm sorry. I..." She doesn't know the name. She's obviously human and probably not involved in any of this. Will he be putting her in danger if he says more?

"No. That's okay. I'll just... keep asking around."

[midnightroads]

"Whoa, sweetheart. You don't gotta run away from me. I'm here 'cause I wanna be. Can I getcha a cup of decaf or something?" Because yes, he's already getting the impression that Max is wound up tighter than one of those toy cars that goes vroom down the hallway when you let them go.

[not_the_last]

His reaction, strangely perhaps, steadies her a little.

"Do as you like, of course," she says carefully, "but I really must warn you that if you're looking for someone from your home, he's not likely to be here."

lol

[maximumcake]

Max tried to tuck his arms in even closer as this new stranger takes a seat beside him. He'd like to argue about the state he's in but he'd just be making a fool of himself. And he's so fucking tired...

"I feel like it. I..." Should he introduce himself? No, it might be dangerous. A different truth slips out instead. "...can't sleep."

[businessorlibation]

"Yeah, I know how that feels. The room's different. The bed is different. The space, the people. I'd say it gets easier, but my circumstances aren't typical around here, exactly." He orders his aviation and two glasses of water from the spirits.

"Still. Do you want to talk about it at all?"

Re: Library

[maximumcake]

He squeaks when she looks right at him and--fuck--talks to him. Shit. He was trying to keep his head down but that's a little bit hard for a guy who's six foot and some change and wearing a tailored suit. It doesn't help that she's very attractive, in that dangerous predator kind of way he's gotten used to spotting. It compels him when it really shouldn't.

"I, um... can't find the 'Getting Home for Dummies' section."

Re: Library

[redlightgreenlight]

Definitely the flighty type, with a hint of fascination on his mind. She tips her head and offers a smile.

"Well, this library only contains fiction, so I'm sure it's around here somewhere."

[maximumcake]

"I was kind of hoping for another espresso..." Sheepish, because even he can tell how high-strung he is right now. Which, is apparently so high-strung that being called 'sweetheart' immediately makes his knees wobble.

[midnightroads]

"You'll jitter a hole in the floor if I do that, and then Miss Friday'll have to come and clean it up. Now, be a good boy and come over here, and we might be able to compromise on a boba tea and some madeleines for you."

Look. Look, Bash learned how to take control of a situation in Duplicity, and he isn't afraid to use what he learned.

[maximumcake]

As he likes? That's... a taller order than she knows. Wait. What?

"What do you mean? Why? I have to get back to him."

[maximumcake]

Max hears that order for water and draws his half-finished drink a little closer as if he's afraid it will be taken from him.

"I don't know if I'm allowed to. That's... part of the problem." He doesn't know what he can and can't do here without his master's guidance.

[businessorlibation]

"That does seem like a bit of a problem. Allowed to--that makes it sound like someone would stop you, if they could?"

He's groping in the dark (not in the fun way), trying to feel out the shape of the problem.

Re: Library

[maximumcake]

If he had wings, he'd be doing circles around the ceiling like a scared parakeet.

"Fiction...? But that's not...Oh." And there he goes, slumping down into a chair. And yet, his leg is still jiggling.

"We really can't leave?"

3. You actually eat like this?

[crushed_pearls]

Erin looks over at the new voice, her plate piled high with sweets, the coconut shrimp she is eternally raiding from here, and near her is a second plate with a concession to actual nutrition in the form of rice, salad, and, ugh, plainer proteins. She flashes the newcomer a guilty grin and waves the plate in a small motion.

"I can't speak for anyone else but my standards are somewhere between starving gutter rat and street urchin, so..." A little shrug. "Stellar's available if you like fancy."

Playfully: "Or were you looking to rant a bit, new friend?"

[redlightgreenlight]

"So it would appear. I haven't been here long myself, but it seems to be what most of the other passengers believe."

Her gaze returns to her book, perhaps looking away will help him relax a little.

"There are many who are trying to figure out an alternative, but we'll see how it goes."

[maximumcake]

"Friday? You mean the faceless lady?"

Oh. Oh no.

This good boy finds himself with his butt in a stool in front of Bash before he's fully comprehended what just happened. Fuck. He's so desperate for someone to tell him what to do that he just--it wasn't his fault!

"I like madeleines. I don't know if I've tried boba tea before?"

[midnightroads]

"Perfect." The word is purred out, giving Max the praise he's probably seeking. Look, Bash is just reading him as if he has a stripe down his neck at this point.

"Boba tea is special because it has tapioca pearls in the cup. Extra texture, fun to chew. I'm going to make it with milk tea. How sweet do you take it?"

[maximumcake]

"Um. It's not..."

Shit. This guy is asking questions that are uncomfortably close to the mark. Max squirms in his seat, realizes he's doing it, and forces himself to go still.

"It's just that my employer"--yes, he's pulling out that lie for safety--"wouldn't like me saying too much."

[not_the_last]

"I'm very sorry." She says it steadily, meeting his eyes. "That may not be possible. All of us here have been brought against our will, and no one has yet found a way for any of us to get back."

[maximumcake]

That purring may as well be hypnotizing Max. He sinks both elbows onto the counter, slowly deflating.

"Tapioca in tea? I'll bite." (No pun intended, this time.) "I like sweet, but not too sweet. Sugar shouldn't overpower the other flavors."

[businessorlibation]

"Ah. Is your employer on the ship?" Something's not sitting right with Johnny, but he's still unsure what to make of everything.