duplicitymemes | TDM #42

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TDM #42

« « « TEST DRIVE MEME » » »

« « « ALL ON DISPLAY

It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit. Yet, solace is found in the lies we tell each other, comforted by the peace of knowing that we're not alone in our depravity, and once on this path, sin itself becomes the lesser of two evils masked in a cloud of normalcy.

This is how Duplicity has functioned since the beginning. The divide of power and social standing is overt in that Dominants influence the decisions made both publicly and privately while Submissives cater to the rules presented to them. It is the way of Duplicity to assign random designations at birth with no leeway in altering what has been given. Climate in the Up is far stricter than that of the Down; violating outlined personas for a Dominant or Submissive while in full view of others is punished by degree of infraction. In the Down, many tend to turn a blind eye to these sorts of offenses.

To counteract the discovery of the deceit gene – a natural "negative" response to all stimuli – the LIEs program was founded. The program had been designed to introduce new subjects to the current environment and test for the deceit gene through immersion in Duplicity's standing society. Sexual impulses and encounters increase the chances of detecting the gene within these individuals. Participants are typically released from LIEs after a year; however, results have remained unsatisfactory and testing still continues.

...and you're here! Finally! Welcome to Duplicity.

After choosing a door and stepping through to the other side, the first thing that greets you are the enthusiastic faces of people in medical scrubs and pristine lab coats. Their enthusiasm translates to eagerness as they strip you of your clothes to perform a thorough examination—you will be healed, bathed, and given a paper gown to wear until your items can be processed and delivered to your residence later in the evening. You are also given a device that accesses the network as well as the time and location of Orientation.

If you enter Duplicity into the Up, congratulations! You're a Dominant, which means you are immediately picked up by a limo after processing and taken to your high-rise. Here, it is two Dominants per floor with separate apartments. If you enter Duplicity into the Down, congratulations! You're a Submissive, which means you are directed towards public transportation with the address of the motel you'll be living in. Here, it is two Submissives per room with a shared common space for all rooms.

Submissives are provided with a plain black pleather collar to wear and Dominants are given bracelets made of the same black pleather. The simple design is an immediate visual indicator that they have not yet signed a contract and they will be informed that more elaborate or personalized styles are a privilege reserved for those who do.

Enjoy your free time until Orientation! Participation is mandatory for all new and past arrivals.

The first hints of spring are in the air. Large piles of snow still linger, but precipitation has turned to rain and the breeze gets a little warmer every day. It's time to swap out wool coats for umbrellas and turtlenecks for tea dresses!

» » » ALL ABOARD

After stepping through the door and participating in Orientation, LIERs are assembled together in the Up for a tour of Duplicity in its entirety. Seats are in pairs and randomly assigned to Dominants and Submissives alike. Traveling from Fiddler's Square, the train journeys through various parts of the Up, showcasing society and examples of lifestyle. Along the way, frequent stops are made; a variety of passengers can be seen exiting and entering the doors. A Dominant with a kneeling Submissive takes a seat near the front of the train at one stop. A small group of Submissives board and sit closer to the LIERs at another, all seemingly content in their roles. As the tour continues through the Up, the train passes close to the Market and White Wall Bridge and zips by North Park before heading into the Down and bypassing Red Wall Bridge and South Park.

The train makes a "final" stop at Riddler's Square, where inhabitants of the Down are instructed to return to their temporary housing. Those who live in the Up are permitted to stay on the train and revisit the same locations while returning.

« « « OPPOSITE ATTRACTION

(cw: subliminal messaging)

Opposites attract, or so they say. It’s a sentiment Duplicity is founded on after all, with Dominants and Submissives pairing together from opposite ends of a spectrum for the betterment of society. All participants in Orientation - newcomers and long-time residents of the city alike - are ushered into a small auditorium found in the Orientation Center to watch a brief informative film about how the differences in the roles that Dominants and Submissives are expected to play will not only make the city a better place to live, but also better the lives of citizens and LIERs alike.

Like any good Duplicity-made piece of media, the film is littered with subliminal messaging about what the city offers… but it seems said messaging has gone a bit overboard this time. After watching, individuals will find themselves attracted to those who have traits opposite of them, regardless of designation, occasionally just a simple infatuation but sometimes to the point of near obsession. These opposing traits may be physical (dramatically opposite heights, hair color or hair length, etc.) or it may be a personality trait opposite to their own that catches their attention. (Are you shy? Well, that extroverted person over there seems really interesting. Are you rough around the edges? Maybe you’re all about the person exuding poise and kindness over here…) However it manifests, the messaging is clear - Opposites Attract and it’s impossible to ignore.

This effect can last anywhere from 1 to 24 hours before characters will come to their senses… hopefully nothing awkward comes of it, and everyone comes away with a new friend they can get along with.

» » » GOING UP OR GOING DOWN?

(cw: compulsions, compulsory sex, compulsory truth telling, semi-public sex, possible group sex, liminal spaces)

[ OOC: For existing players, new room assignments are now on the Housing Page | old room assignments can be found here. Please take this time to review where your characters are at, or request changes for errors/if they should be somewhere else! ]

As newcomers start to filter into the city, flyers and notifications are posted for LIERs that live in the Up and the Down public housing. As the announcements remind everyone, the city generously provides them with perfectly livable property, food and utilities out of the goodness of their hearts. As such, they don’t expect anyone to complain when some adjustments in housing assignments have to be made. The exact reasons for these are unclear; some claim it is for improved balance, while others claim this will give the buildings “better energy.” Whatever the case, the changes are rolled out over a few weeks, and the buildings themselves start to bustle with activity as residents move their belongings to their new quarters. Remember to be kind to new arrivals just moving in! Reassure them that this isn’t a regular occurrence, it definitely doesn’t happen frequently at all, and don’t forget to welcome to Duplicity.

The change seems harmless, but it soon becomes obvious that there may be something to the rumors of energy that needs to be redirected. Elevators everywhere, not just those in the Housing buildings, and even the Elevator between the Up and the Down, seem to be off. Any elevator that has more than one person may seem to keep going and going and going. Whether it is gently rumbling its way up or down, the display that indicates what floor the car is at seems to flicker in and out of focus. At times the number may freeze completely, turn into various incomprehensible glyphs, or simply disappear. Is there a way to get the elevator to stop? It’s unclear, and nothing, not even pressing the little alarm button, will open the doors.

Meanwhile, the longer that one stays in there, the stronger the urge to get very up close and personal with whoever you are stuck in there with gets. The urge is typically and unmistakably physical - one might feel the need to fuck a friend against the wall, or give them the best head possible in the space afforded. Occasionally the need may be something quieter - it could be as simple as having the urge to hold their hand, tell the truth, or confess to a lie. Ignoring the urge won’t seem to be an option either, as the elevator simply rumbles on. And the longer the urge goes unaddressed, the closer the walls seem to get. Soon, the urge becomes a terrifying and overpowering need.

Thankfully, what happens in the elevator, stays in the elevator. Other than the lighting - all electronics, including phones, devices, speakers that had played cheeky elevator jazz, even the surveillance camera in the corner, all switch off one by one. It might be a rare feeling, but everyone in the elevator is certain that no one is watching and nothing can be recorded. Once the urge is fulfilled, all the power comes back on. The elevator stops its long journey, the doors slide open, and it has finally come to the right floor – for at least one of the occupants. Hopefully no one else comes in before the other gets off at the right stop.

Taking the stairs is a gamble all its own. When it seems the way ahead and/or behind you is empty - the sound of hurried footsteps echo through the stairwell, and it feels as though there are a hundred eyes on you when there’s no one else there. Staircases seem to shift and circle around into a spiral, even those that should be fairly straightforward. Escaping through the door to the next floor does not always work, as characters may find that they are right back where they started, overshot, or are somehow further back than where they began. If this is all too confusing, maybe it’s easier to just go and take the elevator…

« « « A SWEET SURPRISE

(cw: aphrodisiacs, impulses, mind alteration)

Spring is here, and with it comes some city-sponsored events and outings for new Dominants and Submissives to meet others of the opposite designation! One of the more outspoken ones is being held in North Park in the Up, near the Greenhouse that was set up last year around this same time.

This little city-sponsored date is called… “Sweet as Strawberries!” The idea is simple. Interested participants and those who are volun-told to join in will arrive to find there’s a small stand set up, where they will be paired up with someone of the other designation. The pair is given a location within the small community garden beside the Greenhouse that is theirs for however long they’d like to spend together. Then, they’re offered a basket and told they can pick as many strawberries as they’d like!

If it wasn’t obvious before to the pair, this little date is one where they’ll pick strawberries together, with ample time to talk and get to know each other.

Holding the basket, you both will make your way to that little strawberry patch. As you begin to pick strawberries together, whoever is holding that basket begins to feel… different. This date is the most romantic thing they’ve experienced, at least in the moment. It fills them with a multitude of emotions - and makes the person accompanying them unbearably attractive. If both characters carry the basket, or switch off who is holding it, they both will end up infected with this feeling.

As the ‘date’ progresses, the strawberries themselves look delicious, like the most appealing food either of the pair has ever laid eyes on. It’s near impossible to resist taking a bite out of one. Hopefully the warmth that comes after isn’t too much of a surprise, with the attraction they may already be experiencing towards their opposite being amplified tenfold. Take a little time to sneak a quickie in or go somewhere a bit more private. Either way, after taking a bite of those delectable, sweet little treats, you’ll need to “cool off” together somehow!

» » » TLDR

So, what's happening?

OPPOSITE ATTRACTION

- Orientation for newcomers and long-time residents is to watch a brief informative film on the lifestyle of Dominants and Submissives
- Subliminal messaging makes characters that watch the film attracted to someone who is/has an trait opposite to their own
- Traits do not include designations!
- Opposite traits can be physical (dark hair to light hair, tall to short) or non-physical (shy to confident, brusque to polite, alcoholic to teetotal)
- Effects last from 1 hour to 24 hours

GOING UP OR GOING DOWN?

- Housing assignments in Up Public and Down Public Housing are shuffled. [ New Housing | Old Housing ]
- For characters in the Down Public Housing – they will still have the same roommates!
- Riding an elevator with someone else may result in the urge to be horny, or the urge to be sincere.
- That urge is impossible to ignore, and the elevator will only open at the right floor once the urge is fulfilled.
- Affected elevators negate electronic devices (phones, cameras, etc), but their lights stay on.
- Stairs may seem to feel like someone you can’t see is with you.
- Affected stairs don’t always lead to the floor you were going to.

A SWEET SURPRISE

- What’s better than a little strawberry picking date in warm spring weather?
- Dominants and Submissives are paired up – some new and some old, some both new, the mixture is up to players OOC!
- For those who are more experienced with the city, they can optionally have been “volun-told”, aka they were solicited by someone working the stand to come join in, as “we don’t have enough of your Designation participating”
- Holding the basket causes the one holding it (or both, if they’re taking turns holding it) to feel very attracted to their opposite
- Romantically, sexually, the attraction is everything.
- They may want to share their feelings in a literal fashion!
- Strawberries look very delicious, enticing, and it’s almost impossible to not want to eat at least one
- When eaten, they quickly cause aphrodisiac like effects

» » » MOD & OOC NOTES

Please read carefully.

On each Test Drive Meme, there will be a section noting character roles; these will vary each TDM. On an IC level, characters will still have gone through the doors but the assignments are OOCly randomized. When applying, there is a section of the application that denotes whether the character chooses "left" or "right." When participating on the TDM, there will be a third option. Players may link either a top level or a thread (five or more comments from their character) from the TDM and title the link as "Door Pass." This means that the player is choosing to take the designation that they were randomly assigned on the TDM, rather than taking the designation of a door. If the player decides to select a door rather than use the pass, then they are trying their luck; they may get the same designation they had on the TDM or the opposite. Once the application is submitted, players can't change their choice.

To assign roles to characters for this TDM, use the following guide:

If your character is more of a problem maker, they are a Submissive. If your character is instead a problem solver, they are a Dominant.

To Note: Characters can only swap their designation for one of the following reasons: an event occurs that allows it or there are OOC reasons that make it a necessity. Any swap always requires mod approval and each character can only ever switch once. Characters that are being reapped will keep their previous designation but players can choose to tag on new TDMs with different designations for fun!

Test Drive threads can be used as activity proofs for characters currently in-game.

Please remember to mark any necessary content, and have fun!!

» » » MAIN NAVIGATION « « «

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

All Aboard

Despite having traveled to many planets with worrying social structures, that didn't mean watching them at play is easy to accept.

Although Obi-Wan is well aware, there's nothing that he alone can do on this train ride to solve them. Especially when those being oppressed didn't seem to see it that way, if the adoration he can sense in the Submissive kneeling at the Dominant's feet is any indication. His hand runs over his beard, thoughtful, gaze finally tearing away from the display when he senses someone standing in the aisle. A fellow 'LIER'. He gestures to the seat next to him, smiling invitingly. He'd likely look somewhat out of place on the train in his Jedi robes. If the person is a Submissive, he'll be even more soft in his demeanor, trying to look as harmless and unassuming as possible. Being forced into this place and labeled thusly had to be hard enough, so he's going to do what he can to make it easier, "Please, feel free to have a seat."

Opposites Attract

He did love a good presentation, although this one could use a little work. The film is such blatant propaganda, it's impossible to take it seriously. He only watches to gain as much information as he can about this city, based on the things it says and what it doesn't.

The tug at his mind is subtle at first, a frown starting to line his face as it grows louder. He steadies his mind, closing his eyes in an attempt to push back against the compulsion. Yet, that sensation lingers even as he opens his eyes. He can only hope he's subdued the worst of it, whatever it's aims may have been.

Obi-Wan is considering the possibilities when someone catches his eye across the room. Someone very different from himself, in one way or another-- be that in looks, in their demeanor, or height, or anything else.

"Hello, there."

A Sweet Surprise

Picking fruit with a companion seems like a harmless enough activity, but Obi-Wan is learning quickly that appearances mean very little when it comes to Duplicity. Still, he holds a basket in hand as he waits for his assigned Submissive partner. At least, it seems like a good time to get to know someone?

When they approach, he greets them with a smile gesturing to the strawberry patch ahead, "Shall we?"

un:kenobi | text

For any one reading this, I highly suggest that whenever you are given the option, choose the stairs.

This place with its open sky and bright sun is so strange. Drummer is still in her standard issue jumpsuit with hair braided up to keep it out of the way. She doesn't want to be out here, but they're offering free food for her work. Fresh food. Produce. Real fruit. How could she resist?

City wouldn't let her decline anyway. They made that abundantly clear the second they pointed out the new mark they put on her neck opposite her tattoo.

She nods as he speaks and steps beside him. Her hands are tucked behind her lower back in a universal "at ease" position. She's been told to do things for Dominants, but he already has the basket. He can keep carrying it.

"All we need to do is pick the fruit, ya?" She sounds skeptical through her thick Belter accent and her question comes with an arched brow. "That sound too easy, if you ask me."

As she approaches, he's taking in her stride, posture, and all the tattoos along with the new one that labeled her 'submissive'. She's a very serious and tense one, isn't she? Of course, she'd reason to be in this place. The way she's standing makes him think she's a soldier or something close to it.

"Does everything need to be difficult?" He asks in response to her skepticism, although part of him doesn't disagree that there must be more to this, as it hadn't been sold to him an optional event. His smile continues, amiable as he bows his head just so in greeting, "My name's Obi-Wan Kenobi. And you are...?"

"There's always something more going on when felota like this looks too easy." Life in space can have easier moments, but it's not easy. That's something the Inners have, not beltalowda.

"Camina Drummer." She nods to him and then toward the patch. "Shall we? I heard they let us eat some of these strawberries while we work." That, too, sounds too easy and good to be true. Taking that risk for something to fill her stomach feels worth it though. It's not something that happens almost ever among her people.

"So, Obi-Wan Kenobi, this sort of thing normal where you from? The work they ask us to do now." He's so... nonchalant about it. She'd like to understand why so she can judge him more accurately.

He doesn't understand the word 'felota', but in the context it's clear enough, "You're probably right, but there's only one way to find out what the catch is for now and that's playing along. Seeing as we have no other choice but to."

Obi-Wan's ever the curious sort, sometimes to his own detriment. Regardless, he will do what he can to take the brunt of it if he can. He starts to walk, keeping pace beside her-- he's clad in his Jedi robes, but not his cloak, as that would have been far too hot, "I did hear that. That does sound like a nice bonus."

He likes fruit, although it seems a far more significant thing to Camina.

"Picking berries?" Obi-Wan asks, considering, "I'm not a farmer. But it's not uncommon. The rest of it?" Since he knows full well the berry picking isn't her real question, "No. Slavery exists on the Outer Rim planets and certain societal structures on some planets are unfortunately similar to this, but I can't say I would call it normal."

From the expression on his face, he wouldn't care for it even if it was. He's only acting nonchalant, because that's the way he is about everything, not because he's careless.

Not the answer she was looking for, but still a useful one. Turns out slavery is multiversal as well as universal. Drummer curses under her breath, inhales through her nose, then lifts her chin to look up at him.

"The Outer Rim - you mean planets like Jupiter and Saturn? And the moons like Ceres?" Humanity has explored far enough now to know there's more distant worlds than what's in the Sol system, but they can't reach any of those yet. Engines go fast, but the trip from Earth to the Belt still take a long time and careful navigation. And sometimes a death wish, if pirates are active in the area.

They reach the edge of a line of plants and Drummer isn't sure what to do with the plants. Botanists and farmers aren't new, but she's never spent time getting to know them or what they do. She eyes the plants a little too long before dropping to a knee and thumbing one of the bright red berries.

"You just pick it?" She gives the fruit between her fingers a small squeeze. It's firm, but not tough. It smells even better from this close. "They not gon' hurt when they're pulled from the vine?" Some plants do that and she doesn't know which ones. Strawberries could be in that number.

"I'm not familiar with those planets or moons, I apologize." They did not sound familiar, but he couldn't claim to know the name of every planet in the galaxy, "When I say Outer Rim, I mean the edge of my galaxy. It is entirely possible that we are not from the same place."

Obi-Wan watches her as she inspects the plant, and he moves in beside her, moving down to one knee, "It's shouldn't, these don't look like they have thorns. You can pinch at the stem so you don't accidentally tear the vine, though. Although if they are ripe enough they should fall off easily."

He moves to grab one himself, putting it in the basket before grabbing another. He's not familiar with this particular berry, but he's seen a fair few different kinds.

Obi-Wan Kenobi | Star Wars | Dominant

A Sweet Surprise

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Opposites Attract

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Something Sweet

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12 years later... All aboard!

<3

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