duplicitymemes | TDM #4 ( revised )

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«tdm

TDM #4 ( revised )

« « « TEST DRIVE MEME » » »

« « « HERE WE ARE AGAIN

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 L.I.E.S. 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 L.I.E.S. after a year; however, results have remained unsatisfactory and testing still continues.

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 highrise. 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.

Enjoy your free time until orientation! Participation is mandatory by all new and old arrivals.

Oh, and one more thing. It's fucking cold. Better bundle up.

» » » LIES TRAVEL IN COMPANY

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.

« « « END IN THE DISCORD

While the societal climate between Dominants and Submissives remains somewhat neutral throughout Duplicity, there has been the occasional whisper of defiance and call for equality. Yet, demonstrations and visible proof of this unhappiness spreads faster by word of mouth on a day exactly when you need it most.

Welcome to Autonomy, a "traveling" nightclub that is never in the same place twice. People wanting to attend only learn of its lucrative location and password hours before it opens for business. Tonight, I choose the third door will get you inside and into the temporary freedom club Autonomy has to offer. In this circle, there are no assigned designations and no consequences for taking a role that isn't the one given by society. So, a Dominant may become the Submissive they've always wanted to be—or vice versa. Dominants and Submissives alike are able to mingle without repercussion and be themselves. Food, drinks, and private areas for more intimate – or if your preference is sexual – encounters are provided. Donations are accepted at any point during the night to further Autonomy's attempts of spreading the fulfillment that comes from being untitled.

On the night you choose to visit, Autonomy is holding a random lottery for temporary connections. When entering, you have the choice of submitting your name into this drawing to be paired with someone else in the club regardless of designation. A short while later, a message will pop up on your device with the name and information of your partner, and whether or not you choose to meet them is purely at your discretion. Having more than one connection isn't completely unusual either.

» » » TABLE IT FOR LATER

Gratification of being a successful Dominant or Submissive isn't necessarily simple. Learning curves are to be made, and mistakes will happen. Led by a Dominant and Submissive couple – Miriam and Victoria, who have been paired for twenty-two years – a monthly meeting for unattached Dominants and Submissives is held in the conference room of Morning Wood motel in the Down. The meeting starts a few minutes after nine and has no designated end time. The couple introduce themselves and explain the purpose of the meeting: learn the proper method for a new kink and possibly find your perfect partner. The space is intimate and well-stocked with refreshments.

To begin, Victoria, while blindfolded, balances on her hands and knees with her back perfectly level. Her partner, when ready, places various items on the level surface–a full cup, a plate. The Submissive is meant to hold the items until the Dominant believes she's reached her limit. The exercise is one of trust and understanding. The demonstration is a short one, followed by Miriam removing the blindfold and soothing her Submissive. The words are whispered low and with care, clearly a method that is specific to this couple. The process is concluded with the pair handing out workups, videos, and answering questions. Anyone wishing to practice Purposeful Submission can do so in the open room with a random volunteer, aided by the couple, or can find someone to take to one of the rented rooms. Sex may follow any scene but is not necessarily included. Experimenting with unattached Dominants and Submissives allows for new relationships to form.

« « « MOD & OOC NOTES

Please read carefully.

On each Test Drive Meme, there will be a section noting character roles based on birthdays; these will vary each TDM. On an IC level, character will still have gone through the doors but assignments OOCly are still randomized. When applying, there is a section of the application that denotes whether the character chose "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. All characters who have blue eyes or one blue eye and another color are Submissives. All characters who have brown eyes or one brown eye and another color are Dominants. Characters with any other color eyes are Dominants. To use this TDM as a door pass please link this on your app and place whether it is Dominant or Submissive.

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

» » » MAIN NAVIGATION « « «

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[It doesn't really ease her fears, the way he speaks. It's not for his lack of trying, though. It's.. her own issues. She knows that. She knows perfectly well that she's been broken in more than just a physical way. It's hard to trust, even though she so desperately wants to. So desperately wants to make friends, even in this place, which pits her against those she has an innate loyalty for.

His hands are warm in her own.

It's comforting.]

Why did you bring her here, 9S? [She has to know. There must have been a reason for it.]

I want you to contract her.

_{[He might as well just come out and say it. There's no beating around the bush when it comes to this.]}

There isn't a human here that I trust enough to have her live under their care and she's too gullible. The likelihood of her making a bad choice, well, the possibility is there. Even though we're not close she's always been kind to me.

_{[She's one of the few that never told him to stop feeling what he felt.]}

[She sighs in response to his request, but nods all the same. If this is what he wants, if this is what he thinks will help...]

If she's alright with it, then I don't mind. Even if she is YoRHa, she doesn't deserve someone taking advantage of her, just like you said.

_{[There's a sigh, one of hot air that's vented past his lips. Well, that's part of this whole clusterfuck out of the way.]}

Thank you. Seriously, thank you.

Don't thank me just yet. You still have to convince her to do it.

I'm sure I can manage that. Before you walked in I was transferring her data to help do just that.

_{[To wake her up to what had been happening to them all along.]}

... You do what you think is best. [She doesn't like it. How exactly was the android supposed to just... Live? Knowing what they knew? It was hard enough for A2, harder for 9S... And now? And now, having a third android in on the state of things?

A2 isn't sure she agrees with it.]

I will.

_{[It's a necessary sort of evil, if you will, and one he's willing to use if the end result seems worth it. (It does.)]}

I'm going to give her an hour to calm down and process everything before going back in there.

I'll stay in the living room then. It's probably best if you talk to her first when she's awake. Probably doesn't want to see my ugly mug after what I did to her anyway.

_{[All he feels he can do is give her hand another squeeze before finally letting go, watching as A2 retreats back to the living room. It's during the span of the hour he allots for 6O to rest that he prepares something small for her. He's managed to boil water in the kettle and make a cup of tea (which he added milk and honey to) and has one of the chocolate bars he'd stolen from a vending machine in his pocket. Counting down the seconds he opens the door to his room exactly to the hour. She seems to have bundled herself up in his blankets which is...pretty cute. He doesn't blame her - he likes to do the same.]}

...Hey 6O?

[Her low-power rest passed into full sleep at some point during that hour. Once she'd sorted out the most pressing thoughts, and bundled certain data safely away where it can't hurt anybody, it just... seemed like a good idea. Go into suspension for a while and let her processors properly rest. She hasn't really done so since she got here and that's probably half the problem.

She made sure she'd get a ping if 9S spoke in her vicinity, though. There's no apparent response at first, just a long pause as she comes back online.]

9S...?

[she mumbles, opening her eyes]

Hey.

_{[He says again, voice still soft as he approaches. Gently he lowers himself onto the edge of the mattress, turning his torso to face her. Carefully he holds the mug of tea in hand, waiting for her to sit up before offering it to her.]}

Um...I made you some tea. It's good, I promise. It'll help.

_{[Ah, he's going to start rambling now isn't he? Yep.]}

I put honey and milk in it for you. Honey's really sweet. Bees make it from flowers - but you probably knew that already since you like flowers so much...

[6O blinks a few times, then rubs her hand over her eyes to clear away the last uncomfortable traces of dried tears. She brings her cocoon of blankets with her when she sits up, only sticking one arm out of it so she can take the mug. The warmth of it takes her by surprise—this must be one of those beverages humans liked to take hot. It feels kind of soothing.]

Bees... those are a kind of insect, right? I think I read about them somewhere.

[She's content to just listen without rummaging for the memory right now. Let 9S ramble if he wants to!]

Yep, you got it. They're yellow with black stripes and they're fuzzy. They also have stingers, but usually will only sting in self defense.

_{[Rambling due to insecurities and anxiety is go!]}

They live in hives and live in a hierarchical society, with one queen who lays eggs and reproduces and the rest are her workers who make the colony function. They're pretty cute. Some of them are really round looking, like bumble bees.

_{[Those are 9S' favourite.]}

Heh, so a bee hive is kind of like YoRHa... [Please never tell the Commander that 6O just compared her to a queen bee. Even though she's not entirely wrong.]

"Bumble bees." That even sounds cute. [6O lifts the mug to her lips and lets the rising steam tickle her nose. Curious, she breathes it in.] This smells really nice.

Kinda, yeah.

_{[That actually gets a snort out of him. She's...honestly not wrong. It's a good comparison. Way more than she probably realizes.]}

It tastes even better than it smells. Oh, and I've got another treat for you.

_{[He shifts a bit, pulling the chocolate bar out of his pocket to hand it over. It's essentially a Mars bar, chocolate covered nougat and caramel.]}

It's a chocolate bar. They're amazing.

[She eyes the candy with a quizzical tilt of her head. Plain water serves just as well to fuel their reactors as food would. Probably burn cleaner, too. She's not entirely sure what this is supposed to do for her.

Then again, she could just as well ask what the point is having taste receptors if they never use them. She wiggles her other arm out of the blankets to take it.]

Thanks?

[She's still got to try the tea first! 6O takes a cautious sip, her eyes widening a little as the unfamiliar taste floods her tongue. It's a lot like it smells, faintly floral, but sweeter.]

Um...sorry.

_{[Suddenly he feels sheepish at offering her the treat. It makes sense that she wouldn't automatically get hype over it like he does now.]}

I really like chocolate.

_{[Now what? Should he bring up the elephant in the room yet?]}

...How are you feeling?

[noooo, no being sorry! Only good feels now. She drops the candy bar and reaches out to pat him on the shoulder instead.]

Then I bet I'll like it too. You know what you're talking about.

[She flashes him her best sunny smile, hoping that reassures him. Then... sip. Turns out, having a drink in your hands is good when you need to stall for a moment.]

Better.

[It's true! It's true. She's not 100%, but far enough from where she was an hour ago.

(Even if she weren't, she would say the same for his sake.)]

Edited 2019-01-14 06:30 (UTC)

_{[Better is good. He's not sure he fully believes it but he'll take it. Her smile has him smiling back at her. He's still guilty (boy is he still fucking guilty) but a true tragedy had been avoided. Thankfully.

Hopefully they can all move on from this.]}

I'm glad to hear it...I really am sorry, 6O. I don't know if you'll believe it when I say it but A2 feels really, really bad about all of this. She has a bad history with YoRHa and after everything that's happened to her and me she's protective.

_{[Really, really protective.]}

[Up to this point, her associations with A2 have been nothing but negative. Having to relay the orders to take out the deserter, knowing what will probably happen. Black-box signals going silent. The terror and disorientation of being abruptly hoisted into the air.

But... 9S has lived everything 6O's only been able to observe from afar. He knows exactly how dangerous she is. And he still trusts her enough to put his life in her hands, and bring a unit into her space with no weapons and no real defenses.

It's hard. Still, she does want to try and trust him.]

9S...

[Her smile isn't holding up, but at least she's calm now.]

I don't blame you. Promise.

_{[Part of him wishes she was still wearing her veil so he wouldn't see that drop in expression, but it is what it is. All he can do is nod at that his own smile faltering a little as his gaze trails off to the side.]}

I've already asked A2 and she's in full agreement to it as long as you are...but I want you to contract with her, so we can keep you safe.

_{[That's probably not what 6O wants to hear right now but it's better to just throw it out there now.]}

I know that might sound crazy for me to say right now, but I promise it's not a bad thing. You'll have all the freedom you want, I promise.

[The facts, as 6O lists one-by-one for her consideration:

- As a submissive, she has to contract with somebody.
- A2 tried to kill her, BUT:
- 9S says it was an accident, and he trusts A2 not to hurt her again.
- 9S trusts A2 not to hurt him again.
- A2 did apologize.
- The alternative would be a stranger. Androids were built to serve humanity, but... she knows and likes 9S. He'd be more help in getting her bearings.
- If she had to guess what 2B would want in her absence, she would want somebody she trusts to keep an eye on 9S. (If this conversation were happening just a bit later, things might have gone very differently.) A2? Definitely not somebody she trusts. (And there's another one for the "if she only knew" file. But that's in a place and time 6O will never see.)

What choice does she have, really?

6O takes another sip and swallows hard. Then she leans over and sets the mug aside so she can take 9S's hands in hers.]

First, I need you to go get A2.

_{[He's not expecting her to take his hands, but he gives them a squeeze all the same, finding it in himself to smile once more. His nod is firm and he's sliding off the mattress a moment later, almost hurriedly in his movements.]}

I can do that. I'll get her - just a moment.

_{[Out he steps from his room, stepping into the hallway to find A2 where she said she'd be - the living room.]}

Hey, I asked 6O about the contract. Come and talk to her?

Sure.

[She doesn't know why 6O wants to talk to her about it. It doesn't seem like that'd be a normal thing to ask for, honestly. Not after she nearly killed her.

A2 stands anyway, and she'll move to join them in the room, though she hovers near the door, just in case.

6O's presence is still unnerving. A2 still doesn't like what she represents, what she means.

But 9S is right. She's not a combat model. She's nowhere close to it, and she'd never be a threat that A2 couldn't handle.

...And yet, she's still nervous as she watches her, waiting to be spoken to.]

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