duplicitymemes

Entry tags:

«tdm

TDM #8

« « « TEST DRIVE MEME » » »

« « « AND IT GOES ON AND ON

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.

... 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 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.

The hellish summer heat is finally starting to subside, and the cool breeze suggests autumn is approaching.

» » » TAKE A RIDE

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.

« « « A POCKET OF PENNIES

The weather’s getting cooler, and people have begun transitioning from summer clothing to the sweaters and jackets of early fall. With jackets come pockets, and with pockets come a bizarre uptick in robberies.

Then again, perhaps the correlation is flawed. In the Down, getting robbed is a constant threat. Gangs of street toughs look for lone or inattentive people who look like they’ve got valuables on hand. Uncontracted Submissives are particularly easy to rob, since authorities have little time to bother with a lowly Submissive without a Dominant to advocate for them. One particularly nasty gang of young adult men, the Bulldogs, hangs out near the train, looking to ambush unwary Submissives fresh out of Orientation. They are prone to violent muggings and will simply beat up their target and leave them in a gutter when they’re finished robbing them.

In the Up, the streets are nominally safer, but there have been reports of a group of college-aged Submissive women taking advantage of their designation to attack travelers. They, too, stand near the train and the orientation center, looking to seduce passersby into an alley where a group of them can beat and mug their victims, usually Dominants looking to capitalize on their pretty appearances.

But you’re truthfully at risk anywhere in the city. The new arrivals are easy targets, and any brazen thief might get the idea to make some quick cash. The authorities are spread too thin to help, but perhaps LIErs can look out for one another?

Or they might just get in on the thievery. Everyone’s out for themselves, after all.

« « « NEW FLESH LIKE A GLOVE

( CW: potential dubcon, drugs, BDSM/sexual torture, prostitution, public use )

Surrounding a large building near the orientation center in the Up, banners and fliers announcing the beginning of the inaugural Duplicity High Tech Sexpo, a trade show for businesses and manufacturers of adult novelties. Since this is the expo’s first year, admission is free and many excited volunteers are handing out vouchers all over the city. These vouchers can be exchanged for goods and services within the expo, but have no monetary value outside of it. Even if you refuse them, you’ll likely find two or three of them tucked into your bag or pocket.

Inside the expo hall, there are dozens of booths pitching a variety of entertainments. Many offer interactive demonstrations, showing off their tech for the crowds of interested onlookers. Competition is fierce, and booths try to attract attention and customers through any means necessary. There are private rooms all around the expo for potential customers to try out the products. Booths will also happily accept volunteers for demos, or try to recruit them by bribing them with cash or free samples. There’s a nasty rumor going around that some are recruiting volunteers via more illicit means, like drugging and dressing them up, but surely that’s an exaggeration…

Some of the smaller booths sell more traditional toys and accessories: leashes and collars, specialty lubes and massage oils, fetish gear, strap-ons, dildos and vibrators in myriad shapes and sizes, and other basic items. Others advertise apps for the devices, the most notable of which is HUGGR (which LIErs may recognize as a poorly rebuilt sex-themed version of a certain other app.) The closer you get to the big-ticket sponsor booths, the more elaborate and fantastic the products become.

One of the most eye-catching demos is for the Climax VR Headset. You and a partner both wear a VR headset, which displays a collaborative virtual scenario. Both partners can alter the setting and surroundings however they like, and any sexual activity conducted in VR transmits real sensations to their bodies. You can come together without ever physically touching.

Symphony Hydraulics have a large, loud booth where crowds gather to watch perhaps the most outrageous demo: a variety of fucking machines. Volunteers get stripped, strapped in, and turned on, brought to screaming orgasms in front of the whole crowd. There is a fifteen minute break between demos on each machine, as some poor intern hurriedly washes and sanitizes them between uses. In the interim, they offer smaller, portable versions for sale or rent at the expo. (Some may note that a few of the Symphony Hydraulics staff members look a bit familiar.)

Does all this high-tech equipment have you overwhelmed? Wish you could go back to a simpler time? Sir Robert’f Bedroome Provifionf (sic) is helmed by historical reenactor Robert Plum, who has also created his own line of medieval torture device-themed sex toys. Need a chastity belt to keep your Submissive all to yourself? A rack with an attached spreader-bar? An iron maiden with soft vibrating silicone ticklers inside? All the stocks and whips and chains you could ever need? Sir Robert has you covered. Of course, everything on display is harmlessly altered for sexual novelty purposes, but one might also ask to see Sir Robert’s “special” merchandise in the back.

Perhaps the most unassuming booth at the expo belongs to Grandma Hattie’s Snacks and Sweets. Grandma Hattie, a kindly old Submissive, has partnered with a tech company to produce what appear to be completely normal vending machines, stocked full of her tasty homemade bread, snack cakes, and other baked goods. Vouchers are good for a free sample of any treat from a vending machine. They taste amazing and have no apparent odd effects-- until 10 minutes after consumption, when you suddenly gain an insatiable craving for a random kink. Your craving will dominate your thoughts for three hours, or until it is appeased.

« « « PERFECTION OF THE DIGITAL

(CW: potential dubcon, objectification)

By far the largest and shiniest booth comes from expo sponsors Sexy Metal Incorporated, who have set up a display of their incredible high-tech sexbots. These life-sized dolls are made of extremely realistic material that feels like warm human skin, and come with state-of-the-art mechanics that give them lifelike movement. Engineers show off how the bots can be plugged into a computer and programmed to act any way the buyer likes.

They come in a wide variety of customizable appearances and eerily, some of the bots on display look exactly like people you may know. Booth staff encourage customers to buy these dolls, or to rent them and give them a try onstage in front of the fascinated crowds. If that’s not kinky enough, one of the engineers has purchased a VR headset from another booth, and programmed it to interface with the bot’s controls. Care to slip inside the silicone skin of another person?

« « « 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 assignments OOCly are still 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: In celebration of our one year, pick whichever role you want for your character!

» A Pocket Full of Pennies: Feel free to come up with any free-roving gangs or petty criminals you like for your characters to tangle with.

» New Flesh Like A Glove: Characters can spend money on items at the expo, or may exchange vouchers for what they want. Each voucher has a value of about $5 within the expo and they may be acquired by finding them, having them handed to characters/stuffed in their pockets or bags by expo volunteers, or paid them in exchange for “volunteering” at booths.

Characters may indeed try before they buy, either out in the open or using one of the provided private rooms with a partner. The expo has a staff of unpaid student interns tasked with cleaning and sanitizing products if they are used but not purchased.

Grandma Hattie’s snacks can inspire characters to have any kink you may desire.

» Perfection of the Digital: Sexbots can resemble any player characters, including brand new arrivals/test drive characters. They can also resemble characters that yours knows from home. The engineers have no explanation for this, and the one who identifies himself as the designer will shrug and say he gets inspiration from many places.

The sexbots are hot-ticket expensive merchandise, so security is tight around the booth. Characters who attempt to steal or destroy a sexbot (for instance, one who looks like themselves) will be quickly set upon by guards, who are meant to eject them from the expo. However, many of the guards will take bribes from other booths to provide them model “volunteers,” drugged into complacency.

If characters want to acquire a sexbot permanently, they will have to buy it or exchange a hefty 50 vouchers for it.

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

» » » MAIN NAVIGATION « « «

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[take a ride - open]

Gladio had sat on the train ride, feeling ... oversized and out of place. His seatmates for the journey were both small and quiet and Gladio was too uneasy himself to try to put them at ease. Normally, he didn't mind being big, but once in a while when he was surrounded by tiny people who looked at him like an explosive that might go off, it bugged him.

Then again, everything bugged him just now. Most of all that he didn't understand why he was here, what here even was, and that he didn't know what had happened to his Prince or his friends. Was Ignis somewhere, listening to Ardyn be a blowhard at him, blind and stuck in that fortress trying to find Noct and Prompto on his own? Was Prom even there? Was Noct still alive? Was all this even real, or was Gladio just going nuts all on his own?

He didn't know, and he didn't like feeling clueless and helpless at the same time. They let him off the train in a place they told him he lived now. Gladio didn't have any intention of staying there without getting a feel for things, but for now, he could at least look around. Maybe climb back on a train after that. For the moment, he began a wary trip toward where they'd said his housing was - not intending to go in yet. He just wanted to get a lay of the land, see what it was they wanted him to do. Gladio would decide if he wanted to play along with what they wanted later, for now, he'd just look and see.

[perfection of the digital - for brocodes]

Gladio wasn't sure how he'd gotten here. You'd think after the tombs and dungeons and pitch-black forests he'd been navigating lately, one city wouldn't be that damned hard. But this place made no sense, and he kept getting distracted by the people. Gladio generally liked people. He got along with most of them, if they weren't terrible or so damned stuck up they couldn't take a joke. But the people here, they didn't make sense to him. They all just walked around, obeying the rules that the place set up, like it was normal. Like there wasn't a thousand things wrong with it.

Some of them walked around on leashes. Gladio had gotten glared at more in the past couple of hours than he had in a year just because he kept getting caught gawking at one or another scene that made no sense to him outside of the kind of cheap novels he wouldn't have let anyone know he read, when he was bored and out of history books.

So yeah, he kept getting distracted. Who could blame him? (Other than him blaming himself, which he was going to do no matter what.) However much people wanted to act like this was normal, it wasn't. Not to him, not to anyone he knew. Even Imperials, who he had a hard time understanding most of the time, wouldn't just walk around this city without blinking.

He'd taken a train, Gladio knew, and meant to go back to the place they said he was supposed to stay - to case it out some more if nothing else. But instead he found himself somewhere way more uptown, after another train ride he evidently shouldn't have taken. There were milling people - some of them wearing less than him, and it wasn't like he piled on the layers most days. More leashes and collars and people with marks like the ones he'd ended up with. And some kind of market. He let his stomach tug him toward the market. Gladio was rarely NOT hungry.

Turns out, wasn't the kind of market that had food. Or at least not the part he was at. He reeled back from the edge of a crowd that was watching a couple of pretty-faced people getting screwed by ... machines?

Ancients, he wanted to go home. Or wake up, right now, and never have to tell anyone about this dream. Home wasn't a picnic, but at least the chaos there made some kind of sense to him. LIEs and programs and other worlds dumped in this one - that didn't. And the people putting on a show had looked awfully glassy-eyed. It made Gladio worry that they might not know just how MANY people were watching them.

And who the fuck built machines for that, anyway? It was the kind of job you should want to do yourself, not farm out to a machine.

He retreated rapidly, before he did something stupid like try to break up the crowd when for all he knew, it was the people getting watched's idea in the first place. Gladio meant to head back the way he came and retrace his steps, but he ended up not doing that either, and grunted at his own lack of direction. Put him down in the wilderness with trees and rocks and he'd find his way. A city full of people he didn't understand, and he went in circles, he guessed. Figured. Ignis couldn't see now and he'd probably still have found his way around better.

He stopped, trying to get his bearings again and turn back when a familiar flash of color caught his eye. He jerked his head in time to see hair shaped like a bird-butt, bright blond and spiky, freckled face recognizable a second later. "Prom?" Gladio said. He broke into a grin, relief at SOMEONE familiar breaking through him. (Even more so that it was Prompto, who had just been missing, to him.) "Prompto," he yelled this time, starting to shove his way through the crowd toward his friend.

Which was when he noticed that Prompto was about one step away from bare-assed naked. His hands were bound behind him and he had a collar around his neck and and older man impatiently tugging him along toward a nearby posh looking tent with guards standing alongside.

Gladio had a temper, but he wasn't a brute, however often people took one look at his size and assumed he was. He could be thoughtful and strategic, and he didn't like to take on fights if he couldn't win them. But he was protective. With Prince Noctis, it was his job, but it was just who he was, too. As they tugged a silent and unprotesting Prompto away in this alien place, Gladio swore and then just charged forward, grabbing for the chain to rip it out of the outraged overseer's hand. "Prom, come on," he said as the guards started to rush forward. Prompto just stood there though, looking blankly at him.

It feels like any other day in Duplicity, if he's honest. Brutally honest really, to a fault.

After having been there for a year, nothing seems to surprise him, and it's kind of taken the fun out of it. Even if it had been stressful, he'd sort of liked the ambiguity of it all—at first. Now, it's just a mesh of the same stuff every day, which is probably why he isn't as enthusiastic as usual about wandering through all the vendors and presentations currently happening. A glance to his left reveals some new sex potion, and a glance to his right has something to do with toys. Even after all this time, he's still never quite experimented with any of that. So, he skips it, shoving his hands into the pockets of his skinny jeans as best he can and keeping his head down.

Maybe the way he feels still has something to do with the fact he keeps losing so many people he cares about. Friends, those who are more than friends. It's always been a tough pill to swallow, especially for him, and he's so trapped in his own thoughts that he almost misses the way someone shouts his name. ... what?

Prompto's head snaps up, gaze flicking through all the people swarming back and forth around him, and – oh. The fact that he's so tall probably helps him stick out more than usual. Or maybe it's the broadness of his shoulders? Prompto doesn't know exactly what to think, absolutely motionless in the middle of the crowd as his heart creeps its way into his throat. Is he seeing things? How long had it been since Gladio had been there? His fingers itch to immediately go to him and drag him away from whatever it is he's looking at, and yet – he's clearly not looking at him. So why had he said his name?

Finally snapping out of it, he moves towards him and barely catches the glimpse of his own face on someone else before trying to swallow the weird wave of anxiety that wells up in his throat. That's not real, he wants to say, but would he believe him? It's not like Gladio knows the truth, he thinks. At least, from the look of him this time, he might not. Which is why he forces himself to take a breath and slips around a few more people to get to Gladio and grab his hand like he's trying to force the leash free.

"Dude, that's not me." If it was... he'd hate to think he'd look so mindless, even that unclothed. There's a flush rising up into his face just thinking about it, and though it's impossible, he tries to nudge Gladio in the opposite direction. "Just leave it. Come on."

And he hates the way that sounds, like it's nothing more than the artificial skin that it is, but he'll have to think about that later.

It was like Prom didn't even recognize him. It was like he didn't recognize anything really. His eyes were just ... empty, except for some kind of mild curiosity. Like one of those damn chocobos he loved, watching them try to barter for better prices. Prompto was just staring at Gladio like those birds did. As if he were something baffling and not that interesting, but better than watching nothing at all while he was standing around waiting to give someone a ride.

Gladio reached for his hand to try to yank him again, but then he heard ... Prompto?

Another Prompto. Only this one actually looked at Gladio like a person he recognized, and he grabbed Gladio's hand instead of sidling away from him. "It LOOKS like you." Except the eyes didn't. Or the look in them - the color was right, but not the person looking out.

"What's going on?" Gladio surveyed the guards who were milling closer, and the other Prompto, who was being pulled away. He didn't have weapons here - he'd already tried to summon a sword or shield. No dice. But he could probably take a guard long enough to get something away. He spared a quick look for Prompto - the second Prompto. Man, that was confusing. That one was dressed. He looked healthy, and no collar on his neck. So he could fight if he had to. Still, Gladio used the hand Prom had grabbed him by to maneuver the smaller man behind him so he was between Prompto and the guards. He kind of wanted to grab the other one too. He didn't like the idea of these guys having a Prompto, empty version or no. But that one seemed like he didn't want anything to do with Gladio.

"Yeah, I –"

A glance at the copy, and he tries not to look as uncomfortable as he feels, still making some attempt at trying to encourage Gladio to follow him. His gaze falls to the submissive mark along his throat, and okay, yeah, that makes a lot of sense too. But all that happens before Gladio's trying to urge him behind him, like he means to protect him, and something tight squeezes at his chest. It's so familiar but distant too, something he's missed and doesn't have time to figure out—not with some of Duplicity's authorities slowly approaching them. Shit. If he didn't do something, Gladio would get in trouble, and he probably wouldn't be able to do much about it.

"Look, there's a lot of weird stuff about this place I still haven't figured out," he says in a rush, ducking under his arm so that he's in front of him. They haven't attracted a lot of attention yet, and if he... "But you have to trust me, okay?"

And he stretches up onto his toes in an effort to get his arms around Gladio's neck – how had he forgotten he was so damn tall – and pull himself close. His nerves are on fire, looking behind him at how close those people were getting, and maybe that's what causes him to swallow his own hesitations, easing forward to press his mouth to Gladio's in an attempt to kiss him and make it look believable. There was nothing out of the ordinary about a Dom kissing a sub, not here. They'd probably even overlook the strange mishap with whatever that other him had been too, especially when he really leans into it and kisses Gladio like their lives depend on it.

They wander past with only minimal interest.

Prompto, eyes partially open, feels his shoulders sag with relief... until he realizes what he'd done. He jerks away as a flush blooms across his face, obviously embarrassed.

"Sorry, I was just... You don't wanna know what they do to people who can't pretend to follow the rules around here." It's a rush to explain, trying not to look horrified. It's not because he minded; really, it had more to do with the fact Gladio probably hadn't wanted that, and he's embarrassed.

Gladio was paying more attention to the threat than he was to Prompto. He made a sound of pure irritation when Prompo wriggled his way back in front of him and in between Gladio and the oncoming guards. Damnit. Prompto wasn't helpless, but he did better at range, not getting in between Gladio and a target.

He started to answer, since yeah, of course he trusted Prompto. After all the crap the four of them had been through, there wasn't any way he couldn't. But Gladio didn't have a chance before Prom was latching arms around his neck and kissing him.

Gladio froze. What was that? It wasn't as if he'd never considered the idea. He was a guy who spent a lot of time in close quarters with three good looking men and he wasn't the kind of guy who was too straight to notice that. (Not even close.) But Prom was younger, and Noct's best friend. Noct was his Prince, and Ignis was Ignis. They were a team, you didn't screw with that kind of thing just because some nights in the tent you'd really like to roll over and get more friendly with one of them.

But thinking about it in the abstract wasn't the same as Prompto just laying one on him out of no where.

It was a pretty good kiss, once Prom got into it. Gladio half started to kiss back before he remembered that this was insane, and there were guards ... huh. Who were walking by.

He peered down at Prompto when he jerked away and went red as a tomato. "Okay ..." he said slowly. "So either you're not you either, or that was ... what. To throw those guys off?"

Maybe it's just his imagination that he could feel the slightest pressure of being kissed back, but there's too much stuff going on to really focus on that, unconsciously licking at his bottom lip as he turns to make sure Gladio's not about to get arrested before relaxing a little. It doesn't do much for the heat in his face, though he tries to shrug it off like it hadn't been a big deal. (Even if, he thinks, for just a moment, he could be into kissing him again for real and not as some ruse.)

"I'm me," he breathes, not really wanting to look Gladio in the eye but doing it just to prove a point. "I swear I'm me. If they saw you causin' trouble, they'd have... I dunno. It wouldn't have been good." There's no way he can get the words "sex jail" to leave his mouth. After all, he'd been a submissive originally when he'd shown up, and now that he's a Dom... it's all weird.

He tries to make himself inhale, because if he doesn't, he'd probably pass out and that'd look super awkward.

"Do you wanna... We should get outta here before they come back. My place isn't too far." And there, he could certainly answer all the questions he had. Possibly even why he'd actually kissed him so unexpectedly. Uncurling his fingers, he runs them through his hair and musses it even more. "Or, uh, I guess if you feel like looking around, we could do that too?"

Gladiolus Amicitia, Final Fantasy XV, Submissive

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take a ride

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dabs at you

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sorry this took me so long

Take a Ride

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Take a Ride

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