Duplicity Game Mods (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
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duplicitymemes2019-11-12 05:14 pm
duplicitymods) wrote in duplicitymemes2019-11-12 05:14 pm
Entry tags:
TDM #9
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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 cool weather has begun to fade into a wintry mix of soft snow and chilly wind. LAST TIME ON... Duplicity's annual Tumenalia preparations are under way and all citizens will know about the charms. |
 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. |
 The annual Tumenalia festival is coming at the end of the month, and the citizens of Duplicity are well into their preparations. The decorations on the light posts and building exteriors are becoming more commonplace, streamers and lights and silken banners hanging from light posts and doorways and some have taken to wearing strange masks. These festive touches almost distract from the boarded up windows. A variety of seasonal booths are also popping up throughout the city streets in both the Up and Down. Many of these are giving away the same red, blue, and green charms that have already been in circulation for the past two weeks. But there’s also a new product being handed out: small sealed glass vials full of colored powder in intricate striped patterns. The powder vials seem purely decorative at first, with no special properties. But once the vial has found an owner, without warning, the glass begins to glow and the powder within begins to disappear, as though falling slowly through an hourglass. Characters holding the vials will experience the effects of the charms at a greatly increased pace and intensity. Red, blue, and green powder will have the same effects as the charms do-- but unlike the charms, the powder vials allow for colors to mix and combinations of effects to be experienced at the same time. A character could feel the strength and aggression of red mixed with the exhibitionism of the green, or even aspects of all three effects at once. The powder will continue to affect the character until the last of it vanishes from the vial, a process that takes about three hours. It seems to be the fashion among locals to wear the empty vial on a necklace as a badge of honor, and empty vials are apparently valuable in some way, though nobody seems willing to answer how just yet. |
 As excited as the locals seem for the upcoming Tumenalia festivities, there is also a sense of unease and foreboding in the air. Tumenalia is known as a time when anything can happen, and though there have been multiple promises from the mayor that this year won’t come with the usual violence and property damage, most of the locals don’t seem reassured by this. Many are in the process of physically securing their homes and businesses, and many others seek some sort of premonition in the form of fortunes. While not as prominent as the booths handing out charms, there are plenty of pop-up fortunetelling booths starting to appear on the streets. These impromptu oracles provide a variety of divinations, including but not limited to tarot readings, tea leaves, and even reading roses. Ask about love, life, death, health, wealth, or whether or not to upgrade your insurance policies before Tumenalia. Whatever you ask, though, you’ll find something curious - it may not be literal, and it may not be in the manner expected, but all fortunes somehow come true within the day. |
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: Sweet or Savory. If your character favors Sweet Foods then they are a Dominant. If they favor Savory Foods then they are a Submissive. Please remember to mark any necessary content, and have fun!! |
no subject
She takes that moment, because she's smart enough to know better than to alienate any familiar face she might see here right off the bat. They don't often see eye to eye, but Prudence has developed more of a tolerance to Sabrina these days.
Abruptly, Prudence turns to face her. ]
And why is that?
[ Her tone is cool, yet still vaguely combative. ]
Contentment based in platitudes is of no use to anyone, Sabrina. If I'm meant to keep out of trouble by being attentive and true to my loved ones, then where are they? [ She gestures. ] Certainly not here. Clearly trouble is not something I'm meant to avoid at all.
[ She levels her gaze then, settling on Sabrina's neck. A prickle of smugness makes its way up Prudence's spine. They may be on better terms these days -- sometimes -- but there's still something satisfying about seeing Sabrina brought down a peg or two all the same. ]
Tell me, Sabrina. [ Suddenly Prudence is right there, tilting Sabrina's chin up. ] Who owns you?
no subject
[ She should take her own advice, but you know what, that's not the point here. Still, she's heard over and over how she can't do anything if she doesn't go along with some of it. And for her, without Nick, without Ambrose, she has no idea how she'd get through this terrible city. The other friends she has are invaluable too, but at the beginning, if she'd been totally alone...she doesn't want to think about that.
She purses her lips when she realises Prudence is looking at her neck, but it's not like she could have hidden it. She notices Prudence doesn't have the same predicament. She's not thrilled by that; it's something the other witch can and will probably hold over her.
She steps away from the touch, but she keeps her chin up, defiant as ever. ]
No one, Prudence. It's a mutual arrangement to keep us from getting arrested. No one owns me.
no subject
If you really believe that, Sabrina... [ Her expression is one of mock pity. ] Then you're even more foolish than I thought. Not even the Dark Lord can protect you now.
[ She hasn't been here long, no, but growing up in the Church of Night has given Prudence useful, if pragmatic, perspective on this sort of society. Mutual arrangements don't exist between the elite and the lowly; the lords and peons; the predator and prey. They just don't-- they aren't built to last.
You're not alone here, Sabrina says, and it nearly makes Prudence want to slap her. Alliances yes, but she still has no loved ones here the way Sabrina does; what Nick and Ambrose are to her is not what they are to Prudence. Still, though, she's listening. ]
What do you suggest?
no subject
I don't want or need the Dark Lord to protect me.
[ If there's a bit of venom on that title now, well, who can blame her? She isn't exactly on good terms with Lucifer these days, if she ever really was. ]
Well, I suggest we stick together. With you and me and...and Lilith and Nick...that's a lot of magic. They can't possibly keep us all under their thumbs forever.
[ She isn't entirely sure that's true; Duplicity and LIEs have proven terribly hard to fight against. But Sabrina can't let herself give up, let herself be resigned to relying on Henry or Nick or someone to just get her through. ]
different journal, still me!
[ She waves her wrist dismissively, bored of that subject, more interested in what Sabrina says next. Prudence knew Nick was here, but Lilith-- that's news.
News she doesn't quite know what to make of, as Prudence certainly doesn't know Lilith well enough to know how trustworthy she is. She considers Sabrina's proposal with a thoughtful cant of her head, agreeable if still rather skeptical. It's hardly a plan, but it's... well, a start. Prudence had no intention to begin with of not sticking with anyone of her coven she found here. ]
Maybe not. But has anyone fought back and won yet?