Test Drive Meme #3

[cyclicalitymods]

☯ 1. The barrier has fallen and the entirety of the Avatar world is open for exploration. If you're going to the Water Tribes, the Earth Kingdom or any of the Air Temples, you might have a few days to travel. Stuck on a boat, airship or flying bison; yeesh! Those headed to the Fire Nation have the option of taking an ominous-looking portal located on Air Temple Island which will zip them straight there! No matter the destination, the population of each nation seems a little... thinned out. ☯ 2. Do you have an OU counterpart somewhere? Does that counterpart have some kind of bending-related ability? Then today is your lucky today! Gone are the days of bending (or non-bending); today, you get the powers your OU counterpart has! Alternatively, you thought you were out of the woods when everyone else had their bending messed up; not so anymore! ☯ 3. The city is in desperate need of vigilantes. Maybe. Vandals are ruining the city. Some are destroying property while others are making inappropriate graffiti on the walls and streets of the city. ☯ 4. Fresh off the boat? You know, now that all the barriers have dropped? Well you better find yourself a place to live and a place to work; otherwise you might as well make yourself home in Avatar Korra Park or ask for help on Air Temple Island. ☯ 5. Carve your own path!

Useful Links
Application | Calendar | FAQ | Powers | Reserves

Comments

1!

[profiteers]

[Yeah, Varrick is gonna pause for a moment and give this guy a very obvious once-over. Not bad, although he liked his Nuktuk outfit idea better.]

Republic City. You get on the wrong boat or something, pal?

[lifescratched]

[Connor doesn't seem to notice the once over, although he's at least a little less on edge now he's found someone from his tribe. Or maybe he's from the northern tribe? His clothes are strange enough that he can't tell.]

I don't recall boarding a boat, and yet I found myself on one. Where is this city?

[profiteers]

Middle of the Earth Kingdom, but it's own independent city-state type of thing. I forget the exact name for it. Sorry to tell you this, buddy, but you've become the victim of some pretty lame spirit world shenanigans. People have been sucked in here from all over the place lately, playing havoc with my hiring process, lemme tell you!

[Varrick he... really doesn't care. He's still sort of eying up your get-up though, Connor. Nice club, very vintage.]

Either that or maybe you were just really drunk and don't remember getting on any boats. It can happen now and again.

[lifescratched]

[It's a real jawbone club, and it looks like it's seen some use.]

So the spirit world brought me here? For what reason...?

[He's decided to ignore about 80% of what Varrick says; the man talks far too much to Connor to keep up. Instead, he puts his hands on his hips, and looks speculatively up at the skyscrapers, at the satomobiles, at a distant airship in the sky.]

Is this a Fire Nation colony? I have never seen anything like... all of this.

[profiteers]

There haven't been any Fire Nation colonies in about 70 years, pal.

[Wow, rude, everything he says is totally relevant and important.]

Who knows why the spirits do anything! They didn't have to cover our city in vines but boom, presto! That sure happened! And then they decided it would be fun to pluck people outta all sorts of time and space and plot with in Republic City and throw a big impenetrable barrier around them! It's been a very chaotic couple of months, believe me.

[Varrick's still pretty intrigued with this guy, so he takes another moment to eye him up before sticking out a hand.]

The name's Varrick. Welcome to Republic City. Sorry about the spirit world shit.

[lifescratched]

[Seventy years, and this much has changed? He turns to look back at Varrick, brow furrowed, his mind evidently racing to keep up.]

...Connor. [With some reluctance, he takes Varrick's hand and shakes it, before letting go very quickly. He isn't one for handshakes.]

Then, what happened to the colonies? Were the colonists finally driven out?

[profiteers]

[That is one firm handshake. Damn.]

Some moved back to the Fire Nation, some stayed. You know how it is.

[Don't ask him for more details than that though history is not his specialty.]

The Fire Lord Zuko and the old Avatar built this place for a lot of the colonists to live, but these days just about everyone and their uncle ends up here at some point in their lives. It's really what you call it, cosmopolitan.

[Varrick makes a vague hand gesture over Connor's outfit.]

I'm guessing South Pole from the get-up. Very nice, by the way. Some of that kit's gonna be worth a fortune these days. Which you're gonna need, by the way, if I'm assuming you don't have any yuans on you.

[lifescratched]

[What happened to Fire Lord Ozai? And wasn't the Avatar dead, forever? He has a thousand questions, but Varrick's already changed the subject, leaving him struggling to keep pace again.

Connor glances down at his clothes, and raises an eyebrow, not sure if he's being made fun of. These things, worth a fortune? He finds it hard to believe.]

Right now I have greater concerns than money. [BLASPHEMY] I will get by without.

[profiteers]

Oh yeah? Cause not to be the voice of doom, pal, but here in the city they aren't really any free seals hanging around for your dinner. Stuff here you gotta pay for.

[Varrick pretends to take a moment to consider things.]

C'mon. I'll buy you dinner, try to get you as caught up as I can. Least I can do for someone from back home, right?

[lifescratched]

[Dinner is the last thing on his mind right now, too, but it has been a while since he's eaten well. Wearily, he nods.]

Thank you. [It's quiet, but he genuinely means it. It's been so many years since he last visited the South Pole, it's nice to get a little Southern Water tribe hospitality.] Where will we go? This city is enormous.

[profiteers]

There's no shortage of places to eat. Water Tribe food, if you're feeling nostalgic, and just about everything in between.

[The Southern hospitality may not be as selfless as you think Connor let's just say it's lucky you're a good looking guy.]

So where exactly were you before the sudden unexpected boat trip?

[C'mon, pal, we're walking and talking.]

[lifescratched]

[Lucky for Varrick, Connor is even more clueless than Bolin. If that's even possible. So he'll walk along with him, still taking all these new sights in.]

The Earth Kingdom. The last I had heard, Ba Sing Se had been captured.

[profiteers]

By the Fire Nation? Sorry to say, buddy, but you got a LOT of catching up to do! That was nearly a century ago.

[Or is it unlucky? Always the cute ones are so oblivious.]

[lifescratched]

So the Earth Kingdom is free again, now? Is the Water Tribe safe?

[That's the main thing he wants to know. At least even if the spirit world has brought him here for whatever reason, he can rest a little easier if he knows how things work out.]

[profiteers]

Relatively, I guess. On both counts. There was a civil war, for a while there, between the North and the South? The Northern chief was this nutjob who wanted to become a dark Avatar or something.

[Going to very conveniently leave out his own involvement in that particular conflict.]

But he kicked the bucket and his kids are are the throne now and they're at least relatively sane. Aaaaaand the Earth Queen just got killed by a member of the Red Lotus and her heir won't be of age for another three years. But other than that, sure, all hunky dory!

[lifescratched]

[He stops and stares at Varrick in disbelief. Not at the civil war, or the dark Avatar, or even the Earth Queen's death, but on another particular detail.]

The Red Lotus? Explain.

[profiteers]

Oh yeah, them. Most of this is second hand knowledge, but sounds like they were some kind of crazy commando squad of nutbars. Led by this evil airbender, Zaheer. Wanted to get rid of all the world leaders, turn the world into some sort of happy free-for-all with no governments! Like that would work out right, buddy?

[Varrick gives a snort.]

They tried to off Avatar Korra, too, but they managed to kick 'em where the sun don't shine.

[lifescratched]

[Connor looks troubled by that. Do they have anything to do with the White Lotus? Or has the order still managed to keep their existence a secret? He'd ask, but that would risk compromising them.

...And what was that about an evil airbender? He's starting to get a headache.]

I suppose I will learn more about all this, in time... It still seems unbelievable.

[profiteers]

Sorry, pal. It's a lot to take in, I'm sure.

[Is that actual sincerity in your voice, Varrick, dear god.]

So tell me what you were doing in the Earth Kingdom. Attacking Fire Nation colonies?

[What, a little history talk could be exciting. Also, they've reached the restaurant by now, and Varrick very gentlemanly holds the door open for him. It's a fairly low-key place, a ace with a small spread of international cuisine, filled with a mixed bag of dock workers and office people from the surrounding areas. He's trying not to over-whelm the guy with anything too fancy. If the stories his dad used to tell him about what the South was like during the war, there probably wasn't much more than salt fish and seal jerky to eat for him.]

[lifescratched]

[Connor nods a silent thanks as he holds the door open for him, and steps inside. It all looks so strikingly foreign, like a mishmash of Earth Kingdom and Fire Nation design... but at least the food looks and smells familiar. That's one thing time hasn't changed.]

Not the colonies. Only their military bases and convoys. Then there's intercepting intelligence, committing sabotage on structures and equipment, raiding their supplies...

[Connor shrugs as if to say the list goes on. He chooses a table for them both, and, aware that he's attracting more than a few stares, at least has the decency to slip off his bow and arrows and set them aside.]

[profiteers]

[Just don't fire at any civilians and they should be okay. Varrick orders a pot of tea for them to start and throws himself into a chair with his usual sprawl of dangly limbs.]

Sounds exciting!

[It... doesn't, Varrick. Stop saying dumb things.]

Back when I was a kid, the few elders in the village that had actually made it back from the war never shut up about it once, lemme tell you. None of them ever seemed as impressive as you do, if I may say so.

[lifescratched]

[As he takes a seat opposite, Connor just gives a wry smirk, taking his sword and club from his belt and setting those aside too. Still within reach -- old habits die hard -- but out of sight to most other customers.]

I will try not to bore you with too many of my own war stories, then.

[profiteers]

You can give a few a shot. If you wanted to. I don't think I would mind.

[ARE YOU NOTICING HIM FLIRTING YET really he's pulling out the good stuff here.]

So need any more questions answered about the bright and terrifying future?

[lifescratched]

[No, he really isn't noticing. You have to be direct to be understood by Connor.]

I've been meaning to ask about those carriage machines that are everywhere in the streets... I have not seen anything like them before. What are they?

[profiteers]

Ah! That'd be the Satomobiles. Gasoline powered horseless carriages if you will. Developed by Future Industries a few years back. Although I was really nearly at the same break through myself when they came out with the patent!

[Sure you were, Varrick.]