Deviation Actions
Literature Text
XIII. Character 3 gets into an accident. What were they riding? How did it happen?
The put-put-put of Quimbly’s motorunicycle was better than music. He’d always loved the sound of the machine as it sat idly, waiting for him. Never for too long. You didn’t let anything sit for too long in Clover, especially when the key was in the ignition.Quimbly relaxed into the feel of it, the single wheel underneath his seat, his hands around the handlebars. Motos were dangerous to drive. There was no outer shell to protect him, like autos had, and they sat lower to the ground than their multi-wheeled counterparts. Legally, they weren’t allowed to be driven on high speed roads.
That was a rule that Quimbly always took care to break, and had never been called on it. Maybe it was because the cops didn’t bother, but it was more likely because as soon as he saw them coming, he dodged into the next lane. The motos were small enough that they could weave through traffic, like an annoying insect, and Quimbly was able to leave behind pursuers simply by darting away.It was as nice as nights in Clover get. The air wasn’t sweet, but it was warm, hinting at the summer to come. Hot, sweltering days, where the heat of the city would feel oppressive, the smell of trash and smoke and fumes overpowering. Tonight, though, he would take a long ride, zipping through highway lanes, for the sheer joy of it. I’d been too long since he’d last been able to do that, without delivering strange packages or going to clandestine meetings with acquaintances who wore aliases. This time, tonight, it was all about him.
There was a smile on Quimbly’s face as he left the garage of his complex and rode into the night. It never got dark in Clover, no matter the hour. Street lamps glared above him, lights glared from windows of the skyscrapers the city was known for. The pollution made the city glow pink-orange, and on the rare occasion of a blackout, smog wrapped Clover like a blanket. The stars were never in sight.But this was home, and when he rode, Quimbly felt freer than he ever had been. Especially on a night like this. No obligations, no place to be.
He accelerated as he got on the motorway. It’d been said that gangers like him lived just for the thrill of it, ran headlong into situations where they were sure they weren’t able to come out of in one piece, just to do it. Because what did people like him have to live for, anyway? They always died young, and there was always someone waiting to take their place. But those sociologists had never spent a day on the streets, never walked a mile in his shoes, or the shoes of anyone but their own. There was a certain--not satisfaction--but a certain something in knowing that you took your life in your hands. To know that you were in control of your life, and whether you lived or died was up to you. It was the strangest form of liberation.Quimbly smiled to himself as the warm air hit his face. He sped up again, closing the gap between his moto and a three-wheeled auto. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted another gap in the next lane. He turned, heading towards it.
Suddenly the world had stopped. He found himself flying through the air, and landing hard. For a moment he was quietly stunned. Then, he realized that he hurt. His arms, his legs, his body was in pain. His moto lay somewhere on the road, the thin metal no doubt folding under the impact of whatever had struck him. Quimbly himself was on his side, on the pavement. His face ached, he was sure that he was bleeding somewhere. The wind had been knocked out of him; it was hard to breathe. Quimbly flexed his fingers. They were broken, there was blood on them, but they worked. Slowly, painfully, he got up, pushing himself off the pavement.“What the shit, man?” The other driver was panicking. “He came outta nowhere!”
Quimbly’s head was ringing, his eyes focusing and unfocusing. The stunned man had a vague feeling there was something he needed to do. Something about the pain in his arms. Something to shut up the driver who was freaking out, still shouting, “I didn’t see him!”Quimbly slipped back down to the ground and closed his eyes.
XIV. Character 2 tries to get a job with the help of Character 3 and Character 4. How did that go?Carmen let out a disgruntled, frustrated huff as she ran her hands down her skirt. She fidgeted in the clothes that August had assured her was “business casual”, whatever the hell that meant. She suspected August didn’t know himself. The blouse and tie were tight, and the high-heeled shoes made her wobble when she walked. It had been a long time since she’d worn any clothes like this. And even longer time since she’d enjoyed it.
“You’re supposed to smile.” Quimbly couldn’t help a grin of his own as he watched his lieutenant. Her discomfort with the clothes was obvious, never mind the situation they had thrown her in.Carmen gave him a warning glare. “Another word, Q, and you get five across the face.” She stared at herself in the short mirror. It wasn’t long enough for Carmen to see anything below her waist, and she scowled at her reflection. She felt like she’d been through a complete makeover, even if all she had done was wash her face and put some light makeup on.
Her first gripe about the clothing was that there was no place for her to put her knives. August had laughed at that, because what kind of job was she interviewing for, if she needed to carry knives with her? Carmen let out a disgruntled huff. “Why do I hafta be the one to get the job?” She asked her peanut gallery.“‘Have to,’” August corrected sheepishly.
Carmen snorted, and stepped a few paces back from the mirror to see more of herself. It didn’t help much. “Like you know so much.” Carmen was often prickly around strangers on the best of days. Now, her nerves were showing, and that made her that much harsher.“Pot, kettle, black, whatever.” He waved his hand. Like the rest of them, August wasn’t very articulate, and yet he was the job coach. This was probably because of the three of them, he was the only one who had a job. A legal one, at any rate. Yet, he was also the poorest of the lot. They’d offered to cut him in on a few of their deals before, but he usually refused. August wasn’t above a bit of filching, but the criminal aspect didn’t sit well with him.
“Just for a couple weeks, Carm,” Quimbly told her, unhelpfully. “We just need something on paper.”She twirled around on her heel to face Quimbly. “How do I look?”
“Very professional,” he assured her, in a manner that was not at all assuring.Carmen fixed her dark-eyed gaze on August. “Well?” She demanded.
August’s eyes flicked over her figure. “Looks fine to me.”Carmen took another look in the mirror. Pretty, professional, and demure. She didn’t look like herself. “Let’s just get this over with.”
With a smirk on his face, Quimbly followed Carmen out the door.LoxTech was housed in a huge, multi-storey building, and took up two of its floors. The skyscraper was sleek steel and glass, reaching up to the smog-covered sky. Carmen took a deep breath, and looked back at August and Quimbly. The porter guarding the door wouldn’t let anyone in without an appointment. No sweet talking their way in. That was just how things ran in Clover.
Steeling herself for the worst, Carmen introduced herself, got her name checked from a list of appointments, and walked into the building.An hour later, she was out. Quimbly and August were still waiting for her, playing a couple of cheap digi-games to pass the time. Carmen was walking lightly, her heart still fluttering in her chest. A nervous smile flicked on and off on her face. She still had a faint tremor in her hands. Carmen, so smooth and confident, was still shaken from the encounter. The whole office had smelled so clean, felt so respectable. It was everything that she wasn’t, and had never wanted to be. Even her nerves of steel weren’t enough to face up to a job interview.
Quimbly slid off the stone bench at her approach. “How’d it go?” He asked, trying to read her features.“They said they’d give me a call in a week or so.” Carmen cleared her throat. After an hour of talking politely, her voice was unrecognizable to her ears. “Saints, Quim, why did you make me do that?” She started at a rapid pace down the street, making two young men catch up with her. She searched through her pockets and pulled out real cigarette, a rare luxury. The ones stuffed with tobacco and nicotine were too damn expensive to smoke just on a whim.
“Because I knew you’d be good at it,” Quimbly told her.Carmen whirled on him. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
August’s eyes widened as he watched the exchange between the two old friends take place. Carmen’s cheeks were red, her hands were in fists. It didn’t take a genius to see that she was mad as hell.“Exactly what it sounds like.” Quimbly crossed his arms over his chest. “If any one of us could get a real, legal job, it’d be you.”
“I have a legal job,” August felt it necessary to add, then shut his mouth. It was obvious this was a conversation he didn’t need to be a part of. He shrank back, embarrassed.Carmen was still seething with anger. Anger and something else. Her teeth were clenched, her head bowed. Quimbly could see it in her eyes: the loathing, the resentment she had for places like these. The hatred she held for corporate princesses and their steel and glass world. The knowledge that, had things been different, she would have been one of them. Carmen finally raised her head.
“Don’t ask me to do that again. Even if it works out this time.” She cast an angry glare towards Quimbly. “It’s not why I’m your lieutenant. It’s not the job that I do.” Carmen started walking away from them.Carmen was already undoing her braided hair, unbuttoning the stupid jacket and blouse they’d shoved her in.
“Shouldn’t we…?” August suggested.Quimbly only shook his head. “Give her space right now. She might bite your head off if she doesn’t get it.”
For a brief second August pouted and stared at the ground, watching all his work walk away. “Why was she so…” August groped for the right word. “Bitchy?” He decided on.“Long story, kid.”
XV. Character 3 or Character 4 decide to leave a tavern. How does that go? Why did they leave?August’s eyes were drooping. At nineteen, he shouldn’t have been in the bar at all, let drinking his fill of whatever was in the well. But Stan’s didn’t card, and it had been a bad day. It’d started with a parking ticket, and quickly went downhill from there. Between rude customers threatening to report him to his boss to his hot plate finally dying, he really needed a drink. Or four.</b>And now, fishing around in his pockets, he wasn’t sure if he had enough to pay for his last shot of cheap whisky. He also wasn’t entirely sure how he was going to get back to his usual spot down by the river. He didn’t dare drive. The van was his home, and if he wrecked it, he’d be shit out of luck. And everything else, for that matter.
August uneasily got to his feet. He had to cling to the barstool to make sure he didn’t tip over.
“Hey, buddy, you’re not planning on driving home,” Stan called out to him.August stared blankly for a second, and shook his head. “Nah.” The keys to his van were in his hand, though, clearly visible. He’d walk it off. Maybe find take a nap. But Stan had seen the keys, and that was enough. “Hey!” The bartender called out to him.
August turned, wobbly on his feet. “What?”“Where’ya going?” Stan wanted to know.
August rattled his keys, and realized half a second too late that it was a bad decision. Stan snatched them away from the teenager’s loose grip. He watched with clouded eyes as they disappeared behind the bar and out of his reach.“But…” August started, but couldn’t think of a way to finish that sentence. “How’m I gonna…?” He slurred, and forgot what he had meant to ask.
He blinked, bleary-eyed, and sat down at the bar again. Stan gave him a glass of water.August wrapped his hand about it, and stared at it, as if contemplating it. “‘m not thirstry,” he said after a minute. He yawned, put his head down on the bar, and dozed off.
XVI. Character 1 wakes up in the bed with a random character of your choice!Sunlight streaming in from the window fell on Lotus’s eyes, obnoxiously telling her that she needed to wake up and begin her day. Her drooping bed was far too comfortable to leave, however, so she wrapped her blanket around herself and rolled over, away from the intruding light. She stretched one arm out, reaching towards her pillow, and stopped suddenly. Her fingertips were touching something soft and smooth, and warm. Not her spare pillow.
The unexpected sensation was enough to make her open her eyes wide to see the tan back and slim shoulder blades of a white-haired woman sleeping beside her.Lotus blinked a couple times. It wasn’t the first time she had woken up with another woman in her bed, but never before with this particular one. Talis--Sailor Ixion--the stern, humorless senshi she’d met by chance. The last person she ever expected to take home.
Lotus shifted slightly, careful not to wake her unexpected bed partner. Pulling the green sheet that cloaked Talis away, she could see that they were both naked. Despite the surprise, Lotus had to admire Talis’s sleeping form. The woman was toned and sleek, her white hair striking against her olive skin.Memories of the previous night resurfaced as Lotus tried to remember just how Talis had wound up in her bed. The events leading up to the actual bed weren’t out of the ordinary: kisses, caresses, whispered words and building heat. She just couldn’t figure out how they’d ever managed to get that far.
The night had started simply enough, with Lotus getting dragged to a bar with her friends. She’d never liked the noisy, crowded places, especially when surrounded by inebriated people. She struck up a conversation with Talis, who looked equally uncomfortable. The senshi didn’t even drink alcohol, which left her with nothing to help ease into the night. The two had found a corner of the bar that was dimly lit. The table was scattered with crumbs and sticky from spilled drinks, but neither of them minded. It was quieter than the rest of the place.They started talking, first of their shared dislike of places like these, but it went on from there. Lotus had stopped drinking sometime while she became immersed in their conversation. The stories of their lives, their friends and families, became interwoven with the background noise--which seemed to fade away as the spoke.
They had talked for hours without either noticing how much time had passed, until Lotus’s friends found her and said they were leaving. She waved them away, saying that she would be right along behind them. At the door, Lotus stopped and turned around. “Do you want to come with me?” She asked, approaching Talis.The white-haired woman had nodded, and followed without a second thought.
They split off from the group Lotus had gone out with, and went to another, quieter bar to continue their conversation. Last call had them spilled out onto the streets. The air was chilly, but not cold enough to make them head back inside. Instead, they went to a nearby park and walked its dewy, manicured lawns until the sun began to rise. Their mouths were dry from talking and feet were sore, but they had hardly noticed the time until the first burst of light on the horizon. It occurred to Lotus that she should have been home, in bed, long ago. When she relayed this to Talis, the senshi nodded. “I should go as well.”They both hesitated to say goodbye, not yet willing to part ways.
“I would rather not return home,” Talis was the first to speak.And so she hadn’t. Lotus had taken her back to her apartment and offered her hot tea. The tea had turned into a kiss, and the kiss had turned into much more. In the light of the breaking dawn, they discovered each other, at last falling asleep with their arms around each other.
Back in the present, Lotus carefully climbed out of bed and sent to her dresser, looking for clothes to change into. She pulled on a loose gray t-shirt and a pair of white jeans, and threw her discarded clothes in the laundry basket. A glance at the digital clock by her bed told her that it was almost noon. Lotus hovered in her bedroom for a few minutes more, waiting for Talis to stir. When she didn’t, Lotus went over to the small kitchenette to prepare a late breakfast. There was hardly any room for her in the small alcove, populated by a refrigerator, sink, and stovetop. After digging around in her cupboard, Lotus finally pulled out a coffee maker. She poured water into the machine, enough for a few cups, and wandered back out into the common room. Her thoughts were jumbled, and she tried to put this morning together with the previous night. The connection she had felt to Talis then, how easy the conversation flowed between them, had been almost overpowering. It only seemed natural that it would end with them in bed together.Now, in the early afternoon light, Lotus had to wonder what it had actually meant. Was it just a fluke, or would it continue?
And did she want it to?It seemed Lotus’s questions would soon be answered. She heard her bedroom door open. Talis, bare-foot, in the clothes she wore yesterday.
“Good morning,” Lotus said, feeling the need to talk. “Coffee’ll be done soon, if you want any.”Talis nodded, and glanced at Lotus’s figure. “I’m sorry.”
Of all the responses Talis could have given her, that was the one Lotus least expected. “For what?” She asked, though her face betrayed her confusion.Talis opened her mouth slightly, then shut it again. “Last night was most unlike me,” she said after a thoughtful pause. Her hand turned into a fist, balling a clump of fabric in her fingers. “I realize that I may have given you...expectations about your time with me.”
Lotus noticed that the other woman stood stiffly, shoulders straight back. “Do you want to have a seat?” Lotus suggested, not knowing what else to say.Talis swallowed, and nodded. “I suppose I would.” She made her way over to the sofa with heavy feet, moving with none of the agility and grace Lotus had seen last night.
The gaffer sat next to her, though left a few inches of space between them. “I...enjoyed last night.” Much to her embarrassment, Lotus felt heat rise on her face as she spoke. “All of it.”“I have never…” Talis shook her head, her short hair swishing against her cheeks as she did so. “The conversation I enjoyed. Truly.”
Lotus’s right arm lightly touched her left, half-hugging herself. “And everything else?”Talis didn’t turn her head to look at Lotus, but kept staring straight ahead. “Physical intimacy is not…” She wove her fingers together. “It is not something I have partaken in for a long time..”
“Well, you weren’t bad at, I can tell you that right now.” Lotus tried to smile. “If it’s--”“Lotus, I am in love with someone,” Talis said quickly.
Lotus felt her mouth drop open, just slightly. A mask of pain suddenly covered her face. She didn’t bother hiding it. “You didn’t tell me last night.” The hollow tone of her words relayed the shock she felt.“No, I did not.” An uneasy silence hung over the room. “There was another woman. I was devoted to her, and she gave her life for me. It is unlikely that I will ever see her again. Knowing that did not stop me from trying to find her. And if she is alive, then I have betrayed her.” Talis clenched and unclenched a fist, and finally looked at Lotus. “You were wonderful company, Lotus.”
“‘Company’,” the younger woman spat the word out. “Was that all I was?”“No.” Talis’s voice was hushed. “I have not felt so close to another person in...in a very long time. I would not have allowed you to take me to your bed had it not been so. If my situation were different…”
“But it’s not,” Lotus filled in for her.Talis shook her head. “I am sorry, Lotus.”
“You were right.” Lotus stood up from the small sofa. “You’d better go.”Talis was quiet. After a moment of silence, she nodded. “I understand.” With that, she got up, and left.
XVII. A character of your choice becomes a supreme being and creates the world in their image.August stared down at the blue orb nestled in his hands. It was his. It was warm, and glowing, giving off a soft light, and it was his.
What do you want? asked a voice in his head. You could have anything. Close your fists, crush this whole world.“What?” August spoke, but no words left his lips. He asked the question, and his voice rolled through infinity.
No one has ever asked you what you wanted, came the echoing reply. You never asked to be born into your life, or to be tossed aside like yesterday’s trash. Again and again. Close your hand, and it will be no more. No more brothers taken away from you. There will be no one left to give up on you.The orb was trembling now. Or perhaps it was August.
Think of it. You could end your suffering. You could end all suffering. No more scared children, hiding away. No more fights. Finally, after so long, you would win. For the first time, you would be in control.August licked his dry lips. A world without long hours in court and awkward visits with social workers. There would be no more nights wondering where his next meal was coming from, no more scheming relatives to take everything he knew away from him. No more pain. It could all be over.
August’s fingers twitched. To end it all…The orb in his hands was humming now, soft strains of an ancient melody. There were no notes, no instruments playing.
“What about music?” He said, his voice echoing again.The darkness sang around him, a song unlike any other he had heard before. Mozart, Beethoven, the composers he had spent so much time studying could not have hoped to match it. Even their finest work only amounted to pale imitations of what he heard now.
Yet, when he played his cello, the world melted away. The heaviness that weighed upon him vanished the moment his bow touched the strings. That was what elevated him, when the rest of the world tried so hard to grind him down, and often succeeded.August let go of the sphere, away from his hand. Flying free.
...and Bach’s “Cello Suite No. 1” floated across the new galaxy.XVIII. Before we go, all of your characters want to take a moment to ask you (their creator) for something that they have always wanted.
1. Lotus wrings her hands together as she speaks. “I...I don’t know what I want. I’ve been trying to figure it out for the past two years. I thought when I was with Quimbly I was really getting a chance to do something. It was better than waiting for my life to start. I might’ve asked you to show me what it is I should be doing, what I’m supposed to be striving for. But I know how my story ends. I guess...what I want from you...please don’t let me die unfulfilled.”2. Carmen’s shoulders are hunched over, though her lip is curled in defiance. The way she always looks when she has to deal with authority. “You put me through a lot, you know. Shit that wasn’t my fault, but I got the blame for it anyway. But I got a decent enough life out of it. It’s not pretty, but it’s mine. That’s all I’ve ever really wanted. If I were some saint I’d say that I’d wish that no kid had to go what I went through, blah blah blah. But I’m not.
“My wish is for those fuckers to burn.”3. Quimbly is quiet for a moment, considering. “I’ve never been about thinking big,” he says. “Changing the world or some shit like that. The only thing I’ve ever wanted, ever really wanted, is for all my people to stay together. No offers from the Brothers, no more stings, no more stupid risks. Give me my family.”
4. August’s eyes have lit up. One leg jiggles, his hands flick in anticipation. There’s a smirk on his face, indicating excitement, mixed with nerves. When he speaks, it is without hesitation. “I want to be a composer. Big time movie composer. Like John Williams. Make all these pieces that everyone recognizes. And the cash would be awesome, too.”5. Like August, Talis speaks immediately. Her voice, too, is without reluctance, but is strong and confident. “There are many things I could ask for, though I know most of my wishes are impossible. Instead, I will allow myself to be selfish. Please.” She touches a hand to her heart. “Let me find Sailor Varuna.”
Part 1: fav.me/d980vdh
Part 2: fav.me/d980wny
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XIII. One of the first things I came up with for the cyberpunk story was motorunicycles, because it sounds ridiculous and dangerous. Turns out, they're totally real.
XIV. It felt weird trying to slip August into this scene with Carmen & Quimbly, so he sort of feels tacked on here. Then again, of the three of them, he's the only one with a job that actually pays taxes... I imagine the other two are trying to run some scan.
XV. I wasn't sure exactly why it would be difficult for August to leave a bar, especially since he generally keeps his head down anymore.
XVI. This was actually my favorite scene in this meme. Talis isn't one for one-night stands, and she definitely wouldn't sleep with anyone she didn't feel a strong emotional connection to. It must have been a very special night.
XVII. In August's story, he becomes an avatar of a forgotten god, so I thought it would be appropriate to have him be the god-figure in this scene.
XVIII. I think this one's pretty self-explanatory.
