AlteredEgos

Altered Egos, near-future cyberpunk stories. Dr Jekyll’s Potion is out on the internet. What sort of monsters of our Id might emerge, and what sort of abilities would they have?

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge:

A Sales-person who has changed completely

His Alter Ego shows Weak abilities fueled by a state of Terror

Ahee-hahha-hhaa haa. I'm the best gettaway guy in the buissness, been gettignway with it for yeears. Ahhaa. My Motto? Nothing? what's the motto with you? Ahheee. oh, yeah, the blood thing. it just keeps coming out. Well, that's what she said. Ahheee. Catch me later!

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge:

A Doctor who is laughing at the world

His Alter Ego shows Strong abilities fueled by a state of Listlesness

[alteredegosinhyding]

 A Academic who faces an impossible choiceHer Alter Ego shows Weak abilities fueled by a state of Bemusement

Shape: LI 7

[lifemadesimple]

[alteredegosinhyding]

This might be a good approach also.

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge:

 A Priest who is laughing at the world

His Alter Ego shows Weak abilities fueled by a state of Interest

Image W3

——————

As business cards go, it was nondescript. Grubby white, thin cheap cardstock. It would do.

Shepard's services. Missing people found. Ask at the Vicarage. 

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge: 

An Aristocrat who has found true love

Her Alter Ego shows Weak abilities fueled by a state of disfavour

Shape IN30

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Laughing and giggling, the girls leaned against each other as they crossed the street. Behind them the club doors swung shut, swallowing great gulps of sound that leaked into the night. Trendy boots splashed through puddles, leather jacket against denim, silver jewellery against a discrete handbag.

The walk would take 20 minutes normally, but with stolen kisses and bubbles of laughter, it was nearly an hour later when they reached the underpass. A heavy black bar dangled, waiting for them at the end of the tunnel, with a hammer moving out the shadows behind them. A third and fourth moved down to join them, a pipe and a kitchen knife between them. They were masked, and sounded almost bored when the demands came. One girl started sobbing, pulling out a phone, a purse, trying to undo her earrings with shaking hands. The other frowned and blinked slowly. Her voice remained calm, with an accent that dripped of old wine and rich furnishings.

"Rupes, darling, I did say this was a rough part of town."

'Rupes' sobbed quietly as she emptied her purse out, the muggers leaning in. One twitched as coins rolled across the floor of the underpass. Another, the one with the dirty bar of metal, moved towards the girl that had spoken. His teeth were yellow and glistened as he licked the blade and spat. Another man shuffled into position behind her. The smell of sweat and dirt and fear hung over the group.

Humming quietly to herself, the girl stepped forward and punched him straight in the nose with an open palm. As he staggered backward she looked behind her, swinging the same palm down and round in a tight arc, knocking the incoming hammer out of the way and finishing with the edge of her palm in the side of his neck. He managed to look surprised before she caught his arm between hers and kicked him square in the chest, sending him stumbling backwards, out of the fight. 

Approaching from the other side, the guy with pipe swung high at her head. Her legs still spread from the kick, she shifted her weight to the foot closest him, pressing one fist into an open palm, placing all of her momentum into the elbow that caught the bottom of his ribs. 

The last of them came in low, no theatrics, just a nasty serrated knife and a grunting thrust. Again, she shifted her weight, the knife ripping the arm on her leather jacket as she slid her forearm under his thrust, lifting it over her and leaving his throat unguarded. 

Two girls left the underpass, one leaning on the other, the other cleaning her hands carefully on a cotton handkerchief.

"Really darling, they were a little common weren't they? Not a patch on those kidnappers I ran into in Thailand. Still, the night is young, perhaps there's more mucking out to come."

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge:

 A Librarian who is kicking the habit

His Alter Ego shows Strong abilities fuelled by a state of Remorse

"Awight Mush?"

"Yeah man, feelin good. Been down the gym, grabbed a meal. Was even reading again last night!"

"Whoah! You reading? Careful man, you'll burn that brain doing stuff like that. Come up with me to the canal, lets hit up Lemmy for some cloud."

"Nah man, not doing dat stuff no more. Going clean. going straight. Gonna get my shit together, find out who I was, maybe get a job, maybe I've got a family somewhere?"

"Yeah, and you know what'll happen? They'll stare at you, you stoopid chink. Cos they've forgotten you as sure you've forgotten them. You know what you are, eraserhead."

"Oh, no man, I'm stopping that shit. I'm off the cloud, I'm plugged in. Not done that to someone in, how long? I'm going straight."

"Yeah right chinky boy. Ever wondered why you can't remember the last guy who's memories you mushed? Cos, you mushed yourself right after. Went to the gym did you? Where's your sport's gear?"

Mush stopped, leaned against the wall.  

"Aw shit man, I must ave fergotten it. I think. Oh shit man, have I been working again? Oh man, they'll do me good this time. or last time. I can't remember."

"Come on chinky boy, you ain't in any state to do anything. Come up the canal with me, git some cloud. Ferget this mess, you need to clear your head first."

Mush nodded and gulped, tears streaking filthy cheeks. Passers by ignored him, stepping around the shabby homeless guy, mumbling to himself.

[alteredegosinhyding]

Challenge:

 A Mathematician who is searching for the lost

Her Alter Ego shows Strong abilities fueled by a state of Remorse

Shape: W30

The girls go to college, the boys go to jail.

Graffiti on Towerblock 7, Hackney.

"Dr Liễu you stand before the court accused of multiple accounts of extortion, physical bodily harm, grievous bodily harm and of resisting arrest.

Amongst your many victims, two had the tips of their fingers cut off, a third had his ear pinned to the wall with a throwing knife, a fourth, the same but through his palm. Victims six and seven had concussions, broken limbs and had had their hair forcibly shaved by you. Victim eight had his voicebox crushed by a thrown plate and number nine had his index finger removed after he threatened you with a gun. Apparently you apologised to him. 

You have entered a plea of reduced capability, being driven by an alter ego and the search for your brother, a criminal who has passed through this dock already. / Recording paused

/Recording resumed

She is restrained? Good. Dr Liễu, you are a 40 year old professor at the London School of Econometrics. You chose to abuse the illeagal drug known as 'Edge' or 'Potion'. You knew, and could calculate the risks better then most. Your motivation and search was quickly undermined by the Alter Ego you created. The remorse you feel for your actions is genuine, but serves only to feed your creation. I have no choice but to recommend sedation. Take her away."

[alteredegosinhyding]

Mousetrap had never meant to transition. The formulae was just an aide, a crutch as much as those sickly sweet caffeine drinks that littered her colleagues desks. They’d gone home, late hours even by a coder’s standards but she’d plodded on, sipping at her topped up coffee as she chased the last of those bugs down, again.  Something rustled, behind her. There wasn’t supposed to be anyone else in the building. A sudden clatter as a pile of disks fell, and she spun around in her chair, searching the abandoned rubbish piles. A slow, low hiss echoed from the other side of the room. She spun again. Her monitor blacked out. Without it, the darkness felt total. Carefully she stood, reaching out for where the desk should be, trying to remember the route to the light switch. The hiss started again. The darkness tightened.

Something moved. Shakily, she put out her other arm. It brushed into that pile of cups with a clatter, and then something ran up her arm and into her hair and leapt. Katy screamed, and the darkness flexed and popped like a bubble.

Everything was bathed in pale green. Against the wall, down by the skirting board a large rat was pressed up tight against the wall, as far as it could get from her. It stank of terror. Again that slow hiss echoed, and a small, nondescript snake crawled over the tiles. It turned to stare at Katy, turning its head so each eye in turn could inspect her. It hissed and turned to the rat. Katy watched as the snake unhinged it’s jaw and slowly, oh so slowly, it swallowed the shivering beast.

Terror was a powerful thing.

[alteredegosinhyding]

Altered Egos, a near future story where Dr Jekyll’s Potion is out on the internet. What sort of monsters of our Id might emerge, and what sort of abilities would they have?

Inspired by the wonderful Jessica Hagy’s organisation of emotions; I’ve built a random character generator for the World of AlteredEgos. It will give you a bit of background on their character, the emotional state that fuels their AlterEgo and a cue for their narrative arc. While definitely pulpy, I’m aiming for a Batman’ish vibe rather then X-Men. Nothing that breaks the laws of physics, although it might gently introduce them to a pair of handcuffs and a gag.

See the latest work here, or make one yourself here.

Have fun!