ota | april log.

[menarebrave]

Who: Bruce Wayne / Batman, Diana Prince, Richard Gansey III, Miles Morales.
What: Various threads for the month of April! Will be edited to include more if needed.
Where: Driftcrest - Bruce's home, Out and About, Dream Time
When: Night of various days.


@ DIANA PRINCE
I'LL SELL MY SOUL TO DREAM YOU WIDE AWAKE

( continued from here )

[ It was something of a comfort that the Diana Prince on the network was the one from his own reality. That was what the deductions had led him to anyways. The way their conversation flowed, the choice words used to elude to previous conversations. She, unlike the other newest member, had seemed to of at least lived through what he had. The Doomsday fight. The funeral. The aftermath of it all.

He had considered the notion a few times of people from his reality finally landing themselves in these odd bunch of realities. It was just a matter of time by process of elimination. Had he expected Diana -- Clark? No, he couldn't say he had. He figured maybe some of those he had fought in the past... but never people that had been allies. Even if it had been temporary.

Routine took over the moment he entered the house he had now called home. The keys and communications device tossed to the small dish in the area that acted as the living room. He even turned it off. Not that he thought it would do much in the end. The damn thing could probably turn on and off. Maybe he should find Jerry and see if he could get a spare.

The interior colors were something that would be far more expected of Bruce Wayne. He had grown accustomed to the darker colors and the idea of an open viewed house. Living in one for twenty years did that to a man. He took off the suit jacket, vest, and tie as he made his way into the closet in the bedroom. On came something more comfortable for the night. No point in getting suits dirty when he had promised someone dinner.

Even if there was a mild sense of panic raging in the back of his mind as he set about preparing dinner. ]

@ MILES MORALES (BLOOD, BvS SPOILS)
DEFLATE, THE MYSTERY OF LIVING

[ Dreams of a dark nature aren't uncommon for Bruce Wayne. Even more so the sort that speak of potential dark futures. Whispers of Earth becoming a wasteland, flying demon like soldiers, and the once great Superman killing all in his way. When the dreams of ever changing landscapes and now caves haunt him? It's really of no surprise.

Bruce makes his way towards what looks like a cave. He eyes the familiar looking shadows. The words they repeat ring his ears: 'Break it, break it, break it.'

He slips down an ice patch of the cavern. Bruce catches himself in time, only to realize he's in a familiar blue suit. He stares down at himself for a moment. That's when he sees the wound on his arm that had been turned to ice at one point. It's open now, bleeding freely. ]

Shit.

[ Echoing in his ears is the sound of voices. Mother, father, Dick, Alfred, even the Crown Prince of Crime and his Harlequin. Over and over they repeat until he moves to turn a corner. Then, there's an earth shattering hum. He freezes out of instinct, a familiar distinct sound of fear running through him. The sound echoes in his head, consuming everything around him. He stumbles forward still until finally he sees a box--

--then the sound of crashing. Buildings falling, screaming, only to be replaced with new voices. 'Break it, break it, break it!'

'Bruce, PLEASE! You don't UNDERSTAND!' Clark.

He shuts his eyes tightly, turning his head away as all the sounds and voices reach an apex all at once in his head. He can feel the blood running down his arm and into the snow below him. He almost feels like he's about to fall over.

Then, it stops.

Bruce opens his eyes to find someone else in front of him then. He must look like a mess to the younger man staring at him. Dust covering the blue suit, hair wind swept, blood staining his shirt, pants, and the snow underneath him. Not to mention the heavy breathing. ]

...Miles?

@ RICHARD GANSEY III
WITH ME, DISASTER FINDS A PLAYFIELD

[ There has been a deep seated worry Bruce has had over Gansey's reaction to Evie being taken by the Unseen. He understands the rage, the fear, the sense of powerlessness. As his father figure had once said: 'It turns good men cruel.'

Bruce has walked that path and he's determined to not see someone else he knows walk it. He refuses to see someone as consumed as he had become. They don't need more martyrs or sacrifices. They don't need petty fights that rip things apart and cost the world the most precious things.

All of it is precisely why the Bat is watching as Gansey makes his way in the snow. He jumps from the small roof to land in the snow, his cloak framing his body as he stands. The Bat does nothing else. He waits for Gansey to realize he is there.

Then, hopefully, they can talk. ]

Comments

[stayfightgive]

Ten months. I see. And what is the last thing that you remember before you came here?

[ Just so that she has a frame of reference for where he's coming from. When she last saw him, it was after the funeral, but perhaps that's not the case for him. ]

Art can be found anywhere, even underground.

[ She smiles a small sort of smile before she nods and answers his question. ]

He did. It was an illuminating conversation.

[ In a manner of speaking. The things Jerry gave her were more illuminating, but it comes down to the same thing. ]

[menarebrave]

[ Eight months, I can't math ]

Looking into the 'metahumans' that Luthor had the information on. I was closing in on some more information, thanks to a meeting with someone who had fallen out of grace with the government.

[ He gives a half-shrug. ]

Too bad the Cave isn't here. You'd probably enjoy the suspension of it.

[ His attention goes back to dinner. ]

He told you then that the realities we inhabit change? That sometimes, we can gain memories of different versions of ourselves?

[stayfightgive]

[ Well, shame on you. :P ]

Oh, yes, I remember.

[ She remembers Bruce being a little nosy, looking into things and asking questions that some would say were no business of his. Some would say that, but not Diana, surprisingly enough. ]

I imagine your being here hasn't helped you progress in that particular endeavor.

[ She pauses as she mulls over that name. ]

The Cave. Is that where you carry out all your- Information gathering?

[ Bruce Wayne is a very curious man. ]

He mentioned that, yes. If I had been anyone else, I might have dismissed him as foolish. [ But Diana's seen enough to know that the world isn't as simple as humans would like it to be. ]

I can't help but wonder how it is that our worlds keep turning while we are here.

[ However, she theorizes that some version of the many-worlds theory might have something to do with it, but there's no proof of that either way. And in any case, that's too weighty a subject to have over dinner. ]

[menarebrave]

[ ya'll I math TOO MUCH AT WORK ]

If anything? I've learned that there is a scale of reality we can't begin to even imagine. One we can't even properly prepare for. I don't know if we'll have memories of this when we get home... but it puts things Luthor said into a different perspective.

[ And not a very good perspective at all. ]

It's where I do my night job, yes.

[ Computers, research, gear, tech, the car. He can still be the Batman and do what he needs to without it. It just makes it that much easier when he can get to all that. ]

Or we'll wake up in bed and not a day has gone by. I haven't encountered someone who left and came back... so that's hard to judge. It's all conjecture and theory for now. [ He starts to flip the food inside the wok. ] A few of us temporarily gained memories of alternative lives -- some version of us out there somewhere. Because of that? A few of them know who I am.

[ Bruce pauses to let the implication of that set in. Then, he half turns to look back at her. ]

And who you are.

[stayfightgive]

[ I know this feel. ]

Is that so? How have you learned that? [ She doesn't mean to pelt him with questions, but she can't quite hold back either. ] Who have you been speaking with?

[ She's not sure if he's referring to the situation here or back at home, but the seriousness with which he's saying these things has gotten her attention.

She opens her mouth to say something, to make some comment about her own preliminary ideas about what might happen when and if they get to leave, but he brings her up short with that particular revelation. ]

Alternative lives? And people here know who you are? Who we are?

[ A frown crests her face as she begins to try processing all this. ]

These people- can they be trusted?

[menarebrave]

Driftcrest is the third reality I've been to since being here, Diana. Beachville, then Wechester City. It changes every so often. Certain locations stay the same, and the locals will talk about something that seems exciting and new. The people in Wechester were thrilled at the idea of a new skii lodge opening up -- now here her we are.

Luthor had told me that there was something out beyond the stars. Something that was aware that Superman was dead. That threat I mentioned? It came from him. He learned something somewhere along the lines about how vulnerable we are without Superman. This? Driftcrest, Wechester, Beachville? That's on a different scale than what Luthor was talking about. I don't think even he could of imagined something like this.

[ His speech speeds up as he talks. There is a deep sense of dread and even anxiousness about what might come next. Could they encounter this thing that Luthor was talking about? ]

The multiverse. Different realities where different versions of us can exist. There's a version of Barbara Gordon - daughter of the Commissioner of Gotham Police - here that knows a Bruce Wayne that isn't me. That's on top of the fact that one day I woke up with memories of having a biological daughter that I've never had.

[ As to her other question? He nods. ]

Yes. They haven't said anything about knowing about my identity.

[stayfightgive]

Well, in that case, I can't help but wonder what else is coming for us down the road. How many realities will we see before this stops, if it ever does?

We might very well be vulnerable without Superman, but perhaps someone else will rise up to take his place. We can't know until that happens, can we? As for what is right in front of us now, all we can do is try to be ready for it.

[ She arches an eyebrow at him when the pace with which he speaks begins to pick up. Clearly he's working himself up about this, and really, she can't even blame him for it either. ]

I imagine that must be very unsettling for you, but what can you really do about it in the end? I suppose all you can do is come to terms with that knowledge and try to not let it bother you.

[ She crosses her arms while she mulls all this over. ]

Do you intend to ever let anyone else among the general public know about who you are?

[ She knows he'll understand what she's asking without needing clarification. Personally, she's resolved to try and separate her identities for the time being, but there might be a time when she stops doing that. It depends on how things play themselves out while she's here. ]

[menarebrave]

I've wondered that myself.

[ Bruce isn't sure. If the amount of people who travel together between realities can speak for anything? Infinite seems accurate. Though, it might not be the time to share that thought. Hell, why share something that seems to be obvious as it is? ]

I'll take that as a 'yes' in helping me find the others like you?

[ He gives her a bit of a smile. He already had the feeling she would say yes, but, it's always good to hear a confirmation. Not to mention in a more... relaxed and friendly manner. Though, he has wondered something. ]

What was the last thing you remember about home, Diana?

[ Unsettling? No. It's more like awkward. Especially when the mother of that child is standing next to him in the kitchen. He decides not to share that information at the moment. They have too much to discuss and go over as it is. ]

Not unless I can help it. The Bat should only come out if he needs to. Most the other hero types in this place have things down. Most people simply know that Bruce Wayne works for the board of Wechester Enterprises as a way to keep an eye on the people keeping an eye on us.

[stayfightgive]

[ Well, now her mind is off and running, and there's no stopping it now that it's started. ]

Is there a library here? Does it contain any sort of documentation on this place and these realities? I assume that this did not just start recently.

[ She knows he'll correct her if she's going the wrong direction. ]

Are there locals here who can be questioned?

[ She pauses then, because if she doesn't, she could just keep on going with questions, all of which are possible leads for her to follow. ]

Yes, you can take that as a 'yes'. [ She smiles just slightly, because of course she wouldn't have said anything different. Part of her always knew she'd join up with his cause, but still, she needed time to think on it first. ]

That's funny that you should ask that. The last thing that I remember is the two of us, standing at a cemetery, discussing your plan to find the others who are like me.

[ She knows he'll remember. That, and the events that came before, aren't so easily forgotten. ]

That seems to be the wisest course of action, and it's what I intend to do also.

[ To only come out as her alter ego if the situation is dire, and the other hero types, as Bruce put it, need further help. ]

Have you learned anything since taking up a seat on the board?

[menarebrave]

The library hasn't yielded as many results as we'd like, but, I think there is a group that is working on going through it. Information suppression seems to be how Driftcrest has decided to operate. Keep the population in control by making it so they don't know what is out there. Fear. My experience is that it only works for so long.

[ People feared the Bat... then feared him again when he was angry. Some never did. Some never let go of the fear. ]

Good. It'll be easier if they have someone they can relate to. I imagine it'd be easier for them to talk to someone they feel they have something in common with... as opposed to just the rich guy that dresses like a bat.

[ He means that in the nicest most pointed way.

There is a small frown but, ultimately, a nod to what she remembers. That was more than a handful of months for him. Things had been in motion and he'd been working on their possible team. He even found the last remaining physical copy of her photograph. Not that she knows that. It would explain why she feels more distant than he's used to. ]

It's been a little longer for me. I put a few months into looking into the possible team members. We've talked more than a handful of times since the funeral.

[ The funeral to the man who isn't dead here. ]

Only that Mr. Wechester is just as aware of the situation as we are. He knew that we ere visitors to his reality. I'm not sure how he gets his head around moving to new realities. That's something I should discuss with him.