riverview | 3 [@dodger//video]

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3 [@dodger//video]

Ugh, my head...

[Dodger seems like he just woke up... and like he woke up pretty roughly at that. He looks the same as normal, if a little more relaxed and sleepy. Although, those who haven't seen him lately will now be able to see that he's wearing what looks like a shock collar with a green light glowing on the buckle. A power suppressor. Also, the lights are on in his room for once, so the observant might be able to catch some less blurry shots of the somewhat invasive amounts of information kept on several people around the city, which are plastered all over his walls along with identifying pictures of them. Something which he hasn't taken the time to read through, since he doesn't remember any of it.]

I feel like I got hit by a train... shit. Hey- there's notes all over the desk here, so I know this is my place, but- fuck, I don't remember a single fuckin' thing about- here. Someone wanna tell me what's going on?

[He doesn't look any different, his scars are still there and so is his scruffy beard. But this doesn't seem... quite like Dodger. His tone is less condescending and sullen, more just... sleepy, with a morning grumpy sort of vibe. Like he'll pop back up and be a cheerful, relaxed person once he gets some coffee. And speaking of indulgent drinks...]

....Fuck, Janet's gonna kill me if she sees all the bottles in here...

[ooc: Dodger has forgotten everything past his 20th birthday, including all of his CR in Riverview. Enjoy letting your muses explain their version of events to him... or just fuck with him. He doesn't know any better.]

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Huh?

[He glances behind him, and... that's about when he notices what's on the walls. Shit, he probably shouldn't show all that, huh. Well, his first reaction is to teleport out of the room, but that... doesn't work. And after a moment of trying his damnedest to, he flinches as the collar's light turns red and it administers a harsh shock to him.]

Fuck- [He hesitates, glances around and... yeah, there's no part of the bedroom's wall that isn't plastered in notes. Jesus, it looks like something Benny would make, but not him. What the hell has he been up to?] ....One second.

[He's getting up and walking over to sit in the hallway. Next to the charred, broken door to his room. Seriously, what the fuck?]

Okay. So. Uh. Who- are you?

[ Okay yeah, definitely something weird. Cain's acting pretty chill for all that goes on until Dodger gets settled again. Thankfully it looks like Brink isn't around or it's going to get even more awkward. ]

Jacob Kane. Not to get all weird, but you know me. Or... I know you? Since you don't know me right now.

[He nods slowly. Well, he knows he's definitely been here and isn't remembering it... but it feels like just yesterday he'd been sleeping with the loveliest girl, and now he'd woken up alone in the apartment of a serial killer.

Well, he guesses he is one, but... it's been a long time since that. Years.]

Alright, uhh. Yeah. Jacob. Got it. [He grimaces.] You mind... telling me why I'm missing a fuckin' eye?

No idea. You were like that when I met you. You'll have to ask around about that one.

[ What a surprise to wake up to, though. Ouch. ]

[Another slow nod. Okay. Well... that's something. In its own way.]

...Do you know who Janet Smith is?

[Dear god, please tell him she's here.]

[ He looks sympathetic when he shakes his head. ]

Name doesn't ring any bells. Sorry.

[There's an immediate shift, and his shoulders slump. Great, he's stuck in a new place with no idea how to get his bearings... and Janet isn't here.]

She's my girlfriend. Can- do you know anyone that might've seen her? I'm a mess and a half without her keeping an eye on me, it's just- important.

I could check around, but you probably want to know where you are first. Finding someone you know isn't as easy as looking up a phone number.

This is the Riverview Quarantine, kind of a waystation for interdimensional refugees who wanted out of their own reality. Or accidentally got picked up on the way.

[If they're being honest, where he was hadn't even occurred to him yet. But he'd also assumed he was... maybe in a different part of the city or something.]

....Wait. What?

[It takes him a moment to think that over. Interdimensional refugees? What the hell?]

Are you pulling my fucking leg...? There's no way that's possible- wait, quarantined from what?

Pretty sure that's just left over from the war they had before a bunch of us started arriving. Or you can think of it like a decontamination area before we go out into the big bad world.

Sadly, no, it's not all a joke.

Jesus Christ... okay. So- fuck it, I'll just believe you. We're- what, on another planet? Or- a different... reality?

[This is too much information, he hasn't used his brain for anything except keeping himself alive and working since he was 16 or so.]

So- who are you in all this? I mean I know your name, but- shit, should I know you, are we friends?

[Give him something small to work with first, he's totally out of his depth.]

Both. We're on a moon in a different reality.

[ At that question, he just smiles. ]

Yeah, friends is a good word for it. We have dinner once a week. Don't worry about it, something is obviously up right now.

[ Does that count as small? ]

[It's its own puzzle, but it's a puzzle he's more ready to handle than the puzzle of how he got from his warm bed in New York City to the floor next to his bed on an alien planet.

The gears are turning in his head, but they're rusty... it takes some time for him to decide what to make of- eating dinner weekly with this man. He's never made plans regularly with friends, much less hung around people who aren't constantly prying for his attention or making it painfully clear they're only putting up with him... so having a mutually beneficial, casual agreement to hang out with someone is a little odd. And Jacob doesn't seem dangerous or even aggressive, so it can't be a double-meaning, can it?]

...How long have I been here?

[Is he dating him...? No, he would've flinched when he talked about Janet. Right.... ....?]

Longer than I have, pretty sure. [ He recalls having seen Dodger around the network before they ever met in person, so it isn't a difficult leap to make. ] So around three months minimum.

[He hesitates.]

Only three months... to do all this?

[How much more is he not remembering? Dear god... this is just too stressful for him, and he shakes his head as if to try and get it back in order.]

Can we, uh. Can we get something to eat? I need a burger and a cola.

It's probably been longer than that. Just a minimum.

[ Cain considers, because this wasn't part of their deal... but it also wasn't part of their deal to not. And Dodger could probably use a friend right now more than a semantics argument. ]

I could make something like that here, but otherwise we'd have to contact someone about that. You're unfortunately under house arrest.

[ Here, he kind of motions to his own neck to indicate Dodger's collar. ]

Seriously...?

[He groans quietly, but. Yeah. That explains the power suppressor. Just his luck that the one time he actually manages to get caught by the cops, it's... mixed in with all of this bullshit, whatever's happening.]

Alright, you think you could meet me here? I'm uh. I feel like shit right now, I don't think my brain can handle figuring out how to get anywhere.

Yeah, just stay where you are. I'll be there soon.

[ He gives a quick sort-of-wave before turning the feed off and heading downstairs. It doesn't take long, but he hopes it's quick enough that Dodger doesn't go inside and/or Brink finds him. Why'd his robot have to be a dog, anyway? ]

[Life is cruel for Cain. When he comes up to the hallway, Brink is just returning from somewhere with a bag of groceries clutched in his mouth. He stops and watches Cain a moment before crossing to the opposite side of the hall.]

Hello, Jacob. I was told to avoid being seen by you. Please excuse the scheduling mistake - I will try harder to stay out of your way.

[Dodger looks up at that, and gets up as if to greet Brink, but he's already disappeared inside the room and Dodger's gaze just follows him briefly before turning back to Cain.]

I have a dog? [A pause.] ...My dog speaks?

Edited 2017-08-13 00:53 (UTC)

[ Cain goes incredibly still when Brink shows up. Worse yet, there's something in his mouth and he doesn't like the focus it draws to his mouth and teeth. It isn't normal to react like this but he knows his weakness here and there isn't much he can do but work past it. When Brink moves into the other room, he breaths again and takes a moment for himself to shake it off.

He turns to Dodger and shrugs one shoulder, can't help but let his offhand fidget at his side while he works through the tension. He hadn't expected that at all. ]

That's your robot dog, Brink. I'm not especially good with dogs so I don't really know the deal on that. [ He laughs, quick and brief. ] Sorry I'm not a whole lot of help on filling you in.

Brink... cool. Like 'on the brink of war'.

[Although, it's less cool that it's immediately clear Cain has a phobia. Or else... maybe Brink specifically did something to him, but the dog seemed sweet, even understanding. And as far as he knows the laws of robotics still apply in other universes.]

...So. Where are we headed, somewhere else in this building?

[Now that they're in person, Cain may notice that Dodger looks a little more restless than normal... he isn't scratching, but his thumb keeps running compulsively over his wrist, and he seems to be sweating a bit. Though, he hasn't asked about his gauze wraps, so apparently they were there before whenever his memories end. Or maybe he just figures Cain doesn't have an answer, if they've only known each other three months.]

Yeah, just some floors up. This is a communal housing center for new arrivals or people who just don't want to spend more on rent for actual living spaces out in the city.

[ Cain only looks once, curiously and taking Dodger in as a whole, before he moves to head back up the stairs and motions for Dodger to follow. ]

So, you prefer Jamie or Dodger nowadays?

[Dodger follows along a bit like a duckling, shy and keeping within a few feet of Cain at all times. Speaking a bit like he's a kid speaking to an adult, almost exactly the same way he did when they first met - before he got used to palling around with him.]

I go by Jamie. [He hesitates. That's right, he hadn't wanted to bring it up on the network, but..] I haven't gone by Dodger since I was sixteen - how'd you know that?

[ Cain recognizes that and adjusts his own tone accordingly. Something more like an adult or older figure than his usual casual play at his physical age. Just a small adjustment but maybe it will make Dodger feel more comfortable. ]

Whatever happened between the time you remember and the time you lived through, something changed, I guess. Dodger is what you usually go by here, but you asked me to call you Jamie.

[It does help a bit.. after all, in Dodger's mind Cain does look a few years older than him. He's still in the mindset of a 20-year-old where 24-year-olds seem more like adults.]

Huh.. [He grimaces.] I'm starting to piece together parts of it. Seems like I really went off the deep end, but... jesus. I can't figure what the hell would do that to me.

[He has a few outstanding ideas. But he's not sure how smart it is to bring up his theories. It all depends on how much he detects Cain is willing to forgive his past.]

I like Jamie, though... y'know. Civilian-like. Dodger's not a real last name, anyway, it's this- nickname I picked up when I was eight. Anyway, Janet likes me using my first name, it makes me... approachable, I guess?

[As approachable as he can be with scars across his face... he remembers them looking fresher than they did in the mirror this morning.]

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