broken_time (broken_time) wrote in exiles,
@ 2011-01-24 14:57:00

Entry tags:

More travelers, lost in time
Suddenly, everything changes.

Complex worlds - space-scapes, WWII as a backdrop, friends, allies, enemies - all disappear to be replaced with... sand.

Miles and miles of sand. Rolling hills, dunes, not an oasis in sight.

Well, except that, from somewhere just beyond the hills, there's a smell of fresh coffee.

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	notallhunkydory 2011-01-24 11:39 pm UTC (link)
	Well, that's definitely not Kang the Conqueror. Nor is it, as far as Dorrek can recall, anyone in the Avengers' databases. Even the fact that the man is calling him by his assumed name doesn't soothe his jangling nerves. "I'm not traumatized, I don't need pastries," he says shortly. "And I'd prefer to stand. What's going on here?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	a_pal 2011-01-24 11:47 pm UTC (link)
	"If this is another kidnapping, you might as well kill me and let the civilian go, because your demands will not be met." Boy, those muffins look good, though. Real good. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	broken_time 2011-01-24 11:55 pm UTC (link)
	"I am afraid, Mr. Valentine, that the operative phrase is 'you are not traumatized, yet' - because you are about to receive very bad news. But..." sigh "Suit yourselves. This is not a kidnapping, at least in the traditional sense. There is no malice involved, and I'm certainly not your enemy. Nonetheless, neither of you can go home." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

notallhunkydory
2011-01-25 12:09 am UTC (link)

Dorrek's no stranger to being kidnapped 'for his own good' by people who claim not to be his enemies, though that's the only thing that's even slightly familiar about this situation.

"You still haven't answered my question," he says, narrowing his eyes. "And I warn you, people will notice that I'm gone and they will come looking for me. And if you haven't released me by the time they find me, it will go very poorly for you."

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	a_pal 2011-01-25 12:12 am UTC (link)
	Gwenny does take a seat and stare at the man. "Why can't we go home?" ...Okay, the food and drink have no business smelling that good. They'd been taking out scum all last night, and she's a growing girl. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

broken_time
2011-01-25 12:18 am UTC (link)

"I would love to release you, if I could. However, I'm not your kidnapper. I'm not even your rescuer, to get specific. I am a construct of your subconscious minds intended to try and explain your current fate. You sure you don't want a muffin? Or coffee? This is complicated."

He offers the tin of fresh baked pastries one more time, hopefully, then shrugs.

"Alright... you have become unhinged in time. Everything you remember about your worlds is currently a lie. Those worlds no longer exist as you remember them. You are the last vestiges of the old order.
The long and short of it is that all timelines, all universes, are tied together at some level. What affects one also has minor ripples in others. The majority of the time this is nothing of importance. Someone takes a different path to work, or forgets to eat breakfast. However, there has been a sizeable disturbance, and it has carried through countless timelines, including both of yours. The good news is that by stabilizing one, you give the worlds around it a little more stability. By fixing the timelines, you can restore other worlds... and possibly, if you're lucky, if you survive, your own worlds will eventually be the ones you recognize again."

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notallhunkydory
2011-01-25 12:30 am UTC (link)

Dorrek eyes the man -- construct? -- and slowly sits down next to Gwendolyn. This...being, whatever he is, is either a phenomenal actor or is telling them the truth. And it's not a truth that is outside the range of possibility.

"Say that we buy what you're selling," he says slowly. "How exactly are we supposed to 'fix' the other timelines without knowing what's supposed to happen?"

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	a_pal 2011-01-25 12:33 am UTC (link)
	Gwenny....takes a long sip of coffee. How can she be telling herself things she doesn't know about things she's never heard of? It doesn't make any sense. She nods a little at Mr. Valentine's question, then adds "And what's wrong with home? What happened to the boys?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

broken_time
2011-01-25 12:43 am UTC (link)

"Aha! Now we're getting down to the practical questions. Very good... so you have an idea of the gravity of the situation, we'll start with 'what's wrong with home'.

Mr. Valentine - you never left home. You never met your fiance or your friends. You bought into the propeganda instead... and became a very effective leader. So effective, in fact, that your fiance's head is currently among your trophies, though you have no idea who that person is other than an opponent who managed to give you a challenge.

Miss Sabuki - ultimately, America decided that the greatest risk possible was from possible traitors in their midst. For the good of the country, your family was quietly executed. Mr. Einstein's ideas were never adopted - and the war rages on into the 1950's - and, having no choice following the execution of your family, which you escaped, you are currently one of Axis Japan's most capable super agents, having been recently promoted after killing the Human Top.

As for how you can change these fates back to lies... that's going to take some additional explanation."

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	notallhunkydory 2011-01-25 12:54 am UTC (link)
	One of the benefits to growing up a shape shifter in the royal palace on the Throneworld is an utterly amazing poker face. Slipping into that poker face is almost reflexive. Technically, so is crushing the edge of the counter top in his grip. He doesn't say a word, but his mind is reeling. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	a_pal 2011-01-25 12:56 am UTC (link)
	"They killed my... and I'm a .... And Davy..." Gwenny, tears in her eyes, clears her throat. "Let's start that additional explanation, Mister. I don't care of it kills me; we're fixing this. All of it." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

broken_time
2011-01-25 01:05 am UTC (link)

The counter top breaks easily. Then it sort of turns hazy, and in a moment, is back the way it was. The Timebroker looks mildly annoyed, but only mildly.

"The counter isn't really there. Its just your minds trying to find a shape to give this place... its a bit beyond your brains' collective paygrade, trying to comprehend being in a state of only sort of existing... now, if we're done... the muffins are still available, if you're traumatized yet?"

He turns back to better address them both at once.

"You're actually newcomers. The ripples hit your world fairly recently, but the overall effect has been going much longer. The only remaining original has been at work on this rather large project for over four years. There is a group of others who have also become unstuck in time. Each of their worlds has been hit by the same effect. Via a device called the Tallus, you will move from world to world. The Tallus will guide you as best it can to tell you how to fix each world and stabilize its timestream. If you succeed, you and the group will then move to the next world. Fix the right combination of worlds, and your own will be repaired - at which point, I will send you home to the moment from which you disappeared. However, You can fail, and you can die. If you fail, you will be stuck wherever you failed, or possibly return home, forgetting everything that was and buying into what your world has become. If you die... you die. And we try and find a replacement."

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notallhunkydory
2011-01-25 01:22 am UTC (link)

Four years?! Dorrek's attention shifts abruptly to the shape and weight of the small box in his pocket. He can't be separated from Billy for that long!

But...if what this construct has told them is the only other option...

"If we die, will our worlds still be stabilized?" he asks. He hopes that it won't come to that, but if it happens, he wants to know that Billy will still be restored. Even if he's not there to see it.

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	a_pal 2011-01-25 01:23 am UTC (link)
	"Exactly. Can it still be fixed without our personally surviving?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	broken_time 2011-01-25 01:26 am UTC (link)
	"Yes. Your teammates can still stabilize the timelines. You, personally, will still be dead - the timeline will find a way to iron that out, but your universe could otherwise still be restored." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	notallhunkydory 2011-01-25 01:31 am UTC (link)
	Dorrek lets out a sigh of relief, slumping back in his chair. That's good. Whatever happens, Billy and his friends will be all right. Dorrek can handle this with that knowledge. "When do we start?" (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	a_pal 2011-01-25 01:32 am UTC (link)
	Gwenny, too, looks relieved. Going to stuff her face with muffins now, but relieved. "I'm guessing right after breakfast. Not a lot to do here in Not-Really-Existing-Ville." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	broken_time 2011-01-25 01:35 am UTC (link)
	The Timebroker eyes Valentine. "That is only if you die. If the team fails... well, you're all stuck... so do be conscious, the missions you get aren't just suggestions. However, that said... Miss Sabuki is correct. The team is just about to save a cheerleader, thus saving that world. When they do, they will be moved to the next world, and you'll join them." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	notallhunkydory 2011-01-25 01:42 am UTC (link)
	All right, so not 'whatever happens'. And he gets the feeling that not all the missions are going to be as easy as saving cheerleaders. Dorrek returns the Timebroker's stare. "Understood," he says, crossing his arms over his chest. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	a_pal 2011-01-25 01:43 am UTC (link)
	Gwenny nods, and soon she's finishing her muffins. (Reply to this)(Parent)

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