01 ☼ audio

[hackingyoursensors]

[Suddenly, there's an unfamiliar voice on the network. Young, male, probably prepubescent and very, very familiar to some residents of Keeliai.]

These are some seriously nice digs. It's hard to believe that they have so many rooms "just in case," so I'm guessing this might be little more common than I was lead to believe. Do they employ kedan to wander around the Shell's Edge, plucking people out of the ocean? I wonder what you'd put on your resume: Plucker of Maybe Dead People Out of a Magical Ocean?

[The joke sounds slightly strained, but joking tends to make him feel a little more at ease.]

Anyway, I got the basic rundown from those kedan. Very friendly guys-- at least I think they were guys. But it'd be nice to have confirmation from more than one person. No offense to them, but I like cross-checking my sources.

And while we're on the subject: does anyone know anything about the Emperor? The kedan didn't speak about him too much.

Comments

[ Permavideo ]

[sciencewhizard]

[ Day off from work, he's just browsing the network, and what does he see? Only his best friend in the world. Is it any surprise that a video feed opens right up with a gingerhaired speedster practically bouncing in place? ]

Dude! Didn't think you'd make it here too!

[ Permavideo ; encrypted 70% ]

[hackingyoursensors]

[It takes him a second to reply (he has to set a stronger encryption) but oh man he's so relieved to see KF]

KF! Man, I'm glad to see you. What about everyone else? Are they okay? Did Klarion do this?

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[tasteforpoison]

The emperor is a woman, actually, and you won't learn much about her from the locals. She does hold audiences, however, so you could always meet her yourself during the next one.

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[hackingyoursensors]

I wonder why they don't call her empress then.

Open audiences? That might be worth looking into. How benevolent is she?

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[cowled]

[...

This.

Is not exactly what he was planning on waking up to this morning. For a moment Bruce actually glances down at his coffee mug, as if expecting to find it's been drugged.

Because that voice is unmistakable. Dick Grayson. The first Robin.

Sometime before puberty.

The fact that there are different timelines has never actually bothered him. How could it, with what he's seen? But this. Is. Alarming in ways he hadn't quite expected.

But just because he thinks it's Dick doesn't necessarily mean that his life has gone along the same lines Bruce expects of him. There's no reason to assume he's Robin. There's no reason to assume they've ever met, or - given the amount of people with doppelgangers on Keeliai - that it's even Dick Grayson at all. So when Bruce turns on the video feed, he's acting as Bruce Wayne: playboy billionaire, and not Batman.]

Cross-checking your sources? That seems a little above the elementary grade.

[If Dick knows him, there's only one way to find out.]

video; encrypted 70%

[hackingyoursensors]

[You cannot imagine the relief he feels when he sees Bruce. After being dragged out of an ocean, told he may or may not be dead, that he's stuck here but time's frozen so it's okay... but he didn't know how his friends were doing.

Needless to say, he was way overwhelmed. Emphasis on the over.

He does note that Bruce isn't wearing his suit (which is strange) but it's 100% definitely him.]

Bruce! This can't be the other world, though. Is it?

text; encrypted 99%

[controlledvariable]

Tell me what you need me to do.

[It means two things: How should she approach Dick, and is there anything Bruce needs from her to deal with this situation?

It hadn't been too hard for her to figure out the voice, even if she's never heard him sound so young. And wow, super unfortunate.]

[andaway]

[This is Dick. Everything sounds a little different- heartbeat, voice, every sound his body makes. But still so unmistakably Dick that Kal doesn't even stop two seconds to think about it before he flies out of the window and follows the sound to Dick's house.

He's... a little taken aback when it actually hits him that he's talking to a younger version of Dick. Way younger. And last time they talked- well, it hadn't ended well.

But time shenanigans aren't a surprise in this place anymore. So after the few first seconds of hesitation he knocks on the window with a bright smile. ]

[hackingyoursensors]

[He startles a little when he hears someone knocking on his window, of all things. But the moment he sees Superman, he grins and opens the window.]

Superman! Oh, man, I'm so glad to see you.

[Audio]

[tactile_telekinesis]

[Can he be bothered to flick it onto video? Nope. So Kon answers with voice, but it starts with a few seconds of background noise. He's just...wow.]

Get that from the book of Lame Jokes?

[Audio]

[hackingyoursensors]

[That voice sounds... familiar. The intonation is a little different. It'll come to him, if he can keep this guy talking.]

No, that was all me. But you can't say you've never wondered that before.

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[demon_brat]

>Tt.< Not everyone here is dead.

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[hackingyoursensors]

That's why I said "maybe dead." I'm pretty sure I'm not dead.

[Only pretty sure, though. He was just yanked out of a battle where things could've gone rather wrong.]

[Voice]

[myothertights]

[Billy actually laughs at that because...it tickled his funny bone.]

Well that sounds like a legitimate title.

Uuh I think they can choose or something? I don't know.

[Voice]

[hackingyoursensors]

[He grins. Okay, someone laughing makes him feel so much better.]

They volunteer to fish us out of the ocean? That's very charitable.

video

[wherethestoryis]

[Lois is fairly certain she's heard that voice somewhere. She's not as familiar with some of the Bat family, especially from that era, though, so she doesn't know why the voice sounds familiar. Still, 'cross-checking sources' automatically earns her approval.

There's one curiosity, though: Bruce and Kid Flash didn't get responses--no visible ones, anyway. The other did. And Kid Flash... knew him?

After a moment's thought, she decides to flip on the video feed to respond.]

Now that's the right attitude towards digging for info. You ever thought about a career in journalism?

[Shamelessly recruiting minions? Never!]

audio

[hackingyoursensors]

[To add to Lois' suspicions, he only replies in audio.

Though he sort of recognizes her. Reading newspapers is an important part of being a detective.]

No, not really. But I haven't thought of a career in much of anything yet.

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[redjay]

They talk about the Emperor even less than what we're supposed to be doing here.

Sound like fun detective work for you?

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[hackingyoursensors]

Sounds like dangerous detective work.

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[skort]

[ enjoy that s-shield bb!dick ]

I bet there's weirder things that have been put on resumes.

video; encrypted 70%

[hackingyoursensors]

[He looks tired and more downtrodden right about now. Guess who's having a bad day. He at least tries to give her a smile.]

Like "Supergirl"?

Video

[wholenewstory]

[Cass tries to make sure her smile is assuring. He sounds young. And - sort of familiar, but she can't quite place why.]

Don't know much. Kedan are...cryptic. Or they - avoid.

There's definitely...more. Just have to keep watching. Listening.

But it's - safer, now, than it was. [Her expressions dims, for a moment, quiet and solemn. It had come at a cost.]

Where are you? Which sector?

audio;

[hackingyoursensors]

[He appreciates the attempt, considering the day he's having. At least everyone's been nice so far.]

You mean the gang war. I heard it was pretty terrible.

[Sliiiides away from that question.]

Sorry, but I'm not supposed to tell strangers where I am. They sort of drilled that into my head at school.

[video]

[dadissues]

The emperor's a woman, and she's awful! She's the one who brought us here and is keeping us stuck on this stupid turtle.

[audio]

[hackingyoursensors]

She brought us here? Why?

[video]

[pyritic]

They were picking people up even with the curfew. Maybe it is a job. [ It's getting him to think about it now, since that was a long cart ride... wasn't like they'd had much time before dark after reaching Keeliai. ]

[video]

[hackingyoursensors]

What curfew?