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[Video]
[Well, hello there. There’s a friendly face smiling at the network, nervously pushing his glasses up. He doesn’t seem to have any kind of trouble with the computers, but it’s obvious by the way he’s looking speaking to crowds (and he seems to consider whoever might be looking a ‘crowd’) isn’t really his thing.
Or that’s what he wants to make you believe, anyway. Clark Kent had always been the go to personality in case of kidnapping. He isn’t stupid enough to show where is he exactly living, but you get to see enough of his room to guess he’s in the water sector if you care enough to notice that kind of things. Seeing how calm and easy going the guy seems it shouldn’t come as a surprise.]
Um, hello. [A little friendly wave and a tilt of his head.] I’m not really sure if we’re supposed to-ah, introduce ourselves? I was told everything would be alright and everybody I’ve seen has been rather welcoming so far so I though… [He trails off, shrugging.] Call it farm-boy routine I guess.
Anyway, I’m Clark. Clark Kent. It’s a pleasure.
Or that’s what he wants to make you believe, anyway. Clark Kent had always been the go to personality in case of kidnapping. He isn’t stupid enough to show where is he exactly living, but you get to see enough of his room to guess he’s in the water sector if you care enough to notice that kind of things. Seeing how calm and easy going the guy seems it shouldn’t come as a surprise.]
Um, hello. [A little friendly wave and a tilt of his head.] I’m not really sure if we’re supposed to-ah, introduce ourselves? I was told everything would be alright and everybody I’ve seen has been rather welcoming so far so I though… [He trails off, shrugging.] Call it farm-boy routine I guess.
Anyway, I’m Clark. Clark Kent. It’s a pleasure.
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Bruce won't say he isn't glad to see him.
Then again, there's no guaranteeing that it's actually him. There are enough forces at work here that he wouldn't be terribly surprised by a doppelgänger or some alternate universe in which Clark was never Superman-- or even one of the kedan posing as him, for purposes presently unknown.
He considers each potential possibility, fingers steepled in front of him as he sits at a café console. He's himself today. Just Bruce Wayne, no Devin Craig and certainly no Batman. But he could still lose ground if he were to reveal himself on the network, if he's right about Jason--
So instead of replying (he sees you there, Stephanie) he gets up, tosses his sportsjacket over one shoulder and heads for the door. No. Some things warrant meeting face to face. There were hints enough in the background of Clark's video to note that he's in the Water Sector. The sun was coming in on the west, which means he's not in a suite that faces the sunrise. It's enough. He'll find him.
His only point of irritation at the moment is that he has no way of knowing whether or not it's legitimately Clark, and the fact that he has no kryponite on hand. Tim has some, but between the two of them and in regards to Superboy, Tim was the one likelier to need it.
He puts it out of his mind, ducks into an alley to change into what passes as his uniform here - a simple domino mask and a black silk uniform that harkens back to his days training under Shiva - and takes to the roof. If it's Clark, he'll hear his heartbeat on the approach, and not be particularly surprised when Bruce drops into his suite.
Which, for the record, he's totally doing a few minutes later. As soundless as he is, you can't fool a Kryptonian's hearing.]
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And that's not the last time he'd been impersonated, or even mind-controlled. Really, if Bruce trust he was him out of the blue he'd even be offended. That really won't be a problem.
...Coming into his suite without warning or even knocking though? That's more of a problem. Clark is trustful, and his door will always be open for Bruce from now on- but really, a warning could have been nice.]
You're lucky I can now hear your heartbeat. Most people call...
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[Which Clark should know. But the familiarity is there, and although Bruce is hardly convinced enough to drop his guard, his stance shifts by the barest amount. He's still ready to fight, but at least he's not actually in form.]
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There's something else he has to ask. Because while he recognizes the heartbeat and the bone structure and the scars (and it's refreshing to not have to fight the lead in the suit for that), Bruce is been gone for... very long in his world. And if he hadn't been told this was a place between death and life already Clark would be freaking out right now, or punching the hell out of the impostor.
Not that he isn't freaking out but it's SIGNIFICANTLY LESS and he's a reporter okay these distinctions matter.]
Bruce? I- I want you to take off the mask. Okay? You can ask whatever you want- It's me, I promise. I'll prove it- DNA and everything you need.
But I want-need to see your face. Please?
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He remembers months of wearing Superman's brand on his arm-- and he reaches up to pull the mask off, unquestioning. Clark is from before he came back.
It's funny, he knew exactly how everyone functioned while he was gone, but this... it's the first time he's been confronted with the idea of people grieving for him. It adds a slight hesitance to the way he lowers the mask.
It's not that it surprises him, exactly. Not where Clark is concerned, because Clark would grieve for his worst enemies if given the opportunity. But the emotion makes Bruce uncomfortable. It always has.]
Tell me something only we would know. Think carefully.
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But that isn't important because as soon as the mask comes off and he can see Bruce's eyes and the glint in them he can't bring himself to doubt anymore.]
The cruise. [He manages to choke out, using all his willpower to not come closer because he knows it wouldn't be appreciated. Not yet. Part of his mind is trying to get out the words from his throat but the other is focusing simply on the 'how how how how I should have known I should have trusted'-] That glass, the glass that broke in your hand while you were talking to Lois.
It was me. Laser vision.
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[There were dozens of other people there when it happened. But not many who would have known both their identities enough to connect that little bit of information.]
You took your time getting here.
[... yeah that's pretty much how he deals with this icky emotional turbulence. UNBRIDLED CRITICISM.]
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How? [Is all he manages to whisper, but he knows Bruce will hear.] Is it this place?
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So he tolerates it, although his expression is very sour and he makes absolutely no move to return the embrace. This is just one of Clark's... Clarkisms. Like rescuing kittens from trees.]
No. I was never dead. Darkseid hit me with the Omega Sanction and flung me into time. Vandal Savage's time, at first. Then others. It took a year, but I fought my way back.
[... and then he gentles his tone and manages something a little less starkly utilitarian on the reiteration...]
I'm not dead, Kal. Do you mind?
[He likes breathing. And having ribs. And not being touched. All of these things are good things as far as he's concerned.]
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Not when he knew what it meant to Clark. But still, the fact that Clark is still breathing is pretty much a 'I'll tolerate this but don't push it' sign. Luckily Clark speaks Brucian, and he lets him go.]
So you've basically- in time- I'm so sorry Bruce. I'm really sorry. [Because he gave up on him, and he should never have.]
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Don't be. You--
[He thinks of the Archivist. Of the end of time. And his gaze becomes that much more intent.]
You were there when it mattered. You always have been.
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He could word it in 30 different ways and in just as many languages and it'd still not be any easier to process. So he just files it in 'later' inside of his mind.]
How long have you been in here? What should I know about this place- and is... is Lois in here? Is anyone else in here?
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[A little bit of Batman humour for you there, Clark. He drifts around the suite as he talks. Mostly making sure there's nothing that's going to be a danger to Clark. No hidden Kryptonite in lead-lined lamp fixtures, that sort of thing.]
In regards to people who are from or appear to be from our universes, we have Tim, Damian, Kon - as you've no doubt noticed - and Stephanie Brown. I--
[He falters. That's rare for Bruce, and it usually only means one of a very small pool of things. Even so, his voice is perfectly even when he continues.]
I think Jason might be here, but I haven't confirmed it yet. Whoever it is is good at covering their tracks. There are approximately fifty individuals that have been brought to Tu Vishan by the same means you and I experienced. At a [educated] guess, about forty percent are identifiable as metas, and the majority of the remainder have openly professed to being in war or conflict of some nature.
[Infodump time. Gird thyself, Clark.]
The population is roughly between forty-five and fifty thousand native kedan, Keeliai is directly in the centre of the turtle's back, and about the same size as Gotham's downtown core. The elemental philosophy behind the sectors corresponds exactly to the Wu Xing. The turtle itself is about twelve thousand square kilometers. 'Tu Vishan' is a giant turtle that apparently used to be part of a landmass of similar creatures. None of the buildings here are older than seven hundred years. Yellow sun, as you've observed.
[He points skyward, for emphasis.]
There is a loud, vocal minority among the kedan that seem to think that we shouldn't be here, or that our presence is somehow in vain. I've spoken with the Emperor, and by her admission we've been summoned here to do what I believe to essentially be her dirty work. She wouldn't give more details than that, and the libraries are closed to outside access. So far.
[By his tone, he doesn't intend for that to be a long-standing thing. He sure does have the patrol routes of the entire palace mapped out in his head.]
Very few people also report dying prior to their arrival here. I imagine that spontaneous cardiac arrest in relatively healthy people under forty would be a little too coincidental, not to mention selective.
[Besides. He's been dead. It's nothing like this place. So his tone is appropriately dry.]
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Relieving, in a way. And the info-dump is... intense, but not something Clark can't handle. He can reflect on it later and ask more questions as they come- but right now he's focusing on a certain part of his speech. Because there's a name that, as long Bruce is involved is never good news.]
I could scan the place, try to find him... try to find Jason if you want.
[He doesn't know how else to help. How else to try to make thins better.]
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[Bruce does things his own way. The times he asks for Clark's help are... few, far between, and significantly more desperate than finding out one way or another whether or not Jason is here.
It's cowardly in a way, and he knows it. Knowing for certain would give him some idea of the game plan he needs to implement to-- to keep people safe. From Jason. His son.
That still cuts. Deeper in some ways than the sound of two gunshots and the scattering of pearls. His parents are a monument to the weakness he swore he would never have again. Jason was... is a testament to his failure.
But if it is Jason, he needs to be the one who finds out. He needs to carry that burden. Not Clark. He deals with having the world on his shoulders often enough, and this fight doesn't and hasn't ever belonged to him.]
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[And he understands. When Kon found out Clark's secret identity he didn't ask Bruce for help. Nor did he when they found out about his other genetic donor... or when he died to save the Earth from another crisis and Kal thought he would never see the closes thing he had to a brother (and a son) again. Or when he lost Chris as well.
He didn't ask them what to do when he came back.
He didn't ask anyone- it was his responsibility. And he might never understand the kind of pain Bruce is going through but he understands it isn't the kind of pain Superman can solve with a few nicely placed words.]
I had to ask. And if you need help with anything else... if there's anyone who'll figure out a way out it's you.
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Once your powers are back in full, I could use your assistance. I've been trying to identify what the turtle's shell is made of - it's impervious to damage, and things like thermite and acid as well, but there's obviously some method for cutting into it.
[Otherwise the Water Sector pretty much wouldn't exist.]
That, in addition to the fact that it glows at night and has numerous constellations etched into it-
[It's like nothing he's ever seen. And that tries his patience at the best of times.
Also, don't you just love how he's discussing business so as to stay off more personal topics? It's his goddamned superpower.]
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Bruce is his best hope to get back home, and Clark isn't ashamed to simply admit he will need his help. Just like he simply offers his help, knowing Bruce had only outright asked for it in the past if he truly had been desperate. 'I could use your assistance' is the closest he'll get, and he's fine with that.]
I'm guessing laboratories aren't really a common sight in this place, from what I've seen. I'll be your eyes.
[He reaches to play with the ring in his hand, a nervous tick he's had ever since he got married. Even though he doesn't wear the ring as Superman he still reaches for it all the time whenever he's nervous.]
I'm guessing there isn't any way to contact home?
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[And god knows he's been looking. And looking.
And looking some more. And experimenting. And theorizing. Using every extensive method in his repertoire just to try--
At this point he's starting to seriously consider smoke signals. His kingdom for a Green Lantern. Preferably Stewart, but he'd take Jordan if needs be. (Jordan may be an unmitigated ass, but they have... an understanding) Or even Rayner. If the world's most powerful weapon couldn't eke out a message to Oa...
Bruce pinches the bridge of his nose. The domino sits differently on his face than the cowl, it hits different pressure points and right now he's fighting off a headache.]
But by all accounts, the passage of time ceases 'back home'. Tim is from several weeks after my last remembered point and according to him I never left, much less spent nearly a month in another dimension. You being here now certainly didn't change my meeting you again after I returned from time. So either each of us coming here creates a divergent line along which time travels normally, or they're telling the truth. We may not even keep memories of this place once we leave it.
[He exhales sharply, having made a full circuit of the room to his satisfaction. Nothing here that can kill Superman.]
Regardless of the potential passage of time, the League has functioned without both of us before. There's no reason to suspect they can't continue in that capacity now. Diana knows what to do.
[And... because he sees you toying with that ring,]
No matter what happens, Lois will be fine. She's a remarkable woman, and you didn't marry her for her looks.
[a hint of a smile.]
At least not only for her looks.
[What is the world coming to when Batman is trying to get Superman to lighten up.
Mostly Bruce just... doesn't like seeing Clark distressed. Clark has spent years being something solid in his life. He can't count the times the other man has kept him grounded and focused when his own determination faltered or his strength flagged. If... he can do that in return, even by the barest amount, then his own discomfort at having to lapse into an emotional rapport is inconsequential.]
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And the news aren't good, but not surprising. If there had been a way for Bruce to contact home he would have now. He would have found a way to tell him he was alive and well and lost in time and he really needs to stop thinking about that because the urge to reach for Bruce again and make sure it's real is getting overwhelming.]
It's not the league I'm worried about... they have been more than able to handle things in the past.
[Without the three big names, no less.]
And so has... so has Lois.
[And Bruce gets a tentative smile at that as he lets go of the ring in his hand. He's aware people thought Superman had stole Lois' heart and that she was like a puppy behind him, but it was pretty much the other way round ever since day one. Lois is his anchor, and it's going to take a time to get used to not having her around.]
I think I'm more worried about what I might end doing without them. At least I've got you and the kids.
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Give yourself more credit. You'd be fine with or without us.
['I believe in you'. He doesn't say it. Then again, he doesn't need to.]
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[The thank you is also left unsaid.] You have seen my place. May I see yours?
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It's in the Metal Sector. Come on.
[They'll walk like normal people.]
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The Metal Sector. Is it safe?
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[Welp time to alter his clothing such that no one would recognize it or compare it back to 'Batman'. He strips off the black overshirt. The pants are silk, and fairly common as far as style goes, and won't garner any specific attention. He leaves the overshirt neatly folded over the back of one of Clark's chairs, musses his hair, adjusts the cuffs of his cream-coloured undershirt -- chosen because the grain of the silk is in direct contrast to the heavier black overshirt, and has more potential of turning aside a blade than a single layer -- and c'est voila, Bruce Wayne.]
The Metal sector has the highest incidence of random crimes, though there's less of a Gang influence there than in, say, Fire or Earth.
[It's one of the reasons he's stationed himself in Metal, beyond the fact that its architecture is similar to Gotham. He can deal with organized crime, such as what the gangs provide, but he's always the most at home preventing muggings and shake-downs. The incidents that occur in back alleys or behind closed doors.
So yes, it's dangerous. But it's nothing he can't handle.]
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action; god, I meant 'friday and sunday'. gj self.
action; /laughs at
action; don't you love me anymore :(
action; I was made for loving you baibeh
action; the only way of loving me baby is to pay a lovely fee X-(
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