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[betrayedtwin]

[in one of the many sparse areas of the Plane appears a tall, sturdy man in purple and green armor, but he hasn't come quite alone. accompanying him is a long, steel table he's seated at. parts of his sniper rifle lay strewn across the table in a neat, organized manner, along with a couple other weapons, and his standard cleaning kit consisting of cleaners, cloths, and tools to adjust the sights of said weapons. he appears to be focused on what a mechanism from inside his rifle--but that's rather difficult to tell since he's looking down and wearing his helmet while he's doing this. and he's seemingly talking to himself, his voice sounding a bit filtered as it comes out of the helmet radio]

--ot sure how you missed it, to be honest. I wasn't so sure it was really there myself. But then I checked it out, met this peculiar guy, then woke up--[he stops, suddenly aware of his surroundings. in a swift, fluid motion, he drops the rifle component and reaches for nearest weapon on the table that is put together, and immediately stands, his chair noisily clattering to the ground. normally he isn't this jumpy, but when one's surroundings change in the blink of an eye, it's hopefully understandable. he lowers the gun a moment later as a somewhat confused recognition sets in, but he, by no means, has relaxed his grip.] Son of a bitch, here. I came here.

[he lets out a little laugh, shaking his head.] Well, if that wasn't conveniently timed, I don't know what is. I'll have to start setting my motion tracker even while doing menial duties. At least I wasn't peeling potatoes.

[after another moment of looking around and verifying that nobody is going to immediately attack him, he reaches down and rights his metal chair--yet doesn't sit down] Hope this doesn't become a habit, though. [mutters under his breath] And never mind what South's going to think when I get back after disappearing like that...

Comments

[grip_on_reality]

Oh look, another one of you. [Menzies' tone is less than impressed, her expression wry] And you brought weapons with you! Planning a war?

[betrayedtwin]

[looks at her curiously, his head cocked to the side] Planning a war? Nah, I'd need more weapons than this. Besides, there are too many as it is and I'm trying to stop them.

[grip_on_reality]

[smirking faintly] Ah, using guns to stop a war, then! I should have known.

[betrayedtwin]

[shrugs nonchalantly] Well you know, can't go into a gun fight with a knife and expect things to be easy.

[sits back down, checking over his cleaning set-up] So what did you mean "another one"? Who are you, anyway?

[grip_on_reality]

[her tone is equally nonchalant] Wouldn't want to do that.

[Menzies gestures at his armour] You're the second person I've seen around here in that sort of getup. I'm Detective Inspector Patricia Menzies. And let me guess--you're Agent Toronto?

[betrayedtwin]

[he laughs] Not even close, though you have the northern region right at least. I'm Agent North Dakota. [glances up at her] Who was it anyway, detective?

[grip_on_reality]

North Dakota? [she snorts] So you are some American group, then. The other bloke I met said his name was Agent Washington. Ring a bell?

[traitortwin]

I'd probably think you were losing your mind.

[Guess what? It's your sister! She's got her arms crossed, and though you can't see it, she's giving you a very amused look with a teeny little half-smirk.]

[betrayedtwin]

[though he can't see it, he can certainly hear it in her voice. and admittedly, he's pretty surprised to hear and see her at all.]

You know, I think I really am. [mock scratches his helmeted head for a second] You know, if you knew about this place, you should have said instead of playing dumb about it.

[traitortwin]

[Well, that's a little... off.]

I could say the same thing to you. How long have you known about here?

[betrayedtwin]

Only about a day, tops. [frowns slightly] But from the sounds of it, it's been longer for you, huh?

[traitortwin]

Yeah, it has. And every time I brought it up, you forgot about it not even a minute later. Guess it's because you weren't here yet.

[betrayedtwin]

Yeah, but now I am, and I still don't remember you telling me before. [shakes his head after a moment of thinking about it more] And trust me, I couldn't forget anything like this even if I tried.

In any case, I'm here now. Guess you're stuck with me. [smiles]

[docinawall]

[Doc is wandering by--and panics at the sight of all that weaponry] Eyaaaah! [he puts his hands up and goes still where he's standing--aside from shaking a little in fear] Are you a Freelancer? Oh man, you look like a Freelancer... I-I wasn't doing anything, okay? I'm surrendering! See? And-and I don't even have a weapon! Please don't shoot me!

[betrayedtwin]

[holds up a hand, gesturing at Doc as he speaks] Okay, okay, calm down. [as an act of goodwill, he also sets his pistol down] No one's gonna shoot you.

[and just from the man's...er, demeanor, North definitely thinks he's probably one of the simulation troopers (but man, he has no idea what to think about his being here too.)] And yeah, I am. Freelancer North Dakota. What's your name?

[docinawall]

D-D-D-Doc. I mean, M-Medical Officer DuFresne. [nervously] You're not just saying you're not going to shoot me to catch me off-guard, right? Because you can tell me if you are! [and then he'll attempt to drop from the Plane very, very quickly]

[betrayedtwin]

[he sighs softly, gesturing to show him that he has no other weapons in his very obviously empty hands] Look Doc, I'm really not going to shoot you. Why would I? [slight shrug] I was in the middle of cleaning these when I came here. They're not loaded either. So relax, okay?

[docinawall]

I don't know! Why would Freelancers kill people and take people prisoner for no reason? [quickly] Wh-which is just an example! You know, in case you were thinking of doing that. [a beat] ...oh. Okay! [his relief is clear in his tone, and he does begin to relax] So, what are you doing here?

[betrayedtwin]

[whoa, so much about that does not make any sense] Like I said, I'm cleaning my equipment. How about you have a seat and back up a bit, and tell me more about what you just babbled about. [he gestures to the metal chair and walks to the other side of the table in case the guy thinks he's gonna do something to him once he sits down]

[moveslikestrider]

Depends on if she's here and if you share a reality. [For a boy of thirteen, Dave doesn't even flinch at the gun that was pointed at him. He stuffs his hands in his pockets and continues.] All other people in your reality who haven't been here won't know what you're talking about.

[betrayedtwin]

[lowers his gun. it is just a kid, after all] Yeah, I was getting that impression. But what do you mean by "share a reality"?

[moveslikestrider]

This place separates people from the same place, far as I know. Buddy of mine goes back to one place and I'm in another. But in this place even a world not your own, you get close to the person and both pockets might merge. Like taking two audio tracks and blending them. Some bits stick out but the place both people return to now is the same strand.

[betrayedtwin]

[that's...mildy disturbing, but he doesn't voice that thought] Come on, you're jerking my chain. How can that be physically possible?

[moveslikestrider]

The lady in a cloak tell you 'welcome to the machine' too or was I special?

[betrayedtwin]

[he's silent for a moment] I thought that was just part of a dream. Man... [puts a hand to his head] Wonder what else wasn't one. Did you meet someone in that shop with a green notebook?