TDM 005

[etrayamods]

⏵ arrival ⏴ Arrival goes as anticipated. Characters awaken in a sterile hospital bed in a clean, white room to the hum of machines under the unnatural lighting common to well-kept institutions. Every bit was designed to be comforting and calming, even with the jarring undercurrent of this situation. The first face they see is Aurora's: her smile appears to be warm, but it doesn't quite reach her eyes. She might offer a quick explanation, or leave characters to figure it out for themselves depending on their approach. The door to the room swings open, revealing a hallway that stretches out ahead of them. There’s noise from outside and strong pumpkin spice scents coming from the lobby. Ah, muffins and tea. Grab one and head into the crisp, sunny fall morning ahead. ⏵ potluck ⏴ Cutthroat Iron Etrayan Bake-Off As you step out of the arrival holding area into the main thoroughfare, the entire street has been turned into tents and chef stations to accommodate the activities of thirty people at once. There’s seats, trailers, and robots bustling about to make sure everyone is ready. A couple of cheerful robots in aprons and colorful sweaters approach and redirect you as you step towards the cooking area. There’s gas ranges, ovens, grills, blast chillers, mixers, and set walk-ins and pantries with just about every ingredient you can imagine. There are cameramen (also robots) patrolling the area to capture all your best moments and to broadcast them directly to your fellow citizens’ devices. Your instruction? “Make your signature dish. You have one hour, chef.” It can’t just be straightforward, can it? The land itself is held together with pure chaotic energy. If you’re lucky, all goes as planned. If you aren’t… well… Roll a Die 1 Your leg is now tied to another chef’s 2 Your meal is continually un-cooking itself. 3 All of your ingredients are pickled now 4 The longer you touch an ingredient, the bigger it gets. 5 Every time you lift your pot lid, a component changes. 6 The aromatics are glowing and flashing like LED lights. 7 Your knife has been replaced with a cheese grater. 8 The ingredients are now magnetically stuck together. 9 Your meal is becoming deep fried. 10 Kittens are multiplying out of the cupboard. * 11 All of your ingredients have become incredibly heavy. 12 Your cook pot moves burners whenever you turn around. 13 Eggs scream when you crack them 14 The kitchen has become incredibly slippery. 15 It’s soup now. 16 All utensils have been replaced with crustaceans. ** 17 Your knife has a mind of its own. Watch out! 18 Your fridge catches fire. 19 Your pasta is trying to escape. Go get it. 20 Any ingredient not in the pot starts to float away. * All kittens disappear at the end. ** These however, stay. ⏵ share a meal ⏴ As all the cooking concludes, you will be invited to plate your meal into one of many casserole dishes, regardless of what was made. A ladle will be tucked into the corner and placed on the table with a folded bit of cardstock declaring the chef’s name and the name of the dish. A helper camerabot will come around to each participant and ask for their thinking and their process. Even if you got away without having to cook, even looking towards the table of dishes will spur a helper bot to start making you a plate with one of everything. The helperbot will insist that it is rude to not at least try what their peers have made. In fact, if you are to fill out the score card for each person, you really must taste everything! The robots can’t try the food, so it’s up to you. The cards look like so. The grading system is opaque. Is it meant to be numbers? Stars? Letter grades? Well, you’re the judge. You figure it out. Chef: ___________ Dish:_____________ Judge:___________ Overall Rating:_______ Flavor Presentation Stackability Wet Originality Rizz ⏵ tummy ache survivor ⏴ No matter how well your compatriots cooked or baked their dishes, there are… factors. You see that carrot? It’s really just condensed chaos in the shape of a carrot. No matter how powerful you are, these particular ingredients may not mesh with your being. …And even if it is truly a carrot, do all the chefs know the proper cooking temperature of chicken? Even chickens are aliens to many. (Optional) Roll a Die 1 Tummy Ache. Go lay in bed. Complaining alleviates symptoms. 2 That plate of food has energized you. You feel compelled to race or spar. 3 The food has reminded you of home. You must tell someone a detail of your childhood. 4 That food was so horrible that it simply must be washed out somehow. Spicy peppers? Booze? Gravel??? You’re going to over do it. 5 You have now discovered your new favorite dish. Make them teach it to you or you’ll lose sleep over it. This is all you want to eat for the next week. 6 The oddity of the ingredients has transferred to you. You start floating away. 7 The range of food and textures have inspired you. Acquire an annoying new hobby or habit. 8 You are now haunted by the digital souls of chickens. ⏵ NOTES ⏴ Please direct all questions to our mod queries comment! ⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Comments

wayne tower

[brat]

( the tower isn't necessarily damian's, but it has his name on it, so he's claimed it as his all the same. he recognizes that this specific version of wayne tower more closely matches what the younger version of his father would anticipate; and even then, the changes caused by it being rebuilt here means it doesn't entirely match up to his vision either.

it doesn't matter, because it's still one of the few buildings damian watches over vigilantly. the manor is his home, full of life, even if it is a little less well-cared for here given pennyworth's absence. goliath roams the cave freely, titus and alfred the cat guard the halls, and batcow... does her cow things, while todd and drake stay on the premises even if drake is living in the carriage house.

but the tower is his father's home, and one damian frequents. such as times like this, when it's not quite late enough for a usual robin patrol - but that has never stopped damian before. especially not here. all hours are robining hours now.

the lights downstairs are intentionally turned off, giving the fruit bats who have taken occupancy there the dark and quiet they prefer. among them is a massive, red ball of fur that is distinctively not a fruitbat and a significantly smaller form beside him, hood pulled up over his head and the dark outer layer of his cloak covering anything of color under it.

it's not the boy who responds to the approaching man, but the beast. damian hears him, but given his presence in wayne tower is... well. allowed but likely less anticipated given the suit he's wearing, he opts to tip his head back and watch instead as goliath gives a low, relatively terrifying growl in the man's direction, nose flaring and teeth bared while he approaches on his hind legs.

give him a moment, he'll pick up on the scent. )

[knightowl]

[ Bruce hears the growl, sees the creature and stops, gaze cut upward and locked on the creature as it moved in closer. He doesn't know what he was given to treat the gas or how it will react with his heart medication. And with so many unknowns, he is outmatched. But he doesn't budge.

The growl is terrifying, but Bruce stopped being afraid a long time ago.

It's his age that limits him, not his fear and he finds himself missing Ace's presence. But, he still pushes his cane into the ground to keep himself upright and steady. In case this did turn into something. He would have leverage to defend himself.

The boy he notices at the same time he sweeps his eyes over Goliath. It does not set him at ease. They are together and Bruce must weigh his options. Trust the child or not?

Definitely not. ]

Who are you?

[brat]

( damian is more accustomed to the dark than the light - but it doesn't mean he has clear visibility from where he's standing to the old man. the night vision in his domino mask makes up for what his eyes lack, but the way the man stands, his posture, his age throw him off for just a moment.

just a moment, because bruce wayne is not a person damian could ever mistake for someone else. by the time goliath has hunched his shoulders in and dropped the guard dragon bat act, damian has clocked his identity.

and the lack of recognition from bruce himself. not that it's particularly surprising: this is far from the first time he's been forgotten. it's not even the first time he's simply not existed in a timeline a version of his father has come from. the bruce who has laid claim to the tower hasn't even picked up his first robin, let alone met damian's mother, or had talia drop damian off with him.

the growl from goliath tapers into a low whine - not fear, or anxiety, just recognition. for a creature as large and ferocious as he is, goliath's poker face has always been his weak point.

damian doesn't have the same problem. he takes a step forward, footsteps silent against the flooring. )

No one.

( the yellow of his cloak is bright enough to reflect the bit of light being let into the tower - bright enough to be seen when he moves and the fabric moves along with him, but he isn't stepping close enough to be even close to within bruce's reach.

there are enough other-worldly versions of his father out there with significantly less pleasant views on the world to warrant investigating this one before getting that close. )

Who are you?

[knightowl]

[ No one. Bruce would disagree. He knows that domino mask. And he suspects, underneath that familiar yellow cloak, that there's an R on his chest, stylized just so. He would never forget it. But he does not know the boy wearing it.

He thinks alternate timelines and lives diverging into similar but distinct paths. He's met other versions of himself and it's easy to think there's one out there that's picked this boy to be a Robin. This one would not have. Not after what happened to Tim. The wound is still too fresh, despite the distance from it. ]

You're lying. Robin.

[ But he doesn't push any farther. Instead, he points with his cane to the W. ]

I think you know exactly who I am.

[brat]

( bruce says robin and damian's mouth twists into a grin, pleased. it's recognition of a sort, even if it also confirms that this bruce has no idea who he is. damian has always been damian when they're suited up and alone. his father wouldn't call him robin when aiming to let damian know he's aware of his identity. )

Do I? Why would I know you?

( it's his father, aged by a good - forty or so years, looking worse for wear than damian has witnessed. he knows. there's no doubt in his mind now. and yet, )

You look like a strong wind could knock you over. ( no he doesn't. but damian's taking a confident step forward, closer. the "R" rests over the right side of his chest, bright and visible as he stalks forward. ) What reason would Robin have to know you?

[knightowl]

[ Because he's the reason this kid is wearing that suit. At least some version of him is. Bruce gives Damian a closer once over as he stalks closer and there's something familiar - not about Robin but the boy himself. Bruce knows the kid is a stranger, but the familiarity cannot be dismissed.

But it can be ignored for now. ]

My name is on this building. And I am the source of yours.

[ Maybe in more ways than Bruce realizes. ]

[brat]

( damian resembles his parents in equal parts: his father's chin and ears. the same scowl, which would be difficult not to notice, given its batman's signature - if he had been scowling. but he has his mother's nose, the shape and color of her eyes hidden behind the domino mask, and mannerisms somewhere between bruce's, talia's, and dick's.

the haughty attitude - that's all his. )

My name is on the building. And you're incorrect. Nightwing gave me Robin.

[knightowl]

[ He could see traces of his own father too. The reason why seems terribly obvious, especially coupled with how Damian responds - his name on the building. Bruce just isn't going to say it. Not yet. ]

Who do you think gave it to him?

[brat]

( there it is: the signature scowl. the one that matches bruce's own so well, because he has an answer for this question, but it's not the one this man is implying. )

His mother.

[knightowl]

[ He knows that scowl. But Bruce meets it blankly, clearly unamused. ]

What was I thinking?

[brat]

You're going to need to be more specific.

( bruce doesn't have to be. because damian knows the question he's contemplating in his head. he also just - does not want to answer it. )

[knightowl]

[ Bruce doesn't elaborate. He walks by Damian instead to investigate the Tower. ]

How long has this been here?

[ it's presence implies the presence of another version of himself, younger considering the apparent age of the building and its lack of Neo Gotham's technological advancements. And he'd much rather speak to him. ]

[brat]

( the urge to reach out and force this man back and away from the rest of the tower is near-impossible to resist, but damian manages. he turns around on his heels instead, following bruce with his eyes rather than trailing after him. for now. )

It was built shortly after I arrived, which was approximately nine months ago. The manor is also here, in the North East.

[knightowl]

[ Nine months. Not long enough to be built by normal means. ]

Is he here?

[ Damian's Batman, a Batman. It didn't matter which. ]

[brat]

He's young.

( it's a partial answer. one given moments before he does take a step towards bruce, to follow after him. )

He has not yet met the first Robin as of his time. Nor has he met Mother. Nightwing is here. You would be better served seeking him rather than. . . Father.

[knightowl]

[ Hrn. Neither of them are ideal. If he's not met Dick yet, he's still learning. As for Dick. Bruce hadn't spoken to Dick in years. Not a whole lot to say. Bruce did not see that changing just because he's been displaced.

He'll sort it out later. Right now, there's something more pressing. ]

Talia. [ He turns around and eyes Damian. ] She's your mother, isn't she?

[brat]

( eyes narrow when bruce turns to focus on him, but damian doesn't shy away from him. his shoulders straighten, scowl everpresent while he looks up to the man who both is and isn't his father. )

Talia al Ghul is my mother.

[knightowl]

[ Bruce almost says that Damian looks like him. But he...just doesn't. It's been a long time since he's seen Talia al Ghul too, though he thinks about her often. This boy makes him wonder if there might be one in his world too. If he wasn't a total recluse, maybe he would reach out and ask. ]

What's your name?

[brat]

( his tongue clicks against the roof of his mouth; a quiet, irritated sound damian often makes when he's - irritated. but he reaches up with both hands, taking the domino mask between his thumbs and index fingers, so he can peel it off his face. removes robin's mask before he opens his mouth and offers, )

Damian.

[knightowl]

[ When the mask comes off, Bruce has the answer to his earlier question, sarcastic as it was. He knows exactly what he was thinking.

Still, such a clear view of Damian's face puts him in a mood and he looks away so he can brood about it. ]

[brat]

( his father is always in a mood. it isn't anything new, nor is bruce's need to look away from him like this. even if it does put an equally sour expression on damian's face. )

There are more of us here. Albeit no one from. . . your era.

[knightowl]

[ Bruce didn't think there would be. He's never had that kind of luck. ]

It's fine. I've met one of yours already. Jason.

[brat]

He isn't one of mine.

( the todd damian is familiar with is volatile. he tries not to be, and damian would commend his growth if he were the sort. this todd is - more balanced. it's not bad, it's just not what damian is accustomed to. )

[knightowl]

[ More Damian's than Bruce's. Jason was very much a stranger before this point. ]

So we've been pulled from multiple universes. [ Great. ]

[brat]

Did you think the younger one ( batman. obviously. ) was merely someone who was. . . behind? You don't know who I am. We've been pulled from different parts of the multiverse.

( well. )

The third and first Robin are mine.