etrayamemes | TDM 001

Entry tags:

!tdm

TDM 001

⏵ arrival⏴
Arrival goes as anticipated. Characters awaken in the pristine, new hospital, greeted by Aurora and potentially getting a rundown of what's happening depending on their approach to being dropped somewhere new. The door to their room opens, and new arrivals are left free to explore their new environment.

Or what exists of it anyway. Exiting the hospital will show that there isn't much of anything just yet. Generally, Echo can build new facilities before new arrivals awaken, but it appears that this time… well, it didn't happen. The apartment complex exists, standing just beside the hospital, and there are a few facilities that are half constructed, companion bots carrying around rebar and other necessary bits and pieces, but they're not quite ready. Oops. But maybe, just maybe, one of those half-built facilities is familiar - a childhood home, a favorite supermarket, the run-down garage they worked at as a youth, a grounded spaceship in the middle of one of the massive bridges connecting land over rivers.

The companion bots will offer quiet apologies if approached; they were expecting new arrivals to touch down, but not quite this early. They'll be ready soon! A few more days at most, they promise. In the meantime, do not stray too far from the hospital. While most of Etraya looks habitable, they have not finished verifying that it's safe for its new inhabitants.

The apartment building and hospital are safe, and the land directly around them is fine, but beyond that? Stay away. But hey, the hospital's cafeteria is fully stocked with cuisine from across the multiverse! Please feel free to settle in, choose an apartment, and get to know your new friends.

⏵ water you doing?⏴
Decide not to listen? Well, the companion bots had offered their warnings.

Etraya is a new establishment, one that received newcomers before it was ready. And as such, the land has not quite been prepared for their arrival. Wandering off the land the apartment building and hospital are settled on comes with very, very poor results. Take a step down into the river below, and you'll find yourself uncomfortably hot. Or cold. Or hot and cold, because whatever that 'water' is, it wasn't meant to be played in. The only way to resolve the temperature regulation issue, as Aurora informs, is finding a buddy to cuddle up with. Those who are lucky may have a nearby friend they're familiar with and don't mind leaning a shoulder against. Those that don't? Well. . . have fun having a very uncomfortable conversation with a stranger, asking them if it's alright if you lean into them or hold their hand for a bit. Any physical contact will do, as long as it's directly skin-to-skin.

Except that's not where the contact stops. Characters will find that, for the next several hours, they'll feel everything that their companion feels. Frustration, anger, amusement, homesickness that comes from being so far away from their families and friends - all those feelings? They're not your feelings, they're our feelings now.

No explanation is given for how the empathy bond and the temperature regulation are related, but it may have to do with how since they had decided not to listen, it was time to test how well they could cohabitate with their new friends.

⏵ bonding bingo ⏴

Maybe it feels a little too much like Obi-Wan had when receiving Leia's message, but all new arrivals are their universe's only hope. Except they're not the only ones arriving, and not the only ones who are trying to keep their worlds safe. Instead, they've arrived with several others who carry the same weight on their shoulders. And they aren't meant to go through this alone. The people they've arrived with are both their new companions and their competition. Both comrades to fight beside and enemies to battle against, depending on what the specific mission of the month is. But currently?

They're here to bond. It's important to get to know those who they'll be spending the next unspecified but lengthy amount of time with, isn't it? To that extent, Aurora's hologram waits just inside the hospital's front doors, offering bonding bingo cards to those willing to participate. It's not necessary, but she does specify that this is one way to get ahead: cooperation is important, especially given what they're going to face together. Bingo cards are three long and three across, and offer a multitude of activities you can do to check each box off.

Some examples include:

Learn someone's biggest secret

Get into a fight

Tell someone something that you've never admitted out loud to

Throw a drink on someone

Win a game of pool in the apartment building's recreation room

Cheat on a card game without getting caught

Hug a new friend

Get stabbed

Steal something important to someone

Pull off an elaborate prank on a stranger

⏵ matchmaker ⏴

When the earpiece is put on, a nice green HUD(head-up display) lights up in front of new arrivals. It asks them for their name, which is fairly standard for these.

Except it seems it wants them to put together a profile to help pair them off with other new arrivals. For some, this information may autofill with what Aurora was able to discern about them from watching them in their home worlds. But some lucky individuals may catch their profiles before they're posted live, and have the opportunity to edit out information included in fields, even if they're not able to clear it out entirely.

Welcome to Aurora's idea of matchmaking. Have fun getting paired off with a buddy or four, with your profiles exchanged between one another. Maybe they're the perfect match. Maybe this is a nightmare in the making.

⏵ OOC ⏴
Welcome to our first TDM! We're excited to have you here. For more information on character arrivals, click here. For any questions relating to the TDM please reply below. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ He glances at her again from under the shade of his eyelashes, not lifting his head. ]

There's always somebody else to blame if you're looking for it.

And sure. I get it. We're all subject to forces outside our control.

[ Some people more than others, and what would she think, if she knew what he'd been letting happen to him, lately?

Except he's not thinking about that. He can't think about that. Less than denial, and more like the skip of a disc over a scratch. ]

But unless you've got a gun to your head? You're the one making your choices. [ He tips his head back, looking up into the wide blue sky. ] Even then. You could always just take the bullet.

And I would if I were in that situation.

[ Take the bullet, let it happen, die. Better her than smeone else. Hell, she might even survive it. Or maybe she won't and the world will lose her shining presence. ]

Anyway, you say that and I agree with you. You make your choices but I know plenty of people who have an issue standing behind their damn choice. They'll say it was influenced by some shit or that it wasn't really their choice. Anything to not take responsibility.

[ Jessica's answer earns her one more of Krouse's lingering looks, this one capped off by a short nod. The flicker of respect that comes with it cuts through his haze, weary as it is. ]

I'm starting to see why people would want to stab you.

[ Even moreso than the aggression or the attitude. There's few things people resent more than someone who makes them feel spineless by comparison.

The hologram is still standing by the hospital's front door, somehow holding onto her stack of cards. Krouse walks past her like part of the scenery and pushes the door open, leaning against it to let Jessica in after him. ]

And let me guess. [ He tips his head. ] They usually blame you.

No. I don't let them.

[ She was more the 'put you in your place' type of person. That's not to say that she didn't have her own ways of avoiding accountability for her actions. She did but they weren't going to talk about that.

She eyes him as she moves past and back into the hospital. ]

And why do people want to stab you?

[ Krouse smiles like a lightbulb breaking, tilting his head back to hit the door behind him. ]

Me?

[ He peels himself off the door and strides forward, beelining for a hallway leading off to the right. ]

I'm just fucking annoying.

Exam rooms are this way.

Well, at least you're aware of that.

[ Hey, he'd said it, not her. She was just going to be gracious and agree with her. ]

So, are you gonna stab me first or am I gonna stab you?

[ Krouse shoulders into an exam room, still smiling. It's a basic standard set up: an exam table for a patient, a counter with a sink, cupboards with medical supplies, various fixtures on the wall. ]

Me first. My idea, right?

[ He rifles through the cupboards, coming up with two scalpels in paper sleeves, sterile gauze, bandages and tape, disinfectant, and a few packets of suture kits. He sets them out with efficiency, and then washes his hands in the sink. He wasn't exaggerating about knowing his way around the basics of wound care.

Despite the context, he doesn't really want to do anything that'd hurt her. It's easier, somehow, to treat it like a procedure, or an experiment. Better to go first.

He dries his hands and daubs disinfectant onto a cotton ball, then circles out a clean patch on the back of his left forearm. When it's done, he holds it out towards her, his gaze steady. ]

Ready when you are. Just be careful tearing the sleeve. [ He tips his head, indicating the scalpels. ] I'm not sure it counts if you stab yourself.

[ She takes the scalpel and looks it, thumbing the edge. It's plenty sharp and she nods. ]

So, you want me to jab it in your arm or just slice you?

[ Would slicing count as stabbing? She's not sure. Semantics and all. ]

If we're going to do this, let's not fuck around.

[ Just stick it in feels a little too open to misinterpretation. Krouse braces his free hand against the counter, letting out a slow exhale. ]

Straight down. Stop before the handle.

[ There's an errant 'are we really doing this?' thought in her mind but she chases that away. They were really doing this. Why the hell not?

She nods at him and grips the scalpel before eyeing the spot. She doesn't count down or give him a warning before she stabs him with the scalpel. She presses, going to the end of the blade and then stops, eyeing him. ]

Not gonna pass on me, right?

[ There are people who can take injury with cool, steely resolve, a set jaw, and a harsh exhale. Krouse is not one of those people. His whole body goes rigid with the initial burst of pain, his eyes wide and mouth twisting as he curses. ]

Fuck!

[ He manages to hold his arm in place from as much shock as willpower, pulling away only once he can wrap his fingers around the end of the scalpel and take over control of the implement. ]

Fuck. [ He mutters, bringing the blunt tip of the scalpel up to his mouth to hold it in place with his teeth as he fumbles next to him for gauze, distorting the rest of his words. ] No. Not after that. Fucking Christ.

[ When he pulls the scalpel free, the gush of blood already dripping off his arm turns into a spout. Thick red droplets splatter the floor before he slaps a pad of gauze on top and bears down with firm pressure, cotton instantly blooming crimson. He discards the blade in the sink with a metallic clatter. ]

I know I said we weren't fucking around, but you're really not fucking around.

Edited 2024-03-06 17:08 (UTC)

You were the one that suggested it.

[ She doesn't sound upset but...well, maybe she's a little sorry for it. Still, he's not going to die and she even reaches to press down on the gauze pad since she'd been the one to do the stabbing. She can help him stop the bleeding. ]

You'll live.

[ Trust her, she's a doctor. ]

Stay still and stop whining. You'll get to repay me as soon as you stop bleeding.

I'm not whining.

[ Krouse says, petulantly, but lets her take over applying pressure. He takes a deep breath in and out through his nose, and when he's confident he can look at her without too much tension around his eyes, he lifts his head. ]

Maybe you forgot, New York, but this? [ He jerks his chin at his arm. ] Stings a little.

[ But it was his idea, and he's giving the wrong impression. ]

Can't fault the technique, though. [ He wiggles his fingers, mouth tilting up in a lesser wince. ] Thanks.

I haven't forgotten, don't worry.

[ She might be strong but when she gets hit or shot or stabbed or anything like that, it still hurts like a bitch and she still bleeds. She keeps a hand on the wound for a few moments longer before pulling it up and taking a look. ]

Not bad.

[ Both the jab and his ability to bleed. She presses the gauze back down. ]

When's the last time you got stabbed?

[ Jessica's bedside manner isn't what Krouse would've expected, starting with how it's surprising she's helping him at all.

Beyond that, it's brusque, but not harsh. He might be reading too much into it, mistaking a lack of sadism for decency. But maybe that's a distinction that doesn't mean as much as it might have, once. ]

Couple months ago.

[ He admits, quietly. ]

Someone with an old grudge. [ He shrugs the shoulder attached to his uninjured arm. ] Superficial damage. He didn't know what he was doing.

[ It almost wasn't so bad. It had felt like something. ]

What about you?

Couple months ago.

[ Came with the work, really. She shrugs. ]

I was working. The guy didn't like what I found out and decided to give me a little parting gift. More annoying than anything. Ruined a good shirt.

[ She'd actually thrown that one away after much debate. ]

[ Krouse takes that in as the blood flow underneath the gauze slowly peters off to a trickle instead of a flood, pressure speeding along the clotting. ]

So.

[ His mouth tips up in a faint smirk, eyebrows quirking. ]

There's no way to ask this question that isn't a little insulting - you're not a cop, are you?

[ That actually makes her laugh. And surprises her which isn't easy to do. She shakes her head quickly though. ]

No. God, no.

[ Hell no. Absolutely not. ]

Private investigator.

[ Never a cop. Never, ever a cop. ]

[ Her laugh sparks something faint behind Krouse's eyes, a ghost current lighting up faded filament. It's nice, having a joke land, under the circumstances. Distracting her from the screwed up situation they're in, even if only for a second, makes him feel less - pointless. ]

Really? [ He says, straight-faced. ] You're a gumshoe? Full on, 'I knew the dame was trouble as soon as she walked into my office'?

[ He reaches for fresh gauze and bandages. ]

No wonder you don't trust any of this. Not exactly a profession that inspires much faith in humanity.

Something like that.

[ There weren't too many dames walking into her office and she tended to be a little picky about cases. But, if the money was good, she'd take it. ]

I'm not wearing a fedora and a trench coat before you go asking.

[ Hats wouldn't look good on her head anyway. ]

It keeps the lights on.

Why not?

[ Krouse peels the sodden gauze free and inspects the tacky wound briefly before he slaps the fresh pad on. He thinks it'll be fine without stitches. ]

You could pull a fedora off.

[ Bandaging it up is the work of a minute, a few loops of fabric and a slap of surgical tape. ]

And it's the look, right? Although - I guess you might want to leave it behind on stake outs.

[ He's just bullshitting, mostly. He means it about the fedora. ]

Compliments aren't going to get you far with me. I don't care.

[ Does she appreciate them? Maybe a little. Slightly. Very slightly. She shrugs, looks slightly shy about it. ]

What I'm wearing now is what I tend to wear when I work. Need people to look past me if I want to find out their secrets. Tends to work.

[ Krouse isn't sure he's reading the shyness right, just like the carefulness before. But when he puts the two things side by side, they're supporting evidence.

Supporting what, he's also not sure. Maybe just that he's glad they deescalated not just because he still likes having teeth. ]

Maybe I'm trying to butter you up so you don't knock me on my ass in a minute.

[ He smiles slightly. ]

Or I just know the kind of attitude it takes to pull off a hat.

[ He picks up a cotton ball and squeezes disinfectant onto it, then offers it to her. ]

This look works, too. A lot of people go too plain when they're trying to be inconspicuous, and just end up looking like they stepped out of a Gap commercial. Standing out by trying too hard not to. [ He nods at the cotton ball. ] Clean off wherever you want it. If you still want to do this.

Yep.

[ While Jessica isn't afraid to go back on her word if she needs to, in this, she's not going to. She's managed to have a conversation with this guy for a lot longer than most people can tolerate her so —

So, she's not in any kind of rush to end it now even if it does mean letting him stab her. She shakes her head because yeah, she's going to let this happen. ]

You let me stab you, I'm going to let you stab me. If I backed out now, you'd be calling me chickenshit.

[ Couldn't let that happen.

With that in mind, she pulls off her jacket and looks at her arms. After a moment, she pulls the sleeve up to gesture at her bicep, skinny as it is. That's where she cleans off before nodding. ]

Go on, let's do it.

[ Krouse picks up the clean scalpel while she gets ready. He feels slightly more assured of what they're doing now that he's done it. It'll hurt, but not badly enough to ruin her day. Easier to pretend this isn't something strange when it's almost surgical.

But he doesn't go for it right away. He flips the scalpel over in his fingers as he approaches, cupping the back of her elbow carefully, and looks at the clean patch of skin that's his target. ]

I wouldn't call you that.

[ It doesn't matter. She'd think it anyway. But maybe it matters to him, saying it.

She didn't count him down. He assumes that's how she'd want it handled for herself. So when he goes for it, planting the scalpel blade halfway into the meat of her arm, he doesn't telegraph until he's already moved. Krouse anchors the handle as he reaches behind himself for more gauze, then offers it to her like the cotton ball, eyes flicked back to her face for her reaction. ]

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cw: stabbing, blood

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