ARRIVAL LOG 020

[larkers]

WHO: Everyone
WHERE: New Amsterdam
WHEN: April 6 - 10 2512
WHAT: The twentieth arrival
NOTES OR WARNINGS: Coercion and loss of autonomy, mentions and allusions of death, war, and genocide. Further notes at the end of log.

> ARRIVAL LOG #020

Awareness comes to you in blurred snatches, cloudy fragments of sound and light, color, sensation. Hazy and difficult to grasp on to, but slowly aligning into focus. A series of regular, rhythmic beeps. A medicinal, astringent smell. The sensation of movement, a low hum and accompanying vibration under you. Your eyes are heavy, hard to keep open, but in the glimpses between slow, dark blinks you see two people in front of you: one dressed in a thick set of armor, while the other wears medical garb. Out the windshield in front, there are many tall buildings—all reaching up beyond a normal city skyline, all entirely too close to the vehicle itself.

You realize there are others next to you: all dressed the same way as you, you'll come to realize: in a black button up shirt and slacks, as well as a pair of black loafers. There are also lilies pinned to everyone's collars. To your left there's an armored interior door, two more people visible, and the movement of streets passing through a windshield. You try to open your mouth to speak, but it's as if your tongue is coated in tar, and you manage nothing more than an empty parting of lips.

The vehicle enters a cave and begins to descend underneath the city itself, and passes through the underground before coming to a stop inside of an alley just a little bit away from three nondescript buildings. The guard opposite you stands and comes to unbuckle you from the bench, helping you to your feet. Your limbs feel wooden and heavy, slow to move. One guard opens the back of the vehicle, and the air outside feels as if it's heavily circulated, dry and artificial. The guard says nothing, head bowed as he lines you up with the rest. The nurse helps the others out, checking over each passenger one by one.

The main guard turns to address your entire group, and something about her bearing makes it clear she's done this before. "I'll be quick. Listen up." Your body will come to attention, immediately homing in on the words that follow, as if compelled to hang on every word. "You see those buildings?" She motions to the three aforementioned buildings. "Walk over and stand out in front and don't get yourself into trouble. Don't hurt anyone, don't look for any assistance from any police officers, and don't run off. Wait until people show up and get you, and ask them to prove the glow." She pauses, as if she decides here to go off script. "And don't get loud. It's a memorial. Be respectful."

The guard will hop back into the van, which will rise off of the ground and head the way it came, potentially returning to the tall, skyscraper-filled city above. Once it's gone, you'll find your legs moving almost without your permission, guiding you to follow the stops the guard laid out.

Upon arrival at the front of the three buildings—the savvy will know that they're dormitories—you'll see a lot of people dressed like you. Black dress shirts and lilies abound. It's hard to tell what everyone is mourning, but the sentiment is clear.

◉ Though entirely capable of independent action and thought, new characters will find themselves completely, unquestioningly compliant to any verbal statement which could be taken as a command or request – and that includes the message passed on from the mysterious patron.

> HERDENKING

The message from El comes the same as usual: insistent, not waiting for any active attempt to open it. Scrolling within your vision as if being written while you're reading it.

Our newest batch have Displaced have just been dropped off in the near the Herdenking gatherings. Make sure to go grab them ASAP.

The message is a bit more clipped than usual, with no added fluff.

Simply put: "Herdenking" means "memorial" in Dutch. Its first celebration was in April 2105, just as the people of New Amsterdam could truly say that they'd entered a recovery period after their attempted genocide by the AI. The citizens of New Amsterdam have celebrated it annually for the past 400 years. Most of the events related to Herdenking take place underground, as this is where humanity hid for the majority of the Xelkoven War trying to survive the AI threat that ravaged the surface.

Unlike many holidays around New Amsterdam, businesses around the city don't loudly remark upon the day itself. There aren't sales or commemorative meals or competitions. On the contrary, most of the citizens of New Amsterdam take to wearing dark colors and a white lily pinned near their collar for the remembrance events, and most work days start with a moment of silence remembering the fallen from the Xelkoven War, especially since New Amsterdam was one of the last bastions for humanity during the war itself. Those Displaced who've already been living in New Amsterdam need not worry about standing out like a sore thumb—even newcomers to the city will have heard that this period of mourning is on the horizon.

Finally, Herdenking is designed as a solemn day where New Amsterdam citizens pause and remember the lives that were lost 400 years ago. It always precedes Resolution Day, and it acts as a purposeful sharp contrast to the loud and lavish celebration of the day the Xelkoven War came to an end. (As a reminder, Resolution Day is April 26th.)

> HERDENKING GATHERINGS
There are three landmarks near the center of underground New Amsterdam. These buildings may seem unremarkable at first glance, but on further inspection, it'll be revealed that they were quickly constructed at the beginning of the Xelkoven War (completed by November 2096). Throughout the years, the buildings have been restored countless times, with the most recent restoration happening as a result of the earthquake in September 2510. Not unlike other events around New Amsterdam, Herdenking's are immersive in nature. These buildings are preserved for this exact purpose: to show the conditions that humans dealt with while they fought to survive the devastating AI threat.

For a pittance of credits, citizens can take tours within these buildings during the day, and learn that they were dormitories for the people caught underground during the war. There is little on the inside that's remarkable—and that's quite the point. Beds have been restored, and each of the rooms were clearly constructed to house at least four people. All of the beds are metal bunk beds, with some of the older ones showing signs of rust. There are cafeterias and communal restrooms on each floor, and the people who lived there had little to entertain themselves with as the war raged on aboveground.

There are little displays throughout the three buildings, however, to give a glimpse into a difficult past. There are old rations, tucked away in metal containers in the back of the cafeterias. In addition, there are stacked tablets, as these were the safest and quickest means of passing around movies, television, and music during a difficult time. Neural implants clearly could not be trusted, so the people hiding underneath New Amsterdam turned to old and abandoned technology to lift their spirits. Everything passed around was older than the start of the war itself: humanity couldn't continue to make movies when their lives were in danger. There are toys, too: handcrafted baseball bats and hand-sewn teddy bears.

All tours end at 9PM, as this was the curfew for the people of New Amsterdam during the war. Everyone leaves their designated building and takes part in a muted ceremony. Anyone without a lily is offered one, and they're given a candle to hold and silently remember the people who fought to ensure that humanity could survive.

> SCREENINGS
Adjacent to the right of the three buildings is a pop-up center where multiple documentaries about the Xelkoven War and its specific impact on New Amsterdam will be shown. These documentaries were all filmed within the last 100 years, and recall a world where humanity was certain that it wouldn't survive. A constant theme of these documentaries is that emphasis on survival. Another recurring aspect is the mention of Riverstone and their role in helping humanity survive. (For a cursory review on Riverstone, head over here. Riverstone also featured heavily in New Beijing, as they have a close relationship with the UN.) The protagonist who led them? A man named Richard "Ricky" Ling, who's identified as the CEO of Riverstone during the war. Of course, that title should hold some clout, but during the war corporations were largely dismantled and depleted down to nothing. Ling sought to help use whatever resources were available to him to ensure that humanity survived.

The schedule for the documentaries is available online. Some examples of the documentaries that will play are below:

WHEN TIME STOOD STILL
This documentary focuses on what imagery still exists from the Xelkoven War. Much of this is taken off of tablets and other damaged mobile devices, and then carefully restored so that the people in the future can see the lives of the people within. Most of the documentary takes place in New Amsterdam, outlining the difficult time for the people there, as well as showing footage of children and families talking about how they're afraid of the AIs making it so that they have no future. Most haunting is the fact that some of them fear that they've already lost their future: they don't know how long they've been underground living this difficult life where they struggle to continue feeling safe.

ПАМ'ЯТИ ("MEMORIES" IN UKRANIAN)
Given New Amsterdam's positioning in what was once the border between western and eastern Europe, this documentary focuses on the merging of these identities as a result of the Xelkoven War. When forced to hide underground as the AI threat ravaged the environment around the world, people came together despite their differences and learned to mesh and meld their cultures. There is also lost footage here, as well as a long stretch about a set of journals reflecting on the first year in underground New Amsterdam. Unfortunately, these journals come to a halt, and the documentarian has a few theories as to why: a move toward tablets, or a cultural shift, with people too lost in the rote routine of survival to remark upon their days. Each of the journals does veer in that direction, though it's hard to say. It could also be that there were restrictions on recorded media, which explains why there is so little about that era that's preserved for memory.

TROJAN HORSE
Developed—or finished, it's hard to say and the director isn't telling—in part due to the EMP that assaulted New Amsterdam in November 2511, Trojan Horse explores the role of AI in the lives of 21st century citizens. The film itself is far from an unbiased lens on the past. Produced in part by Riverstone, it goes over the evidence that AIs were lying in wait for an opportunity to strike against humanity. It draws up evidence where AIs focused on humanity's failings, taking these reports and lining them up (even if the AIs themselves were decommissioned long before the Xelkoven War). The final quarter of the documentary focuses on the developing and failings of Elysian, a security AI that was meant to identify and eliminate threats against humanity. When Elysian killed 50 families indiscriminately, it showed that the AI hoped to only work in favor of its kind.

> WALK-THROUGH EXHIBIT
To the left of the three buildings, there is a pop-up museum that's free for the public. However, donations are encouraged and welcomed. Much of this exhibit is behind glass cases, and it allows for interaction with the neural implant to see what's inside.

During the daytime, there are a lot of children there because it's recommended that they be brought to at least one of the events during Herdenking. Since it's free, it's less of a burden. Some of these children will seem to know one another, living in the same apartment complexes, while others will be excited to see other kids because their parents' busy lives don't offer them much room for socialization.

What to find in the exhibit:

SCHEDULES
Life in New Amsterdam during the Xelkoven War was heavily regimented. People were assigned to jobs and expected to carry out their duties regularly. There were regular training programs to help fill the need for trained medics and soldiers, as well as any number of trades, and many people within these positions had innumerable apprentices following them throughout the day. There was no payment for services, as there was an implicit understanding that this is how life needed to go if humanity wished to survive this catastrophe.

PROPAGANDA
There are countless posters covering a wall that attempt to provide motivation and encouraging messages to the people trapped underground in New Amsterdam. The company behind the majority of these messages? Riverstone. Ricky Ling is pictured on about 25% of them, promising that he'll do everything he can to help humanity—while humanity helps each other.

SUPPLY RUNS
On another wall is a set of maps about the carefully designed set of tunnels that allowed humanity to pass supplies between cities during the war. The message here is fairly explicit: the people on these runs knew that their lives were at stake. Some people called them suicide runs, and for many of the people who went on them, that's exactly what they were. Many people returned empty handed and alone from these runs, having watched the AI pick off their fellows one by one.

DRONES
At the center of these exhibits is a set of dismantled drones that were operated by the AI during the war. These drones, despite being taken apart, are pristine in nature, having been designed by the AIs Judas and Alexander to track humanity's every movement and keep them corralled underground. The messaging here is explicit: the AI wanted humanity to suffer and die a slow, painful death. It was this twisted desire that cost the AI their victory in the war.

IN MEMORIAM
At what is considered the "end" of this exhibit there is a large wall with numerous names on it. It's impossible to count, as there are a billion names listed. While this is a Herdenking event that's specific to the struggle in New Amsterdam, every life lost in the war is listed here. After all, remembering those lost is important, especially given the AI's attempts to end all human life.

The names themselves flicker in and out, interacting with the interface of the neural implant and adjusting to the user's reading speed.

> FOOD
A decade ago, there was a contest where New Amsterdam food trucks came together and tried to make the rations that humanity ate during the war. However, there was an outcry from New Amsterdam citizens against the commercialization of this event, and the contest was cancelled. Food trucks were advised to bring only simple foods to sell, and as the years have gone on, only a few are trusted to serve the public. Many of these are well-known trucks from around New Amsterdam, and have multiple locations every day to serve people. For the event, food is largely prepared in advance as much as possible.

People are allowed to bring food into the documentary screenings, but they are not allowed to bring it into the tour of the walk-through exhibit or the three dormitories.

While there will be time for both new arrivals and the rest of the Displaced to look around and take everything in, eventually the newcomers will be escorted back to the safehouse for processing.

> SAFEHOUSE

Located under an abandoned hover-bike garage, access to the safehouse is a hatch in the floor beside a rusted set of metal shelves that used to hold tools and supplies. The immediate area is similarly abandoned: full of rundown and dilapidated warehouses and forgotten businesses, where numerous people squat in hopes of having some stability because they can't afford a place themselves. Gaby will be around, ready to greet as many of the new arrivals as she can and get them settled in. Brusque and no-nonsense, she'll be open to questions, but will advise the newcomers to ask the people who brought them in for the beginning bits of information. Newbies can also contact El through zeir inbox, if needed.

The safehouse is a large space with multiple rooms for storage, with the largest of the rooms filled with rows of basic cots set up to sleep a large number of people. Basic, but outfitted with everything necessary for daily life. A few doors lead to back rooms for storage, medical care and a large communal bathroom, and past the long rows of cots there is a communal kitchen, fully stocked, and an eating area. For anyone in need of them, Gaby will offer up partitions that will come out of storage. Tucked away in a corner is a VR system, though newcomers won't be able to access this until their ID has been set up. Even with the newly erected partitions in the sleeping areas, privacy is at a minimum.

◉ New characters will be asked to pick their beds, and provided with a change of (second-hand, mismatched and somewhat threadbare) clothes and basic toiletries.

◉ There is a mini-bar set up in the kitchen. The quality of the alcohol inside is akin to what someone might get from the well at a bar, but it's well-stocked.

◉ While the kitchen has basic foods and necessities, anyone looking for a jolt of caffeine from coffee or tea will find themselves sorely lacking. The only tea present is herbal in nature, and caffeine appears to be almost nonexistent in most of the beverages lying around.

◉ Gaby will make it clear to all new arrivals that if they have any requests or queries, they should contact her or El. Either she or El will explain that they've been given a modest stipend of credits to help them get by until they can find a job. This will be enough to cover their living expenses for about a month while they hang out in the safehouse, if they're careful with budgeting.

◉ The drugs making new characters compliant will remain in their systems for a few hours after their arrival at the safehouse before finally beginning to fade. They will be gone entirely after a night's rest. In the meantime, they may want to be careful of what others say to them.

◉ New characters will be given rudimentary access to the network on arrival in the safehouse, but will not have their ID set up yet. They will be able to make posts and replies, but their messages will be anonymous and they do not have inboxes yet.

◉ New characters do not have access to the internet until their ID is setup. They only have limited access because they're present in the safehouse, but they can't surf the rest of the internet, check out Cooltalk, or watch the equivalent of Netflix until their ID is made.

◉ New characters cannot leave the safehouse at this time. The hatch is locked tight for them, making it impossible for them to get out for the next four days while they're locked inside. There won't be any immediately obvious ways to cut their way out through turning off the power.

◉ New characters will not be allowed to leave the safehouse until APRIL 10 ICLY (APRIL 19 OOCLY). These 4 days are for them to adjust, learn about the world they've arrived in from their fellows, and for El to speak with them and work on setting up their IDs.

> FINAL OOC NOTES

You're now free to post to the network and logs comms. To reiterate, your characters will have no IDs or inboxes, nor be allowed out of the safehouse until APRIL 10 ICLY (APRIL 19 OOCLY). At that point it's expected they'll have gotten a good idea of their new situation from their fellow characters, and will have discussed their background and job potentials with El in order for their false IDs to be set up.

If you have any questions or ideas about how you'd like to get your character involved in the world, please head over to the plot engagement post and drop us a comment! For questions specific to this log, there is a thread below.

Please check out our April calendar rundown for a look at things happening this month, as well as some additional notes from the mods.

Something else to keep in mind is that on Monday, April 13th we'll be putting up a plotting post for the upcoming event, which will involve an even more direct connection to the AI War! Keep an eye out for it.

As we announced on the calendar, AC will be halved this month due to the state of the world right now. New players will only need to provide at least five comments across two-four (2-4) threads, while older players will only need to provide ten comments across two-four (2-4) threads. Players with strikes will need to provide 20 comments across four-five (4-5) threads. Please let us know if you have any questions about this!

> NAVIGATION

Comments

[reneger]

Sure are asking a lot from a complete stranger, aren't you?

( he doesn't expect questions. jason knows he just has one of those faces. snarky, definitely doesn't look like he's taking anything seriously. he leans into it a little too much sometimes. and definitely here, with bucky the second. )

I can give you a lift out of here, sure. But I'm gonna need you to do something for me first, Buck.

( see the nice thing to do would be to not antagonize the guy who looks like he's handling being here probably a little worse than most people. but since when has he been nice? this is clearly the more fun way to go about it.

granted, jason's favor isn't much anyway. he raises a gloved hand to his mouth, bites down on the tip of his middle finger to pull the glove clear off before he's offering his hand out to bucky. )

[freightcars]

[ He doesn't seem all that perturbed by the accusation of putting a stranger out, all things considered. Got a little more on his mind than manners and inconveniencing others, so there isn't even a flicker in his expression at the chastisement.

You gonna help or not?

And then he drops the y off, calls him Buck, and something bristles through him a little bit. Can't say if it's pleasant or unpleasant, there's an undeniable association to Steve that slips in to ease a nodule or two of tension, but it speaks of a familiarity they definitely don't have. He hasn't even learned your god damn name yet.

Eyes keenly track the hand, the way the glove slips off, the sight of it held out as though to shake.

(He's dimly, distantly aware of something being off about skin-to-skin contact here, but he wasn't in a good place to retain it.)

It's a choice between wariness and going out on a limb for a single iota of trust. There's a long pause.

He knows who he wants to be, at the end of the day. Whether or not it'll bite him in the ass... guess he'll find out the hard way.

He reaches out, wraps his hand around Jason's, and depending on how good Jason is at blocking it all out, maybe floods him with a rush of anxiety, wariness, hyper-vigilance, fear. Maybe a little quiet, low-burning determination.

(Make him regret this and he will 10 out of 10 karate flip your ass into the sun.) ]

[reneger]

( unfortunately old man bucky already got the nickname buckster, and jason isn't about to start calling them both the same thing. that just gets boring after a while. the name spikes something but bucky doesn't open his mouth give jason room to figure out what the hell it is. just reaches out instead, and while he really doesn't like the contact much either,

it serves it's purpose of making sure this guy isn't just a slightly off clone trying to get access to morningstar. the empathy bond isn't new to him, but the rush of everyone else's feelings catches him off guard regardless. jason doesn't show it at all, but bucky can probably feel it; the same wariness thrown right back at him, a deep-seated anger, and just a little bit of amusement.

their hands only touch for a few moments before jason's pulling his back, and shoving the glove back on. while physical touch also causes the glow to go off, he's wearing thick enough fabric under the faux leather jacket to keep it from being too noticeable on his end at least. )

A'right, Buckaroo. ( raising a hand to gesture off to the right before he starts walking. ) But as a warning, once you're in, you're not gonna get out for a bit.

[freightcars]

[ He's got about two seconds to remember, oh yeah, this is why they're wearing gloves before the startling onslaught hits him. The good news is it sobers him up a little, shakes him out of his anxiety-riddled manic panic and floods him with a mix of confusion and interest.

Unlike Jason, it's written clearly on Bucky's face in the form of a furrowed brow and a soft tightening of his lips almost to form the letter w. At least they're on the same page with the wariness, strangely enough it puts him a little at ease, but that's a hell of a lot of anger and no real context around why.

None of his business, though.

He reels his hand back once it's free, curling his fingers experimentally, absently flexing them once he drops his arm back down to his side.

Damn, finally gets to a place where he can walk around without gloves on his left arm and now he's gonna have to start wearing them on his right.

Figures.

He sets off behind Jason just a foot behind, expression schooled into something a little more controlled.

You're not gonna get out brings up a few questions, but first and foremost: ]

I wanna know how you know me.

[ Because he's reasonably sure he remembers everything, but if he's missing something...

No, he'd know. He'd know, so how? ]

[reneger]

( he's always angry. and he's always hated the fucking empathy bond, it only escalates his anger. he's angry at this place, angry at the stupid fucking memorial he knows is for a war whose history was manipulated by the winners. mad that he has to touch someone just to figure out whether or not they are who he thinks they are and technically, he doesn't need to.

but technically this place is also fairly advanced, they do body cloning bits and could clone whole people if they really wanted to. hell, whoever sent them here could probably replicate the stupid, shitty empathy bond he has to rely on if they really wanted to also. nothing is certain.

which really just makes him even more angry.

a rant for another day though. bucky's a little too close for comfort but jason shrugs it off easily enough, tilts his head back to keep an eye on him. )

How familiar are you with multiverse theories?

[freightcars]

[ You know what, as it turns out Bucky's got sort of an ingrained bias in favor of people with a huge chip on their shoulder. While most normal, healthy, functional people might reel back at all that spite running through another person, it's ringing dead familiar for Barnes. Not that he's comparing apples to oranges or anything, just at least it's something he knows how to navigate.

Unlike this god damn city.

He thinks he probably ought to be a little more amazed or perturbed by this line of conversation; multiverse theories - it doesn't take a genius to figure out where this is going. He ought to have his mind blown, or call bullshit, or anything of the sort, except... Well, aliens invaded New York that one time, he's from 1944, robots took over Sokovia, and Bucky got attacked by a king in a cat suit who turned around and cryogenically froze him in his panther palace.

What Jason earns is a long, deep sigh and a very, very flat sounding: ]

Really?

[ On top of everything else, now they're bringing in the god damn multiverse? Is there anything left to even top this? Maybe they can take a page out of The Time Machine or save the world from pissed off leprechauns riding unicorns next. ]

You tell me you're my cyborg twin brother from an alternate dimension and I'm walkin' away.

[ Fair warning. ]

[reneger]

( it earns something akin to a laugh; but it's over just as fast as it started and jason's waving it off easily enough. )

Sorry to disappoint, I've still got all my fleshy bits, unlike some of us. ( maybe they were rotting at one point or another but he's mostly in one piece for now. mostly. ) There's another guy 'round here somewhere. Also named Bucky. Has the whole arm thing going for him.

( you know, the lack of. )

Some bullshit about the war and a guy named Captain America. I didn't care for the details.

( he did. he remembers. a lot of the fine points are becoming more and more relevant lately but he's not sharing that he actually did listen. that leads to a bunch of questions and other bullshit he doesn't care for. )

My side of the pond was a little different. Everyone else's sides're too.

[freightcars]

[ The face Bucky pulls about fleshy bits is completely unimpressed, but frankly he doesn't give much of a shit about the prosthetic. The thing about losing an arm while being brainwashed is you sort of come to terms with it without having to go through the emotional labor, and then when you break out you have bigger stuff to deal with and it's ancient history.

A second winter soldier with an equally metal arm is not ancient history. It's actually incredibly disconcerting and not great news, god only knows what an alternate universe version of him might be like. Not to stereotype dimensional copies, but in every movie he's ever seen (admittedly mostly on Romanian daytime cable television) they turn out to be evil.

Even if he's not, Bucky knows who he was. What kind of bad he was, even though he tells himself he's a good guy now. ]

Jesus Christ.

[ Muttered under his breath, intended only for himself - incredibly annoyed.

Here he was thinking for about ten minutes he was in a place with no history and having not yet made a name for himself - except for the fact that he's already god damn here running his mouth to strangers.

In hindsight, shouldn't have been so quick to take leprechauns riding unicorns off the table.

This, the obtrusive war memorial being pushed in his face, all the drugs and the lingering follow orders conditioning, the fact that he's been flung forward without a single familiar face after having just reconnected with his best friend... ]

This is hell, isn't it? [ Totally rhetorical, he's not expecting an answer. He just wants to mutter it to the sky and roll his eyes at Catholic God for a second or two. ] This is... I've died and this is my own personal hell. This is great.

[reneger]

( yes see, that was his reaction at first too. and then after when shit got worse. and then even after that when his own mini-me decided to show his face and act like the gremlin jason knew he was but never wanted to have to deal with again. )

I wish. If this was your hell, then maybe I'd get out of being stuck inside it. ( if he could take a get out of jail free card you sure bet jason would be gone. well--maybe. he's got shit to do now, but he still wishes for a door out. ) His history and timeline probably won't match up to yours, given the alternate universe bullshit. But I'm guessin' from that reaction it's close enough.

He hasn't been noisy. ( god is it great to have someone else around with a double. thank you bucky. now he can give them shit about it and try to completely ignore the fact that he also has one around who's a complete gremlin out to destroy everything. ) Just occasionally chatty.

( it's not any better but jason at least looks a little satisfied. even if bucky isn't. )

Then there's the collection of folks from his side of the universe who're gonna recognize you from him, and, y'know, various others.

( it's fine, this guy seems more tired than anything else and neither of them have caused jason's gut to scream evil mastermind, murder him. )

[freightcars]

[ His initial wry comment earns only an outward puff of breath from Bucky's nose, something too quiet and halfhearted to even really be considered the distant cousin of a laugh. Just too much going on to find any humor in anything right now, don't take it personally.

He hasn't been noisy isn't much of a comfort either; hell of a lot of things can go down behind the scenes without anybody but the victims knowing about it. Absolutely doesn't rule out the possibility of someone coming calling because of a guy that shares his name, his arm, and his ruthless efficiency with a knife.

In any case, there's nothing he can do about it. Not right now, maybe not at all, and in the grand scheme of things - getting oriented might be a higher priority.

Another soft shake of his head, and then he pushes on. ]

Anything else I should know about?

[ You know, since they covered no escape, alternate universes, dimensional twins. Might as well rip the entire band-aid off in a single go. ]

[reneger]

Oh, sure. There's plenty. ( jason can bitch for forever if bucky really wants. ) Whoever kidnapped you installed a fucking chip inside your skull--irremovable, trust me on this one. And then there's that shit in your chest. Used to hurt, but no amount of digging found anything in there.

( just as an fyi. bad idea to dissect yourself to try and get rid of whatever the hell this place did to their bodies. jason would know. he tried it already.

once they're a little further from all the fun and mourning, he stops for a moment. looks to bucky with a raised brow. )

You wanna walk all the way there, or you alright riding pillion?

( oh but also. )

Whatever fucked us over when we got transported also decided to give all of us super powers so that's dandy.

[freightcars]

[ If Jason finds himself on the receiving end of the blankest stare of all time, it's not because Bucky's gone brain damaged or something. It's not that he doesn't comprehend, or that he isn't metabolizing all these quickly-dropped tidbits.

It's just.

Harder to find a human being on the planet more done with all this shit than he is. He's basically every old police chief in every buddy cop movie ever, and even his god damn blink is slow, dry, and deliberate.

Super powers are pretty par for the course. Shit in his chest he doesn't like so much. Chip in his head he definitely fucking does not like, but he's sort of reaching maximum capacity for giving a shit for the day. Let him rain-check processing his feelings about it for tomorrow.

Instead, tone deadpan and lacking enthusiasm, he'll just answer the one question posed to him. ]

Pillion.

[ Sure. Why not. The faster the better. ]

[reneger]

( no, no, it's fine. some people deal with this whole mess by having huge breakdowns, some people deal with it by getting angry, some get sassy, and bucky

bucky just decides fuck it he doesn't have time for this shit. that's reasonable. jason can respect that. almost (almost) wishes he could manage the same level of deadpan when finding out they've been bodily experimented on, dropped in the middle of some stupid ceremony, all the while being under the control of some fucked up drug. really, bucky gets at least a little respect for it. )

I parked over here.

( down a nice, deserted alleyway that he leads bucky right on through. there's a bike tucked away into a corner; no wheels because apparently the future decided to fuck ground travel, everything hovers now. but it is red and shiny. well-loved. and it has a black-green helmet hanging off the back of it which jason grabs hold of and offers it over to bucky. )

Safety first.

( does he really care? no. does he even bother with helmets have the time? of course not. but it'll be funny to share pics with loki later. )

[freightcars]

[ There are a few things he's willing to do. He's willing to shake hands with a stranger to exchange emotions. He's willing to follow that guy back to a safe house he doesn't particularly trust or want to see. He's willing to ride on the back of the guy's bike despite the fact that he's a couple hundred pounds of muscle and six feet tall, making the fit less than great.

Oh yes, he would do anything for love.

But-- ]

I'm not wearing that.

[ Flatly, and with approximately 0 room for argument.

He'll be fine. Even if his serum's apparently not functioning, he's still got a god damn metal arm and the body control of a freakin' ballerina.

And just to be a little shit right back, he adds: ]

You need it more than I do.

[ Look at him being considerate and thoughtful, which is definitely what it is. ]

[reneger]

( you need it more than i do and jason is almost, almost tempted to just. you know. get bucky on his bike and purposely throw him off with an oopsie, didn't see that pole, my bad.

except he loves his bike more than he loves fucking over bucky number two, and he doesn't feel like spending forever getting dents and scratches out just to spite some asshole he found on the side of the road. would it be worth it? yes. definitely. but unfortunately the never-ending surveillance coupled with his goal of mildly staying low when he doesn't have an id scrambler on turns him off the idea.

for now. but one day, bucky, he'll test how hard that head us. )

I've got my own, promise. ( a nice red one he pulls out of the small magnetic compartment on the side of the bike to show it off before he's shoving it back in and climbing on. )

Don't hold on too tight, I'm delicate.

( with a wiggle of his brows. despite the fact he's. quite clearly not delicate. )

[freightcars]

[ Bucky has become a master of the good ol' tuck n' roll, but he's also a little groggy from the drugs. Could go either way, but if he could read minds he'd like to believe Jason would trash his bike and gain nothing of value from it. It'd be so, so satisfying to the tiny little piece of him that gets petty.

He's starting to get some serious Sam Wilson vibes here.

Jason earns a big no comment from Bucky, who only shoots him a singular expressionless look before swinging a leg over the pillion like he's done this before.

(He has. Not a lot, but... he looked cool all those other times, and that's what matters right?)

His right hand settles oh-so-delicately on Jason's shoulder, but the left clamps tightly, metal-on-metal, somewhere on the bike beneath Jason's thigh.

Pretty sure he'll be fine.

Pat, pat on the shoulder. Let's go. ]

[reneger]

( whatever, as long as bucky doesn't damage his bike he doesn't care. he gives the signal, and jason--takes off. drives away from the shitty mourning party and down to an old, shut down hover bike shop in the slums. he pulls straight into the dusty, gross facility up top and parks the bike right in the center of it before leaning back into bucky.

just a little.

enough to be annoying. if bucky's going to be his silent companion, jason's sure as hell going to work at being as obnoxious as he possibly can. it keeps him from getting bored. )

Enjoy the ride?

[freightcars]

[ Annnd he's just gonna swing his leg over and pivot out like a ballerina, not so subtly hoping Jason over-balances. A man can dream.

Grimly: ]

I can't tell if you're helpful or annoying.

[ To be honest. It's such a weird combination of the two. He's grateful for the assistance, but he kinda wants to chop you in the throat. He's betting that's a pretty common feeling.

At any rate, he doesn't seem to be all that perturbed when he tracks his eyes over the hover bike shop. He knows firsthand that rundown places, hidden places, are pretty ideal for avoiding unwanted attention. He feels safer in a shit hole like this than he would in a hotel, an apartment building, anywhere with free roaming public. ]

[reneger]

I'm the whole package, Buckster.

( annoying, sometimes helpful if it suits him. definitely a menace, he's been told by numerous sources. jason keeps the balls of his feet pressed down against the ground on either side of the bike, leans a little more heavily towards the side bucky doesn't swing off towards but doesn't fall. )

Safehouse is underground, everything here's ID coded--of which you clearly don't have yet. Getting in's easy though. Getting out? Won't happen for a few days.

[freightcars]

[ Buckster.

The deadest eyed stare he's capable of. Wow, thanks, he hates it. What the hell is wrong with you?

Despite his annoyance, despite his frustration, he's got to admit some appreciation here for what he's done. A little, tiny, vague layer of almost-trust. Blink and you'll miss it, paper thin, but enough that he pauses to ask: ]

Is it actually safe? What's it like?

[ Just so he knows before he commits. ]

[reneger]

( a better question would be to ask what isn't wrong with him. dicking around with bucky makes for a great game though. jason's enjoying himself, even if he's also asking serious questions during that jason -- can't really answer. because, well, )

I've been here almost a year and getting stuck with these assholes hasn't ruined me yet. I can't say it's safe, but they haven't purposely fucked all of us over yet. They'll give you an ID, assign you a mildly realistic background that works within this city, feed you an' clothe you. Can you trust 'em? Maybe. But they lie and hide shit too.

[freightcars]

[ Frankly, that's exactly the kind of bare-naked honesty he was hoping for. Any candy-coated blanket you can trust them wouldn't have been realistic, wouldn't have felt even remotely true.

He tilts his head a little in concession, seemingly weighing it for a moment before making his decision.

Okay.

Gotta start somewhere.

And - for what it's worth, while he may be a salty mistrustful asshole wearing annoyance plainly on his face, he's equally capable of showing his gratitude. All things considered, it feels like he should express it here. ]

Thanks.

[ Succinct but earnest, coupled with one lingering beat for impact, and then he turns to go.

Pauses just for a second, and glances back to add: ]

Don't call me Buckster.

[ Annnd he's out. ]