etrayalogs | FEBRUARY MINGLE

Entry tags:

FEBRUARY MINGLE

WHO: Everyone!
WHEN: February 14th - March
WHERE: Etraya
WHAT: The arrival of newcomers, a mini mission, and some new city features!
NOTES\WARNINGS:

⏵ arrival ⏴
Welcome to Etraya!

Arrival goes as expected - characters awaken on hospital beds and are offered an explanation of their situation: that they have arrived in the city of Etraya, and they are their world's only hope. They are welcome to wander the hospital if they would like to - the upper floors are mostly empty, full of pristine hallways and numerous rooms filled with supplies, cots, and things one would expect from a relatively average 21st-century hospital.

In the hospital's lobby are several party tables set out with miscellaneous baked goods: croissants, cookies, breads, cake slices, as well as tea and coffee to accompany them - or hot chocolate, for those who are opposed to the other offerings.

Outside the hospital, the last remnants of snow are melting in the sunlight as the weather begins to warm up. It's still chilly enough one might want to put on a coat, but not so cold a jacket is necessary for wandering around without freezing off one's fingers.

We hope you enjoy your stay.

⏵ heroes return ⏴

As the Quantum Rail train glides to a halt, returning passengers step out onto familiar ground - the train station, right where they had initially begun their mission. When exiting the station, their earpieces vibrate, indicating the automatic download of a detailed map which highlights key locations, transit paths, and notable landmarks. As Aurora promised, she had been working on a few renovations around Etraya! A sleek trolley system now winds through Etraya, following clearly marked pathways through the city bubble to make travel across the city smoother. However, the trolley only moves one way, eternally following the loop Aurora has set it on. And because of this, it takes six hours to complete it's loop all the way around. Don't miss your stop!

Pets and animals have been returned to their usual preferred areas, some awaiting the arrival of their owners, and others keeping to themselves in the forested areas throughout Etraya.

Beyond the small upgrades, things seem relatively unchanged - until one familiar sign catches the eye. One marked by four vertical lines, methodically crossed out one by one: the final slash has now been drawn through. The tally is complete. What it indicates has yet to be made clear, but it has to mean something, right? No one would go through the effort of making an ominous-sounding sign without following through.

⏵ love in the air ⏴

This Valentines Day, Aurora and the companion bots have opted to try something a little different: they have scattered mystery valentines across the city. Hidden within mailboxes, tucked into cafe menus, slipped under doors, on the outside of high windows for those wall-crawlers to spot. There are countless of these little slips of papers, strewn throughout the city. And within each valentine, is a challenge or gesture to complete. Please feel free to make these up yourselves as long as they fit in with the theme!

Some examples include:

Deliver a flower to a stranger.
Write a heartfelt poem for someone.
Share a box of chocolates!
Confess your feelings for another.
Play matchmaker for two people - this can be platonic, or romantic!
Gift a friend with a stuffed animal.
Give five different people a genuine compliment.

While not mandatory, completing five tasks will earn an individual an additional ten points to use towards anything they would like!

Each little Valentine is signed "Your Secret Admirer. ♡", and some of them may even be addressed to specific individuals. Don't be surprised, Eddie, if you see one or two that are specifically addressed to you lurking around your collection of chicken friends!

And while most of these are harmless, some of the valentines cards come with effects for those who come into contact with the paper. Perhaps they thought it was a piece of garbage, or were just kicking it out of the way rather than intending on taking part. It doesn't matter! They get to join in on the fun, too.

Heart Eyes - your pupils literally turn into hearts for a few hours, making it hard to focus on anything other than things (or people) you find attractive.
Love-Struck Stammer - You can only speak in poetic compliments or romantic declarations, regardless of whom you're speaking to.
Chocolate Bliss - Everything feels good. Simple. Easy. As if there's nothing in the world to concern yourself with. You feel happy, without any concerns or worry.
Rose-Tinted Vision - everything looks soft and romantic, as if you're in a romance novel. You know the ones.
Magnetic Attraction - regardless of what you had been doing, you suddenly find yourself unable to leave the side of the person closest to you. Had you been eating chocolates while walking down the street? Well, have fun getting stuck to the guy who'd been out for a jog!
Serenade Syndrome - you find it impossible to resist the urge to sing your words, turning all conversations into love ballads.
Heartstrings - A thread appears, connecting you to someone close by who you share many similarities too. Perhaps you had never met this person before, but the threads tied around your pinky fingers that refuse to let go until you allow yourself to open up to them clearly means you should be a little more familiar with them.

Love is in the air—or maybe just a bit of well-intended chaos! 💕

⏵ NOTES ⏴

Welcome back from the mission, and welcome to Etraya for our newcomers! We've tried to keep this log simple for an easy introduction, as well as some downtime for our mission-goers who worked hard to solve the Quantum Rail mystery.

There is something else going on, but. . . well, no one seems to know what! The computer that had been on the lower floor of the hospital is now missing, and Aurora may seem a little flustered as she flits around Etraya, in search of something.

For all questions relating to this log, please refer to the mod queries comment. All other questions can be directed to the FAQ.

⏵FULL NAVIGATION⏴

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

( damian doesn't correct him. doesn't point out the fact that if damian exists back in bruce's world, it means that he would have still been raised by talia al ghul. that he would have still massacred more people in the first decade of his life than damian can ever atone for. doesn't tell bruce that damian's stubborn inability to let him go at it alone may have seemed like it was for bruce, and maybe it was to an extent - but significantly more out of a fear of not having a place for himself. that damian's purpose, his reason for being, relies so heavily on his family that he's not certain what he would be without them. )

. . . have you realized how, before Batman, Gotham's criminals were more manageable?

( It dawns on him how he'd referred to Damian just then as his son and he... falls quiet. They've been together here — lived and worked together for almost a year now and yet, he's not the man Damian has known. Not the man Damian had went back to for two years, it seems. What right does he have to look at and think of him as a son he'd never had, when he very much has a father back within his own Gotham? He'll never be that man to Damian and he shouldn't want to be anyways. He needs to get him back to his father. To his Gotham. That's where he belongs. Not here. Not with him. He just... doesn't ever handle loss well. Even when it's for the best.

Only after a moment does he realize Damian's asked him something and he gently snaps himself out of his thoughts — fleeting glance given to him before he's looking back down to his hands and the way he'd began picking at his skin around that finger even more without even realizing it. )

Somewhat.

Edited 2025-02-18 20:23 (UTC)

Do you think it's possible that... our presence, Batman and Robin respectively, could just be making Gotham become the very mess we've been trying to fix?

( it's a loaded question, but it's one he'd posed to his own father shortly before coming back here, too. one bruce had promptly ignored without even considering, stating they had a duty to gotham. and while damian understands the sentiment, he can't quite agree that - their presence has been good. they break everything they touch. criminals in gotham have just gotten worse with every addition to their family. the crimes have escalated. they aren't fixing anything, they can - they can throw everyone in arkham, dominate their enemies, destroy any opposition, but even when damian had tried erasing the minds of criminals in order to reform them, it hadn't fixed anything. hadn't healed anyone.

it's a concern that's been on his mind since emma. damian went for the greatest threat first, the biggest, and managed to fail at saving a little girl. a little girl he had been cruel to just moments prior, because he - he doesn't know how to help, only how to fight. )

Maybe.

( It's a thought he's had — wondering if he's making a difference or just making things worse. Crime and assault are up in his Gotham since his putting on the cape and cowl and making his presence known within her dark, shadowy streets. Yet he still puts the cowl on — still goes out and does what he can. Because no one else will. But sometimes... he just doesn't know. )

I've wondered if what I'm doing is even making a difference.

( He stares ahead as he says that and, despite his two years into it, he already seems tired. )

But I have to try... because no one else will.

( and that's the kicker, isn't it. can't leave gotham to it's own devices, the city will burn itself down in moments. can't continue on as they have been, because maybe it's them that's kicking up sparks to begin with. but regardless, what they've been doing back home - it's reacting, not preventing. it's dominating their enemies, not helping anyone. bruce hosts countless fundraisers, starts countless non-profits, rehomes families, tries to protect those who need it, and yet still there are so many people out there who suffer. who they can't fix, because they aren't healers, and damian wouldn't wish the lazarus pits onto his worst enemies, let alone gotham's most vulnerable.

it's not even his city. damian wasn't born and raised in gotham, and his sentimental attachments to it are due to bruce's presence. grayson has moved on. drake goes where he needs to. todd and brown are from gotham's seedier areas, but todd doesn't limit himself to gotham, either - albeit less out of choice, and more due to their father's need to strong-arm him out of city borders.

and damian - is just here. a boy who was stubborn enough to stick by my side, this version of his father says, which isn't all that off from their relationship back home. damian has left, broken and torn around the edges, refusing the name of robin because he felt it wasn't something he could have anymore. grayson would never take it from him, but a robin doesn't make the same mistakes damian had. a robin doesn't feel smothered by their father's shadow.

a robin doesn't make the mistakes damian has. )

I felt like I was... finding my place, before. Discovering what it meant to be Robin and Damian Wayne. But I lost it. I failed to protect those who mattered most, and failed again in my efforts to - prevent further losses. I help Batman because someone has to. Someone has to be the light, and Batman cannot be Batman without Robin.

( his head tips, looking up to this bruce who isn't his batman, but is listening where damian's father had refused. )

But what does that make me? What is my purpose, my reason? I thought it was following in Grandfather's footsteps, but it wasn't. I thought it was following Father's, but.. I don't know, anymore. We aren't helping Gotham heal, we are just applying stitches over a wound that continues to get deeper regardless of how hard we work to close it.

( He sits there and listens as Damian talks — lets him say what he needs or wants to say, like always. Still picking at the skin of a finger, he keeps his gaze cast down, occasionally lifting it only to keep an eye on their surroundings. Not that there's much to worry about out here, but. Still a protective habit of his he's fallen into when around Damian.

Taking a moment for himself — mulling over a couple things there in his head, he licks over his lips then and looks ahead, keeping shoulder to shoulder with him. )

Gotham will always be angry and scarred like us. Those scars... even after they heal, can still hurt us. Destroy us, even. But we can be more than that. You are more than that. You're hope. It's what people need. To know someone is out there for them.

( Things he's been thinking about as of late.

A beat, his gaze drops — grows distant almost before he's glancing over to Damian there out of the corner of his eye and, when he speaks, his words are soft and careful. )

Who did you lose?

( you're hope, he says, but damian - damian doesn't have any hope left. robin is meant to be a bright spot in otherwise endless shadows, but damian has shed the red and yellow tunic. he was never as witty as grayson, not as head-strong and fierce as todd, nor as clever and intuitive as drake. not as courageous as brown. drake had said if he was really a failure, their father would have taken it all away from him, but damian doesn't believe that. bruce knows he can't cage damian, and attempting to do so would only cause the rift between them to grow even larger. he isn't hope, and he isn't still robin because he's good at it. robin is a leash. an anchor.

albeit one that has worked terribly over the last few years. he could start at the beginning. tell bruce of jon's disappearance in space, of grayson's injury, how everything quickly began to spiral out of control while the world was falling apart, how much damian had failed. how hard he'd tried for redemption, just to never feel like it was enough. just like it wasn't enough when he first started trying to undo all the mistakes he had made as a child within the league. all the lives he'd stolen. )

Alfred.

( it's one word, one name, but it carries the grief of everything that had happened before it and everything after. pennyworth died, and their family fell apart. his death may have not been the beginning, but it was when it all spiraled out of control. )

Edited 2025-02-21 00:19 (UTC)

( It's a name he doesn't expect to hear and one that makes his heart drop down into his stomach almost the second it leaves Damian's lips. A name that holds so much meaning — so many feelings he sometimes can't even convey to the man he's had there with him since birth.

He stares. Dumbfounded. Unable to compute that name coupled with loss and his face scrunches up some as he shakes his head some. )

What do you mean?

Bane was holding Alfred... hostage. He stated that if any of us came into Gotham, he would kill him.

( it's not even close to the entire story, but it's where damian has decided to begin. he's - intentionally leaving out all mentions of thomas wayne. alfred's loss is already difficult enough. bringing flashpoint into this would add an entirely new layer. )

We received a message that Alfred had escaped, so I went into Gotham to be intentionally captured so I could get the others passed Bane's defenses. But Alfred wasn't free and - ( lips press tight together, and damian drops his eyes down to the ground. ) I watched him die.

( The words still don't compute to him and all he can do is stare at Damian there. He's not even talking about his Alfred and yet Bruce can't help but feel some sort of way about hearing that name paired with death. With dying. With having been... killed, from the sounds of it.

He stares hard at Damian — tries to process that while not thinking of his own Alfred back in his Gotham and he just... can't find the words. Doesn't know what to say with everything that he feels so he just... stares. Silent. Until, finally, his gaze drops. It's only for a few moments until he's looking back over to Damian and he forces himself to say something. )

I'm sorry... Damian. I... I'm sorry.

It was my fault.

( alfred wouldn't want damian to blame himself. alfred would tell damian that he's just a child. that he was playing the part of a good soldier doing as he was told, following bruce's orders. that he shouldn't have been filling in the role of a soldier regardless, because he is just a child. he would tell damian that alfred himself made that choice; he sent the message that he was fine so they would all come back home and stop putting his life above the good of gotham. damian knows this, because he's run through every possible way that conversation would have gone. he knows alfred would not have put the blame on him, even if it was damian's idea to run into gotham and get himself caught.

just like he knows that bruce is constantly running every possible scenario through his head. that he would have saved alfred, had it been him going in. that while he may not blame damian directly, he still considers it to be one of damian's biggest failures. not this bruce. this one is young, and still sees him as a boy. )

I.. I could have brought him back, or at least some of him - but I know Alfred wouldn't have wanted that.

( He takes a moment — takes a breath for himself. It isn't his Alfred that Damian tells him about and yet, just the name is enough to nearly knock the wind out of him at the thought of losing him... at the thought that he could end up losing him back in his Gotham for not having been there — for not having figured out who the Riddler was targeting next until it was too late. Damian's told him that Alfred— that Pennyworth won't go out so easily and yet, to hear this from him...

Damian blames himself just as he blames himself for what happened to his Alfred back in his Gotham and he feels like he knows, this Alfred, along with his own, would rather it be him than either of them.

Gently, he raises a hand and places it on Damian's shoulder, squeezing then. )

Nothing I say can make it better, Damian. But if he's anything like the Alfred I know, he wouldn't want you to blame yourself. He would never think that of you.

I know.

( it's - quiet. not a rejection, just acknowledgement that he knows what alfred would and wouldn't blame him for, and alfred's death certainly isn't something he would place in damian's hand. especially given, )

Alfred sent the message to Father saying he was in the clear, and that it was safe for us to come back to Gotham. He knew he wasn't safe. That Father wouldn't go near Gotham if it would risk Pennyworth's life, but the only way to free Gotham from Bane's control was to have one of us lead the others in. It was... Pennyworth or Gotham. Pennyworth chose to sacrifice himself.

( and damian knows, reasonably, that there was nothing he could do. that he was unaware alfred was still in the manor, that bane had his hands on him. that damian was sent in on purpose, because they couldn't show their hand by sending in batman, but thomas wayne wouldn't have the same attachment to bruce's adopted children as he would to bruce's blood son. to an unruly child reflecting wayne features right back toward thomas. they had no one else they could send who would be brought back to wayne manor in one piece.

but he still hears it. alfred repeating, no, please, not in front of the boy moments before his body would cease all functions. the unpleasant crack. )

It was his decision. His actions. I was just - too slow to prevent it.

( Hand there on his son's shoulder, it's only after a moment that he gently slides it down across his back and carefully wraps it around Damian's shoulder. It's loose enough that he can pull away if he wants, but wrapped around him enough for it to also be warm and protective. )

I've got you.

( Words soft as he just sits there alongside Damian. )

You've always got me. But I've got you this time.

It isn't one way, you idiot.

( an insult, maybe, but it's paired with damian twisting in so he's pressing his face into bruce's shoulder, disregarding any grime from the junkyard. he's - not big on physical affection, giving or receiving. damian had been getting better about it before - everything. worse over the last couple years, before the island had introduced him to new companions.

but he remembers this bruce holding onto him, even if it feels like it had been eons ago now. remembers losing consciousness in his arms in the maze, with tears drying into his collar. the numerous half-hugs padded by bruce resting a hand against damian's shoulder, or damian shoving up against him. and it isn't that damian doesn't like physical affection, it's just with most, he expects it to be used as a means to get closer in order to cause further harm.

something he doesn't anticipate from this bruce wayne, which is why he leans further into him with an almost irritated huff. )

You've always got me, too.

I know.

( Something he's come to gently see and learn in the time he's spent here with Damian. To go from his constantly telling him that he doesn't need to be followed, that he can take care of himself, to the way he protectively holds to him now and keeps him there against him for as long as he might wish to be held... he didn't know it would be like this. Didn't know that someone could worm their way so warmly into his heart despite the times they gently bump heads with one another... he hopes the father Damian has in his Gotham can fix what he has with his son, because if he needs him here, he can only imagine how much his other self must need him, too.

Lifting the hand up from his shoulder, he rests it there on the back of Damian's head and lets him press into him as much as he needs, hum soft on his lips. )

Mind your manners, too.

( Just a gentle bit of parenting. )

Ha.

( manners. who uses those? definitely not damian.

he may watch his language a little more on some occasions than others, but he's far from concerned about what others think about how polite he is. especially his father. bruce does a good job of faking it on most days, but he certainly isn't polite. it's where damian gets his own attitude from.

well. that and his mother. bruce wraps around him a little more effectively, and damian grips onto him tighter. tilts his head in so his nose is pressed into the collar of bruce's shirt. he might have been a little more hesitant to be like this in public spaces, but he's - not robin right now, is he? damian wayne is barely a teenager. damian wayne has had his father follow him into his high school facilities, just to ensure he got inside okay. this isn't anything odd, for a normal child. )

I've said significantly worse in front of Father before.

( with no regrets. )

( He's not at all surprised Damian has. He believes it without a shred of doubt, really. From their very first interaction with one another here — the way Damian had come at him both physically and verbally... honestly, he wouldn't have him any other way. It's his ironclad determination and stubbornness to see through whatever his mind is set on that's led them to be where they are now with one another. If he was any other way, this might not be happening right now. The relationship the two of them have with one another here might not even exist or just barely, at that.

So he holds to him — keeps him safe and warm there against him for as long as he needs or wants and stares off across the junkyard as he sits there. Quiet. )

Whatever happens, we'll figure it out. I'll be here.

I'll need to update your notes.

( two years worth of world-ending nonsense, of lazarus demons, of his father managing to screw over todd in ways damian would have never anticipated from him. for a man who insists he would never harm those under his care, he had made todd significantly more useless in the field while failing to remove the stubborn will and courage that drives him to continue being the red hood. damian understood the thought process behind it, even if he disagrees entirely with how it was handled. and that he'd targeted one of their own. that serum would have been significantly more useful if injected into their enemies, rather than their comrades.

but bruce hadn't been thinking clearly. nor had he in the aftermath. and it helps no one to dwell on it now.

instead, damian pulls himself up to his feet. looks around the mess around them. )

What supplies? ( - was he looking for in the junkyard. he's here, he'll help. )

( When Damian pulls away, he lets him — rolls his shoulders back some as he takes a moment before he's getting up himself. A glance to his backpack there on the ground, he looks around the pile closest to them. )

Scrap metal. Durable, preferably. Also anything I can use to modify a bike.

( Slim pickings some days, but. Not always the case. )

The others know about your growth spurt yet?

Drake knows. I haven't run into anyone else yet. ( intentionally so. but damian says that first on purpose, so he can go onto the second, clearly more important bit. ) I have enough points to request a bike. ( not parts, a whole bike. mostly so damian can pull the entire thing apart and put them back together.

but he does start climbing up a particularly high pile of junk, so he can start digging through it. this would have been better to do in uniform, given all the padding. but with a lack of knee pads available, it's not as if damian has an issue dropping down onto his knees. they're calloused enough to avoid much damage. )

Or the Batmobile. The current iteration contains a medbay in the back, which would likely prove useful.

( He looks over at that. He likes his car, thanks.

Glancing down to whatever piece of scrap he has there in his hand, he scrunches his face up some before he's tossing it back into the pile and makes his way up towards where Damian is. )

Asking that for Dick? Since you still don't have a license.

I'm fifteen, Father. I'm old enough to drive in numerous countries, and old enough to have a learner's permit.

( not that the law has ever been permitted to tell damian what to do regardless. )

( At that, he gently smiles, a little more to himself. )

Right. Not so little anymore.

( look at this nice piece of scrap metal he has in his hands. or had in his hands, because he's tossing it straight at bruce with a scowl on his face. )

I was never little.

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