Dictation - x01 - [Video]

[drabsolutelynot]

[To put things delicately, it has not been an easy handful of days for Rosen, what with his team being falsely accused of being Red Flag while he personally had been kidnapped, had his face stolen, and on top of that the kidnapper decided to give him a shoddily done hair cut so his hair, while short, is oddly longer at different patches. Furthermore the possibility of a breaking point between Alphas and Non-Alphas being met violently in the near future weighs heavily on his mind. 

Therefore it goes without question that the abduction to a strange world and the welcome wagon of rust monsters and bewildering individuals armed to various degrees was the last thing he needed right now. 

And for this reason he spent the first several days primarily trying to find his bearings and to not get himself killed. 

But now a couple days have passed and he girds himself against his sense of exhaustion and disorientation to make an announcement.

For anyone who knew him before he disappeared, he looks significantly different. Clean shaven. Healthier. His clothes, while still english-professor-chic, are well kept.]

Hello...um...My name is Dr. Lee Rosen. 

[A pause as he takes a moment to remember exactly what it was he was going to say.]

I will keep this short and to the point. I am a doctor by profession, more specifically I am a neuropsychiatrist who specializes in patients with...well...unusual circumstances. But what I am guessing is more significant to our current circumstances as I understand them is that I am qualified as a physician. So...if there is need for one...I am...well...I am offering my services. 

[More out of a fear of letting himself be idle for too long in this bizarre place than out of a genuine sense of generosity or solidarity.] 

Aside from that, I have read the materials available to me about this place and I have already gone through the cycles of confusion and denial about the existence of this place to begin with so all I ask now is if you have any additional information you think someone new here should know...I'd be grateful. 

[An awkward nod]

Thank you.

(ooc: Rosen disappeared about a week prior to the intro log. So if you want your character to have noticed, please feel free.) 

Comments

video

[so_dark_a_road]

Dr. Rosen! Thank goodness you're all right!

[drabsolutelynot]

[The confusion shows in his face though he does his best to minimize it. The heightened crook to his brow, the deepening of the corners of his mouth. A tightness to the muscles along his jaw]

Well..yes. Yes I'm alright.... I was fortunate so many people were there to fight those....creatures.

[But he is more than certain this person did not mean the rust monsters in the coliseum]

Sorry, I dropped this thread! Maybe Rosen and Curufin can catch up some time later?

[so_dark_a_road]

You've been here before, Dr. Rosen, though you may not remember it. [ He speaks softly, not wanting to confuse the man. He recognizes the situation because he's seen a few other people go through it -- returning with no memory of having been here once. ]

It is good there were people in the Colosseum to help you.

And it is good you will be helping us again with your skills as a physician. The Clinic will be happy to welcome you back again. And I am Curufin Fëanorion, a member of the City Guard and of the Fire Brigade. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call me.

[video]

[hot_mes]

Dr. Rosen?

[sure they don't talk much but this guy has been a constant fixture at the clinic, why is he talking like he's never been here?]

Something the matter?

[drabsolutelynot]

[A nod]

Yes. My name is Dr. Rosen.

[Perhaps he did not say it clearly enough in his announcement]

And, well, I have unexpectedly found myself stuck here when I am needed at home so I would have to admit that yes. Something is the matter.

[hot_mes]

[nope, he got that part. How strange...]

You don't remember being here.

[WELL what the fuck does he do with this, now?]

[drabsolutelynot]

....Should I?

[The words are hesitant, pitched at the end in a question that implies he's now on uncertain footing]

[hot_mes]

You were. What it means that you have no memory of it...I can't say. [with a frustrated twist of his lips] Except that now I have no idea who would be in charge of the clinic. Lance-ya, maybe. [er...] Dr. Lance Sweets.

[drabsolutelynot]

The clinic? I was in charge of a clinic here?

[He's trying to reason through this. He's been here long enough to know that the rules of time and place mean very little, but still even with having to face the prospect of things like 'magic' and alternate realities existing in a tangible space...being told you had existed in such a space before is hard to swallow]

...and...you are sure it was me? Not some other..similarly named doctor?

[While Rosen is not an everyday name it's also not all that rare either. Particularly not in the medical field.]

[hot_mes]

Positive.

[it's not just in the name, the face is the same even barring time an facial hair. Law's not blind.]

Well. I suppose that's for you to deal with, then.

[drabsolutelynot]

I'm not entirely sure what it is you mean for me to deal with....

video

[sonofacesius]

You shaved.

[And somehow got younger and more mentally stable.]

I'm glad you're back. Are you feeling okay?

[drabsolutelynot]

[The question is going to have to wait a moment]

...Excuse me but...what do you mean 'back'?

[sonofacesius]

Back. Like you were here before and now you're back.

And I'm guessing you didn't just go on a vacation to the hot springs for a week huh?

You were here before. We're friends. I'm Will.

[drabsolutelynot]

There's a hot springs?

[He asks in weak disbelief but its a question that he doesn't really feel a pressing need to have answered. It's not the most important thing right now.]

I apologize, Will...I...I seem to have no memory of meeting you.

text

[ghostlocked]

[Well, this is weird. He and Rosen are acquaintances at best, but they know each other well enough for Harlan to recognize that something is up.

Seems like everyone else has the covered, though. So, instead:]

what do u mean unusual circumstances?

[drabsolutelynot]

I'm inclined to classify abduction to alternate realities an unusual circumstance

[ghostlocked]

well yeah. lol.
i meant u said u specialize in patients w. unusual circumstances.

[drabsolutelynot]

Oh. Yes.

[Though Harlan cannot see it due to text, Rosen is running his hand tiredly through his hair to rub at his scalp. Here he had thought he was beginning to adjust and he cannot even get ahold of the things he said.]

Are you at all familiar with something called the Alpha phenomenon?

[ghostlocked]

cant say i have.

[Rosen mentioned the concept once, but it sounds like this is a different Rosen, so... It's probably best to start from scratch. Harlan doesn't remember many of the specifics, anyway.]

[drabsolutelynot]

[The answer doesn't actually rule out that much for Rosen. Even if they were from the same reality Harlan still might be unaware of Alphas. The DoD has worked tirelessly to keep their growing numbers a secret to general society. Something that has begun to make him more and more uncomfortable]

My patients are people who have, through abnormal physiological developments, begun to exhibit extremely heightened abilities not found in the average human being.

[ghostlocked]

u mean like magic?
magic im familiar w.

[drabsolutelynot]

No. It would be dangerous to refer to their capabilities as magic.

They are more accurately comparable to myostatin-related muscle hypertrophy or eidetic memory. These are strictly medical conditions which, while they produce seemingly superhuman capabilities, all have a solid basis in physiology and genetics.

[ghostlocked]

o. gotcha.
ftr magic where im from have a solid basis in physiology and genetics too.
im a sorcerer. magics in my blood.
but ur prob from a place where magic is fake or somethin huh?
fair enough.
thats cool tho.

[drabsolutelynot]

You assumption is correct. Where I come from 'magic' generally refers to something in fiction.

Or I suppose it technically also refers to what magicians at kids birthday parties do.

May I ask how it functions in your world?

[ghostlocked]

sounds like how most ppl here think of magic.
tbh i feel bad for u guys. idk what id do w.o magic.
uh. thats a big q.
for starters theres three main types of magic.
either u learn it the hard way thru schooling and shit. studying.
or u can make a deal w. some patron. like a demon or w.e. theyll give u magic in exchange for servin them.
always bad news imo.
or u can be lucky like me and just be born w. a natural talent for it.
somewhere down the road my ancestors prob fucked a dragon or smth.

[toiletseat_girl]

Hey, Dr. Rosen. What's with the new look?

[she hasn't seen him at the Clinic for a while. she wasn't expecting him to be going for a makeover]

[drabsolutelynot]

[The question is a confusing one on multiple levels. Technically as his hair had just been cut against his will it is an apt question to ask...however to his knowledge he has never met this young woman...so he also doubts that she could possibly know about his undignified hair butchery.]

...I'm sorry. Can I ask what you mean?

[toiletseat_girl]

[it does kind of look like someone took a pair of sheep shears to it]

Your hair. It's different. And you shaved your beard off. So. New look?

[drabsolutelynot]

How would...

[A pause]

I am not sure how you would know that...

[toiletseat_girl]

[she sounds confused] ...because I know you and I know what you used to look like?

[drabsolutelynot]

In New York?

[toiletseat_girl]

[a little slowly] ...no. Here.

Video

[stealyoursoul]

A doctor who specializes in people with unusual circumstances? Can you elaborate?

[Leo himself is from unusual circumstances, considering he's not even of the same species as anyone else here.]

[drabsolutelynot]

Well I can...though it might help me to know where to start if there was something specific you wanted to know...

[stealyoursoul]

[Might as well be blunt. No use is beating around the bush about this.]

Ever treated monsters?

[drabsolutelynot]

[There's a moment of hesitation]

I'd...have to ask you to define 'monster'....

[stealyoursoul]

Something not human. Something that eats them instead.

[Interesting that he refers to himself as something instead of someone. It says a lot about the way Leo views himself.]

[drabsolutelynot]

I would have to say 'no'. Those sorts of things don't exist outside of fiction where I come from.

[A thoughtful pause]

Can I ask why you'd like to know? It is a very specific question.

[stealyoursoul]

Well, there's a lot about my own biology and powers I don't know about. I've found something new out just in the time I've been here.

[He comes from a very small species and there had been no yardstick to measure what was 'normal' for them versus what was not.]

Might be useful to have a doctor around.

[drabsolutelynot]

Well...while I can't say I have any experience working with species other than my own, I certainly have experience working with symptoms and conditions previously thought to be inexplicable. So...if you were interested I may be able to assist you.

[stealyoursoul]

Good. My name is Leo Flynn. I'm what's known as a Sunai monster where I'm from.

[He looks completely human, but every time he looks at the camera directly, where his eyes should be are just two black smudges instead.]

[drabsolutelynot]

Nice to meet you, Mr. Flynn.

[The effect is nothing short of unnerving, and it shows in the awkward waver of his voice, but at the same time the phenomenon of Leo's eyes is not wholly different from some of the Alpha symptoms he's encountered.]

And what are the characteristics of a Sunai monster?

[stealyoursoul]

I don't eat human food. I eat the souls of sinners that have darkened their souls beyond the point of redemption.

[Y'know, cheery stuff like that.]

I'm pretty much invulnerable when I'm in my human-looking form.

[Though the scar running through his left eyebrow would suggest that this isn't always the case. Still, he's not about to spill all his secrets to the doctor just yet. He'll need to earn a level of trust first.]

[nascere]

Hey, are you okay?

[drabsolutelynot]

I take it from the reaction of some of the others that you aren't referring to any injuries I might have sustained in the coliseum...