File 01 - Video

[christmaspun]

Hello?

Does this really...is everyone really seeing this?

[The voice is soft and hoarse with tears. The voice is also unfamiliar, as is the face it belongs too. Kristin is in what is now her room, lights dimmed to near non-existence. She's been holed up in there for some time, trying to pull herself together - but her head is pounding under the weight of hundreds, thousands of details about this place she's found herself in.

But being alone isn't helping her figure all of this out, either.]

Listen, I...I really think there's been some mistake. I'm not...I'm not some hero, I'm a file clerk. I don't belong here, I belong back at the GCPD, in my room, where everything is organized exactly how I want it. Where everything makes sense.

[New tears well up, and she cringes away briefly from the camera, puling off her glasses as if somehow doing it will help this time. It doesn't.]

...Why did they pick me?

Comments

video | id reads "karen starr"

[boobwindow]

Whoa, hey. First you need to breathe.

[ Right, even Gothamites get freaked out by very unusual circumstances. ]

[christmaspun]

I'm...trying to. My head won't stop pounding.

[She sucks in a shaky breath, then lets it out in a hiss between clenched teeth.]

I've already taken about as much aspirin as I safely can. Everything is just...a lot.

video;

[restingstitchface]

[GCPD?

He tilts his head to the side. Those four letters could mean anything. Still, if they did, and if he were watching...

The video feed clicks on and shows him in his clinic; sitting at his desk and wearing a tidy hair, a clean face and a neat black suit. But something about it doesn't sit right on his body. He doesn't speak immediately, but his gaze never strays - there's nothing behind it, no gleam in his eyes that betrays his fascination.

He's just another face, friendly and warm and concerned, clearly, for this lady's welfare. Neither the GCPD nor Batman are the reason he's here, mind. A soft, hoarse voice that's almost breaking? Tears? It's almost like music. Is there anything more beautiful?

But it's time to address her question.]

I assure you, miss, that your kidnapping was totally random.

[Not very assuring, Crane!]

Video

[christmaspun]

[She looks him over in that video and the details stand out stark to her, despite her attempts to ignore them - the strangely fitting suit, the deep void that his gaze is, the setting of a clinic. A doctor? Good, she could use one of those.

...And then he speaks. Never mind. Maybe not this doctor.]

That is a...really mixed message, Mister...?

video

[fastballspeciaaaaal]

Noooo! Please don't cry! You don't hafta be a hero.

Video

[christmaspun]

[...Oh, it's...it's a child. She tries to venture a smile, something halfway between apologetic and queasy.]

Thank you. I'm...I'm actually crying less because I'm upset and more because of the headache, to be honest with you.

What's...your name?

video

[khajidont]

[Aw, no! Lady, don't cry!]

The good news is, nobody's going to force you to be a hero. A lot of people who get brought here are normal. You're not alone. This place isn't as bad as it seems on the first day, I promise.

Re: video

[christmaspun]

[The kind words aren't brushed off - in spite of herself, she smiles a little.]

...That's reassuring. Thank you.

Were you this disoriented when you arrived?

video;

[chiroptophobic]

[ Keeping an eye on Crane, and so help him if he oversteps his boundaries this time, Bruce will come down on his head. Poor woman. To be honest he almost feels guilty for not knowing what the names of all the file clerks at the GCPD are, but then he's not Superman--he has his limits.

So maybe a familiar face (he hopes? Haha.) can clear this up. He smiles kindly as the video comes up. ]

You work at the GCPD? Then you must know my friend, Jim Gordon.

VIDEO

[christmaspun]

You...know Jim? Yes, of course, I know Detective Gord...on....

[She has just noticed the name on the caller id. She has noticed it, and she looks baffled by it, mouth hanging open a little in confusion. Kristin puts her glasses back on, pulls her comm closer, and then finally....]

I...I'm sorry, this migraine is making focus difficult...what...is your name?

video

[askedtobe]

Just because you're a file clerk doesn't mean you can't be a hero.

[ That's optimistic, right??? ]

Video

[christmaspun]

[The words are kind enough, and she regards the screen, ready to respond with thanks -

But then she sees his face, and her stomach clenches. Reflexively, her hand shoots to her chest in a plain expression of fright - and when she finally does speak, it's barely above a whisper.]

I thought you died.

[not here]

[chiroptophobic]

[ Wow, Peter. Way to scare the lady. This is such an unexpected reaction he pays attention to it, especially since Peter knows who he is. Could it be he's from his world and has pulled the wool over his eyes all this time? No way, right? He's Batman.




But still. ]

( video )

[abadidea]

[This is what concerned empathy looks like, because he's been there. He knows what it's like to be forced into the roll of hero when all you feel you are in a nobody with a 9-5. It sucks, it's terrifying, and you'll never feel more alone in your life.]

Hey. [His voice is gentle.] Hey, it's gonna be okay. I know it doesn't look like it or feel like it, but just take one piece at a time. I'm Isaac.

Video

[christmaspun]

[The genuine concern and the soft voice is soothing, and she finds herself relaxing a little.]

Taking one piece at a time is kind of my problem right now, honestly. I can't seem to stop taking pieces.

But...thanks. I'm Kristin. It's nice to meet you.

Video

[excitababble]

[ Waiting a few minutes for her to look a little more composed before shrugging at her.

Real helpful. ]

I'm a high school student with a nice set of filming equipment. Someone else here is probably an antiques dealer, another an elementary school teacher. I don't think there's much picking going on.

Video

[christmaspun]

[Indifference is preferable, in her current state, to over-enthusiasm. She really doesn't mind it.]

It's just all so...strange. Confusing.

text;

[rockpun]

been asking myself that for a while. pretty sure the porter doesnt care what were SUPPOSED to be doing. probably not too hard to guess what that GC stands for, though. i didnt think there were a lot of people who just wanted to live their lives up there, at least based on the news that comes out of it back home.

welcome to the party, i guess? my names tara. nice to meet you, fellow regular person whos in way over her head.

Voice

[christmaspun]

...I'm sorry for not texting back, but looking too closely at the keyboard almost made me sick just now.

I'm surprised to hear how many people here are familiar with Gotham City. It's...strange. A little bit comforting though.

Pleased to meet you, Tara. I'm Kristin.

VIDEO.

[indenture]

The GCPD? [ The name is not... familiar, though it's, uh, vaguely concerning in its own subtle #OnlyInGotham way. ] Who are you? Is that your real name?

VIDEO

[christmaspun]

...Yes. The Gotham City Police Department?

[There's a moment of her staring at her comm before she replies - the name on the caller ID IS familiar to her, though not a person she's really met. But it's something. Something that KIND of passes for comforting.

Then it sinks in that yet another person is commenting on her name, and...she heaves a sigh. Really? Even here?]

Of course it's my real name. Why wouldn't it be?

I work in the file room at the station, like I said, Mister...Dent.

voice;

[enigmaestro]

Organization is your concern? One might appreciate a more logical universal outcome, yes, but specifically organization?

You must have been the heart of the GCPD.

[Because why not put an organ to that noun?]

Video > Voice [1/2]

[christmaspun]

...I. I guess?

[Was that sarcasm? The voice is unfamiliar, but there's...something about it. More specifically, the way he said 'GCPD' as if he were familiar. She pulls the comm a little closer, squinting through her migraine at the name.

Her expression instantly changes. You get to see all the color drain from her face for a split second before you see the camera fall to the floor.]

video;

[itistolaugh]

Aw, sweetie. Stick to text if you're gonna cry on camera. Keep a little dignity, for Pete's sake! An' nobody's gonna make you do anything, okay? Calm down.

Video

[christmaspun]

...I'm crying because I have a migraine the size of the greater metropolitan area. It wasn't...a dignified moment.

I've been told already that I will not be forced to do anything...but being upended to another dimension is still...upsetting.

[She dabs at her eyes, trying to more visibly pull herself together. Embarrassed.]

[Video]

[equinamity]

[Another tired face greets Kristin's, dark amber eyes concerned. Though Crane has all but vanished after stating she was unfit to participate in RISE, his powers have already done damage enough--the misplaced trust in the 'good doctor' is already placed, and the unusual levels of anxiety are starting to wear her down.

But she speaks with the voice of someone who has calmed overwrought civilians before, calm and gentle, yet with an amount of authority that suggests that she knows exactly what she is saying.]

Yes ma'am, this video is public.

First things first. Are you somewhere safe right now? I know it won't feel safe, so far from home, but safe in the scope of where we are now.

It's difficult to see with the lights off.

Video

[christmaspun]

[The calm authority reminds Kristin of the other women at the station - she may not have gotten along perfectly with those women, but at least it feels familiar.]

...Yes.

I am somewhere I...hope is safe. And I hope it will stay that way if I don't say where.

video

[foreshadower]

Because they don't care who you were? [ A wave of his hand. ]

Actually, they don't care about much at all, just as long as you play along.

Video

[christmaspun]

So I've been...told, at this point.

It doesn't feel any less...sudden, though, knowing that.

video;

[alcheregis]

[ Oh no, tears are distressing, Haen wants to help. ]

Oh, I know how being in a strange place can be hard, my dear. You just have a seat and listen to Haen for a moment, all right? Let me tell you something about belonging, because the Proctors and a lot of people in the Towers are fond of telling people whether they belong or not, and it's really rude of them. Don't you let anyone tell you that you're one thing or another, the only person who decides what you are is you. If you're a file clerk, then you can be that, and no one has a right to say otherwise. And if you want to be a hero, then you can do that too, but they can't make you one just by slapping a label on you.

As for why, and this is where it's very important that you're listening, my dear, but you seem like a really lovely young woman, and that means more than any kind of power or title or anything they can come up with.

Video

[christmaspun]

[That was.......a lot of information. It takes Kristin a second to go back over it in her head - word-for-word, that's so STRANGE - before she even tries to respond. At least it was encouraging, whatever...Towers and Proctors mean.]

...I...thank you.

More than...anything, I think the headache is making everything much...louder and stranger than it may actually be.