01 ( voice )

[goblinjr]

[The gravity of somehow escaping death (even if he's not entirely sure this isn't some weird afterlife, yet) is enough to put Harry in an unsettled and confused mindset. What tips it into freaking out is being dropped in the middle of a new place with new responsibilities by himself. He's never had to do anything completely on his own before, and the prospect is more than a little daunting. Suffice it to say that as soon as he was showed to his new home, he immediately ran to his room and locked himself inside. Sorry, roomies.

Since then, he's been waffling around with whether or not to ask the imPort network for help. Pride says no, but desperation says yes. Eventually, he settles somewhere in the middle.]

Hey, um. Is there a map of this place I can get a hold of somewhere? I am so lost. [He laughs, and it's almost entirely convincing to an untrained ear.] Back home, I had a driver I could just say "Take me to this place!" to and they'd take me there. No such luck here, huh? I mean, I guess you could hire somebody, but I'm completely broke at the moment. [The reminder makes his stomach flop. Going from a billionaire to nothing in a second is... well, he's going to have some trouble adjusting.

He sucks in a quick breath before continuing.] Oh-- and for the record, I'm in... [A pause as he tries to recall the name-- and ends up somehow butchering the pronunciation:] I think it's called De Chima? Anyway. If anyone's got some advice for settling in here, I'd appreciate it.

[It seems like he might end it there, but something's been niggling at him since he got here. Now's as good a time as any to bring it up, right?] By the way... this whole "alternate worlds" thing. Is that for real? Are you guys really from other places?

Comments

voice;

[douchebag]

[ Settling in hasn't been going so well for Felix, so offering advice there is a waste of time. And he's never been rich enough to afford a driver. That last bit, though. That he understands. ]

I'm from the twenty-sixth century. Wasn't even on Earth when I got pulled here. [ Technically, he was dying but that isn't important. ] But the Earth I know doesn't have a Florida anymore and I'm pretty sure this whole Cold War happened earlier in its history.

voice;

[goblinjr]

Twenty-sixth century? Wow. That's a ways into the future for me. And no Florida either? What happened to it? Someone have a vendetta against Disney World or something?

voice;

[notyourfathersosborn]

[Listening to the network while he works, Normie can't help but take pity on the poor guy who just unironically talked about having a driver like everyone has one.

If he'd bothered to look at the ID, this response would be a whole lot different.]

Hey, where exactly are you? I can talk you through where you need to go. I live in De Chima too.

[He pauses for a moment, then adds:]

Yeah, it's true. Heh, I actually live with an alternate version of my dad's best friend.

voice;

[goblinjr]

[And Harry's too focused on the voices that come through the device to pay attention to the names, himself. What a shock they'll be in for.]

You, too? That's handy. [Beat.] Uh-- exactly exactly? I'm not sure. They brought me to my new living situation and I kinda just... ran in without looking around. [He hesitates for a minute before daring to peek out of his room and finally, to investigate the housing number.] I'm in #7 of those government house things, if that... helps at all.

Really? What a trip... Must be nice, though. It's kinda like you've kinda got family here.

( audio )

[sidequestings]

I'm not even from Earth. At least, I don't think so. Not unless it's very, very different from this one.

[ a beat. ] As far as maps go, there's usually one or two online. Is there somewhere in particular you're trying to go?

( audio )

[goblinjr]

--Really? Where are you from?

It'd be kinda nice if I knew how to get to work. Everything else, I just... I guess I'll wing it.

voice;

[gemmeus]

Wow! Did you have a car? I've never been inside of one before!

... Oh! But don't worry, it will still be there when you go back home.

[ Now that her initial excitement is out of the way, she takes on a more sympathetic tone. ] Dee Cheema is a very nice place to live, so you'll have fun there. [ She's only been there once, and the extent of her knowledge about the place is that it rains a lot, but. He clearly just needs some reassurance. ]

Well... I live in California... but I don't think this California is the same California as the one I live in.

voice;

[goblinjr]

Yeah, I did. It's kinda nice. Can't speak for driving, but... y'know. You haven't been in one here yet?

I... I'm not so sure about that. [He's kind of dead back home, but he doesn't really wanna talk about it.]

Yeah? I hope so. Haven't really gone exploring yet, cause I'm afraid I'll get lost. You've all been pretty nice so far. Maybe I'll be okay.

Doesn't seem like this is anyone's California. This place is kinda weird...

text; anonymous

[nastygram]

what's your driver's name
maybe he followed u here


[Maybe she should be more sympathetic but. Driver? Come tf on.]

text;

[goblinjr]

Gee, thanks for the warm welcome.

[ Voice ]

[dualismum]

It is real. Many different worlds converge in this one thanks to the Porter. And there is no way to leave, not yet.

The communicator you are using has a map function, actually. It's one of the buttons on the side.

[ Voice ]

[goblinjr]

And I'm sure if anyone tried to explain it to me, it'd probably melt my brain. Do you come from Earth, too? Or a different place?

Whoa-- really? [There's some shuffling noises as Harry moves the communicator around to take a better look.] I never noticed. Thanks!

[ Voice ]

[okamichild]

Why didn't you go to places on your own? [ you sound like an adult, it would make sense to drive yourself to places, right? ]

[ Voice ]

[goblinjr]

--I... dunno? It's just the way I was raised, I guess. That, and... you've gotta be a real glutton for punishment if you wanna learn to drive where I'm from. The roads are a constant madhouse.

audio | id reads "karen starr"

[boobwindow]

[ The name seizes her attention as well. ]

De Chima can be a little overwhelming to a newbie, I'll admit.

audio

[goblinjr]

Is this coming from personal experience?

VOICE.

[mantlepieces]

[ Oh boy, another ex-rich kid -- Reggie's favorite! Well, the dude sounds a little older and probably is, but that kind of thing doesn't matter to Reggie so much. ]

Isn't that just the worst, though? Like, I don't even care how long it's been -- no one else gets what it's like, going from money to nothing.

VOICE.

[goblinjr]

[That is most definitely relief on Harry's part.]

Yeah-- exactly! I didn't mean to sound all-- [He trails off in exasperation, because he hadn't realized how babbling about his driver came off until he was getting ragged on for it.] It's just really jarring when you're kinda thrown to the dogs like that, so to speak.

Man, I-- [An embarrassed laugh.] There's so much I never had to do. I guess it's gonna bite me in the ass now.

Voice

[cantwalkwithoutit]

Oh, from several other places.

You might learn more about your locale by simply allowing yourself to get lost.

Voice

[goblinjr]

That's a pretty big "might" in my case. Not real keen on taking the risk.

eventually text; anonymous and encrypted to hide the source

[shutterbugged]

[ Oh hell. Oh hell. Oh, hell.

A week and a half ago, this would have been great news. Peter doesn't let himself dwell too long on the people he misses from home, but it's been half a decade since he's spoken to his best friend. Or even a version of his best friend, since he's pretty sure this one isn't his. Aside from the, uh, monetary obliviousness that his Harry grew out of years ago, there's something naggingly different about the cadence of his speech, though nothing he can put his finger. Still, just seeing the name makes a swell of fondness rise up in his chest.

But a week and a half ago, Spider-Man still had a secret identity. Today, Harry is one of the worst people who could have shown up, aside from his own father and a few others of his ilk. The moment he decides to read up on the latest imPort gossip, both Peter and May could be in terrible danger. ]

Out of curiosity, any relation to Norman Osborn?

text;

[goblinjr]

[Well, this is... weird. Harry wasn't expecting anyone to know him or his father here, and his heart actually kind of drops when it sinks in that his father's shadow is still managing to follow him around.

How's he supposed to make a name for himself if his father's reputation precedes him everywhere? He was hoping to take the Goblin and turn it into something good, for both of them. Suddenly, he has a feeling that's either going to be a lot harder or impossible entirely.]

Yes. He was my father. How do you know him?

[Because he's fairly sure that no one from his world is here or they wouldn't be so stealthy about it. Peter and MJ wouldn't hide from him, and... well, he's reasonably certain Bernard wouldn't have showed up here on hero business. Nevermind that being able to deal with the Osborn family is probably superpower in and of itself. It has to be something else. And then something hits him suddenly--]

Wait, you're not the same anonymous jerk that kept hassling me earlier, are you?

voice;

[grimreaping]

Alternate worlds are indeed real. While a substantial portion of imPorts seem to come from an "Earth", simply with different trappings, several are also from places without an Earth at all. It's the same reason most imPorts here are human, I'd suspect.

voice;

[goblinjr]

Whoa... A world without Earth, huh? I think I met a couple people whose homes are like that. One guy said his had all kinds of races that don't exist in mine except... y'know, in stories.

I'd kinda like to learn more about 'em.

video. sorry this is really late!

[glowsferatu]

[ Okay, so that name is definitely Osborn. She's going to try not to panic about it, but just asking outright seems a little rude. (Peter.) She might as well address his actual questions first.

Nevertheless, that is definitely a grey, horned alien with big fangs talking to him now. ]

Your phone should have an application on it, called "Maps". Many of them are even voice-activated, so you could conceivably tell it where you want to go, though the actual getting will be on you.

And yes, we are all from alternate universes. Not just worlds, as some of us were never from an Earth to begin with. And not just us, either. That will include yourself, as well.