003: Video

[hulkbusted]

[It's after the night siren and Bruce is looking frazzled, irritated, and... like he forgot that he'd been getting ready to sleep, since he's wearing boxers and glasses and apparently nothing else. As he settles his NV, a pair of mice skitter across the desk he's set it on. There are little movements in the background and Bruce has to stop and hop around, cursing under his breath as something apparently runs over his foot.]

Okay, look, the Darkness thing I'm up on, but is it common for random objects like, say, my pillow to turn into mice?

[ooc: Loki'd]

Comments

[hulkbusted]

I'm sorry. I ask a lot of questions.

But now it's like it never happened?

[spiderlilies]

[ With a smile, the lady shakes her head. ]

It's fine, really. Aside from the memories attached, yes. There was no physical sign of trauma, nothing at all. I may be in better health than I was before, even.

[hulkbusted]

I'm glad there's no lasting physical trauma. Was it something with the Darkness or are there other hazards I should be aware of?

[spiderlilies]

I'd actually died in my own world, before arriving.

[ By the hand of a reaper, no less. And ironically enough, that same one has been claimed by the Darkness and currently awaits his return. ]

The Darkness had no place in that.

Though, without explanation, I did disappear from this world for several months. The Core's intentions... They are unpredictable. Frankly, that intimidates me more than anything.

[hulkbusted]

I... [He shrugs at the NV and sits down to lean his elbows on the table where the NV is propped.] I'm sorry. Are you okay here?

You aren't the only person I've spoken to who speaks of the Core as though it has some intent of its own.

[spiderlilies]

[ She'll shrug, herself. ]

There's no need to be. My nephew is here, and I should be just fine as long as we're together.

As for the Core, it's perhaps easier to think of it that way. That there's purpose to everything that happens to us.

[hulkbusted]

Siren's Port isn't really what I pictured for an afterlife and some nebulous Core doesn't sit right as God.

[spiderlilies]

No... This place is something else entirely. I'm not certain what I'd call it - except for what it is.

[hulkbusted]

Do you remember anything after you died? Before you came here?

[spiderlilies]

Nothing telling, I'm afraid. I recall something much like a dream, exhaustingly cycling through memories and important faces.

[ But she smiles. ]

Are you simply curious? Or are you thinking of someone?

[hulkbusted]

Curious. I was raised Catholic, but not much of it has stuck.

[spiderlilies]

[ That's the better answer, she thinks - and so she nods, smiling still. ]

I'm Angelina Dalles, by the way. Most call me Madam Red.

What do you go by?

[hulkbusted]

Why Madam Red? And do you prefer that or Angelina or Ms. Dalles?

Dr. Bruce Banner, if we're going all out, but I prefer Bruce.

[spiderlilies]

Ah, well. It was a nickname I'd earned for myself that I'm quite used to now. I'm fine with whichever, though, really - you're free to call me what you feel most comfortable with.

[ But her brows raise just so. ]

But, my, a doctor! Might I ask what your specialty is, Bruce? (It's a pleasure, by the way. ♥)

[hulkbusted]

The pleasure's mine. If you don't mind, I'll call you Angelina. Madame Red is just too formal. [And sounds as though he should be leaving a tip on the nightstand for one of her employees.]

My specialties are physics and biochemistry, which makes me a different kind of doctor than you might have been picturing.

[spiderlilies]

[ Oh, her lifestyle isn't that bold. ]

Of course not, darling. I come from far less lenient times, but acclimating is the fun part of this adventure they call Siren's Port, isn't it?

That's quite different, yes, but very fascinating! I was a doctor and surgeon once, myself. Considering the technological advancements of today, you must be something of a genius. [ Yep, she's genuinely interested now. ]

[hulkbusted]

Adventures should come with fewer monsters and pillow mice and more narratives that end with "and then we had to hire a sherpa to get us through the mountains in time to make our plane back home." [Or even better, skipping the adventure for a while. He's had plenty.]

You were a doctor in the 1800s? I should call you Dr. Dalles just to give you some recognition for that accomplishment. And yeah, I'm a pretty smart guy.