dualislogs | They know your secrets and you know theirs

WHO: Erik & YOU
WHAT: Rick's Bar might not be the most happening joint, but the new bartender is pretty easy on the eyes. If you're into older guys.
WHERE: Rick's
WHEN: October
WARNINGS: Nothing yet, will update if necessary.

[ Full time work at a bar that doesn't get much foot traffic means that Erik has plenty of time to clean. The divey joint hasn't been this clean in years. Depending on the time of day, anybody who happens in may find him meticulously slicing up garnishes that will probably never be used, hand-drying pint glasses so they don't get water spots, or just polishing all the brass fittings around the bar and the booths.

As he works, his mind is occupied with everything he's seen and started to suspect about what, exactly, is going on here. He has some theories but nothing firm enough to bring to anybody. But since he attended the meeting with the Heart, he's hoping to network with some of the other potential resistance members.

With all of this on his mind, he might not notice when somebody walks in, appearing to be utterly absorbed in whatever tarnish or dust he's trying to eliminate. Eventually, though, he'll realize he's not alone. ]

Ah. What can I get for you?

[ Maybe not the warmest welcome by objective standards, but for him this is positively effusive. ]

OOC: will match format!

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Well if you're talkin' about guns, Brother, I can still make armor strong enough to give you a chance to run. If you're talkin' about people that throw hands a little harder'n normal, well... That is a little bit tougher

[He scratches his beard as he thinks about it.]

Where there's a will [and too much time] There is a way.

Edited 2019-10-21 15:24 (UTC)

Guns aren't the only things. Armor that's strong enough to withstand a missile strike? You might as well be in a tank.

[ He starts thinking a little too much about the logistics of what he thinks Drifter is describing, and once he gets to imagining flaps that he shakes himself out of it. ]

Sometimes there is a better way, you know.

I ain't rigged high enough to withstand a rocket yet. Two grenades, yet. I can block those. But I can build vehicles that can take missiles, Brother.

Alien invaders got some real mean tech to stand up against. I ain't the biggest fan of the Sword Logic -think of survival of the fittest, but a lot harder- but you can't deny that necessity is truly the mother of ingenuity.

What is your better way?

[ Erik understands maybe half of what he says, and guesses at the rest. The question is still impossible to answer. ]

I have no idea. I would have to know more about the resources available and the conditions on the ground to even start. But in my experience, once a hammer is invented the mind can get stuck on hammers. Hammers solve problems, all problems. Not just the ones shaped like nails. And if a hammer can't do the job, just make a bigger hammer.

But sometimes you just need a stud finder.

What makes you so sure I ain't got stud finder, Brother? Or that I can't make some pretty damn thick wallpaper?

[He asks dubiously, squinting a little as he pushes his glass forward for a refill.]

[He came really close to asking if Erik knew where all the studs were and honestly that is not the question he wanted to come out of his mouth. Luckily he saved it.]

[ Erik grins, because he's going to act like Drifter made that joke anyway. And he's not too interested in criticizing this mans' entire society and life's work all that much at the moment. Just idle arguing for the sake of arguing. ]

I'm sure you have ways to get the job done. Where there's a will, there's a way. Right?

[ He refills the glass dutifully. ]

Sorta comes with the territory. If we didn't, there'd be nobody left.

[And being able to come back from the dead only goes so far, as long as you're able to keep up.]

My world's a little odd. We got guns that'd let you shoot someone and put all the energy from killin' them into healin' yourself or somebody else. Complicated kinda place.

But what world's not a little messed up? Am I right? Hahaaa. [He drinks the glass down. He might have some opinions on the subject, but he's also keeping the extent of his abilities close to his chest. They have a lengthy cooldown. He's never been one to waste them if he had to.]

Every world is perfectly normal to the people who live there.

[ There were unimaginable horrors in Erik's childhood that he just accepted as a matter of course as it was all he knew. Not all, of course. Even knowing nothing else there were things he knew was wrong. But the transition to living free in society was abrupt. ]

It's enough to make one wonder what is expected of us, here. Who among us knows how to make a truly just and prosperous society. Or whatever it is we're supposed to do.

Eh, what the hell is 'normal' besides boring.

[He gestures around.] Outside of a few places like this, the whole damn city is 'normal'. Normal is infectious. Like a disease you can't quite get over. Never lets you heal, never lets you grow.

Then you get too much of the 'abnormal', too much at once hits like a shock to the system. But I figure, hell, people are gonna adapt sooner or later. Or maybe I need more to drink before I get to philosophizin' too hard.

I could do with some boring sometimes.

[ It's nice that he's been able to sort things out with Charles despite their unexpected relocation. Still, he had wanted to do it in Paris. Had wanted to bring Charles home. To show him everything he'd managed to build since he left Westchester the last time. ]

People are remarkably resilient when the choice is adapt or die. Even if they want to simply lie down and die, it can prove damnably difficult to do that.

[ He spreads his hands, palms up. ]

What better place to philosophize than a dive bar in the middle of the afternoon.

I think a lotta people feel that way. But sometimes when you get set down a path, you ain't gonna find boring again.

[He gestures around loosely.]

At least you're gonna get to see action in bystander form as a bartender. Even if that action amounts to a fool gettin' himself slapped over some poor life choices.

[ He's quiet for a moment, before returning to his very important work with the glasses. ]

I had boring for a while. Better part of a decade. Wouldn't mind having that again.

[ Erik laughs and shakes his head, his expression turning decidedly rueful. ]

Better than being the fool, at any rate. Although you never know. He did forgive me eventually.

[ Erik winks. ]

[There's a moment where Erik strikes a cord. Drifter is an old, old man. The one thing he won't get is forgiveness from the person he'd like it from the most. He knew her in her mortal days, in her immortal days, and now acquainted with her in her ethereal days. It's a complicated history, knowing someone for literal centuries and watching them go through a shit decision because they were mad at you.]

[It does clear up his expression a little, though he tries to hold onto that carefree hint to it. It doesn't reach his tired looking eyes.]

Yeah, forgiveness is a hard thing to come by. Cherish that, brother. Cherish that.

[He might need one more drink now. He pushes the glass forward.]

[ Erik doesn't miss the subtle tells that he inadvertently stumbled onto a sore spot. He laughs softly, and tries to pivot away from it. ]

Until the next time I do something to piss him off.

[ It really is inevitable. He refills the glass. ]

Either way, I'm not going to get to see boring again anytime soon.

They know your secrets and you know theirs

I just left one type of tag and had a brainfart and mixed

No worries! I just roll with whatever

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Just guessing what time of day it is, lmk if this is way off and I can edit!

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