It Just Keeps Happening

[pocketspa]

Welcome To The Void Meme

Stop what you're doing!

No, really. Stop what you're doing. Put the pause on that tire fire you call your life. No, don't un-pause it. Leave the pause on.

Where you are now is not where you were before. The details are...vague. The details are always, often, rather vague. A place that's similar, or not. Fantasy Costco down the hall, the Voidfish in the basement. The calm waves of a never ending void somewhere off a while, and inches to the left. And everywhere else. And tapping on your shoulder. It's fine, just don't talk to it.

You're here now. You're here now. You're here now.

A lot of you are here now. A lot of.... you, are here now.

Might as well have fun with that.

[ooc: a general mingle to start us off! Doubles welcome and encourage. Only TAZ characters (canon-only) to start! Post your character's name and relevant aus/craus in the headers!)

Comments

lup | ota | timeline is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[counttheshells]

[Alright, well, this is new.

She's never actually been to the moon base proper, so this is, as far as she's concerned, the opportunity to get into everything she can get her little hands on. She can be found poking around every room, absolutely in stuff she shouldn't be, and if someone calls her Taako she might not correct them for as long as it takes for them to notice (or as long as it keeps being funny). She can also be found later at night lying on her back in the grassy quad, looking up at the stars, tracing constellations with her fingertips.

She won't bite! And uh, don't be concerned about the red robe or like, liches or whatever. It ain't no biz.]

timeline is also ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ fuck me up real good alex

[tuffgreg]

[Yeah, like Taako wouldn't take the first opportunity, if he were to suddenly find himself in a cross-plane clone block party on the moon, to take the first empty seat by his dearly departed sister in the grass.

Like... Yeah. So his first reaction wasn't to walk right up to her. It was definitely to steal glances, kind of surreptitiously follow her around for a little bit to confirm she's who he thinks she is, and rehearse what to say in his mind a few times before deciding that's completely stupid (which doesn't even take the length of a Fantasy Vine video to decide, really) and he's gotta just talk to her already. He spent nearly two hundred years with her, probably -- there's holes in his memory still, but there's enough of it that's so clear that it's gotta be the easiest thing in the world to just fall back into step with his twin.

So he decides to take a page out of Magnus' book and not even think about it, and just go up and take a seat next to her in the grassy quad, acting like he didn't just have a sort of freakout in his head and this is just normal and fine and whatever, it's just his sister. His dead sister.

Whatever.

His voice comes out completely indifferent, in a practiced and careful way that doesn't at all let on that it's practiced or careful.]

Hey. So this party is kinda bogus, huh? Not even any punch table to hover around awkwardly like a bunch of stiff coworkers. Almost like they didn't know Taako was gonna be here ready to really class the joint up. I put on my best face for this, like, really? Who do I gotta complain to around here, you think? HR?

[He steals glances at her as he rambles on, trying to gauge her reaction.]

U GOT IT BIG FUCKO

[counttheshells]

[See, it's almost funny at this point that Taako thinks he can pull something like this over on her. Like she hasn't seen him eyeing her, thinking of the right one-liner, hands clenching and little fidgets betraying a churning mind. It doesn't matter how long they've been apart, how much has passed between them. He's her brother. Her twin. Her heart. They'll find their way back to each other, and she'll know every twitch of his eye revealing his gaze, every flick of his wrist meaning a thought dismissed, as intimately as if it was yesterday.

Maybe it was, even. It's a little hard to tell.

She lets slip an undignified snort of laughter, head tilting just a bit in his direction but eyes proving she's openly watching him, as well.]

Yeah, what a ripoff. If you want our presence you can't make the joint byob. It's free shit or nothing, right? That's how you bring in the coolest of us.

[Whatever... us is, now.]

Maybe if you start shouting someone'll just show up, like. Cause enough of a fuss and it'll summon some nachos?

[tuffgreg]

[When she laughs, he instantly relaxes. It's kind of incredible, really, how familiar she both is and isn't. Like he's got a version of his life with her forever at his side, and he's got a version where she never existed at all, and both of them exist equally in his mind. It's complicated in a way Taako doesn't like dealing with, and he smirks, pulling his gaze away to check his manicured nails, casualness both performative and natural.]

Yeah, everyone knows if you complain about the food enough, someone's gotta give you free shit at some point. That goes double if the food doesn't exist in the first place. I could riot outside the Chug 'n Squeeze until they just throw hors d'oeuvres straight into my proffered hands. Then this'll be a party.

[He stretches out and makes no move to actually get up and go start shouting at the Chug 'n Squeeze like he just implied, looking up at the stars she was just gazing at, wondering what she sees in them and if it's any different than what he does these days. Does she still see a childhood on the road, does she still look for the brightest star in the sky that's probably really a planet, something that always brought comfort when the fewest things did, and, oh, he's just realized that familiar old constellation he's never been able to find as an adult was in another plane entirely, wasn't it? Well, shit. There's that mystery solved.]

So, you like, work here now, or something? Is that how this works? 'Cause, you know, I think I was about to quit or something. Creative differences and all that. Funny, we nearly missed each other.

[Yeah. Funny.]

timelines are for SUCKERS

[mydude]

[Taako can't really beat his last dealmaking triumph, so he's not really intending to purchase anything, but nobody says he can't window shop, right? And if he happens to get a chance to mock Garfield, all the better!

Of course, when he spots Lup all that goes out the window. Because now it's go time. He slides up beside her and, casually, talks to her out of the side of his mouth.]

So. Got your eye on anything?

[For stealing???]

DAMN RIGHT

[counttheshells]

[Listen, nobody's saying Lup was intending to purchase anything, either, on the grounds of money is for chumps and this place has no good security. And right on cue, here comes sticky-fingered backup. She keeps her voice low, eyes looking back over the shelves.]

Maaaaaybe. You know this place well? I can be the face if you've got the layout.

i came back :E

[mydude]

Oh, do I know this place.

[Wait. He looks around for a second. Okay, yeah, no major changes in layout. Cool.]

Sooooo. Point me. What'm I shoving in my pocket spa?

[weedbgon]

[ It's kind of nice to hit the quad and find somebody else hanging around to scope out a little star action. Like, that just never seems to be a thing that happens, and Merle would know. Maybe it's because a barefoot, sometimes drunk Reclaimer doesn't make an inviting buddy picture. Maybe people were busy working. He'd vow to get to the bottom of it, but realistically, it doesn't look like something anyone will have time to get to in the future.

Still. Lup is on the lawn. That's pretty cool. It's been... a while. And it's overall just very complicated and sad and a big bundle of things that Merle is opting not to focus on. Find joy, right? Lup is on the lawn. That is, without a doubt, one of the greatest joys he's found in the past decade or so. What's a guy to do but grab a seat next to her? ]

Well, Lup, I've got some heavy news for ya.

[counttheshells]

[Listen, a barefoot, sometimes drunk dwarf happens to be an entirely welcome picture to her, as long as it's one specific barefoot drunk dwarf. Merle wins just for being him, which like, never happens, and also she won't say that, but she does tilt her head towards him in a fake display of concern.]

Oh? Are you gonna tell me the soil here isn't real and it's messing with your nature-fu? Or that we're not actually on the moon, because, gotta tell ya, I'm already wicked disappointed about that.

[weedbgon]

What? Nah.

[ Even though, like, full discretion? Those things could both also count as news to be bummed out about. There's always a disappointment when you learn you're not on the real moon. ]

The news is, Fantasy Costco's fresh outta dead jellyfish. So I couldn't bring you a callback gift for old times' sake. 'course, now that you said all that, it doesn't seem that heavy anymore! I brought you the little foiled-up balloon weight of news.

[ He chuckles. ]

kravitz | ota

[deathfindsaway]

[This isn't Kravitz' first trip to the moon, and considering how often he zips around anyway, the effect of simply ending up there isn't horribly disorienting. He's got nothing better to do until he's called, so... he's here now! Sure.

So check it, there's a tall, dark, and handsome man in a big black cloak wandering about, keeping his eyes open for people he knows and absentmindedly fiddling with just about anything that isn't tied to the ground. He's not really taking anything, just. Passing the time.

Don't startle him too much unless you want a face full of skeleton. Unless, like, that's your thing.]

[tuffgreg]

[Oh, you know that's Taako's thing. Taako catches Kravitz at the Fantasy Gachapon, one that's largely devoid of Leons, somehow -- doesn't that guy like, live in here? -- while Kravitz is kind of fiddling with the gachapon machine. Taako comes up while the other man's back is turned and casually pokes him in between the shoulder blades with his Umbra Staff.]

Howdy, stranger.

[If he startles him, that certainly wasn't his intention, oh no, you'll never catch Taako doing that on purpose.]

[deathfindsaway]

[Yes we've established Taako has found the single politically correct way to fuck a skeleton. The entire Undertale fandom couldn't figure it out, but you got it, buddy, you've won the prize.

Regardless, Kravitz rolled a terrible perception roll so he's rather preoccupied until he feels the Umbra Staff somewhere in his spine, causing him to stiffen for just a second before leisurely looking over his shoulder.]

Oh, hello. I hope I didn't disturb your office, man I absolutely don't recognize.

[He turns, a sly sort of smile gracing his features.]

Is there something I can help you with?

[tuffgreg]

Oh, you think this looks like my office? This dump? Please. You clearly don't know me, but you've seen me, right? Just now? With your eyes?

[He spins said Umbra Staff once and then leans on it smoothly, smirking at Kravitz in a way that betrays his familiarity.]

But yeah, sure, you know, there is something I hope you can help me with. I've misplaced my boyfriend, you see. The Bureau being as crowded as it is these days, I just turned around and, you know, there he wasn't. Can't miss him, he's got... [He counts off on his fingers.] no skin, glowing red eyes, this really spooky scythe... Oh, and Schrodinger's accent. The accent that reality forgot.

stuffs another merle envelope into mailbox

[weedbgon]

[ B O I ]

And who the hell invited you to show up and paw through all our moon base stuff? Grim reapers don't know what "top secret" means?

ACCEPTS IT EAGARLY

[deathfindsaway]

[THE MOST EXTENDED EYE ROLL. He even makes sure Merle can see it, in all of his displeasure. He even uses very visible air quotes.]

Probably the same thing that invited you to be stuck here pawing through your own 'moon base stuff'. This isn't the first time I've been up here, you know.

magnus burnsides (hadriel crau) - ota!

[armcollector]

[Okay, apparently the Door wasn't done throwing him all over the place. At least he's got his clothes on this time. Still, this particular Magnus might not be wearing the typical fighter's armor others might remember him in -- he's definitely wearing a flannel shirt and some cargo shorts and some brightly-colored toe-shoes. He's found other shoes since finding these his first day in Hadriel, but he's... still wearing them, isn't he. And he doesn't have the Chance Lance at his back, or the Phantom Fist at his arm, or even Railsplitter at his side -- all he has is a single, simple axe that looks like it's seen some heavy use and not a lot of care.

Most telling, perhaps, is the conspicuous lack of a certain goldfish at his hip.

He thinks, for a second, that it's good to finally be back. But one look around the Bureau tells him that this isn't quite the Bureau as he left it -- for one thing, there's a lot of various slightly-different looking Taakos running around, not to mention variations on everyone he's basically ever met, including himself. That's new. And... that weird invisible enemy doesn't seem to be around.

Well, he's not one to look a gift horse in the mouth. Especially if that gift horse is decidedly not shaped like a fucking emotion-based nonlich/nongod unhybrid. Fuck yes. He is going to steal himself some fucking gachapon tokens and win back some sweet enchanted gear.

So, yeah, there might be someone rooting around in your bag or your pockets. He's being very sneaky, though. He rolled a 19 on sleight of hand, so good fucking luck not getting your shit stole.]

Hope you don't mind a super late tag!

[restinglichface]

[Sorry, Magnus, there's no gachapon tokens on this figure, just a pocket full of loose change and an elf's perception skill that's keen enough to catch the man before he begins to dig through her things.]

Prepare to get lit the fuck up, homeslice--Oh. [Magnus may or may not remember her, but even if time has changed his appearance, Lup would recognize that dopey, lovable face or those truly magnificent sideburns anywhere. The raised hand that had been preparing to burn up a spell slot dropped, just as her mouth twisted into a wide, bright grin. Hell, she still doesn't know where the fuck she is or why this place seems so anti-dog, but it always warms her spirit to find the familiar face of someone she calls a friend.]

Are you... [her eyes flick down to Magnus' plaid shirt and those god-awful toe shoes. Hm. Gross clothing? Check. Pitiful excuse for weapons? Check. Stealing money because it was actually needed instead of just for fun? Double Check.] Do you...Do you need some change? You know, if you've fallen on hard times, you don't have to be ashamed about asking for help, Magnus.

...I mean, I guess you do, it has to be pretty embarrassing to panhandle, but friends are here to help regardless.

YOU KNOW I DONT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[armcollector]

[Magnus freezes when he's caught, and yeah, he knew this was Taako's pockets he was diggin' through, but the voice comes through a touch... higher, than usual? Maybe Taako's sick?]

Uhhh.

[Yeah, this Taako clearly isn't the one that went with him to Hadriel. Magnus shrinks away from the pocket and just stares dumbly at the person who is looking less and less like Taako the more he looks at-- her. This is a lady. This is a lady Taako. Like, not just Taako wearing a skirt, as he's wont to do, but this is definitely, unmistakably a lady.]

What the-- Is there?? A lady Magnus too??

[Magnus just... grunts like Tim Allen because that's where we're at right now.]

I mean... I'm more in the market to stock back up on an entire dragon's horde of magical items, like. That's where I'm at. I haven't known the value of coin for like, months now. Capitalism seems like a distant dream. A distant, hellish dream.

Also, please tell me there's a lady Magnus. I need to meet her.

merle highchurch | ota

[weedbgon]

[ There has to be a way to capitalize on having so many copies of the same people around... Or, just spitballing, maybe most of them are fakes and it's crunch time to figure out which ones need a swift takedown. The sooner the better. Merle gazes into the void, almost instantly contemplating murder as a solution, and the void gazes into Merle, and Merle is mostly like "I mean, this distant-endless-void shit is kinda familiar and unsettling and also it sucks and I know I hit person-spotting bingo five minutes ago."

This is obviously the top priority when someone has no idea what's going on and there was a whole chaotic conspiracy thing happening five minutes ago. It's not "where did everybody go, how did I get out here, and where are my party members". It's "well, how many of these jokers are fakes that we'll have to kill to get this campaign back on progress street?"

Still, there's undeniably a lot of interesting things to think on. Talking to himself could either gonna be really fun or really boring if he runs into said himself. As an example. Anyway, catch him rooting around in Fantasy Costco shelves or personal belongings like a sad raccoon man, catching those sweet starlight rays out in the quad, or not knowing the names of potentially 95% of anybody who even shows up.

((if anyone would rather bounce off of a more Stolen Century-era/anywhere earlier in canon Merle, i can swing that biz easy. just lmk! hadriel crau flavor also available but i mean ive maybe done like 6 comments in that game so far.)) ]

/POPS IN LATE

[restinglichface]

[ Merle isn't the only one taking advantage of the multi-dimensional chaos to root around Fantasy Costco.

The high elf has been rummaging through the shelves for the last twenty minutes at least, picking up anything of value (or that's just pretty enough to catch her attention) before moving on to the next aisle. Whether he remembers her or not, Lup's attention snaps Merle's way the moment he comes into view, her delighted laugh echoing off of the high ceiling.]

Merle! [Her grin is wide and sharp, one arm cradling a heap of random supplies to her chest while her other arm swings a glowing mace overhead in a wave towards the dwarf. Does she even have proficiency with maces? Hell no, but think of the mad profit they'll get from reselling this shit back once the chaos has calmed down.]

Yo, help me out here, homie! With four arms between us, we'll be basking in piles of moolah! ...Oh shit, is that a jar of bees?

AYYYYY

[weedbgon]

[ Merle's first instinct is to think this is Taako just being Taako, looting like his life depends on it, which he's totally down for, all things considered.

Voice isn't quite right, though, and her looks aren't, either. Really similar, just... not the same. God knows he's had to spend enough time looking at Taako's face over the past year or so.

Maybe it's a disguise to pull one over on security later. Frame Taako for shoplifting. Maybe he was right and this is gonna turn into a whole kill-the-spares thing. On the other hand: meh. She's only looting. He literally came here to dig around, too. It's practically the same moral backslide that happens when he and Taako have to do something without Magnus, and considering he's not being attacked, Merle sees no reason to get all hot and bothered about this situation. ]

What half-decent Fantasy Costco doesn't have a jar of bees sittin' around? Now, the secret to those is you gotta really throw 'em after you shake 'em up. [ Merle deadass starts climbing some shelves. He's all for this. ]

Otherwise you just have broken glass in front of you and bees with nobody else close enough to bother.

barry bluejeans | ota | fuck timelines

[bignerd]

[ Once upon a time, Barry Bluejeans just kinda showed the hell up somewhere. And the whole situation was like 'hey man, welcome to the moon base and also an ocean of nothingness on all sides that nobody knows what's up with it,' and Barry was like 'i mean, okay? this might as well be a thing that happens?'

He's sort of, uh. Made his moon base rounds before now, technically, depending on what part of the timeline we're going with here. There was obviously a lack of time for leisurely exploration, though. So really, whether he's here fresh from a spaceship or he's beyond that stage of life, Barry will be poking around. Seeing what's good.

Checking out that dank technology, doing whatever science nerds do, saying hey to the Voidfish. Getting his hang on with familiar faces, and possibly getting a more awkward hang on with unfamiliar faces.

basically yo what up i think that Tom Arnold-looking motherfuckers should be able to VOTE. ]

kicks the god damn door in while yelling

[counttheshells]

[Ah, there he is. That motherfucker. The love of her life. What a tool.

It's impossible to miss him, or maybe just impossible to her, and she slides up to sit beside him whenever he takes the time to rest in the quad, trying to pick a moment she thinks he might not be paying attention too much to bump his shoulder with hers.]

What a group here, am I right? Buncha nerds and losers all millin' around. Good thing the biggest nerd of 'em all is here to keep me company.

hell yeah hell yeah no chill allowed

[bignerd]

[ It isn't taking much to pull Barry's attention today. There's so much going on and so many people milling around that getting wrapped up in people-watching, for lack of a better term, is second nature. He startles when she bumps his shoulder for sure, completely ungracefully. The glasses are askew as hell in this neighborhood. He sputters. It's a mess.

But when she speaks the entire universe falls into place, suddenly. Falls into the place it normally would, at least, where it fell for literal decades. Here and now, he winds up still feeling a little... jarred. It's a jarring experience. Because he turns his head and Lup is there. Sitting on the grass, little smile on her face, calling him a nerd. His mouth feels dry. His hands are shaking. ]

Lup. Oh my- oh my god, Lup.

[ Barry looks at Lup like someone watching the sun rise for the first time. Barry looks at Lup like he pulled himself out of a frozen lake and stumbled into a cabin that had a roaring fire in the hearth. Loving her has been an anchor in his chest that never shifted, finding her has been one of the reasons he's been able to keep going-- she's here, she's right here, and he doesn't have words and there's about a decade's worth of grief and relief lighting him up from head to toe, and-

-and boy howdy, he doesn't know what to do at all. All that planning on being reunited someday, and he's got nothing cool lined up. Could have had something really prime to say to her. Instead, he kind of wants to laugh. ]

Holy shit!

[ There. Flawless. Barry surges into motion and winds up like. Scrabbling for her hands or her shoulders, if she'll let him. Basically, any surface area that's great for confirming that she is, in fact, real as hell. ]