[open x3] I'm not big enough to house this crowd

[fragmentation]

James is having a pretty regular day. They're planetside, on a lovely little world called Hedenex. He's taking an exploratory stroll, dressed in one of his three-pieces suits, walking through the complex cityscape they're visiting, enjoying the unfamiliar sky.

He's spent most of the day running around with Andrew, seeing sights, meeting people, testing the cuisine, and letting the dogs stretch their legs a bit too. But Andrew and the dogs only have so much energy, so James has left them to get some rest. James doesn't really need to worry about those things, so he's been getting some exploring done on his own. It's a very welcoming area.

He's just about to head back to ship, when he stumbles. This in itself is unusual, given how surefooted he normally is. But it only gets weirder from there. His systems go haywire, his vision and most of his senses cut out completely. There's a moment of panic, but he doesn't have long to dwell on it before he wakes up in an entirely different place. That is, places.

--

James, or rather the Ambrose part of him, comes to on a streetcorner on the Upper East Side, near Harlem. He's breathing, which is most unconventional. When did he start breathing? Up until a moment (or however long it's been) ago, he was completely robotic.

It's not the first time he's been put in a flesh body, however, so he manages to adjust fairly quickly, getting slowly to his feet. He doesn't much care for the cold, though. Perhaps this is just another Time Scoop, but it's usually less unpleasant.

But no... Because there's something missing. Great chunks of his mind are gone, and he feels strangely empty. Oh, not his memories. Those are still there. Not as organised and reliable now he's got a biological body, but there. His two imported personalities. The Doctor and the Master. They're gone. Yet somehow he can still sense them. As if they're here, but not part of him anymore. He's not sure what this means.

It doesn't occur to him how strange he must look, standing here in the cold, looking confused and lost.

--

Across town, the Doctor wakes up. He's in a café in the East Village, down on 10th street - though he himself doesn't know much more than that it's a café, and that he's currently slumped against the wall in a booth.

He goes through much the same thought process as Ambrose. They have the same memories of course, more or less the same mental capacities; the only difference is how they react to it. And the Doctor is worried. Deeply worried. If he's split free, that means the Master is probably also wandering around somewhere. He can feel that much. A presence in his mind, but far too distant and vague for him to pinpoint it.

First of all, where is he? His surroundings aren't much help. Back in his old body, he could've smelled it. He's not sure how reliable this new nose is, but he hasn't the memories to recall which place smells like what anymore in any case. It definitely doesn't look much like Hedenex, though.

He prods the shoulder of a random patron. "Pardon me, but could you tell me where I am?"

--

Meanwhile, approximately right between the two others, in the back of a dark McDonalds on 42nd street, right off Times Square, the Master version of James wakes up.

He, unlike the two others, is not quite so worried, once he's realised what's happened. In fact, he's rather delighted. His personality is often kept quite buried, at least compared to the other two. He's not so keen on finding them, though he feels that they're here somewhere, now he's finally got a body of his own.

He grins to himself, and pushes out the backdoor of the restaurant, out onto 41st street. It's not particularly crowded, but there are a few walking around. "You, human, where am I?" he asks one of them.

Comments

[fragmentation]

[Reply to this for Ambrose.]

[lukesmith]

Luke has been advised against talking to strangers, particularly in New York, and particularly ones who are behaving oddly. That's why he's hesitant to say anything to the blond man, even though he looks like he could use some help. Instead, Luke lurks maybe fifteen feet down the sidewalk, trying to look like he's not watching the man. He's really not at all good at it.

[fragmentation]

It takes Ambrose a little while to notice, being so wrapped up in his own thoughts, but he does eventually.

When he does, he approaches Luke, smiling awkwardly. "Excuse me. Would you be so kind as to tell me where I am?" he asks.

Clearly, this body got the manners.

[lukesmith]

"East 105th Street," replies Luke, who has a head for these sort of things. He hesitates, though, wondering if that's quite what the man meant. "Does that help?" he asks, trying to hint that it would make sense to him if it didn't.

[fragmentation]

"Not particularly," he answers honestly, looking around. He had seen the street sign on the corner, and actually already knew that much. Park Avenue, too.

"In what city?" He refrains from asking what planet, hoping that the city name will tell him enough. The sky's wrong for him to still be on Hedenex. If it's Earth - and it does seem likely - there's a chance he'll have heard of it.

[lukesmith]

"New York -- on Earth," ventures Luke, going with his theory. "Did you just get here? I mean, were you somewhere else a few minutes ago?"

[fragmentation]

"Yes..." he answers worriedly. Not so much about the fact he's suddenly elsewhere (which happens all the time with Time Scoops), but that he's split, and that Andrew isn't here with him. And that this doesn't seem like a place to have a party. The areas are usually much more contained.

"I was on Hedenex," he supplies, though he doubts this Earth boy will have heard of it.

[lukesmith]

"I was in London when it happened to me," replies Luke. "Where's Hedenex?"

Because no, he's never heard of it.

[fragmentation]

"It's..." He's unsure whether to actually say. But apparently this boy was stolen away in much the same way, which means he should be at least somewhat familiar with the idea. "A lovely planet, a few galaxies away. They have an amazing cave system with natural saunas," he explains a bit sadly. They hadn't had a chance to explore that part yet, even though it was the most famous attraction of the planet, and now they probably won't get to.

[fragmentation]

[Reply to this for the Doctor.]

[beastisbeauty]

This is part of what Bruce does for the rebellion. He keeps his eyes and ears open, in case he comes across a new riftie. Hearing someone ask where they are isn't conclusive, but it's worth checking out. He approaches cautiously.

"You're on tenth street, in the East Village," he tells the man softly, not letting his voice carry very far.

[fragmentation]

The Doctor turns towards the man who spoke to him, ignoring the patron he had disturbed. He smiles pleasently at him.

"Splendid, thank you. And, would you mind telling me the date?" he asks, because that's another thing that needs to be established. He's not particularly bothered about appearing a bit odd.

[beastisbeauty]

Bruce smiles sympathetically, nodding.

"It's January 12, 2013," he replies, casually, not making a big deal of it. "May I sit down with you?"

[fragmentation]

"Please," the Doctor answers, gesturing for the man to join him in the booth. He's not in a particular rush, information is inportant, and the man even answered the year without blinking. That's promising.

And interstingly, he seems not to have traveled in time almost at all. A few days backwards, which implies there definitely was time travel involved, but not ver far.

[beastisbeauty]

Banner sits down, then holds out his hand for shaking.

"My name is Bruce. I know this is a bit confusing, but I can help you."

[fragmentation]

The Doctor takes it with a smile. "Doctor James Wood, please call me Doctor," he answers. He definitely feels more comfortable being called Doctor, he knows this already, but the name of his other self is just as practical as John Smith. Probably slightly more believable than John Smith at this point, too.

"You know what's going on, then?" he asks, getting to the point immediately.

[beastisbeauty]

"I do, yes," Bruce agrees, not reacting to the name request. "This is going to sound odd, but I'm not playing games or trying to con you, in any way. You fell through an interdimensional rift, of some kind...a tear in time and space. It brought you here, to New York, in January of 2013. One version of it, at least."

[fragmentation]

[Reply to this for the Master.]

[wildmage_daine]

Daine is gliding overhead in crow shape when she overhears someone referring to the other two-leggers as 'human.' It's enough to catch her interest, as not many two-leggers use that term, so she circles back to land on a nearby fire escape. She tilts her head and peers down, trying to figure out which of the two-leggers below her had spoken.

[fragmentation]

The human in question very confusedly answers that he's on 41st street, and deciding that's enough of an answer, hurries away, glancing worriedly back at the Master.

"41st street?" the Master asks out loud, mostly to himself. Self-consciousness is not a thing James has in any of his personalities, apparently. "41st street WHERE?!"

[wildmage_daine]

Something about him seems familiar, though she's sure she's never met him before. He's probably come through the rift, too, going by how confused he is, which means she almost definitely hasn't met him.

Still, at least she can answer his question. She doesn't reshape her mouth, but takes advantage of a crow's ability to mimic and offers, "New York." The "New" is a bit drawn out, and the "York" comes out as a sort of gulp with a heavy click at the end, but it's probably understandable. "Nyeeeew," she tries again, enjoying the challenge, "YORR-CK!"

[fragmentation]

The Master looks up, unsure if he just imagined that. But then the crow repeats it. And while he knows crows can mimic human sounds, he's fairly sure it's unlikely to actually answer questions. Probably not a regular crow, then.

"New York, huh?" he asks, looking up the crow. "Earth, I take it. So why is there a talking crow? Who are you?"

[wildmage_daine]

She chirrups to herself, trying to work out how to make a 'D' sound. Odd's bobs, this is difficult. Vowels aren't too bad, and neither are hard consonants, but the softer ones are tricky. "Tk-aaaaaaaing." No. "Chk-aaai--" No, curse it. Daine ruffles her feathers, frustrated, and blinks down at the man.

[fragmentation]

He stares at her. "...Yeah, uh-huh," he answers sarcastically. "My name's James."

He had a moment there when he almost called himself the Master, but it's a bit too conspicuous. Easier to masquerade with the name of his other parts, and it's not the first time he'll have done so.

And he's still not entirely sure the bird can understand him, but he's going with it because he sees no reason not to. Not like he cares that some people seem to be crossing the street to not have to pass him.

[wildmage_daine]

James. He's tall, blonde, and his name is James! He even has the grey suit. Daine lets out an excited squawk and hops along the railing, resisting the urge to fly down to him. After all, it still might not be Andrew's James. And even if it is, he has no way of knowing she knows Andrew.

Unless she can tell him. "Aaaaaaang-kt-ew," she tries. "Aaaang-kt!-krrrew."

She hopes it's the right James. If he ended up here, then someone she knows could show up, too.