pullmeoutalive | log > for lack of a better place to do so

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log > for lack of a better place to do so

He had to wonder how it was that, if no one save a very, very select few could leave Whitechapel, he kept ending up elsewhere. Indeed, this wasn't the steam-driven, smog-choked section of city he called home. This was somewhere else entirely - and startlingly modern in comparison to the Victorian England he was so used to.

It was unseemly of him, but he found himself staring - tall buildings all steel and glass towered over him, and over that lay the clearest sky he'd seen in his entire life. The sun was bright, brighter that it had ever been in Whitechapel, with its constant overhang of smoke. All the better, he supposed, that he was wearing his usual attire, complete with dark glasses.

Alabaster stood alone on the street, a tall figure in smoke black stark against the clean, polished world he now found himself in. There seemed to be no one around. This city, if it was indeed a city and not some ludicrous dream, appeared to be deserted.

He reached into the pocket of his coat, fishing out a pocket watch. In this alien place, was Grandfather Clock - his God, and God over Whitechapel - still watching him through the clockface? Or had the connection been severed with his sudden disappearance?

Such things would be answered in due time, he told himself. For now, there was only the question of getting back. It wouldn't do to have Grandfather Clock's elite agent up and vanish in the middle of a rebellion, now would it?

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Throughout the explanation, Alabaster held a captive audience; indeed, save for the occasional blink and nod to indicate that she was listening, Saga didn't budge or even shift or fidget. Duff had long since bored of the conversation and his toy of choice and had fallen asleep on the table, but his housemate couldn't have been more fascinated.

The world of Whitechapel seemed like a fantasy come to life-- and probably was, knowing what gods were capable of-- and she was only disappointed that she hadn't been able to experience the place herself. The disease he'd mentioned, however... that had her concerned. And the city Alabaster spoke of sounded so controlled. People were bound to dislike being under that much control.

"People will always have differing opinions on the nature of something," she remarked, finally leaning back in her chair. "There's no point in arguing for either one, since both sides will always believe their own views. That aside, that's quite a city you live in. Your Gods are interesting, too. And one watches through a clock--"

Realization smacked straight into the back of her head with such force that she literally jumped. Precision. Order. Clocks. Time. Of course. Why hadn't she realized it sooner?!

To each their own, indeed. Still, people who defied the Gods were in for a world of hurt - Winfred Bailey and Oliver Sumner chief among them. They were all about Queen and Country, and would sooner risk their lives for a lady in a shiny hat than for a God. Queen and Country had never done Alabaster himself any favors. They could call him a traitor all they liked, but he knew where his loyalties lie.

Alabaster jumped a little himself, startled by Saga's sudden movement. "What? What is it?"

"I know which rune it is!" Unable to sit still and excited from this new discovery, Saga rose and began to pace, talking as she did. "I thought it might have had to do something with time, but it turned out to be even more subtle than that. Time itself is a journey, and there's only one rune that would contribute to that. A journey, both physical and spiritual-- to gain a wider perspective, as it were. It's rhythm itself."

She finally stopped, nodding to herself. "The rune is Raidho, and it's possible that it's the rune that sent you here and not an actual person. It must have wanted to uproot you for some reason... but to send you here, of all places..."

His eyes tracked her as she paced through the kitchen. Her excitement was almost catching but, to his credit, Alabaster remained sitting.

He considered what she was saying for a moment before speaking, "So, I was sent here because, for whatever reason, I needed to go on a journey?" If that was so, the timing could not have been worse.

She nodded, still flushed with excitement. "The runes don't typically involve certain people, but if you're the only one who arrived here, I can't dismiss that as chance or random selection. It's almost like saying that you were meant to come here, for... whatever reason that is."

"Would it stand to reason that once I've fulfilled my purpose, I'll then be sent home? Or is that too much to hope for?" Even as he spoke, he couldn't help but give her a slight grin. Her excitement was catching.

The grin was returned, as well as followed up with a nod and a thumbs-up. "It's pretty much a test, so if you can pass it, the rune should be satisfied with that. And..." Saga tapped her chin with a finger, looking thoughtful. "Maybe helping you out is my test, too. Even if the rune doesn't send you back, if I can learn enough, I should be able to do it myself."

It sounded like a win-win situation. The only constraint was time, and while he wanted to do whatever it was he was supposed to do as quickly as possible and be done with it, he doubted something as ageless as a rune worked on the same timetables he did. The only course of action seemed to be to push forward and hope for the best.

"All that remains is to figure out what this test actually entails, then," he mused, tapping the side of his mug with a finger.

"I'll get to researching," she promised, giving the stack of notes an affectionate glance. "It might take me awhile to sift through everything, but we should probably also look into finding you a place to stay for the time being. Maybe a hotel... but if we don't know how long this'll take, I guess we can't give them an approximate time period..."

"As much as I hate to impose," Alabaster remarked. He thought over his next words carefully - this girl had already gone so far out of her way to help him, and the last thing he wanted to do was put her out but... "Wouldn't letting me loose in a world that I know next to nothing about be a bit, ah, unwise?"

Cutting off a "Yes, Mommy" before it could do more than formulate in her mind, Saga chose an embarrassed nod instead. She'd been worried about exposing him to too much of her world too quickly, but had glossed over the fact that this entire city was going to be just as overwhelming for him. At the very least, he'd need someone who would understand and be able to explain things to him.

"You're right, I'm sorry." She paused and clasped her hands together behind her back, uncharacteristically bashful. "If you don't mind the ghost cat, and the occasional... odd thing happening, I'd be honored if you stayed with me for as long as you need to."

"I'm having a hard time imagining anything odder than what's already occurred." For whatever good it did, he smiled. Saga was willing to help him, get him home, and let him stay with her, he figured he at least owed her the courtesy of a smile. They were - in essence - partners on this little mission, even if they didn't quite yet know that the mission was. "Thank you," he added with a small nod.

After a moment, he rose out of his chair. "I don't want to go about surprising you unnecessarily, so I believe there's something you should see."

She very wisely kept her mouth shut about levitating objects (and the Aeolian Harp that actually needed no wind to play, and the clock in the hall by the bathroom that burst into songs from Broadway musicals whenever someone walked past it), and glanced at Alabaster as he stood up.

"All right... and what's that?"

He didn't answer her, at least not audibly, but instead raised his hands slightly - in a subdued version of what Saga had done upon first meeting him, he realized.

Suddenly, from within the sleeves of his coat there emerged a slender, metallic rod. It bent along several joints as it made its appearance, twisting like it was some sort of snake and Alabaster the charmer. The end of it split into three fingers, twisting and flexing. More arms of a similar nature slid out of the man's jacket sleeves - some of them were tipped with hands, blades, needle-fine points, all manner of things. Alabaster himself was a veritable Swiss Army Knife.

Saga jumped-- she hadn't been meaning to, but the curving, almost sinuous mass of metal and blades emerging from his sleeves would have startled anyone, and she was no exception.

It was at once terrifying and fascinating, how this metal seemed as much a part of him as his flesh, and she took a moment to study it, hand outstretched tentatively and hovering over one part of the structure.

"Can I...?" She looked up at him uncertainly.

Of all things, Alabaster hadn't expected her to want to touch it. Not that it particularly bothered him, but most people tended to shy away at the evidence that he was touched by Grandfather Clock- of course, that meant nothing to Saga. An interesting change from the norm.

"If you like but... just a moment." Some of the more deadly limbs pulled away slightly from where Saga's hand drifted - the last thing he wanted to do was stab her. One arm in particular, though, reached out to meet her own. The fingers were long, and tipped with rubber pads. A device made for gripping rather than maiming.

She hesitated, taking a deep breath before her fingers made contact with his. It was interesting to note the difference between metal and skin, between the soft pads of her fingers and the rubber ones of his. Alabaster's were probably more efficient, but Saga had to wonder if they could register sensations. Sure, not suffering burns or cuts or slamming your finger in a car door would be nice, but sometimes, that was just how you learned.

"Hephaestus would probably love to meet you," she murmured, now engrossed in trailing her fingers along the joints that comprised the arm. "And it all fits together..."

Contrary to popular belief, his extra limbs could feel. Not in the usual sense, certainly, but... well, it was difficult to explain. He just sort of knew. Any sort of pain never registered as such - it would've been foolish of Grandfather Clock to give him a weapon that felt pain and made it a hindrance - but somewhere in the back of his mind he knew that whatever he was handling was too hot, too cold, too strenuous, and he would act accordingly. They were a part of him, after all.

This, however, was something very, very new. He primarily used these mechanical arms for combat, and every human touch they encountered was jarring, swift, and messy. Saga's touch was soft and tentative (and rightfully so), and--- he couldn't quite place it, but it wasn't a bad feeling. Not by a long shot.

He raised his eyebrows, very slightly, the only indication that he felt anything at all. At least, until he spoke. He found himself sounding, much to his annoyance, slightly distracted, "...What does?"

If Saga had taken notice of his tone, she chose not to mention it, and gave her head a shake to clear her mind of her own distraction and half-forming thoughts.

"Your limbs," she clarified. "It's not like I haven't seen machinery before, but it rusts, or sometimes something falls out of alignment... but this is something else. Everything's connected to something else for a purpose, and this almost feels... alive."

Suddenly realizing that she had been examining his arm for longer than what had to be comfortable for him, she guiltily withdrew her hand. "S-sorry. This is just new for me."

He felt a slight pang of loss when she withdrew her hand. All the better, he told himself. He couldn't afford distractions, and, at the very least she'd pinpointed a dangerous chink in his armor, even if she didn't realize it.

"To be fair," he said, quickly regaining his composure. "They are alive."

... Yes, Hephaestus would definitely be interested in this man. Interested enough to descend from Mount Olympus? Who knew. Although she had only come face-to-face with some of them and only once or twice (her grandfather she'd encountered seven times, and each one had been memorable), Hephaestus had always been the one she'd felt most comfortable with. Artemis and Athena were intimidating, imposing women, Aphrodite made her feel ashamed to even look at her, and Apollo had long deemed her beneath his notice. The lame smith, however, had always made her feel welcome.

Saga leaned back, resting her weight on her heels for a second. "You're amazing," she said honestly, giving him a little smile. "Every time I start to think I understand a little more, you say something else that I didn't expect. That means..." She blinked. "They do register sensation, then?"

And there was something else to add to the list of things he'd never been referred to as until today. Not that it was a bad thing. Even the look on her face was a welcome change against the wide-eyed terror he'd become so accustomed to.

Alabaster began to withdraw his limbs as he spoke, each one folding up on itself and slipping back into his sleeves. "They do, though obviously not in the usual sense." He paused a beat, frowning. "It's difficult to explain, but suffice to say I just know."

"Then it's-- ugh, I'm doing it again." The brunette growled under her breath, pressing her palm to her forehead. "I'm sorry, I'm probably asking way too many questions right now." It was something her parents had encouraged from all of their children, but that didn't mean it was right to bombard the poor man with her curiosity.

With the hand still against her head, she looked up at him once more. "Well, fair's fair. Is there anything you'd like to know?"

Alabaster shrugged, a possibly odd looking motion in that he did so right as the last of his mechanical arms slid into his sleeves. Questions were bound to pop up, and he'd rather get them out of the way and be done with it.

He thought for a moment, casting a glance around the room. "I suppose the basic workings of your home would be a nice place to start." He inclined his head, considering his soot-and-oil-darkened hands. "And a washroom, if it's not too much trouble."

There were benefits to having an older sister who worked as a tour guide; it took only a matter of minutes to lead Alabaster around the apartment, explaining how the microwave was meant to heat up food, how the computer worked, that the vacuum cleaner was not a hostile force (even if Duff believed otherwise), and so on. She even showed him the laundry room downstairs, complete with full instructions on how to use both the washer and the dryer.

At the end of the tour, Saga emerged from the bathroom and nodded to him. "The towels on the counter are for you. Feel free to wash up as much as you want. We'll probably have to look into finding you an extra change of clothing while you're here, too."

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