riverviewlogs | OPEN | i wanna be where the people are

Entry tags:

OPEN | i wanna be where the people are

who: cisco + anyone!
what: catch-all
when: mid-april through may
where: anywhere; if you want an individual starter lmk!
warnings: will add as necessary

fireflies

[ When Cisco had gone firefly catching, he had been intending to study them - do a few modest experiments, see if he could figure out what was making them light up in so many colors. He has a scientist's curiosity, and needed something to get his creative gears going.

The trouble was, it didn't really take the scientific method to realize pretty soon that those fireflies not only bit (which is just so rude), but that their bite had some pretty serious impact on people's moods. It reminds Cisco of Rainbow Raider, and how he'd used color to send people into paroxysms of murderous rage. At least this isn't that bad - but the effects are still profoundly inconvenient.

The trouble is, knowing they might make his emotions go haywire didn't actually make him want to study them any less. In fact, quite the opposite. He wants to know how. But there's no good way to determine that without being around the damn things, so basically, that just means getting bit. A lot. And trying his best to manage the fallout. But, there's only so much avoiding he can do - he's bound to run into some people while tweaking on firefly magic. ]

moontech lab

[ Cisco's been settling in nicely at his job since his arrival. He's gotten things set up how he likes them - or at the very least, tolerably close to it. He's talked to a few members of the perimeter guard, the police force, and the firefighters, and he has a good idea of what they need. He's working on some interesting ideas for tech to keep them safe.

But he's also not hesitating to put the word out - to his roommates, and other random people that he speaks to - that if anyone needs a tech solution to any kind of confounding problem, that they should come and see him at the lab and see what he can whip up for them. Cisco might charge a nominal fee - guy's gotta eat, after all - but is aiming to make connections rather than make a profit. He knows from experience how important it can be to make friends, to have allies, and making stuff for people has proved to be a good way to do that in the past.

He can be found at the lab, surrounded by tables covered in bits and bobs - wires and circuit boards and tools and a laptop or two buried under things. ]

misc

[ Cisco isn't someone who does well with idleness. Sure, he appreciates the necessity of goofing off, of not working nonstop, but usually his leisure is busy - he's either marathoning some sci-fi show or playing his way through the newest triple a game in a single day, or devouring the latest science journals by the dozen, or going to clubs to dance until he can barely stay on his feet.

The trouble here is that here, a lot of those options aren't really open to him. So he ends up taking over a table at a coffee house that reminds him, just a little, of Jitters. He may stay there for hours on end, watching the people go by, but he is not wasting time. Cisco's brought a journal or two that he's using to sketch out designs for tech, to write down observations and theories about this place, and take notes on the few people he has met so far. Honestly, if anyone looked in them they'd probably find it a little creepy, but everyone acclimates in different ways. This is his.

Still, he has a smile to offer anyone who looks familiar or stops by his table to check in. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Right. Taako, got it.

[ Cisco for once manages a little bit of self restraint and asks, before launching into any kind of joke: ]

I'm sure if you've met people from Earth they've probably told you your name sounds a whole lot like a kind of food, which is pretty funny actually since you said you're a chef. Unless they've got tacos where you're from, too, in which case your parents had it out for you when they named you, man.

[ He says it all fairly rapidly, and is happy when one of the employees - bartender? barrista? - comes by to ask what he wants. ]

Same as him, thanks.

[ Can't go wrong copying someone else's order, right? Besides, the thing's covered in candy, Cisco definitely wants to try it. And Taako's lack of humility certainly doesn't seem to bother Cisco; he raises his eyebrows, expression something close to is that so? ]

So you're the one I should hit up if I wanna know all the cool places to check out?

[That was a whole lot of words, and Taako's smile is somewhere between bemused and fond, but at least he's keeping up.]

Yeah, yeah, I know about the taco thing. [He hums, amused.] they do not exist where I come from, so my parents get outta that one. Most humans don't mention it, you know? Either they're too polite or too chicken.

[Which means he's either calling Cisco rude or brave, but he'll leave that open for interpretation.]

But you've tried them, right? I mean, there's gotta be someplace on the moon that serves tacos. If not, I'll make you some myself. I might not be a chef, but I can at least do decent tacos. And if you want you can stand around and Gordon Ramsay me all you want.

[ And they're right back to where they started, when they had that conversation over the network. Only this time, Cisco's accustomed enough to Riverview that he follows his reference with an immediate explanation ]

He's a famous TV chef on my earth who goes to shitty restaurants and yells at the cooks for all of their terrible choices. Which sounds horrible but it's got a mad schadenfreude payoff.

[ The bar-ista brings Cisco his drink, and he immediately picks a couple pieces of candy from the rim and pops them into his mouth. ]

Yeaa, uh, polite's not really my strong suit.

[ Cisco gives a rather chagrined smile as he says that, tucking his hair behind his ear and shifting on his seat. Politeness is more than just consideration for other people - it requires knowing all the right social codes and being willing to follow them, even if it's boring and frustrating and even hurtful to others, and Cisco's not about that. He's not an asshole, but etiquette is something he's pretty much given up on. ]

So how does one get to be a celebrity wizard chef, anyway?

[Suddenly Taako understands how Merle and Magnus must feel when he goes off on a bit of a tangent without slowing down to breathe, though he does listen to Cisco with the same amount of grace that Merle and Magnus allow him when he spends five minutes talking about mongooses and emotions.]

First of all, I have had tacos, but I will not say no to trying your attempt. [Free food!!] Especially if you can track down episodes of this Gordon Ramsey show, it sounds a-ma-zing.

[Yelling at people for being terrible cooks sounds right up his alley, and while he decides to leave the politeness discussion for now (it's not really his strong suit, either). He will answer Cisco's question:]

Started off as a chef, had a show with a traveling caravan, worked my up to being just like, super famous and awesome. [Honestly, he tends to oversell just how "famous" he was, but no one needs to know.] I started learning magic to spice things up a little, it's way more interesting to pick up a pitcher of water and have it be wine when it hits the skillet, you know?

If I find a hookup for Kitchen Nightmares, you're my first call, promise. Probably be kinda fun, watching it with someone who knows a lot about food.

[ Cisco pauses long enough to take a proper sip of his drink, and to let Taako tell his story. And there's a lot of information packed in there. Traveling caravans are a thing, apparently, and Cisco can't help but thinking that the way Taako talks about being famous is surprising. Then again, who knows, maybe that's the way celebrities are in his world, too. The closest he's come to meeting any have all been important scientists like Martin Stein or Harrison Wells, and that's sort of a different vibe to begin with. ]

So is magic something anyone in your world can do? Is it only elves, or people with a genetic predisposition, or is it really just... whoever?

[ Cisco knows that using language like 'genetic predisposition is something of a conversational risk, but hey. They clearly have television in Taako's world, so there must be some understanding of science, right?

His voice goes wry as he adds: ]

That whole water-into-wine move's kinda trademarked where I come from.

[Watching Kitchen Nightmares with Taako will either be a nightmare in itself or hilarious, depending on whether Cisco enjoys petty commentary from an elf.]

Elves take to it more easily, like, most of us will know a cantrip or whatever, but yeah, theoretically any old thug can learn how to do magic. The whole world is magic and shit, all you gotta do is see it and shape it.

[He's teaching Eddie, who he knows is a friend of Cisco's, but he's not sure if that's something Eddie really wants other people to know, so he'll keep it to himself for the moment.]

I thought you guys didn't have magic, or is it a, uh, metahuman? That's the word, yeah?

[ Isn't adding petty commentary what watching Food Network is all about? ]

That's awesome. What kind of cantrips? I mean, are there different types of magic? Do people tend to specialize? Are there magic schools?

[ Taako had been right, deciding that this was a conversation best had in person rather than by text. Cisco is really doing his best to restrain himself from asking every single question that comes into his mind, to take his time and not overwhelm Taako with his curiosity. But it's just so. damn. cool. Cisco has almost immediately forgotten about his drink; he's leaning forward across the table a little, eyes bright, all attention and enthusiasm.

And that enthusiasm doesn't go away when Taako steers the conversation to Cisco's world of origin. ]

Uhhh, we don't have magic. It's- [ He pauses for a moment, considers the daunting task of trying to explain the cultural connotations of turning water into wine. Cisco shakes his head. That's a bit too complicated, especially for their first rela conversation. ] It's a long and pretty complicated story. But yeah, you've heard of metas?

[ Now Cisco can't remember if he'd mentioned metahumans in their network chat - it had been a while ago, after all. Clearly he had, or else Taako had heard about them from someone else. There are a few folks here from Cisco's world, after all. ]

Metas aren't really magic, though. They've just had their DNA altered so they have a set of specific abilities that regular humans don't. They can learn new ways to use those abilities, but it's not like a meta who can control the weather can sit down and learn how to teleport, and vice versa.

[Taako huffs a laugh at the barrage of questions, it's not entirely new, but usually people tend to go one at a time instead of four or more at once, so he's going to handle the the metahuman question first, since that's the easiest to answer.]

I have heard of metas, a couple worlds seem to have humans with weird shit.

[Wanda's, Eddie's, wherever the hell Bucky comes from (he doesn't know that Wanda and Bucky share a world), but the whole genetic off it doesn't really interest him as much as it likely does Cisco. He doesn't really understand how altering genetics can give someone powers, and he's not inclined to spend too long thinking about it or ask for an explanation. If these metas are like Clark, magic can still fuck them up, which is the only reasons he'd be worried.]

And I mean, uh, wizards can't learn specific druid spells or like... sorcerer shit. So yeah, there are for sure different types of magic, cause you've got your different types of magic users and then your different schools of magic. I'm a transmutation wizard, so that's my specialization, and you've got - [Hold on he's going to count off on his fingers.] - abjuration, necromancy, conjuration, illusion, divination, enchantment, and evocation. Those spread across all magic users, so you can get yourself a transmutation warlock, but he's not gonna have the exact same transmutations spells that I would.

[Phewf he's done.

Oh wait:]

And you've got brick and mortar actual for real schools for magic, but I didn't go to one.

[Okay he thinks that covers it.]

[ Cisco listens with rapt attention, forgetting entirely about his drink, about the espresso bar around them, about everything apart from what Taako is saying. Types of magic, schools of magic, and he tries to remember them all when Taako lists them, and he thinks he gets most of them. And just because that's how his mind works, Cisco can't help wondering if maybe there's a scientific explanation for each. After all, what is transmutation but changing matter on a molecular level? The truth is, he'd love to do some tests on Taako, see if he could observe the process and figure out what makes it work. But Cisco's made the mistake enough times to know that 'come to my lab so I can do tests on you' isn't the kind of request you make in the first few hours of a friendship. Unfortunately.

If Taako thinks that he is done or that Cisco is out of questions, then he is wrong. ]

What's the difference between a wizard and a warlock, and a sorcerer and a druid?

[ He is well aware that this conversation is turning into something a bit more like an interrogation, or an interview, or maybe a study session, so before Taako answers, Cisco offers a little information of his own, to make things a bit less one-sided. ]

It's totally like that with the different branches of science. They're all interrelated, but you've got biologists, chemists, physicists, mathematicians, astronomers, botanists, geologists, engineers... and each of those has specializations, too, so like, me, right? I'm a mechanical engineer, which means I use physics and engineering ideas in order to design and build machines.

[It's okay, he knows there's a bunch more questions coming, he'll just tackle them as he gets them.]

Yeah, uh, we've got scientists but most of 'em use arcane knowledge along with their own shit, you'd probably have a way easier time of this with Lucas, cause I'm just a simple wizard.

[He can't claim to know all that much about the interaction between the arcane arts and science, at least not without his memories of the Institute.

But he's answered the "differences between wizard and warlock" question enough times that he can explain that easily.]

Warlocks get their magic from some like, a powerful entity they made a deal with, usually in exchange for their soul or whatever. [You do you, warlocks.] Sorcerers are kinda genetic, I guess? They're pretty rare and not a whole lot is known about them cause of that. Wizards learn their shit from books or other wizards, I can like... [He sort of moves his fingers through the air, as though tracing an invisible pattern.] Magic's in everything, I use spells to shape it to do cool shit. Druids get their magic from nature, clerics get theirs from their god.

[There's also bards and paladins but... ehh...]

I'm assuming Lucas is a scientist friend of yours?

[ Cisco resists the urge to pull out his phone and start frantically taking notes, and tries instead to just commit what Taako says to memory. The differences, to him, are fascinating. The way Taako frames it, wizard certainly seems like the default, the most normal option, but perhaps that's unsurprising given that is what Taako himself is. ]

I wonder which I woulda been, if I was from the same world as you.

[ There's an implication there, unspoken but fairly obvious, that Cisco thinks of himself, or anyone else not from Taako's world originally, as incapable of learning magic. Sure, he might have said that only sorcerers got their powers handed down genetically, but even so, it is just too much for him to imagine, that he could do magic if only he had the right instruction. ]

So what's the coolest spell you know?

[ Water into wine is great and all, but Cisco is hungry to hear more, to know even more possibilities. ]

"Friend" is a fucking stretch, but sure.

[In a way, he owes Lucas for filling them in on some of the information about the planes, for saving Noelle, and for basically introducing Taako to Kravitz, but Lucas is also the reason Merle lost his arm, so Taako isn't particularly fond of the guy.]

And I mean, not everyone is a magic user, you still could've been an engineer, we've got pretty neat wagons and robots and shit.

[He says wagons but he really means cars with the serial number filed off.]

Coolest spell I know? [He hums, thoughtful.] Are we talking in terms of damage or how showy it is? Cause those are way different things.

[ Cisco's eyebrows raise in surprise at the vehemence of that reply. Clearly, there's a history there. Cisco knows it's probably not his place to pry, not when he's already asking Taako so many questions. But could anyone blame him for being curious? If Taako had just said "not really," Cisco wouldn't have asked. Even a somewhat scornful "no" would've been less intriguing. But now... ]

Oh?

[ That's all; just a simple prompt, a push if Taako wants to say more. Cisco might come off as socially awkward, but he does have some sense of when not to push too hard. ]

I mean, I guess that's true. But I'm tellin' ya, if I lived somewhere where there was even a chance of me doing magic? I would be so into it.

[ Cisco sips at his drink, eating a bit of candy from the sides; as they talk he is relaxing, his initial brimming enthusiasm settling down into a more natural conversational ease. ]

Me, I like a little damage and a little showiness. So I guess that's up to you.

He nearly destroyed the world cause he couldn't let the dead stay dead.

[Maureen died, and that sucks, but fucking around with one of the grand relics just to save one person is selfish and shitty, even from his perspective. Especially when it nearly killed everyone on the fucking planet.]

Well then, wizard would probably work, a lot of us are fucking nerds. [Not him, but if Cisco is a scientist interested in learning, Taako can see him taking the acolyte path.]

Most damage would probably be disintegrate, it does pretty much what it says on the tin, and it's transmutation so it's in my wheelhouse. Flashy might be magnificent manor, you wanna see it?

[He won't pass up a chance to show off.]

[ Cisco's eyes go round; he wonders if this is a different almost-world-destruction than the looming threat Taako had mentioned during their first conversation. It also occurs to him (thanks to the tiny voice of cynicism that chimes in on occasion from the back of his mind) that that description isn't entirely inaccurate to Barry's actions. Sure, he'd decided not to save his mom in the end, but him running into the past is what had started the singularity. Which had nearly ended the world, and also had opened up holes to another dimension.

But he hadn't meant to. So Cisco doesn't hold it against him - but evidently Taako holds whatever Lucas had done against him. ]

Necromancy or something? [ Taako did say magic and science got mixed up together, sometimes. ]

Wow, we've been hanging out about half an hour and you've got me pegged as a fucking nerd already. You don't miss much.

[ Cisco says it with a smile; as far as he's concerned, being called a fucking nerd is always, always a compliment, even if the person saying it means it as an insult. It had taken years to get comfortable in his own nerdiness, but he's there now. It's just who he is.

The offer to demonstrate a flashy spell has Cisco immediately sitting up straighter, his interest bright and obvious ]

Uh, hell yeah I wanna see it!

It's a long story, there were ghosts in robots and crystal golems, it was dumb as hell.

[Taako has very little respect for most authority, to be honest, but the laws of life and death are generally the sort of thing people should follow. There are exceptions, like Refuge, but if you get stabbed with a sword and you die, them's the breaks.

But he means it about being a long story, and he hasn't had nearly enough to drink to tell it, so Cisco gets a wink for the nerd comment (all scientists are nerds tbh) and then Taako is sliding off his stool.]

Gimme two seconds.

[He has to briefly chat up a bartender first, asking permission to borrow their wall because "I want to impress a cute boy", since that line of reasoning is likely to get him a yes. Which is does, so Taako heads to the barest wall and starts casting his spell.

A minute later, there's a faintly shimmering portal on the wall, through which a grand foyer can be seen, and Taako waves Cisco over.]

You might wanna hold onto your butt, this one's pretty amazing.

[ The fact that it's a long story, and the fact that there are robots and something called crystal golems, only makes Cisco want to hear it all the more. But he knows a brush-off when he hears one; Taako hadn't said that as a warning or a disclaimer, but because he clearly isn't interested in talking about it right now. Cisco can live with that. With this sort of thing, patience can be a virtue. ]

You'll have to tell it to me someday.

[ Not enough to pressure Taako, hopefully, but just enough to make it clear he won't forget, and that he is interested to know more. And it doesn't seem like Taako minds, because he still agrees to show off his best bit of showy magic. Cisco watches him get up and go to talk to the bartender, craning his neck to see what Taako is up to. But all he sees is a brief conversation, and then Taako walking over to a wall. And then the wall... changes. It ripples, shifts, and Cisco can see through it, like a... well, like a portal.

The moment Taako waves him forward Cisco is on his feet, rushing over with eager, open wonder. He nods absently to Taako's warning, reaching up toward the portal but not actually moving his hand closer. He wants to touch it, but that might be a really bad idea. Still, it's almost like he can... feel the energy of it, thrumming, somehow. Like he doesn't just see that there's some kind of magic door in the air, but that he can feel it, in his blood, like a hum, or a vibration. ]

This is so dope.

[Get a few more drinks in him and Cisco can hear all about their shitty floating lab adventure, although really it was one of their more successful missions with a relatively low body count, so Taako is just being whiny.

But the more important thing is the cool magic.]

You can go in, pumpkin, this sorta magic can't hurt ya. If I ended the spell you'd just get dropped back out here.

[Once Cisco does go in, Taako will be right behind him, but he figures it's polite to let Cisco go first.

Inside is going to look like a very fancy castle, with all the trimmings, because Taako gets to pick the interior and he might as well go big.]

[ As far as showing off is concerned, Cisco is pretty much the ideal audience. It's been many years since he stopped being shy about the fact that he's a person who has strong reactions to things: when he's surprised, he's going to gasp; when he's scared, he's going to scream; when he's delighted, he's going to laugh. And it's clear, too, that the wonder is unfeigned, that it is coming from a place of genuine and almost childlike excitement.

After Cisco steps through the portal he claps his hands over his mouth, eyes bright with happiness. It's not the bar, doesn't smell like it, doesn't look like it, doesn't feel like it. ]

What is... how is...

[ He reaches out to try to touch something, asking as he does: ] Is this some kind of illusion? Like a hologram? Or is this a real place?

[As soon as they stop through, doors close gently behind them, just so that no one else wanders in.]

This is all conjuration, bubbale, not an illusion in sight. Here...

[He waves a hand, and a fucking butler comes down a staircase with a flute of champagne on a silver tray, that's then offered to Cisco. The butler is sort of indistinct, almost ethereal, because Taako couldn't be bothered to make him totally real.]

You ever want to feed a hundred people without spending a dime, I'm your dude. [a beat] Well, no, that's not entirely true cause I'd totally charge you some kinda fee, but you get it.

[ Cisco hesitates before taking the champagne, touching the glass gingerly. It's hard to say what he's hesitating for, precisely. He keeps waiting for the whole thing to blink out of existence and for him to be standing in the espresso bar, his hand outstretched and holding nothing, looking like a complete idiot. But it doesn't happen. And the champagne, when he drinks it, feels and tastes real. The bubbles tickle his nose and it is sharp and dry and very cold. ]

This is so beyond the coolest thing ever.

[ He puts the drink back down, examining his surroundings with keen interest, glancing back at Taako every few moments to make sure he hasn't left or started to glow or who knows what. ]

What's the catch? There has to be a catch, right?

[ Maybe he's outing himself as a bit of a cynic, but Cisco doesn't trust all this something-from-nothing. If Taako is able to just conjure matter from thin air, there has to be some kind of price - in a sense of physical laws of the universe, or in the sense of him giving something up to be able to do this. That's just how things are. No such thing as free champagne; he might not have spent a dime for it, but someone somewhere spent something. ]

[This isn't his first time casting this spell, although it is the first time he's used this particular configuration of rooms. It's all very grand and elegant, like, maybe he watched Beauty & The Beast recently and is emulating the castle just a little bit.]

No catch! Magic can do some pretty rad shit, although I do have a limit of once a day on this, it takes a bit outta ol' Taako to cast it.

[Not that he seems particularly tired, or like casting it was difficult, but he's all outta level 7 wizard spells for the day, and that translates to lost energy.]

[ Cisco initially stays skeptical, until Taako brings up the fact that there are, at least, limits. That he can't just cast the spell endlessly, that it drains him. That settles down the doubt in Cisco a little bit. If he'd insisted there was no toll, no consequences, no downside whatsoever, Cisco would be inclined to think he was lying. A one-a-day restriction is at least something. ]

Yeah, that's how it is with speedsters.

[ He keeps exploring even as he speaks, looking at the details - it really is remarkably intricate, this place that Taako's conjured from thin air. ]

Uh, metahumans that can move really fast, I mean. They can run fast enough to break the sound barrier but they gotta eat, like, ten thousand calories a day to make up for it.

[ Belatedly, it occurs to Cisco that maintaining this space for a long period of time might be draining Taako; he stops poking around and turns to face him, says: ]

You can take us back to the bar now if this is sapping your energy or mana or whatever. Consider me completely, socks-entirely-blown-off impressed.

Fuck, how is that a downside? Being able to eat ten thousand calories a day sounds rad as hell.

[Pick the chef.

While Cisco is exploring, Taako flops down in a ridiculously plush armchair, legs dangling over the side because he doesn't believe in sitting in chairs like a normal person, apparently.]

This isn't one I gotta maintain, once it's done it's done. It should even stick around when I'm sleeping, but I haven't tested it. But if you wanna go back that's cool.

See, you think that now but I've seen what that looks like. It's a lot more time-consuming and expensive than you'd think. I actually had to make this super high-calorie bars for the Flash so he'd stop fainting while he was trying to save people's lives.

[ Does that make Cisco a kind of chef, too? Probably not - it had really been much more an exercise of science rather than trying to make something that actually tasted all that good. At the speed Barry ate them, it usually didn't matter all that much. ]

Seriously? Damn, nevermind, let's stay then, this place is suh-weet. [ He breaks the word 'sweet' into two syllables for emphasis, finding an armchair of his own not far from Taako's and dropping into it, as well. He is just a touch buzzed from the drink he'd had in the bar, and more than happy to enjoy the magic for as long as it lasts.

And apart from giving him the inclination to rest his head against the arm of the chair and drape himself a bit bonelessly, the other slight affect of the alcohol is to reduce his verbal filter just enough for him to ask: ]

Why'd you agree to meet with me, anyway? And show me all this awesome magic and answer a bunch of questions?

[ Cisco's certainly not complaining, but he is curious. There's an underlying assumption there that Cisco doesn't quite see - that, barring some kind of motivating factor, some endgame (whether malicious or not), that most people won't voluntarily just choose to spend time with him, or show off for him, or satisfy his curiosity. Cisco isn't bad with people - not standoffishly awkward like your stereotypical nerd in a 90s movie. But he spent too long with no friends at all to think that people would be drawn to him just because of who he is. ]

OPEN | i wanna be where the people are

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