[ closed ]

[aeturnus]

who: Cain (aeturnus) & Loki (dothelokimotion)
what: Two oldbies meet up for lunch to maybe talk about magic, maybe talk about being stupid old
when: Day after this thread, June 27th
where: Some Italian-ish restaurant because Cain is biased
warnings: Currently N/A. Updates as necessary.

[ Cain, true to his word, scopes something out before he bugs Loki about meeting up. It isn't anything terribly fancy, nor is it Earth-based, but it has food that's close enough for him to figure it'll be good for lunch and while he's getting a seat and letting the staff know he's meeting someone on their lunch breaks, he texts Loki the location.

Really, a lot of his motivation is boredom. That's basically his biggest motivator here, boredom and curiosity, things that push him to get up and get out and talk to people and understand this new world. On the other hand... he wasn't lying about enjoying their conversations, and there's a certain attachment forming there that he's pretty sure Loki is in no place to accept right now. The god's demeanor is definitely not open for friendship out of the blue so he'll get them closer before dropping that bombshell maybe.

That's how you do it, right? ]

Comments

[aeturnus]

Not a bad point. There's so many earths, I wonder if they just go with majority? No way they have the same root here as they do back on earth.

[ Because a Roman would know that for sure. ]

[dothelokimotion]

That seems the most likely answer. Obviously, they allow for leeway, but most of the routines here link back to Midgard.

[aeturnus]

All roads lead to Rome. All realities lead back to Earth? You'd think more people from other Earths would know about this sort of thing.

[dothelokimotion]

They only have theories. Nothing that has been put to practice. And they lack the knowledge to bridge it forward.

[aeturnus]

Are you basing that off an assumption that all Earths have to be at the same technological level? Or just the one you know?

[dothelokimotion]

Mostly out of the assumption that time has not changed that much.

[ Loki gestures to their surroundings. ]

What time period do you think of when you see this?

[aeturnus]

Twenty-first century.

[ He dips his head, concedes that point. ]

It's a commonality, sure, but I haven't heard of any outliers who are used to this sort of thing and also come from some version of Earth.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki drums his fingers on the table. ]

What kind of outliers were you expecting?

[aeturnus]

Something more... sci-fi? Closest humans have to understanding this sort of thing is wormhole theory, so with Earths that ended up with a better grasp of those sciences...

[ He shrugs. It's well within the realm of possibility where alternate realities are concerned. ]

[dothelokimotion]

Perhaps. I have yet to see any though.

[ Even with the Tessaract, their understanding was . . . passable. And it took him far longer to get the things he needed. ]

[aeturnus]

That's partly my point. It's weird, isn't it? Everything feels like it's built on a base of Earthnocentrism the biggest difference is completely beyond that.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki shrugs. ]

It might just be that they don't want that many . . . ah, great minds in one location.

[aeturnus]

Then we look back around to the living portal part of it, though. Which begs the question of how much they actually control of the process.

[dothelokimotion]

I do not think the people here understand the portals that well.

[ A sentient portal though . . . It unnerves him. There are only a few he knows who can wield that power. ]

[aeturnus]

Maybe not... Or something's changed. Most people that come here do it voluntarily, but recently they've been getting people that haven't.

[ He shrugs. ]

Hopefully studying magic will help me get a better understanding of all this.

[dothelokimotion]

Magic isn't necessarily going to open up a better understanding of the universe. Thor has a magic hammer and good luck getting him to explain anything.

[aeturnus]

Somehow that smacks of false equivalence. Sure, magic items could be useful but knowledge of the inner workings is something different. [ Cain shakes his head. ] I don't expect it to answer everything but it might give me better places to start looking.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki shrugs carefully. ]

Are you simply looking for a hobby? Filling in the time before the inevitable?

[aeturnus]

What, the heat death of the universe?

[dothelokimotion]

I was speaking of the loss.

[aeturnus]

[ That gets a soft sigh and he sits back in his chair. ]

Hobbies and interests last longer than people... but it doesn't hurt to share them while they're around.

[dothelokimotion]

I suppose?

[ Loki may be immortal, but he's been immortal in the company of others. He may have a better grasp of it than most Asgardians who no longer venture far from their homestead . . . but he still young in this. ]

[aeturnus]

Guess I'm just used to it by now. You can't exactly put people on hold, but avoiding them doesn't work either. [ Cain tilts his head, gaze curious. ] Have you dealt with that before?

[dothelokimotion]

I did not know any mortals personally until I came here.

[ The Avengers don't count. Jane would, but she was unconscious for most of their trip to the Dark World. ]

[aeturnus]

[ He nods. ]

You haven't been here long, though. So you're just thinking about what will come?