metalogs | ( open-ish ) dedicate and sacrifice my everything

( bruce busies himself with looking at a brochure to something that's been tucked off to the side, scanning it for anything that might be of use, but. also to just see what it is. it's only when diana speaks up, that he glances over to the waitress for a moment, face scrunched up some in genuine thought. )

Uh... coffee. Black.

( an awkward smile, he looks back to the brochure in his hands, flipping it around before he goes and tucks it back where he'd plucked it from, tapping it down with the tip of a finger.

hands coming to fold there on the table, he leans over some to take a look outside the window — particularly their motel, before he's slowly easing back into his seat, looking over to diana then. )

What?

[ Peacefully: ]

I said nothing.

[ But she had been watching him. She leans an elbow onto the table top and rests her chin on the palm of her hand, studying him with interest. Here in the diner, under the fluorescent lights, it's all the more evident how little sunlight he gets. He needs some warmth and light in his face, the sort of warmth one can only get from occasionally going out in the daytime. ]

But I was thinking... tomorrow, I might take a trip up to Sunset Falls. I'd be back before the end of the day, but there's someone there I'd like to speak to, if I can.

( she may not have said anything, but he certainly felt the way she was looking at him.

a look of curiosity there on his face, he refrains from saying anything as his coffee and her water plus herbal tea are brought, asking for another minute to order before he pulls his mug closer to himself, hand wrapping around it.

when it's just the two of them again, he looks to her. voice soft. )

Going off by yourself.

( it's not a question, seeing how she hadn't phrased it as that, or as something she'd been considering. the look on his face shows a touch of uncertainty. )

Who?

Not for long. And I will return. You have my word as an Amazon.

[ The way she says it, it's clear a promise of hers is as unbreakable as her lasso. ]

You are free to join me, if you like, but this person – this... entity – is a god. And they can be difficult to speak with, even when one has experience.

[ She reaches for her tea, then opens a small packet of honey and pours it in, stirring slowly. ]

Back where we came from, I learned that the god Eros was living outside of Sunset Falls. If he is here, now, he may have observed some things that could help lead us to Chaos Gate. Barring that, he might at least have some god-made armor or weaponry at hand, or know where I could find some.

( beneath the table, bruce's leg bounces a little as he listens — fingers tapping the sugar packet he'd taken hold of against the table's surface. )

Or he could tell you to take a hike. Or worse.

( being so difficult to speak with as she says. there's a sigh on his lips that doesn't fall, but it's felt in the way he looks to her, much as the uncertainty with this can be as well.

a hand rubbing over his face, he looks up when the waitress returns to see if they're ready. )

I'll have a Reuben sandwich with fries.

( placing his order, he looks to diana, letting her order what she wants. )

The vegetable omelette, please.

[ After the waitress bustless off, she looks back at Bruce, taking in the way he taps the sugar packet, fidgets, as though there's something he wants to say, something he wants to do. ]

He could. It's best not to assume a god's motivations or reactions. And if he is not the Eros from my world, he may not know me.

[ She curls her fingers around her mug of tea, enjoying its warmth, the fragrant scent lifting from its surface. It's been... a long time, since she worked with someone other than Tom. And Tom still knows so little about her. ]

Would you like to come with me?

I don't know if we have time for this.

( he sets the sugar packet down flat against the tabletop — spins it around some with the tip of his finger. )

We're already chasing one god as it is. To go after another seems like it cuts into whatever time we have here.

That is not what I asked.

[ She watches him spin the sugar packet. ]

Perhaps it will be a waste of time. Or perhaps I will learn something useful, which we need to know. We don't know where Chaos Gate is, or how she's disguised herself. So.

[ Diana uncurls a hand from the mug and reaches to put her finger on top of the packet, keeping it from spinning. ]

You are the detective. What would you do?

( his gaze falls down to the sugar packet where their fingers gently touch and he stares. thoughtful. genuinely considering her inquiry. )

Find a weakness that can be used to our advantage. Physical. Emotional. Something that can give us an edge. Given everything that happened at the hands of the Shining God, finding her is just as important as finding Chaos Gate. Find her, we'll certainly find Chaos Gate.

All very sensible. Now here is what I know: when you want to find a god, it's a good practice to begin by asking another god if they know anything. They tend to be... territorial. It's possible Eros has his eye on her, or on the Shining God, already.

But I agree. There's no time to waste.

[ She breathes in, arches her eyebrows, prepared to negotiate. ]

Three hours. I can go there and be back again in three hours. Although traveling that quickly would be harmful to anyone accompanying me.

( there's a look there on bruce's face which, unbeknownst to him, diana has probably seen a number of times from her own bruce. that look of begrudgingly considering the words — the suggestion of another where, his kneejerk reaction is to just not.

a couple slow taps of his finger there to the sugar packet they both lay claim to, he lets his gaze drift off for just a second or two. )

Three hours. You're even a minute over—

( words end up interrupted with the arrival of their food and bruce pulls his hand away from the sugar packet and diana's finger, licking over his lips, their plates set down before them. )

[ She thanks the waitress and waves off a top-off for her tea, then draws her hand back from the sugar packet to reach instead for her fork, content with the compromise. That expression on his face, all too familiar to her from tense meetings with the League and arguments with Kal, leaves a quirking half-smile on her own lips. ]

I assume if I am, you'll take whatever you've managed to cobble into a Bat-plane and come to find me.

[ There's a mischievous glint in her eyes as she calmly cuts a bite of her omelette. ]

Why don't I just go early in the morning? None of you will be awake until I'm back, anyway.

( leaving his food untouched for a moment, he still regards her with that same look — still genuinely frustrated on the inside before he reaches out for a fry. pauses. then brings it up to his mouth. taking a moment to chew. )

I'll be up. In case anything happens.

( and to make sure she keeps to the three hour agreement here. )

If no useful information comes of it, you are free to tell me that you told me so.

[ She meets his frustration serenely with the ease of long practice... and no small amount of sympathy. After all, he'd said it himself: he won't lose anyone else. It's why he'd come back to this time to begin with. ]

And if there's any sign of either Chaos Gate or the Shining God in Sunset Falls, I'll bring information back.

( eyeing her for a moment longer, he lets out a sigh under his breath and reaches for the bottle of ketchup there, pouring some out on his plate for his fries. none of this is how he thought this endeavor would go and with every little thing that makes him feel frustrated, he makes a mental note to not work with others again after this. )

Fine.

( dipping a fry into the ketchup, he shoves it in his mouth, looking around them for a moment before he helps himself to another one. )

[ He isn't yet the man who helped found the League, who knows everyone's abilities almost as well as they do themselves. He'd already been under stress in the other time, and there's the potential for far greater strain here. ]

It will be alright, Bruce.

[ Saying it would jinx it, but she very seriously doubts there's anything in this world capable of keeping her from returning. ]

Three hours. And I'm sure you'll have work of your own to do in that time. Will you go to find Starstruck?

I don't know yet.

( they all need to be on the same page with what they intend to do here — what the best course of action is.

reaching for his sandwich, he helps himself to a bite of his sandwich then, taking a moment to mull over his thoughts while chewing. )

I'll figure something out.

[ She cuts another bite of her omelette and takes a sip of her tea to wash it down. ]

What do you know about Chaos Gate and the Shining God, so far? What was Chaos Gate like, before all of this?

Not much. What I do have is from searching various databases and articles online. Dick probably knows more from personal experience. He’s been here longer than me.

( what he does have, as mentioned, is located on his laptop amidst plenty of other files and findings of things pertaining to this place.

taking another bite, he allows himself a moment to chew and swallow, glancing to diana as he does. )

This is all because of what happened to Fantastic. The meta Chaos Gate seemed to have a thing with and what the Shining God ended up doing to him. ( looking down to his sandwich, he pauses for a moment. ) It’s vengeance she wants. But at the cost of everyone else.

[ Vengeance. That's a desire she and Bruce share, it seems. Diana toys with the food on her plate a moment, thinking. When she speaks again, her voice is soft. ]

It must have been terrible for her, to see that happen to someone she loves. And anger... anger is far easier to feel, sometimes, than grief. But if she was not evil before, perhaps she can coaxed to look past her anger, and see that destruction is not the answer.

[ The difficult part, of course, is that Chaos Gate will have to be able to make that decision herself. They can try everything possible to coax her in that direction, but her grief may be too oceanic, too raw.

Diana understands. It's the same feeling she has every time she thinks of Themyscira. ]

It seems to me the Shining God must also be dealt with, in some fashion. Perhaps she could be persuaded to... restore Fantastic? If that's even possible.

I’m not sure.

( words he genuinely means as he stares out the window beside them to their motel they’re currently staying in. part of him… he can understand the pain chaos gate is feeling. he’s been there with the loss of his own parents and going out as batman, night after night, beating down criminals in hopes he might get the ones who murdered his parents all those years ago. it’s his own sort of revenge fantasy, really. so he can understand that need — that drive to seek vengeance and how incredibly easy it is to fall into that mindset.

however. despite that, bruce still has certain lines he can’t cross. that he won’t let himself cross. even if he sometimes wonders. )

Killing the Shining God could have consequences we can’t see yet. Something worse could happen with her death for all we know.

I don't mean killing her. Leaping straight to killing is not the Amazon way.

[ If they even could... although she's killed gods before. ]

I'd rather we come out of this with no killing at all, on any side. If the Shining God could be persuaded to listen to us... if Chaos Gate is willing to set aside her grief and anger... we may yet come out of all of this whole, together.

[ She touches her fingers lightly to the lasso at her waist. ]

The lasso might help. It allows me to see into the core of another, to speak with them there, in their truest self.

( he was referring to chaos gate wanting to kill shining god, but. he leaves it. especially with diana going on about how killing isn’t the amazon way. at least right off the bat. something to file away.

dipping a couple more fries into the ketchup, he takes a sip of his coffee after, eyeing diana there as he does. )

If you’re even able to use it on a god.

( or closest thing to one. )

I have before.

[ Many times. More times than she can easily recall. It's tiring, sometimes, thinking of how long she's been fighting. ]

The lasso is god-made, a gift from my patrons. It is unbreakable and impartial.

[ Her smile is slight and a little wry. ]

It's worth a try, I think.

( the look on bruce’s face says it all really. how he remains skeptical of that, especially in a place like this and with going against the types of metas they are. still, he doesn’t argue with her. just gives her that typical bruce look of skepticism mixed in with an “uh huh…” to it. )

Maybe.

( finishing half of his sandwich, he takes another sip of coffee. )

Provided everything goes smoothly with Eros.

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