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outlierdirector) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
synthneon2023-11-01 01:57 am
outlierdirector) wrote in synthneon2023-11-01 01:57 am
oceanview || ❝ i must guide my love through the night. ❞
I cannot feel her by my side
Even in this placе inside my mind
no subject
[ « For the big time celebrity he was? Alan was a private guy. He still is. Maybe thats why more rumors exist than anything. How it affected his doppleganger. Does Saga know about Scratch? Maybe it'd help if she knew. We may still run into him this time around. » ]
He contacted me four years ago, despite the internal lockdown our HQ was under. We... had a mutual issue we needed to take care of. I hadn't heard from him again since all this started. [ No lies, just facts. ] That's because he didn't. I'm sure it's another level of crazy to add to it, but, he has a doppleganger. Something that's made by the Dark Presence to impersonate him. Mr. Scratch. I don't know how, but he wrote the manuscript. The one that's involved your daughter. The manuscript Wake is trying to change before it really does become apart of our reality. Permanently.
[ Jesse nods to Saga's concerns. ] Certain ...objects, sometimes people, change when they are caught up in events like this. They get unique properties that certain kinds of people can use. I don't know if this Clicker is one of them, but if Wake can use it to stop it? Then it must be. I'll see what I can find out.
[ « Alan is going to be the person to ask. » ]
None of our case files from the AWE in 2010 mentioned a Clicker. Or anything unique. Well, other than the coffee thermoses.
no subject
Because the person or persons involved wasn't readily available to give information? I imagine if Wake was the linchpin to what happened then, since he was considered missing, it would be a little difficult to get any sort of information at all.
[ She eyes the other agent as if trying to fill in the gaps in between what she's saying. Or not saying. ] Also, I take it to mean that a lack of information means any other possible witnesses either didn't exist or weren't reliable sources. [ She doesn't know that's the case, but it seems like a somewhat probable deduction, as well as being something that just happens with mysterious cases like this one.
Wake is the person at the center of all this. Don't go down rabbit holes just yet, Saga. Still, that might be something to look into later on.
The idea gets written on a mental post it note and filed away in case she has time to look into it after this. ]
I'd ask about the security of your- your systems, if he was able to contact you even with that, but- I can't claim any sort of familiarity with those systems, so I won't be asking that. Even if it looks like I just did, I know as well as anyone that no system is truly infallible.
[ But her piercing look is back as she resumes staring Jesse down. ]
You say that with such confidence, so you must have seen definitive proof that Wake is more than what he appears to be. A doppelganger that conveniently is impersonating him. [ She doesn't think that's suspicious? Too contrived? ]
Sorry, I have to ask: how do you know that this isn't an elaborate ruse set up by Wake to shift suspicion away from him?
[ I still don't understand this seemingly unshakable belief she has in Wake. In what he claims.
In the interest of collaboration, however, Saga tries to push down her usual approach: going in full force with her questions and her need for answers. Jesse could shut her out and refuse to cooperate if she goes in too hard, and she'd like to avoid that if at all possible. ]
So... if Wake tells you more about this Clicker, you'll pass that along, and then we can use whatever information he gives to go forward. [ To somewhere. I still can't see where all of this is going. I know where I want it to go, but I don't think it's going to be that easy. ]
no subject
« This is Saga's mind. Can we do that? It wouldnt be invasive, right? It's from MY mind. My mental projection. Should we try it? »
Jesse holds her hand up. A surge of power can be felt in the room, but it's a gentle pulsing. A resonance. After a moment a vanilla folder appears with the FBC logo on the front. She opens it and takes a look over some of the documents, noting how she's already misremebered some details.
Shit.
Jesse hands it over to Saga. Bright Falls AWE. Summary. Supplement. ]
Sorry. If I got details wrong. It's been four years since I read these. [ « I'm not trying to hide things or important details. » ] I found these after I became Director. It happened well before my time. So, what I know comes from these, a few other documents about altered items, and from Wake. Which isn't as much as you'd think.
[ Her hands come to rest on the table as she leans against it. ]
I'm guessing the light switch mentioned in one is our Clicker.
One of them mentions Tor and Odin Anderson. From the Old God's of Asgard.... any relationship? [ There is an edge of excitement in her voice. She's always loved their music. Then, she realized how much their music seems to intertwine with everything. Bright Falls. Polaris. Who knows what else. It's the same excitement now that was there when she first met Alan. Other paranaturalarians. Potentially. ] The FBC decided not to monitor them due to age. So, if you do have a relation, I can promise they didn't bug the retirement home they live in. At least... I didn't see anything that would say they did.
[ She huffs a laugh. « I'd say you and the Hotline are pretty secure. When another parautalitarian isn't barging her way in. » ] Only certain... frequencies can tap into that line of communication. Wake managed to find the right one and send me the messages.
[ Jesse feels a spike go up her spine at the piercing gaze. Not intimidating, but, the kind that's trying to go right through her. See what they want to see. It makes her defensive walls want to climb up. She hates being around profiles, but, Saga is at the center of this too. Jesse can't afford the liability of her own emotions getting in the way more than they already have with Alan.
She sighs. How can she explain this? ]
This is the first time we've talked. But, it's not the first time you've done the investigation. Visiting Cauldron Lake. Found Wake. We're in a loop. Going around and around until we get the pieces right and solve the AWE. Stop reality from changing.
And you know it. [ Jesse stands up once again and half turns to show off the case wall behind her. A hand lifts to all the orderly string and clues that Saga has pinned up. ] You just haven't wanted to see it. Probably because you think it's too impossible after everything else you've seen. But, is it really?
[ « And... there goes the poster. Is she going to run away and screaming? Deny it? I hope not. We need her to help fix this. »
Jesse has no idea what Saga will see--if anything. But, she has the feeling that if Saga left any notes to herself about deja vu or the feeling of doing the same thing? It would be there. Polaris confirms the idea. ]
I'll share whatever information on the Clicker I get. I don't see why keeping details like that from you would be helpful to either of us. Agencies aside. This is sort of bigger than whatever issue the FBI and the FBC have with one another.
[ She steps aside so Saga can move as she needs. A silence falls as she waits for Saga's reaction to all of it--how reality really is. Jesse shifts side to side, rolling each shoulder out of her natural motions. There's no point in rushing the FBI agent through it all. That'll only make it worse.
Once she can tell Saga is ready to talk again? Jesse lets out another shift of resonance. This time just around her. Once Saga turns back around, she'll find Jesse is dressed differently. There's also another change.
Blood, and a decent amount of it.
She's sure Saga is going to pick up on the injuries right away. Multiple head wounds, all from blunt force. Broken parts of thr skull because of it. Lacerations on the cheek from glass. And, a similar cut in her chest where her heart would be. ]
As for your question about Wake's doppleganger? Yeah. There's definite proof of it.
no subject
She snaps back to attention when she sees Jesse moving... doing something. It's faint, but she feels something, a pulsing sensation. ]
What is this? What are y- [ She stops mid sentence when the folder appears and Jesse opens it. I guess anything's possible in a mind projection, right? The rules of normal engagement don't apply somehow.
When Jesse hands over the folder, she takes it without too much hesitation. If we're cooperating, I need to extend some kind of olive branch in return. But what? I don't expect the FBC to just share everything they have and get nothing in return. But somehow, it seems that they have all the cards and bargaining chips. What do I have? I'll have to think about that.
She peruses the information given, taking it all in, trying to digest it. ]
So Wake caused this event in 2010, shifting reality and making it change around him as he wrote about it. But then at the end of it all, he disappeared into the lake- the Dark Place. Right? [ At least, that's the general idea of things that she's gotten from talking with Wake, either in person or when she sees him in the overlaps. ]
Tor and Odin, the old rocker guys? Yeah, I've met them; I didn't realize the connection at first, not until we met, but... [ That was unexpected, finding out my grandfather and great-uncle were here. But I guess family can show up in all kinds of places. ] I can't believe they were swept up in all of this. Well, I can, because that seems like the kind of crazy excitement they thrive on.
This is all really crazy. These Altered World Events keep happening; Wake's been at the center of two of them now. He can tap into weird otherworldly connections with- with what, his writing? [ And people once thought psychics didn't exist.
She almost bristles at the wording Jesse uses. Who is she to tell me what I have or haven't wanted to see? I- No, I can't get angry, because there's no TIME for that. I don't have to like it, but I guess I have to just accept that maybe she knows what she's talking about. Looping? Going in circles? Is that really what's going on? ]
You know I can't just believe something like that without proof, right? Accepting things on blind faith only goes so far with me. [ It doesn't actually go that far at all. It's just how I am.
But her gaze shifts to the case board and she steps in a little closer to look over it. ]
I know this is my writing and my case board; I recognize some of what's on here. But this- [ She points to a post-it that she doesn't remember seeing before. Did that just materialize there? Was it just like how she made the folder with information about the AWE appear? ]
Say that I believe you for a second, that I believe this note. How many times have we looped around? [ And how many more times will we loop? I don't want to know the answer to that. Not that I think anyone could know that, not even Wake. ]
For whatever it's worth, I see now that it's better for us to work together than to butt heads. So if I get anything of use to this case, I'll pass it along as well. Maybe between both of us and whatever the hell Wake's doing, we can put an end to this whole mess.
[ She opens her mouth to say something else, to maybe comment more on the Clicker, but the words die before she can form them. What the hell?
Jesse's appearance changes before her eyes, and the sudden unexpected sight of blood and wounds and skull fragments all but causes Saga's heart to stop. She might be an experienced FBI agent, but there are some things that still shock her. And whatever Jesse just did has shocked her. ]
What in the- What the hell? [ She stares at the other agent, obviously shocked, but her mind is still at work cataloguing all the gory evidence in front of her. That cut on her chest draws her attention the most. The cult? The sacrifices? What does this mean? ]
... You're telling me that he did this?
no subject
She watches Saga move to the caseboard, gesture to the note that wasn't there before. ]
From what I understand, the entity in the Lake made Wake write the story that happened in 2010. The Dark Presence, the Shadow. It wants into our world. The connection point just happens to be Cauldron Lake. But, Wake changed the ending of the story, and that stopped it then. I'm guessing whatever is really going on this time is something similar.
It wants out. It wants here.
[ She nods to the fact its all crazy. But, there's not much more to do than accept the reality around them. ]
I don't know how many times we've looped. How many more times it'll take. That's why the more we work together to try and change it, it'll help Wake, and it can get to the finale.
[ Jesse's gaze drops to the side. That appearance of the stonewall confident Director wavers for just a moment. She doesn't remember all the details, and she imagines that's Alan's doing. He won't even begin to talk about that event, let alone let it happen again. Which .... well, it was a point of contention between them. Jesse wouldn't budge and made him change the story for it.
« It was the right choice. Wasn't it? Not just because I'm selfish. Could we have gotten to this point if I didn't force his hand? Is he ... really happy that I did? » ]
Yeah. Scratch did. [ Jesse looks back at Saga. Her hands raise at her side as if to once again say "Ta-dah"! ] You might as well take whatever notes or... whatever it is a profiler does. Just in case we need it. In case this isn't the last time around.
[ Not all the memories are gone, but, enough where she can't paint the picture clearly in her mind. She can remember where it happened. The sound of Scratch's voice--how he tries to mimic Alan's but it comes off as disturbed and higher pitched. The way Scratch grinned. But, even more than that? She can recall the feeling of visceral hatred the doppleganger has for her. Not even really her, more Polaris, but the two are so interconnected it doesn't matter to another entity most likely.
« It was almost like... he hates me as much as Alan loves me. A mirror, I guess. Distorted and reverse but just as intense. »
It brings to mind the memory of her mirror self. I'm much wilder than you. ]
no subject
[ Slowly and reluctantly, she's having to come to the conclusion that maybe Alan isn't the puppetmaster behind all this. Maybe something bigger than him is forcing his hand. ]
I might not know very much, but I do know one thing: it can't get out. It can't have us, or this world. Our world. I don't know what I can do to help, but I'll do whatever I have to, to help stop it.
[ It helps Wake, it helps the FBC, and it saves Logan. That's what matters: saving my daughter. And, well, the world, if I'm understanding everything correctly.
Saga sets her jaw resolutely, a determined look taking her face. There is a lot at stake here, and for her personally, everything is at stake. But also it doesn't take a genius or a profiler to look at Jesse and see that she has a very personal investment in all of this too. Saga might not be sure just how far her involvement with Wake goes, but she can imagine she has a very clear reason to want Scratch stopped for good. ]
I'd say I don't need to take notes, as there's no forgetting that, but... In the interest of being thorough... [ She surveys Jesse with a careful eye, even though she knows she's not going to forget the sight of those injuries anytime soon.
Seemingly inexplicably, more notes appear on the case board: descriptions of the violence that was done to the FBC's Director. ]
No one's safe in this story. That's what I'm figuring out. [ I knew it the second I learned that Logan was involved. But if even the Director isn't safe, then who is?
And if none of us are safe, where does that leave Wake? [ It's a thought she hadn't had before, but she's finding herself forced to confront the possibility that even Wake is in danger. If they're all in danger, that "all" includes him too. Doesn't it? ]
no subject
[ Jesse gives a firm nod. ] There's more out there than just the Shadow--Dark Presence--but that's the immediate threat. So, we need to find a way to stop it. The story is just the mechanism the AWE is happening by. We need to help him find an ending that can stop Scratch, save your daughter, and what we can of the town. We do that and the AWE should be over.
[ Her gaze moves over to the board behind them as notes start appearing. An eyebrows raises slightly, but, it's due to being impressed and a little surprised more than anything. She's never really seen other paranaturalarians at work. They're living through what Alan's abilities have created, but she's never seen him use his. Minus when things come to his attention and he blanks out. ]
No. No one's safe.
[ Jesse pauses, glancing down at herself and then at the wall behind Saga. Should she say it? How much does she trust to her? Then again, Alan cast Saga as the hero of the story. She needs to know as much as she can. ]
I... wouldn't tell Wake that you know. About this. [ She gestures to her head and chest. Then, glances to the side as she chews the inside of her lip for a moment. ] It happened... a while ago. I don't know how many loops ago. But, he's never let it go. He doesn't like putting people in danger other than himself, Saga. Any little reminder is probably going to send him on a trip thats going to make it easier for the Dark Presence to get him. It gets him, it can write whatever it wants him to, and we can't end the story.
[ Jesse frowns. It's obvious that Saga is going to figure it out. Figure out that she and Alan are.... whatever form of "together" they are. She's a profiler. If she doesn't learn it from Jesse, she will from Alan. Or a manuscript page. ]
He cares more than he realizes he does about everyone involved.
no subject
[ But Saga isn't without a sense of empathy, and Jesse's descriptions do touch a nerve inside her. ] If it's that hostile, how has he not... well, died?
Okay, say that he isn't as much of a monster or an asshole as I've been thinking. What kind of ending do we need to stop the threat, save Wake, and get my daughter out of this whole mess? And, obviously, get you and everyone else out too.
[ Saga's frown deepens. When phrased like that, this whole thing seems all but insurmountable. ]
Are you sure that this is even possible? I don't mean to doubt, but I don't like the odds we're up against.
[ Still, Saga's getting the idea that she's misjudged Alan by a lot. She feels a twinge of sympathy for both Jesse and the trapped writer. It can't have been easy on either of them, but especially not for Alan. He's not the coldhearted villain that she painted him as in her thoughts. ]
Well, let's not send him on any trips, unless it's a trip out of wherever the hell he is. I won't mention it to him, don't worry. And, well, while we're on the subject of Wake...
[ Something like a knowing look comes to her eyes as she looks over the other woman. ]
Call me crazy, but- you care about him too, don't you? Just a hunch. [ It's just how she talks about him, and little things that happen to Jesse's voice when she's doing it. Maybe it's just worry, but that can appear as a kind of caring too. ]
no subject
[ She smirks. ] Well, a different dimension, but, sure. Another planet.
[ « Because that's entirely normal to say. Good, Jesse. Good job. » ]
From everything we've gathered? It's hostile, but not fatal. You can't use a dead artist to dream you into reality. It needs you alive and your mind. But not what makes you who you are.
[ Her head tilts at the leading statement.
Then, she asks the question.
« There it is. I was waiting for that question. Or, implication. I knew she'd start to wonder or figure it out. Even if I didn't make it obvious... it's probably obvious to normal people. People who have relationships and aren't a magnet for paranormal entities or whatever. » ]
Yeah. [ A short semi-guarded answer. She can't help it. ] I do. Is that going to be a problem?
no subject
I'm going to be honest with you, that's not at all how I thought this worked. [ Is it possible that Wake's as much a victim of all this as the rest of us are? ]
I never thought of Wake as anything but someone dragging people into his crazy story just because he could, and not even thinking for a second about how he's impacting those people and their lives.
[ It's not until Jesse goes on to talk more about the hostile nature of the Dark Place that Saga's opinion really shifts and changes. ]
So what you're saying is that the last thirteen years haven't been a walk in the park for him. I mean, I didn't really think that, but- I guess I didn't know just how bad it was. And I kind of still don't, but you paint a really grim picture even with the little you've told me.
[ But a smile that wants to become a grin takes Saga's face then. She's not some cold agent who doesn't smile or doesn't like seeing people making connections. Building relationships. If Jesse's doing that with Wake, well, more power to her, really. ]
No, not a problem. I just- Well... It must not be that easy for you, being on this side of things while he's dealing with hostile realities and who knows what else.
no subject
He's complicated.
[ « And definitely in need of a good shake. »
Jesse nods once more. She doesn't expect Saga to see the whole picture. The profiler doesn't work on the scope of the world that she does. All Saga needs to know is that Alan is as human as the rest of them and the newest in a long line of the people used and destroyed by the Dark Presence. Alan may have facilitated the cause of the horror story, but, he isn't an evil megalomaniac that everyone thinks him to be. ]
No. It's not easy. But, I focus on what I can. Stopping the story, fighting it in different ways. Maybe he'll come home this time.
[ « I can't shake the feeling that in order to change the story... I need to be in less control. I need to be more hands off. Take a step back and, I don't know, guide things. I don't like it. » ]
no subject
Alright. So what can I do to help? From what I can tell, there needs to be more people helping Wake by fighting back against the story, so I'm ready to do that. [ Maybe the shift seems sudden, but that's how Saga works sometimes. She knows how to be decisive, and now seems like a time for decisiveness. ]
I might not really agree with Wake or his methods, but I can put that aside. There's more important things going on here. Perspective, right?
[ She slides her hands onto her hips. ]
So, what are these different ways of fighting the story?
no subject
« Better to work with her and solve this than fight with each other. That's probably what the Dark Presence wants anyways. The more we fight, the more we seperate, and the easier it wins.
...that's what happened before, isn't it? Alan and I got close. We were winning. So, it pulled us apart and used that against him. Keeping him in a loop more and more. »
Jesse turns and looks at the case board. ]
What have you found out about the story so far? It changes every time, I think. Or at least little parts here and there. We need to figure out what is familiar and go from there. [ She sighs, rubbing her shoulder out of a habit. ] Like I said, I don't know how many loops there has been. But, you picked up on and know that it's just repeating several things. I'm guessing you've made notes to yourself... because I found a way to remind myself.
[ The wounds disappear and she stands there in the same outfit. ] When you try to change the way things go, it starts fighting back. It tried go turn us on one another using the fact you wanted to get this Clicker to Alan. So, finding out what hasn't changed will give us an idea of what we can try to do this time around differently.
Then, we go from there.
no subject
Well, it probably seems like nothing, but it has to all mean something, right? Like pieces of a picture sliding into place.
[ And just like that, the case board changes, with all the pieces of evidence Saga has found so far sliding into place so that Jesse can peruse it. It's all there, the information gained about Nightingale, the Bookers, the Koskelas, and of course, Alan himself.
She startles just a bit when she sees how the wounds disappear from Jesse just like that, but it's one more thing she chalks off to the weirdness of dream logic. ]
Well, if it fights back, I'll fight back too. And maybe between the two of us, we can make something happen. Obviously, changing the story and saving my daughter is important; but what about saving everyone?
[ Saga knows she has moments of being distracted because of her duty as a mother and that protective mother bear instinct, but when she's not feeling so emotionally charged, she can still see the bigger picture. Sometimes, anyway. And the bigger picture is that changing the story and fighting it when necessary will eventually save all of them. ]
I think the basic framework of the story hasn't changed. Cultists, rituals, deaths... [ Saga's eyes seem to darken briefly as her daughter comes to mind. ] I don't know if you and I striking a kind of partnership was factored into it, though.
no subject
[ « I wouldn't be surprised if she thinks we're doing a shit job. »
Jesse steps forward to inspect the Case Board as it changes. Her head tilts slightly at each little note. She can tell how the story has almost drastically changed in some regards. Though, certain things always stay the same. Casey goes missing at some point. The FBC is present almost too late. The FBI doesn't trust Alan. Some details--like the relationship she has with the Writer--aren't present. At least not yet. She's sure Saga will put it together. ]
Alan would say he doesn't deserved to be saved. [ Her tone is flat and factual. ] He's going to try and change things so he gets the brunt of the damage and everyone else gets out with as little damage possible. It's not all his fault, but he blames himself for it anyways.
I don't think it counted on the FBI and FBC being in on it together, no. You'd have every reason not to get along with us or trust us. [ Jesse glances over her shoulder with a smile. ] I tend to be the outlier.
no subject
Between the two of us, I wouldn't mind the chance to study some of that.. the strange and unexplained, or what people think of as unexplained. Maybe I'm naive, but I still believe that the more something is studied, the less unexplained and unknowable it becomes.
[ As for what she thinks about the FBC and the job they're doing, Saga hasn't fully developed an opinion as yet. The preliminary feeling she has is that the odds are stacked against them, or maybe they're stacked against Jesse who has a lot on her plate. That doesn't mean she's doing a bad job; it just means she's doing the best that she can. But if Jesse's anything at all like Saga, she might want to do more than the best she can. Still, it feels like one of those things that's done one step at a time.
She watches Jesse inspecting the Board, and as she does, Saga re-reads the notes as well. ]
I don't know whether to call that admirable or futile in the long run. Self-sacrifice might be honorable or respectable, but it's not always necessary. Perhaps I misjudged him. Perhaps.
[ She turns her gaze back to Jesse, giving her a considering gaze. ] If the shoe is on the other foot, you have every reason to not get along with us or trust us. [ She smiles back at the other agent, hoping to try and extend an olive branch of sorts. ]
no subject
I'm pretty sure there's always going to be something to be studied, Saga. One AWE is never the end of them. [ Jesse pauses, glancing to the side. Polaris shimmers and she nods. ] I was part of one as a kid. It came back eighteen years later in a different way. There's always more.
[ « "Perhaps" is better than nothing for now, I guess. » ]
Then the one common factor is if both of us can trust each other over Alan Wake. What do you think?
no subject
[ She chuckles and then smiles. ] If there is, I'm all over it. The more I can learn about these AWEs and what goes on in and around them, the better. I- Well, I don't see a point in not admitting how curious I am. But don't get me wrong, I won't be running headlong into danger. [ Maybe. It depends on what's going on and how dangerous it is. If I can get answers... Well, I know I have to be careful. ]
Wait, you were? And it came back eighteen years later? Wow. [ So maybe she's not at the center of events, because it sounds like these events just happen, but she's got a pretty strong connection, from what it sounds like. I don't want to pry, but that's not just a coincidence. ]
Yes, I agree. That seems to be a good starting point for both of us. So, what now? What do you need me to do?
[ It's going to be an adjustment, but I've worked alongside other partners before. I can learn to work with her. ]