outer_divide | video;

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[it's automatic now; to make a call out that's meant only for a certain telepaths mind. a yell of tell me you're back. tell me you can hear me. please, before it's gone completely. his mind wiping blank in a way that only a person who spent half their lives around telepaths would know how to do

now, he turns his attention to his network device. it's different to his last one, but similar enough that he has no trouble navigating his way through it. the draw of the ship is too strong for him to leave the area yet. so when the video cuts in, the metal hull, gleaming in the sun, is all too clear]

Glory. If this is your doing, congratulations. You got me.

[his face may look familiar, but there are differences there. his hair is slightly longer, styled differently. he seems more relaxed than his other self. even his voice differs slightly. the undercurrents of german are less pronounced. but it's still clear that he's spent a lot of time speaking another language entirely. (hebrew, to those who can tell).]

We've already discussed this, so if you wouldn't mind, I have work to do.

[he adds a ping here to the few people he cares about; to hope summers, snape, caffrey. even givens gets a message sent through. but they're all bouncing back, and that leaves him...confused. annoyed. angry]

Will someone tell me what's going on here? Is this the city playing tricks again, or...

[there's some muttering under his breath then; hebrew now. if anyone listens closely enough, they may register the word ha-satan amongst it all. yes, he's talking about that satan]

I want answers. Now.

ooc; to you pesky telepaths: you're welcome to pick up on that first message. he knows how to project his thoughts well enough to make it rise above the usual surface thoughts people have. he just can't direct it to one person :|b

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[Turning back to the man at the question, Charles looked legitimately puzzled in response to the question.]

Sometimes Raven brings me back. But other than that, I've simply managed to find my way back out.

[The answer, in unspoken words, hinted at the fact that he was well aware that he had been lucky enough to find his way back to his own mind and sense of reality. There was no magical cure, it was simply luck and survival.

At the second question, Charles' brows furrowed and a slightly disbelieving look came across his face.]

Why would you want to help? People hate what I do, even Raven ... tells me to keep my abilities under control, so we can function in society.

[raven. a person that he's both grateful for existing and hates for taking his place by charles' side. they may've grown closer in the last months, but it isn't enough to erase the past between them.

he needs to focus past that though. to remember just how different the other worlds are. that raven is charles' sister in one of them. so regardless of his own opinions, raven is clearly important to this charles too.]

Your abilities are a gift, Charles. You shouldn't have to hide them.

[if anything, he should be flaunting them. they're the next stage for a reason, and the sooner mutants stop being forced to hide who and what they are, the better.]

I want to help you because I'm like you. [he can hold off on the multiple versions until later. or try to.]

My abilities are a curse. [Charles corrected quietly, looking genuinely frightened for a moment before obviously forcing himself away from what ever memories this conversation was stirring.

At the claim of being like him, Charles glanced up, brows furrowing.]

You mean ... [He waggled his fingers up by his head.]

No they're not. [it comes out closer to an angry snap than a disagreement; the very opposite of what he'd like. their abilities are anything but a curse, so the idea of charles believing otherwise leaves him angry.

a breath. another. and he tries again, trying to push away that anger to focus on the problem at hand.]

My ability is different to yours. [drawing his hand back out his pocket, he holds the piece of vibranium out so charles can see it. a moment later and it's floating up from his palm, reshaping itself in to a cube instead.] There aren't many mutants who share the same power.

[Charles' head whipped around and he looked ready to snap right back when Erik was moving, drawing out the piece of metal and performing such an incredible feat with it.

The anger washed off the telepath's face, as if chased away by rain and he walked closer to the older man, eyes transfixed on the cube.]

My God. [He exclaimed, glancing up into Erik's face and then down at the cube.] That is amazing. May I?

[He was already reaching for the cube, barely remembering to stop himself before just taking it up. He had only experienced Raven's powers, which were absolutely beautiful as far as Charles was concerned. This ability of Erik's tickled at his curiosity and he practically vibrated with the desire to ask questions.]

Of course. [because he's incapable of saying no to charles, regardless of the version. the piece of vibranium may be important to him, but the other man takes priority.

reaching out with his power, he pushes the cube in to charles' hand. it still takes more effort than he'd like to manipulate this particular type of metal, so it takes a little while this time to reform it to the shape of a chess piece. a king, this time.]

There are hundreds of thousands of other people like us out there. We aren't cursed. We're evolved. Gifted,

[Once again, Charles' eyes widened as the piece of metal shifted in the short time it took to reach him and he carefully plucked the king out of the air, holding it very carefully.]

Your control is astounding. [He breathed, obviously fascinating by both this man and also the chess piece in his hand.] I can not even imagine.

[Charles paused and then looked up. The words that came from him next surprised him, because it was something he never spoke of, never discussed with anyone but Raven. In fact, he could hear the whisper of his sister's voice, telling him to be quiet, to be more cautious that this could be a trick.

Yet the thoughts, the images, the feelings coming off the German told a different story and nudged the telepath into speaking almost incautiously.]

It is only a gift if you can control it, Erik. If there is no control; if the thoughts, memories, feelings of hundreds of minds around you are constantly doing battle with what you hope are your own? It is no gift, my friend.

I had a good teacher. [in charles, at least. his time with schmidt may have started him along the road to using his abilities, but it's that decade spent with charles that developed his powers. it's the other mutant that taught him the right way to do things. the better way.

it's a somewhat distracted answer, regardless; the rest of charles' words striking a chord with him. it's the kind of thing he'd expect to hear from one of the others instead.]

Control is something that can be learned. And even before then, there are ways to manage your gift. [his hold on the piece is gone, and he can't keep himself from stepping close this time. close enough to try and close a hand over charles' shoulder to squeeze.]

Charles, I know what you're capable of. You can control it. It doesn't control you. Not unless you allow it to.

[Charles' eyes never left the chess piece, even when Erik reached out and took his shoulder. He could feel, flashes of a recognition that had nothing to do with him, yet everything to do with him and it was confusing.

It was as if this man knew him but Charles was well aware that he had never met anyone like Erik in his entire life. In the end, he sighed softly and held the chess piece up, towards Erik as he glanced towards the man.]

You do not know me, Erik. I'm sorry but I am afraid the control you are expecting is well beyond me at this point.

[There were too many mitigating factors in the mix. Factors he was not ready or willing to even begin to address at the moment.]

You said we needed to get away from here?

[he doesn't let go at first, the temptation there to just pull him close and ignore all the differences between this charles and the one he lost. if it wasn't for the lack of that familiar presence in the back of his mind, he knows it would be easy enough to do. to replace one with the other, however briefly.

reluctantly though, he manages to let go again, taking the chess piece back and pocketing it as the shape warps beneath his fingers. a deep breath, and he finally steps back again, nodding his head a little.]

The...Authorities. I've been warned that they're a danger to most of us here. [to those who woke up on the ship.] Staying here will make it easier for them to find us.

The Authorities? Are they the people who brought us here?

[His shoulder felt chilly where Erik's hand had rested and now fallen away. Charles adjusted his messenger bag and moved to show that he was ready to fall into step with Erik and exit the ship.]

No. [not even close. he starts moving then, leading the way out of the room and back toward the exit of the ship. despite how little information he's collected so far, he knows better than to stay inside any longer than they have to.]

There's a city here, hidden beneath a dome. They Outer Authorities are the ones responsible for guarding it, and we're seen as a threat to those inside. They're prepared to attack us on sight, and they have methods to defend themselves from those with abilities.

[Following the taller man's path, Charles listened closely to what he was saying, matching the words up against the smatterings of thoughts and emotions he could pick up.]

Why?

[He asked, though in a tone that indicated he did not expect Erik to miraculously have the answer but rather this was a genuine musing.]

What is it about us that they feel is a threat?

[it's a question he wishes he had a better answer to. he knows that they're protecting those inside the dome. that the entire area is apparently off-limits. but quite why they're specifically targeting everybody who arrived on the ship, he has no idea. as far as he knows, there hasn't been any kind of attack made against the dome yet.]

Perhaps they're more concerned with what we may do. [because he knows it's only a matter of time before his own curiosity gets the better of him and he makes a trip to the dome.]

[Once again Charles goes quiet as he walks along with Erik, his expression thoughtful and distracted, for the time being, from his own predicament.]

What a sad way to live. [He said softly.] I wonder what has happened in the past to make them so wary.

[The distraction of this inner pondering would no doubt keep him from overthinking his own situation, trapped here in a strange world, among complete strangers.]

That may be something you're better suited to finding out.

[assuming this charles is anything like the other ones he knows. whether there's any relevant information available or not, the history of this planet isn't something they can ignore.]

There's some form of library here that I'm sure you'd be able to access if you wished to.

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