Priorities of a Silenced Man

[worldsaway]

WHO| Thor Odinson and OPEN
WHAT| Someone is back, informed about the recent news and coping in as manly a manner as he can
WHEN| After the announcements and the sickness starts to clear up
WHERE| D2, the commons, the training center
WARNINGS/NOTES| None for now. Other than Thor rage.

It's a relief to be alive right now. The way Thor went out alone, there was a residual fear that he'd not be brought back. Alas, the relief and pleasure at seeing his friends is short lived. Steve met him from the get-go with the news of District Three's destruction, giving Thor a chance to control himself from any ill tempered outbursts, but it's difficult. His anger is simmering under the surface, so he sets about to distract himself. Or at least, he sets about to appear he's distracting himself, whilst searching out people to discuss issues at hand with as if it were unsuspecting idle conversation.

But first, he needs to eat.

[Prompt 1: Commons.]
By this point, Thor has amassed as much food as his arms can carry. The last weeks of the Arena he'd been more hungry than he'd ever hoped to be. He doesn't want to fast only to give the impression that he's too caught up in rebellion to eat, he wants to be an unsuspecting, hungry man. And he almost is. He's happily working his way through the variety of food he's presented himself with. It ranges from healthy, hearty to outright junk and he's barely tried any of it before. His expression is pensive for a man digging into a box of dry cereal with his bare hands, but when approached, he will tilt the box toward whomever it may be with a raised brow. He is nothing if not generous.


[Prompt 2: Training Center.]
Thor arrived with the brilliant intention of training, and he had for some time. He'd attacked the punching bag with an incredible amount of fury, he'd figured out the contraptions for lifting weight and let out some of his frustration on moving heavy objects and he'd sought out a sword to get a better feel for it. It seems wrong in his hand after so long with a hammer, but he'd noticed they were in abundance compared to hammers.

After some time, he'll simply hang about the area, towel around his shoulders as he either stares ahead of himself or watches someone's regime intently. He's deep in thought today, finding it difficult to get his mind off everything he's heard about District Three and all those who suffered through the tragedy.

Comments

[youbarium]

Mysterious portals? Now you have his attention -- Thor will see Carlos's eyes light up with interest, see his back straighten, see his coffee sit on the table, forgotten. "What kind of portal was it?" he asks. "Was it a hole in space-time, a -- a dimensional anomaly, or something else entirely? Was it limited to your own dimension or did it bridge multiple realities?" He also wants to know if the portal involved any kind of time travel, but one question at a time.

[worldsaway]

There it is, again. He wonders if all scientists from Earth are like this, because it's wonderfully endearing. He likes to be able to share something from his world that people find so fascinating.

"It is a bridge between realms. Worlds. We do not travel between realities, we travel to the worlds that surround Asgard." He words it as best he can. "To us it is common knowledge, but it is.. difficult to explain it in your terms. What we know and what the people of Earth know is similar, but our magic is our science."

[youbarium]

Fascinating. Carlos isn't going to get into the magic vs. science thing just yet. "So you're saying that what you have is interplanetary travel?" he asks, and okay, maybe he's a little excited. "Most of what I've worked with has involved holes in reality rather than spanning any kind of distance. How do you do it?" Accidental tears in the fabric of space-time were one thing. Deliberately traveling billions of miles -- well, that was something else.

[worldsaway]

"Somewhat, but it is limited to the nine realms." He can only assume that he knows what the nine realms are or won't deem their names important. The excitement is infectious, but it doesn't make this any easier to explain for Thor with his limited understanding of scientific terms. "It is a bridge that connects between the nine realms under the control of the guard Heimdall, who would be better suited for your questions." He gives him a wry smile. "It is he who allows one to leave and enter Asgard and it is impossible to keep a bridge open long. He has said himself it is possible to study what we study, but it is beyond my understanding."

[youbarium]

"Nine planets..." Carlos murmurs, thoughtful. "I assume they aren't the ones in our solar system? The possibility of sentient life on any of them at this point in time is slim to none. I don't care what Cecil says about a blood space war on the outer planets." That last bit is muttered, half irritably, half fondly -- and followed by a sad, faraway look that vanishes as quickly as it came.

[worldsaway]

"No, they are quite far removed." You don't live with Jane and not know the names of the planets in Earth's solar system. He picks up on that bitter little mutter and he moves to put a hand on Carlos' shoulder. "I take it you are as much removed from your loved ones as I."

[youbarium]

"...not exactly," Carlos admits, looking away. It's the topic of conversation, not the sympathetic shoulderpat, that makes him uncomfortable. "I mean, it's complicated, I--" His shoulders slump, a little. "I don't know where they are."

[worldsaway]

Thor almost feels guilty for asking, but perhaps Carlos had been looking for someone to say these things to and perhaps Thor can be of use in that regard.

"How can that be?" He's sincerely confused, having missed the visitors entirely.

[youbarium]

"Well..." Carlos begins. "Actually, I'd better not talk about it too much, but basically, the Capitol brought in a bunch of people who were important to the Tributes before the last Arena. Then, a week later, those people were taken into Capitol custody. We haven't heard anything from them since."

[worldsaway]

Thor's expression darkens considerably at the explanation, but he says nothing, heeding Carlos' subtle warning about not saying too much. The anger burns in him at the idea of someone doing the same thing to Jane or Loki or any number of his close companions.

"If I could be of assistance.." He trails off, leaving that open ended for Carlos to consider. "I would not hesitate." Again, it's curt and vague. He moves on by leaning forward to pull forward a donut. "Are you sure you will not partake in the spoils?"

[youbarium]

Carlos's eyes widen for a moment as Thor makes his veiled offer. He wonders if he has found another person he can trust with information about the rebellion -- one more person to add to the network of sympathetic Tributes. But he doesn't know yet, so he keeps his mouth shut.

"...well, all right," he says, accepting the donut and taking a bite. It was important never to do science on an empty stomach. "But I really have got to get to work." He waves the donut at his notebook.

[worldsaway]

He meets the other man's wide eyed gaze for as long and as meaningfully as possible. Perhaps the cameras would see suspicion, but it's entirely possible they'll be distracted by chemistry.

"I shall distract you no further, then." He offers him a small smile and leans forward once again to pick up what looks like a trashy gossip magazine, flicking it open to read about the New Trends Sweeping the Nation.

[youbarium]

Carlos can't help a smile in return. By all rights, Thor should set off every instinct Carlos has to turn around and get out of there, but the man is really disarming. Carlos settles in and gets to work writing strange symbols and complex equations that would be meaningless to basically anyone else.

Though Carlos has had a bit of a mental block about doing science lately, he finds that he's focusing better today, better than he has been. Is that because he was honest about being bothered by Cecil's disappearance? The more he lies, the harder it is to science. But it looks like today he'll make progress.