fringes

[crusaded]

There is a question that has been lingering on my mind since the island transplanted all of us in this alternate version of Victorian London: where did our city go? Whereas just about every other aspect of Tabula Rasa seems to have been carefully nestled among the various buildings in this small circle of land, Rapture and all of its faded decadence is nowhere to be found. I've searched high and low, inspected the very fringes of the space we're allowed to wander, but it seems to have vanished without a trace.

Normally, I wouldn't be too concerned. The place is mostly faded glory and peeling paint. There are resources worth salvaging in its depths, of course, but nothing that can't be reconstructed with what we have now, and nothing that I've forgotten in full. But there's one reason to be afraid of the fact that Rapture has gone elsewhere.

A laugh that echoed through its tunnels.

I've asked Damian's help on this at last. I get the feeling, justified or not, that something might happen if we don't find this man soon. If the rest of us are reeling from the change, where exactly would a madman fall?

Is this Sander Cohen's paradise, or is it his nightmare?

"I want to run another sweep of the Asylum," I tell Damian. There's a sharp breeze where we stand next to the Thames; the Asylum's only a few blocks away. Mere minutes.

Comments

[aworthyone]

"How?" Robin wonders aloud, running slightly ahead of his father. "There's barely anything to do here. If it weren't for Cohen, we would be making up an excuse to get out of the house."

[crusaded]

"There are people who are suited to civilian life."

It feels slightly strange to be having this talk while in uniform, but the further we run, the clearer it is that there's no one to overhear, and should there be any living souls around, we'll notice. Between the both of us, little can escape our watch.

"They enjoy seeing the sights. Relaxing together. And I believe that they are increasingly less convinced that we'll find a way off the island."

[aworthyone]

"What do you think?" asks Robin, suddenly. It's not a subject they've really broached before, which now seems like an oversight, given that the rest of their peculiar little family seems happier here.

"Do you want to stay here?"

[crusaded]

I have the feeling that we're of the same mind when it comes to this. It's rare. I'm not sure that I can allow myself to take comfort in it, aside from the fact that agreeing means one less charged debate between the two of us.

"No," I tell him. "I don't want to stay here any longer than we're held."

[aworthyone]

It's about Robin expects to hear, but he's no less glad for the confirmation. As easy as it's proven to dismiss the insanity and poor judgment of others, his father's would be another matter entirely. Falling silent a moment when he thinks he hears something around the next corner, he waits until he's sure the coast is clear before he asks a question that forces him to halt in his own tracks.


"What happens if you leave first?"

[crusaded]

No one has all the answers, and I may be more prone to tripping over my own than most. But this time, Damian asks, and there is only one reply that I can give him, falling from my lips at once.

"I won't leave first."

I understand that no one's been able to thwart the whims of the island yet, but if you'll notice something about the people who stay, having that strength of will and conviction seems to make a difference one way or another.

"I can't leave you here," I add.

[aworthyone]

"How do you know that?" Robin asks, still making no effort to move forward. He stares up at Batman -- at his father -- his expression unreadable. "No one controls how they come here, let alone how they leave."

[crusaded]

"No one knows how to come or go," I correct him, and the truth is I don't really have the right to speak with as much certainty as I do. But that won't stop my resolve to turn a hope into reality. "But we may yet learn. That's the most crucial action for us to take now, to try and determine the mechanism behind our arrivals and departures. I have faith that we can."