abraxaslogs | ( catch-all) the definite article, you might say

[Viktor is not a biologist--or an anthropologist, or a paleontologist, or a natural historian--but something he does appreciate is the quiet of a museum, even if this particular exhibit is not his specialty. He's been thinking, again, of the strange skeletal arm that Geralt once showed him, and though he knows he won't find anything similar in a carefully-curated (and probably censored) academy exhibit, he finds himself needing to get out of the workshop and clear his head. This is just his way of making it productive.

Or attempting to, anyway.

He gets distracted fairly quickly by an arrival (a Summoned, he thinks), who seems to be very enthusiastic about the exhibit. Viktor is tucked into a corner, hunched over a notebook, but the talking out loud is hard to ignore.]

Have you seen anything like it before?

[He doesn't move to stand from his stool--but he will look up from his notebook, an eyebrow raised in curiosity.]

Oh, yes, often! Here, there, not-there, over-there, everywhere, anywhere in between. Loads of worlds and species out there have this same sort of collection, a repository of what's long past.

Of course, it's only ever part of the story, and not often the whole story or even the true story, but it's a jumping-off point and a conversation starter at the very least. Take us, for example, now we have something to talk about, all because of these bones.

[ He smiles eagerly. ]

To be fair, though, I would have found a reason to talk to you, with or without the remains of our dear departed friend here.

[ Hands folded behind his back now, the Doctor steps a little closer to the man who's spoken to him, giving a nod towards the notebook in his hand. ]

Gathering your observations?

[Yes, Viktor will agree that Piltover too has museums and exhibitions, though of course what piques his interest is this man talking like he has a working knowledge of other worlds. Intriguing, to say the least, but he makes an attempt not to grasp at it right away. They've only said a few words to each other, after all.

Well. The Doctor is maybe saying a lot of words. Viktor glances around, as if gauging whether or not there's anyone else here who might be interesting to talk to, instead of a strange lanky nerd crumpled up on a stool.]

What reason is that, exactly?

[He uncrumples, slowly, though his grip on the notebook is possessive.]

I like to come here to think.

Edited 2023-10-04 16:13 (UTC)

Your notebook! Beautiful thing, that. You've been here a while — longer than me, in any case — long enough you have a notebook and you're sat there observing and reading it, perhaps adding to it later.

[ It's not lost on the Doctor that the other man seems protective of said notebook. If anyone could possibly understand attachments (for reasons many and varied) to inanimate objects, it's this one. ]

I like thinkers and readers and notebook-keepers. Big fan myself! What were you thinking about?

[ Yes, he'll just launch right into it without any preamble. They've had a decent enough introduction, in the Doctor's estimation. Enough that he can absolutely ask such a question. ]

More than a year.

[Which is not necessarily something he wants to think about, so he makes a dismissive gesture, inviting the Doctor closer into his space, perhaps against his better judgement (or maybe he just doesn’t want to get up).

The gregariousness is slightly off-putting, but one of the easiest ways into Viktor’s good graces is to express interest about his work. By now, he knows his reputation slightly precedes him (something about which he has complicated feelings), which is helpful, when it comes to the amount of explaining he has to do.]

I’m an engineer. [And an inventor, and a businessman, apparently, though he usually tries to encompass all of that under the first thing.] There’s inspiration to be had, in places like this.

[ The Doctor can barely fathom staying still for more than five minutes, let alone being trapped here for a year. Or, dreadfully, even longer. Time moves so normally here, the hours and minutes passing as they...should. And it just makes him more restless, being trapped, time moving in a linear fashion, all of it.

He does step closer when he's invited to, his smile broadening. ]

You're right about that, but then, inspiration can be found in nearly anything, even a blade of grass.

[ He does have an active imagination, though, and a long life of experiences to draw from. ]

Engineer! Oh, well, now I'm officially a fan. Of more than just the notebook. An engineer, here, for a year, you must have loads to share. Tell me everything is a bit broad, I suppose, so I'll leave it to you, where to start.

[The excitability is still a bit off-putting—-the Doctor might get the sense that Viktor shrinks from this kind of attention, and doesn’t quite know what to do when all of it is on him. That said, the man clearly has a creative mind, so despite his kneejerk reaction to such enthusiasm, Viktor finds himself willing to entertain the line of inquiry.

Someone asking about his work is always a plus, too, though he’s in agreement that everything is just slightly too broad.]

Well, it depends on what you’re interested in. Aside from everything. Is there a particular discipline you’ve studied, or…?

Aside from everything — good to use that caveat with me or I'll really get going and you won't be able to stop me.

[ He says this with a slight, brief, playful smirk because he can never really turn that part off when he's discussing subjects he's most interested in especially. He is at least — finally — clued in that the other man might need a bit...less of his energy. ]

Oh, many! I don't mean to keep it broad, but when you've lived a long while, you get around a bit. Physics, biology, chemistry, anatomy, engineering, to start. I'm a traveler, through time and space, so I've seen a few things. On the outside, this place isn't wholly different from other worlds I've visited, but I'm in the unique position of being trapped here with everyone else. That doesn't happen to me, or it hasn't in all this time.

So you can imagine I'm glad to meet a brilliant mind, someone who's familiar with this world. I want to know all I can, of course. You have a lab, a home base?

[Viktor has spoken to this guy for approximately five minutes and he’s already learned. There’s some relief, perhaps, when he realizes that the Doctor will, in fact, narrow things down for his benefit. And Viktor will reply, of course, or would reply, if not for the fact that he says something that gets his attention.]

Yes, I have a workshop, but—hold on—

[His eyes narrow.]

What do you mean, time and space?

[He doesn’t say that with the air of someone who doesn’t understand, or can’t conceive such a thing to be possible. Rather, it’s apparent he might have a vested interest in such a thing.]

[ Where Viktor is suddenly stuck on time and space, the Doctor's brain catches on, Yes, I have a workshop. Hearing that is the equivalent of a bell being run to dismiss class at the end of the day, the thrill of what that workshop might contain already stirring the Doctor's interest.

But before he can launch into tell me everything again, he's being asked a question and that's enough to halt him. Lucky for Viktor. It also helps that yes, he does clue in to the phrasing of how it's worded, less with disbelief and more with apparent curiosity. ]

Exactly that — I travel through, around, and within both time and space. I can go forwards or backwards, sideways and in a loop. I could take you to the Rings of Akhaten and the moons of Delphi VI and bring you home before anyone noticed you were missing for tea.

[ Since he's a man of science, the Doctor doesn't stop at his usual more flippant response and goes on to more seriously explain the mechanics — ]

My ship, she's a time machine and spacecraft, a blend of temporal engineering and extra-dimensional physics. On the outside, the TARDIS looks like an ordinary and absolutely beautiful blue police call box, thanks to the chameleon circuit, but inside, she's vast and always shifting. Dimensionally transcendental. Infinite. [ He grins brighter, getting more excited as he speaks of his ship. ] Brilliant, my TARDIS, and quite too far away from me now.

[ He speaks of the TARDIS as a living being because she is sentient, though in a way that only the Doctor can ever fully understand. ]

[For a moment, it looks like the Doctor is simply going to barrel past that little bit of information, and Viktor opens his mouth in an attempt to either object or get him back on track. Luckily, he only rambles for a moment. Viktor doesn't necessarily understand everything he's saying, but he's been here long enough and has seen things from all kinds of universes. He's sure he can figure it out, improbable as it sounds.]

You'll have to show me in the Horizon.

[And once again, he considers himself lucky that such a place exists. That he can experience things like what the Doctor describes, even if only in his own mind. The affection for such a craft is clear--of course Viktor wants to see it.]

So I can see how it works.

[ He's thrilled at the chance of someone more scientifically-minded having a look at the TARDIS. Of course, there are things lost in translation here, lacking the tangible the way they'd have the ability to interact up close, but he'll be able to see how all the parts work together, how it can function at all the way he describes. ]

Glad to introduce you anytime, of course! I like showing her off no matter what, but speaking more practically, I'll absolutely enjoy your perspective on what you see.

[Viktor's motives are not pure, of course. If there is a technological method for traversing the multiverse, he certainly wants to see it for himself. Perhaps there are things he can learn and translate to his own work.

Not that he's going to say as much right now.]

I've heard of space travel, since arriving here, but we haven't managed it ourselves.

[ The Doctor tends to sometimes seem a bit more oblivious on the surface than he truly is, though at least for the moment, he has no reason to believe the other man's motives are less than pure. In the name of science, he's always glad to share, to push progress forward, to advance one's mind, knowledge, and research. He'll always aid in that, if he can, though...in a careful way. ]

You're in good company. Loads of civilizations have yet to achieve it and I always enjoy watching that spark, that tiny light that explodes and breaks open all the barriers and sets them out amongst the stars.

I've been fortunate to learn about it.

[Thanks, in part, to people like the Doctor who are generous enough to display their technology for him in the Horizon. And it's helped inform his own research here, to the point that he's accomplished much more than he ever would have, back home, his own cure included.

The Hexgates were one thing. He can scarcely imagine traveling through the stars.]

So anything you'd like to show me, I'll be sure to make use of.

We'll set an appointment, shall we? Lucky for you, my schedule happens to be completely wide open. I'll make the time, any time at all! And I'd be very interested in seeing your workshop! Trade off, shall we? Take your buddy to work day, that sort of thing.

[ — only not, but...sort of? He's enthusiastic, in any case! ]

I...yes, if you want to put it like that.

[Viktor doesn't necessarily have a schedule--things are more like...he wakes up and works until he has to sleep...but it does leave him in a good position to accept visitors.]

You don't need an appointment. Stop by whenever you like.

[ The Doctor's schedule is similarly non-existent and sleep is an afterthought, at times even an inconvenience for his hurried mind. He needs so little of it as it is so he's more likely to overlook it. But now he's thrilled and his energy is only barely contained. ]

Excellent! So I will. With cake and an open mind, if you like that sort of thing.

[ Ah — ] The cake, I meant, obviously! The open mind being a given. Point is, you'll be seeing me again very soon.

[Viktor looks slightly confused, for a moment, until the Doctor clarifies. It's possible he is not used to people bringing him cake, though he recovers quickly.]

I look forward to it. [To both the visit, and time in the Horizon.] I think you'll like what I'm working on.

( catch-all) the definite article, you might say

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