poly_chromatic | [video]

Entry tags:

star trek xi - pavel chekov

[video]

[Chekov, slightly disheveled, is seated in the cottage's living room (toying, of course, with a gadget of some sort, as the boy has difficulties being still and without a task. There's a stranger seated next to him. He appears slightly older, considerably broader through the shoulders, a good deal taller, and far less inclined to fidget than the eighteen year-old.]

I'm told that this is an acceptable way to address the City. [The stranger has a distinctly Russian accent. It is, however, far easier to comprehend than Chekov's.] My name is Pavel Chekov.

And I believe that you may be a version [wersion] of me from an alternate reality.

Or you may be a version [the 'v' is not mangled] of me.

Being older does not give you the right to be the original Pavel Chekov. Anyway, I think that this is a curse and you will leave in a day or so and I'll still be here.

[The two Chekovs are no longer making any attempt to address the camera. There's a palpable uneasiness between them--a silent war in the making. Both of them manage to remain relatively genial in both expression and tone, but the uneasiness is clear all the same.]

I almost envy you. If this is a cage, as you said, it's a very nice one. The vodka is good, all of the women are beautiful--

Of course the vodka is good; it's mine. Maybe you are older and better at fighting, but I know how to choose a good drink. [Chekov--the one the City is more accustomed to--grabs the bottle of Stoli from his counterpart.] You're far enough into the bottle. Give it to me.

As they say in Russia, "I don't need your valuable directives."

This is my home and my vodka. You should be more courteous.

If you were a better host, maybe... [Taller, less adorable Chekov ruffles the other Chekov's hair. The latter is not amused.] But why fight when we can settle this like men? One more fight, fists only. The winner gets to stay here and the loser goes.

[Chekov rubs a bruised cheek, sulky.] You have the advantage.

I was joking. Let's drink and be friends.

I would rather go running.

Please, do what you like. Perhaps I can become better acquainted with Misses Uhura.

Don't flirt with her--either of her. [Curly-haired Chekov sets his gadget and the bottle of vodka aside and moves out of sight. The other Chekov watches him curiously, reclaims the vodka, and takes a healthy swig.] I say that for her benefit and yours. She dislikes it.

Have a good run!

[A door slams. The remaining Chekov gives the camera an apologetic smile.]

Forgive Pavel's ill-humor; he may be mad at me for winning our sparring match. But, if you would like to talk to me, my humor is intact and I have little to do.

[ooc: Chekov isn't getting on well with his Good Side (if you want some tl;dr on said Good Side, it's right here). Actual!Chekov can either be action'd up while out or contacted via the network later on; Other!Chekov is free for network communication. If you fancy talking to both, that can happen later. Do indicate to whom and when your characters are replying!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

....A sparring match?

A friendly exercise. Common practice at the Academy.

So ...Pavel lost?

[ For shame, City!Pavel. ]

Yes, but he was at a disadvantage. I'm older, stronger, better-trained, just as quick... he relies on speed and maneuverability. A good tactic, considering his limited combat abilities, but useless against someone who's also fast.

Does this surprise you? Has the boy made a name for himself as a brawler?

[ Wow, Other Pavel. Way to make your younger counterpart seem like an incompetent baby. 'Li' is not sure he approves. (Hei, on the other hand, is largely indifferent. There is a degree of truth in Chekov's remarks). ]

A b-b-brawler? Of course not! [ Merciful heavens! ] If anything, he's one of the nicest, most pacifistic people I know!

[Just stating the facts. At least he doesn't intend to be condescending and insulting.]

Then it should come as no surprise that he lost. [This Chekov frowns.] Nice? Pacifistic? I have been told that this is a dangerous place. It's a small miracle that he's alive.

Excuse my manners, please. Are you a friend of ours?

[ Tsk. Intentions and the utter lack of them. So easy to make a mess of. ]

We-ell. Technically, he did die once... [ He clears his throat hastily. Let's not speak of that. ] Yes, I am. [ He manages a wavery smile. ] Li Shenshung. How do you do, Mister... [ Awkward pause. ] Um, what do I call you? Pavel the Elder? Other Chekov?

Died? And he recovered?

[So he hasn't been briefed on all of the City's oddities.]

A pleasure, Mr. Li Shenshung. Please, call me whatever is simplest for you.

He did. Technically no one dies in the City. If they do, they're revived in 24 hours.

[ A wonderful way to put assassins out of business. ]

I think... Mr. Chekov might be best. You have this air of maturity that Pavel [ ...lacks... ] will acquire with time, I'm sure.

Life must be very cheap in circumstances like this.

"Mr. Chekov" will do; my superiors call me that, and almost everyone is my superior. [He doesn't want to insult his younger counterpart on purpose, but.] Thank you, and he is still young.

[ Life -- and death -- have always been cheap in Hei's profession. But he keeps that gem of knowledge to himself. ]

The Citizens try not to view it as cheap. Most of them anyway. There's always a danger that someone who dies may get. Well. [ g u l p ] Killed Off For Real.

[ Young, yes. And in many ways, abysmally naive. But he's grown on Hei -- as much as people can grow on him. (And maybe that's the point, isn't it? The choice to let someone grow on you -- the choice to let them close, at least however much you're able.) ] I guess seeing a double of himself must be hard. [ A tactful pause. ] I'm sure it must be strange for you too. What with the scary City and the weird people.

It's a strange dimension you live in.

[He outright laughs--not something that the younger Chekov ever does.] I have seen many bizarre and frightening things. A teenager who shares my name and a transdimensional intersection that has taken on the form of a city plagued by curses are far from the strangest things I've dealt with.

'Stay', sir. Not live, [ he's careful but quick to correct him. ] If I start to imagine myself 'living' here, the Deities might keep me around forever.

[ The laugh takes him -- both 'Li' and Hei -- by surprise. While Pavel is normally cheerful, there's a reserve that seems fundamental to his nature; he's not particularly boisterous or demonstrative. Not so with this one, apparently. (Maybe the younger one is just more severely homesick.) ]

You're serious? [ His eyes widen. ] So have you, um, run into doppelgangers before too. [ A thoughtful pause. ] Maybe doppelganger isn't the right word. .... Mini-me, maybe?

Stay, then, but there are worst places to be.

[He grins.] Deathly serious. I, personally, have never encountered myself in any form prior to this, but I always know that the possibility of meeting myself is there. Mostly I've dealt with time-travel and non-humanoid aliens.

Agreed.

[ At the mention of Aliens, he blanches. ] That's horrifying! Are they all, um -- Do these non-humanoids have tentacles and oversized heads and the ability to control peoples' thoughts like in movies?

[Chekov isn't fazed by Li's apparent alarm.]

Some. The ones with the over-sized heads are typically humanoid, however.

[ So valiant, godspodin Chekov! ]

I see. [ With a hint of genuine curiosity. ] Um, I've never thought to ask Pavel but -- what's the universe shaped like? Do you know? A funnel? A doughnut?

[Damn straight.]

The shape of the universe? It's still contested, even in my time, but most physicists--myself included--believe it's spherical, with a radius of curvature equal to approximately one-hundred thirty billion light-years. It's so vast that, for all intents and purposes, it's treated as a nearly flat Lambda-CDM model with a slight positive curvature. Mathematically speaking, its ultimate shape matters less than its local shape.

[ ~*swoon*~ ]

[ No, seriously. You're talking about space-travel and astronomy. That's like porn for him. ]

That's ... [ Interesting. Very interesting. ] That makes sense. The most prevalent theory back in my homeworld was that the universe had a flattish dodecahedron-shape, based in phi and the golden ratio. But whether it was accurate or not -- cosmologists never figured out. [ Nerd sigh. ] There were ... obstructions to their research. [ Heaven's Gate manifested, and sealed off the real sky, alongside access -- physical or otherwise -- to the outer regions of space. ]

That theory was based some of the first WMAP cosmic background radiation data gathered, correct? Very advanced for the time, and proposing that the universe is finite with phi-based measurements set the groundwork for many future studies. [Oh, early twenty-first century! As far as Chekov is concerned, that's when modern cosmology was born.] May I ask what these obstructions were?

[ Li cheerfully nods confirmation. ] That's the one. I'm glad it still serves as groundwork. Back in my world there was some debate springing up that the CMB showed too many anomalies, and that the anisotropies in the WMAP data didn't match up with the Big Bang picture. [ Not that cosmologists had time to quibble for long. He ducks his head, his mood deflating considerably. ] Scientifically ... they're hard to explain. The best minds are still puzzling it out. But something sealed the sky off. It was replaced by a fake one -- the stars included. Space travel -- in any sense -- is no longer possible.

If one thing has remained consistent among physicists, it's a tendency to disagree with one another. They can find anomalies in any theory that they don't support.

I'm sorry for your loss. Few things would be more devastating than losing the sky.

So I've seen. But you can't really blame them. Impartial and logical as they try to be, they're only human.

[ Contractors -- the very embodiment of logic -- are no better, certainly. ]

It was. But it's my personal hope that it won't stay lost forever. [ He brightens a little. ] Anyway. I have the City's sky to tide me over in the meanwhile.

Aye, but physics call for more than a human mind.

[Li's predicament saddens Chekov.] This isn't a sky that can be reached.

I can only hope their mistakes serve as warning lessons for their contemporaries. If anything, judging by how advanced yours and Pavel's world is [ worlds are? ] it's proof enough.

[ He purses his lips, eyes downcast. ] I'm aware. But at least the stars are real. [ That, and they're as removed from Messier Codes and Contractors as it gets. ]

[video]

video; Other!Chekov and maybe Actual!Chekov at some point? :3

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