exsilium | oo1; voice + video

oo1; voice + video

Biggest country in world I know but Initiative don't seem to bother to bring anyone else but me. Too many goddamned Americans and Japanese. [ Says the heavy Russian accent. ] And aliens. And fucking elves. [ For all the emphasis he puts on that word, he doesn't sound angry. More of a 'fuck, what the hell, man?'

... Sorry, elves. He's targeting one elf in particular and he doesn't much care if there's more of them.

Sharp snort. Sound of a lighter snapping on, and the crackling of cigarettes. Then the camera switches on.

Have a pair of heavily tattooed hands, one of them curled around a white stick. Then he tips the tablet upwards until it shows his face, and Nikolai pulls off the sunglasses. ]

You lot ever get tired of talking on this thing? Bunch of stupid questions lately. [ He takes a drag of the cigarette, and blows it at the screen. ] You've all forgotten how to fuck, or something?

[ ooc; for any character with knowledge of Russian criminals, Nikolai's hands carry tattoos that basically says he's one of the worst ones out there. Yeah.

Also, content warnings for sexual assault for the thread with Steph (

controlledvariable). ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[The best lies are ones that are based in truth, and there's enough truth in this that she's confident in it.]

Funny, that's what the headmistress said when I tried to explain why our uniforms were a mess and all the other kids were covered in bruises. You don't sound much like her, though.

[She's not bragging, just telling a story because she can, and because she wants to get a gauge on what sort of man he is. Those tattoos mark him as a dangerous, and there are kids here.]

[ Preaching to the choir.

Nikolai chuckles at those words. ]

Very charming story. [ He leans back a little bit more. ] Now why don't you tell me why you started talking to me?

I like your tattoos.

[She doesn't even hestitate before answering, and there's the clear indication that it's not nearly as simple as her liking them, but that she also has an idea what they mean, and that's what piqued her interest.

He's dangerous, yes, but she doesn't feel the need to be concerned for her own personal safety. She's not going to purposefully antagonise him, but she'll be honest, because she's confident she can take care of herself.]

[ A soft laugh. ]

Not there for little girls to like. [ Idly.

She doesn't need to be concerned, because Nikolai is a masterful liar and he has been wearing this mask for so long it's more of an effort not to lie. ]

But then, you don't sound very much like little girl.

[She very nearly scoffs, but the correction he makes placates her pride before she has a chance to. She's been varying levels of careful about the whole vigilante thing, but she doubts 'recognizing Russian tattoos' is going to make anyone instantly think she's a vigilante. And, anyway, she'd be somewhat familiar with them regardless of what she learnt from Bruce, Tim and Babs.]

You got that one right. [a beat, and then as idly as his comment:] Three years, was it?

[The dots near his thumb woulc suggest as much, though she knows it's possible there are more years counted elsewhere on his body.]

[ There's a long pause. Not a visible start, because he's too much in control of himself to that. But a pause in which he looks at her.

Then he reaches out. Spreads his left hand on the table, and tips the tablet downwards with his right. ]

Three years in St. Petersburg. [ Soft chuckle. ] You know a lot about Russia and the Organizatsiya, dyevochka.

[The pause is interesting, but not entirely unexpected, she doubts most people expect nineteen year old girls to know half the things she does.]

Daddy dearest had some Russian friends, sometimes they'd tell me stories.

[The way she says daddy dearest is entirely lacking in any affection, and mostly sounds mocking, but the statement is true enough. It's been one of her go-to explanations when people question how she knows how to fight, or why she keeps a stash of weapons with her at all times.

It's amazing how much of an excuse "my dad was a criminal" can be.]

[ 'Daddy dearest'. 'Russian friends'. Ah. Nikolai quirks his lips up very, very slightly. His fingers open, the tips sliding against the edges of the tablet (barely within sight of the tablet) before he presses on the private button. ]

You will let me see your face, dyevochka whose father has Russian friends who tell her stories?

[ It is, despite the grammatical structure, a genuine question. ]

[She considers the request for a moment; despite generally being a bit terrible at secret IDs, she has tried to keep her face off the network. But it isn't a huge risk to show one man her face, and the private setting helps make the decision for her.

She switches to video, the display showing the wall behind her, and her face, which is composed into a relatively neutral expression, her hair pulled back into a braid.]

I will.

[She considers saying more, but doesn't have anything in particular that she needs to say right now, and she figures he's not gonna care much for things like pleasantries, which she can't be bothered with either when they're not necessary. If he wants her name, he can ask.]

[ Young. What is it with young girls attracted to a post where he talks about fucking? Nikolai stubs out his current cigarette on his tongue, tosses the stub, and lights a new one. ]

You have name, little American girl?

[The way he puts out the cigarette gets a raised eyebrow, but she won't comment on it.]

I thought we already established I wasn't a little girl. [Come on man her pride can't take that. But still:] Stephanie. And you?

Have we? [ He takes another drag from the cigarette. (He stubs it out that way as an intimidation tactic. Also it's convenient.) ]

Nikolai.

Yes. [There's a slight edge to her tone, the sort that suggests she's not interested in arguing the point. It's the first time she's sounded anything other than polite or amused, but she thinks the best way to get someone to take her seriously is simply to tell them to.

Whether it actually works is a different matter.]

A pleasure, I'm sure. [and that's just dry.]

[ He chuckles softly. ]

Okay. Why are you not little girl?

[There are a lot of different answers she could give, some of which would reveal more than she wants to, so she sticks with something simple.]

Little girls don't tend to have little girls of their own.

[Not that her daughter is really hers, but the point stands.]

[ Long pause. Nikolai ducks his head and takes another drag of his cigarette. The smoke obscures his face, and he lets it do so while he answers. ]

I know plenty of little girls who had little girls. [ Beat. ] One was fourteen. You will say she is not little girl?

[ Slaves give birth to slaves, Nikolai has said himself. He had stood aside while Kirill cried, unable to fuck Tatiana like his father told him too; stood aside while Semyon finally came down and did it, to show Kirill how it should be done.

Nikolai has seen plenty of little girls made to have little girls. Most of the time they don't get to give birth, but forced somehow to abort. But there are some unlucky ones, he knows. ]

[The corner of her mouth twists, like she was going to try for a rueful smile but gives up half way. She was barely sixteen, and she had her mom to support her, but she knows not everyone in the same situation is as lucky.]

It's pretty hard to be a little girl after that.

[She sounds like she regrets that. It's the most honest she's been in the entire conversation.]

[ Damned if he's not glad the conversation is private. Nikolai's fingers twitch. He almost rubs at his eyes. ]

You miss her? [ He pauses, and, as if he's aware that he's revealing too much about himself, he falls back to half-insults. ] The little girl's little girl?

[She can't even be bothered to argue the insult, because her chest suddenly feels too tight, so she just shrugs, looks away from the screen.]

Can you miss someone you've never met?

[Maybe it's a rhetorical question. Maybe she should just hang up.]

[ Can you miss someone you've never met?

(Can you miss someone who has never really met you? Can you want for something you've never had? Can you miss someone who doesn't remember all that you've gone through together?

Nikolai knows a little too much about everything he never really had. Things that slipped out of his reach before he even touched it with the tips of his fingers. Things that he had the barest taste of before it's snatch away.)

He shrugs. It's only long, long practice (longer than she does, in terms of sheer years) that keeps the emotions from his face and eyes. ]

You are not asking me that question. [ He tips his head, slightly. ] You are asking yourself.

[ It's a kinder answer than he should have given. ]

[And she laughs, a huff of a thing, entirely lacking in humour, but she isn't sure what else to do. She shouldn't be having this conversation with this man, she shouldn't be having this conversation at all, she really should hang up. What stops her is the knowledge that doing so would be like admitting a weakness, that it would be just as telling as anything she might say right now. So she laughs, and shrugs, a wry twist to her expression.]

Are you always this insightful?

[What she's really curious about is why he's even still talking to her like this, being - kind, when everything about him says that he should be cruel.]

[ He hears the unheard question, and he leans back against the wall, watching her through the screen.

It's been months since he's been in a place where being a vor means anything. Because pretending, being rude, being harsh- it's like slipping on a mask he doesn't want to wear again but he thinks he should. Not a habit but a duty; a duty he doesn't even know is still necessary. There's always the fear, at the edge of his nerves, that another vor will come in. Someone else. Kirill. Semyon. Azim. Soyka. The machine is randomised; there's no telling who might come in.

Stay away from people like me. It's the best advice he can give to anyone about himself, but sometimes Nikolai wants to feel human instead of just trying to be human.

He has no answer for her. Nothing that he can render into words, especially not to a stranger. Instead, he blows smoke towards her. ]

Only to polite dyevochka who insist they are not little girls.

[A lot of strange things have happened in this damn city, but she thinks this might just have climbed to the top the list. His tattoos mark him as a criminal, and she's watched some of the other conversations, seen how callous he's been with most of the other Tranports, and is absolutely at a loss to explain why he hasn't been the same to her. Admittedly, she didn't approach him the same way that most of the others did, but that doesn't seem like enough.]

It's been a long time since anyone's called me polite.

[But she inclines her head slightly towards the screen, a silent thank you for the small kindness.]

[ Six of one, half dozen of another, really. Nikolai has his reasons, and he thrives best when he's not understood. There's always a part of him that craves for understanding, but frankly, he's given up on the ghost. Having people tell him things without need for coercion or seduction might be asking a little too much already.

He gives her a half-grin. ]

Maybe they don't give you enough incentive to be.

[ It is, in his own way, a form of don't mention it. (He does mean that in the most literal way as well.) ]

[The grin eases something in her, like this weird moment can pass and she doesn't have to worry abou how she's been more honest with Nikolai than she has with half the other people here.

(She thinks part of it might be that with someone like him, she doesn't have to worry about trusting them or not, because she knows not to. It makes things simpler.)]

I can't argue with that. Most people are idiots.

[Perhaps being a little harsh, but occasionally she gets a little frustrated with the general populace.

She's also amused at the fact they're suggesting that he did give her incentive to be polite, but she won't actually point it out.]

I always feel a little guilty tossing comic characters at more normal follk

... comics are weird, but nikolai is nowhere near normal

I am not familiar with his canon, but I'm starting to see that, yes

watch the movie it's amazing 8DD

ngl I will just for Viggo

viggo is fucking amazing in this movie tbh

he is amazing in most of his movies

you mean in every one. even the shitty movies pre-lotr

i watched hidalgo for him

god i want to play frank hopkins ;_;

lmao that would be interesting to see

8DDDDDD

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