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raiamods ([personal profile] raiamods) wrote in [community profile] ethyraia2021-05-21 04:56 pm
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◣ OPEN ◢ HATCHING LOG 001

WHO: All PCs
WHAT: New characters arrive on Ethyraia, get interrogated, and settle in at the basecamp.
WHEN: May 21 onward
WHERE: Basecamp Leviathan
NOTES/WARNINGS: Potential character nudity, violence, trypophobia (images) as well as light mentions of gore, alcohol and drug-use, light aphrodisiac effects (optional), and references to mass death.


HATCHING LOG 001 ❀
CONTENT WARNINGS: potential character nudity, violence, trypophobia (images) as well as light mentions of gore, alcohol and drug-use, light aphrodisiac effects (optional), and references to mass death.

Players who participated in our TDM are welcome to keep their CR and the content of those threads. Please make sure to chat this out on the OOC intro & CR meme before making assumptions. Please take your time reading the hatching and basecamp bullets, as some items have been altered or expanded.

❀ HATCHING


Congrats, you've woken up in an egg. I'm sure this is exactly how you wanted to spend your Saturday, right? There's no time to get curious and check out the other egg sacs. By the time you've fought your way out of the membranous sac, spilled electric blue goop everywhere, wiped it out of your eyes and sundry other orifices to get your bearings, you have a spear (or a gun) leveled at your face, throat, or other vital organs. Even if you might be inclined to fight, you can barely lift your arms to protest being grabbed and dragged off. Before you can even get a word in edgewise, you've been thrown into a holding cell.

Characters will not have a chance to retrieve their items at the time of the first hatching, and may not even know there is anything left in the remaining eggs.

The holding cell stinks of something sour and acidic, like rotted citrus, but you are not alone. Several other detainees sit in similar squalid confusion, dressed strangely and equally gooey. Time to make nice, ask questions... figure out what the hell is going on, and maybe do something about all that slime?

Over the next few days, a few things become clear. Despite the alien greeting, your captors speak a language that you understand, and the unpleasant circumstances are revealed to be a matter of necessity, not choice. Supplies are low, but they ensure that the new arrivals' time imprisoned is as painless as can be — they offer hot communal showers of less than three minutes, some strange starchy meal-replacement, and medical treatment to those in need. You might strike up a conversation with your new best friend in the shower over a low soap dispenser or when you realize you might need to share towels.

The cost of these luxuries comes in the form of touch-and-go interrogation by the security officers keeping tabs on the cells and supervising the shower time.

A few notes:
Your character may get pulled away for interrogation at some point. No torture, no drugs; just questioning. If you would like to thread this out, please reply to CAPT CHILDE'S top level comment! A caveat: threads will not go beyond (TEN) NPC replies, and new tag-ins will not be responded to after MAY 24.

☆ Locals will be stopping by outside the freestanding holding cells to ogle or ask questions. Are you really going to be mean to that little kid staring at you with wide eyes?

☆ Characters will be let out for bio breaks. No one has to pee in a bucket, that's just inhumane!

Attempts to escape will probably get you tasered. If your character composes a genius jailbreak, you are welcome to submit it in the MOD QUESTION comment to work out how that might go with the NPCs!

❀ EXPLORE THE BASECAMP

On the heels of a little benign interrogation, a medical inspection, and a stern talking to by Captain Childe, the survivors at Basecamp Leviathan determine one thing: you don't appear to be an active threat.

Released from the detention center after three days, you are given the run-down by the locals — you're on a planet called Ethyraia, and the people around you are survivors of the catastrophic crash of the UCSS Adamant several years prior. You, in fact, showed up on the third anniversary of the crash. Weird coincidence, huh?

The first order of the day is having a proper meal at the mess hall — some of the Adamant's survivors will be friendlier than others. They've been stranded here for years, remember? Some of them will be so desperate to talk to someone who has news of other places, and some will be giving you the cold shoulder.

You'll be fed the same as the rest of them. A plastic plate of crumbled protein of unidentifiable origin and gravy over rice with a single wilted stalk of broccoli and a cup of the worst coffee you've ever had. Maybe somebody bumps into you and spills said coffee, maybe you make it all the way to one of the long tables set out for communal eating.

Time to strike up a chat with your neighbor — maybe ask them to pass the salt?

(What do you mean, there's no salt!?)

During this time, characters will be able to return to the Central Chrysalis where they hatched. While there are no clues as to how they got there, they might find items — their own, or someone else's. Everyone is strapped for supplies, but try not to snatch up anything that isn't yours. The security officers don't look kindly on people chasing one other down the hall, trying to get back their dirty magazines.

A few notes:
☆ Feel free to help out anywhere. Every little bit of assistance you offer to the locals will raise their estimation of you. You could easily help clean dishes after the meal, help fix leaky piping or repair hammocks. You could stop by the aid station and assist with the wounded. You'll be watched closely and some of the survivors will be warier than others, but most will appreciate the opportunity to have a 'break'.

☆ If your character leaves the basecamp and wanders outside the Leviathan, they may begin to notice that what they perhaps took as a giant cave is actually an enormous dragon. Everything that seems human-made will look varying levels of worn down, patched, repaired and patched again. This is not a place of prosperity and happiness. Many people are recently injured, or have new scars or missing limbs.

☆ PCs will be warned about the acid rain and inhospitable wildlife that they'll face if they venture beyond the shade of the dragon's wings.

❀ RECRUITMENT FAIR



You've been here for a week, had a chance to show your mettle. Maybe you've demonstrated a propensity for fixing gadgets (or plumbing!) or you have the command of a natural leader and the ability to wield a gun (or a tire iron!) to great effect. Either way, the Adamant's survivors are eager to put you to work so they can have their first real 'days off' in three years! Survivors have set up their various areas in the hopes of catching your attention and (possibly!) bolster their numbers! Feel free to wander around, talk to other PCs, and get the lay of the land.

ENGINEERING CORPS

Thorkil has welded a sign to a post out front, cheerfully painted by a gaggle of children to say "WELCOME!" The children are crowded around the area, and Thorkil is telling them stories about one of his many tattoos as you approach — he has a magnificent eagle tattooed on his arm, and in a hush he is explaining how it landed on him and tried to bite him like a mosquito, and how he slapped it and it just splattered right there on his arm and he's never been able to wash it off!

The children seem mesmerized by the story (maybe you are too?) and will scatter at the story's conclusion, tugging you over to the various areas, pointing things out excitedly. What is an Ehlers-Chau sublight engine? You're about to find out whether you like it or not! Or maybe you can teach them a thing or two. Those who seem to know their stuff will be eagerly invited on board by Thorkil.

The Engineering division has salvaged its tools and scrap from the Adamant’s wreckage, so it has all of the essentials from metal mills to CNC routers to circuitry tools. A holo projector throws schematics on the wall — a drill, a few potential shelter ideas for long-term settlement, and a new communications tower.

SECURITY DIVISION

Rémi has barely deigned to participate — and seems to have done so only at the request of some of his companions. He's sitting at an unadorned table and he is cleaning a variety of weapons. He will scowl if approached, and seems openly mistrustful of your intentions should you speak to him. Questions about how a conversation with Rémi might go may be posted to the MOD QUESTIONS thread. (Note: We will not be threading Rémi, so these questions will be handwaved!)

Characters who make a positive impression on him will open up the avenue to work for the Security Division later, but he will not be extending any offers now — please allow for a realistic period of development here!

Feel free to lean into another PC's space and comment on how frosty that dude seems! You can also survey the various weapons stored in racks, help out with building spears, the usual suspects.

THEATRE

The theatre doubles as a childcare center, and many of the NPCs bustling about seem very excited and eager for the chance to talk to anyone who ventures in to visit. The theatre is bright and cheerful, paintings have been done on the walls of scenes from children's stories featuring colorful characters.

The thespians will not only try to recruit you (for acting in a play, for teaching, for script writing, for drawing on the walls or caring for children) but they will actively put you to work if they see you standing idle longer than a moment! Your character may find themselves with a paintbrush in hand, or taking part in a recital for a play (you're free to invent one, or put a new spin on an old classic! Romeo and Julio, anyone?) or building a set piece for one of the many local productions.

The Theatre doubles as the protective hub in times of need, so beyond arts education and babysitting, your character may also be tasked with shoring up those defenses, helping to fortify the walls, or other such tasks. And who knows, they may be paired off with someone else rather unexpectedly!

AID STATION

Sunya Hyacinth is the local medical doctor, fueled by coffee and spite. She doesn't have the time to recruit personally — she's flitting about the aid station seeing to the injured.

If you follow her, she will put you to work. Hold this stent, articulate this dislocation, take this blood pressure reading. If anyone appears to have a proficiency for this sort of work, she may inquire after credentials — and anyone who seems to have medical experience is going to immediately be handed the medic's armband, a white band with a blue cross emblazoned on it. This armband will grant any PC an extra amount of respect and trust from the Adamant's survivors — but you'd better be able to live up to it!

Feel free to treat any injured PCs, converse with other 'recruits', help pin that white and blue arm-band on... you know, anything under the sun. Some of the patients in the medical bay seem to be suffering from the adverse effects of some of the local flora — itching hives or burning pustules. One unfortunate soul seems only able to speak in limericks, which the medical staff will admit is one of the odder things they’ve seen.

SANITATION

CONTENT WARNING: DRUG REFERENCES

It's a dirty job, but somebody's gotta do it! There are always latrines to be dug, pipes to be repaired, general maintenance to be done on the various sanitation systems.

A nervous-looking janitor will approach your character almost shyly, and ask if you wouldn't mind giving her a hand. If you are willing to help her (fix a pipe, dig a hole, etc), she will gradually warm up to you and seem more animated and lively and very, very grateful. Won't you please consider working with the Sanitation crew? Sure, it's not as glamorous as some of the other duties, but they're the backbone of the Basecamp and they could really use the help!

She'll even let you in on a little secret if you really butter her up or show an interest — the Sanitation Crew? Totally has a little underground greenhouse where they're growing marijuana. They're totally willing to share...

Feel free to dig latrines alongside your fellow PCs, or maybe even share a joint. It's a way to pass the time, right? PCs serving in sanitation will also have an easier time overhearing the gossip that spreads around the base, since no one looks twice at them.

COMMUNITY OUTREACH

CONTENT WARNING: REFERENCES TO MASS DEATH

During their first two weeks in the basecamp, any character who stops by one of the various houses of worship (in addition to a church, a synagogue, and a mosque, there is a temple with small statues to fifteen different unfamiliar deities, many of whom seem to be from different faiths), the gymnasium, or the mess hall will come across a stand that hosts a dozen or so packages.

Wrapped in the black emergency blankets that many bring with them to and from the bunks, these packages are about one cubic foot and contain folded clothes in roughly the same sizes. The styles are all different and highly individualized. Some are luxe, some are basic, and some are clearly the undershirt (but not the proper outerwear) for uniforms of the Adamant’s crew. Warm-faced folks eagerly give out a single package to each new hatchling. Along with the clothing and blanket, hatchlings will receive basic packages containing basic toiletries — bar soap, a toothbrush, a straight razor, etc.

Come by at the wrong time, and you might see a fight break out. A young person, red-faced, shouts at the volunteers working these stands, “Those were our people! Our families! We should be the one to decide what’s done with what they left behind.”

In hushed tones, clearly trying to keep this from becoming a conflict, the lead volunteer insists, “Take it up with Captain Childe.”


A few notes:
Feel free to have your character sign on to help out with any of the listed divisions, with the exception of security.

☆ Characters may collect one (1) care package from the community outreach program. If your character intends to come back for more, please let us know in the Mod Questions thread.

☆ Feel free to ask for light NPC interactions in the MOD QUESTIONS header; we can give you a general idea of how a conversation might go! Like with the Captain Childe threads, none of these threads will be lengthy, and new tag-ins will not be responded to after MAY 24.

❀ THE DREAMING

You are standing at the edge of an immense, underground lake. Water laps at the shore, echoing in the cavern. There is a sense of peace and warmth and — welcome.

A creature emerges from the lake and approaches you. Its gills flutter, its eyes are a faint bioluminescent glow in the darkness. It reaches out to touch you — one long, elegant finger presses against your chest. It feels as if it might crack your sternum open and ferret beneath your bones as if looking, looking for something. Yet, there is no malice from it, and you feel no fear.

But the creature relents. It backs up. Bows to you once, and then turns and walks back into the water.

You stay for some time at the edge of the lake. Eventually, it seems as if another person is here with you, or perhaps they simply came into focus after being here just as long as you. Should you speak with them?

A few notes:
PCs may interact with one another in the dreams. They will be in a semi-conscious state, not wholly aware they are dreaming and not wholly under the impression of its normalcy.

☆ Your character will wake up naturally from the Dreaming, they will feel peaceful and refreshed.
The lake, if they choose to swim in it while dreaming, would be perceived as the perfect ambient temperature for them — some characters may prefer it to be warmer or colder!

☆ If they duck below the water, they will see far-off glittering city lights, but no matter how they try to swim towards them they will never get any closer!

☆ If your character tries to drink the water, they might notice that for a few minutes after they wake they can hear little snippets of NPC thoughts. Weird!

☆ Every character will have a small, pale lilac mark where they were touched on the chest. It will fade over the next few days.

❀ FETCH QUEST

CONTENT WARNING: REFERENCES TO LIGHT APHRODISIAC EFFECTS

A small, perky woman corrals you somewhere near the latrines. "Hey!" she says insistently, pushing her hat back and sending a spill of inky curls askew from her forehead. "We need a hand. There's this plant we get for Sunya — the Doc? You met her yet? — it's a painkiller. Go through a shitload of that, which I'm sure is quite surprising," she says all this in a single breath, and her expression is sour despite her cheery tone.

"You any good at botany? We need another round of Starspire root. Can't harvest the ones we've got in camp, they've been a little cranky lately. You'll have to go about four kilometers due west, towards the old Adamant wreck. Just watch them — if they start to sweat, you'll need to get under cover, means the acid rain is coming. I'll upload the specs to your Comm."

Seems like you're being partnered with somebody else for the run — another person looking perhaps about as equally haggard as you, and at least as equally voluntold. Hopefully you won't run into any difficulties — how hard can retrieving one plant be?

A few notes:
☆ Feel free to have random monster encounters along the way! Don’t forget to wait for approvals on bestiary submissions before incorporating them into threads.

☆ The plants are at a high elevation, so they will exist on rocky outcroppings along a cliff-face. The landscape here is mostly high desert, which means it is full of thin, calf-high grasses, scrub plants, and non arable land polluted by dense, alkaline soil and rocks. Be creative in how you get there!

☆ Somebody gets hurt? Here, chew this root! They said it was a painkiller, right? What's the worst that could happen? (People can get a little ... flirtatious, shall we say.)

☆ Or you could go one step further and try exploring portions of the Adamant! Remember, the ship itself was built to house seventy thousand people — it's the size of a city, and it cannot be adequately explored in an afternoon! If you'd like anything specific to come of this, or if you’d like to know specifics about the Adamant’s layout, please consider submitting a plot request!.

mylawn: (pic#10467983)

[personal profile] mylawn 2021-05-30 04:24 am (UTC)(link)
[He offers her a nod, as if to tell her that's clearly the smart way of going about things, but doesn't say much more than that. He does, however, feel that at this point he should stop joking around about stomping out into the acid rain.]

As far as I can.

[That much is honest. It's likely he'll call it quits once he reaches the edge of base camp, but he still wants to see it for himself. She seems like she's having similar thoughts.]

Thought I'd check out the perimeter.
fossils: (pic#7753863)

[personal profile] fossils 2021-05-30 04:26 am (UTC)(link)
[ A long time ago hearing you call him that would hit him with a quiet, sheepish kind of pride. Boost to the ego. Other times it'd be chagrin, annoyance— knock him down a peg if he needed it.

Now to hear it is an echo hollow in his chest.

He doesn't sit, instead he pivots to face him and he takes a few minutes to respond other than to nod yeah, alright. Message received this time.

Thing is, he never had much doubt that Sam would figure it out. But knowing he hasn't been there for him this whole time—

He grimaces at Bucky's boots. ]


We oughta get back to work soon.

[ We good? he could ask.

And who have we been, Steve? Huh? 'Cause I don't know. I thought I did, but how the hell am I supposed to know who we are when I don't even know who I am?

Not for a while, seems like the answer he's already got. ]
Edited 2021-05-30 04:27 (UTC)
mylawn: (pic#10433702)

[personal profile] mylawn 2021-05-30 04:30 am (UTC)(link)
Sure.

[He says, like he doesn't really believe that. Still, he understands that he's being a little hypocritical, when he's asking what other people are doing here. The quality of this man's voice gets his attention, and after a few moments of studying, 76 gets the sense that he's not actually dealing with a human at all.

Still, he's not going to complain about the buddy system when said buddy is as heavily armed as Banshee seems to be. Despite his complicated history with artificial intelligence, 76 generally harbors no ill will towards individual robots.
]

Was thinking about it. Seems responsible to check the perimeter.

[Figure out just what, exactly, he's dealing with.]
freightcars: (ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴛᴇʟʟ ᴍᴇ ʜᴏᴡ ᴍᴀɴʏ ʙᴜʀᴅᴇɴs ʟᴇғᴛ)

[personal profile] freightcars 2021-05-30 04:33 am (UTC)(link)
Yeah.

( That probably doesn't feel like he's answering the deeper, unasked question. Just that he's tired, and he's ready to move out of this moment into the next moment. Leave the fight, focus on work, ignore that it happened at all.

At least until he can face Sam and own up to his mistake.

In the meantime, he'll work quietly until he can't anymore.
)
fortyforged: (hm)

[personal profile] fortyforged 2021-05-30 04:48 am (UTC)(link)
[The Exo doesn't seem too bothered about whether the man believes him or not. It probably won't be the first time he gets himself lost around this place.

There's little enough for him to do at the moment otherwise, and the idea of patrolling is at least a familiar enough one. He's seen the state of these people. He's not sure what all's out there, but it reminds him of the Last City, at least in the idea that this is a refuge. If they're stuck and he's got no shop to mind, he may as well be useful in other ways.
]

Mind some company?

[On a more personal level he just feels better having someone else who won't forget what all they were doing in the middle of checking things out, much less forget where to go after.]
usurpurr: ([s5] 42)

[personal profile] usurpurr 2021-05-30 04:49 am (UTC)(link)
[Well, that's a callout that she didn't expect. It does get her to shut her mouth for a moment, her ears pinning back in surprise - only to flick when she scowls. Because, yes: she does know about a potentially impending war, and maybe she's a little bit on edge about it. Even if this is a different planet, in a different galaxy or reality or whatever -- something like that's not going to stop Horde Prime from taking over.

...Then again, neither are a bunch of spears and bows.]


--Forget it. I don't even care what you do. [which is why she brought it up in the first place. yep.] I just think that making sure we've got the equipment to keep ourselves alive is a little more important than giving some kid a shirt they don't even need.

[Let nobody ever accuse her of being compassionate.]
needfully: (pic#14927262)

[personal profile] needfully 2021-05-30 07:02 am (UTC)(link)
No. But I learned to use it when I was young. It's a matter of training.

[ Illumi is slightly less careful than Bruno, because he's a total airhead when it comes to being asked things directly. He doesn't even spare a glance around before he answers. However, he does give pause when he wonders to himself to what extent he should open up about where exactly his "experience" comes from— before figuring that anyone who can recognize this kind of skill must come from a related background themself. Takes one to know one— that kind of thing. ]

Why? Were you born with that ability?
cleaningsolutions: (Default)

[personal profile] cleaningsolutions 2021-05-30 07:40 am (UTC)(link)
[He talks smoothly and at length in an interesting way. Most cured humans don't - possibly can't - extemporize for long on something that's not of particular, personal interest. They have to pause for thought more. Either Ian has a special interest in intoxicants, which, she doesn't judge unless it becomes a problem, or he's smarter or at least more lingual than most of the people she knows. It's a little unsettling, even though Mops has known all her life that cured humans score lower across the intellectual board than their predecessors.

Finally he does pause and make space for a reply. Perversely, she decides to take her time about it - if she tries to talk like he does, she'll fumble. Fortunately, the fate of humanity, even if it depresses her, is one of her deep-held interests.]


Ahh. Well. [Mops sits up straighter and stretches, popping her shoulder joint - it's displaced again - back into position with a louder, more alarming noise than the traditional crackle of joints.] That will take a minute. Essentially - about a hundred and fifty years back, humanity destroyed itself. A scientist created something that killed at least half of the people it infected and left the ones who survived changed. We call those and their descendants 'feral humans'.

They have black blood instead of red. Their hands are large, with nails like claws, and their teeth are long and sharp. They have a permanent - [Doc supplies her the word when she hesitates] - conjunctivitis that makes the whites of their eyes black, and otherwise their eyes are always blue. Ferals are attracted to warm flesh, though they'll eat anything, and can't use tools or language. They're like animals, but almost unkillable.

[He's probably noticed at least a few of these things: her tongue and gums are gray without a trace of pink, her teeth are strange, her sclera are gray except for her oddly bright blue irises, her hands are big and her nails have the look of heavier structures cut down small.]
Edited 2021-05-30 08:00 (UTC)
needfully: (pic#14877873)

i couldn't not say it the opportunity was RIGHT there

[personal profile] needfully 2021-05-30 07:42 am (UTC)(link)
If it becomes necessary.

[ Its neither a refusal nor a commitment - it would be stupid to refuse the tutelage of someone who actually does know how to do it, considering it hasn't yet been made clear to him how many other sets of clothes he'll be able to get his hands on... but he's also the type to only take on new skills when he absolutely needs to. When it becomes directly useful to him to know how to make clothes, then that's when he'll sacrifice time to learn how to do it. For that to happen though, he needs to know— ]

Is this your area of expertise? [ Belatedly, he patches together what she'd said about clothes having such a meaning to others, along with this sudden implication that she has the capacity to teach others. ] Clothing, that is.
northerndragon: an awkward family luncheon (S8 i made a huge mistake)

[personal profile] northerndragon 2021-05-30 07:46 am (UTC)(link)
He looks pensive for a moment: how to put this? He doesn’t understand it very well to begin with.

“A man there, he had found himself in another place once. Like I have here. Another world that he should never have been able to visit. He came to care for someone there, but he lost them. He tried to get back to them. In doing it, he did to other people what had been done to him.”

The pensive look shifts to uncertainty, even frustration. He might sound a fool if he tells her the rest — a fool, or a dangerous liar. He knows that the White Walkers are real, the Night King is real, he had found himself first in New Amsterdam and then here, and he had found himself with powers, shared dreams, a soft blue glow sometimes. Maybe there is no truer way to tell it.

“I heard he killed a god, shattered it trying to cross worlds, and that’s what caused it. I don’t know whether or not to believe it, but it’s what I was told. I know it sounds mad. If I had not come from another world, I wouldn’t believe they were real.”

He does not add the rest of it yet: that part of that god is said to be in him. Thinking of it makes him feel a little like he had when he woke from death - They are making too much of me. Better to call it a little piece of a god resting in his care than to think of himself as something other than human.
bestaround: (pic#14210969)

[personal profile] bestaround 2021-05-30 12:03 pm (UTC)(link)
[ 9S readies himself to deal with more busywork while wondering to himself if there were such a thing as catching a break around here. On the other hand, perhaps it's better than doing nothing; keeping idle means there's too much time to think, which rarely lead to anything good these days.

(Though, five minutes would be nice.)

Certain sections of the walls need work, it seems, and it isn't just because of the appearance; some of the circuitry has worn here and there, and 9S has the know-how to deal with that more so than the tiny, frizzy-haired child who suddenly comes clinging to the leg of the caretaker, teary-eyed (apparently, one of the other kids had ended up hitting her). As sheer luck would have it, it's a fine opportunity to pry himself from the conversation and begin to set his focus elsewhere.

Which, of course, gets swiftly derailed.

Just as he turns on his feet, his ears catch an ever too familiar voice—it's been weeks upon weeks since he's last heard it. And in the next moment, from behind the visor his eyes lie on an unexpected sight.

9S freezes, stunned, with no explanation to how he's hallucinating this. ]
bestaround: (pic#12291012)

[personal profile] bestaround 2021-05-30 12:10 pm (UTC)(link)
—Huh?

[ Come to think of it, he was missing a companion of his own when first they spoke. 9S lifts his chin briefly to give it a glance. ]

Oh, right; that's Pod. Turns out it came along with me, but I didn't realize until later.

[ The weird goop they came in did it no favors, either. In the end, 9S spent an annoying amount of time getting it in proper working order again. ]
trassel: (16.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 01:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Alas, no hands are held this day. Nina's touch to his arm sparks a smile in return, all for her. Matthias slips into place behind her, as close as a shadow. Trassel can be seen in the crowd, his white fur a beacon. People are getting used to him, but thankfully nobody approaches him, and no children try to play. He's still a wild animal. (And a stubborn one.) ]

Is that so? Then we'll have to see.

[ Mights and maybes usually lead to something, even if that's not the original destination. They have looked at each other across campfires and the width of huts. Looking, waiting, and the moment will come. ]
neversmall: (004)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-05-30 01:33 pm (UTC)(link)
[ And so their protein mix and single pale piece of broccoli is received, they make their way to follow Trassel to their newly claimed seats.

Nina looks at the food and... sighs a little, she can't help it, this is already getting monotonous and it's just been one week. Then she pastes on a smile because the physical response of the smile will Help with this. ]


The good thing about the food is at least we're not tempted to linger. It's easy to make room for the next shift.

[ A quick grin. ]
Edited 2021-05-30 13:33 (UTC)
trassel: (31.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 01:40 pm (UTC)(link)
[ She hadn't found the food of the past three weeks that appetising either, but it had been relished a little more than this. Matthias glances sidelong, waiting for it — ah, there it is. She thinks a Smile will help her, and he can go along with it. ]

I wonder what reason you have for being in a hurry.

[ So, so primly. Mischief dances in his eyes. ]

[ He sits only after Nina, and eats usually after her, and after Trassel. Matthias has an extra empty bowl, in which he puts half of his own meal, and makes sure his wolf eats first. It's not... a proper diet, but in the absence of animals to hunt, it's what they have. ]
trassel: (37.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 01:44 pm (UTC)(link)
[ A nod. It feels a little ridiculous to insist on being a loner when this is such a strange situation. He himself had been inclined to it up until the moment he'd found Nina. ]

Including yourself?

[ Just throwing that out there. He doesn't expect Bruno to answer it in a straightforward manner — who takes any joy in hatching out of something covered in that disgusting goo? ]
trassel: (36.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 01:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[ There could be more surprises in the eggs. His weapons had been among them, and that had been annoying, but he's so grateful for Trass' presence here that his annoyance at it has largely faded. ]

Then I am glad you're reunited. What does it do?
neversmall: (046)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-05-30 01:54 pm (UTC)(link)
[ A quick glance, a real grin - two, two flirtations in one night! Look at him!

And she does. And frowns a little. Trassel needs to eat, no one wants a hungry wolf, but... ]


You should be eating more.

[ He's... not small. She's more prepared to face deprivation than he is; his weight is all muscle. Half of this portion is insufficient for him to sustain it for long. ]

When are you going to let me put a fourth of mine into the bowl to save you from putting in half?
trassel: (30.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 02:04 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Flirting? Sure. He won't be outdone. Every wicked grin of hers is a challenge, and it will be met, teeth bared, claws sharp. ]

I'm fine, Nina.

[ What was that he told you about enduring and overcoming. If she decides to slide a small portion of her own while his back is turned... ]

He eats from my rations, and he knows this. You are always sneaking him something under the table.

[ HE NOTICED. ]
neversmall: (006)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-05-30 02:08 pm (UTC)(link)
He asks very politely! [ Wicked inflection: ] And I can be very generous.

[ Her attention is suddenly abruptly diverted over his shoulder. Someone is standing up, there is no threat, but she knows he'll turn to see what she's looking at. And. Let him think she is using this to sneak more food to Trass. It is his plate that will end up with a barely noticeable increase, and yet when he turns around her hand will be under the table, being nosed at by one (1) wolf. ]
trassel: (28.)

[personal profile] trassel 2021-05-30 02:21 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Sneaky little red bird. His attention does divert, on instinct, looking at the person who's just gotten up, observing that area for a moment before he now jolts towards Trass' motion under the table. ]

Already? You have no shame.

[ She and Trass are a conspiracy of two. He scolds them both. ]
unclesam: ((45))

[personal profile] unclesam 2021-05-30 02:23 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Alright. So he's gotta find a way to punt both the old geezers into the sun. Got it.

Sam pinches the bridge of his nose briefly. He's getting a headache. Steve telling Bucky to give Sam a break... appreciated, but way out of line. Way out of line because it's way out of context. Steve, bless his bleeding heart and good intentions, has no idea what he's talking about. It's like they're all stuck in a minefield, and every misstep trips an explosion on someone else. Good grief.

Where's that asgardian ale to get blackout drunk on when you need it? ]


Steve doesn't know what he's talking about.

[ Sam says it with careful gentleness, keeps any bite he might feel out of his voice. He can't judge Steve for trying to help, and he can't blame him for things he hasn't done yet, and a mountain of shit he just... plain doesn't know about. Doesn't make a misguided attempt to have Sam's back go down any more easily. This isn't a potshot a Steve - it's a simple fact. He doesn't have context, so he doesn't know what he's talking about. Hell, it took Bucky a hot second to figure it out back home, and even here he's much closer to the reality of the situation than Steve is just based on the mess of a jumbled time line they're all living. ]

Steve not knowing it was a shitty thing to say to you 'cause he doesn't know where you're at doesn't make it hit any less hard. So yeah, I get why you blew up at that.

[ Sam closes the distance between them. Lightly taps the back of his hand against Bucky's shoulder, and tilts his head to catch his eyes. His hand stays there, just a light point of contact, flesh against metal. ]

You gotta tell me these things, man. I need you to level with me.
unclesam: ((85))

[personal profile] unclesam 2021-05-30 03:12 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Sam glances over at her for a moment while he rolls up bandages. Muscle memory is taking over here. Some things you just don't forget.

Served, but she said serve at first. So either she's not been out for long, or the out is merely her presence here. Served in an army...

It's a lot easier for me to break something than it is to fix it.

That informs a lot more now. Sam gives her a softer sort of smile, nudges her with his elbow lightly. ]


It's nice to be able to choose how to be of service to people who need it, not be ordered, huh?
freightcars: (006)

[personal profile] freightcars 2021-05-30 03:21 pm (UTC)(link)
( God damn it Sam Wilson, how do you do that? One second it's gonna keep my mouth shut forever, the next it's like a dam's about to burst.

The plates beneath Sam's hand gently shift in time with him ducking his head, then turning his eyes out toward the direction of their targets. He blows a heavy, frustrated breath out of his nose.

I need you to level with me.
)

Where I'm at is I don't think it matters what he said exactly, I think I'd have lost it on him eventually anyway.

( He shakes his head slowly. )

When I said it wasn't even about you...

( A glance Sam's direction, and then another avoidant look aimed at the floor because apparently that's all he's capable of. )

I yelled at him for leaving.
unclesam: ((10))

[personal profile] unclesam 2021-05-30 03:45 pm (UTC)(link)
[ It's a talent. He was an excellent counselor if he does say so himself. And Sam knows he was getting somewhere even with Karli - had Walker not interrupted...

But that's neither here nor there right now. ]


Yeah. 'cause he didn't just leave. He left you.

[ Not a question. It doesn't matter how much Steve deserved to find his happy ending, it still sucks to be the one left behind. It sucks to know that the happy ending doesn't include you. Bucky's not the only one who got left behind, but Sam knows it hits different for both of them, and the hurt they're both left with is not a competition. Bucky's hurt is valid - and so is any anger or resentment that comes with it. And perhaps those feelings are made worse, because the Steve they can level with here hasn't even made the choice yet. He cannot tell them just hard those five years where that getting Bucky and Sam back, getting almost everyone back, just didn't end up being enough. ]

And that hurts in ways losing someone doesn't.

[ Sam shifts his hand, then, curls it around Bucky's shoulder. Solid and steady, but not unrelenting. Holding on, not holding down. Sam's gaze remains unwavering, even when Bucky looks away. ]