raiamods: (Default)
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!.

figlia_morbida: ([halcyon and on])

[personal profile] figlia_morbida 2021-06-09 06:14 am (UTC)(link)
[Trish meanwhile is more worried about the people with demonstrated powers...so far, the refugees have appeared to be completely normal if sometimes hostile.

As someone who was a normal person just a few months ago, she's more wary of people that can turn rain to knives or any other crazy thing Stands can do!!! Maybe she's weird now though, since she knows Spice Girl can at least counter, say, guns. That does a lot for confidence...

Though, they are severely outnumbered by the refugees. Damn it, trust no bitch seems to be the flavor of this place. Trish huffs, trying to quell some rising anxiety.

As long as she has someone she can trust...she supposes she can handle it.

She supposes Bruno makes a good point, too, but she can't help stating:
]

I'm doing what I can. I just wonder if it won't matter.

[She gestures with a loose motion of her arm. Almost like it was too heavy to lift.]

No one has to be an enemy to be dangerous.

[They just have to care about literally anything else more than you. A goal or otherwise. Trish knows this well.]
figlia_morbida: ([sugar man])

[personal profile] figlia_morbida 2021-06-09 06:35 am (UTC)(link)
[Trish can understand that. Where your born inevitably dictates what you're like! There's going to be pride there.

That said, Trish has to wonder once more if Earth comes in many iterations with different names. Especially when she's never heard of that country. Alas, her assumptions of Nina's European descent are for naught.
]

Yeah, Italy is my home country. It's a strip of land surrounded almost entirely by water.

[And very popular with tourists! Trish lightly swings her feet.]

What's Ravka like, if you don't mind me asking?
figlia_morbida: ([promises promises])

[personal profile] figlia_morbida 2021-06-09 07:21 am (UTC)(link)
[Listen, sometimes you have to drag Earth in front of strangers. She doesn't want to give him high expectations just in case someone here ruins them anyway. It's bound to happen.

She's satisfied with her appraisal, as well. Hopefully it helps Cal feel a little better. Like, she may be from Earth but her time hadn't even seen the release of the iPod yet. That centuries wide gap in tech and culture is hard to cross! Cal has a leg up in that regard.

She watches him pat BD too, and she wonders if it's common in the future to have cute robot companions...of which she can see the appeal.

No need to worry about allergies or huge messes like your average pet owner! Ideal.
]

I assumed as much.

[If she sounds slightly disappointed, he's not imagining it. There's no one here with an answer about how any of this is even possible and it sucks, frankly.]

...Were you a pilot yourself?

[It's too bad everything is wrecked. Cal or someone familiar with space travel could fly them out of this awful corpse party.]
needfully: (pic#14782461)

[personal profile] needfully 2021-06-09 09:24 am (UTC)(link)
Just wondering.

[ He replies, bluntly, and honestly, quite cryptically. What he really is trying to get an estimation of is whether or not this person is in the I Was Made To Fight Acid Rats and All I Got Was This Dumb T-Shirt camp, which would add more to his theories surrounding why they're all really here. Her answer doesn't really confirm or deny the case, as he supposes "not very much" is subjective, anyway. Hm. Once again with the not very well thought out research methods. ]

I agree that there isn't much of a reason to venture out, [ Illumi finally looks away from the crowd, apparently satisfied with the fact that none of them are barreling back towards them to give them their two cents. ] They're already asking a lot of us by assigning us to go out there for their errands.

[ Funnily enough, it sounds more like he's inconvenienced when he says it rather than concerned about his own safety, like he got asked to do an unwanted chore, or something. It's basically the same thing! ]
needfully: (pic#14877874)

[personal profile] needfully 2021-06-09 10:19 am (UTC)(link)
[ Illumi stares just long enough to catch the attention of Rémi, before slowly averting his gaze again. It seems like he did it to bother the other man on purpose, turning his head to look forward at the shelves again as Rémi scoffs behind them, probably complaining to some security officer about the weirdo giving him the bug eye. Still, his expression remains passive and unoffended, though he does speak a bit more seriously when he finally answers. ]

Something that defies reality. Bringing me here wouldn't be far from what it could already do... [ He confirms it, though he isn't sure exactly how to explain it much further than that. A sigh escapes his lips. ] So things of that magnitude do exist.

[ It's a vague, and cryptic answer, even if it is sincere. Confirming the existence of such a power is good enough for the sake of Bruno's question, he thinks. It has been unclear to him how much he can trust that the bringing of them here was really all a mistake, mostly because he thinks that would be a great, manipulative lie to say to people you brought to the planet intentionally for a certain purpose. ]

Not that I've been sent to the future myself, except this time. If this really is the future.

[ yknow, if... he can't be certain, since he's not from this fabled earth planet he's been hearing so much about! ]
brosbeforeprose: (i want it all)

childcare

[personal profile] brosbeforeprose 2021-06-09 11:09 am (UTC)(link)
You've got a way with words, Serah.

[Varric is nearby while this scene of theatrical carnage goes on, sipping what is sadly only water from a cup and watching with a grin. A child approaches him like clockwork to ask, why are you so short?, and Varric turns only to look the kid dead serious in the eye.]

I asked too many rude questions and Mother squashed me flat.

[This has the desired effect of the child giving a little yip and scampering off. Satisfied, Varris turns back to his fellow man who fully believes in destroying children verbally.]

I wrote that, by the way.

[It's to keep kids entertained for 25 seconds, he's not exactly at top form here!!!]
portolan: (w e l l l l l)

[personal profile] portolan 2021-06-09 06:16 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Balthier lowers his voice, lest their escort figure out he's saner than he's let on. ] They haven't made any effort to keep us from running, so I'd wager a prison break would end in our untimely demise. They don't seem to mind of that happens, but I'm not too keen on it.

[ Balthier makes a point to walk a little slower than usual, purposely holding his clothes over his arms. The fabric on his back is already starting to feel less damp -- bless desert air. It's nice to have one familiar piece to these past few days.

Not that the days before were much better. The fight on the Bahamut, his father's death, the Ocurria...this might as well be vacation. He just refuses to address that it might be a vacation with no end. And a lot of labor.
]

You break out of many prisons in your sordid past? [ Balthier has. He tried in holding, but it didn't go well. These prisons are higher quality than the forgotten sands of Nalbina, and even some of the newer works in Archades. This planet's technology seems if not ahead of his home then distinctly different, and this makes him uneasy. Harder to pirate when you don't understand the materials. Harder to survive. ]
portolan: (c o n v e r s a t i o n)

[personal profile] portolan 2021-06-09 06:22 pm (UTC)(link)
Ah, yes, but that would require any of me endless wealth being accessible. Quite frankly if someone knows how to go home to rob me, I'll gladly show them the way.

[ He left the Strahl to Vaan and Penelo, and despite favorite haunts across four nations and two continents, he hasn't lived anywhere in years. He's sure Queen Ashe would furnish him with something if he returned, but he hasn't really lived anywhere in...gods, seven years now? Eight? He has no idea if his father removed him from his will before...well. It probably doesn't matter, now that he's here. But he hasn't been a rich man in many years. Just one with the ability to lift nice things. Even that might not be true here.

He lets Nina's movement distract him, following her into the forest of boulder-like eggs. He feels a strange pressure in his chest like a tug. There's an egg across the way that feels...different than the others. He has a sense that it was his, and he is uneasy that there's any connection to it.
]

Not sure I like this nursery.
morozova: (pic#14874493)

[personal profile] morozova 2021-06-09 09:36 pm (UTC)(link)
It wouldn't be the first time.

( a quick cut of an answer. there's no reason to be shamed by the comparison, and yet something in him bristles ever so slightly all the same. )

And I would take the work over digging trenches, to be sure.
morozova: by @axisandallies (pic#14918589)

[personal profile] morozova 2021-06-09 09:46 pm (UTC)(link)
( happily, he takes back the razor, eyes flickering down to study the blade. )

Thank you.

( his eyes lift, rising to her face. then, he nods, a sharp dip of his chin as if agreeing with himself. yes, he is grateful, as much for her help as he is the fact that she hadn't used the opportunity to cut his throat after all. )
sunmon: (Default)

[personal profile] sunmon 2021-06-09 10:15 pm (UTC)(link)
[ staring up at him, alina gets caught up. it should feel light and easy and familiar. instead, all she can do when she looks in his eyes is wonder why she can't see the monster that he is. even now. it could have been a comfort, having him here. this could have been easy, a sense of normalcy.

she wishes baghra had never told her.
]

Of course. [ she makes it sound light. he couldn't have expected anything else. but if he had, if it had occurred to him that she might be gone, maybe this will put him at ease. she clears her throat, breaking the tension of the moment with a sound. ] I'm ... I'm going to clean up while we're here. [ she gestures vaguely towards the showers. ] You don't have to wait.

[ she hopes he won't. but then, she'll only have about three minutes of water either way. ]
morozova: (pic#14876602)

[personal profile] morozova 2021-06-09 10:18 pm (UTC)(link)
( a pause follows.

she can't seriously expect him to believe that, surely? that he's changed. because, oh, he does broadly understand what she means about the fjerdans and their beliefs. how they're fed that poison like mother's milk. but there's a more pressing concern, too: )


Does he know that Miss Starkov is here?

( does he know what she can do? he doesn't say but it hangs in the air like a ghost between them, unspoken. )
morozova: @axisandallies (Default)

[personal profile] morozova 2021-06-09 10:22 pm (UTC)(link)
( another nod, and he's already moving toward the place she'd stored his shirt and kefta. )

I thought I might visit the Memorial Wall, later.

( he offers this to her as much as invitation as a warning. it'll be up to her if she decides to join him. )
sunmon: (Default)

[personal profile] sunmon 2021-06-09 10:40 pm (UTC)(link)
[ she hesitates before nodding. ]

I'll find you.
psychometries: (016)

[personal profile] psychometries 2021-06-09 10:56 pm (UTC)(link)
[ The bridge. There are a lot of echoes in the Force here, but Cal doesn't reach out for them just yet—he's been pretty reluctant to touch things this entire time, and the memories that he has picked up from brief contact have been strangely opaque and distorted.

It's probably for the best, honestly. The feeling he gets from this place is like a tomb—and he's been to more than a few of those.

Instead, he looks around the room, almost hoping to find a scomp link socket on one of the consoles. Not that it will do much good, since the power is dead, but it would let BD-1 connect directly to the ship's computer. ]


Yeah, it should've. Something must've gone wrong. Something unexpected. [ Or so he hopes. The other options would involve incompetence or sabotage, and both sound far less appealing than a terrible accident. ]

Something like that happened in my galaxy, a couple hundred years ago. A ship carrying settlers to the Outer Rim crashed into another ship while they were in a hyperspace lane, which shouldn't have even been possible. A lot of people died.

[ The Jedi were brought in to help with the situation, which impacted dozens of systems, and which is why he knows the story. He doesn't look Vidar's way as he continues in a quiet voice: ] At least some of them survived.
psychometries: (102)

[personal profile] psychometries 2021-06-09 11:14 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Done with his scanning, BD-1 comes back to Cal and launches himself onto his back, clinging to Cal's harness. For his part, Cal doesn't react to this at all, because it's a usual part of their routine—instead, he turns to glance at Illumi, a slight crease between his eyebrows. ]

He's not a something. [ There's no sharpness or anything in his voice—it's just a correction. ]

He can go wherever he wants. I really don't think I could leave him behind even if I tried, anyway.

[ Both because Cal doesn't have the heart to deny Beedee anything, and because Beedee is stubborn about tagging along, like he is with everything else. Cal just sort of accepts it as a given that the droid will be coming—not that he wouldn't want him to come in the first place. They're, like, bonded now. ]

Besides, you and I can be corroded by acid too. [ That's added a little cheekily, one corner of his mouth quirking up. ]
neversmall: (127)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-09 11:24 pm (UTC)(link)
[ Though the respective threat and protectiveness the general is feeling rises up behind him as a metaphorical shadow, Nina just nods with military precision; she'd thought this through.  It was difficult not to be intimidated by so much power and so much influence when her defenses were already this far down, but she puts those thoughts to the side and focuses on her mission.  She'd acted how she had in making the best use of her resources, for the preservation of everyone she cherished.  If push came to shove, however, if Matthias had not acted as she'd believed he would have.... she would have stopped him.  And this would be a very different conversation. ]

I wouldn't have come to you with this request unless I'd already made certain disaster wasn't going to happen while we were speaking.  When I met Alina -- Miss Starkov, -- she was wearing your colors, sir. [ So who she is... would not have exactly been hidden. ] I wanted to carefully manage their meeting so that neither side would discover the other without me being present to step in.  The drüskelle will not attack anyone - although he will defend himself.  

[ There's a little twist of her expression at the end that indicates something of - and good luck defending himself against you, sir.

It completely covers the yawning mouth of fear.  What if he won't agree?  What will she - what can she do?  She'd already told Matthias that she'd never stand aside and simply let others come for him; she meant it. But it would kill something inside her to have to do it, and she's not entirely sure she'd be able to stop the general -- in fact, she is almost entirely sure she would not be able to stop him. Nina rather likes living. But she wouldn't be alive anymore if she turned her back on Matthias just to preserve her own life. ]


And I do not believe Miss Starkov will initiate an unprovoked attack either.
psychometries: (067)

[personal profile] psychometries 2021-06-09 11:29 pm (UTC)(link)
Well...

[ He shrugs. That's a complicated answer. Semi-sentient, maybe. If a droid's memory isn't wiped for long enough, it starts to develop a personality, with wants and fears and quirks like any human—and BD-1 hasn't had his wiped for decades, if ever. Whether that's sentient or not has been a matter of debate for millennia. Either way, Cal certainly treats BD-1 like he is, at the end of the day.

He watches the drone shoot off with interest, and quickly drops his fork as soon as Sam hands him the goggles. He doesn't put them on, but he studies the display intently, bringing it close to his face. Even BD-1 scuttles over to look over Cal's shoulder, head tilted at a curious angle. ]


What else can it do?
neversmall: (112)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-10 12:11 am (UTC)(link)
[ Nina is a good listener, and she listens intently. The fullness of her attention rests steadily on him, nodding occasionally as he speaks.

She returns his smile. ]


No, I appreciate the example. We don't have anything like that, in Ravka. But then, our war isn't anywhere close to being over.

[ And... even then, she's not sure they'd have anything like it. Although those are the sort of things she is uniquely qualified to deal with... and it's worth mentioning. ]

We do have some things to help alleviate the pressure... Heartrenders can do more than just dull physical pain, we can ease someone's mind, help them find rest... but you're right, those effects are only temporary. And ultimately the goal would be so that they would no longer need those interventions, yes?
neversmall: (099)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-10 12:26 am (UTC)(link)
I should hope not. [ But she knows too well that sometimes kids end up where they shouldn't be. The world is not a kind place; she assumes that of most worlds. ] You know, you're one of the few non-Earth people I've met since coming here. [ And therefore ten times more interesting for the novelty! ] What did you do in the scrapyards?
neversmall: (Default)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-10 12:28 am (UTC)(link)
Mmm, we've a coast as well, but we're bordered by two other nations. It's cold and we make the best waffles. [ A bit of a shrug, as in - how to describe it? ] It's home. And what is Italy like?
neversmall: (083)

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-10 12:41 am (UTC)(link)
It's creepy, [ Nina agrees. She pauses from looking around to look... up. At least, as far up as she can in what's illuminated. A little quietly: ]

I've not the faintest clue how we came to be inside these eggs, have you?
neversmall: (Default)

theater

[personal profile] neversmall 2021-06-10 01:20 am (UTC)(link)
"Saints," says a clearly amused voice over his shoulder. Yes, Nina is admiring his handiwork. "Are you trying to get thrown out?"
figlia_morbida: ([times like these])

[personal profile] figlia_morbida 2021-06-10 01:22 am (UTC)(link)
[Hmmmmmm. Trish arches a brow at that response, not entirely convinced. Though, she can't imagine what he'd do with the information if she had said, oh, yes, I love going out into acid rain. It's refreshing!

She doesn't think she looks like the adventurous type anyway...

As for the crowd, Trish chances a glance, and they are directing dirty glares as they depart, mostly at Illumi for staring at them, probably. Trish has made it a point to avoid eye contact, and honestly, being obviously fairly young might have saved her from any real confrontation. Well, for now. Maybe some of that extended to Illumi due to his proximity to her.

As for what he says, Trish frowns, thoughtful.
]

Well, you're still alive to complain, which is more than they can say for many of their own people.

[If he can call going out there "doing errands", he's clearly someone equipped to survive a harsh environment like this.

Well.
]

Unless I'm wrong to assume you've been outside, in which case I guess I apologize for that.

[Haha! Not really polite of her, but she figures this man won't care.]
unfastens: (but he's caught in the crossfire)

[personal profile] unfastens 2021-06-10 05:58 am (UTC)(link)
No, I'm the one bailing other people's sorry asses out. I haven't gotten caught before this.

[ it's hard to get arrested for anything when you're in the mob and the city's in the mob's pocket. Less so when you're in space (apparently.) He keeps his voice down, as well, although he gets the impression the guard isn't raring for a fight as much as she is hoping they'll just shut up and behave. ]

In any case, I'm not in the mood to have to persuade you to stop, so I appreciate that. Neither of us are in any position to try. In a few days, maybe we can reconsider.

[ although he's hoping it doesn't come to that... they better have an idea of what's going on by tomorrow at worst. ]
Edited 2021-06-10 05:59 (UTC)