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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.
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.
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:
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:
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!
☆ 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:
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.
☆ 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.
☆ 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:
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.
☆ 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:
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!.
☆ 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!.
Bucky Barnes | MCU
ᴍɪsᴄ.
theater + misc
(Bucky practically helped raised his siblings. Always just been good with kids, opposite of himself.)
They don't talk much outside of whatever they're working on at the moment, and only if they need the other one's help on a particular unwieldy piece of material. It's fine. He doesn't even know what he wants to say yet.
He talks to Sam. Narrows it down a bit.
There's a quiet spot they get used to taking their break during the day, just outside of the Theater itself. That's where he's sitting, hunched and staring (and not staring) down at something in his hands. It hadn't been on him when he first woke up. Found it later in the egg mess with the retractable shields. Closed, the compass face and the photo inside are hidden from view, his brow furrowed at the metal.
(past or future?) ]
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Doesn't say anything as he settles onto a half-wall a couple feet away, pushing his hair back and chugging down practically an entire canteen of water in one go. )
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Sam told me about Isaiah Bradley.
[ There's no anger in his voice. None of the anger he's got about that revelation is focused on Bucky, anyway. He's just tired. Disappointed. His mouth twists again. ]
You need to give him a break.
[ Sam. Cut him some slack. He doesn't know all the details about what the two of you have been up to exactly, but you weren't exactly hiding your feelings about how Sam's been handling things. ]
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He's not all that irritated about Sam telling Steve. It feels like the ownership of that secret has been shifted, passed from him to Sam, who undoubtedly bonded with the man far more than his attempted killer ever would. Isaiah's beyond any harm well-meaning Avengers can cause him now.
There's a beat of silence after Steve's commentary, with only the faintest of flickers across his expression. A twitch of his cheek, schooled back out again instantly before it manifests into something worse. )
Guess that makes you an expert in our situation now.
( Now that you've had one whole conversation. Now that you know one entire piece of the puzzle.
Gives you the right to be disappointed in him, huh?
An icy, terse warning: )
Stay out of it, Steve.
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Starting to look like we're gonna be here a while.
[ You really gonna keep asking him to ignore everything?
His lips part, close, then part again. He leans forward, demanding to be hear with his body and his tone of voice. ]
I'm here now, Buck.
[ Quit holding against him something he hasn't even done yet. ]
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He'll do you one better. He stands up. Prowls closer, erasing the space between them one slow-motion graceful step after another. You want to be heard? Well, congratulations. He's up nice and close, and he can hear you just fine.
I'm here now. )
Not by choice, so don't act like that entitles you to a goddamn thing. You don't get to sit there thinking that just 'cause you have half an idea of what's going on, you get to lecture me. You left. Even if you haven't done it yet, you still leave, so you can take your opinions with you and mind your own business.
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What do you want me to say — and don't, don't say 'nothing'. What do you want me to say, Buck? I'm sorry. I'm sorry I decided to leave. I'm sorry you have to deal with me now. I'm sorry that nothing I can say is gonna be good enough, make up for it—
[ He's face is flushed, features tight. ]
I'm goddamn sorry, Buck.
[ He can stare at that compass all day and it won't matter.
He doesn't get it. He doesn't understand why he goes back. ]
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( He snaps, and though there's a dim and distant part of his mind that recognizes he's regretting it already, it's already out. His control over his temper has been tenuous at best for days and days, and that was before they woke up here. That was before the fight with Sam. That was before seeing Steve, and getting hit with a slowly mounting sense of resentment — one that might have tapered off, if it weren't for the fact that the stupid goddamn shield Sam slapped down on the table did nothing. It fixed nothing. He still feels like nothing. )
What else did he tell you? He tell you that you left him the shield? He tell you the first thing he did was give it back to the goddamn government? He tell you some other guy picked it up and started carrying it around? You know a guy named John Walker, Steve? Because apparently he knows all about you, he's been calling you his brother all over the news. The new Captain America, plucky sidekick and all. But you didn't know any of that before you opened your mouth, did you? So how about instead of 'give Sam a break' you give me a break. How 'bout that.
( He wants with everything in him to full-on shove Steve in the chest. He redirects instead, turning to angrily swat his canteen off the half-wall. It shoots across a dozen yards and lands half-embedded into a tree with a solid, heavy thunk. )
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He swallows hard, lips parting in silence again as he searches his face almost wildly. ]
Alright, Buck. Okay. Let's just talk you and me then. [ His voice is low and hard, but the tightness around his eyes gives him away again. ]
I know— I know it matters who's wearing that uniform. [ Or carrying the shield. I know it's complicated, for more reasons than either of can articulate to any satisfying degree to each other. ] But it's not us. It's not who we've been.
[ Maybe that doesn't matter anymore, now that Bucky only remembers him leaving. But it matters to him. Only one person alive in the world who knows who he was before his name, his identity, the line between himself and the mantle blurred so hard he couldn't bother to draw it for himself.
They're not the people they were before. But it matters.
Soldier. Sergeant. Sidekick — that one's a laugh.
You were his friend first. You still are his friend, first.
The shield is nothing compared to that. ]
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It's not who we've been. He turns at that, leveling Steve with a hard look. )
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?
( It's snarled, demanding, a little feral. His own hand thumps against his chest emphatically, and honest to god he's not wholly sure what he's even asking anymore. Knows it's something, he's just not sure what he's asking makes sense, that it articulates what he wants.
Hell, he's not even totally sure what that is, either. Just that he rolling, and angry, and feeling some kind of unnamable injustice deep down in his core like a plucked string. )
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It's a sharp contrast to the current picture. Throws him more than he's able to reconcile in the moment as it's all exploding out of him. Eyes widen and narrow again when his hand beats against his chest, the unhinged edge of his tone.
He shores himself up, shoulders tense and his voice imploring: ]
All I know is you weren't gonna find the answer in that shield, Buck.
[ No matter who was holding it.
You're not gonna find that answer from me.
And it feels like a knife in his chest that he can't give it to him, that all he's been accomplishing by talking is moving the goal posts all around the field. That even if he could manage to explain with their limited emotional vocabulary what you've always meant to him, it won't mean shit in the face of the larger question.
(that he left you behind to struggle with it)
He closes his eyes. ]
I'm sorry.
[ Not hard or sharp or half-shouted this time. Hands held loose at his sides.
He doesn't know what else to say anymore. ]
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The words are gone from his head, yes.
He found some peace in Wakanda, yes.
But as it turns out, just because he can't be flipped like a switch and accidentally murder the people around him any more doesn't mean his psychological issues are solved. It doesn't make him feel any better for what he did. It doesn't fix decades of programming, being rewritten, being displaced, losing everybody — losing Steve. He might not be a murderer anymore, but he still feels lost.
He still needs--
Something.
Yelling didn't help, either. This explosion, snarling at Steve, letting off some steam by losing control like this didn't help. He just feels a piercing guilt rapidly replacing the explosive heat, a bitter curl of self-loathing and frustration, a gaping wound.
This is exactly what he didn't want to do.
He's still angry over losing his best friend.
He's angry at himself for not being happy for Steve like he should be, because in his mind a good friend wouldn't feel a second of resentment that the person they love managed to find their peace.
It feels unfair that he's not allowed to just be pissed.
It feels unfair that he's doing everything he can to fix what he did wrong and he doesn't feel any better.
He feels guilty for being an asshole to Sam.
He feels frustrated that Sam's answer for him — be of service — isn't even something he can do, which means he can't do anything, which means he's just stuck feeling this guilt with no path to resolution.
He feels lonely and untethered, caught some place in between letting Steve go and finding that family Sam says he's going to — my nephews adore you — must be nice, to feel that. Wishes he had it now.
He hates himself, and this, and you, and god damn everything.
He turns his back to Steve so he can dig his thumb and forefinger into his eyelids, gone wet and red, and he hates that too.
Steve called him a good friend the other day and he said I know, but he doesn't feel like it now. The plates in his left arm twitch and realign, but it hangs heavy at his side as he slowly massages his eyes. )
I wanna be happy for you.
( He says finally, hoarse, low. )
I do. I am. But you're the only—
( He stops. Chews his cheek. Reels himself in, edits and re-edits and re-edits his words. )
You were the only goddamn person alive that saw any good left in me. You took everything with you when you went back, except for that stupid shield. You're not allowed to be disappointed in me for tryin' to look out for it.
( Protectiveness is one of the few remaining definitions he has for himself that has lasted from the very beginning, he doesn't have a better outlet for it now.
Sam's slowly becoming the new target for it, but he's not there yet. )
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He grimaces at Bucky's back. Lowers his eyes as he speaks through the starts and stops. Feels his chest wind up tighter than a bowstring again, his mouth twisting uselessly as a silence passes after Bucky finishes. ]
You know that's not true. [ You were the only goddamn person alive that saw any good left in me. The words are spoken not softly. It's a familiar kind of certainty. Solid and unmovable. Bucky can fill in the names, but they both know them.
A beat, and he takes a step closer into his space again, hand lifts for his right shoulder. Lightly at first, testing the reception, then more securely. ]
And I'm not... disappointed. I'm not disappointed in you. [ That's not exactly what he was trying to get across. Shouldn't matter. Might not be healthy, but it's something he can give him right now. His hand squeezes his shoulder and he pulls in a breath, holding it for a few seconds. ]
I'm not— handling any of this real great.
[ Externally. Internally. The latter is the harder admission by leagues. Grinds the words through his jaw, past his lips. It's not an excuse, doesn't want it to be mistaken for one. ]
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He doesn't shake the hand off. Doesn't seem to react to it much at all, save to let out a slow exhale through his nose.
Eventually, his hand drops away from his face. Seems like he's more or less got a leash on himself again, and his body language just reads exhaustion. Any anger is old and tired, a slow rolling river rather than an erupting volcano. )
Yeah, join the club.
( He mutters dismissively, trying to work through the discomfort that always follows any vulnerable display of emotion. Gonna take a couple seconds. )
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theater
[ if there's any bitterness in her voice, yennefer keeps it out of her face. she works hard to look disinterested. geralt had been right. she had no place around children. she would make a poor mother. but it's one thing to hear it, and another to find all the stubbornness in the world cannot suit her to the task. ]
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Whatever he finds, he keeps behind a mild and muted mask. )
I had sisters, growing up.
( He says finally, turning his eyes back down to the mess of knotted rope he's untangling. One particularly stubborn knot won't come undone, so he just yanks with a metal arm and snaps that piece away entirely. Doesn't seem like it took much effort. One of the kids shyly walks up and holds her hands out. He hands it over obediently, and she runs off to take it to the pile. )
Feels like a hundred years ago, but... guess it's hard to shake some habits.
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[ she says it with a callous levity that suggests a hundred years isn't as long as it actually is, certainly not a person's entire life. her smile is a little sour. ]
It must be terrible to be separated from them. [ it's a line. something fished out of a bag of them, the sort of thing that will make other people feel better so they will trust her more. ]
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It was a different life.
( Another yank, but this time the knot gives. He threads a length of rope through itself, unraveling three or four feet of it at once.
Shoots her another appraising glance. )
What about you? Missing anybody?
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but isn't there anyone? she has gone so long without companionship, drifting from one thing to another, empty and vapid and perfunctory. there were exceptions. constants. tissaia. geralt. she can't say she misses them. those relationships were too complicated, too sour, for that.
she also doesn't want to have to think about the pang of concern in her chest when she considers tissaia, and what had become of her at sodden hill. ]
No. [ she turns stormy purple eyes away. ] I'm not afflicted by that sort of sentiment. [ she considers the children watching bucky with rapt interest. maybe that's what they see in him that they don't see in her. a softness. had she ever had it? ]
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Interesting to see somebody just flat out say something like that. A little amusement slips into the neutrality. )
I think this is the part where I'm supposed to say something wise and judgmental, like must be lonely, but...
( He holds up his metal left hand. )
I don't even miss the arm. Wouldn't wanna be a hypocrite.
cw: internalized ableism & it's getting projected outwards
[ she considers the arm, not quite scrutinizing but indubitably interested. it's not the same as what she had gotten out of aretuza, out of her magic. but it might be something to correct the cost of that. she had traded one broken body for another, and it feels like she'll be outrunning it her entire life. geralt had insisted that being whole wouldn't fix her problems, but there was no way of knowing without success first. ]
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( The ones that sawed his arm off and gave him the original version, anyway. Does he sound a little bit dark right there? He might. It's not even about the rude commentary, so much as it is about the memory. )
I take it they don't do prosthetics where you're from?
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[ which is not to say it's impossible. what yennefer had gained was not prosthetic, precisely, but it was not so dissimilar. a bitterness enters her smile as she says, ] And it isn't without cost.
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( He echoes, less like incredulity and more to the tune of ah, of course, yes that tracks. Weary, begrudging, immediate acceptance.
Not like he hasn't seen it before a couple times.
Still weird. )
That something you can do?