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the outer gate
"Open up, and let them in."
The Moira is no more.
With the damage done to the ship due to the timeslip, all that remains is a burning wreckage and parts to be taken—if the crew can find anything in the pieces. Recovery and headcounts are the main objective for the first several hours of being planetside, and once things have settled just enough, Captain Ira calls for a meeting and addresses those who are able in person to explain the situation. He draws a rough map of the area and explains where he believes they are - according to the terrain - and where they must go. For anyone who’s listening, he describes things like an “Outer Gate”, an “Inner Gate” and “gate sectors”. Believing this to be the best course of action, all crew are asked to explore and gather what they think they’ll need to make the long journey towards the central point of the Hub. Because the MIDs are no longer working due to the lack of a network, the Captains distribute a newer tech called the TAB. It serves the same functions as the MID but is lighter, slimmer, and has the ability to stick to any surface.
WELCOME TO THE MIDWAY HUB
Now that the smoke from the crash has cleared, and injured crew have been tended to, the Captains get everyone ready for departure by explaining what they know of the Hub. Almost stone-like, the creators built a domed workspace in the largest solid space on the planet they could find. Gates are the only way inside, and anyone who catches a glimpse of the compound will see that parts of the dome are cracked. Yet, everything still appears to be relatively intact. The Midway Hub’s terrain is very rocky and difficult to walk on at times. Below the surface is a honeycomb of intermittently dense and brittle stone that makes travel difficult due to the unpredictable nature of what lies beneath the crew’s feet. Those who can develop the tech from what’s left of the debris might be able to create something to determine which route is the safest. Ships and small crafts can be used to fly, but landing is a problem—rocks jut up in sharp peaks and the clearer spots can't handle their weight. Vegetation is sparse, consisting of twisted dark gray thistles that have sprung up from cracks in the rock and burn when in direct contact with skin, and what could be considered small animals here can be seen scurrying away the closer crew get to them.
☄ WEEK ONE
Crew are asked to hook cryo beds together and to use any appropriate vehicles that can be made or fashioned to fit the terrain to carry injured crew on the journey to the center of the Hub. Supplies are gathered, and the Captains, as well as any crew who want to, give the Moira a proper sendoff, heads bowed as they say goodbye to what’s been their home. Traveling starts out slowly, a line of a hundred-plus crew members making their way slowly forward. Stops are frequent, but camping for rest only occurs at night. Crew are assigned watch shifts, fires are built, injured tended to, and those who are able are asked to explore nearby caves and hunt for food.
Something akin to deer, though striped and only to be found in pairs, can be stumbled across at night. Throngs of dark purple mammels begin to follow the Moirans on their trip as well. They are friendly, curious, and eat the thistle. Meet the intelligent, watchful predators that aren’t easily scared away and follow the crew from a distance as if waiting to pounce. The thistle can be eaten, but only if cooked first, and those who sample the chewy plant raw will experience a burning sensation in their throat that doesn’t go away until the cooked version is consumed. During the first week, water can’t be found.
Anyone who does hunt, gather, or explore should make sure to that their TABS are on and it’s suggested that nobody goes alone.
Nearing the end of the first week, an Ingress can be spotted close by that crew can explore. If anyone dares to go inside, they will find the texture of the ground and surrounding walls to be rather soft. If inspected closely, crew will discover that what they originally thought to be rock is actually a living organism that’s fed off the energy of the Ingress it’s attached itself to. It’s not harmful and squishy to the touch. If pressed hard enough, it secretes a turquoise liquid with the consistency of water that might make a good substitute for that very thing. ☄ WEEK TWO
When crew finally pass through the sector gates, a strange sensation encompasses them, and a depowering of sorts goes into effect. The creators put in security measures meant to put all visitors on equal footing as well as to protect themselves from harm. All crew will essentially have the strength and abilities of the average human. An unforeseen issue, this causes Captain Thán to slip into a coma as he is no longer able to continue to recover at a steady pace, and with the loss of the former Captain’s abilities, crew can no longer be brought back if they die. For the first time, all Moirans are subject to permanent death.
During this week of travel, broken ingress machines and parts will be found scattered among the rocks, and new crew will come through. Unfortunately, these Ingresses aren’t in good shape, and anyone coming through will be in varying states of distress—some physical and some mental. New individuals will either have suffered an age slip, growing older or younger than their original body, some form of body transformation (perhaps that shiny thing they were wearing is now part of them somehow), or an extreme weakness they had never been subjected to before arriving on the Midway Hub. The new people will be offered to join their group, once found, and seasoned crew will be asked to explain to them where they are going and what they know.
The rest of the week will be a mix of greeting the new arrivals and continuing to travel to the center of the Hub. The closer they get, the less frequently they’ll see animals, and more caves will begin to pop up. ☄ WEEK THREE
Entering the third week of travel, settlements and houses begin to crop up and are prime areas for exploration and general supplies. Those who go inside may find items that have been left behind and evidence showing that those of varying species and cultures lived in the homes. Some appeared to have been scientists while others were explorers, but all living quarters are deserted. Crew who are less lucky in their search might come away with no fresh supplies, and others might walk into traps or safeguards left behind by previous tenants; these come in many forms, from mild paralysis to temporary unconsciousness. As there are more residences, there are also more caves. The entrances vary in size, and light sources will be needed to explore. Once inside, crew can find purple underwater streams, which can be consumed, and glowing surfaces. When crew drink the water, it temporarily restores powers, a few minutes tops, and then, extreme lethargy settles in for a couple of hours.
Further into the cave systems, crew will come across these lovely creatures that are attracted to sound and track through scent. They are highly dangerous and attack simply to feed. Killing them, though, is surprisingly simple as they are just as vulnerable and weak as everyone else. They are vicious in demeanor but only as strong as an average human.
The closer to the Inner Gate crew get, the less homes, wildlife, and more caves there will be. ☄ WEEK FOUR
The Captains, aware that the crew is exhausted, stop and make camp for the first few days. Someone mentions that it’s the holidays where they’re from, and the Captains do their best to throw a party. Set up at the base of a cave, tents are built and fires roar. Soft music is played in the form of guitar, thank you Ira, and Cúrre brings out some legumes that taste like cherries when roasted. There isn’t much in the way of decorations, but crew are encouraged to dig through their pac-discs and contribute to the festivities.
After a brief respite, crew learn that the entrances to Gate A and Gate B are inside one of the caves but any signs or markings have long since worn away or been destroyed. Groups are split, TABS are synced, and crew explore carefully until an entrance is found. Crew discover Gate A first, and all crew are contacted to gather there. The Captains will remain at the cave entrance until all crew are accounted for, and then, they’ll enter through the gate together.
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hohnkai) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
thisavrou_log2016-12-02 06:54 pm
no subject
I can't exactly argue that it's dangerous in here, but I will say I think there is such a thing as being 'too careful'. Especially considering the things that tend to happen to this crew. Have you been on alert since you arrived?
[Can't be good for his blood pressure.]
no subject
I tend to be.
[She can extrapolate all she likes from that.]
Force of habit.
no subject
Well, I suppose that's fair-- alien ship, alien planets, actual aliens... [Elizabeth flashes a smile at him before looking back at her sketch.] And good habits die hard. All I'm saying is you're liable to bust a gasket if you treat every minor art enthusiast as a 'deadly threat'.
no subject
Is that what you are? An enthusiast?
no subject
Well I'm certainly not a professional. [She chuckles and starts flipping through pages. It isn't that her drawings are amateur, but it's clear she doesn't do it often enough to get very good at it. There's some still lifes of various books, scenery from other planets, an aborted attempt to draw Eggsy's dog, and throughout there are many sketches from different angles of a man. He's very handsome, sturdy and deep-set features pointing to some Russian descent, and he appears more frequently towards the middle of her book. He's almost absent from the more recent attempts.]
It's been a busy past few months. I wish I'd drawn more of the ship, I would if I'd known we'd have to abandon her...
no subject
Like Elizabeth, apparently. Granted, he's not really the right person to ask about artistic merit, but he guesses the sketches are nice. They betray a certain amount of attachment to the ship and the people and the things on it than he can claim for himself. It's an interesting little window into how someone else is experiencing this whole ride into the heart of space hell.]
Careful. People will think you're sentimental.
no subject
There are worse things they could think about me, I'd say.
no subject
[He still doesn't see the appeal of sitting around drawing in a cave, but to each their own, he supposes. 76 is running around with a giant gun, so he's got no real room to judge.]
Shouldn't be here by yourself, though. Locals aren't exactly friendly.
no subject
Yeah, you're probably right. [She brushes some eraser bits off of her page.] Force of habit. I did run into one of them day after last. Strangest bite I've ever had. You know, because their jaws open up-- [She holds her hands over her face and opens them like shutters.] --like this.
no subject
Did you get it checked out?
[Because really, that just sounds like bad news.]
no subject
[She tilts her head, curious.] You carry a gun because you're being careful, and I assume that because you do that, you've been shot before. What do you do when you've been shot? I doubt you spend time sitting around and sketching when you could be going septic.
no subject
[An answer to her question about getting shot? The reason why he asked her the question in the first place? Either way, who knows what kind of gross alien germs those things carry. Who knows if cleaning the wound is even enough.]
no subject
No, I guess some people aren't. They get shot and beaten enough that being bitten by an alien seems like a typical Tuesday.
You think I should let somebody else look at it? Curré maybe?
no subject
[Though he's not sure what Curré might know about anything--he doesn't put much stock in the captains, even less so now that they've literally run the ship into the ground. Maybe it was technically the new guys that did that, but 76 will lump them all into the same terrible pit of incompetence anyway.]
You don't know what kinds of diseases those things might be carrying.
[Alien ones.]
no subject
You have a point, though. I'll go see Curré, just to be sure. She must be going out of her mind, no one to look after aside from cuts and bruises.
So what were you looking for down here anyway? [For someone who might have a strange alien disease, she's still fairly blasé about the whole thing.] Sightseeing?
no subject
[76 doesn't have much faith in them, as his tone of voice seems to indicate, but he does recognize that he suggested it in the first place, so that's all he'll say as far as that's concerned. Elizabeth seems to have more confidence than he does, and that's what matters.
As for what he's doing--]
Something like that. Usually call it 'recon', though.
no subject
[Alright, she's overworking this sketch now, she closes the book and turns to focus on the conversation.]
Anything interesting so far? I haven't made it too far down in this one.
no subject
Not much down here. The locals, who you already met.
no subject
You have to wonder why they stay down here if there's not much besides them. I suppose they don't like the light very much... which has left me up at night, if I'm being honest.