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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.
( ooc; For questions, go here. Please comment to activity check to receive new ranks (if applicable)! )
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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
[Somehow, he hadn't expected her to be overly concerned about bleeding, so her reaction isn't at all surprising to him.]
I'm getting the feeling that will soon be the general consensus. [Resting for a minute, that is. A quick glance at the rest of the crew nearby confirms that Thane and Elizabeth aren't the only ones feeling the effects of passing through the gate.] Let's have a seat.
[And he'll walk with her over to the place she indicated.
...He's not quite ready to leave the nosebleed alone, though.]
I've only ever witnessed humans bleed from the nose after a serious injury. Is there another cause for such an event, or should we be locating medical attention for you?
no subject
[She sits down, glad to have something solid under her and against her back. The other time this happened, she'd woken up on a floor so who knew if this had happened while she was unconscious. She hadn't understood what had happened at first, but this time she'd walked through a rather obvious gate and everyone else around her is experiencing difficulties. She also hadn't backtracked to a place she didn't belong in, causing her brain to scramble like an overdone egg.]
I suppose this could be classified as a 'serious injury'. [She lifts the gauze to give Thane a wry smile.] I guess to you and most of everybody on this ship, I don't exactly read as someone with 'abilities'. I should be the one helping everyone else.
[Elizabeth is quiet for a moment while she thinks. Everyone she'd entrusted her secret to was gone, and back then she'd only done it as a precaution. Once she'd actually had it restored, then everyone was sucked back into the Ingress leaving her with a dangerous power and no one who would vouch for her or it. Her only choice was to keep it hidden.]
[And then Ploiatos happened, and she'd opened a tear in front of the team responsible for destroying him and flung his ashes out into another timeline, where he'd never find his way back to them even if a miracle happened and he recovered. The people in the room had seen, but she's not certain they understood. Was it only a matter of everyone being settled before her secret was dragged out into the open? Did she need help defending herself from a crew that might care more about what power they could harvest from her instead of her independence?]
[Even though he's an assassin, Thane seems the calmest person Elizabeth has ever known. Practically placid. And she wants to think he'll protect her from the crew if that ever became necessary.]
...do you know anything about quantum mechanics?
no subject
...I must admit, I'm not sure what a bleeding nose and quantum mechanics have in common, although I do have some passing familiarity with both. The former, more than the latter, admittedly.
[He takes a seat next to her, and settles in. Given her seemingly out-of-the-blue question, he suspects he's in for a Story.]
I've read some of the theory, but nothing really more than that.
no subject
[And she's here to ruin it.]
We all make choices everyday, yes? Do I wear the blue dress or the white one, do I eat scrambled eggs or just have toast? Imagine that every time you made a variable choice, a new timeline was created-- a new universe.
...I don't have to imagine it because I know it's true. The infinite is made of constants and variables, which is how I accept that some people here are from an Earth that I don't know and never will know no matter how long I live. Someone created that timeline via a variable choice.
A scientist named Rosalind Lutece discovered that these timelines existed side-by-side, and began communicating with a version of herself from another timeline-- Robert Lutece. They wanted to meet, to continue their research together, and so she found a benefactor who would finance her research. ...that man was unable to conceive children, and wanted one of his own. So when a scientist came to him saying he could have a child, one that he had conceived in a universe where he was not sterile, he couldn't open his pocketbook fast enough. [She can't look at Thane during this explanation-- it's too personal, and she still harbors so much hate for Comstock. Maybe she always will, no matter how eradicated he is.]
That man was Zachary Comstock-- the leader of Columbia I mentioned when we first met. He kidnapped me. He manipulated my father into giving me up in exchange for the substantial amount of financial debt he'd racked up playing slow horses. What was money to him when he could have the one thing he needed to keep his empire afloat? But at the last minute, my father ran after me. He realized he'd made a mistake.
They fought over me-- and I was just a baby at the time, I had no idea what was going on. They pulled me back and forth between an open hole between their two timelines, one that had been opened via a machine of Rosalind Lutece's design, the machine she'd built to bring Robert to her. Comstock won, and as the window closed, I reached for my father...
[She holds out her hand as though reaching for Thane, and perhaps the reason she only has half of a pinky is suddenly made clear.]
My body exists in two different timelines at the same time. You would think that would give me a direct path between those two timelines, but it doesn't. It means I can see everything. Or, I could, once I was old enough and physically mature enough.
Every timeline was like a door I could always see. And when I had no control they would fly open, or I wouldn't be able to shut them once they were. When we met, when I was hurt in the library, that wasn't a freak accident. I lost control and opened a tear between timelines.
You think you're dangerous? [Elizabeth finally looks at him, trying to stay calm but her eyes are nervous, even straight up afraid.] I'm a living disaster area. At least I was until a minute ago. Now the entirety of the infinite is just... gone. I can't see anything. I'm singular.
The nosebleed is from my brain struggling to make sense of what's happened. I experience 'cognitive dissonance' in a much more extreme way than everyone else does, apparently. In a way, I'm lucky I remember what I'm doing here-- sometimes, in more extreme cases, there's memory loss. But I suppose it's only minor this time because I haven't technically moved into another timeline.
[She bites her lips for a moment.] Thane. I swear to you, I can't put people back where they came from. I may be a walking Ingress, but whatever energy has been pouring out of that thing has been siphoning off what power I've had. And I've been out of control, I admit that, but... I don't want to be locked up again. I can't be. I won't be.
[Even if she's made a mistake trusting Thane, if he tells someone and they come after her... toothless as she is she won't go quietly.]
no subject
...And here Thane was thinking he was a shitty father. Damn.He listens closely as she speaks, and when she looks up at him and meets his eyes with fear shining in hers, he reaches out to place a hand gently on her shoulder, hoping to reassure her while she finishes telling him what she has to say. This very neatly ties up everything she's already told him, and while the story in full is astonishing and unbelievable...he believes it. How could he not? With all of the unbelievable things that have happened since he'd been pulled here, what's one more to add to the list?
And, forgetting that, nothing about Elizabeth has ever struck him as untruthful. He would believe her on principle alone.
Her raw, undeniable youth has never struck him so soundly as it is at just this moment. She is so very young, and has not been brought up with the discipline that he had been, both at her age and when he was much younger.]
I am truly honored by the trust you've placed in me by telling me this, Elizabeth.
[He pauses briefly, considering, and continues:]
I have been used nearly my entire life by others for the abilities I possess. But this was something that I allowed, through my own choice. To have that choice taken away...[He frowns, and shakes his head.] I could not do that to anyone. Nor could I stand by and witness it happen to anyone.
[He's got your back, girl.]
no subject
Booker DeWitt: Breaking Awful Dad Records Since 1893.][Elizabeth is familiar enough with the sensation of her throat tightening to know she wants to cry. It's getting easier, telling her story and baring her innermost fears and secrets, but the relief she feels when someone says they won't betray her won't ever be familiar. It's always overwhelming.]
[But she doesn't want to cry in front of Thane, it might attract more attention to the pair of them sitting there, her with a bloody nose. So she just squeezes the hand he's put on her shoulder, tightly, until she's gotten a hold of herself.]
I had a lot of things taken from me before I arrived here-- my family, a chance at a singular life, friends maybe, and still the knowledge that I was supposed to be controlled was intolerable. I may have lost many friends here, and someone I loved, and the ship I called home, but even now I still have too much to lose.
I know I must sound paranoid, thinking that the crew would turn on me, but I can't help it. I've seen people justify hurting me for 'the greater good', for 'safety's sake'. Can you imagine what would happen if I lost control again, maybe killed someone in an accident? Everyone-- ...everyone would be afraid. The captains could lock me up like they did with Ploiatos to keep the crew safe, maybe put me in cryo to make sure I couldn't do anything. Believe me, I haven't had any shortage of time to imagine what could happen if it got out.
But because I'm so afraid of anyone finding out, and because I have no one to talk to about how terrified I am... it's weighed on me. I've almost slipped countless times because I just can't keep my emotions in check.
[She is young, after all. 22 or 23, she can't remember from all of the hopping around she'd done. Her maturing was done in the span of months, from a naive princess in a tower to someone with a wildly spinning moral compass and a blind fixation on satisfying her need for vengeance. The amount of pressure she's under, the number of things she's learning, what and who she's loved and lost, it's no wonder her abilities couldn't be finely controlled.]
...but I guess that's not a problem right now. Funny enough, I prefer it this way. I can throw a tantrum and a firing squad isn't going to come out of the desert.
no subject
Given your life experiences thus far, a little paranoia at this point seems like a reasonable reaction. It's natural to fear a repeat of horrible events.
[He pauses again, then adds with a smile, and briefly squeezing her hand:]
And, while this may not be the ideal time or place for a tantrum, but considering everything you've just told me, I wouldn't blame you in the least for having one.
no subject
Yeah, you say that, but you might be staring down an oncoming train, a tidal wave, a forest fire...
[She rests her forehead on his hands for a moment, fighting every moment to not fall apart from the catharsis. She collects herself again and looks at him.]
I've always been emotional. I've always felt before I saw facts, and my connection to the infinite has always responded to those feelings. If I'm not going to tear apart whatever vessel we happen to be travelling on because I miss my boyfriend... I can't have any strong feelings. Not ones I can't control.
I love the crew, Thane. I have no family left, this is what I have left. And I'm so afraid I'll hurt them because I need to cry-- but, it was always better when Miles and Ivan knew. Maybe... maybe it will be better now.
[Now that Thane knows. He doesn't even have to do anything, he just knows. She's not one woman against an entire crew, trying to keep a lid on something that's so subject to flux even she can't predict it. If something happened, God forbid, she'd have someone to tell.]
no subject
[He's quiet for a moment, reflecting on what she's just told him, before he responds.]
I don't pretend to know for certain, but given our experience on this planet thus far, I'm willing to guess that this...[He pauses while he searches for the right word, lifting one hand briefly to make a loose, encompassing gesture before settling it back against hers.]...phenomenon that we're currently experiencing is temporary. You might find it beneficial to take advantage of it while it lasts.
[He squeezes her hand again, gently.]
Or not, as you choose.
If nothing else, I am glad that my knowledge of your secret might ease your burden.
no subject
[Thane gave her the suggestion, and it seems her subconscious took the invitation before she could finish thinking about it. When Elizabeth opens her mouth to say she'll think about it, nothing comes out because her throat is closing. She can't see Thane because her eyes are tearing up, alarmingly quickly. This is probably the first time anyone's given her permission to cry, Ivan included, and so there's a lot of catching up she's apparently prepared to do.]
...I keep having to say goodbye to people I love, and every time I've never been able to mourn losing them. But I see them every day, and I can't look away. How can I say goodbye when I can't stop seeing them? H-how can I go forward when the one person who forced me to live in the present is gone, and I've been left with constant reminders of him and everything that was done to give me this, this cursed thing that I just-- just wish would finally leave me?
[It's a long monologue for someone crying through her words, and when she finishes, Elizabeth scoots a little closer to Thane, wondering if he'll just... hug her for a minute. Even after everything she's told him about how dangerous she is.]
I want to go home-- to the Moira-- I want a home, I'm tired of walking, I'm tired of this constant search for a place I can safely exist in. [She's losing her grip on her tight, controlled sobs and sniffles the longer the list gets.] My friends are gone or in cryo, I don't know which discs have my personal things and which ones have the library collection, I'm carrying around a scrap of the Moira's hull like that will keep me from feeling homesick and heartbroken-- and I haven't bathed or worn clean clothes in weeks!!
[Which has happened to her before, but somehow that's the breaking point in addition to everything else that's going on. Elizabeth starts crying in earnest, and it's better than the screaming and silent pain she'd been forcing on herself for the months previous. It feels real.]
no subject
He's quiet while she cries, and rubs small, soothing circles against her back with one palm while continuing to hold her. If she moves much he'll adjust, but he won't draw back until she does.
When her sobbing finally eases he speaks again, voice pitched softly - though no less gravelly for lack of volume.]
The path before you seems an impossibly difficult one, and yet from what I can see, you've faced it thus far with maturity and poise. There is no weakness in feeling overwhelmed by such a burden; there are countless others who would, I expect, break under the pressure - or worse, exploit the power for their own gain. That you have done neither of these things, and in fact look upon your ability with such a critical eye shows a deep wisdom and fortitude of mind that I greatly admire.
[He gives her a squeeze, tightening the pressure of his arms around her for a few solid seconds before relaxing back into the looser embrace he'd been holding her in.]
no subject
[She could point out dozens of times that she hadn't behaved in a mature way, or broken under pressure, but she knows she'd just be arguing with him so she could continue to feel bad. And she didn't want to feel bad, she's just starting to feel a little better-- words aside, Elizabeth feels like this is the first time in a long time that someone's held her. The instances were nonexistent when she was growing up, and after that only a few times were touches meant to be tender and caring. Most of the time she was being held down, hit, pulled up by her hair, all kinds of things that might make her hate being touched, but it had never happened. She knew when someone wanted to comfort her or show affection, and when they meant to hurt her.]
[Possibly the only problem with her relationship to touch was that when someone did hold her tenderly, she was disinclined to let go. Elizabeth sniffles loudly, continuing to hold onto Thane even though he's loosened his embrace.]
Really...?
no subject
Really.
no subject
[She could tear the world in half, and sometimes she'd felt like the emotional pain would do it for her, but she hadn't. She'd tried so hard to live. She's still trying so hard to live and make it look like nothing.]
Would you believe it's taken this long for someone to realize this ability takes a toll on its host? [She buries her face in his chest for a moment, squeezing her eyes shut tightly.] Not that the people I've told here ever made me regret telling them, but they always reassured me... they weren't afraid. Which is important, yes, but-- there's miles of road between not being afraid and wondering if I am.