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by the inquest
"Arguments on their nature are refuted by those who return to shore, wide-eyed with tales of their savagery."
All Moirans are woken to the sounds of the ship coming to a rather grating halt some time in the early morning cycle. It’s no faster or slower than any other stop, but it is unexpected as the captains didn’t mention an upcoming disembarkment. Shortly after, a message is sent to every MID:Navigation has informed us that we’re approaching bad traveling conditions: an overactive star. Instead of stopping on Liant El, we’ll be docking here on Ceta. Please exercise caution while gathering supplies and during excursions. Follow their safety guidelines. If the chance allows, we’ll also be signing new crew on the planet. Please greet them first and show them to the ship. Thank you. The Ingress has pulled you in. Your body experiences several sensations at once: being pushed forward as if a hand is resting on your back, momentary and startling blindness, a gentle ringing in your head. You have difficulty discerning whether it is hot or cold, but where you have been prodded is noticeably warmer than the rest of you. Some may suffer from dizziness while others are perfectly fine. Once equilibrium has been reestablished, you will notice you are standing on a long platform and that the room is filled with a soft cerulean light. It's slightly humid and dark despite the glow around you, and nothing is familiar.
For those few who come through Ceta's Ingress, there will be crew of the Moira there to greet you. They tell you of the Ingress, how it is broken, even on this planet, and that the ship is headed back to the origin of this technology. This planet’s Ingress is set precariously atop a floating rock formation, the only way from one area to the next is on small air-propelled boats. Crew members will guide everyone back to the Moira and take them to the Medbay; contracts will be signed posthaste.
WELCOME TO CETA
At first glance, Ceta seems mostly inhabitable, and that's because it is. The atmosphere around the planet is surprisingly thick in most places, sometimes thin in others, and without some way to filter the air, it is mostly unbreathable; it's a giant gas planet, its core made of various molten metals and the atmosphere a mix of oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrous. Ceta's gravity is also uneven, meaning that some areas will have stronger focal points than others. The terrain, when it is visible, appears rather rocky—hardly the best conditions for life and stable living. What's more unusual, however, is that despite this fact, there is, indeed, a small populace "living" among the mist and clouds, but it's clear they do not live here year-round. It's hunting season, and they are there for the bounty.
These visitors have built small platforms that are hooked together by ropes and swinging bridges, which they call "temporaries". Unstable buildings are rare, dangerous, and spread out over these temporaries to prevent damage or accidents. The temporaries float along, swaying and shifting with the planet’s atmosphere, and posted at every point of entry and all open surfaces are a particular set of rules that everyone must abide by. They are written in dark ink and large block letters so that all passing by will stop and read them:
NO FIRE. Flammables, ignition sources, matches, lighters, and anything that creates a spark is prohibited. The atmosphere has higher levels of hydrogen, and the smallest spark will create a problem.
AIR BREATHABILITY. Monitor your vitals. Wear masks or re-breathers if needed.
WATCH THE EDGE. All walkways are the only thing from you and falling. Be cautious and watch your step. These signs should be given their due attention. The edge is just that: the end of where it is safe to walk. If a wooden plank gives way beneath your feet, you will plummet through hundred of miles of atmosphere before hitting the planet’s thin surface. The captains reiterate that crew should be careful and stick to the main temporaries, gather supplies, visit at their leisure, and then go back to the ship.
☄ IT'S A BIRD! IT'S A PLANE!The organisms that have evolved on this planet are unintelligent—a fact that is told to you by the other visitors. As there is no solid materials or ways for them to interact with their environments, these giants float along within the atmosphere, though it appears that they are flying when they are merely navigating through. They travel in groups of three or more and sometimes come close to the outskirts of the temporaries. Because there is an invisible filtration dome around the temporaries, this allows the creatures to pass through without harm and return again into the mist as they please. They are difficult to see at night and are rather skittish in the presence of sudden light.
☄ @ THE MUSEUM Every evening when work is done, artificial light sources illuminate the streets of the temporaries. There is one bar, if you can actually call it that, but the main attraction is a museum. The support structure appears to be made out of the skeletal system of the giants that "swim" and live on Ceta, and though the outside seems rather unassuming, the inside is not for the faint of heart. As it's considered informative, there are displays of the internal structures and functions of the very creatures that seem harmless and as unintelligent as the visitors claim. There are sections of the museum dedicated to their anatomy and what makes them so valuable: inside their air sacs, which is what gives the illusion to flying through the atmosphere, is a mineral that, when harvested, attunes and sharpens the senses so that brain capacity and function excel over one-hundred percent efficiency. Likewise, aside from these informative areas, there is also a history of how and when the visitors began to hunt them for this valuable, unnamed resource.
☄ HARVEST SEASON Are you looking for work? Or perhaps you're bored with your duties aboard the Moira and prefer to see just what it is these visitors do during the day? Hunters will often pay for menial labor to help with the killing and retrieval of the giants of Ceta. It is by day, not by hour, and once aboard one of the many ships, you will be put to work handling equipment or being on the lookout for "signs" of the creatures. Once they've been spotted, the real work isn't in capturing them or even trying to subdue them—though they give a good fight. It's in the harvest, done below deck once they have been safely brought into the ship's cargo areas by the tethers, that can get quite gruesome. As a defense mechanism, cutting into the skin creates a rather noxious emission that can cause disorientation, hallucinations, or unconsciousness. Worst case scenarios can often result in death.
☄ WORD LIMITS As things are beginning to wind up (or down), something seems to have gotten into the MID systems and caused a malfunction. On the morning of 03.13, it suddenly becomes clear that communicating with others who are not from the same universe or similar timelines seems very difficult. Understanding each other becomes rather hopeless as the day continues, and these repercussions can be felt across the entire ship. The Captains send out another MID message that appears as a jumble of unusual letters and symbols. However, there is one word that can be read by everyone and (hopefully) understood: RATCHET. Figuring out this problem shouldn't take long if everyone can leap the language barriers and work together.
( ooc; All New Arrivals: you have the choice of coming through the Moira's Ingress OR Ceta's Ingress. For questions, go here. Please comment to activity check to receive new ranks (if applicable)! )
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hownkai) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
thisavrou_log2016-03-01 02:40 pm
no subject
He pinches his lips and barely stops himself suggesting Anakin should be more mindful of his feelings. ]
It's never been said this wasn't a matter of import.
[ It's not quite a bickering tone, but it does betray a minute amount of frustration that he quickly aims to shed. He's fraught and distraught, downright disturbed, in fact, and he doesn't wish to be misunderstood. But Kenobi is also painfully realistic and not willing to give ground when he knows they have very little to spare between them. ]
I merely mean to suggest that altering the economy of an entire civilization may have greater consequences than we're presently prepared to handle.
[ He cradles his elbows and glances back over his shoulder in time to catch a glimpse of a fourth giant on his periphery. This one is considerably smaller than the other three — it couldn't be clearer to him they're a family. That alone tempts at regret for his pragmatic stance. ]
no subject
How is he supposed to "trust his instincts" if they all point to something being terribly awry here and clash directly with what he's being told otherwise? He knows what his instincts say: that saying nothing is a mistake.]
We've fought on how many star systems with problems bigger than this? If we don't take the opportunity to try, who will?
no subject
In many ways, Anakin is very right. In some ways, he is very wrong. Obi-Wan is torn in exactly the manner that only his good friend seems to inspire in him, trapped between two perspectives, both of which aren't entirely unsuited for the situation. ]
I'll speak with them.
[ He knows the compromise doesn't suggest total equivalency — Skywalker is giving far more ground than Kenobi — however any give on this matter will be uncharacteristic for Obi-Wan, so he trusts Anakin will see the value of his offer. ]
no subject
[But it's enough of a compromise that Anakin doesn't even expect it. He stops abruptly, and turns back to Obi-Wan with no small amount of surprise.]
Wait, really?
[It's more than enough. It's something, and he's a step closer to proving himself right than he had been only a moment earlier. Even if it's not intended as a concession, it's taken as one.]
no subject
Unless you'd rather take on the task of speaking with them...
[ He doesn't doubt that Skywalker would make plenty of cogent and thoughtful points. To start, at least. But envisioning that the situation could degenerate into something considerably less civil is not outside the realm of possibility. ]
no subject
[What he's retained, he's learned from Obi-Wan, but duplicity has never really been his strong point. He can perform to a degree, perhaps, and he's not sort on wit by any means, but he prefers to take a more...direct approach.
It's classic good cop/bad cop.]But I thought you didn't want to get involved.
no subject
[ You know, just sayin'. It's not like someone pressed the issue or anything. ]
no subject
Yeah, yeah, stop with the look.
[It's that same disparaging glance Anakin had learned to recognize early from frequent
overuse. There's an unspoken admonishment in here somewhere, he knows it, but he's not about to give Obi-Wan time to rescind the offer and voice that aloud.]What are we waiting for?
no subject
[ It's almost a mutter, though he harbors no ill thoughts toward their current trajectory. This is his choice — in part, and now as a whole thanks to Anakin's prompting — and that means he'll do all he can to make a difference.
Leaving the pod drift away behind them, Kenobi follows his friend back toward the main temporary where he'll make preparations for presenting their perspective. ]