thisavrou_log | ( april intro log )

Entry tags:

( april intro log )

Who: Everyone
When: April 1st and on
Where: The Moira + Del Pascia
What: The crew finds themselves visiting the correctional facility of Del Pascia.
Warnings: Mentions of blood. Please label your content!

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slammed & counted
"I feel liberated when I'm doing it, and I want other people to feel liberated through it."

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. Shortly after, you are led out and toward the medbay.

Inside this room, you are given a physical scan and offered a contract to sign that states you are now part of the crew of the Moira with a specific job. This process consists of a complete work-up of medical history and current health, and afterwards, you are given your MID, a device that is integrated into your hand with only the slightest pinch. From there, you are guided out of the medbay and to your living quarters.

With the combined efforts of the crew, the terror plaguing the ship has been successfully removed from the Moira. Yet, it doesn’t come without consequences. Aside from the overall state of those aboard the ship, the Moira itself has taken considerable damage across various sections. Overall functionality seems stable for now, but with necessary repairs to be made and few supplies to actually make them with, the Captains have set a course for any nearby planet with the hope of finding what they need. However, that is much closer than it appears. As new arrivals begin coming through the Ingress, a message is received by those in the Tower and broadcast to everyone:
Please be advised. Your vessel is now entering Restricted Space. As per penal code 65208-A, only authorized personnel are to be admitted beyond this point. If necessary, further assistance will be provided once docked.
As there is little choice, the Captains instruct Navigation to proceed with caution. All transporters will be required to assist in taking those who volunteer to the main hub.

WELCOME TO CORRECTIONAL FACILITY DEL PASCIA

Del Pascia is one of many facilities across the universe built to maintain and rehabilitate its inhabitants. With a combined populace of both prisoners and employed civilians, it functions as both prison and living quarters. The central section of Del Pascia is divided into multiple floors that branch out into subdivisions of the facility—clearly and precisely labeled. For those contracted to work in the prison, Del Pas Main is home. There are cafeterias, common areas for exercise and general downtime, divided residences, and work stations. Beyond this area, each remaining wing of Del Pascia separates into cell blocks A through F with similar facilities available to the inmates. Varying degrees of criminals are brought to Del Pascia, ranging from maximum security to juvenile offenders, and security differs depending on which block is visited.

Yet, there is something peculiar about this prison upon further investigation: there are no living persons within Del Pascia. The AI, which runs and oversees all of Del Pascia, has made arrangements with the Moira so that those who wish may board and take what is needed to begin repairs. This program, while generally polite in nature, goes simply by the name D-E-L.

☄ ENJOY YOUR STAY ... IN PRISON

Those who choose to go to Del Pascia will find themselves greeted by D-E-L. It has already agreed to terms with the Captains, allowing crew to strip nonessential supplies that aren’t needed since the station’s crew and prisoners were relocated due to funding cuts. The only condition placed upon this agreement is that any crew wishing to explore must undergo a mandatory decontamination before proceeding through the rest of Del Pascia. This process takes only minutes and is guaranteed to cause no physical side effects. Following this simple procedure, exploration is open with only warnings to be careful about damaging key systems. It is important to note that there are various security cameras located throughout the correctional facility, and it is not uncommon for D-E-L to comment or show concern for those exploring parts of Del Pascia.

☄ DEATH BECOMES YOU

There is salvage to be found in all parts of the facility, including the cell blocks and infirmaries of the prison wings. However, there is something odd about these sectors, a strange charge in the air that follows you as you search for anything useful to bring back to the Moira. Perhaps it is the eyes of D-E-L watching? But then, after an indiscernible amount of time, it's like a switch is flipped. Suddenly, you are wearing your sins where anyone but you can see. For however much death you have wrought or committed, there will be blood on your hands—perhaps even further than that. This bizarre occurrence will appear as an almost digital skin and will not vanish until outside the cell blocks. If exploring the infirmaries for supplies, any and all health stats throughout your life will be visible and easy to read by anyone who happens to take an interest.

For those who have killed once or twice, they might find a red stain on their hands, but the higher the kill count will result in larger proportions of blood covering their arms and, in extreme cases, perhaps their entire body. The blood will vanish once you have left the prison wing, though you may occasionally see a flicker of the image while anywhere on the station. The same goes for health stats viewed in infirmary sections of Del Pascia.

☄ WHAT WAS THAT SOUND?

Del Pascia is a very large station and has been abandoned for quite some time. D-E-L will regretfully inform anyone who asks that some nonessential areas have fallen into disrepair. It will warn that exploring these areas can be risky as it has no knowledge of what damage these sections have taken. Regardless of that, if you venture in, you’ll find that these sections are in rather bad shape. Exposed wiring sparks in the walls, a great variety of broken tools are thrown about, and it seems that every camera has been purposely broken. Venturing in further will yield valuable components for salvage, and yet... as before, you suspect you aren’t alone. It isn’t often, but sometimes, you might hear a step falling moments after yours or a rattle coming from the vents. Every time you go to investigate... whatever made the noise is gone.

Should the AI be queried about this, D-E-L will emphasize that all personnel and prisoners were removed and that there is no one on board except crew from the Moira.

( ooc; For questions, go here. All players, please comment to activity check to receive new ranks (if applicable)! )

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

I think so too. I'll come back tomorrow.

[She tosses a box and a few more odds and ends into her wagon and starts pulling it towards the exit, reaching for Ivan's hand and lacing their fingers together. Moving on is a good plan, going forward.]

[...but she can't help but ask:]

...why did you take an anti-aphrodisiac?

( ivan has the decency to flush a little at the question, coughing to clear his throat. why, out of everything, did that have to show up on his medical history? )

I didn't take it, I was slipped it as part of a Cetagandan attempt to ruin my reputation. Not that, uh, they succeeded or anything.

( quite the opposite, actually. )

Your reputation? ...your reputation for... [She knows what aphrodisiacs do, of course, and so she can extrapolate what an anti-aphrodisiac might do.]

Why would a Cetagandan go to such extremes to ruin your sexual reputation? Seems a little petty.

They are a little petty. ( ivan frowns, trying to figure out how to explain this. ) Cetaganda is Barrayar's traditional enemy ever since they spent twenty years trying to take over the planet. They haven't let it go. Miles and I were sent to their main planet as the Barrayaran delegation because we were the two highest ranking individuals Barrayar could spare. Since Uncle Aral was busy being Prime Minister and the Emperor was busy being, you know. ( the emperor. )

So what better way to discredit Barrayar than discrediting us.

( it gets to be a lot more complicated than that, actually, but ivan's pretty sure this is a good summary. )

[She's putting the fact that lack of sexual prowess would somehow discredit Ivan's political reputation on hold in favor of--]

Busy being what?

[No Ivan, she hasn't asked Gregor what his day job is yet-- the scraplets put that to the back of her mind for a while.]

Busy being the Emperor. Talk to Gregor, Elizabeth, he'll-- tell you more, I swear.

( or at least he better. )

.....The Emperor of the Barrayaran Empire. And he asked me to call him 'Greg'. Greg the Emperor.

[She's trying to wind her brain around that, but in the end she puts 'Greg the Emperor' on hold.]

I still don't understand how your inability to have sex somehow doesn't make you fit to engage in political talks.

Technically it's Emperor Ezar Gregor Vorbarra. We all just call him Emperor Gregor, although he's Count Vorbarra too -- sometimes he'll attend things like that, to cut down on the formality. ( ivan swallows, presses a kiss to the top of her head. ) I'll let Gregor know you know. It's not fair to keep you out of the loop, not when everyone else seems to know.

( everyone else who's dating everyone with a vor attached to their name, that is. )

Oh no, we weren't talking. We were there for a funeral.

( ivan that doesn't make it better. )

Yeah I'm noticing I'm getting left out of a lot of loops. Emperor Ezar Greg Vorbarra, I'm A Spy Miles Vorkosigan...

[She side-eyes Ivan.]

...and Mister Needs An Erection at a Funeral Ivan Vorpatril.

It was at a party we were invited to! And they were ghem women, two of them, and I was set up to make myself the laughingstock of the whole damned Cetagandan Empire. Last laugh's on them, though, since after giving 'em three orgasms a piece all they could do was talk about how great it was--

( none of this is actually making him look better, he realizes. nor should it be something he should be telling elizabeth. ivan coughs, swallowing thickly. )

What I mean to say is, they wanted to hit us where it hurt. My sexual reputation, and Miles' leg braces. But Gregor being the Emperor -- that's the last loop, I swear.

[Elizabeth hadn't thought for a second that Ivan hadn't had previous sexual partners, nor did she think until recently that Ivan might be interested in her that way. But for some reason, hearing about it right now actually feels... upsetting, for some reason.]

[...three? Was that even possible?]

[Ivan hadn't lied yet, he couldn't even lie about his cousin having the number one vulnerable position in his entire empire. She doesn't want to think about Ivan giving anybody three orgasms, not even her. It's too difficult to imagine what an orgasm feels like, for one thing.]

I'm feeling very self-conscious about our physical relationship suddenly.

[It's only a little dry coming out.]

Er.

( ivan doesn't know what to say to that, and tries to find something in the vast teachings of alys vorpatril to figure out how to handle this.

nothing comes to mind, however. damn. )

Elizabeth-- Don't. It's-- ( ok yes he really does want to have sex with elizabeth but that's not the point except for where it is. ) I said on your own time. I meant it.

( no matter how much he does want to have one with her. more than he already does. )

Well--! Ivan, it's hard to ignore! [The more she thinks about this, the more flustered and hopeless she feels.] I'm not a pair of ghem women-- whatever those are-- I'm someone you had to teach kissing to. If you think it's not going to continue in that trend, you're more hopeful a thinker than I'd thought.

How could you stand making love to someone who would fumble and, and question and probably embarrass herself when you could be giving three orgasms to a woman with enough sexual prowess to stop a man like she's a cheetah taking down a gazelle? Surely you'd... [There isn't any backtracking now. That medical history may have told Ivan certain things about what had happened to her before the Moira, but this is potentially more damning. She's baring her insecurities to him.]

...Surely you'd want someone who matched you in that area. Not... me. I'm about as sexually interesting as this wagon I'm pulling.

Well for starters, probably because I started out as fumbling and no doubt embarrassed myself. ( the nineteen year old stable girl had mercifully not trodden all over his ego, although he's only now realizing how thankful he is for it. he'd been fifteen and overeager, he couldn't have been very good at all. how to explain this, how to explain this-- ) I don't expect you to instantly know everything. I just-- want it to be good for you, and fun, so that you'll want to do it with me again until you aren't anymore. And after that, too.

( he manages to bite down on the response that's "and i bet i can give you three orgasms too, if that's what concerns you". )

There's nothing wrong with being a virgin, Elizabeth. Or not having experience.

( sure, ivan's tastes definitely lean towards experienced, but he wouldn't dare think less of someone for being one. or find them less dateable. )

[The trouble with letting these feelings out before she has a chance to think about it is that she doesn't know what to expect as a response. But once Ivan explains it to her, she realizes he wouldn't say anything other than something that would be comforting.]

At the center of all of this is something I think everyone wants. [She stops pulling the cart, then shrugs and looks up at him.] I just want you to like me. Not that you've ever said anything that gave me any idea that you don't, but... well. [Elizabeth gives him a wry smile.] I think you know why I never made too many friends before now. Never had, uh, any lovers either.

I wanted one, though! I used to see couples sitting on benches together or walking hand-in-hand, and I'd wish I could have that kind of connection with someone. But I didn't think it would ever happen. That-- what you saw in there-- [She gestures back towards the medical bay.] --that should make me afraid of somebody touching me, but it doesn't. What I'm afraid of is no one wanting to touch me.

Edited 2016-04-30 00:50 (UTC)

Because of it?

( he asks, frowning. he can-- see why. hell, he'd probably be afraid of elizabeth too, if she was capable of it, even if he figures she's not about to open tears into the ship if she ever did. )

Well, I know that you're more than that. And I do like you, Elizavetka--

( his very first crush that he recognizes, at the very least. but he doesn't know what to say this time, and instead pulls her into another, tighter hug.

surely that gets the message across, right? )

Because of it. [She confirms with a sad nod. If her own father was more afraid of her than he was of God, people with even less connection to her had good reason to keep her at a distance. But she loves being touched and hugged and held-- especially by Ivan who was always ready and willing to warm her when the world seemed cold.]

[She wraps her arms around Ivan's back and squeezes him, humming in great contentment as they stand there together. Where they are and what's happening doesn't cross her mind for a long moment.]

I like you, Vanya. I like who I'm becoming around you.

( that's... a terrifying statement, really. but ivan'll take it without too much thought at the moment, kissing the top of her head affectionately. )

C'mon, I'll help you take these things back to the ship.

[She smiles up at him warmly and takes his hand before picking up the handle of the cart and starting to pull it along with him.]

We could have some tea in my quarters when we get back...

[We could make out in my quarters when we get back...]

( ivan hears what's not said and brightens up. oh yes, he thinks he'll be able to manage that. )

We could. I wouldn't mind that at all.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

( april intro log )

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