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old but unfamiliar faces
"We sometimes encounter people, even perfect strangers, who begin to interest us at first sight, somehow suddenly, all at once."
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. Any questions you might have would be answered in a straightforward manner as well as an explanation about how the Ingress, the thing that has pulled you onto the Moira, is broken and bringing people here unintentionally. This process also 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 or wrist with only the slightest pinch. From there, you are guided out of the medbay and to your living quarters.
At first, this month seems no more unusual than the previous one for those who have been aboard the Moira for any amount of time. The crew who had landed on the slaver outpost were rescued, and with everyone aboard, the ship has pushed forward into the darker parts of the Runoff. Anyone arriving through the Ingress follows the same routine—moving from the Ingress room into the Medbay for their physical and contract before being assisted by seasoned crew members and helped to their assigned decks. But all familiar things must eventually come to an end: two final travelers come through the Ingress. The first, and most noticeable difference between them and all the others, is their clothing. Both are dressed in standard Moira uniforms, though they bear the insignia of one sharing the same rank as Captains Cúrre and Thán. After a moment to take in all the people on the platform ahead of them, one of the two latest arrivals approaches one of the Ingress panels and begins to manipulate the controls. The Ingress completely shuts down. Unlike before, however, there isn’t an imbalance felt across the ship; everything remains normal and stable.
Utilizing the computer systems located in the Ingress room, they send out the following message to the crew via the MID:To all those aboard this vessel: I am Ira Phirun, assigned captain of the Moira. First Mate Egan and I will be commandeering all rights to the ship as soon as word is sent to those currently in charge. Expect a more detailed report as soon as all records and logs in Navigation have been reviewed by myself and the First Mate. All questions will be answered in a timely matter. For now, there will be no interruption of daily routine or reprimand if conduct among ranks is broken. Thanks for your time. Heading to Navigation, the Captain and First Mate, for seemingly unknown reasons, approach Navigator Manasseh and have her show them all records and logs of the Moira. Those working in Navigation when the Captain and First Mate arrive will see Mana greet them in a professional manner. Oddly, the Captain and First Mate act very familiar with the Navigator. They review all documents, but when they come upon news that the Ploiatos is on board, their mostly friendly demeanor shifts quickly. The Captain issues a sharp order, unintelligible to those who are close enough to overhear parts of their conversation, and without any warning at all, Mana loses consciousness and collapses right there on the bridge. Within minutes of this happening, the ship as a whole falls into a low power state with basic functions only. Mana’s MID alerts Medbay, and without hesitation, Captain Cúrre places her in cryo with strict orders to those who work there not to disturb the unit.
As promised, the Captain and First Mate soon address the crew.☄ lights down low The lighting has dimmed in all the rooms and halls, the normally crisp air that is pumped from the vents low, and all machines and tech are running at half-speed. These effects can be found throughout the ship. Water in the showers remain hot for only a few minutes before reverting to cold. Recreational equipment powers off not long after it has been turned on. The sanitation and water filtration systems require an hourly manual reboot, and all unused areas of the ship have no power allotted to them until a crew member steps inside. Even then, most functions are not optimal. It’s as if the Moira has been transformed into a dark house with only a candle flickering on the window sill. ☄ reuse & recycle The Captain and First Mate are quick to establish that this is a new regime and go about making the ship and its crew more efficient in the wake of their change in course and the low power state of the ship itself. This means they will systematically inspect each occupied barracks room and leave notes for what needs to be disposed of or stowed away. Unlike before, this is no longer a pleasure cruise, and each member of the crew is a guest on board; they will not tolerate useless clutter. Anything seen as unnecessary will be either placed into storage in the Cargo Bay or disposed of through the airlock. This new need for efficiency also extends to the need to conserve resources until they reach their destination. The showers are set to an automatic timer to minimize water waste. Those few minutes of hot water are all a crew member is now given. Meals are smaller, bordering on ration sizes, and luxuries are done away with entirely in order to preserve supplies so that the ship can go longer before needing to dock at a planet. ☄ new jobs, same faces The Captain and his First Mate, as expressed in their addressing of the Moira, explain that work efficiency is a priority. Applications for a head of the following departments will be accepted for a short period: Navigation, the Tower, Medbay, Defense, the Hold, Sanitation, Ingress work, and the Galley/Mess Hall. (Here.) After reviewing what they receive, one head of department will be chosen and tasked with helping crew find positions relevant to those departments and their own skillsets. They will be allowed to retain any positions that they held before that aren’t ship-functional jobs, but they will have to be done in leisure time. In two weeks time, they’ll be accepting department position applications which will be approved, and all those that do not apply will be assigned in accordance with their initial work application. They will also choose three individuals to act as guards of Ploiatos to ensure that there is a rotation available at all times. Will you choose to follow this new decision and promote yourself into a position of responsibility? Or will you simply wait for a reassignment?
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hownkai) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
thisavrou_log2016-08-01 12:13 am
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[She smiles, partially to soften the jab but mostly because he was one of the few people not to ask. It get so tiring to field the name question.]
They got me workin’ on the electricity. [Her nose wrinkles, a clear indication she’s not pleased with her position.] Pretty stupid of them. Ya don’t take somebody from the desert and tell ‘em to fix the fancy shit.
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Guess I dunno much.
[And that's the honest truth. He can't bother feeling bad about it, not when he's never seen anything like these ships. Clearly whoever's in charge isn't thinking things through-- or maybe they're desperate.]
You ever done work like that?
[Shit, she's just a kid. Job like that sounds dangerous. Flat as his tone is, his expression makes it clear he finds it a dubious prospect.]
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Not before I came here, I hadn't. We didn't have electricity back in the Zones, so ain't like I was ever gonna learn it there. [She shrugs.] They ain't very smart 'round here. They just put people in positions all willy-nilly and expect it to work out.
[She doesn't hide how little she regards the captains, former or otherwise. She makes a face, nose wrinkled and frown disproving.]
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Where's the Zones?
[Considering how long they've been without electricity-- aside from the odd generator or Alexandria's solar panels-- he can't help being curious.]
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[It says nothing, but it's the first answer on her tongue. Her face screws up in thought after, trying to remember whatever bits of geography she'd gleaned over the years. She's aware the people here have a concept of a world different than her own, something closer to the time before the Wars.]
It's back in my world, ain't no place 'round here. Had a bunch of names before. Like California and whatnot. Just the Zones now.
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So he nods.]
I'm from Georgia. Other side of the country. [If that means anything to her. Who knows.] Been a while since we had power.
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[Part of her wants to ask if he knew Deacon, but who knows how many settlements were out on the other coast.]
City's got power, but not our part. Guess they got machines and stuff for that with all those people 'round. We just don't got anthin' that powerful out in the desert. [She shrugs. It never really bothered her until she came here.] Why don't ya'll got it?
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Machines by us broke. [He shrugs.] Some places, towns, they got their own.
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You got more than one town? How many people are out east? [She scuffs her boots on the floor.] They were always actin' like there wasn't anybody else out there. Like once ya got far enough into the desert, everythin' else was just dead. That the bombs burned it all out.
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[Or it might not. Daryl hasn't got a clue what's happening further inland, much less on the other coast.]
There's places. Not a lot. Just little ones. Not so many folks.
[Less than there used to be, every damn day.]
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[Wasn't war what made everything go bad?]
Huh. We only got the big one. 'cept nobody wants to live there. Not really. Guess the runner's hidey-holes count as little places but ain't like anybody but the DJs can keep track of that.
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[It's the truth, though not all the truth. He's always a little wary about discussing home.]
Why don't people wanna live in the city?
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[Poisoning was the worst she could think of. Maybe infection from badly treated wounds.]
'Cause that's where the bad guys are. Nobody wants to be controlled, right? Livin' without feelin' anythin', never bein' able to think like ya want when ya know sayin' it wrong will get ya killed- that just ain't livin' at all.
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[And difficult to explain without being too honest about it. The more she says, the surer he is she's not from home.]
Sounds like they got the right idea.
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Mmm. The people out in the desert are pretty smart. Most of the time. That's where I stay. [It's a clear attempt to brag.] But even out there everythin' ain't always jazzy. People from the city really don't like us stickin' it out somewhere else.
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Must be a tough bunch.
[He means the compliment. It could be halfway patronizing-- she's a kid trying to brag-- but he doesn't disbelieve it, if all that's true. Weird only by standards that fell apart long ago.]
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Yeah. I knew the toughest crew that ever was.
[She lets herself shine with pride for a moment before the smile softens into something questioning.]
You're hearin' about mine, what's your place like? Other that everybody bein' sick?
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We get by. Got a place, seems pretty safe. [And a hint of a smile.] We got good people.
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Did ya get any of 'em here? Your people?
[She remembers how frightening that first month had been before Kobra had shown up. She wouldn't wish it on anyone.]
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[Flat as his tone habitually is, the relief is pretty obvious.]
You?
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[Not as many as she'd like. But the fondness is there in her voice.]
Pretty lucky to find your people right off the bat. Some people stay here a while before anyone shows up.
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[He's got a feeling he doesn't need to tell her to do the same. She seems to know what she's about.]
You take care, yeah?
[He'd better get to work. If he can figure out exactly what it is he does.]
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I'll stay shiny. Been fine so far. You watch yourself too.
[She catches herself before she can call him out like he's from the desert; she doesn't want to have to explain that crash queen is meant to be friendly. She just smiles and ducks into the Trans Am.]