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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
no subject
She’s so caught up in the feed-back loop that she almost misses what Anakin says. She does miss the flickering of the lights or how it’s gotten worse the more she gets worked up.]
What?
[The lights settle for a second, her internal battle broken with momentary confusion. She looks up to the dim overhead, back to how he’s staring at her.]
We’re talkin’ about something important here!
[Her temper flares again, and the flickering is back. The lights grow as bright as they had been before the Captain’s new rules were implemented.]
What, tryin’ to distract me or somethin’? I ain’t buying it.
no subject
[Or is it that he's seeing it? It has been a tense few weeks, with tense new rules to follow, but he doesn't feel lightheaded or particularly pained beyond the constant residual, so that doesn't seem right. Does she not know? Is this new?]
no subject
[Her voice raises again in pitch, expression darkening by the moment. She thought Anakin was something like a friend. He'd been nice to her all this time on the ship and she liked him. But this felt like he was mocking how upset she was, trying to keep her from her goal with petty distractions like she was still a toddler. It hurt and she'd never been good at dealing with hurt when she was already upset.]
I thought you would take me serious. Not treat me like some dumb little kid. [The hurt fuels more than just her anger. One of the lights suddenly shuts off.] I thought you were nice.
no subject
[With the light shutting off, he knows something is definitely wrong. And while he doesn't doubt that this bucket of bolts has faulty wiring somewhere, that explanation doesn't feel right. Doesn't account for the charge he feels in the air here, however faint.
It's worrying, when realizes what's fueling this. The sort of agitation he's always told to avoid. He can't conscionably enable this...right?]
That's not something "dumb little kids" can do. Not the ones I know.
no subject
[She looks over her shoulder, finally catches sight of the flickering lights. She pales. There's something funny in the air that reminds her of the awed looks she caught from the backseat when the boys came up on other runners. The funny way Ghoul would smile when she got something working even he couldn't fix. The things she never liked to think to hard about; that the Dracs never took the shot when they had the chance, taking her instead of leaving her for dead like any other runner, that when BLI had the chance to take out the Killjoys they came for her instead.
There's panic mixing into the anger now, like the lights are something significant that she can't quite put her finger on. But it makes her stomach turn and skin prickle.]
I'm not doin' nothing! [Another light shuts off in a spray of sparks, blowing with the overload of power.] You've lost your damn head 'cause whatever you think your seein', it ain't me. [Another and then another. Her voice rises until she's shouting. She puts her hands over her ears, shaking her head.]
You don't know what you're talkin' about. Just shut up, shut up!
[The hallway falls dark.]
no subject
Sure, alright. I imagined that. And this. But--
[When he puts this together with what's actually made her angry...]
But I wouldn't tell anyone, even if I wasn't obviously seeing things.
no subject
There's nothin' to tell. People can't do things like that. Not where I'm from. It's just the lights messin' up. Place ain't got it's power wired right.
[She knows it's a bold faced lie, can't even make it sound like she believes what she's saying.]
no subject
[The last part, at least. He doesn't trust a ship he can't dig into himself. But even that pushed aside, he knows better. And he knows what barefaced denial looks like too. (He's certainly pulled it enough.)]
Fine. There's nothing to tell.
[Even if it's perfectly "normal" where he's from. He understands enough of superstitions. Pilots have plenty, all on their own. And he can make a small enough concession now, but this will hardly be the last of it.
He gives a small pause and bites back the sigh that follows it.]
Anyway how do you want to "get back" at our new overlords without making things worse for everyone else? Everything's rationed as-in, so unless you're thinking of, I don't know, turning the water heating back on...
[He disobedient streak has always been situational and rarely planned. It's never extended quite this far. The idea actually bristles more than he expects.]
no subject
But he's leaving it alone. And she's not sure whether she should trust that.
She pulls her hands down, holding onto her elbows instead.]
I dunno. I was just gonna run in there and yell at 'em and figure it out as I went. [Maybe. She's having a hard time switching tracks. To think beyond the heavy feeling of what just happened and back to what she'd come storming down the hallway for.] Maybe take somethin' from 'em and see how they like it.
no subject
What do they have to take? Taking the ship is tantamount to mutiny, and a bad idea. Sneak in and steal uniforms?
[...Actually, that's not half bad.]
no subject
I'm not gonna steal the ship. I can't drive it. [Maybe she could hand it off to someone who could. Leia or Han. But she wouldn't see the point, not if they wanted to keep the whole place from turning into a battle ground.] And I'm not stupid. I don't wanna start a clap over it.
But the uniforms? Maybe. [She certainly hates the idea of uniforms enough to want to get rid them.] Or anythin' personal the got. Ya know they gotta have stuff they don't want us to touch.
no subject
He pauses for a moment, considering. It's terribly immature, and he knows it, but if it makes her feel better, the small victory in that can't be all bad, can it?]
You'd be better at sneaking in than I would. But...I might be able to keep someone occupied, if this is what you want.
no subject
[She mutters it under her breath, more a statement to herself than something she's trying to discuss.]
Are you gonna fight 'em? [Isn't that what adults means by keeping someone occupied? Maybe someone should teach her the first response doesn't always have to be the violent one.] I actually am really good at bein' sneaky. Most people don't pay a lotta attention when it comes to someone my size.
no subject
[He frowns, slightly, more concerned that she thinks she's beholden to him for something he freely offered. That's supposed to be the whole concept of freedom, isn't it? Being able to give yourself to who you like, when you like? When it's a choice? Selling a favor--something rather easily done--just feels...wrong.]
And no. You don't have to hit someone to get their attention. [He's not 12, honestly.] But they'll stay occupied, don't worry about it. No real harm, no one gets locked up for a mutiny, everything's square, right?
no subject
[She shrugs. People got by on trade, whether goods or service and she saw it as the latter. This wasn't just offering extra food in a place where supplies were plentiful, this could led to trouble. At least, in her mind. She can't detach her idea of authority from the company at home. Doing something that may anger the captains was the same to her as asking someone to anger an Exterminator.]
You're not even gonna tell me what you're gonna do, huh?
no subject
[A nonsense conversation that diverts attention isn't always worth noting. Granted, he's no Obi-Wan when it comes to subversive tactics like this, but if it's not political, it shouldn't be too hard.
The Girl must have a video different idea of how the concept works.]
Why, what does that usually mean?
no subject
[She snorts when she says it, a little humor returning to her face. Her ideas involved explosives, fires and decoys. Violence. It's telling of the world she's used to. But she doesn't think Anakin will be taking a match to anything anytime soon.]
What favors? Like I said, it's a debt. Something people are bound to come collect on sooner or later.
no subject
[It's said so matter-of-factly that he almost believes it, despite the several...dozens of experiences that speak to the contrary. They don't resort to it unless necessary. Semantics.]
I'm not promising them anything. Just talking. Do you want help or not?
no subject
[She doesn't believe that. Everyone had to deal with a little fist to fist at some point.
She takes a few moments to stare at him, lips pursed and pretending to consider. She lets out a huff, nods quickly.]
Okay. Yes, fine. If you're willin', I guess I shouldn't turn ya down.