TDM 1

[hohnkai]

AUGUST TEST DRIVE MEME

---

ABOARD THE MOIRA

Whether adjusting to space travel has been difficult or not, there is always something to be done. From working to leisure, the Moira offers a multitude of opportunities to get to know your crewmates a bit better. Exploration of the ship is highly encouraged, but as another planet grows closer to being docked, things start to get a little hectic. You'll notice a slight change in the artificial gravity as the Moira is pulled into the planet's gravitational field; however, more noticeable changes can be found in the overall morale as you prepare to descend.

☄ on the aft:

Offering an unobstructed view, it's quite easy to see stars that are still light years away. Like your own personal observatory, things are relatively quiet since other members are busy. While visiting, your steps may feel lighter as the ship's gravity is affected most here, but don't worry! The barrier surrounding the aft will keep you from floating away. Take note: if you happen to find yourself alone, no matter how brief, you may hear a distant echo — like a voice calling to you. For the most part, it's harmless. However, those curious enough to attempt to heed those words may find themselves suddenly jettisoned into space through a momentary lapse in the Moira's safety systems.

Hopefully you're wearing your thermals! The MID relay will alert the ship of this emergency, but who knows how long it will take for someone to retrieve you.

☄ in the mess hall:

It's breakfast time! On the buffet lining the back wall, you'll find an assortment of hurriedly prepared foods, but it's not the rations you've been accustomed to since the last port. There are stacks of green pancakes that taste like stale yet metallic bread. Are those eggs? Yes. Do they taste good? Probably not. Since supplies are scarce, there isn't much else to eat. The water might seem a bit brown, but is that really water you're drinking? After a while, depending on how much you've drank, you start to feel lightheaded... That's some strong space liquor right there.

☄ on your own:

There are plenty of other communal areas on the ship to explore! Pick a place, and see where it takes you.

PLANET EXPLORATION

Welcome to Hyacintho!




WARNINGS for possible psychological trauma, suffocation, and hallucinations.

From the outside, Hyacintho appears to be devoid of natives. Its landscape is sparse of vegetation with many slow-flowing streams tinted a murky blue. Craggy rock formations jut up randomly from the ground, hinting at abrupt development and are razor-sharp to the touch. Upon further exploration, dome-like structures can be found and appear to be abandoned settlements. Some are smaller and clustered close to the ground while others are elevated and connected by swinging bridges. Watching your MID here is critical; it monitors atmospheric composition with steady beeps that signal hazardous conditions. Staying on Hyacintho's surface for extended periods of time is ill-advised.

☄ the dormant volcanoes:

Scoping Hyacintho's peculiar topography leads to the discovery of inactive volcanoes and lava tubes. Some are easily accessible while others take more effort to reach—it's a steep climb to the vent. The ground shifts under your feet and can make walking difficult. Yet, the closer you come to a particular one, you may notice subtle changes in temperature and the air smelling faintly of sulfur. Perhaps this planet isn't as latent as you first thought.

Around midday, vibrations are unexpectedly felt and whatever light from Hyacintho's suns is blotted out by ashy clouds the same color as the ground. Small pockets of blue lava seep from those sharp rock formations, and that light sulfuric smell has now become increasingly overwhelming. Time to make a quick escape back to the Moira!

☄ the delirium:

When something terrible happens, sometimes it leaves a trace, a wound that acts as a knot between two timelines. It's like an echo repeated over and over, waiting to be heard... Like a scar or a pinch that begs for a caress to relieve it. An itch under your skin or a memory fading before your eyes.

The faint sound of your MID has grown unreasonably loud. In the back of your mind, you know what it means, but you're too lethargic to attend to its warning. Where once you believed Hyacintho to be absent of life, it is now overrun. Falling back to the safety of the ship is now much too difficult to do quickly. Your limbs are heavy, the natives' faces blurry and unrecognizable as if they're a great distance away, but you swear you can feel them breathing on your neck, dragging their hands down your arms and back. You struggle, falling over yourself and are swayed by the delusions you are rapidly succumbing to. Yet, somehow, the Moira is just ahead. Within reach. Are you at the door now? Are your friends with you to drag you inside? Are they even calling to you?

You ask yourself why you're breathing so heavily.

You aren't.

---

OUT OF CHARACTER INFO

FAQ | LOCATIONS | RESERVES | APPLICATIONS | NAVIGATION

For mature or graphic content, please label. Test Drive Memes are not game canon but can be used as samples in applications. For questions, please direction them to the FAQ. As always, be kind and have fun!

Comments

Chloe Price | Life is Strange

[hellaraiser]

[A. The Moira; The Aft]

[ For as long as Chloe can remember, the world never seemed to be bigger than the distance she could drive in her truck. Sure, the world existed outside of Arcadia Bay, beyond the distance her shitbox could drive on a tank of gas, but she could never really picture the scale. The world was as big as she could see with her own two eyes but now... now she was staring out into fucking space as a planet almost the same color as her hair slowly got bigger and bigger.

She'd never felt smaller in her life. A shiver runs through her, nothing to do with the cold and everything to do with the unsettling knowledge that she didn't have an out for this. Max couldn't rewind them back to Earth with a twirl of her hand.

But even through it all there's a thread of excitement winding through her chest. This isn't LA but it's crazy amazing all the same. She's in space on some weird ass space ship. ]

That... is hella fucking cool.



[B. The Moira; The Bow]

[ She misses having her own room, the luxury of privacy and a window to prop open so she can smoke without getting caught. Having roommates means she has to go elsewhere to get her smoke on. It takes a little wandering but eventually she finds her way into the gardens. Satisfied by the space available she lights up and wanders the room, stepping through empty plant beds until she finds herself at the base of the center tree. ]

What the hell are you even doing in space?

[ Last thing she ever expected to find in space was some giant ass tree. Kind of cool, though. She settles down at the base of it, legs stretched out before her as she savors her cigarette. Her supply is limited now, she'll have to try and stretch out her supply until she can get her hands on a fresh pack. ]


[C. Hyacintho; Exploring]

[ The chance to stretch her legs, be out under a real sky instead of endless hallways, is welcomed with open arms. Who cares that the entire place kind of smells like bad eggs? Chloe is out the door and exploring the place the moment she's given the option. She walks across the unsteady ground with arms out wide to keep her balance. At some point she'll look over at whoever is nearby with a grin. ]

I wonder if this makes us the alien invaders. Like, if something lives here I bet we look hella freaky to them.

[ The exploring keeps up and she gets it in her head to try and see one of the volcanic vents. If the entire place is dead what could it hurt? Except as she finally gets close to one her MID starts to chirp in a shrill tone. Time to get out of dodge! ]

[D. Hyacintho; The Delirium]

[ Chloe runs as hard as she can, tripping and stumbling over the unsteady landscape. Her sides feel like they've been stuck full of glass and she can't get her breath. Why can't she fucking breathe?! There's an awful certainty in her that whatever's behind her is gaining. She doesn't want to die, not on some weird-ass planet. There's no superheroes to save the day now. She risks a look back and regrets as her foot catches on rock.

Her hands end up scraped bloody on the ground and she gasps as she gets another lungful of what feels like more sulfur than air. Somehow she gets up again, forcing herself to run even though a small part of her wants to give up.

When she hits the ramp she loses her strength, falling again as she tries to get breath. ] Help, please...!

d

[encharrneered]

[ Of all the people to drag a human up a ramp while they're panicking, something big and incredibly not human probably isn't the best choice, but Rinth was there. It's not like anyone can be picky here. ]

...damn mice can't keep an eye on their meters... [ Chloe will find herself hauled up as if she weighed nothing, which, compared to a charr? She really doesn't. ] Stop yelling. Just breathe.

[ The first words were muttered, but the last four are louder, sharper. Orders, not suggestions. Farther up the ramp and more into the ship, the air should start clearing up. ]

Damian Wayne | DCU | canon or CRAU (Haven)

[littlestguano]

[He doesn't eat with the others. Too many strangers, too many watchful eyes, and too many people eating without any regard to table etiquette whatsoever. It's disconcerting and as a result, he skips it altogether. Damian moves in and out of the shadows of the room, trying to make his way out unseen and only halfway succeeding. No matter, most people don't give much more than a passing glance to a small child weaving his way among them, especially when he isn't wearing anything as conspicuous as his uniform.

He finds a dark corner and sits, a plate of green pancakes balanced carefully in his lap. He's a third of the way through his grimy glass of water before he even considers taking a bite of the "pancakes." The water, however rank, is non-negotiable. He needs to be hydrated for his morning workout. The pancakes on the other hand...

His eyes narrow as he pokes his fork into the top pancake and something silver oozes out. No. Unacceptable. He had trained in the wilderness and survived off of bugs, swallowed more sewer water in his life than he cares to think about, and once even tried something his father had "cooked."

But this? This is an outrage and he will not stand for it. With a dramatic flip of the hand, he neatly sends his plate crashing to the floor, glaring unrepentantly at the offending flopped over green chunks of something. He stands, crossing his arms over his chest and setting his shoulders. If he feels slightly flustered and maybe a little hotter than normal, it is definitely because he is so outraged and not at all because that water he was drinking was alcoholic and he's now a tiny drunk ten year old former assassin.]

[justlittle]

[ Bean notices. Partly because it's Bean's nature to notice everything, and partly because this boy was the only other person remotely in his age range that Bean had seen aboard so far. So he's already making his way over to the shadowy corner when the boy throws his tantrum. Maybe Bean's initial assessment had been wrong. Maybe the boy was just another child after all.

Or, he reassesses as he eyes the half empty glass, the boy hadn't realized the drink was alcoholic, a fact which had been obvious to Bean. He had therefore avoided it.

He stops his approach about fifteen feet away, crossing his arms over his tiny body. ]

Ho. Something wrong with your food?

Uta | Tokyo Ghoul | ota

[scleras]

mess hall

[It doesn't matter what the food is. It will be coming up later anyway.

Uta has to eat it to keep up appearances. Otherwise he might be easily pointed out whenever someone disappeared from the crew. Porting the ghoul onto a ship like this had been poor planning on someone's part. Did those in charge even know what he was?

The problem will be finding a way to kill and eat his prey without leaving any obvious evidence that they'd been devoured. Hopefully he could make it look as though they'd accidentally been sucked out an airlock and no one would know about it until days after the fact. It will just take some planning, and he has some time yet before that becomes necessary.

For now, he ignores the way the smell of the food makes his stomach churn as he sits down at an empty table, though thankfully this particular meal isn't making most people look all that happy today. ]

the delirium

[It's been a long time since Uta has experience anything remotely like what he's feeling now. He knows some of it isn't real, but it's becoming harder to distinguish what is from what isn't.

He swipes out at whatever's surrounding him with attacks that would tears flesh from bone if he was actually capable of putting the usual amount of force behind them. The figures seem to keep following him all the same.

Is that really the ship he's getting near, or is this just another illusion, a mirage taunting him with the possibility of escape?

He falls to his knees, closing his eyes in an attempt to regain some clarity, but this isn't helping. It only becomes harder for him to breathe, and he realizes that whether or not the ship is actually ahead of him, he can't stay here any longer hoping whatever this is will pass.

Stumbling up, the ghoul takes a few clumsy steps before dashing toward possible freedom as fast as his legs will allow.]

mess hall

[ablutionary]

[ He'd already starting missing all the food Kofuku had back at her place, but he didn't know how much until he's staring at whatever the hell that stuff is supposed to be on the buffet line. Yukine takes one look at those green cake things and thinks he's going to get sick. Gross. Who even does that? Is there even someone to complain to? Cheeks a bit puffed in annoyance, he grabs a cup full of the brownish water and plops down next to Uta with his bowl of eggs.

Where's the rice? The fish?

Yukine peeks curiously at the person next to him, trying to judge whether or not he should say something. Normally, he probably wouldn't have thought about it, most people couldn't see him anyway considering he's dead, but it's different here. He gets attention when he doesn't want it, and gets left alone when he needs attention the most. Eventually, he just sighs, taking a sip... and immediately makes a face. ]

Even the water's bad! [ Grr, grr. ] Have you tried it yet?

yukine | noragami | ota

[ablutionary]

the aft;
[ He's no stranger to being alone. At least, that's the feeling he gets when he's not around stupid Yato or distracted by how nice Hiyori looks. Still, it's a completely different thing to be right up under the stars, looking through that transparent barrier and wondering if it was better to stay here than go home. Home was better, right? That's what he was supposed to think. It didn't matter if people never saw him or forgot about him the second they looked away. It didn't matter if he was Yato's shinki. It didn't.

This was beautiful. He feels... almost alive. Not so cold.

There are a few other people with him, so it shouldn't matter if he stays right where he is and just stares up at all the stars. No one'll notice. They're not going to see him reaching out in an effort to touch the thing keeping all the space out, up on his toes because he's a bit too short to actually reach. In fact, maybe they don't even see that, when the ship lurches some, the gravity goes and sends him floating right off the ground... ]

dormant volcanoes;
[ This is dumb.

Yukine picks up a blue rock - why is it even that color? - and tosses it at one of those sharp rocks towering taller than he is. When nothing happens, he retrieves another and throws it even harder, frustrated and annoyed and-- ]

What are we here for!! [ Ugh. He picks up a third rock, and when it hits the strange formation, there's a sharp crack that seems to resound out across the emptiness. Yukine blinks, awkward standing for a second or two before realizing he'd just broken something. But he doesn't look as if he's about to stick around, dusting his hands off and shoving them into the pockets of his uniform. If someone happens to be around, he practically turns his nose up at them and wanders right on by. ]

SQUEAKS yukineee

[junglesavate]

the aft

[ Hiyori's spent a few days coming to terms with the fact that this isn't one of her sudden mid-afternoon sleeping spells in class. One, she realized early on, her tail hasn't made an appearance, and two, taking in the whole of space is altogether too crushing a weight to possibly go through witlessly. It really has a way of pushing loneliness on you if you let it.

Which is to say she is making the best of it, because she's never given herself the option not to in any situation. Laps in the swimming pool to keep fit for whatever's to come, time spent in the gardens trimming a few small bushes into familiar shapes to make herself smile and maybe press on the bruise that is the absence of everyone she knows. The little Yukine plants to fill time, she guesses, until she can see them again.

Today (tonight? what do you call it when there's always stars?), finds her in the aft for the first time, admiring the way the metal ends and the heavens simply start, hands cupping her mouth in awe. Hiyori barely takes in her surroundings, dizzied as she is, and doesn't notice her world actually tipping upside down until she's just about pinwheeling through the air with an undignified yelp.

Funny, how her homesickness manifests when she's trying to hold her skirt in place. Because she sees Yukine not too far from her, floating like he's a wayward puffball again.

Then again she's here. What are the odds? ]

Yukin--aaah!

Nicholas Angel | Hot Fuzz | ota

[switchoff]

✪ the aft:
[Nice view, yes. Pleasant and open, a bit disorienting if you were the type to be disoriented by such a thing. He's not. No, he can't be bothered to worry about something so small as the possibility of being flung out into space with no way of being pulled back. He's got more important things to do. Like, patrolling the aft. It's not technically Nicholas' job, he wasn't assigned this, but here he was.

Making certain everyone was doing what was right and not hinting at doing what was wrong.]

Stay away from the divider.

[Hands clasped behind his back, lips pinched into a firm line.]

Really, too close and you might fall out.

[Or up. Or away. No need for specifics, they'd know what he meant.]

✪ the mess hall:
[Cranberry juice. That's what he wanted, but that's not what they had. Water that looked as if it came from a rusted tap, nothing else. He swirls the cup, frowning, takes a light sniff.]

No.

[Nicholas gestures to the cup in the person's hand queued directly behind him.]

Unless you plan on getting pissed before ten am, I would stop.

[He sets his plate of green pancakes down. Who here was trying to get them all drunk?]

✪ the delirium:
[Nicholas hadn't gone far from the ship, The Moira, why would he? If they required him to explore, to participate in manual labor, he would. If it were necessary, but he believed his skills were better utilized here. Especially now that there was a ruckus, crew stumbling back towards the ship in varying states of distress.

Wide eyes. Sweating. Disoriented.

He notes their states, disheveled and slow, and quickly rushes forward to help. One after the other, waiting in between.]

Here, let me assist you.

aft; I love you

[justlittle]

[ Bean is no stranger to gravity fluxuations. He trained in zero-g combat and spent months on Eros, an asteroid whose gravity is different from that of Earth. So he really doesn't need someone telling him what to do, even if he is only eight. And small for his age, at that.

He scoffs. ] Any ship with the possibility of "falling out" is unworthy of spaceflight.

Bucky Barnes | Marvel 616

[bloodonmyhands]

[A: The Moira, Mess Hall]
[Despite the rather lackluster food, there's still a man at the breakfast buffet piling a plate up with the green pancakes and odd-tasting eggs. He's wearing his thermals and uniform pants, the top just tossed over his shoulder, and his hair is still damp from the shower. In a uniform, he could be just about anybody with that forgettable face, nondescript short brown hair and brown eyes, but for the fact that his left hand is shiny and silver, instead of flesh-toned.]

Could have done without this reminder of my army days. [It's a mild comment as he makes his way to a table with a fork to eat. It tastes bad, but he's had worse, judging from the way he shovels it into his mouth with only small grimaces about the flavor.] Think I'd rather be back on C-rations, actually.

[B: The Moira, Gym]
[Bucky Barnes likes structure and order. He was an Army boy growing up, through and through, and his entire life he's been a soldier. He wakes up at the crack of whatever passes for dawn on a space ship, grabs a towel, and heads down to the rec area in his thermals for a daily workout. He's read horror stories about degradation of the human body in space, he's not going to let that happen to him if he can help it.

He strips off the top of his thermals, baring his scarred chest and bionic arm, and drapes it over the arm on a treadmill to get started on his morning run. You might walk in when he's getting started, or when he's cranked the thing up to max and is working up an actual sweat, feet thudding against the path as he full on sprints.

Or maybe he's done with his run, and your character is catching some rays in a UV bed, he might peer in briefly and ask if the next one over is taken.]

[C: Hyacintho, Volcanoes]
[He knows something's wrong with this little expedition as soon as the scent of sulfur hits his nose, sending him reeling back, a hand at his face to try and block it out a bit. Dormant volcanoes don't always stay dormant, after all, doesn't take a genius to figure that one out. Brown eyes narrow as he peers up at the sky, at the ashy clouds that start to form, blocking out light, and he looks back abruptly to whoever might have come this far with him.] We gotta move, back to the ship, double time!

[Yeah, if you're not running, that metal arm might just reach out to drag you along with him.]

[D: Choose your own adventure!]

gym

[justlittle]

[ He isn't alone in the gym when he walks in. Bean is in there even earlier, doing calisthenics (the machines aren't built for his tiny eight year old body). It's important not to let your muscles atrophy while in space. He barely looks up at the other man when he comes in, merely continues doing his crunches. ]

Stephanie Brown | DCU | ota

[spoildbat]

[So the first thing you do when you wake up is have breakfast right? The mess hall is where Steph heads, stomach gurgling comically loud as she wonders what kind of food there will be. With any luck waffles. Of course it just figures that what she gets is pancakes and eggs, and.... is that what they're trying to pass off as "water"?

She can be found sitting at a table, poking idly at a green pancake and making faces. Steph knows her breakfast foods and pancakes are not supposed to be this sort of green. And that egg, does not taste like an egg. The snozzberries are definitely not snozzberries aboard the Moira. This is an absolute travesty to the very idea of breakfast! And you can bet your ass she is personally affronted by this.

Later after that disaster of a meal (somehow she managed to choke down at least half a pancake and a whole egg) she'll make her way to the aft. She's just going to stand and stare out into the abyss of space, letting her thoughts get the better of her. How far they must be from Gotham. How incredibly vast space actually is. There's no end in sight, and it's actually a little (okay a lot) terrifying.

Aaaaaand that's just about enough of those thoughts there. Yep, moving on.

And what better way to distract yourself from an existential crisis than to explore an alien planet! Steph's going to be heading out onto Hyacintho and looking around. Especially toward those abandoned settlements. Maybe she'll actually find an alien? Let's hope it's a friendly one.]

(ooc: feel free to catch her anywhere at any point)

The aft

[littlestguano]

[He catches sight of her when he still has plenty of time to switch directions but something about her posture and the look on her face makes him keep moving towards her against his better judgment. Brown was obnoxiously cheery and unfailingly hopeful. It bothers him more than he would care to admit to see her looking so lost. (If Stephanie Brown could lose hope, what did that say about the rest of them?)]

Shouldn't you be doing something productive.

natasha romanoff | mcu

[doveriye]

moira - aft;

[one thing about being in space is that you can't beat the view.

she's on her way to somewhere else entirely when she finds herself stopping here, taking the time to admire it. up close to the stars, yet still far away, floating in nothingness; in spite of everything, there's a sense of peace that fills her, one that isn't usually so easy to come by. it doesn't negate red ledgers or things not being what they seem, doesn't negate the fact that she's blown all her covers and her next steps remain uncertain, but for right now, in this isolated pocket of time, all of that can seem small.

at some point, a faint smirk starts to tug at one of the corners of her mouth, and she mutters to no one in particular - ]

To boldly go... [at that, she trails off, because there's no need to finish. you know the rest.]


hyacintho - volcanoes;

[there's a certain script that these things follow; natasha has seen enough movies to know the general pattern. at the point they least expect it, some strange alien species will appear of the shadows and ambush them. maybe the methods of attack will vary, but the main point is that outsiders aren't welcome, and will inevitably be pulverized.

turns out, however, that late-night netflix binges haven't set much of a precedent.

the planet is as devoid of signs of life as some of the more remote corners of siberia. domes occasionally pop out of the barren ground, but by the looks of them, they've been abandoned for years, and there's no real flora or fauna to speak of. none of this, though, means that the planet is quiet. near one of the volcanic vents, before the MID goes off, there are tremors under her feet and the overpowering smell of sulfur, and she knows - ]

We have a problem. [there's nothing but a set to her jaw, and she doesn't even take the easy opening to add "houston." yes, there's really a problem.]


wildcard;

[have something else in mind? i've got a blank space, and i'll write your name]

aft;

[thegoodlighter]

[Unfortunately, Lee is unaware of the Star Trek reference, but, he appreciates the obvious meaning of the statement, as an Officer of the Colonial Fleet.

Or, what was the fleet.

And then whatever remains of that desperate group in Exodus, somewhere, presumably, in a galaxy far, far away...

If Natasha is aware of Star Trek, she's welcome to know the major as well. He'd be very suspicious, however; on the rare occasion someone approaches and knows more about him than he does of them, they tend to be Cylon agents.

He crosses his arms and stands near her, giving a restrained looking, but amiable close-mouthed smile. He's a sucker for attractive women, and will always strike conversation even if she isn't blonde.] Magnificent view, right? Makes me wish I was out there.

Tony Stark | Marvel 616 | ota

[definingfuture]

A: The Moira; observation deck

[Tony is all for getting a good look at the systems as they travel. There's an approaching planet, apparently, and he's up on deck looking through the transparent window, taking in the sights. The distant stars and strange clusters look like nothing from home--on the plus side, they also don't seem to be holding any military fleets. For the moment, that means they can enjoy the trip, right?]

I don't really like being forced to take an intergalactic road trip, but it is pretty so far. The view's nice.

[Any fellow traveler who happens to be on deck with him gets a slight grin.]

You don't happen to recognize anything, do you?

B: The Moira; mess hall

Uh. Ew?

[He sounds unsure, because he's still staring at the plate of food in front of him. Those pancakes are green. And distinctly green, not vaguely-suggestion-the-color-green. The pancakes are green and the water is brown. Tony pokes some of the eggs with the tines of his fork, but they were touching the pancakes and he doesn't trust them.]

Is starving an option? I think I might take that one. It's not the one I want, but... Who wants a drink? If you start convulsing I promise to help you find a doctor. They probably have one.

C: Hyacintho; The volcanoes

Who thought this was a good idea?

[Tony just got knocked on his ass in the last tremor. He's clambering to his feet just as the blue molten rock starts oozing out of the so-called dormant tubes.]

Guys, I know things are different when you go to a new planet and I'm not an expert, but I don't think these are dormant.

[Jokes aside, though, the ash is coming down from the cloud above and the situation is just getting worse. Tony grabs hold of a nearby explorer and heads in the direction of the Moira as the next tremor hits. Sorry if he nearly pulls you over in an attempt to help.]

Yeah, okay, sightseeing is over. Time to move.

wildcard

[Open to any ship exploration or ideas you have! If you want to do something else, I'm open to other prompts too.]

B

[bloodonmyhands]

[Bucky drops his own plate on the table beside Tony unceremoniously, slides into a seat and picks up his fork, raising a brow at the other's reactions to the food. He gives him that 'really?' look and takes a bite out of his own dubious breakfast, chews thoughtfully for a moment, swallows, and shrugs.]

Eat your pancakes or I'll eat 'em for you. [As bad as they are, he means that. Bucky is steadily working through his own plate with only the occasional grimace. Army life will do a lot to kill your tastebuds. When he takes a drink of the brownish 'water', though, he makes an exaggerated face.] Woah, that booze'll peel paint.

rhys | tales from the borderlands

[promotional]

[1. Moira; Mess Hall]

This isn't so bad.

[Rhys is speaking about the 'water' that he knew was mislabeled the second he grabbed a cup of it. The scent is pungent, the color is brown, putting two and two together has been a strong point of his since early childhood. They make four and this is space booze. Coming to understand that early on did not stop him from drinking three cups of it, but there was awareness in the act. He's warm, now, enough so that he'll loosen his tie (which reaches all the way down his front, tucked into his pants). After everything, he knows he deserves a chance to drink up. Besides, to stomach the sham of a stack of pancakes he was given, alcohol is the only way to go about it. Now that his tongue is fuzzy, doesn't matter that the dough's under-cooked and the flavor is coppery.

Small favors.]

[wildcard]

[open to anything, just too lazy to do a lot of prompts. also v tentative.]

Fiona | Tales from the Borderlands

[banknotable]

i. the mess hall

[ Fiona knows scarce. She knows whatever the total polar opposite of gourmet meal is, and she remembers sucking up squeamishness, just so she'd get her stomach to stop growling. Hasn't been that bad for 'em in many years though, but that's only half the scowl on her face.

Thing is, you struggle with empty plates on Pandora, you start picking up on the kind of last resorts you can dig into, and the ones that are gonna kill ya much faster than hunger would. Like the kinda mushrooms that can make the best and last meal of your life. It's like the saying goes, the devil that you know--

--is better than green pancakes. Green pancakes, what kinda critter did they milk for that? ]

I wanna say that anyone who goes through that much trouble to get people here alive won't actually poison them first chance they get, buuut... [ Fiona pokes at the stack on her plate with one finger. They're definitely dead, guess that's half the battle, but it's gonna take a little more to psych herself up for the taste test. ] ...that might be the hopeless and really hungry optimist in me talkin'.

[ Behind her someone else takes their seat, and she turns around to look over their shoulder. ]

Hey, you got anything better? Swap ya for a whole glass of, uh... lightly chocolate-flavored water, if you're lucky.

ii. the dormant volcanoes

[ Yeah, this whole scenario so far? Not really digging the part where their contracts didn't have a What The Hell, I'm Not Leaving Without My Sister, Get Her Here Right Now Or Take Me Back, You Assholes clause, despite her asking about it in the very polite and calm sort of way that definitely didn't give anyone a black eye, and definitely didn't get her sent on planet exploration duty Or Else.

All that's gonna take some tweaking to set right, but she's already working hard on a solid plan, and what better way to do that than with some cathartic meditation kinda crap, like long walks near too much freaking lava, or... looting, actually. Yep, definitely looting. Might be on to something there.

Fiona looks up at the narrow plateau ahead, just our of reach, something glimmering bright on the slope above it. ]

Hey! Hey, you there! You see that rock thing up there? Gimme a boost, will ya?

iii. ???

[ throw your own starter at fiona; anyplace, anywhere, anytime! ]

i.

[protohistory]

I'm-- not entirely certain.

[Liara is busy frowning at what appears to be eggs, although the smell of them has her wary. She's fortunate, she supposes, that she has no special dietary needs like human biotics or dextro species. She frowns, pursing her lips slightly before offering Fiona her full attention.]

If I had my equipment, I would analyze it first. Unfortunately, it would seem that our options are limited.

[Even when under attack by Reapers, Liara isn't used to scarcity.]

leland j. adama | battlestar galactica

[thegoodlighter]

[x] the aft;

[Living on a ship under anxious and uncertain conditions had become normal, expected, and familiar to Lee. Truth be told, as much as he longed for a beach - even a simulated one - and the sun on his bare skin, water lapping at his toes... The environment of a ship had become a sort of comfort to him. He understood the way ships ran, from the mechanics of the thing itself, to the people who ran it. He had grown secure in the understanding of everyone in his life, living day by day, hour by hour, and sometimes, minute by minute.

The idea of suddenly being in the open, somewhere unfamiliar and organic, caused surges of anxiety he stubbornly swallowed down. It was only partially a desire to protect that motivated him to stay on the Pegasus when just about everyone else had gone planet-side to start a new life. Partially anxieties, largely related to Kara Thrace, some simply do to a love of what could be managed, simply, with one's own hands.

Or their fist. It depended.

This place brought a lot of the discomfort back. He was somewhere utterly unknown, but it was a ship, and the barriers erected around him and functional equation of the whole process comforted him like a blanket, for the same reason it caused panic in many. It was a similar psychology to why some people loved, and some people hated winters.

What he did not enjoy was the utter unimportance of his rank, his experience, and knowing absolutely no one had had encountered thus far. He tried to comfort himself with thoughts that somewhere out the in the universe (was it even the same one?) at least the fleet had Kara back. She'd be able to take care of them while he was stuck here.

He couldn't help but admire the view. The Galactic had been a stuffy old scrap heap, causing claustrophobia at the very least in most of her occupants. Windows like this would have made a significant impact on crew and civilian attitudes. Maybe if he ever had a chance, he would work on functional ship designs, based on his intimate experience spending years aboard intergalactic space crafts.

For now, he just wanted to feel nothing. To imagine he was out there, part of the beautiful swirls of color and clouds of gas.]

[makeherdance]

[ This ship isn't anything like the Normandy, but Joker's always felt more at home in space than planet-side. This is no exception, even though it's taking him a while to adjust. It doesn't help that everything is unfamiliar, and while he's seen some pretty weird shit... well, there's no real comparison to this, is there?

Still, he's been stealing to the aft as often as time allowed, looking for comfort or maybe just something familiar in the span of stars outside the barrier. Sometimes it works. Other times it just makes him feel more lost. But either way, it's usually a place he can find some peace and quiet for a little while, some uninterrupted privacy.

Except for right now, apparently, since he's already three steps in before he realizes he's interrupting someone else's moment of privacy. He stops abruptly, looking a little sheepish, and just barely resists the urge to come to attention. ]

Uh. Sorry. I didn't realize anyone else was out here.

Jeff "Joker" Moreau | Mass Effect

[makeherdance]

a) on the aft.
[ Exploring his new deployment has been a thoroughly baffling experience. Joker knows ships. Or he thought he did. Back home, there was rarely a model they came across that he didn't have some idea what it was capable of - or what his baby needed to be capable of to outmatch it, if things came to that. And let's be real, piloting the Normandy for Shepard meant that there was always a 50/50 chance of things ending with something exploding. Or a lot of things exploding. He liked to think he was usually up to the challenge, more at home at the helm than he was anywhere else.

Nothing made that home seem so far away as standing here staring out at unfamiliar stars, feeling a ship hum beneath his boots with an unknown resonance. One he didn't know how to interpret yet. None of this was even remotely familiar - the tech, the people, even the space they were inhabiting. This was worse than flying blind. This felt more like an out of control free-fall and where he'd hoped getting a clear view of the sky might be calming, soothing, instead it just has a tight knot of anxiety and panic clawing at his insides as he braces a hand carefully against cool, thrumming metal.

Shit. So much for a calm relaxing walk among the stars. ]

b) in the mess.
[ Military rations were rarely anything to write home about, but this was...

...something else entirely, Joker decided as he was handed a tray of what was passing as breakfast today. His skeptical look only grows as he carefully makes his way to a nearby table and slides down into an empty seat. He starts talking to others seated around him without bothering with a greeting, tone heavy with wry sarcasm. ]

Is it just me or have things gotten decidedly desperate in the food department over the past few days? I'm not even sure this is food. Are they supposed to be that color?

c) the delirium.
[ He knew leaving the ship was a bad idea. It was almost always a bad idea. He'd avoided the volcanoes, because duh, but he'd thought checking out one of the abandoned domes might give him some answers that nothing on the ship had provides yet.

He'd only spent a short while out there when he'd begun to suspect it was a mistake. An edge of dread had crawled along his spine, sending goosebumps along his flesh. That tense, paranoid feeling of being watched had made him abandon what he was doing and start to head back, but the feeling had only grown instead of diminished and now he was seeing things out of the corner of his eyes, flashes of movements, flickers of forms that were never quite there when he turned to look.

He's moving as fast as he can - any faster would be a death wish, because whatever's stalking him only needs to use his own handicaps against him, if he gives them the opportunity. But it's getting harder and harder to put one staggering step in front of the other as he pushes towards the bay left open for those who'd ventured out planet-side. His lungs burn with the need for air, something he can't seem to get enough of as sweat trickles an icy path down his spine. The ship isn't exactly what he'd normally consider "safe" but right now? Anything is better than out here. ]

d) ota.
(( Find him anywhere else! Starter of your choice. ))

c!

[protohistory]

Joker!

[A thousand questions come to mind as she sets foot on ground, having decided belatedly to come planetside, explore the area and seek out any useful information or samples-- only to see Joker of all people hurtling towards the ship, running at what for him amounted to be a breakneck pace. She goes wide-eyed, quickly moving towards him with the intention to help, except--

She can't even be certain he sees her, as panicked as he is.]

Joker, what's going on--?

[He looks like he's being chased, running for his life, but she sees nothing, even as she draws closer. Anything beyond is distant, a blur, but she feels icy dread begin to take hold, clutching at her as she pushes herself to run faster in order to meet him.]

Bean | Ender's Shadow series

[justlittle]

MESS HALL
[ Everyone is being a baby about the food, in Bean's opinion. So the pannenkoeken (pancakes, whatever) are green. So the eggs taste awful. Food is food, you eat it when you get it. Bean is lucky he's small and doesn't need much food. He's not so lucky the only thing available to drink is liquor. ]

Seriously? Not even any broth or spoiled milk?


EXPLORING
[ The view of space is no novelty for Bean. He's spent the last four years of his life in space. It's old news. He's more interested in exploring the ship they're on, going down corridors seemingly at random. He's sure his activity is being monitored through the translation implant (shame he can't dig it out), so he's extra careful not to make a pattern. He can be found poking his head anywhere he doesn't belong. ]

Exploring!

[theoldmansback]

[Jadzia's not one to make judgements about wandering where one isn't supposed to be...in fact, she's doing the very same thing herself. Were this a Starfleet ship, things might be different...but she's not a ranking officer here, and that means she's going to indulge a bit in her curiosity...after all, nothing ventured, nothing gained, as the humans say, right?

As she's investigating a somewhat dark corridor, lined with doors, all leading to who-knows-where, it's by chance that she happens to stumble across someone else poking around where they don't belong...a someone a lot smaller than her. And a lot younger too.]

Hey there...you looking something?

[She spares him the 'lost' question, because she's pretty sure he's not lost. There's a somewhat amused smile on her face.]

miles vorkosigan | the vorkosigan saga

[forwardmomentum]

a. mess hall

[ signing a contract to work aboard a ship? miles is usually the one they're signing a contract to, and it's usually a mercenary contract, not this...domestic little operation they've got going here. god, they've really got it backwards. then again, maybe this is a safe little break, until they get home -- if in fact they do get home. certainly less dangerous than running with the dendarii. he hopes, anyway.

well, disgruntled and thrown by this turn events as he may be, a man still needs to eat. miles files his way into the mess line, conscious of the elbows and shoulders of everyone else around him. at only 4'9", he's in serious danger of simply being overlooked, and his head, too big for a man of his height, is a convenient target. look, he just wants to get a meal without being stampeded. he's been there, done that, and no thank you to a repeat experience.

he wrinkles his nose slightly at the food selection -- well, maybe it'll be better than rat bars -- and sniffs curiously at the stuff they're calling water around here as he shuffles toward a table. he's thirsty, but maybe not that thirsty. ]

b. aft

[ the reduced gravity in the aft of the ship is both strangely relaxing and disconcerting at once. he's done null-G, but the partial weightlessness here makes him feel somehow even more vulnerable than usual, although in truth his fragile body is at far more risk for harm in increased gravity.

still, it's nice to have a view. miles feels a little more at ease, staring out at the twinkling blackness of space...he could do without that strange, nagging voice in his head, just on the edge of hearing. is that post-manic exhaustion or just a side effect of being here? hard to tell. miles' hands twitch at his sides with the effort of ignoring it, and he stares resolutely out the viewport instead. ]

a.

[whatdidisay]

( There's only one person in the entire universe who looks like that, Ivan decides. Once Miles sits, Ivan slides casually in next to him, making the mistake of stuffing his mouth full of food before greeting his cousin. So instead of a smooth but casual hello, Ivan chokes on the taste - looking offended as hell that something could be so awful. Betrayal of the highest order, surely. )

Rat bars! ( He exclaims once he can speak again. ) I think I'd take them over this, and that's a fact I don't want to deal with.

( Hello to you too, Miles. )

ivan vorpatril | the vorkosigan saga

[whatdidisay]

a. the moria, mess hall

( Given the usual options for basic military food where Ivan comes from, he'll pick this over rat-bars. This, at least, manages to look like food rather than old boot leather. A few bites of the pancakes makes him frown, otherwise handsome face distorting as he chews. Dear god, how could he have been so wrong? He sets his tray aside - one of the benefits of office work meant at least a higher chance of decent food, and Ivan isn't so sure he likes this strange switch to a ship posting. But he'd signed the contract anyway. Paper becoming binding - even after being aware of such things doesn't mean he's used to the sudden shift from Barrayaran oaths. Those he understood, even though he undertook them even less.

Appetite gone until he can't ignore his hunger, Ivan turns to the drink. Water, they said. They said that about the pancakes too, and look at where that got them. And the eggs. Oh god he's going to die.

The second sip of the drink drastically alters his mood, however, and he leans back - stretching his legs underneath the table. He knows alcohol when he drinks it, and the fact it exists on this ship at all is a godsend. )

Maybe this place isn't completely hopeless after all.

a. hyacintho, dormant volcanoes

( If he wanted to survey other planets he would have ran off to Beta Colony to join their Survey forces like Tante Cordelia. Oh, did he happen to mention the fact that jumping through wormholes to unexplored space could end up with a high mortality rate? Not pure speculation, mind you, but fact. He admired his aunt for it, he did. When he wasn't bowled over by her sheer force of will. The entire family had it in spades. At least he knows where Miles got it from.

Trudging around on the surface, Ivan approaches it in a very militaristic way - steps clearly of someone who's had training in maneuvering rough terrain. He steers clear of the vents, but even then it's hard to miss the fact that something clearly isn't adding up. He's not suicidal though, and doesn't indulge his curiosity. Not with the vents, though, but the domelike structures. It reminds him of some of the older structures on Barrayar - the stucco buildings first built after the wormhole closed.

Well, those should be perfectly safe, shouldn't they? )

[volitive]

[ Unlike Ivan, Eily never disregards her curiosity. It's what drives her, and she'd noticed him almost immediately, how he navigated the terrain with little difficulty in comparison to her own smaller, less steady steps. She can't help herself, taking the initiative to follow, and by the time she catches up with him, she's a bit out of breath. The ground isn't exactly steady, so she stumbles. Still, those little houses - they were houses, weren't they? - were close enough, and she's also close enough to give him a smile. ]

Do you think we should go inside? [ That, however, is a bit redundant considering the fact she's already pulling at his sleeve before drawing away to approach one of those doors and slip inside. That something (or someone) might be there hadn't actually occurred to her. ]

Howard Stark | MCU

[innovention]

aft;

[ The closest Howard had ever been to the stars was night flying: just him, the blackness above him, and the steady roar of the twin prop under his hands. It'd been soothing, in its own way, but anything further than that wasn't his wheelhouse. He wasn't an astronomer, he was an engineer. He built bombs and bullets and planes, and with the war over, he'd only just begun to scratch the surface of rocketry.

(And even then, rocketry paled in comparison to what he'd pulled from the ocean two months ago. The cube - the tesseract - now that was going to change the future. )

It's all different now. Here, on this ship-- it's like he's been thrown into an Astounding Science Fiction story. Everything is new - maybe not as bright and glittering as the future promised, but hell, the present hadn't been either. The fact that he could stand here, in space, is nothing short of a triumph. ]

Looks like I've got some catching up to do.

[ He rocks back on his heels a bit, hands in his pockets, and the look on his face isn't resignation. It isn't fear. It's satisfaction.

He's always loved a challenge. ]


mess hall;

[ He'll give the mess crew credit: this is not the worst breakfast Howard's ever had. Sure, he usually makes a point to go for quality, but things happen - like catastrophic economic depression followed shortly by a world war. He's eaten some truly awful rations and drunk the worst excuse for coffee known to mankind, so this? This shouldn't be too much of a trial.

It doesn't stop him from surveying the 'water' with a distinct air of suspicion. After the pancakes(?), though, he needs something to wash away the overpowering taste of metal. ]

Wish me luck.

[ He toasts the nearest crew member sardonically and takes a long swig-- and almost immediately chokes, drawing back in surprise. That is not water. ]

They can manage booze but they can't manage eggs?

mess hall

[definingfuture]

[Tony lasted about fourteen seconds with his plate of questionables before deciding that some risks just weren't worth taking. Give him credit, at least he poked at them. That counts as interaction. Instead of eating, he's been watching everyone else fuss with their plates and decide what to do with them.

It's kind of hard to miss the resemblance while he's eyeing people in the mess hall. He tells himself it's just a coincidence. Tony is seated at a nearby table, watching the man almost choke on his cup's contents.]

Let's be fair, though, can you manage eggs? I can't.

[He's not laughing at the way the other man reacted to the drink, but he's amused nonetheless. Maybe wryly.]

eily | original | midnight syndicate CRAU

[volitive]

medbay;
[ She lingers just outside the door for several minutes, unsure what to do with herself. Everything is completely different from Eros and the sister-witches' house, the jobs that they're assigned to do. Eily certainly doesn't care about that. It gives her order, fills that void which always sits in the back of her mind when she considers whether or not she should do something, and since arriving here, she's been working nonstop. It's easier than thinking about all the people she's left behind, doesn't make her as sad to consider it when she has to focus on something else. Her marks probably stand out the most when she finally steps inside the medbay to look at the things she might have missed the first time she'd been there. Arriving had been a rush, and of course, she's curious. She just can't help it.

Yet, she doesn't investigate much of the place, eyeing the doors that are labeled and opting to sit on one of the vacant beds instead. Perhaps she could have done this in her room, but it's easier to rest where it's quiet. Sharing is odd after all those months of having a space to herself. Eily lays there for a while, looking at the ceiling and wondering about everything she hadn't given herself time to think about, and by the end of it, she covers her eyes with both hands to hide the fact she's crying.

Of all the places to miss, she couldn't have imagined it being that. What was going to happen now? ]

hyacintho - exploring;
[ She's off the ship, dressed in her thermals and uniform, and really, the only difference in comparison to most of the others trailing off the Moira with her is the fact her hair is loose. The bright blond stands out against the backdrop of this planet, and she barely hesitates before letting her curiosity guide her. Eily finds herself in one of the small places that looks like someone had lived there before she realizes it, having crossed those shallow streams and broken off from most of the group. Peeking inside, there's an eeriness about being alone like this, and she doesn't know if poking around is what she should actually be doing.

Still, she continues to look and finds a few things on a shelf that look like a bowls. The design is odd, something she's never seen, and she picks it up just as someone else enters the little house. It slips from her fingers, shattering at her feet, and she gasps. It's someone from the ship at least, but her heart's hammering in her chest. ]

I'm sorry. You scared me.

medbay;

[crowedthedead]

[Soeki is lying if he says he's not incredibly freaked out just by being here. In space. Like an astronaut. Alien stuff? Completely out of his wheelhouse, completely incompatible with magic and especially necromancy. So he does what he usually does when he's freaked out and lonely, he wanders and he checks things out and tries to take his mind off stuff, because it's either that, or lay in his bunk and miss his dad and his jerk sister.

The medbay catches his attention. His dad is a doctor, and the very nature of the kinds of things his family is infamous for means that knowing how to patch yourself up is a useful and necessary skill. (He still fondly remembers family suture class, with him and Eira practicing on thawed frozen turkeys that Dad had "made wounds" in. Less fun was eating said turkeys later and picking stray suture threads out of their teeth.) So this is where he finds himself, cautious like he thinks someone's going to kick him out any minute now, trying to surreptitiously take a peek at some of the equipment and supplies.

He startles and drops a metal tray when he hears a quiet sound from behind, and whirls around to find a girl. Is she crying?]

Hey. You uh, you okay there? If I'm interrupting I can go but honestly the better place to cry is probably the showers, I mean that's where I've been doing my crying lately.

Adrian Clark - 'Force' | X-Men (oc) | OTA

[forcefulgift]

moira - the aft

[Ever since he'd stepped foot on the ship he liked the aft the best. He'd watched other people walk along its gangways on unsteady feet, waiting for the gravity to tip them one way or the other. Ade though surrendered himself to the pull of gravity, enhancing the space around him so that he could float along the paths.

He stood there, staring out into space. It was well and truly beautiful which was always the first thought that hit him. The second was that it was so vast, part of him always wanted to leave the ship and float among the stars. For a boy that had spent most of his life in a cell the infinite expanse that was space was always going to seem tempting, so when he hears that voice pulling him closer he could hardly deny himself.

He headed towards the source of that voice, head cocked as he floated along the gangway, pulling himself there via the railings which is when there's a sudden rush and he's sucked onto the outside of the ship with a gasp. It doesn't take him long to throw up his own gravity bubble before the vacuum that'd been created tore him in half. He spins a couple of times before righting himself and turning back towards the ship, eyes wide.

This was one hell of a problem.]

hyacintho - the volcanoes

[Exploration was probably his favourite thing about life on the Moira. Obviously it was easy enough to forget you were spending most of your days cooped up aboard a ship when you could spend hours upon hours gazing outside into endless life. When the ship actually docked and they got time to get out there and explore, however, Ade felt even more free. They were walking in the kinds of places other people could only dream of. The best part of it for Ade though was how far away he was from the Facility, from earth.

It meant he was a lot more easier going about things, knowing that his past was behind him both in terms of time and distance. Which is why when they're exploring he can be more often than not be seen with a small smile on his features. Now though he was standing at the base of a volcano in his uniform, staring up at the veritable mountain in front of him. He knew he wanted to go to the top of it, however dangerous that might be, but he didn't necessarily want to go alone. Maybe someone else would want to see it too?

He turns to the person on his left, extending an arm as he hovers slightly above the ground.]

So how 'bout it, mate? You wanna go to the top?

Amrita Samarth | OC

[cold_blooded]

Mess Hall- on the Moria

[The food is awful, that's the main thing she notices. Right now she'd take even a badly-cooked bacon sandwich, or a bowl of soggy cornflakes, or anything at all that isn't... eggs that taste like mold and what are possibly the universe's least appetising potato cakes. It's hard to tell what they're even made of, in fact. She pulls a face, but food is food, might as well eat it while she can.

The water tastes pretty bad too, but less bad, and she keeps drinking it between bites of food. She doesn't even realise she's feeling kind of light headed until she stands up, stumbling a little over her chair. Sorry, person walking by!]

Oopsss!

[She laughs, and fixes them with a weirdly unblinking stare.]

I think something might be a little wrong here, but I'm not sure what. Does something seem wrong to you?

On Hyacintho- exploring/first tremors

[The planet is actually quite pretty. Creepy as hell, when they find the abandoned domes, but all the blue is kind of soothing. She makes a few comments to that effect throughout the exploring, although she lets them die off the first time she puts her hand on a rock and pulls it away, hissing a little at the way it's cut her.

She feels the first faint tremors through her less-human senses long before she sees them, or the clouds of ash rising up. Not so dormant after all, looks like.]

Oh, hell. Guys? I think it's time to get our asses back to the ship, like now.

mess hall;

[thegoodlighter]

[If he were to express total honesty - which he wouldn't, preferring to keep most thoughts to himself - he would agree with the opinion about the food. On the other hand, getting a full meal, scheduled regularly, with uninterrupted time to eat it and without having to answer a press query later about how the military seems to have more stable food resources than many civilian ships do - that's enough to make him shut up and be grateful.

Three hots and a cot, right?

He utters a short exhale while the abruptly standing woman knocks into him, instinctively shooting out an arm to try and catch anything - or anyone - who might fall. He quickly releases her arm.

He was about to ask if she was alright, before she quickly asked a question. One that sort of baffled him for a moment, full situation considered.]

Uh...you mean besides being trapped here and essentially forced to work on a ship in which I have no idea how where exactly we are or how we got here?

[Kind of answers itself.]

Unless you meant the food. It could be worse. Are you alright?

Khenan | terreni / original | ota

[umbrasol]

Moira - Mess Hall

[Khenan liked the Mess Hall, he liked to spend the entirety of his meal times there even when he didn't feel like eating. Why? Because of the fact that he liked to sit there surrounded by people enjoying themselves, or at least people who didn't seem to be persistently on edge, or planning for a better tomorrow. No-one here needed to know he was mismarked, no-one here hunted him like he was some scorn on their society. It was peaceful, being surrounded by other people without trying to figure out plans, figure out some way for the rebellion to survive another day.

He felt peaceful and happy, one of the first true smiles he'd had in years present across his features as he sipped on the brown water, it was the kind of smile he usually reserved for Jakov. Right now though, it was plain there for all to see and Khenan was well and truly in the light rather than hiding in shadows, either metaphorical or physical.

After a few more sips he finds himself wondering why he was so smiley, and also just why the hell he felt the need to prop his head up with a hand as if he couldn't hold it upright himself and uses his propped up position to tilt his head towards you.]

Does this drink seem funny to you?

[theoldmansback]

[Jadzia had only just sat down herself, and hadn't given her drink so much as a taste yet. She'd been more interested in the people in the room; a wide variety for sure, and yet there was so much she didn't recognise. She smiles wryly at the question though, raising her own glass to give it a scrutinizing look.]

Not really...it hasn't even tried to tell a joke yet.

[She glances at him, evidently pleased with herself and wondering if her table mate has a sense of humor.]

Loki | Marvel 616 (Agent of Asgard) / CRAU

[realitywarped]

On the Moria

[He's Loki, and there are few ways to keep Loki in or out of somewhere he does or does not want to be.

...Not that this ship doesn't seem to have found some. It's becoming a running theme, in his recent life, but that doesn't mean he doesn't resent it with a dull, sullen hate.

Loki can be found almost anywhere on the ship, completely innocently just walking through, not at all snooping, nope. People who've met him back home might note one or two small differences; key among them is a scar running down his face. He's most likely to be found in one of the following places; he'll mostly greet people with a cynical smile and a flippant wave.]

The Galley

I'm almost sure this comes under travesty. Or perhaps heresy, I'm undecided. What do you think?

[He's got his arms folded, looking very disapprovingly at the state of the place. Someone clearly needs to do something. And more than likely, it's probably going to be Loki... unless he can talk someone else into it.]

You know, with a little cleaning, there might be a chance for better meals than what they're currently providing.

Main Hall

[...Loki actually quite likes it in here. It's quiet. More to the point, so are his thoughts, for the first time in a very, very long time. He can be found sat in one of the corners, looking up, apparently perfectly comfortable.]

Ah- hello. Something you're looking for? There's not much here at the moment.

Mess Hall

[Loki ignores the food in favour of the bar, mostly. It takes him some real dedication to get drunk, but he's willing to give it a very good go, to the point that other than the smile and the wave, he doesn't even really look up from his drink.]

Galley

[definingfuture]

[Of the top ten people Tony didn't expect to find on the Moira, Loki ranks at least on the lower half of the list. There are a few faces he expects to see even less. Mostly inconsequential ones that wouldn't bother with space to begin with. But turning the corner and seeing Loki examining the galley like he intends to use it? That didn't even make Tony's "least likely" thoughts.]

You're kidding.

[This is a mistake, right? It has to be a mistake.]

Susumu Kodai | Space Battleship Yamato 2199

[wavemotiongunner]

A. Aft

[When he finds some downtime from his assigned duties Kodai often can be found out on the observation deck. It's offers a wider vista than the last ship he was stationed on. He wishes currently the view wasn't dominated by the planet that was their next destination. Kodai had been hoping the next planet he saw like this would be home. It's quite on the deck with no one around while lost in thought he hears a voice calling to him. He startles knocked out of the daze he'd been in.

It felt like there should be a story about a siren luring people out of bounds on this deck. It was a strange place to be when you where alone. Which was odd, with nothing but the space overhead it should be the perfect place to be alone with your thoughts.

Reaching into his pocket he pulls out the one thing he does have from home an old harmonica. The song always sounds a bit mournful on harmonica but it's chased away the phantoms on the last ship.]

B. the delirium
[He should have expected something to happen. The two worlds he'd visited with signs of past civilization had also been highly dangerous. He'd try to call the Moira but he doesn't want to risk falling and getting impaled on various bits of volcanic rock.

He can't see what's happened to the rest of the scout party. Worse his he's used to looking for uniforms in white or primary colors. The Moira's work uniforms are predominantly black which doesn't help with picking out people agents the landscape in the dim light. Well the Black Tigers had black uniforms. No that wasn't right name for the Yamato's air wing. Something about this planet is making him light headed. He swears he hears the buzz of insect wings.

He ends up stumbling behind an crop of volcanic rock and tries to catch his breath. He doesn't want to know who or what he hears wailing out there. Back to the ship and getting reinforcements was seeming less and less likely.]

A

[meyneth]

[It's still hard for Fiora to grasp where she is, and what this place is. Back at home the stars were just a beautiful, mysterious void, not much different from the endless ocean that stretched out forever, parallel to the sky. To be told that those little points of like were more, far more, was difficult to grasp... and even now, after she's seen the proof herself, it is still overwhelming to stand on the observation deck and look out at the cluttered field of stars.

Or is her uneasiness just that strange echo? Fiora frowns and is about to listen closer when the silence is cut by the sound of Kodai's harmonica. She blinks and glances towards the noise. Without thinking, she listens to the entire song.

...and realizes she's been staring.]

Oh - um, sorry about that...

peter pan | once upon a time | ota

[areyoulost]

the moira; aft

[it doesn't take peter very long to notice that the stars are different out here. it's almost quaint, all things considered. he's been spending a lot of private time at the aft, considering his situation and the next steps to take out here, so far from anything he was familiar with.

there was no heart of the strongest believer out here. but then, there was no steadily diminishing hourglass either.

he's been ignoring the faintly beseeching voice out beyond the barrier for some time now, he knows that sort of trick all to well from the other side of things and there isn't anyone he's interested in speaking to that would be out there anyway. that doesn't keep him from looking out onto the stars though, and he nearly misses the moment when his feet leave the surface of the ship unbidden.

nearly.]

Naughty. [peter scolds whatever invisible force just tried to fling him out into the reaches of space, after he puts a stop to the whole thing with his own flight. he hovers just in front of the nearly translucent barrier and considers wagging a finger before dismissing the gesture as wasteful when he can't enjoy the reaction for it.]

This isn't how you make friends, you know. [peter pan had a trademark on that maneuver, after all. he could sue for copyright infringement.]

[misandrism]

[ She thinks she hears her, sometimes. Usagi, that is, calling her name and asking her to come home. She hadn't realized at first that it wasn't her, but after the first couple of times Rei came to realize the truth.

It doesn't stop her from going out into the aft sometimes. The familiarity is comforting, even if it's a cold one.

Rei's seated nearby, and makes to reach for the boy when he starts to float off, stopping herself when she realizes he's not going anywhere. ] Are you alright?

Commander Shepard - Mass Effect

[novacharge]

[ alignment/major plot choices can be found here, post priority: rannoch. ]

a. on the aft.

[ each ship is different — Shepard knows that just as much as she knows her own like the back of her hand. but the Moria isn’t like the Normandy, and the differences are hard to get used to. there’s no familiar hum of her ship’s engines beneath her feet, the default temperature setting is a bit colder than Shepard herself prefers, even the stars aren’t the same when she finally managed to go onto the aft and view them. but they're the closest thing to home here, so she finds herself there on occasion, just trying to make sense of it all.

it's not the only reason, however. for whenever she's there - alone - there's the voice calling to her. it gives her pause; while she's not a suspicious person by nature, her line of work tends to make sure that if you're not at least a little wary, you're probably dead. it's hard to describe even to herself, but there has to be a reason for it. it's that or entertain the fact she's hearing things and she's not that far gone yet. Shepard only wishes the more academic members of her crew were here with her, just to see what they could dig up. ]

b. the delirium.

[ it's as if she’s ended up in a dream. a familiar nightmare, only this time there are no laughing children, no ash covered forest - just the planet they'd arrived on and the faces of whoever had lived here before. not faces, Shepard thinks, they're here - pulling her down so she can't move, can't run. blaming her, she couldn't save them, she didn't even know they had to be saved, how could she when she's trying to save her own universe — I'm sorry.

something makes a grab at her, and Shepard nearly loses her footing as she tries to run — to where? the ship. not the Normandy, nothing can compare to her ship. the one she arrived on, the Moria. she struggles to regain her momentum, can see her goal ahead of her.

was it always that close? Shepard doesn't know, can't remember. losing her mind isn't a luxury she can afford and the thought frightens her almost as much as the hands and the breath on the back of her neck. she's faced down a Reaper; this should be nothing. is nothing. except for the terror edging in, pulling at the corners of her mind already worn down by sleepless nights accompanied only by ghosts.

she practically throws herself at the entrance once it's in reach, putting on a burst of speed to propel herself through. safe. for whatever passes for safe here. ]

c. wildcard! throw up something of your own.

a

[forwardmomentum]

[ ah, so miles isn't alone in the aft after all. he glances sidelong at the tall, redheaded woman standing not too far from him, looking around the room like it's holding some secret from her. hm, well. miles can appreciate that feeling, because it's much what he's feeling right now. he can't shake that strange itch in the back of his mind. it's starting to get on his nerves.

miles can tell at a glance that she's military; she has the bearing of an officer by his estimate, and he's not sure of her rank but she's commissioned, alright. definitely not someone miles would want to mess around with, certainly. after a few indecisive moments, miles takes a few floaty steps toward her, fully aware of how much more awkward the reduced gravity makes his already odd gait. he stands at something of an informal parade rest at her side, glancing up at her. hopefully he isn't interrupting any important meditation here. ]

Ship duty? [ it's an invitation to conversation by way of genuine inquiry. he knows the look of someone who's served aboard spacecraft for a long time, who's come to feel at home in it. ]