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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 a gravitational field; however, more noticeable changes can be found in the overall morale as you prepare to descend.
☄ on your ownThere are plenty of other communal areas on the ship to explore! Pick a place, and see where it takes you. ( These scenarios can be used as in-game canon. ) H A I S T O SUnlike previously visited locations, the sweltering heat of this planet can be felt long before arrival. The surface of Haistos is not a place for those with a weak constitution. It’s in a constant state of low-level volcanic activity as its land masses are dotted with many volcanoes—all of them spewing black ash into the air. Breathing is difficult without the aid of a respirator due to the potential of breathing in ash, and the plant life is stunted, adapted to living in an environment with little sunlight. The weather is unpredictable, and ash-storms will often blow in fiercely, leaving people trapped for a hours at a time before they blow themselves out. But that same ash which chokes everything on this planet is what also provides its livelihood. Haistos’ volcanic resources are a highly sought-after commodity elsewhere in the universe, and as long as gathering the ash is profitable, people will continue to return.
Looking closely, etched into the curling paths of ignimbrite deposits that swirl along the base of the volcanoes is a language that is easily translated by the MID, often resembling Latin. Carved over time by visitors and travelers, it tells a tale of fire and stone and power. Some might even say there are mystic abilities associated with these volcanoes, though the rumors and myths behind it seem to be nothing but a warning to those who think to go looking for it. It’s also hard to tell if the words carry any true meaning since there are no natives to question, and all those who harvest the ash can only tell stories. Still, it’s apparent that people from many different times have all added to the scrolling messages.
A word of caution: you cannot build here. Stone, metal, and wood all burn, all crumble. Only what is true can survive, and fire will show its true quality.
☄ breathing sparksDespite the haphazard lay of the land, there are things to do. Or, at least, things to see. The rocky terrain often leads to some inactive volcanoes that are perfect for exploring and harvesting the ash that continues to rain down across Haistos. There are step-like structures built into the sides of the volcanic craters, narrow but sturdy. With each move down, the air gets even thicker, and your respirator takes longer and longer to filter the unbreathable atmosphere the deeper into the planet you travel. Yet, the risk of asphyxiation is worth what awaits at the bottom of the staircase. Still warm, the volcanic rocks that are sunk into the deposits are both smooth and clear as crystal. Most of these gems retain heat permanently and can be used to warm small spaces. Gathering too many together in a single place, however, creates a reaction with the limited air supply and can spark a faux volcanic eruption—yes, these rocks are capable of producing lava at an impossibly quick rate.
Is it possible to outrun the flow and reach the steps before it begins filling the bottom of the crater? The only thing worse than a sudden swimming pool of lava would be the respirator finally breaking because of the abrupt, extreme heat, wouldn’t it? ☄ under pressureDespite being unable to actually build any structures of substance on Haistos, walking around the planet itself is surprisingly easy. Due to its unusual composition, the ground itself is a noticeable mixture of dark rock and shining surfaces. More than that, each step around the bases of the volcanoes reveals something both amazing and rather fascinating: the ability to create diamonds without much pressure at all. It only takes a single step or even a hand print. Take a break and sit to rest? Diamonds. Wrestling over what pile of ash is yours to claim? Diamonds. Tripping and falling and refusing to get up so that no one sees your embarrassment? Diamonds. Suddenly, moving around on Haistos has taken a whole new turn. Especially when it’s completely possible to keep what you make with your very own body weight. ☄ if you break it, you buy itOut of the eater came something to eat, and out of the strong came something sweet.
At the base of one of the smaller volcanoes, this message is carved into the rock in large, curling script. The volcano is currently inactive and is dotted with openings large enough for visitors to enter through. Stranger than the message is the faint tinkling sound - almost like glass clinking against glass - that grows louder the deeper into the volcano you go. The intricate honeycomb of paths all lead in the same direction—towards the sound and a mellow blue glow.
At the center, the sound is loud and the light illuminates a large space. Thousands of crystalline creatures swirl and bump against one another, the source of both the sound and light. They appear to be a cross between a lightning bug and bee, glowing and noisy and harmless. The beautiful sight may, or may not, be dampened by the fact that the cavern is littered with glass honeycombs that have been built up within the bodies of fallen travelers. It’s clear that the organisms didn’t harm them, perhaps the result of too much ash or broken respirators, and the honey they’ve produced is light blue and clear. It’s sweet if eaten, bright and citrus-y, and carries an earthy undertone, making the skin glow temporarily after ingesting.
If careful, visitors may harvest the honey, but do not disturb the creatures. Their wings are sharp, and when agitated, they swarm out of fear.
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thisavrou_ooc2016-06-07 03:39 pm
Andy McGee | Firestarter (novel)
[The ship, at least, was something moderately familiar. Closed spaces, kidnappings with contracts that felt less like the chance of a lifetime and more like the losing side of a legal agreement. Wasn't quite like the Shop, but it was damn close. And he was expected to find himself a job, like he had any kind of marketable skills that weren't trying to get high school kids to appreciate books, being a class A bullshit artist, or screwing around with the inside of people's heads hard enough to make his own brain pop. So what else could he do? He wandered around the ship, trying to keep to himself because he'd spent entirely too long trying not to be noticed that it was pretty much ingrained behavior by now. Yes, he was technically supposed to be here, was practically invited, but there's a world of difference between accepting a position because you feel like your back's to the wall and actually feeling comfortable in the place.
So he steals food he's perfectly entitled to. Keeps to the edges of the room, where he can keep an eye on everyone else and has an exit plan mapped out perfectly in his head. He lurks in the gardens and the library, because they're at least familiar and some level of comforting among the stark, institutional white of the hallways that pretty much gave him the creeps from the moment he stepped onto the ship. He leaves his MID in the room, because he honestly doesn't trust it, and can occasionally be found at the bow, literally staring into space.
It's really cool, he'll admit that. He's in space, it's pretty awe-inspiring. He just needs a little time to settle in properly so he stops perpetually getting distracted looking over his shoulder all the time.]
Breathing Sparks
[Andy doesn't like the respirator. It feels confining, like it's strangling him even as it's helping him breathe, but if he wants the extra space and to not climb the walls, it's what he needs to drag along. He'll deal with it.
The view is worth it, even if it pulls at the perpetual alarm bells in his head. It's definitely something else, like a dozen active volcanoes from earth all jumbled together into a whole world, and his curiosity gets the better of him, that same 'well what's the worst that could happen?' attitude that got him into trouble in the first place. So he scrambles down the makeshift steps, even as the air clings tighter, more oppressive, out of the need to stretch his legs and explore a little, here where he's actually out of Their reach finally, maybe.
He manages to pry one of the heated gems loose, and marvels over its heat until he fumbles it when he turns it in his hands, dropping it to the ground, amongst others of its ilk, and then he's running from lava because of course nothing ever goes right.]
Under Pressure
[There are diamonds.
There are diamonds literally everywhere he walks, and Andy is at once surprised and impressed. His particular level of nerd-dom has always extended more towards the literary rather than the scientific, but that doesn't make the development any less impressive, particularly when any kind of material wealth was fleeting for the longest time. So he scoops up the glinting shards when he finds them, between marveling at the rest of it, stuffs them in his pockets like a goblin out of a fairy tale, because maybe they're not much use on the ship but maybe they will be back home.]
Aboard the SS Heartbreak..I mean Moira
well, none of it, actually. She's taking a break and is nose deep in Pride and Prejudice and Zombies which, based on the look on her face? She's pretty damn unsure of. But at least she's giving it a try. She'll read anything. She's always been a fan of books, non-fiction and otherwise.
It's her that spots Andy first, however, ruining any focus she had on anything and instead trying to not panic or project that panic. They always knew when the other was upset, and this would be the worst time for him to notice because she's just not ready to deal with this bullshi-- ]
Oh, my God.
[ ...or, she could say that a little too loudly and a little too anxiously and get his attention that way. That's cool, too. Way2Go, McGee.
/gross sobbing
He's got her name in his mind before he sees her, a shocked question he's afraid to say out loud, because the voice is familiar in a way he can't put words to, resonates deeper than the simple syllables. And then he sees her, but she's not his little girl anymore, not the slip of a thing he could scoop up like nothing, all elbows and skinned knees, and his stomach drops out before he can answer.
His own response is too soft, cracked and hushed like he might break whatever spell this is, and he has to hold on to the nearest shelf for a moment when the rest of it hits him, momentarily afraid his legs won't hold him.]
...Charlie?
damn ninjas cutting onions while it rains on my face.
[ Charlie is no longer sixteen. She is nine. She's small and her dad looks just like she remembers from happier days when Mom wasn't dead and the Shop didn't ruin everything yet.
And then she's eleven and he's not supposed to be alive and all she can hear is the sound of her own heart in her ears, beating so fast she's sure she's going to burst.
Until she sees him wobble and then, ever the good daughter, she runs over to help him stay standing. Look at that, she's still short and comes up to probably his nose. How does she know this? Because she went from trying to keep him standing to trying to keep him there, arms thrown around him in a big hug, eyes wide and probably wet with tears she refuses to let out. This isn't real. This can't be. She doesn't deserve something this good, but she's going to make it last as long as she can. ]
I'M NOT CRYING YOU'RE CRYING
Look at you, you're all grown up. I didn't know you were going to be here, how...?
[He doesn't even know what question he's trying to ask; how is she here, how long has she been there...doesn't matter, it's an appropriate question for a solid 99% of everything since he got here, he's pretty sure.]
EVEVRYTHING IS AWESOME HERE NO SADNESS PPPSH
But ignoring it is impossible. She hears every shout, she hears the crackle of fire, she hears Rainbird. She hears all of it. Looking up at her dad and listening to what he says, she smiles some, laughing through her nose before stepping back and looking down at herself. ]
Yeah. Check out what I managed to do.
[ She thought she'd be dead by now. ]
How'd you get here? What's the last thing you remember?