driftfleet | loud and clear

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loud and clear

[it's been a while since you've heard this jazzy little jingle, hasn't it? but with the planet now far behind them, the music comes in crisp and clear. the voice of your mysterious host, Diamond, is as chipper as always.]

Good morning, passengers! [despite it distinctly not being morning.] We have certainly had an interesting couple of weeks here, haven't we? Remember, change is good. Predictability doesn't make for a very interesting program, now does it?

[she giggles sweetly, along with some mild canned laughter.]

We've had quite a few passengers leave us since our last little chat. An unusual number of them have had names that start with the letter K! If your name starts with a letter K... Perhaps it's a good time to consider a name change. I adore names that start with D, myself!

[some heartier canned laughter plays in the background.]

Congratulations to the new commanding officer, Captain Young, and a belated welcome to both Captain Maladicta and Captain... Ah... Zeta, I believe! It is wonderful to see new faces on the Marsiva again--we hope you have a stunning time here on our lovely little program.

Lastly, if you happen to pick up any strange readings over the next few days, don't worry. There's nothing to be alarmed about. Radiation bounces around these asteroids all the time; it really speaks for the marvels of Atroma's engineering that you can see anything at all!

Have a lovely week, passengers, and remember... The worlds are watching!

[the broadcast channel remains open, for anyone to respond...]

ooc post: → here

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[He'd told himself he wouldn't respond when Diamond eventually contacted them. That he would just let it go, that it wouldn't make any difference if he responded or not. It's not like she'd reply. But that little jab was enough to flare his anger back again.]

You think this is funny? It's not a joke, this is our lives you're messing with! You can't just keep stirring everything up and then sitting back and saying "oh isn't this a fun little voyage?". Because it isn't fun.

Where is she? Did you send her home? If you're gonna take people away you can at least say to where. Of course, you won't though, right? Because you're so much better than us.

[He gives a long, steady exhale. He hasn't felt this angry since Azula taunting him. He wanted, more than anything, to destroy her, then. It's not a comforting thing, having that feeling come surging back. ]

One day I'm gonna figure out how to get us free from this, and then you better run far and fast.

[Beverly is only half-listening to Diamond's announcement while reading in her room, but when she hears Sokka's voice, she looks up from her book, suddenly very interested.

When his voice cuts off, she sighs. She can't say she's exactly surprised by his reaction, despite having successfully calmed him down the other day. This isn't something that's going to be solved in just one conversation. Maybe it might be good for him to be venting his anger this way. Stil...

After a moment's hesitation, she picks up her communicator and calls him.]

Sokka?

[Honestly, what Diamond had said had pissed Allen off too. A lot of what she says pisses him off. But, he bite back any reaction. He kept his face as neutral as possible. He knew damn well she was trying to get a reaction out of them, that she probably profited from it. He knew they had no power to do anything at the moment, but wasn't going to give her the satisfaction of giving her the reaction she wants. To give her a reason to keep doing this.]

[So of course, if his expression from where he's sitting says anything, he's less than pleased when Sokka takes the bait.]

Sokka. Stop it.

[He knew, he knew his crewmates would talk to him about this. He knew it was a stupid move, but he's so angry. That they can taunt them like this, and get away with it. He stares at his communicator for a moment, before heaving out a sigh, sitting back in his chair. ]

Sokka isn't in right now, leave a message after the beep.

Beep.

[Sokka is fully aware this was a stupid move. Letting Azula bait him was an equally stupid one, and it cost a lot of people their freedom. He told himself never again after that, but it turns out, it's harder to ignore than he hoped. Suki is, and always will be, his blind spot.

He hates that he rose to their bait, but all it does is add to the ache in his heart thanks to her absence. He exhales, running a hand roughly through his hair, closing his eyes. He doesn't need to look at Allen's face to know what his expression will be. ]

I know, okay? I know.

... you cannot be serious.

[He takes a long inhale in. At least Sokka seems aware it was a stupid move. No need to rub it in his face, right?]

Just...turn of the communicator off. Please.

[Sokka turns off his communicator with a single button press, dropping it back into his pocket.]

I bet they really love stuff like this.

Is that how it works? Random radiation bouncing can give off the same reading as a ship?

I'm still kind of new here, so... Can anyone else with some experience with the scanning technology verify this? It's probably a good idea to see if we can figure this out. If we're really getting bad readings, then we're going to have trouble with the asteroids eventually.

[His expression eases back into neutral- no. there's still a certain cold edge to it.]

Of course they do, they profit off it.

[Profit off exploiting other people's misery...the type of people he hated the most. He mutters to himself.] They're not much different from slavers.

[It's not a big thing, in the Four Nations, but he understands what that word means, and it makes him think of the Earth Kingdom. Of how they stole away people and brainwashed them into doing their bidding, it makes him sick to his stomach. ]

No. They're not. And they're going to keep doing this, until we find a way to stop them.

[He gives a nod. Oh yeah, he's all for finding a way to stop them]

[Still...]

You should still refrain from trying to antagonise them. We have a crew to look after.

[ she isn't at first sure how she should respond to this. really, she isn't sure at second or third, either: she knows what he's feeling. she remembers feeling the same way when he'd left her at paradisa. so she tries, her voice soft but firm. ]

Sokka. Where are you?

Yeah, I know. I wasn't thinking.

[He closes his eyes, pinching the bridge of his nose, exhaling. ]

Sorry.

[He considers not answering, but this isn't a big ship, and she'll find him eventually. She might be less lecture-y if she finds him early.]

On the Bridge.

[There's a pause, then he seems to exhale and slump his shoulders a little, easing up]

...I suppose I can't be too hard on you. I've lost my head a number of times.

[Seriously compared to how he was at 16, you're downright rational and level headed sokka]

Yeah, but you're not in charge of a crew. I should know better.

[And he hates that he let himself be tricked into an outburst. How Diamond must be laughing now.]

Sokka. [Uh oh, here comes the Mom Voice, tinged with a bit of the Starfleet Commander Voice. Even if she is sympathetic to his plight, she will not tolerate this kind of response.]

I understand that you're angry right now, but do not answer me that way.

[Oh no, it's the VOICE. Sheepishly.]

Sorry.

[An audible sigh and then:]

It's alright.

[She pauses.]

I think it's actually good for you to vent. Maybe just... not directly at our captors.

S-Sokka!

She... she's got to be back home. [He mumbles sadly.] She's got t be....

Right. Because the job of a First Mate is to sit and take naps.

[Sass out of the way, he pauses. There's a glance around the area, as if making sure they are alone]

I'm not coddling you, Sokka. You made a mistake, one that you should have known better about. And I don't know if there's going to be consequences from it. It's hard to tell with Atroma.

[he shakes his head]

But I'm not going to sit and berate you for things you already know you did wrong. You're human and, sorry, but you're a young one at that. You're going to make mistakes, no matter how much you should know. Sometimes stupid ones, sometimes even more than once. Being a leader doesn't exempt you from that.

I feel it's a much better use of our time if we accept you're human and work on mistakes as they inevitably come so they don't happen again, instead of me screaming that you're an idiot every time you screw up. Because I know from experience that tactic doesn't work, and you're probably berating yourself as it is.

Alright?

Ah...

[oh, sweet summer child...]

I'm no pilot, but I'm pretty sure she's making up the part about the asteroids.

[She can't see, but he pinches the bridge of his nose. ]

Yeah, that probably just gave them more amo.

That's what people keep telling me, I just wish I knew for sure. I hate not knowing.

[Not being able to do anything about it, being powerless to truly protect those he cares about. ]

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