let us bow our heads

[thespaceopera]

[it may be too optimistic to hope that it has something to do with respect, but Atroma has been very quiet. in the wake of the growing stillness on the Iskaulit, neither of the fleet's hosts have broken the peace with their chipper voices.

if the passengers are being watched as closely as they always claim, it is being done in silence.

whether or not the remainder of the living bugs are being kept somewhere for observation, and regardless of the fact that the discussion of what to ultimately do with the ship is still ongoing, it has been generally agreed that something respectful should be done with the dead, and that the remaining spores should be washed away.

so, this will all be done through a combined effort of vacuum and fire, and the time for this purge has been set.

feet on the ground are needed to prepare the foreign ship for purging--securing anything that could be damaged, and safely packing away delicate data-storing instruments and anything belonging to the fleet itself. anyone willing to help could surely find something to do.

and for anyone wishing to bless, reflect, honor, or pray... now is the time to do so. whether aboard the Iskaulit itself before the purge, offering a voice over the network, or simply watching from nearby shuttles and ships, this is the fleet's moment to help send off the crew of the Iskaulit with dignity.]


ooc: this is the final IC mod post for June! the purge itself will be implied for the most part, but anyone with skills in mechanics or fire-controlling may assume they were involved.

this post specifically is for any interactive threads involved in the final days before the Iskaulit is cleaned, and anything funerary, including broadcasts. even if you just want to put up a closed comment describing what private way your character is taking part in this makeshift 'ceremony,' go for it.

an OOC post summarizing and officially wrapping up the rest of June will go up as soon as we're able.

Comments

[ino]

[ She winces, though you can't really see it under the mask ]

Sorry to hear that. I guess it's coming in handy now, though.

[proudlywehailed]

... I'm used to it. I just don't wear it when I'm not on the job.

[ino]

[ "Used to it", huh ... ]

It seems like there's a lot of people in the fleet who come from a situation like that.

[proudlywehailed]

A lot of people come from pretty painful worlds, I found.

[he turns to look back at the empty room before him.]

... I can't imagine this one was all that great.

[ino]

Well, not at the end, anyways.

[ She brushes off the back of her skirt ]

Hopefully the rest of their people are doing alright.

[proudlywehailed]

If they're not here, I can't imagine they'll suffer too much from this.

[ino]

[ Unless the fungus was something that was growing on their planet, or something that had been carried back somehow ...

But she doesn't voice that thought. It's too depressing, after everything that's happened here ]

I hope so. At least we have the medicine for it now.

[proudlywehailed]

They were smart. They'll figure something out themselves, too, if we can.

[he reaches out, running fingers along the wall.]

... If we take it with us, we can give it use it wouldn't get otherwise. We can make something good out of it.

[ino]

[ ... She watches him do that, uncomfortable with what he just said ]

It's a grave, not a free ship.

[proudlywehailed]

We're already purging it. It'd be a waste to let it sit here and rot. I'd rather take it with us and use it in a way that'll create something new than leave it here and let some scavengers tear it up for parts later.

[everything in his tone suggests that he, himself, intends to make sure it's used respectfully.]

We can still set a memorial. But if we did that and left it, and it was destroyed be someone a lot more heartless than us, it'd be a waste, too.

[ino]

I'm not against taking it with us. But it should be so that it can go back to the people it belongs to ... if they want us to keep it, that's one thing, but ...

[ She wraps her arms across her chest, her eyes following a pipe up the wall to the ceiling ]

After what we did, it seems shitty to loot the place and make it ours.

[proudlywehailed]

Then we'll give it back, if we can find where it's from. Maybe what we found will lead us there, but that's not a total guarantee.

[he stares at the walls, still.]

But if we can't, we shouldn't let it be depressing.

[ino]

[ ... She's silent for a moment ]

... So, what, you planning on moving in? The walls might look a little brighter if you paint them yellow.

[ ... It's kind of a joke, but she is genuinely curious as to what he would do with this thing ]

[proudlywehailed]

[he has to smile at that, shaking his head and looking down.]

I think yellow would be a bit too bright. And anyway, I just think... it would get a lot more positive use with us. You know, good memories could be made here.

And besides that, you don't think this would be an invaluable asset to the fleet? Our ships are all pretty cramped. What if we needed to gather for something, or you wanted to meditate somewhere people wouldn't bother you? If something happened to one of our ships to make it dangerous to inhabit, we'd have somewhere for people to sleep, or a quarantine zone if an infection broke out.

[ino]

[ She just frowns. It's not a bad idea, but she's just suspicious of the ship itself ... ]

And we're supposed to trust the ship that Atroma encouraged us to take to be all of those things without making things worse?

[proudlywehailed]

They'll find ways to make things worse no matter what. I don't think the Atroma themselves did this to the ship, so... we might as well give it a shot. Pretty sure most of us have done riskier things.

[ino]

[ She's pretty sure they have, too, but -- ]

What makes you think they didn't? Did you find something?