video;

[snakeharmer]

Who: Indiana Jones and cool people
Broadcast: Fleet-wide, from inside the Marsiva.
Action: Any other newcomers on the big'un
When: Now.

[Thanks to his prior conversation with one Peggy Carter, Indiana has at least a slight grasp on the situation. Now that he does, there's nothing for it but to make contact with his fellow 'passengers'. After all, there might be some slim chance he'll encounter someone he knows. Failing that, answers will do just as well.]

I've seen a lot of spooky and strange things in my time, but a fleet drifting through space is a first. [Though he's reminded of that 'job' in Roswell only a few months ago. Hardly a pleasant memory.] My name is Indiana Jones, I'm a Professor of Archaeology -- not that there's much call for it up here. I'll take any volunteers eager to fill me in on the situation.

[He stares at the communicator a bit longer, scratches at his stubbled chin, and decides to ask the inevitable.]

Just tell me it's not the Soviets. [Because dammit, he's retired from the spy business.]

Comments

[touchofrogue]

[Shame about that Stargate exposure. Should get on that.]

Human types. They all had the same colorin', for one thing - pale hair, kinda coppery skin. Bit shorter than most, as a whole...

[Though that might have more to do with the climate than the Oompa Loompa nature of the description.]

[snakeharmer]

Cat ears?

[He could make a very pointed argument about how the likelihood of another species evolving to becoming human like on a completely different planet under completely different conditions would be absurdly impossible.

But then he had two conversations with cat people.]

[touchofrogue]

What? No!

[Did she say cat ears?]

You'd think I'd mention a thing like that along with 'coppery skintone' and short.

[The glory glow is fading... and Rogue is glad to see it go. Much easier to deal with a person than a movie character.]

[snakeharmer]

Only a guess. Were you able to speak with them?

[He's assuming a language gap here.]

[touchofrogue]

[Ugh, she hates talking about this.]

Augment.

[Y U P.]

Did anyone tell ya about that?

[Please say yes, please say yes...]

[snakeharmer]

I heard. [He pinches the bridge of his nose.]

Didn't realize it worked that well.

[To think he spent his entire life learning over two dozen languages and now anyone with one of these augments can just go speaking to complete aliens as though they were strolling down to the pub to meet their mates.]

[touchofrogue]

Surprise. [Dry tone is dry.

And then wryly amused:] Ya should hear what it does for people with the lab augment. Scary stuff, knowin' they could operate on ya an' succeed without a day's trainin'.

[snakeharmer]

I take it there's not much call for academia.

[Why learn anything when it could simply be installed?]

[touchofrogue]

I reckon that depends on who you're talkin' to.

[Someone who doesn't have much call for academia period, perhaps? Or someone who sees the value in learning something by hand so that you don't have to depend on a device which has been put in your brain without your consent.]

[snakeharmer]

Right now, it's you.

[Not that he's exactly looking to pick up a teaching gig just now.]

[touchofrogue]

[Huh. Well, okay.]

Then I say that learnin' how ta do somethin' on your own, so it sticks, is way better than the information bein' put in your brain. Especially when ya never know just how long that information's gonna stay, as it is, in your brain.

[snakeharmer]

At least some things don't change. Still, I don't plan on resuming classes here.

[This is not permanent.]

[touchofrogue]

Suit yourself. Doubt anyone will make ya.

[Though he might be interested in the ratings boost? ...nah, give it a couple of months. New people to places like this were only ever really interested in one thing: Getting the heck out.

Not that she could blame them. But five years in quasi-mad-science-land did tend to put a damper on that sense of urgency.]