(no subject)

[mistyday]

Who: Misty Day
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: Marsiva
When: January 5

[A woman wearing all black lies face up in her bunk, perfectly still, her arms straight out by her sides. It's impossible to tell if she's breathing or not, but surely she must be, right?

Right?

Watch long enough and you'll see her come alive, shooting straight up with a gasp that becomes a heart-wrenching sob. Tears stream down her face and she rocks back and forth. She's saying something over and over, but the only word that can be heard clearly is "No, no, no." This goes on for a long minute before she really seems to realize where she is.

Or rather, where she is not.]

Cordelia?!

[She scrambles out of the bed and stands in the middle of the room, calling out in her thick Louisiana accent.]

Zoe? .... Myrtle?

[She sinks back on to the bed, clutching her head in her hands, her breathing becoming increasingly labored as she tries to fight the panic.]

Shit, shit, shit. Oh God, please, help me. This ain't right at all.

[Not knowing what else to do, she assumes her prior position, closes her eyes, and starts to chant. Those from Earth might recognize it as Latin.]

Spiritu duce, in me est. [Deep breath.] Spiritu... duce. Spiritu - [Another sob and she rolls over on her side and curls into a fetal position.] No, no. I can't... I can't go back there.

Comments

video.

[mistyday]

[She squints, still wary. Hexes, she doesn't really know much about and so wouldn't really know how to defend herself if he used one against her.]

So then you a warlock or something?

video.

[collegedropout]

[He huffs a soft laugh. Getting her distracted helps, right?]

Not quite. I've known a few people who dabbled in it.

A, uh — ex-girlfriend showed me some pointers. Just a few things here and there.

[Ruby was his lover, for a time. It just sucks to think about, after what happened.

He'd trusted her.]

... I've also fought my fair share of witches before. There are a lot out there that use their magic on innocent people — gotta say, it's not fun to be on the recieving end of a nasty spell. As for me... I specialize in the supernatural. Lore, spells, incantations, translations. The usual.

You?

[mistyday]

[That immediately sends a rush of fear through her, yet there's a defiance about her as well. Sure there are evil witches like Fiona or Madison who don't give a shit about anyone but themselves and their own power but she knows exactly how dangerous non-witches can be too. It's not the magic that does it.]

Witches ain't the only ones who attack innocent people.

[collegedropout]

[It's all good, he gets it.]

I know. I actually met a good witch not so long ago — detective friend. No matter what you are, I'd like to believe all groups have good and bad people in them.

[Except for demons. Fuck demons. Meg had been the most tolerable, but the last time he'd seen her she had just had a bunch of innocent people murdered to buy herself some time. And, well, there's the whole molesting and possessing him thing. But Sam had let that settle in the past, for the most part.

... It's complicated.]

I only go on cases involving murders. Though I don't recommend witchcraft to anyone; usually it means making a deal on your soul, and... that never ends well.

[mistyday]

But doesn't have to work like that. Sometimes... sometimes it's a gift and not one you think to ask for.

[Wow good job at hiding yourself there Misty. He'll never know.

There is, however, the tiniest trace of doubt. She never made a deal on her soul, not like people did with Papa Legba but... didn't she willingly descend to Hell, just because she let them convince her she might be the Supreme?]

[collegedropout]

I don't doubt that; usually, that's not how things work in my world, but there are exceptions. And even then... I've been around the block a lot to know your part of the universe isn't quite the same. [He smiles sympathetically.] Anybody explain any of this place yet?

[Miss I'm-Not-A-Witch-Why-Would-You-Think-That?]

[mistyday]

I think I got the basics: reality show in space, I'm stuck here until the end of the week, there's some aliens or something that call themselves Atroma that no one seems to know anything about...

It's a lot to take in, I gotta admit.

[collegedropout]

[He nods.]

Unfortunately, you get pretty used to it.

But if it helps any, the people I've met so far? They're pretty nice. Not to say you should take candy from them, but... people tend to look out for each other pretty quickly when you're in the same predicament.

[mistyday]

Yeah... most of y'all have been really nice.

[Frankly, she sounds surprised by that. Same predicament or not, she definitely didn't receive a welcome like this at the Academy. So while she's still wary of him, and of this witch fightin' detective business, she'll give him her name at least.]

I'm Misty.

[collegedropout]

Misty. I'm Sam.

[He offers one of those soft-eyed looks of sympathy he's practiced since practically babyhood.]

One step at a time, right? It's pretty freaky to be here, but it gets easier.

[mistyday]

Can't be any worse than what I left behind.

[collegedropout]

... I gotcha.

Something you're willing to talk about? It helps some people, to just talk.

[mistyday]

No offense or nothin' Sam - you seem like a nice guy and all - but I just met you.

[Granted, you could say the same of some of the others... but they're not the ones talking about hexes and fighting witches. Besides, the cat was already out of the bag with Souji before she knew what was happening and James - James is one of Her People.]

I'd feel a lot better about talkin' once I see you in person.

[collegedropout]

Hey, take your time. There's plenty of people to talk to around here; what's important is that you're out there making connections, getting some support. The people aboard these fleet ships aren't too bad.

From what I've met, anyway.

[He smiles a bit.]

But if you're ever interested in talking in person, it's not like I have anything better to do. I'll be climbing the walls in no time looking for a way to keep myself busy.

[mistyday]

[There's a long hesitation before she asks:]

What's the name of your ship?

[Maybe she'll talk to him, maybe she won't. But it's probably a good idea to get a better read on this guy.]

[collegedropout]

I'm aboard the Red Fish. It's a smaller crew, but they've been pretty quiet around here. Which is good, because I could use the peace. [He smiles, eyebrows raised.] It's got some interesting designs courtesy of the Atroma — skull decor isn't exactly my idea of an inviting place — but you know the saying. Book by its cover.

[mistyday]

Red Fish? [She grins.] Like Dr. Seuss? Only with some death metal thrown in?

[collegedropout]

[.........PFHT.]

I never thought about it that way. But yeah. Absolutely.

There's a Blue Fish, too.

[mistyday]

These aliens got a weird sense of humor.

[collegedropout]

You think that's bad, there's a ship called — get this — the Wonderduck.

[mistyday]

[Incredulous:]

You're shittin' me!

[collegedropout]

Nope, not at all. We've got ships like the Bloodsport, the Huntress, the Vanquish...

Aaand then we have the Wonderduck.

[SAM IS THROWING MAD SHADE AT THE WONDERDUCK TODAY.]

[mistyday]

[Just don't ever throw that shade in front of Beverly, Sam.

Misty grins.]

Sounds like they're just trying to fuck with us then.

[collegedropout]

That's usually the pattern here. At least it's a little more manageable than other worlds so far. We don't have to worry about producing our own food? And we're given beds? I've had worse.

[mistyday]

You mean you've been to other worlds, before this?