Gumball Wishes and Taxicab Dreams

[thespaceopera]

[On today's episode of the Drift Fleet:

The cargo holds are full of mysterious crates! The crews are filling beyond capacity with new faces! Official alerts are informing the passengers that they are signed to contracts that they've never agreed to! They are docking at the dazzling FS Starlight, but are flat broke!

What are they going to do!? Stay tuned to find out!


...Meaning, this is a kickoff mingle for you all to enjoy the beginning of the latest plot setting. This is a convenient place to start threads relating to the first week of the event-- meeting new crewmembers, reacting to the mysterious cargo, arriving on the station and discovering that you're all broke, etc.

Tag around, start whatever you'd like, have fun. And, as always, feel free to make your own posts and mingles from here on in, as this will be the only mod-posted one for this event!]

Comments

[lord_wizard]

[He's not sure if that's a suggestion or a question, but at least Max is trying.]

Personal preference, much like your dislike of shaving?

[A light tease that isn't an answer, so he makes another attempt at a real one. He crosses his arms and joins Max in the contemplation of the houseplant.]

I don't know. Too might time to think about things, maybe.

[Which isn't to say he doesn't think about things all the time, but the more his mouth moves the more likely it is that his mind decides to take trips down the lanes containing all of his regrets. And also:]

I find it...lonely.

[And he hates THAT, most of all]

[theroadwarrior]

[He quirks an eyebrow at him.]

Sometimes loneliness is preferable.

Better chances of staying in one piece.

[Says the guy who stuck with Furiosa and the Wives, in the end.

But he hardly applies the situation here; he tolerates being around his shipmates to a minimum. Though... he's been... worse. He's been in a worse way. Small mercies.]

[lord_wizard]

True enough. [It felt like, in his case, being alone was for the safety of people other than himself. He's hesitant say things have changed completely, but at least socially speaking, he's far less of a wounded animal here than he was in the Mirador.]

I imagine you mean that literally. [Political damage control was far different than actually watching out for a dagger to the back. It's an instinct he'd never quite developed, personally. Much to his detriment. Max, however...Max wears that kind of wariness like a shroud.]

[theroadwarrior]

Literally.

[He confirms as much.]

You know what's good for you, you'd try the same.

[lord_wizard]

Ah, but that's just the problem. That particular lesson is one that fails to stick.

[He's prone to repeating the same mistakes over and over. Granted, his existence might have been less harried than Max's; the lessons far less harsh as a result. The adage that some things were worse than death seems appropriate here.]

I suppose my preference is to die, as long as it isn't alone.

[theroadwarrior]

[............. Hrmm.]

Sometimes the person you're dying near is the one who gutted you.

[lord_wizard]

[He smiles grimly] Quite likely. [Again, in the metaphorical sense, that dagger usually came from him. But that isn't what Max is talking about.]

I cannot fault you for feeling that way, but if I may say so...[He's going to say so anyway, of course]...we aren't the ones you need worry about. Atroma is the one holding us all hostage, and it's they who are the the real threat.

[theroadwarrior]

[Psht. He waves a hand.]

How about I worry about them and everyone else.

[AKA — paranoia around everyone is clearly the way to go.]

People held captive together can trample over everyone else for a quick out.

[lord_wizard]

[Max isn't wrong]

There aren't any clear exits right now. Even your shuttle will only get you so far.

[He knows what you're planning and he isn't happy with the idea of being ditched were they about to, say, crash land on a planet somewhere. But, again, he completely understands the reasons.

It's crazy to logic someone out of paranoia, so maybe another tactic.]

In the meanwhile...do you need any help with your plant?

[theroadwarrior]

[Hmph.]

S'not my plant.

Just — watching it.

wow sorry about the html there

[lord_wizard]

And quite intently at that.

[But since they've already covered this-] Your friend's planet. I get it. My point it...if you are going to watching it for very long, water would be a good start.

[theroadwarrior]

[Why you continue to be here, Max will never know. One of life's greatest mysteries.

He considers the innocent-looking plant like it plans to betray him via a stab in the back.]

... Mrmm... How much water?

[He's asking your advice. This is an improvement!!]

[lord_wizard]

[It is. It's the kind of thing he mentally stores as a personal victory. Not least because he'd rather have Max as an ally, all things considered.]

That depends on the plant. Not too much. Enough to moisten the soil, but not enough to drown it.

[theroadwarrior]

[He hums. Doesn't reply, doesn't bridge that pause into more conversation...

But. He seems to consider it.

Small victories.]