may-time mingling (starstruck!)

[mucked]

Who: Starstruck crew + visitors
Broadcast: N/A
Action: Aboard the Starstruck!
When: The merry merry month of May

[ there's been a tiny regime change and doubtless some debriefing after that masquerade! have at it, starstruckers. mingle away! ]

Comments

action

[lord_wizard]

[Felix shows up eventually. The captaincy of the ship didn't concern him overmuch when the entire premise seemed like a sham, but on the few occasions that actual danger befell them, Peggy seemed one of their better choices and worth acknowledging for that fact.

His warning rap against wall isn't much of one, since he invites himself in more or less simultaneously.]

Captain Carter. [Smile] Congratulations. In the past I might have said this might be an unfamiliar position for you, but I don't think that's true.

action

[mucked]

I confess, [ she answers with an easy smile as she turns her chair from her desk. ] It's not a particular rank I've held before, but mine have been commensurate with a captaincy during the war. Depending on the jurisdiction.

[ she gestures to another chair -- one not normally present in her room, because of the cramped conditions. but today it seems fit to have a second seat for guests. ] How are you?

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[lord_wizard]

[He slips into the chair with his usual air of ease and confidence, as if they'd done this a dozen times before]

Me? I have little else to complain about these days, beyond the obvious. I'm not sure I could ask for more than that.

And you? I don't question the fact that you seem ready accept the responsibility, though, frankly, no one asked you to treat it as such.

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[mucked]

[ her expression is almost rueful. peggy understands that the majority of this ship are likely not from military backgrounds -- they, quite naturally, have no inclination towards that style of obedience. and she won't blame them for it. nor would she expect it of them. but some sort of leadership apparatus is practical. ]

I want to help. And it may be that this is the best way to do so -- if so, then I hardly need to be asked.

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[lord_wizard]

[It isn't entirely meant to be critical, but often his curiosity leads to testing the people involved, and his prodding was rarely gentle.]

A fact which makes you an excellent candidate. And, if I may say, better you than I.

action

[mucked]

Command certainly isn't a burden for everyone, that's true. [ her smile is small. it barely touches her eyes. ] Not that the Atroma truly offer us many opportunities to flex that command. We're well kept beneath their thumbs, so to speak.

[lord_wizard]

Yes, that's true. There are still things we can do, or at least, I imagine you intend to. No one that intends to treat it as anything but a formality would make such an announcement. Which begs the question, what are your intentions?

[mucked]

Very few aboard the Starstruck come from a proper military background so -- be relieved, perhaps, that I certainly don't intend to replicate that particular style of command here. But I do believe that measures can be taken to better safeguard ourselves against the breadth of the Atroma's powers.

[ she taps the paperwork on her desk. ] My first order of business is to start keeping notes and rosters in hard copy, as well as on the digital systems.

[lord_wizard]

[He carefully eyes the papers she has there. There isn't likely to be much recorded just yet, but he is curious.]

To what end?

[mucked]

In effect, the Atroma control our digital systems. Our networks. Figures and reports kept on that platform cannot always be trusted, I imagine. If they can alter our very minds and skillsets with their augments -- who knows what else they can do.

Paper backups might not be worth a sod in the end. But it can't hurt to keep them all the same.

[lord_wizard]

[It's enough to know she's aware of the scope. That they might be very well be fighting against a uphill battle. Atroma could simply decide they lost the ability to read if they really wanted to, but that was a threat that loomed at all times.]

No, it can't. And it's admirable of you to try. I only worry about what 'end' that might be. So far Atroma does not appear to have any overtly malicious designs against us, but overtly is the key word there.

Take the attacks against us in the past, for example...

[mucked]

The attacks are sledgehammers. The attacks are...hardly subtle -- whether the Atroma are involved in them or not, I can't say. But what worries me a touch more are the things that happened to our minds when were all aboard the Marsiva. The very architecture of our psychology seemed to be affected -- I was telling Ahsoka earlier today that it also worries me to think at any point, for entertainment, they might simply erase a whole crewmember from our memories. From our databanks. They could 'delete' that person's whole quarters, should they want to. They've proven themselves capable of editing the ships themselves. Certainly, they have that power.

[ she taps the pen against her page. ] Breadcrumbs. I'm leaving breadcrumbs.

[lord_wizard]

[He knows for certain that Atroma could prevent them from seeing even those breadcrumbs, but he's not quite in the mood to crush all of her hope completely.

He nods, however, understanding the idea.]

I dislike remaining ignorant, that much I will grant you, but after so long...I begin to wonder if a certain amount of it is safer for all of us. The more we try to subvert their will, the more they are likely to assert it.

[mucked]

So let them. [ a bit of bravado. ] Maybe then some of the other passengers will feel compelled to action.

[ but she hears how that sounds, and mitigates: ] Not that I plan on stirring any pots for just that reason. I promise not to use this position to be foolhardy.

[lord_wizard]

[He smirks a little at that] That's all I wanted to know.

Now...is there anything that I can do for you?

[mucked]

[ a bit of an odd request, perhaps. but: ]

Do you play chess?

[lord_wizard]

[The smirk spreads into a wide grin]

I have been hoping someone would ask. Yes. I've cobbled together a facsimile of a board, if you're interested.

[mucked]

I'd like to play. Like it a lot, in fact. [ her smile matches his. ] I'm a bit rusty.

[lord_wizard]

Isn't that what people always say before luring the unsuspecting into a trap?

[His brother is a cardsharp. It's not an uncommon feint]

[mucked]

[ ha, fair point. ]

Some people, certainly. I promise I'm speaking in earnest this time.