your audience awaits...

[thespaceopera]

[the merry jingle is right on time today, but there's still strange interference over the comm. it's crackly and buzzy, but mostly clears up by the time the hosts' voices ring out in welcome. first up is Diamond, happy to grace the fleet with her presence.]

Welcome to a bright new week of the Drift Fleet! [she sounds just as cheery as she did the weekend before, glowing with pride for her little ratings machines.] Goodness, with all of the new passengers this week, the Marsiva has never been so busy!

[then, the male, semi-familiar voice of Beau crackles in to interject--] Excuse me, darlin'... but it's pronounced Mar-see-va.

[and there's a pause while Diamond presumably side-eyes her host.] ...Oh, Beau, honey... surely you're joking? Everyone knows that it's Mar-si-va.

Well... I don't mean to bring logic into this, but you don't go about calling it Ah-tro-ma. So you wouldn't call it Mar-si-va, either.

[and oh, Diamond's voice only gets sweeter, after a too-polite laugh.] ...And I hate to be the one to have to point out canon details, dear... but as the official Drift Fleet handbook explains, the Marsiva was first named by a Flonian, and their language structure always puts emphasis on the first syllable, unless they are experiencing a period of mourning.

[with a hearty chuckle, Beau politely disagrees.] Ah, but we've had a Flonian here on our fine show! If you rewatch the fourth cycle, episodes thirty-seven through one hundred fifty-two, you will clearly hear that he pronounces it Mar-see-va.

Oh, Beau... [she almost sounds pitying. the poor dear obviously doesn't know what he's talking about.] He wasn't a native of Flonia, however. ...And besides, there was talk that he was in a period of mourning anyway, because of the events that took place during episode twenty-two.

[and she's not going to wait for him to argue any further!] Anyway... one passenger has left us, but was quickly replaced! And there are so many new faces that a few of the other ships find themselves full to bursting, and an entirely new ship has found itself joining the fleet! The SS Golden sails with a strong crew, with Captain Honeycutt at the helm!

A full dozen little ships drifting along... isn't that wonderful?

And, to celebrate our new dandy dozen, it's time for crew interviews! Finally, a chance to hear from the men, women, and variations thereof that make up the heart and soul of this fine program. Speak clearly, everyone! You will notice that questions are appearing on your personal communicators and network screens. It's time to start answering! We are all listening!

[and, as promised, these words are being displayed all over the network:]

old passengers:
What did you see while on the forest path?
What treasure did you receive?
What did you feel?

new passengers:
What is the last thing you remember, before joining the fleet?
What do you hope for?
If you could name a ship, what would you name it?

[and then every comm station, every hand-held communicator, opens to dead, waiting air. they are all connected to something, with supposedly an entire audience waiting to hear what they have to say. they're all watching. will you answer?]


ooc: no one will answer, but someone sure as hell is listening! reply here for all reactions, responses, etc. and ships with communications officers can also encrypt their signal to keep their answers private. though, comms officers can go hacking into encrypted responses if they really want...

→ Shuffle ooc post

Comments

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[aheroipray]

Bit of infighting, it seems...

--Captain? Me?

[ wait what no one told her about this.

... wait. captain. ohhh... she kind of likes this. ]

Captain Lieutenant Allumette Honeycutt, Warrior of Light... I suppose I can't complain!

Thank the Twelve, though! I can answer that last question right off of the top of my head! This Marseeva, Marsivah, we could solve that and simply call it the Vanguard, of course. [ arms crossed, firm nod. ]

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[ladiesss]

I don't... think they'd just rename the ship like that.

[says some nosy human girl over the video feed...]

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[aheroipray]

Well, of course they wouldn't. They're quite attached to it as it is, but that question is answered, at the very least.

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[got_it_memorized]

Why don't we compromise and call it the Marsivah? Then everybody's wrong.

[He frowns at the questions, then fiddles with the yellow and brown scarf around his neck.]

I imagine we all saw a lot of the same thing: trees, rocks... But I got this swanky scarf out of it. [He looks very proud of himself.] Pretty fashionable, right?

[As for what he felt.......... courtesy laugh.]

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[birdsbirdsbirds]

It is a cute scarf. [hi, Axel. Robin was just passing by.]

I feel like I got gypped.

[got_it_memorized]

Isn't it, though? Lot'a good memories with this scarf, I tell ya.

What'd you get? Besides gypped, apparently.

[goldenglasses]

[Vash peers at his communicator as the questions appear and he gives it a shake.]

Really? Are people really listening? [Well, his ultra scientific method of shaking and gently smacking the communicator hasn't made the questions go away so he might as well.]

I saw lots a really cool and tall trees in the forest! [Among other things.]

Treasure? Afraid I didn't find any treasure. I did find some cool leaves! Does that count?

How did I feel? Hmmm. [He acts like he's trying to think really hard on this question. Tapping at his chin. The truth he was in turmoil and at times utter bliss for a few seconds.] I felt really peaceful! The forest was so quiet and pretty!

There! That wasn't so bad! [Because he's a liar.] Don't suppose I win a prize do I? HAHAHAHA!

voice;

[parricida]

My, my, what a charming survey. Hmm, let's see . . . I do believe I'll answer the first one. This place has welcomed me enough that I feel rather experienced.

Now! What I saw on that charming little forest was a hot bath. Or rather, not a hot bath as you humans seem to think of them, but a true one-- something that, I suspect, might scald you. A delightful little thing, built entirely for me, with a stack of Cardassian novels on the side.

And with such a treat, how could I not stray? I'm afraid I never found whatever treasure the forest offered, unfortunately, but such is the price of indulgence.

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[merchantprince]

[Varric always looks his best. Though he's been a bit busy, he's taking care to groom his own ratings. Today he's wearing a sapphire silk shirt embroidered with gold thread, and he's even cleaned up his jacket. His chest hair is on full display. Of course.]

I saw a lot of things. In particular, I saw Bianca... my true love. She looked so well-polished, and she'd even had an upgrade. She looked so sweet that Andraste herself would weep. But I had to turn away. It was one of the hardest things I've ever done.

[He lifts his hand. There's a signet ring on it, big and a little flashy. It looks like it's used for stamps.]

I got my signet ring back though. I lost it a couple years ago when everything went to shit. I got it from the Champion first... I wonder how she's doing.

[He's not going to talk about his feelings.]

As for how I felt? The whole thing was pretty disappointing. It was like a trip through the Fade, and I hate the Fade. On the plus side, the only demons there were nice ones. But it felt a little bit like when an Orlesian handmaiden gives you a rubdown and then leaves halfway through.

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[birdsbirdsbirds]

...When you say Bianca, are you talking about a woman or a car?

[that's his first guess. it was bizarre enough that he... just had to ask.]

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[merchantprince]

My crossbow.

[He sounds very proud of the fact.]

[onlyanapple]

[Crowley has no problem with playing the crowd. Good ratings give him booze money, after all. He's always dressed well, but now he's dressed well and exuding pheromones. He flashes the camera a grin.]

So there have been other seasons of this delightful little show.

Anyway, what I saw in the forest was London. Oxford Street, to be exact. Good place, Oxford Street, very busy. I'm sure everyone is aware of the gift I got, which I shared with all my fine Flooters.

Are we calling ourselves Flooters? I think it suits us.

Largely, I fet amused.

open video / action for blue fish

[selfperpetuate]

[There is a very angry vampire who is ignoring the whole question bit and the whole fanfare of his arrival, instead working on putting in his transfer. And going to share his indignation with the fleet.]

No, this is such fucking bullshit. I am not staying on some piece of shit rustbucket without Jordan and you fuckers are not separating us. I fucking refuse to let you cocksuckers try to drum up some false drama over placing us apart.

[alwayscomeback]

[Sokka is here to eat the puddings. They love their food, here. He's also still on an energy high, so he might be twitching a little. ]

You can always take one of the SR shuttles to wherever he's at, man.

[Pointing. ]

Does this mean you don't want your pudding?

[selfperpetuate]

[Alex is just. going to stare for a long moment because what the fuck why are you twitchy why are you even here.]

That's not the goddamn point, the point is that he's not going to be happy that I'm not with him and I need to fucking fix that for him.

[He pauses for a second and shrugs at the question about the pudding. Alex basically survives off emotions at this point, so he doesn't really eat normal food anymore.]

Go ahead, I don't eat food anymore, so I'm not gonna eat that shit.

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[birdsbirdsbirds]

Oh... You two really are precious.

[selfperpetuate]

[Oh hey it's you.]

Nobody fucking asked you, jackass.

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[cabbagedetective]

Eh? What? An interview? You want me for an interview? Well, all right...

The last thing I remember... [Would "they" know if he was lying? Would it even matter if they did? Well, anyone could be listening in on this, so best to play it safe for now. Besides, if this whole thing is just for the entertainment of others, then maybe Adachi can find a way to make his own fun.] It's hard to say. Everything's so fuzzy. I remember that I was working to help solve a murder case. We'd just taken in the former council secretary Taro Namatame. We had caught him in the act of kidnapping his next victim. He was recovering in the hospital, along with my partner who had gotten in a car accident while pursuing Namatame. Other than that things get kind of hazy. [Time for the signature nervous chuckle. Keep playing naive. Let them think what they want.]

What do I hope for? Wow. That's a hard one to answer too. Um... I guess I hope to get along well with everyone in the fleet. I mean, if we're all stuck here together, then it's better to make friends than enemies. [You hearing this "shipmates?" That load of B.S. was for you.]

A name for a ship? Hmm... What about the Izanagi? Or is that too pretentious of a name for a spaceship? [Adachi grins and chuckles some more. Well now, let's see how this affects the "ratings."]

[treasureling]

The last thing I remember.

I had just finished at the forge, for the night. I was filthy and covered in soot, and still my four-year-old daughter Viere shrieked when she saw me, she was so happy, and ran right into my arms. I think she'd just had a bath. Her mother didn't like that. My other daughter was calmer. She is almost ten; she thinks she has to be dignified already.

I was going to cook them dinner. Rice and stewed fruit and vegetable. I took care of them a great deal, even though neither of their mothers are married to me.

I hope... for a good life for them. For opportunity, and love, and joy.

And I would name a ship after mountain goats. The ones that are nimble, and can survive anything, and that always know the way home.

text

[theboogieman]

mountain goats

[hi, buddy.]

text

[treasureling]

how is that any worse than the other ship names?

[hopefullyyours]

Who on earth would even answer a series of questions like that? [Certainly not him, not even with that golden word "hope" floating there for him.] Who are we even answering?

[faithfulwisdom]

[Oh, an interview should be a good chance to get some smiles and charming statements out of the charismatic elf, right?

Wrong.

The augment malfunction has been slowly chipping away at the diplomatically pleasant attitude of his and it seems this is enough to finally elicit a bit of temper.]

You know perfectly well what I saw and how I felt. I do not take kindly to manipulations. My life is not entertainment and my private affairs are none of your concern. I have shown a great deal of tolerance for this foolishness simply because my alternatives are few, but I will not sit here and inform you of the effectiveness of your schemes.

[And the handheld comm is abruptly turned off.]

Video

[save_the_souls]

[Allen is disappointed this "interview" is just over the network. So much for a chance to see anything about the Atroma]

[Aw well. He'll still give a polite answer and answer the question]

I didn't see much really, we spent most of the time stuck in a tunnel. Though- oh! Our cook did find a cat...I'm not sure how.

As for what I got...it's just an old emblem from the Order I used to belong to. It's...a nice reminder to have.

[And yep, ignoring that "HOW DID YOU FEEL" question]

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[hearsthesea]

Hello, everyone.

[There are people listening to this, right? Right?]

Um, in the forest...I saw a teriques. They're wings that the Ferines, like me, can create. I'd never seen this one before, but it looked so real. And I heard music...it sounded just like they'd sing when I was little. It made me think of my old village.

[She's silent after that. The whole thing made her far more homesick than she'd like for a place she hasn't even called home for a long time, but she's not going to talk about that for entertainment value.]

After we reached the end of the path, I got a special shell. It won't be of much use without its partner, but you can feel the emotions of whoever's holding the other one. It helped save a friend of mine once, so...I guess it's good to have it again. I hope that's enough for anyone who's listening.