driftfleet | Good morning!

[Sometime during what the ships' clocks claim as Friday morning, a peppy musical jingle rings out through the speakers all over the ship. It is soon followed by a female voice that should be familiar to most by now]

Good morning, dear passengers! I hope you are all doing well and listening closely, because our broadcast serves two very important functions today!

Firstly, this is the Twelfth Cycle's very first Drift Fleet Shuffle! ...For those of you who don't know, the Shuffle occurs every week, and it's where we all say hello to new faces, goodbye to old friends, and find out how the crews have changed!

This week, we are welcoming four new passengers into the flock, so please keep an eye out for any unfamiliar faces being beamed into your cargo holds, and give them a warm welcome. Other than that, it seems that no one has filed to rearrange their crews-- isn't that wonderful? I'm so glad you're all getting along!

There have been changes in rank however, so I would like to heartily congratulate the Twelfth Cycle's first round of captains on obtaining their illustrious new titles!

We applaud you, Captain Rogers, Captain Harvey, Captain Hange, Captain Stark, Captain Crowley, Captain Kouzuki, Captain Cress, Captain Ichimaru, Captain Redbreast, and Captain... [a bit of a pause] ...Stampede?

[and yes... that might be the sound of applause in the very distant background]

And now, with the Shuffle out of the way, we can move onto what we've all really been waiting for-- the fleet's arrival in our first system! Starting today, the fleet will be moving into range of some outer way-stations, so be sure to visit them to refuel and stretch your legs. The way-stations in this area aren't much to look at, but still good for curing cabin fever, socializing, and doing a little shopping. We will also be coming into range of our first planet, but that won't be until later on in the month... so, don't worry about it now! You'll be hearing more about it later.

For now, just relax and enjoy yourselves! Remember, the worlds are watching!

ooc: feel free to reply here with reactions if you'd like! for details on both the shuffle and the new system, please see the ooc posts. also, head to the ooc post if you have any questions or corrections!
→ ship roster
→ shuffle - ooc post
→ system info - ooc post

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ cress glances away almost instantly, worrying her bottom lip a bit before answering. ]

I don't think there's anyone else here...

[ she's tried exploring a bit and the whole ship is... very quiet. ]

[ oh. uh... ] Guess... there's nothing for you to do but wait for more people.

Like — shipmates?

[ she sounds positively enamored by the idea. imagine, having actual people to live with...! ]

[ he tilts his head. ]

Like a crew, yeah.

[ omg will they have slumber parties and nicknames for each other and— ]

Do you think I'll get a crew soon?

Well, she did say that it happens every week--my guess is that if new people show up, they'll be with you in a few days.

Oh stars... I should clean before they get here...!

There shouldn't be any mess when you arrive... you sure you're alone?

Positive. I just... [ she shrugs a little, sheepish. ] I just want to make sure they feel comfortable, that's all.

[ he tilts his head again, like he's not quite sure what he's seeing, like he thinks of her as a hologram and that she'll show a different side if he looks at her from a different angle. she seems so earnest, though, that he can't really see anything besides it.

it's a good thing riku's similar. it feels like common ground. ]

As a captain, you're in charge of making sure your crew's safe and healthy, but... you know that includes you, right?

[ cress blinks up at the image on her ~~netscreen~~ comm device, looking visibly startled for a few seconds. as his words settle, though, she gradually begins to look, well, shy. ]

I — I know. [ she might have forgotten, though, in her excitement. ] Sorry, it's just... I don't often get to be around people. I guess I got a little over-excited.

[ he knows that look.

he does it all time. thinking about yourself is hard, and he gets it. he knows he probably should think more of himself, but in the moment, you don't really think. ]

I know the feeling. [ riku isn't fond of eye contact--he doesn't do it, instead preferring to focus on someone's lips or ear or somewhere around their face, to show them that he's paying attention even if he's not looking directly at him. his eyes drop even further down and away now. ] Suddenly being around people can make your priorities go out of whack.

[ he breathes in and straightens slightly. ] But just remember that, alright? The crew isn't whole without a captain, so you've gotta be your best.

[ a moment; ] I'm Riku, from the SS Bloodsport.

[ she hadn't wanted to look, at first. embarrassed, even a little ashamed, she'd glanced away as she offered her meek excuse.

but when he spoke, she couldn't help but glance back. watch him, with the sort of wide-eyed stare that a child might, when they're still too young to realize how rude it is. her lips part, stuck around a question — several questions — because he does, doesn't he. he knows how it feels.

does that mean he was a prisoner too? does this make it his first time? does it also make it hard to breath for him, sometimes, when you think about how big the universe really is.

and how much of it you can't even reach. ]

...it's nice to meet you, Riku. I'm Cress.

[ she smiles, but only faintly. ] Thank you.

[ the 'thank you' comes with a surprised expression. the king said riku's eyes couldn't lie, and that still rings truth. riku withdraws and withholds many things, lies through teeth and without thought, but his body betrays every single veiled emotion and his eyes are the biggest offenders of all. the surprise in his face is wholly self-contained--he is not surprised that she thanked him, but that he is deserving of thanks. ]

It's-- [ eyes flicker back down. ] no problem. [ wish i could follow my own advice. ]

Nice to meet you, Cress. What's your ship?

[ cress hasn't had a lot of experience with people. seven long years of imprisonment with only her netdramas and her homemade AI program to keep her company had left her understandably bereft of the kind of contact that would make it easy to read another person... but she watches her netdramas almost religiously. her own mind is often filled with the fantastical scenes she's memorized by heart, and dramas are, if they're anything at all, great sources of the subtleties of emotion on the human face.

so when he looks to her, then looks away, cress swears she sees something there. something familiar.

it prompts the tentative smile on her lips to widen, if only to try and encourage one from him, too. ]

SS First Breath. [ it had sounded funny to her, at first, but the more she considers it, the more it starts to feel a little comfortable.

she pauses to think for a moment. ]

Do you know if we're allowed to visit?

[ #subtlety. ]

[ unlike cress, riku has had a healthy fifteen years being surrounded by people. it's too bad the subsequent two years utterly destroyed that social nature in him--manipulation and trauma does that to you, and where he would once reach out, he withdraws. but, as cress smiles, he offers his own in return--maybe his social graces aren't completely gone. ]

First Breath, huh? Sounds like a fresh start.

[ so maybe it's good for her. ]

Visit? No clue... but they said that we're coming on a waystation, so maybe you won't need to. Everyone from all the ships should be loaded into the station then. You'll probably find a lot of people.

Good morning!

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