driftfleet | (no subject)

Who: Pavel Chekov
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: For the crew of the SS Wonderduck (and video for everyone else)
When: Now

[Chekov wishes he could be surprised or, at the very least, unsettled when he wakes up in a foreign place, but there's a point at which this sort of thing becomes a fairly routine--if always unpleasant--occurrence. Losing people is never easy, no matter the universe, no matter the number of times it happens.

But taking stock of the situation and establishing who is here has to come before mourning those who were left behind in MarinaNova. To that end, Chekov, somewhat familiarized with his new home and in clothes that are slightly more dignified than the pajamas that he initially woke up in on the Marsiva, begins a broadcast. Are you listening to this in Standard/English/Common? If so, enjoy the ridiculously thick Russian accent.]

This is Lieutenant Pavel Andreievich Chekov of the Federation starship Enterprise. If you have met me already or if you are affiliated with Starfleet, please respond to this message. [He smiles even though he's in no real mood to be cheerful.] I would also be happy with replies from you if we're strangers.

Thank you for your time.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

How does the fleet organize to address situations like this one? ...Unless you are working alone. [Which is good of her, but makes no sense. Why have a fleet full of useful people if there's no cooperation to accomplish goals?]

What is Atroma's function? Is there anything known about them?

I keep a list of people on the Fleet with medical skills and healing magic and the like, along with a description of what their exact abilities and training are. I've been here long enough to develop contacts among people like that, but this way I can direct them where needed in the event that there's a crisis like this.

[She sounds proud of herself for that one.]

Ostensibly, they're our hosts. They're the ones that house us and feed and clothe us, and the ones who edit the reality show for audience consumption. Some of us aren't so sure about their story, though.

Edited 2017-03-20 00:29 (UTC)

You sound well prepared. I'm sure that you will be able to help cure the fish people. [He says this very, very sincerely even though his word choice leaves something to be desired. She should be proud of herself, after all; rounding up and mobilizing people across ships can't be easy.]

I find it strange that they would be eager to admit to holding us captive for entertainment. Most entities are more evasive than that.

[She smiles at that.]

I really hope so. And I'm used to managing a big department of medics, so... this seemed like the natural thing to do. We've only had a few big-scale crises here, but minutes do matter.

[She nods agreement.]

They very insistently act like we're happy to be here, though. I suppose that's for the audience more than anything, since I doubt they'd want to watch us if they knew we weren't exactly willing participants. Of course, that does make me wonder why they don't solicit volunteers, but that's one of the many questions that have arisen.

I'm pleased to hear that your ability to manage medics in a crisis has had few opportunities to be exercised here.

[He tilts his head thoughtfully.] Do you think that they would have any volunteers? I can see the appeal in travelling through space and visiting planets [it's his job, of course he does!] but to do that with an audience... no one wants to be watched all the time.

Me, too. I've had enough chances to keep my skills sharp... and I dislike being idle.

Well, back home we have reality shows like this- of course, nobody travels through space, since the technology to do so isn't widely-known. But there's everything from wilderness survival to dancing competitions, or even celebrities volunteering to have their lives filmed and broadcast. So I'd say yes, they could find people willing to do this if they looked hard enough. And yet... they kidnap people across universes instead.

[He looks very confused by this whole reality show concept, but isn't going to question it further. No amount of explanation is going to make participating in a dancing competition in front of an audience make sense to him.]

Maybe they pick people based on how entertaining they think they will be. Maybe this is designed to be as dramatic as possible and each of us has been abducted very deliberately.

...Or maybe there's no reason to this. [He shrugs with a smile.] I'm sorry that I'm asking so many questions.

Honestly, I don't mind. Knowledge is power, and I've been here long enough to hear and think about every theory there is. I've always half thought they have little control over who comes here, since people have been known to arrive and disappear again within a matter of weeks. Not nearly enough time for the audience to get to know them. So Atroma is just making the best of a bad situation- they capitalize on all of these people appearing from different universes and profit from it.

Do any of these theories that you've heard have merit? Finding a way to leave would be much simpler if there was a good idea of what we are trying to escape.

I personally am in the camp that believes that there is no audience. But like most theories, it has a hole- namely, if we're not here for a reality show, then WHY are we here? So I think both sides of that debate, at least, have some good points. Escape is something we've been trying to accomplish, but it's hard when they can control us. [She taps her augment to indicate how.]

Oh... yes, I forgot about the implants. I have already been told that they have ways to ensure that they aren't removed, but I wasn't aware that the implants could control us.

Not direct control, but at one point, we were kept on board the Marsiva- that's the host ship, the one you arrived on- and they forced us to go to sleep and wake up at the same time. So they can, at the very least, knock us out through them.

[A comically dramatic sigh.] Being controlled by beings with superior technology is getting very tiresome. What is so entertaining about us sleeping and waking as they like?

Believe me, I wish I knew. That's one of the great mysteries and one of the reasons I don't really believe we're on a show. We do routinely visit new places, but for the most part, our lives are relatively mundane. It doesn't seem like they'd get enough footage to make a compelling show.