video + action

[directed]

Who: Rip Hunter and you?
Broadcast: Yes
Action: On the Marvisa
When: Apr 14; midday-ish

[No doubt it's a story that's been heard before: boy meets timeship, boy takes over protecting history after blowing up the people who used to do it, boy gets brainwashed (twice), boy gets rescued, boy is left to try and figure out who he even bloody is anymore. Yet for all the things that have not hold steadfast in Rip's life as of late, certain rules remain seemingly unbreakable. Chief among them (and most relevant, in this instance), is that nothing will ever go according to Rip Hunter's plan. It's rather unfair, really. He hasn't even decided what he intends to do, and now here he is, waking up in the middle of God-knows-where that's neither his jumpship nor the Waverider.

Bloody hell.

So he does as anyone might when they've apparently been kidnapped: goes for his gun. Of course it's not there, shock and surprise, leaving Rip patting his pockets and trying to figure out what, beyond an empty holster, he's been left with. Some personal items, what he had on him that he can last remember, but nothing resembling the weapons he suspects would be so terribly useful in this situation. Yet despite every indication that he's been stolen away against his will, Rip has also been granted a surprising amount of freedom. He doesn't seem to be locked within any one room, and the accommodations are cozier than most other brigs he's seen.

Not that it gives him any greater desire to stay there, mind. It's just worth noting. And now that he has noted it, Rip gets to work. Finding a communication panel is rather easy—perhaps distressingly so, if he thinks about it, so instead Rip sets about to trying to find a way to hail the Waverider, to figure out where he is, or when he is, or anything else at all that might be useful.

It goes about as well as can be expected—although he can send out a message, it's not going to go anyplace he wants it to. The transmission starts right about the time his shoulders sag with this realization, his eyes not focused on the camera but instead on whatever display is giving him the bad news. In the meantime, enjoy the view of a frustrated British guy wearing a long duster?]

…Bollocks [Oh, right, broadcasting. Rip finally looks towards the screen—towards whomever might be viewing this, trying to decide if it's even worth saying anything. He's got one hand braced against the wall, his finger tapping the surface impatiently before he decides that really, there's not much left to lose at this point anyway. It's not like the persons responsible don't already know he's there.]

Right, yes. And--hello, I suppose. [It's about as unhappy a greeting as one might expect, given the circumstances.] I'd apologize for being a bother, but since I've somehow been brought to this place entirely against my will, whoever's responsible just brought it upon themselves, haven't they?

I'll keep it short then. My name is Rip Hunter, and I would really. really, like to have a word with those in charge of—whatever this is. [No small operation, given the scale of it. Not only is the room itself impressively sized, but the technology is noteworthy. Automated, from a time seemingly closer to Rip's own than most he's been in lately. He rests a hand against the wall, leaning into his arm as he taps his fingers against the hard surface. If he's in a facility seemingly made to house so many—

Then perhaps he's not the only one to have found himself someplace new without explanation.] Or anyone else who might be able to offer answers, assuming there are others out there. Either way, you can probably guess what I want to know.

[What anyone would like to know when they've been taken prisoner, most likely. Rip gives the camera a final look, then ends the transmission.

Well. He did say he was going to keep it short.]

Comments

video

[takingkarabusiness]

[ Kara responds fairly quickly, aiming for "cheerful yet sympathetic" ]

Hi... We would all like to talk to the people in charge, but they're not very accessible. Sorry. I can give you a quick rundown, though? My name is Kara and I was also brought here. Like, over a year ago? So there's that.

Re: video

[directed]

[Ah, so the news isn't good. Rip is shocked.]

There's that. [A year is no small amount of time—yet with no frame of reference, Rip can't even assume that makes Kara a veteran.]

Well then; Kara, was it? [He gestures outward with a hand.] By all means.

video

[takingkarabusiness]

We're in space—and as someone who has been around space more than the average person-on-Earth, it's always very unfamiliar space. Although we've been brought here against our individual wills, for the most part, everyone else is really nice and we're provided for, even if some of the time it's with gel rations. What I'm saying is, you don't have to be in survival mode. We go from place to place, we usually help the locals in some way, and–oh yeah. Allegedly we're on some sort of Real World style reality TV show. Is that a reference you get?

Re: video

[directed]

[That is quite a ramble; at some point Rip shifts so he's leaning against the wall next to the display, although he remains visible. His arms crossed over his chest he just--tries to process all that, particularly the bits where Kara attempts to make this all sound somehow not terrible.

Unfortunately for her, she's talking to...well. Him.]

So we're in some unknown, possibly remote sector of space, kept alive through use of synthetic food they can't even bother to fabricate into something a bit more real, tasked with playing hero on occasion, and, if I'm understanding you correctly, all seemingly for the purpose of being someone's entertainment?

[No, he hadn't gotten the reference, but the context is enough.]

Bloody hell. [Rip reaches up to pinch the bridge of his nose. Kara's promise that everyone is "nice" aside, about the only positive he's seen thus far is that he's managed to keep his memories this time.

Small favors.]

video

[takingkarabusiness]

That would be about the shape of it, yes.

But we get real food too sometimes? A lot of the time... And you don't have to "play hero" but it's an option.

Sorry?

[ she looks genuinely apologetic ]

video;

[winn]

Good-ish news is there are plenty of people on the 'other' category, but the first one's not as chatty. And just to throw in a spoonful of sugar - it's usually pretty safe here. You're in space, but don't worry - you've already got the basics you need to know in your head. [ or you know, worry but we're trying to throw positive spins here today! welcome wagoning is a delicate process. ] Right now you're on a ship called the Marsiva, but you won't be there long, you'll be assigned to a new ship soon and then you'll be able to hang out with the rest of us. We're supposedly on a reality show here.

[ he gives a little wave ]

I'm Winn Schott from the Tourist, ask away, and I'll do my best to answer.

Re: video;

[directed]

How disappointing. And here I was looking forward to a chat.

[The rest of the news isn't exactly what Rip would call good-ish either; knowing that there are apparently a number of people similarly captured hardly comes as a comfort. What really gets his attention, however, is when Winn promises that Rip knows what he needs to. He's not necessarily wrong, but--]

You seem confident on that point: that I already possess such knowledge. [He considers the man on the screen briefly, and nope. Not familiar in the least.] It's not the first thing I would expect most people to assume.

[But with so little to go on, Rip has to at least hear the man out. Ships and assignments; are they meant to assign a crew of some sorts? It seems an odd notion, but not ridiculous.

Not until the next breath, anyway.]

I'm sorry, a what?! [The term rings a vague bell; Rip's confident it's come up in some brand of bickering among the Legends at some point. Too bad he really hadn't been listening.] I'm not familiar with the term.

[Which seems a decent enough set of questions to start with. He nods, however, taking note of both Winn's name and his ship when the information is offered.]

video;

[winn]

[ it's good-ish because it sucks that they're kidnapped, but he's got plenty of people to talk to and to answer his questions. ]

We all do. Feel behind your left ear - feel that bump? That's your augment. It's telling you how to survive in space, how to pilot the shuttles, and it's also giving you a specialty. I got engineering, for example. And whatever you do - don't try to pull it out. For one it's just a bad idea to try to take out something attached to your brain, and for two, it's not gonna let you take it out. I know it's scary, but it's important information that'll spare you a lot of grief.

[ have a sympathetic smile there, rip, because learning what it is is not going to make this any better. winn highly doubts that that's actually the reason they're all here - but it is the official reason given. ]

A reality show, TV. Supposedly we're being filmed for entertainment.

Re: video;

[directed]

[A frown crosses Rip's lips when he does as instructed; indeed, he does feel the telltale lump that would seem to indicate the truth of what Winn's said. The man goes on about it's purpose, the promise of necessarily information that's been planted into Rip's brain, but that's just the kicker, isn't it?

He already knows how to survive in space, and pilot a shuttle, and do engineering on his own damn ship without someone putting the knowledge into his head.

So no, Winn. It doesn't make it better at all--especially not when the man goes on to clarify the context of his words. All told, it fills Rip with a anger he hasn't felt in quite a long time, between so many months being Phil Gasmer and his time spent among the Legion. The hand at the back of his head lifts off, fingers curled into a fist and when Rip hits the wall above the console, well.

If Winn's given this little speech before, surely he can't be surprised when someone reacts poorly to it.]

And next you're going to tell me that there's no way to put an end to it. [It seems the obvious conclusion: don't take out the augment, you need to know about space, it's one big tv show, or a cosmic joke, or both.

Both seems the most likely.]

[video]

[passingthrough]

[She opened a feed to be genuinely helpful. She did. It's just somewhere between that and actually speaking this happened.]

Is Rip Hunter a real name?

[Kitty Pryde, you are the last person who gets to be skeptical of names.]

(OOC: Going to be gone for most of the next two days for Easter so might be slow/gone for a bit!)

[video] (no worries on slow!)

[directed]

Well if it weren't, confessing as much would rather defeat the purpose of having made it up, now wouldn't it?

[Enjoy your non-answer, Miss Pryde.]

[video]

[passingthrough]

Touché.

Also, in case you hadn't guessed, I'm not the one in charge. If they do answer that would be amazing, but they won't. They're kind of jerks like that what with the abducting followed by the silent treatment.

Re: [video]

[directed]

And here I thought villains were meant to be chatty. Seems like today is meant to be full of unfortunate surprises.

video »

[mucked]

[ it's the accent that draws her in -- and although she feigns disinterest, peggy makes a point to at least respond. ]

Did you find the answers you were looking for?

Re: video »

[directed]

Not really, no. [Since obviously he'd been hoping for some way off this fleet, but no doubt the woman addressing him now knows there's no luck to be found there.

He lets out a short breath, then shakes his head. Might as well answer her question properly.]

...But I have been informed as to the basic situation we all seem to be in. Trapped in a fleet of ships, sent drifting through space, occasional stop-offs just to keep things interesting. Oh and let's not forget the part where we've all got some form of bloody implants stuck in our heads.

[He glances towards the display, assuming the woman would likely let him know if he's missed anything.]

It's not quite how I imagined my day would end up on the whole.

video »

[mucked]

No. I rather suppose it isn't.

[ she stays calm -- although her demeanor isn't exactly friendly by any stretch. ] Did they tell you the part about the surveillance?

Re: video »

[directed]

[Given that several people have approached his broadcast with abundant optimism, it's almost refreshing to have someone speak with thinly-veiled annoyance. And a proper British accent at that.]

Ah, yes. The "reality TV" bit. [He raises a hand, and yes, those are air quotes.] Because why go to the purpose of kidnappings and invasive surgeries if not for the entertainment of unseen masses?

voice;

[ahappylie]

We'd all like a word with them, but sadly they are out of reach at the moment.

[But one day? Yeah. Stabbing.]

Welcome to the Fleet, Hunter-san~

Re: voice;

[directed]

Yes, so I've gathered. How utterly unfortunate.

[In Rip's case, it would likely be shooting--but that's made infinitely more difficult by the lack of the gun which should be tucked away in it's holster.]

Thank you. [Hunter-san, is it? Interesting.] Might I ask your name?

Re: voice;

[ahappylie]

Very much so.

[He smiles even though he basically just told his guy "Yup, you're stuck." And also, ahahaha names.]

My name is Soujirou. Are you accustomed to space, Hunter-san? If not, it can be a bit of shock.

Re: voice;

[directed]

[Soujirou's hardly the first one to put on a cheerful face today, although he doesn't seem to be going for the whole optimistic, "it really could be worse" spin thus far either. Perhaps this counts as middle ground, or something.

Or perhaps the man is simply odd. Who is Rip to say?]

Mr. Soujirou, then. [There's a brief moment where the corner of Rip's mouth tugs up as Soujirou continues.] I've got some experience with it. Enough that being on a spaceship doesn't really surprise me.

[No, Rip got to skip right to the frustration stage. How lucky for him.]

video;

[stefanged]

[ It's the accent that distracts Stefan from the background noise of the comm, truthfully. He leans on the counter - the camera's got a nice view of a lounge that clearly isn't on one of the main ships - as he gives Rip an entirely sympathetic smile. ]

Believe me, if we could speak to Beau and Diamond, we would've by now. [ . . . ] They're supposedly our "hosts." You search the archives long enough, you'll find their broadcasts.

Re: video;

[directed]

Beau and Diamond?

[Now this is new. Everyone else has said that their captors couldn't be contacted, but also that they didn't reach out. This young man, however, seems to know names—and promises that a thorough search would even provide even more.]

Fortunately, I can handle a bit of research. [Although it would be much easier with access to Gideon—as so many things would be. Regardless, Rip remains undaunted.]

Thank you for the tip. And you would be? [Someone not only with differing information, but a rather unique backdrop for his message compared to the others he's seen thus far.]

video;

[stefanged]

Our gracious hosts – or so we've been told. I haven't seen them in well over a year.

[ Not that he's complaining. If anything, Stefan almost sounds relieved (because truthfully, those two were super annoying). ]

No problem. I'm Stefan, captain of the SS Paisley. It's one of the smaller ships surrounding the Marsiva. I've also been here almost two years, so... you can ask me about whatever Nightingale's guide doesn't cover.

[ Hang on. He's checking the responses and it doesn't seem like the guide has been linked, so he'll attach a handy link to "What the Hell Is Going On." If Rip checks the network files directory, he'll see it there too. ]

Re: video;

[directed]

Something you hardly seemed bothered by.

[Even considering that this situation is highly irregular, Rip cannot say it's a good thing that there's been no contact made in so long. Not with all that could be inferred, such as the hosts being dead, and the Fleet continuing to drift on regardless.

Still. Rip doubts Stefan will be able to provide answers to that end with any more certainty than the others he's spoken to thus far. What he does offer up, however, is a guide.

How convenient.]

No one mentioned there being a summary of the situation as of yet. [Things that would have been convenient...] I'll keep your offer in mind; thank you.

[And it's likely pretty obvious that Rip has already pulled up the guide and is looking it over.]