Calibration Post 1, "Daytime"

[thespaceopera]

[ Not long after the shuffle, there's a ripple of static over the network - loud, sudden, and seemingly with no origin. It's puzzling, but there's no indication that it's going to happen again...

Until a minute later. Another surge of static comes in over the speakers, and then a voice - one some may find familiar, though not necessarily welcome, after all of this time... It's Diamond. Long time no speak, hmm?

Clearly, not all is well. She sounds very far away, for one. For another, she sounds... skeptical, almost alarmed. There may actually be real concern in her voice. ]

Again? Twice in one c--

[ Her sentence is cut short with a strangled gasp, followed by a moment of silence. What follows may be the sound of metal dragged across metal, but it's hard to place. When she speaks again, it's uncharacteristically monotonous. ]

... Bring them in.

[ A blip of lost time passes right after those words, before every passenger mysteriously wakes alone in their own unfamiliar room. The style of decor resembles that of the Marsiva's Hospitality Deck, if any passengers should remember what that's like. It sounds and smells the same as the host ship as well, all clean and chrome, but this set of rooms has only been used once, and for the very same purpose that befalls the fleet contestants now.

As for their hosts, there is no immediate sign of them, though some may recall a series of hideous, half-electronic screams before their memories begin to blur upon arrival...

Welcome back to the Marsiva, dear passengers. It's time for round two of calibrations. ]

[ This mingle will cover all non-calibration room interactions. Please continue to come back to it for the duration of the plot! You are, of course, free to post any other mingles/posts/etc. that you'd like. ]

Comments

[passingthrough]

[She wasn't looking for Vash despite feeling like they should talk. There were things to talk about, right? She assumed he remembered because she does. But that isn't on her mind when she comes across him and sees him really intently pressing a decorative black glass plate. She could chalk it up to Vash is weird sometimes, but she doesn't, because there is something so vaguely, hauntingly familiar about this particular brand of weird. Like there is something on the tip of her tongue but she can't really access it. Can't say it. Can't see it. Can't think it.]

Are you...?

Does whatever you're doing have anything to do with this?

[She adjusts her arm, revealing her own handwriting. Three Twins: NO? ?? ???????, Windrose: NO? ?? ???????, Cycle 12, Engineer, *, Winn Schott: inactive.]

I found it when I woke up this morning. [It feels related, but she doesn't understand why and "Winn Schott: inactive" is understandably upsetting.]

(OOC: *She would have copied down the six-digit number too. I just don't know if I should make one up or not without checking with mods.)

[goldenglasses]

[At first Vash just nods a brief greeting. Not really paying full attention as he works quickly. He's not sure if his access will be cut off tomorrow, a year, or in five minutes so he's trying to go quick.

That is until Kitty points out the messages on her arm. He looks down at it and instantly recognizes what he sees.] Yes! [Excitedly he taps at the keyboard and brings up the information on the Windrose again.]

Do you remember writing it down?

[As part of the reason he was so manic to try to look at everything was because he thought he remember seeing it all before, but it was a hazy memory. And did not like the implications of missing memories on his normal days.]

[passingthrough]

[She watches him work, but it continues to look mostly like nonsense to her. Every now and then there's a flash that makes sense and then it escapes her again with only the memory that there had been something there.]

No, so you can imagine my surprise. [She shakes her head, frustrated by trying to see whatever it is that doesn't want her to see it.] What are you seeing?

[She's definitely not a fan either.]

[goldenglasses]

It's a computer. [He taps his finger at the screen. Where he's now brought up Winn's file.] You really can't see this?

[passingthrough]

[She gets closer and squints.] It's like there's almost something but then it's gone and I can't stay focused on it.

But I must have seen it yesterday.

[goldenglasses]

This happened before. Seeing things... then forgetting it again. The last time they brought us here. [Vash unbuckles the straps on his left arm to reveal the hidden metal part of his arm under it so he can also take notes.]

The files of the passengers. I think... I think they're still the same. [Why was it so hard to remember!?]

[passingthrough]

[She watches him with the arm, remembering seeing it used as a weapon in his memories.]

I never heard that part before. Did anyone keep records? Did they get erased? Confiscated?

[goldenglasses]

I had some things I wrote down last time too. Well, back on the ship. I'm not sure what they're doing with our ships at the moment so it may all be gone if we ever get back to the Twin Roses.

[passingthrough]

If I remember this conversation by the time we're there I'd love to see it. [Assuming they haven't removed it.] Now the big question, is this something they're failing to stop or something they want us to find?

[goldenglasses]

I don't know. Last time I don't remember seeing anything overly important in what was found, but with the way we forget? I'm not sure we're really suppose to see these things.

[passingthrough]

It definitely seems more promising like when I woke up in my body in Marina. [A statement that may not completely make sense to Vash. Has she mentioned it was a shared virtual reality there?] Like it was something they were really trying to hide rather than show us. [Not that she could be sure then or now.]

[goldenglasses]

Exactly. [Vash gives a couple gentle taps to his forehead with his index finger.] I don't mean to brag, but I tend to have a really good memory. They must be doing something for me to have forgotten these files again.

[passingthrough]

Yeah, my ability to remember strange discoveries from a day ago is usually top notch. I'm not even sure why I thought to write it on my arm. [It was because it was all she had handy and she wanted to get a few things perfectly.] We might just forget this again. [She is finding it hard to hold on to even during this conversation.]

[goldenglasses]

Maybe. [Slowly Vash had begun to blink a bit more often during their conversation. As if he was trying to clear his eyesight.]

But maybe with what we can keep we might one day be able to piece together.

[passingthrough]

Are you going to write down the rest?

[goldenglasses]

I'm going to try. I mean, I only have so much arm to write on. I'm going to write it down on paper too, but nothing I've left in my room overnight has stayed where I've left it.

So I'm not sure if any of it will be there when I get up.

[He's actually already tried it a few times and forgotten that he had.]

[passingthrough]

They seem determined. They either want to increase the challenge for the audience's amusement or this is real stuff.

[goldenglasses]

These numbers clearly mean something. Look here if you can. [He points to a series of numbers he hasn't yet identified as the numbers that label a person's species.] This is Makie here and she has the same number as Jarvis here.

But Crowley, [He brings up another file.] His is different. I can't figure out what it means yet.