► 00_01/.

[fallbythesword]

Who: Jacqli and YOU!!
Broadcast: Yes - fleetwide
Action: If you want - aboard the Marsiva
When: RIGHT NOW!

[ New kid on the hospitality deck! After establishing that she can't simply disappear from this place and reappear in not actually space the Astral Plane, she really only has one thing she even wants to bother to ask of the network at large.

She turns on the video feed, and looks very, very unimpressed - bored, even. ]

If anyone knows about The Machine as it relates to the Astral Plane, or a very specific shop, respond to this.

[ There's a long pause. ... Okay, okay, fine, she should probably also say something borderline nice. Ugh. ]

... In the absence of such knowledge, I guess someone could tell me what planet that is outside, and why it sounds like a nervous pop star.

Comments

action

[echovocation]

[There are heartbeats; some of them feel odd, and there are noises of things moving around that don't have heartbeats at all. When nothing comes gunning for him and when his shoulders finally relax from their fight-or-flight (probably fight lbr) bunch, Matt fumbles for his glasses and immediately sits up on the cot upon which he'd been dumped. No wounds (well, none that he didn't already know about), no strange tastes or smells. He hasn't been drugged or restrained. He's in his normal clothes, not the suit.

So, the tried and true methodology of Matthew Murdock, when faced with an alarming situation that he doesn't understand, is to go completely still and listen to fuckin' everything until he gets a better idea of where he is and what the fuck is going on. After that, he meditates. Focuses on one particular sound and follows it; a heartbeat, quick but not panicked, with just that strange little whir of electricity or machinery behind it. He listens until he feels more centered, until he's sure he can search out some answers without being overwhelmed by the urge to punch everything.

There's...something feeding him knowledge already, which he is far from comfortable with, but if he can corroborate this with someone else's experiences, he'd feel a little better. So when the owner of that heartbeat starts speaking Matt feigns a jolt, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed and feeling around as if searching for his cane, leaning nearby.]

Excuse me? Are you still there?

[fallbythesword]

[ She looks up when he speaks, that same intensely unamused look on her face - until she very quickly realizes that he's blind. In which case, she doesn't even bother with maintaining any sort of expression. What would be the point?

She slides off of her own bed, walks evenly over to his cane, and holds it out toward his reaching hand. ]

Yes. There aren't many places to go, for what it's worth.

[echovocation]

So it's- ah, thank you- So we really are on a ship. In space. [Matt rests his cane against his shoulder.]

[fallbythesword]

For better or worse. [ she still sounds bored. ] Never been in space before?

[echovocation]

Can't say I have. Haven't really been kidnapped either, experimented on...never heard of 'The Machine' or the 'Astral Plane,' either. Or at least, probably not in the context you're referring to.

video;

[aetherflows]

[This was him literally three days ago. But.]

Pop star...? I admit I do not have the hearing of a hunter but I should think the sound of stars popping would be very noticeable. Unless you meant a star in the entertainment sort of capacity, in which case I must still ask what you are listening to.

[He's heard the voice of Hydaelyn, or at least heard it delivered through Minfilia, and Minfilia sounds nothing like a nervous idol before her Little Ladies' Day debut.]

video;

[fallbythesword]

[ ... Ah. Terminology mix-up. Should have expected that. She shakes her head. ]

I did mean the entertainment sort. I'm listening to that planet, and its constant humming with enough anxious energy that it may as well be a beacon. [ Beat. ] If there were literal stars popping anywhere near us, we would have bigger problems.

video;

[aetherflows]

Absolutely, hence my alarm!

[He knows a little about astrophysics, thank you... though it wasn't his course of study.]

Now that you mention it, humming is a very apt descriptor. I've noticed the din coming from the [it's not a linkpearl, don't call it a linkpearl] -- communicator seems almost melodic, but I thought it was my imagination...

There is something much larger at play here, but what that thing is, I cannot confidently tell you. Suffice it to say that the uneasy feeling is not a figment of your imagination. A few others have written about it already if you browse the archives.

Re: video;

[fallbythesword]

[ god that's a lot of words ]

I did browse the archives. I wasn't satisfied with the answers, so I asked again. [ SHRUG ] But if there really are no new developments or information, then whatever. I'll look for myself when I get off this boat.

[aetherflows]

That is the best recourse, I'm afraid; I am forced to do the same thing. Asking rarely delivers detailed answers. And something like this cannot be anything but detailed.

Do they have ships like this where you are from? I admit I've never seen the like.

text.

[torsion]

Can't help on that first part, but the planet's called Lyuku. I've heard there have been other "singing" planets, but I don't know why or what it means, sorry.

I believe you'll be able to travel down to it once you've left the Marsiva, though. Unless you can now? It was on lockdown when I arrived so I'm not sure if it's standard to be stuck on it any other time.

[fallbythesword]

[ Ah, text. Just as well. ]

Where I'm from, the planet sings, so that's pretty typical to me. But this one sounds like it's having a panic attack. [ And she is concerned, even if she's acting all flippant about it. ]

It's on lockdown now. I've read I'll be moved to another ship. Do people get moved between ships against their will often? Because that sounds ridiculous and annoying.

[torsion]

[ It's not true anonymity, but it allows her the freedom of not having to be careful in tone (or misheard) and not have to worry about how she looks. Or, more importantly, she can wait and see if she wants someone to know what she looks like. ]

The only sounds mine has are from the life on it, I'm afraid. Not sure how to help with this directly, unfortunately. Or if we can.

You should be, yes. To my knowledge it doesn't happen too often and you can shuttle between ships at will, so you're not even stuck on the one you're technically assigned to. We aren't always close to planets, though.

I've only been here a few months so I'm not necessarily the most well-informed but I'll try to share anything you may want or need to know to make it easier on you.

[fallbythesword]

[ why are you being so nice and forthcoming with info. what do you want. ]

I doubt I have anything to give you in return. I'm only here with the clothes on my back, after all.

[torsion]

[ Because she's a sadsack and this makes her feel useful, obviously. ]

Nothing I really want or need -- other than things you can't give. Been here just long enough to get some things I'm familiar with, but what I want are the things that are mine.

Sucks, but what can you do, right?

Video

[brothersboots]

[It's really a shame that the communicators don't have any resonance, because Jacqli is missing the look of annoyed resignation on Edna's face.

But empty voice and video works, right.]

I don't know what a pop star is but the stupid planet is supposedly crying out for help. From us.

[fallbythesword]

[ Yeah, that's an empty video feed. But she picks up on the tone, and she can appreciate it, honestly. ... Still weird that she can't see anything... ]

From us? How stupid. What can we do? We don't even live there. [ She shakes her head. ] Panic makes everything throw logic right out the window...

[brothersboots]

[ Eh, she'll get used to it. It's not like Edna's the only seraph running around the ships, after all. ]

That doesn't matter. In fact, not living here is the reason it wants our help. It's not like the Atroma picked a bunch of powerful beings to have them braid each other's hair all day.

[fallbythesword]

I didn't realize being powerful was a qualifier for getting dragged here. Typical. [ She shrugs. ] If the planet decides to be more specific about how to help, then maybe it's possible. Otherwise, it might as well just be yelling at nothing.

[brothersboots]

There aren't any normal people here from what I can tell.

[Not that she pays attention to what normal is for humans.]

As for the planet, it's a gigantic rock, basically. I don't think it knows how to be more specific.

[iattractmushi]

The planet's sending out a distress signal, from what I gather. What it expects us to do about it I'm not sure, but I guess we'll find out sooner or later.

[Hopefully in some non-deadly manner.]

[fallbythesword]

If it expects us to do something about it, then it should actually tell us what to do, not sit there and yell about it. Communication is important. Or something like that.

[ She rolls her eyes. ]

[iattractmushi]

Well, to be fair it is a whole planet. It might be hard for it to communicate with us like that.

[To be honest, he's still having a little trouble with the concept of a living planet in the first place, but it makes sense that it wouldn't be able to communicate like people do... right?]

[fallbythesword]

It might take more effort. Maybe it's just lazy, then.

[ But she doesn't actually care all that much, so she shrugs. ]

So how does this work? Are we stuck by this planet until we fix what it's yelling about, or do we actually get to move through space?

[iattractmushi]

We seem to move around at the whim of the people who run the show. I'd guess we're going to stay until whatever happens happens, though. Apparently this isn't the first time we've arrived just in time to help with some kind of crisis.

We do move through space, though. That seems to be the whole point of the show, making us deal with weird things and new situations.