Action - Marsiva(ish)

[angelofthevored]

Who: Loki (dothelokimotion); Thor (rebuildyourruins); Kaworu (paraclete); Eizen (rockily); Castiel (angelofthevored)
Broadcast: Nada
Action: A transport ship >> Marsiva (outer space) to do some junk
When: Sometime during the weekend of 5/18

[It's a ship full of dumb immortal assholes who are not only tired of sitting around, but are fundamentally sorta bad at it.

Except for Kaworu, primordial stoner. And Loki, provided there's some community theater to behold.]

Comments

TRANSPORT

[angelofthevored]

[After creeping on those involved to have them meet him at a spaceport, and then gently liberating said spaceport of one of its ships, Castiel turns to the motley group before him as they clear atmosphere and head for the Marsiva up in orbit.]

Whatever we discover...I want to share with the rest of the captives. A colleague and I can pass the information along through dreams to keep it as far from Atroma as we can manage.

[It's not a long trip up, but there's a lot to discuss. Maybe they should even get to know each other a little; this could be a suicide mission, after all.]

EXPLORING/ATTACKING THE MARSIVA

[angelofthevored]

[Decompressing the bay of the transport doesn't take long; the Marsiva looms nearby. No shots fired, no interference. There isn't even any sort of shield or barrier to prevent them from approaching the ship.

It feels too easy. Perhaps that it feels so easy explains the heavy, sick-settling dread that begins to descend upon the group. It cloys distastefully in their minds, sits like bile or blood on their tongues. Horrors experienced come more easily to the mind, grip insides and wavelengths and mana alike, seize hearts and squeeze.

Perhaps resistance of the more physical sort would have been preferable.]

DISCOVERY

[angelofthevored]

[There's something in the ship.

There's only one window that doesn't reflect back their faces; a tiny thing, so far tucked away it would have been impossible to spot it without practically crawling on the outer hull of the Marsiva.

It's slick and shimmering; the unclean rainbow film of oil glides over a darkness so black, it's nearly void. A river of it coating a floor much like that of the hospitality bay, slicking up walls, clinging to ceilings. It's ominous. It's dreadful.

Whatever it is, it looks like it could even be alive.

Immediately once he finds it, Castiel zips off to find the others to show them.]

[rebuildyourruins]

[Unlike their first meeting, Thor's all business this time, which means he's come in his armour. It's fortunate he commissioned a new cape as soon as he arrived in this system - it will make this spacecapade much more dramatic.

Thor nods as he tightens his wristguards. He had already planned to debrief the Avengers, no matter what the outcome is.]

I would also suggest it gets added to the document on the Iskaulit.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki also comes donned in his armor, his horns in full display. ]

Best not to do it on the network though.

[rebuildyourruins]

[It's a rude smack in the face, when that unease and dread starts to set in. After months of being idle, being ineffective, finally Thor was doing something. Not since trying to burn out the augment has he had a viable way forward. It energises him in a way petty sports contests and collecting swords can't.

And now this. It's only due to his aborted attempts to remove his augment that Thor recognises what's starting to happen, though even that takes a while. At first it settles in like doubt - maybe this was a foolhardy attempt, maybe there was something within that would make itself known - only it keeps encroaching further into his mind. That's not his own doubt. That's what the edge of his knife had felt like when he drove it towards the augment.

Thor hangs in space for a few minutes, breathing hard despite the lack of air. It's enough to set his hands to trembling. But Thor is a god, and an Asgardian. He is stubborn as a mule. And eventually this sensation pisses him off enough that a flare of anger is enough to refocus him to the task at hand. An illogical part of his mind decides that slapping back will get the sensation to stop.

His eye burns blinding white and arcs of electricity spawn around him. There's no natural weather out here to draw upon, so his own reserves of lightning will do the work. Defying all physics, Thor throws his hand out towards the Marsiva and a boom echoes through space as a huge bolt of lightning strikes the hull.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki merely watches. It's easy enough to manipulate himself through space, using magic but he's struggling. Dark thoughts were slipping through and he's afraid to look behind him, as if the Void still lurks, close enough to touch. He was going to fall and he'll keep falling again and it'll never stop —

Loki throttles the feelings as he comes up closer. ]

Nothing. Not even a dent.

[rebuildyourruins]

[There's tension lining Thor's face and wound all through his shoulders as he glares daggers at the Marsiva's hull. No scratch at all. He's positive a lightning blast should have done something. It hasn't though, and that gnawing dread is settling in the pit of his stomach again. If it retaliates, can he counter it?

--of course he can.

Thor turns to look at Loki as he drifts closer, having almost forgotten the other man was there. He nods once, sharp, before turning his attention back to the looming ship.]

I'll try multiple strikes.

[dothelokimotion]

Fine.

[ Loki doubts multiple strikes will work. He doubts anything will work. And the void was out there. He closes his eyes, focusing on pushing it aside. It's not there. He can do this. He is a God. With that, he bends down, looking for any kind of space to wedge a knife in. His breathing comes out in short, erratic pants, quiet and breathy. ]

[rebuildyourruins]

[Thor kicks off from the Marsiva, letting the momentum throw him back a safe distance away from where Loki is. It's a bit of a chore to stop himself out here. He doesn't have Loki's telekinetic abilities, so erratic bursts of lightning will have to do. It's graceless but it works. Harder to manage is the urge to just ... keep going away from the Marsiva, fling himself away from it until this omnipresent dread leaves him be.

He grits his teeth and halts himself. Throwing both arms out, he begins hammering the smooth walls of the Marsiva again, a volley of bolts one after another at the same point. Through the storm of lightning he thinks he can see scorches and breaks appear - only for them to vanish just as fast, fixed. A wave of anxiety washes through him... just what are they really dealing with?

Eventually he stops, winded not so much by the use of power but the foreboding crawling over his skin.]

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki jumps as the lightning strikes a little too close for comfort. ]

Thor! Careful!

[rebuildyourruins]

[Thor curses under his breath for being that careless. He flings a burst of lightning behind himself and comes back over to where Loki is searching the hull, tapping his hand to it to stop his movement.]

Sorry - it moves differently out here.

[He flicks his eyes over Loki's face, frowning in the dim light. His brother doesn't look particularly well.]

Nothing?

[dothelokimotion]

No.

[ He rises, rubbing his elbows. Was it cold? Loki shouldn't feel cold. It's not possible. Finally Loki glances at Thor, quiet and heartsore. ]

I don't think this is working.

[angelofthevored]

[Returns the nod.] Agreed. Word of mouth is too unreliable.

Though I doubt we'll be able to stop people from speaking of it on the ships after we tell them. Possibly even over the network.

[angelofthevored]

Though I agree, I think it's inevitable that some discussion will end up there. [Next to two gods in full armor, Castiel looks woefully unprepared in his same old trenchcoat. If he's at all perturbed, however, he doesn't look it.]

[rebuildyourruins]

Maybe not. But things should not stay hidden forever. If we do find out something useful, I would rather it be spoken of too much than not at all.

[Given his own experiences trying to get information around the Fleet, he's a little tired of the 'gently, gently' method. He's ready to bust heads.]

Most think the Iskaulit is a safe enough place to talk, given it was not part of the original Fleet.

[dothelokimotion]

Perhaps we can vet some stupidity before we spread the word.

[ Loki looks at Castiel's clothes. ]

Is that what angels wear?

[rebuildyourruins]

[The cold doesn't bother Thor much, though he certainly knows it is cold out here. It's the vacuum of space. If he were out here for a long time, it would start to get to him eventually. He doesn't intend on reaching that point though.

Loki's disappointment mirrors Thor's own frustration. This had been their best chance to make some headway. Find out something new.]

I could see some damage - but it keeps fixing itself. We don't have the kind of force needed to hit all of it at once.

[And that irks Thor to no end. He balls his hands into fists, staring up at the blank walls of the ship.]

It's trying to drive us off.

[dothelokimotion]

[ Loki exhales. He wants to go, he doesn't want to be out here, he doesn't want to fall — ]

Gives me a moment. I'm going to try and breach the panels.

[ Magic seeps over the top of the Marsiva, seeking out cracks or lines that might help Loki pull it apart. ]

[angelofthevored]

I didn't think of that. [Maybe so, then. It's difficult to think of a place that Atroma can't see or reach, but Cas also knows that maintaining the illusion of omnipotence is much easier than the actual practice of it.] It would be wise. After we've all shared what we've learned, provided we don't die, will you take it there? [Thor seems to be the sturdiest, and it's his idea and all. Go for it dude.]

[angelofthevored]

More or less. [The vessel part anyway.

Cas leans a little to look out a porthole past Loki's shoulder; they're far enough away from the planet's surface. Atmosphere should filter out most of it.] I'm going to vacate my vessel once we're closer. Everyone here should be fine, but you may wish to close your eyes when I do for your own comfort.

[rebuildyourruins]

[Thor hangs back, letting Loki get to work. He has to keep flexing his hands to release some of the maddening tension in the back of his head. It's almost enough to make him want to punch the stupid ship, yell at it to knock it off.

The utter silence they've been met with this whole time is only making him feel worse.]

[rebuildyourruins]

I will. If I talk to the rest of my team about this, it will be either there or on one of the planets below.

[He rubs at his chin, thinking.]

You said you wanted to spread the word through dreams. You may find some won't believe messages in that form.

[While Thor's got experience with prophetic dreams, others definitely don't. He had seen the doubt in Selvig's eyes when he explained his plan to reach the Norns and return to the dream Wanda had seared into his mind. These are not things mortals tend to deal with often.]

[angelofthevored]

Unfortunately, yeah. But I can't think of another way to deliver exactly what we see. [It's not just about telling them with words; Cas fully intends to implant memories. He's going to need some help with that but he's found that not just for mortals, but many people, that seeing really is believing.]

[rebuildyourruins]

[Castiel has a point there. Thor has no doubt his friends would believe him, but others he doesn't know so well would be less likely to believe things.]

It is worth doing, no matter the outcome.