driftfleet | 1 prayer

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1 prayer

Who: Libra and whoever
Broadcast: Open video
Action: Marsiva
When: Now

[The video feed shows a disoriented human waking up on the Marsiva. Long lashes flutter open to reveal bewildered green eyes, and the camera zooms out to a pretty face surrounded by long blond hair. Libra lifts his head, only to be met with a room too clean and white to be real. Glancing around, he doesn't see anyone, so he gets to his feet silently, one hand instinctively reaching to his bedside for an axe that isn't there.

The cameras follow him as he explores the room, shivering slightly despite the vestments he wears that cover him completely from the neck down. He seems concerned but determined, managing to hold onto a brittle calm only due to years of self-control. He shies away from any screens he comes across the moment his eyes fall upon them: he can read the supposedly-comforting words displayed there just fine, but he doesn't have the context that would make them make sense, and even with the knowledge beginning to trickle into his mind which insists that things like this are normal, their very existence is unsettling.

Eventually he stops at a window with a view out into space, staring at the stars and coming to grips for the first time with the fact that there is no land supporting them at all.] N-Naga preserve us...what...?

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[Another new arrival - very new, if he's that awed by the view. Not that it isn't breathtaking in its own right, but his instincts tell the Vision this person isn't used to this kind of thing at all. Best use audio, then, and save his appearance for a later shocker. His voice is calm, vaguely British in accent.]

It's a beautiful view, isn't it?

[The disembodied voice isn't helping Libra's nerves all that much either, but audio was definitely the right choice. Not knowing how to switch the feed on his own end, the wary look he gives the speaker is visible, but he sounds a little bit calmer as he responds.]

It's awe-inspiring, truly. [There's no sarcasm in his tone: he can appreciate beauty even when he's not sure of his own safety. He hesitates, searching for the right question to ask.] ...What's...happening? Why was I brought here?

[Sure, go straight for the tough questions.]

You've been given a place among the Drift Fleet, a set of travelling space vessels crewed by people taken from many different worlds and times. You're currently on the host ship, called the Marsiva, and will be assigned to a smaller ship as a crew member by the end of the week.

If this all seems very strange to you, you're not alone. There are roughly a dozen small ships with five to ten crew apiece. Neither are you without resources. You'll find there are certain pieces of information you never knew before, such as how to pilot a shuttle or encrypt a transmission.

As for why we are here? [He sighs, sounding irritated.] I don't suppose you've ever heard of reality television?

[Thus far, Libra's thought process has been 'we recently got done winning a war between gods for the sake of the world' -> 'I woke up somewhere wondrous and inexplicable' -> 'must be gods again' -> 'gods do things for a reason' -> 'I should find out what they want.'

This explanation is slowly dismantling his assumptions.]

I shouldn't even know what 'television' is. [But when he thinks about it, the answer comes to him as if he's remembering it, though he's sure he never had that knowledge before.]

[Best disabuse him of the notion that the Atroma are gods now. Yes, they do have a great deal of power over their subjects, but goodness forbid anyone actually start to worship them.]

Reality television is the lowest form of entertainment, but alas, it seems to be our role at the moment. You'll have an account with credits that does seem directly connected to the sorts of activities you get up to. Mostly, though, you can ignore that particular aspect of it and instead try to make the best of the situation.

We do have the opportunity to visit new planets and systems, and sail among the stars. And your fellow crew members--we may come from other worlds altogether, but I've met some of my dearest friends here.

[And at that last part of the explanation, he finally relaxes further. Of course the meaningful bonds that people form with each other are one of the things that persists no matter how foreign the environment.

He stares out at the stars for a bit longer before answering.]

I've lived in worse places than a clean ship with a view like this one. ...Do we return home eventually?

[He would hardly be the only one to have come from a worse situation, or at least to have experienced a worse situation. The mysterious disembodied voice seems to relax its tone at the question.]

We don't know the exact mechanics, but essentially yes. I've returned to this place twice after time spent at home, once with very little time having passed here and once where the time spent in both places seemed approximately equal. Yet when I did return, I had no memory of this place.

They say the prize for "winning" is to return home, but in this case, I think it may simply mean to return home with full knowledge of what was left behind.

...Well. I can't say I'm perfectly all right with the situation, but...nothing that I was doing at home will be altered by spending a little time away. I suppose the only thing to do is make the best of it.

That's a good attitude to have, and it should serve you well.

I am the Vision, Engineer aboard the Twin Roses, and if you've any questions, please don't hesitate to ask me. I've been here on and off for some time now.

I'm pleased to meet you. My name is Libra, of the Ylissean Shepherds.

Forgive me if this is ignorant, but is 'the Vision' some sort of title? [Funnily enough, he knows the Voice, but she also has an actual name she goes by when she's not speaking for the goddess.]

I'm glad to meet you, Libra.

[Good question. He sounds a bit amused.] It was at first, but it's become my name since then. I was seen in a vision before I awakened.

[That's not an answer he was expecting, and he seems intrigued by it.] Really... You must be someone quite important at home, then.

It's...complicated? He sounds a little amused.]

Er, in a way. I'm a member of a group called the Avengers, and we fight threats to the world. There are several of us here.

[He nods.] The Shepherds perform similarly, though our origins were less grand than the position we eventually reached. Naga's Voice even travels as one of us...but I don't think any of us have been the subject of a true prophecy.

[Time travel makes the concept a bit complicated.]

[Does it count if the prophecy was about a problem the Avengers created in the first place? ...Probably.]

It's meant a great deal of combat and a life not easily lived. And yet I wouldn't have it any other way.

It's called space. Apparently it's the final frontier.

[EVER HELPFUL.]

I...see. [And strangely enough, he does, at least the first part: the information comes trickling through his mind from his implant as soon as he begins to form questions about all the new concepts entering into his world.]

Are we to be explorers, then?

More like...the unwilling entertainment. Though there is some exportation, if you've got a mind for it.

[His tone suggests that he categorically does not. ]

All this capability, and they use it for entertainment? [He sounds a little disapproving, then shakes his head; no need to judge so quickly. Maybe they're also rescuing orphans and feeding the hungry, somewhere he hasn't seen.]

When do I get to meet the ones we're entertaining, then?

Pretty much. I mean, generally that's how it goes for most powers that be, I reckon. These guys are just blatant about it.

Nope. We've never come across anyone who's actually heard of the show.

[Aside from the Interceptors, but even Crowley won't mention them on the network.]

But how are we meant to provide entertainment for an audience we never meet? Not that I'm eager to become a spectacle by any means...

Generally just living your life seems to be enough for them. Atroma tend to be the ones that provide the actual entertainment- we just react to it.

[A very slight grimace.] What an unpleasant concept. ...Is there no way to avoid their gaze?

Afraid not. We can't even see the cameras they use for their spying. So can't even take the buggers out. It's very...creepy.

[That.... is not a voice she thought she would ever hear again. While she wouldn't wish the confusion and the hard learning curve that she and Morgan had to adjust to, they'd done it already once before.

However, having another of the Shepherds here is both a pleasure and a pain. (Why not their parents? Why Yarne's father and not Yarne himself?) She's knows him long enough to know that he's extremely disturbed and she doesn't blame him at all.

Quickly, she locks her signal so that it only goes to the War Monk and not the entirety of the ship.]

Libra! Thank the gods you're safe. I take it that you're on the big ship, yes? [It's been some months since she and Morgan arrived, but she remembers it just fine, thank you.]

Lucina! You're here, too?

I do seem to be safe for now - I hope you are as well? As far as the...ship, all I can tell from where I am is that it's very clean and austere, and no one else seems to be here.

[She offers the man a smile.]

Yes, Morgan and I are here. We arrived a few months ago.

That must be the Marsiva. We were there for about a week ourselves before we reached a smaller ship in what the Atroma call a "shuffle". Right now, I live on the Heron and Morgan is on the Caprine. I imagine it won't be long before you're moved to another ship and can travel freely between them otherwise.

Months? Surely it can't have been that long... [The fight against Grima has been over for a few weeks, by his reckoning.] But it will be a relief to end up somewhere besides here, I think - it's a bit unsettling to be so completely alone, even if we're able to communicate this way.

I think I understand as much as I'm likely to for now of what's going on and why we're in this place, but is there anything helpful that you've learned in the time you've been here?

Yes, but from all accounts, time doesn't continue while we are here. We can come from different points in time however.

As for the Marsiva, I can agree with that sentiment. Even with Morgan there with me, I found it unsettling and unreal. I spent more time watching and reading through these devices to get more history on our situation than exploration after the first day.

What I've learned is that there is, for as insane as it sounds, an audience watching us. Where they are, I've yet to find out, but they communicate with gifts, money and letters. And they seem to be rather interested in our personal lives. And attempting to get me to wear a dress.

I'm truly glad the two of you have had one another, through this trial.

...So our audience does communicate with us, even though we aren't allowed to meet them. [He glances away.] ...It's hard to express how uncomfortable the idea is of being on display to the world without any chance to hide away.

Well, Libra, we will help you acclimate as well as we can. I'm sure that you've noticed that you're unarmed. Don't worry about that because I can help with getting you weapons and a healing staff.

[She's got your back as your princess!]

You don't have to tell me. [She gives an awkward smile.] For the first few months, I walked around with my mask on, despite the looks that I garnered from my ship mates.

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