driftfleet | case 001

Entry tags:

case 001

Who: Lucky, and YOU!
Broadcast: Fleetwide
Action: the Marsiva
When: at least a few hours before shuffle

[ When the video begins, whoever is using the communication station is standing, so you can only see their midsection (an amethyst-purple sweater under a black-and-amethyst plaid flannel shirt).

The owner of said sweater mutters to herself for a moment. ] Can't tell if it's working even with something in my brain telling me how it works...

[ There's another moment, the person moving, and then she finally sits down, revealing a woman with an unnaturally-angular (for a human, which she's clearly not) face, pale fog-grey eyes, and sharply pointed ears (though not as dramatically pointed as the sin'dorei on the fleet). Also a floppy knit hat, in the same shade of purple as her shirts. Man, what's up with this lady and purple, right?

She purses her lips and raises an eyebrow. ]

I don't suppose I'd be lucky enough to just be separated from the other Amethysts in some game in the Ring?

Yeah. Didn't think so. I'm Lucky, can anyone tell me if there's anyone from a place called Aather here?

[ Whether "Lucky" is her name or just a statement is unclear from her tone. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[ Lucky covers her mouth with one hand, but it doesn't entirely hide the startled smile that's spreading across her face.

She laughs shakily ]

"Tobes", that's one I haven't heard in...

[ She shakes her head and lets out a deep breath ]

It's been a while. I think. Well, I mean, I know it's been a while, I was in Aather for more than a year, but-- I'm not sure about before that.

Few years, I think. Dunno for sure, don't remember much since...

[ Since she left and he fell apart. He not sure if he has the distance or perspective on it that he feels like he should have, thanks to his memory being a haze. He'd gotten good at pretending he did, but that's all starting to shake loose now. ]

Only been here a month, though. Er, meanin' the fleet. Space again, yeah? S'always gotta be space.

[ The whole playful kidding around thing doesn't work so well when he can't manage a genuine smile, but he gives it a brief attempt anyway. ]

Well, it wouldn't be like old times if it wasn't space.

[ This is just bizarre. And amazing. She kind of... never expected to see anyone from her past, ever. And now here's one of the people she felt strongest about? Her memories of Ladon were emotional and intense and here he is.

Her sincerity when she speaks again might be a bit unnerving for Ladon, given how unguarded it is. She'll explain why she's different, she promises, but... ]

It's really good to see you again, boss.

[ That makes him laugh a little, mirthlessly. Finally he looks at the video feed, and when she says it's good to see him and calls him "boss," that disarms him just enough that the small pull downward of his lips betrays that he really, really wants to say it back. He does. But he's still hurting way too much.

Instead he rubs at his mouth as if that was some physical tick rather than an emotional one. ] Last thing I ever expected, yeah? The hell's been goin' on, Toby? What's an Aather?

It's... hard to explain.

[ Somehow it's easier with people who've just arrived. At least they're experiencing it, you know? ]

I was brought to a world called Aather, to... help fight something they called the Darkness. It was trying to devour the world, and had found paths to other worlds through people, so we were brought there to not only keep our worlds safe, but help defeat it once and for all.

[ She hesitates, looks down with a slight twist of her lips ]

Thing is, in order for it all to work, they had to strip us of our memories, initially. We could get them back, as time went on, a little bit at a time, but... [ a short laugh ] It's so weird, no one's called me Toby in... well, since I got there.

[ So she didn't go home. All this time, all this time he's been beating himself up over not feeling happy for her, for selfishly wanting her to come back, because he thought she was finally home with her people. And even that wasn't real.

For the first time he's debating giving the punching bag in the rec room a few jabs. He doesn't know whether to be more angry at himself or at these... fucked up circumstances they've found themselves in.

He should feel blessed that she remembers him at all. ]

How much d'you remember?

Enough to have a pretty good idea who I was back home. Enough that I remember you. And the, uh...

[ She gestures, making little horns with her fingers. Hey, she doesn't know if it's still on the down-low or not! ]

I know I'm missing a lot still, but if I had to pick someone to get to see again first, it would be you or May. So... Yay?

[ awkward smile? ]

So, not much else 'bout the station, I'm guessin'? [ That's likely for the best, considering all the shit they'd gone through there. He still had nightmares now and then, about the Phazon and what it did to him, Jin's public maiming... It all mixed into the terrible things he'd done and witnessed in Nieve now, and deprived him of a considerable amount of sleep. ]

Yeah, ain't seen May here. Sorry. [ That would have been a very unique kind of torture. He'd been half-expecting her to be yet another Fetch or something similar when she didn't introduce herself as October Daye. ] No one else we knew on Sacrosanct neither. But the bein' stuck in other places thing, s'common. Castles, other space shit... the whole run of weird shit.

Some. Enough. [ Yeah that face is enough to confirm she remembers some of the... less pleasant bits of Sacrosanct. She remembers the Phazon, at least. Or, well, their conversation through his door. It was-- It's--

Well, a large part of how she's processed her emotions towards Ladon is influenced by that memory. ]

That's... probably good. More likely she's home, right?

[ She knows it doesn't actually mean May's probably home, but GIVE HER THIS. ]

S'where I thought you were. [ That's no consolation, he knows. But he also knows Toby's not the kind to want coddling, not when it goes against everything he's feeling deep down. He's starting to think, really think, that going home isn't really an option anymore.

It doesn't matter that he did, briefly, when he was stuck on the station. He doesn't even know if that was real, or just Hypatia pacifying him, or the rift messing with his head.

He doesn't know anything anymore. Because the one thing he knew was that Toby was gone and... ]

But I hope she is, yeah?

To be fair, I might've been home for a while before Aather. I'm not really sure how a lot of my memories line up.

[ Which is part of why she hasn't asked... if they were... a thing or not. She's pretty sure she doesn't have enough context to say for sure if they were there or not. Or almost, or if it was just her, or...

It's such a weird situation, and the idea of trying to explain it is daunting. ]

Okay, so where are you, and how do I get there?

Yeah, don't have much an idea here neither. Feel older, like it's been a couple years at least but I keep comin' up blank.

[ He suspects part of it is the augment in his head. Ugh, how is he going to explain that to her? Considering she remembers 'enough' from the station, the idea of having something implanted by a mysterious party-- Hypatia or no-- might hit her about as hard as it hit him.

He can't help getting protective about her again, even though logically he knows that's what got him in trouble last time. ]

You're on the Marsiva right now, yeah? S'a place all the new folks show up. No access to it for the rest of us. [ He chews at his bottom lip, obviously bothered by that fact. ] Won't get t'see you 'til you get placed on a ship. If you're put on the Tourist, we're in luck. If not, gonna have t'take the shuttle over to where you end up.

[ It probably isn't hitting her as hard as him, but she is... distinctly uncomfortable already with it. It's not likely to get better any time soon. ]

Oh.

[ She sighs and rubs her face with one hand. That was not what she wanted to hear. ]

Ah. Okay, um... Is there a schedule for the placement... thing? Or is it just whenever they decide to do it?

Tends t'happen 'round this time each week. Could be soon. [ He's fishing out a cigarette and lighting it now. It doesn't matter that he finished one not long ago, his nerves are in shambles. His crew might not appreciate the smell the bridge is going to carry, but until he settles down, he's probably going to be chain-smoking both to calm himself and cover up for the way his furnace keeps threatening heat up. ]

S'when folks can transfer ships, too. So if you get put on 'nother ship, haveta get moved over here... If you want to, anyhow. And if the idea of me drivin' one of these things don't scare you away.

[ That's a little closer to the playful banter he's used to having with her. Either the shock is wearing off or the nicotine is kicking in. ]

Well, it's risky, but if transfers are available, I think I'll take a chance on your piloting abilities.

[ She grins crookedly at him, pulls the amethyst pendant out of her sweater to fiddle with it absently. ]

So you're a pilot? Who thought that was a good idea?

Hey, I ain't bad. [ He puffs a little on his cigarette and shrugs. ] Ain't good neither, but the ship's still in one piece thanks t'me.

[ And scratched up and dented thanks to him but shhhhh. He watches her play with her necklace a moment. ] S'a good color on you.

Uh-huh, I'll believe it when I see it.

[ "one piece" is definitely more important than "undented", really, so. ]

What? [ She looks down, then laughs softly ] Oh, Amethyst. Um, it was-- we were on teams, basically different gemstone colors. Iolite, Peridot, Sapphire. I was on Amethyst.

[ And that's when it really hits her that she's here and not there, and she frowns a little ]

And I get to worry if they're okay or not, now. Great.

Yeah yeah.

[ He does genuinely smile at that. The smile dies off though as she looks upset over her teammates. ]

Might show up here, yeah? Ain't the best option, but it's somethin'. This place... So far, ain't as bad as Sacrosanct was.

I'd rather they stay in Aather, honestly. Their teammates can keep an eye on them, Beauty can help keep them safe... it might not actually be safer, but it's more familiar, and there are plenty of people I trust.

[ She nods a little to herself ]

They'll be fine. They always are. I just... fuss over them sometimes, you know? They're all pretty young, I guess I kind of mother them a little.

Always had a way of takin' in kids, yeah? S'a few here, on different ships. [ He can see her mothering a group of kids dressed in purple without much trouble. He wants to ask how much she remembers about her own daughter, but he's not about to get into that over a public network instead of face-to-face. ]

No Jade, though. Worried 'bout her. And Cathy, and Jin...

Yeah, well. What can I say, I do what comes naturally, and fussing over kids comes naturally.

[ She remembers a fair amount about Gillian. She's started sort of coming to terms with the situation, of Gilly not wanting her to be part of her life, the 14 years she lost and the years she'll be denied.

It's a slow thing though. Getting memories of her birth, her childhood, and then losing her, all in short succession... it's a special, miserable feeling. But she's getting there. ]

Jade I remember, and Jin. Nnnot Cathy though. She was a friend of yours?

[ This is probably for the best, given their last real conversation, right? ]

Yeah, yours too, far's I could tell. Nice young gal, a real fizz. Used t'have to keep an eye on her when she got a li'l too much champagne in her.

[ One night of which happened to result in the entire station thinking he'd slept with her. That had been a nightmare. Cathy was sweet, and if she was ten years older maybe he would've been as conflicted as he was over Toby. But she was like a younger sister to him more than anything. ]

Actually, that's somethin' I'm wonderin'. D'you remember the Apple? [ Granted she remembers him, and he likely goes hand-in-hand with his bar, but there's no telling what holes are in her memory, if the Cathy-sized one is any indication. ]

She sounds like a good kid. I wish I remembered her.

[ Lucky looks a little wistful at the description of Cathy, honestly.

But then Ladon mentions the Apple, and that gets a pretty big grin. ]

Yeah, I remember the Apple. Probably better than anywhere else on the Station, honestly.

Good, good. Was gonna say, place we're docked has some sorta... virtual-thingummy that can go lookin' like anywhere you want it to. Ain't gone near it, but somethin' like that might help jog your memory, yeah?

You didn't remember the Apple, I'd have to go draggin' you there.

Like anywhere?

[ she perks up a bit. ]

I might have to show you Amethyst's cabin, then. It's not super fancy or anything, but it's home.

case 001

Video;

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)

(no subject)