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Post by June Scarlet on Oct 17, 2017 16:33:41 GMT -5
Beatrice had finally tracked down the beast, no thanks to First Mate who’d taken every opportunity to either point out how she’d once had a conversation at that doorway, or how worthless her human replacement was. Beatrice was sick and tired of First Mate’s constant barrage of thoughts and insults. Oh, First Mate had dropped her name a few times by now, hinting that it was rude to always refer to someone by their title, but you’d do that anyway, wouldn’t you, you pale imitation.“Darn right I would, First Mate,” Beatrice said, putting emphasis on her continued use of the title. But it didn’t matter. She’d stop the beast, the one thing her high and mighty ancestor had never accomplished, and that’d make her shut up once and for all. Beatrice couldn’t actually see the creature, of course. But she could tell the signs that it was close. First Mate’s constant info dumping was good for something, at least. It was in the way this hallway didn’t look like it was supposed to, strangely derelict and unwelcoming, the difference between an alleyway and a street. Except this had always been a street before. The first mate walked alongside her school-aged sister, helping her carry books. “Did you really need to check out so many-”“Shut up.” Beatrice said. The beast seemed to notice her at that, the hallway going from an alleyway to a dark alley. Beatrice smirked. “I’m not going to run.” “I would rather run the rest of my life then waste it in some backwater corner of the galaxy!” the first mate shouted.
“And how long do you think the rest of your life would be?” another officer shot back back. “Let’s take bets, would you last a day longer or a day shorter than the boatswain?”“Get your stupid memories out of my way, First Mate!” Beatrice yelled. “I’m trying to focus!” She was now in a crime-ridden dark alley. She still couldn’t see the beast, but she suspected it was just around the corner, where the hallway bent. She felt like bolting, the fear rising up her back, still an unnatural feeling for her. But she could fix that. She pulled out the cat bell, the one that drove away fear, and started ringing it like an idiot who whose sound recording capability is tin cans and string. Already the hallway was back to just an alleyway, and soon it’d be a street, and the beast would be defeat forever by- Ness, wearing her starry blue pajamas, stopped on the way back from the bathroom, putting a hand on her sister’s shoulder. “Why are you still up? You should have been sleeping hours ago.”
The first mate threw her book across the room. “There has to be a loophole! A catch! Something we haven’t thought of! It has to be stopped!”
Her younger sister calmly went over to pick up the tome, hugging it to her chest in a pose so natural to her it actually looked like a piece of her was missing when she wasn’t clutching a book. “You can find it tomorrow,” she said desperately, “you just need to sleep.”The hallway was still strangely derelict and unwelcoming. Shouldn’t it have been cheerful again by now? The bell continued to ring its same old merry jingle, but the tune had changed to a minor key, suddenly making the same melody hollow and empty. But she still wasn’t afraid to face the beast, and that’s what mattered. A memory practically forced itself into her mind, demanding she pay freakin’ attention you stupid worthless substitute who probably doesn’t even appreciate all the bribes I had to make to allow your hair to be as half as fabulous as mine.Then Beatrice remembered something. Something important. First Mate had already tried standing up to the beast. She’d already tried this, and it failed. You’ll probably get us both killed with your luck, you stubborn fail of a clone.The beast still had yet to round the corner, its progress slowed by the ringing of the cat bell. Beatrice was fearless, she could stand here for as long as she wanted. But what are you going to prove? That you’re maybe a quarter of the person I was?Running away now would make her a coward, it would be admitting she was wrong, it would be giving up. Just please, please don’t make the same mistakes I did.“Fine, First Mate Bizelli, I’ll do it, I’ll run! Are you happy?!” And with that, Beatrice stopped fighting the urge that actually wasn’t quite the same thing as fear. She ran, cat bell ringing as she clutched the collar in her hand. She didn’t care where she was running, just so long as it put as much distance between her and the beast as possible. She tore down hallways, always striving to more forward, devastated with herself for caving in so easily to the beast’s whims. Beatrice ran away. Did you miss the post where Bizelli left? I can't help that.Is now the time for inspirational speeches? Sorry, inspirational speeches were never my thing. You’re just stuck reading Bizelli continuing to be stubborn. She'd never run from the Beast. Nope. Never. Unless she had no other choice, but you always have a choice.
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Post by Birdy on Oct 17, 2017 22:41:22 GMT -5
In the wake of the Fearbeast-wave, Audo glanced towards the group, debating whether or not to sort-of join by casually hanging out on the outskirts, or just stay here, by himself. Before he could come to a conclusion, however, there was some sort of commotion near the center of the room. ...So Ayo had been the Captain, then. They shouted an apology to the room, and others chimed in, reminding them and everyone that it hadn’t been only the Captain’s fault - it had been everyone’s fault. Audo almost started over to the group - considering adding in his own thoughts - but first, a voice from beside caught his ear. “Hey, Audo.”Liz. Audo tried to ignore the slight twisting of his stomach, and listened as she continued. “Look, about before, I wanted to-”She was cut off, however, by an authoritative voice that rang out across the room. “Listen everyone.…”Both Liz’s and his attention were grabbed. They listened as Holly gave her speech, and to the others that chimed in. Then, Liz gave her thoughts. “W-we’ve got something the crew didn’t!” Her chin was raised in confidence. “They wanted to make Wrighton their home, but we’ve already got that. We’ve already had a place to live, or a place to come back to, way before any of this stuff even started! You think we need to, I dunno, let the Beast know that or something?”Others continued, adding their thoughts to the mix. And as they did, Liz suddenly turned to Audo and began to speak, just loud enough for them both to hear without their voices carrying. “I-” She stammered, “Look, we can--we can talk about this later. Just, you should that I’m not mad or anything, really. Before, the memory had just taken me aback…” She trailed off, before concluding, “Yeah. We can talk later.”“Uh, yeah, uh,” Audo stammered in return, “L-later sounds good, with the uh, the Beast and all,” he said. “...Later, then,” he agreed, nodding. They both stood awkwardly for a few moments then, neither really sure what to say next, before both slowly moved closer towards the group, hoping to hear better. They discussed more, what could be done, then Holly came up with an idea. She asked Scip if it would be possible to send a broadcast to the entire town, as had been done when this had all started - when Scip had first spoken to those gathered at the doors. It turned out that it was, and before Audo knew it, a live broadcast was being sent to the entire town. The others began to tell what Home meant to them: Good memories. A safe place to rest, to come back to. A place where you’re accepted. Welcome. A place that’s not necessarily a location, but where your friends and their cultures are. And as everyone spoke, Audo found himself wondering - what did home mean to him? What did he consider home? Was it a physical place? An abstract concept? Something else? A brief lull in speeches made Audo realize that many people had already spoken - he was one of the only ones that hadn’t yet. Mouth beginning to dry, his hand gripped tighter on the guitar’s strap as he wracked his mind, trying to find something worthwhile to say. Everyone else had already summed things up nicely, he thought, so what could he add? What could he say that would be helpful in defeating a centuries-old beast made of thoughts and dissention? Everyone else had already said it - their ancestors had wanted a home, and now one had been established. So what could he add to that…? “Everyone’s right,” he said, surprising even himself with the sudden words. “Home is obviously something important, no matter the definition - I mean, just look at all the songs that have been written about it.” As soon as the words left his mouth, he tried not to grimace. Of course when he finally started talking, it would be about music. Taking a deep breath, he continued to grasp his guitar’s strap, and made himself continue with that train of thought. “I- I mean there’s all sorts of kinds, and… and different ideas of what home is,” he said. “L-like, it might be a place where memories gather, or a place to get together to celebrate holidays. Or, or even a reminder that you’re never alone, and that… that you can always come back, even… even if you do leave.” He swallowed, and took another breath. “A place where - when you do come back - you’ll be accepted and loved, no matter what, by those who stayed. And how it may be humble, but… there’s no place like it. “The original strife was caused by not having a place to go to - by not having a home, and just constantly running. And I…” he hesitated, but after closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, continued. “I know what that’s like. I… I’m no stranger to running,” he admitted. “I’ve been running for a long time. I know what it’s like not to have a home, to just… keep moving - to keep running - from place to place, but never settle. To not to know where you’ll be staying at any given time, or having a place you can just go to. It’s… Needless to say, it’s not a good feeling,” he continued, hands continuing to grasp his guitar strap like a safety line. “But… with Wrighton,” he said, “like others have said, we have that now - a place to return to when we need to rest on our journey. It’s… kinda like that movie, with the chicken and the giant Ghost Crab,” he continued. “At least, there was a song in it about how no matter where they travelled, they always knew the way back home. Like they did, we can keep Wrighton - our ‘island’ - in our minds, and always know the way back home to it, so when we need to rest… we always have a place we can return to. A safe port, where we can always be welcome and belong.” He paused, then added, “And maybe that’s enough. Just… having a place we can come back to, no matter what.” He lapsed into silence then, as if further contemplating everything that had been said so far. He felt like he had mostly just repeated what everyone else had said (but with songs), but… maybe that would help? The idea seemed to be to try and agree on what “home” meant, after all, so… maybe showing he was in agreement with the others would work? He certainly hoped so. Because he really didn’t know what else to do. First, catchup! Audo finds out Ayo is/was the Captain, and almost approaches to add in his thoughts that yeah, it was everyone’s fault, not just the Captain’s, but before he can, a wild Liz appears! A wild Liz uses Explanation! ...It’s not very effective. But that’s because Holly uses RALLY TROOPS, which is effective! They all discuss what to do, until Holly comes up with the idea to broadcast to the whole town. So everyone down in the ship begins to give speeches - of what home means to them, and (in some cases) why Wrighton is their home. Finally it’s Audo’s turn, and he starts off with music because of course he does. He then goes on to briefly explain his experiences with home and running and all that stuff, before agreeing that Wrighton could be a “safe port” of sorts that they could return to at any time they wanted and always be accepted and stuff. He feels like he pretty much just repeated everyone else but in his own words, but also hopes that will be enough since the idea is basically to agree Wrighton is a safe home/place to come back to. Songs referenced in Audo’s Speech: “A place where memories gather” = Take Me Home, Country Roads“A place to get together to celebrate holidays” = (There’s No Place Like) Home For the Holidays / I’ll Be Home for Christmas“A reminder that you’re never alone … that you can always come back … even if you do leave.” = Your Heart Will Lead You Home“A place where - when you do come back - you’ll be accepted and loved, no matter what, by those who stayed.” = Take Me Home“And how it may be humble, but… there’s no place like it.” = Home! Sweet HomeThat Song From the Movie With the Chicken and Giant Ghost Grab = We Know the Way
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Post by Draco on Oct 18, 2017 3:52:56 GMT -5
Fox paced around the room, still trying to make sense of things. Memories were still coming in for him all mix up for him. Ruby followed him whispering to him things to try to straighten things out for him as he mumbled. What he could remember was this. He tested the memory prog on himself early, and it went well. If well was being electrocuted, but things were worked out and things were fixed for others. "And then several years ago while we were on one of your 'vacations' you were electrocuted and your memories started to slip and disappear. Then the last thing you said before your memories were lost was to look after you." "And then you just let me wander around the town for several years?" "Changing your clothes, getting you food, keeping you out of trouble, keep certain people you don't want to see off your trail... Which by the way, is very hard when they live in the town you're wandering around in. Especially when you're practically in their front yard trying to fight trees." "I really dislike those trees." "Yes, I know." Fox mumbles to himself a bit more, and looks around at what the others are doing. "What are they doing? I have't been paying attention." "You really should pay attention. They're trying to deal with the beast with a live broadcast Scip is setting up." Fox nods his head, then replies probably a bit louder then he should have. "And if this fails, the beast will probably kill us all followed by the to-" Ruby covers Fox's mouth and whispers at him. "Yes, so I suggest you keep out of it unless you have something important to say that won't get us all killed." Fox thinks about this a moment, shrugs and nods his head. Fox remembers more memories, mumbling to himself, and Ruby follows filling in gaps and correcting things.
Electricity causes problems, twice, in the past.
Fox says something possibly stupid, but decides to let the others talk to the people...
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Post by Liou on Oct 18, 2017 6:50:43 GMT -5
((Content warning:)) loss of close family member, mentioned The current speaker trailed off and a veil of silence fell over the room. The low drone of the fans and the purr of the engine seemed amplified. Ayo's legs tensed. Slowly, they shifted their weight onto their toes, rising an inch out of their crouch. Someone else spoke up and the silence was dispelled. Ayo curled up next to Fionn once more, nestling their head against the seal and draping an arm around him. They were safe for another few minutes. "I don't know if Iki would remember that," they whispered to Fionn, "but it's funny how, even though Oor'cha had many friends, they were so, so scared of being alone. It didn't matter where or when. They kept chasing new friends with new dreams, because if they weren't basking in other people's feelings, what would be left of them? Who would they even be?" Ayo brushed their fingers absently through the thick fluff on the side of his neck. "Looking back, I don't think they ever realised that was the main fear they ran from." How many people had already spoken? They had lost count. They couldn't even remember what anyone had said. Their heart was beating too fast. Ayo turned their head to the side and buried their face in Fionn's fur. Hannah's tearful speech was already drawing to an end; but this was not over yet. Ayo could tell just by feeling the drive that still nagged them as it had haunted Oor'cha, like one of the Beast's tendrils casually dipped into the pool of their thoughts. They needed to run. So badly. All that remained was to find a direction. The tension in their knees grew unbearable and Ayo pushed off the floor, stretching their legs. They began to walk towards the dais. "Please stay with me," they whispered to Fionn. Audo was doing surprisingly well with his speech. Maybe that would suffice. Ayo turned back and fell face to face with a peaceful heap of seal, which had galumphed along behind them. He gazed up at them with wide, liquid black eyes full of innocent disappointment. He let out a snuffle. Ayo scoffed. Audo had fallen silent. Ayo waited for the next person to speak up behind their back; but there was no next person. Only them. And a hungry silence that had to be fed. Keeping their eyes on the floor, they closed the rest of the distance to the dais, walking cautiously as if trying not to startle themself. Ayo didn't even try to take out their compact. At this point, between the crying and the seal snuggling, no amount of makeup would save them. "Scip, no visual," they murmured. "If you show my face around town I will set you to talk like a valley girl for a week." They glanced back at the seal as though hoping for his approval, and finally raised their voice. "Hello, eavesdropping strangers." The corners of their mouth trembled. On the other side of this broadcast was their crew, listening to them again. "Or, as you may remember me addressing you in the past... Greetings to the best crew ever, this is your captain speaking. Today we are lucky enough to be flying among the most beautiful stars in the universe: you!" They cleared their throat, concealing a tiny smile behind their fist. "I've missed you. Your captain missed you all so much. Yes, that was me. I was the one whose decisions led us here. Who didn't have a solution for the conflict. Who gave the go-ahead for the plan. And who couldn't bear to lose any of you." Their breath caught. "You can ask me any questions later, hopefully. For now, I suppose you'll want my approval and support for all of this, won't you. So that it really hits home." Ayo felt all eyes on them in the Command Center. They kept their gaze focused somewhere on the ceiling and tried to breathe properly. "I hate this town," their voice said across Wrighton. "Every inch of it. And it hates me right back." Their lip curled and they glared at the ceiling, as if someone had gasped in shock on the other side. "What? I don't know anyone here. I don't know your ancestors, either. And I never asked to be born here," they spat. "To me, this town is failure. This town is where I crawl back to hide when I've failed at everything, my life has gone to hell, I've nothing to hope for and nowhere else to go." They looked down. "Like your captain. This is where they curled up and hid after the greatest failure of their life." Time was still ticking. Heat flooded their ears and their head hung, but Ayo pushed on. "The last time I thought I had a home, she... turned against me. And this place is where I crashed. I sort of buried myself and slept until I was more or less operational again. Which is pretty much what this ship did, too. I never stopped running away from her, though. I kept her in my mind. Like my own beast that I dragged everywhere I went." Ayo let out a sigh. "So, if all of you really want this place to be home, I guess I'll see you around. We'll meet again here, that's for sure. Because..." Their fists clenched and they closed their eyes. "My dad raised me here. And he's buried here. There are other things that chase me away from this place, and there are many things to which I run instead. But he has always been and will always be stronger, and more important to me than any of those things." They had to turn away from the others in the room. "It's strange, but he's the one I really come to visit when I hit rock bottom. Because when I can't sink any lower, he's the only person for whom I keep going. It's for him that I carry on. "In memory of him." Wrighton, it's not like you're a h-home to me or anything... baka! >///< After a long wait because they were totally procrastinating, Ayo / Captain finally said some words. Did... did I do the thing? Special tag for therapy seal / Head of Cuddles Celestial who got extra words whispered in private.
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Post by Fraze on Oct 18, 2017 15:05:53 GMT -5
It welled up and stretched out outside of all the Command Center doors, still snuffling at them, yearning to be with the minds that had created it, but for what reasons, it no longer knew.
It heard without hearing. Felt without feeling. Knew.
There were people here, and these people had once run.
It had run with them.
It knew everything they knew.
It knew that they had been afraid, but no longer had to be.
It knew that they had been adrift, but no longer were.
It knew that they had once strived in many different directions, creating many small cracks. After all, it was those cracks. It was what was formed between the People when they pulled themselves apart. It was the empty space between them that they could not bridge. In a way, it had kept them together when they no longer kept themselves together.
It knew that there was no more empty space. It knew that there were still cracks between People, as there always will be in a place born of so many othernesses who came together to create a sameness, but the space between them was what brought them together rather than pushed them apart.
It knew that it was home.
And it dissolved, into the houses and trees, into the sunlight glittering off the dome and the dark so-very-ancient road panels, into the smiles of parents and the laughter of children born in this town, into a promise made by the past for the future.All throughout Wrighton, and even in some places more distant, the descendants of the crew of the starship RETON felt a weight lift. An anxiety dissipated that they never knew they had, like a belt loosening around their hearts. They knew. Every single one of them. Scip knew as well. He didn't have the same innate sense, but he had spent two thousand three hundred years alone in this ship with only the Beast and the cats. "Farewell," he said quietly, looking at the walls around him. After a moment of silence Scip raised his voice, addressing not just the Command Center but the entire town over the still-active broadcast system. An image of his torso and up, with the Command Center in the background, was projected on the dome. "Now you have a choice. All of you. You must all decide whether you wish to continue the journey. The decision does not need to be unanimous, some may stay and others leave. The ship can fly as long as there is enough crew to run it. Those who wish to come may continue with the duties that their ancestors had, or they may choose new responsibilities." He smiled slightly before adding, "I can conduct interviews to determine job placement options. "Those who want to go on the journey are not bound to stay; they may disembark if they desire. And those who stay behind may join sometime in the future if they wish. And finally," he paused. "There are people in Wrighton now who are not descendants of the crew. Some are only here temporarily; some have stayed for love; others have stayed because this has become their home. If you are not a descendant of the crew but you still wish to join the voyage, then you are welcome." Double-GM collabpost! The Beast dissolves into FEELS and diffuses throughout the town, becoming part of the home-ness of Wrighton. (Clearly Huntress wrote this part because nobody else can write such devastating feels and then be kind of baffled when people start sobbing uncontrollably.) The Once and Future Crew all feel the Beast going away as an anxiety that they never knew they had being lifted. Scip says bye to the Beast. Then Scip addresses the town basically saying, "Hey, so you guys wanna go on a road trip? You don't have to if you don't want to, and you don't have to take your old roles but you can if you want. You can always come later if you don't wanna go just yet. Oh, and you non-Wrightoners can come too."
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Post by June Scarlet on Oct 18, 2017 16:07:54 GMT -5
Beatrice suddenly stopped running and said, "I need to go check on new reporter jobs."
She calmly walked out of the tunnels and back to the surface.
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Post by Gelquie on Oct 18, 2017 16:17:44 GMT -5
((Collab with Celestial!)) Omir sat at the water's edge, staring at the river before him. With his shirt removed and a satchel and pack situated on a rock by the river’s edge, he looked ready to jump in. Except there was a thoughtful look on his face, and with the way he tapped his foot against the water, it was clear he was hesitating. He knew what he had to do. He’d been doing this nearly all his life. It was a simple enough ritual, as easy as breathing. And it wasn’t difficult to obtain what he needed before the next cycle of the moon called him to the river again. This was nothing he felt sorry to do, especially for the sake of his family. But he found himself wishing that it would come at any other time but this. Not when his ex-wife and his only daughter were trapped in a precarious situation below the tunnels, where no one knew what to expect save a Beast they knew little about. He wanted to have a nice day with his daughter, take her out to the river together, then have lunch afterwards, and pretend for his daughter’s sake that the last few days had never happened. Anything that would make her feel better. But it would be worse if he didn’t do this as soon as he could, or put this off any longer. That thought finally drove him from the rock he was sitting upon. It didn’t matter what he wanted; it was time, and he did his family no favors by procrastinating. He sat upon the edge of the river, letting the water flow over his legs. He looked to his left arm, where a dark, watery mark adorned his elbow, and then submerged it. He reached with his other hand to touch the shell-shaped mark, his fingers tracing the pattern from the outside inward as he hummed. When he reached the center, the transformation happened spontaneously. His legs snapped together and formed a tail, much like Alexis’. Fins grew at his arms and around his body, and a small but dominant fin formed on his back. He had no trouble keeping his balance after the transformation. What would an adult mermaid be if they couldn’t balance themselves against a simple enough current? Even one that was mostly human as he and Alexis were. He wasted no time reaching for his satchel, pulling out the same type of food Alexis used and consuming it quickly. He spent a few minutes on the riverside, resting and eating as he stared out into the waters. Finally, he finished, and grabbed a knife from his satchel near the shore. He remembered well exactly what he needed to say. No better time than the present. He took the knife to his tail and began carefully moving it against his scales, just enough that a few of them became loose. His ancestors used to use blood, but someone in the family found out that scales worked just as well, with the benefit of not being nearly as painful and actually being easier to work with. Once he’d collected enough scales, he set his knife back into his satchel, took out a bag, and slid the scales inside. He pulled the strings closed and swam out to the middle of the river. He took a moment to gain his balance against the current until he was confident that he wasn’t going to lose anything until it was time. He carefully undid the drawstrings just enough and set the bag into the water, carefully so that the current wouldn’t take the scales away. He then submerged until half of his face was covered by water, with his eyes above the surface. He watched the bag carefully. Anyone who could see below the water could see Omir beginning to talk and his free hand making gestures, and the scales beginning to shine... A large shadow passed over him, briefly blotting out the sun. Its silhouette looked like a heron’s, only far larger and with much shorter wings. Seeing Omir, it immediately dove for the trees by the river, hiding in the leafy canopy. By the rustling of the foliage, it was big. At least the size of a person. When the large shadow passed over him, Omir’s eyes widened and he flinched with shock. He immediately turned his head towards the source, but he only caught the rustling in the foliage. Someone was there....And worse off, he’d shaken the bag intensely in the process, and it flew out of his grasp. He managed to grab the bag, but the scales were already sweeping downriver out of reach, and the shine disappeared from each of the scales. “No!” Omir breathed as he resurfaced, gritting his teeth in frustration. Frowning, he turned once more towards the source of the noise. He wasn’t sure what the blotting of the sun was--a plane, perhaps? But someone was definitely there. He wasn’t sure whether to feel annoyed that they interrupted him, or afraid that someone not so understanding had spotted him. He wasn’t sure whether he wanted to call out, but he treaded water and attempted to peer through the trees, trying to get a glimpse of the intruder. The intruder, however, called out to him instead. “I do apologise. I had no idea anybody was here. Give me a few moments, please.” Presently, a woman emerged, dressed all in her blue, her long skirt swishing around her legs, which she was working to adjust despite her enormous sleeves getting in the way. She muttered something under her breath before turning to Omir. “Oh,” the woman murmured, blinking as she took in the full extent of the scene. “I’ve seen you before, but I cannot place where. Regardless, you are clearly not local. And, begging your pardon, you do not look human either.” Omir blinked at the woman before her. What was she doing so far away from the city center? Especially in clothes like that; those were clearly not clothes for hiking. “Well, I…” He looked down at himself. “...Well, sort of? I’m mostly human. This--” he gestured to his lower half. “Isn’t uh, common knowledge. But I did live here for a few years before I moved. I come back every so often to see family. But uh, enough of that.” He began to look a little defensive, unsure of what to expect from the stranger. “You look a little familiar too, but I can’t tell where. Who are you? And uh, what brings you out here, if you don’t mind me asking?” The woman smiled. “I came here to process my thoughts. There have been quite a few...interesting revelations lately, you see,” she looked directly at Omir. “My name is Magdalena, but most people call me Maggie. Maggie Chayka. I run the Wright Inn,” as she spoke, her posture shifted subtly. Instead of standing straight up, her back was now at a slight angle. Her smile grew a little. “And you do not have to worry about me. I’m not human either: I will keep your secret, Mr..?” Omir blinked, noticing a slight change in the woman’s posture, but unsure what to make of it. “Marinos. Omir Marinos. And that’s… good to know.” He gave a relieved smile. “Also, that makes sense where I know you from, I spent quite a few nights at the inn about… 10 years ago, wow.” He rubbed his head before clearing his throat. “Anyway. If you’re up for trading secrets, I won’t tell anyone about you either, Ms. Chayka. Can I call you Maggie?” “You may,” she nodded. “I remember you now. Omir Marinos...your daughter is Alexis, correct?” Omir nodded. “Yes.” “It is lovely to meet you again then, even if it is under rather strange circumstances. Once again, I apologise for that, and for startling you. I flew in, but I was not sure if you were a human yourself, hence why I hid so quickly from sight,” as she spoke, she reached towards the zip on her back. Her sleeves fell down, exposing her wings. “But if we are sharing secrets, I suppose I can take this off. I was hoping to anyway.” Maggie unzipped the top half of her outfit and quickly shrugged it off, revealing the full extent of her bird body. Everything below her neck was covered in feathers, with the ones across her chest barred, while the ones on her back were grey. Stepping out of her skirt exposed long legs, similar to a stork but yellow, with sharp claws on the end, and a long tail, similarly barred to her chest. The only thing that remained on her body now was her jewelry. She stretched out her wings, and as she did, a wave of relief passed across her face. Omir’s eyes went wide. “ Woah. You-you’re a… uh…” His brow furrowed. “Uh… I know this one, a… a…” He snapped his fingers. “Sirin! That was it. Right? I’ve only heard about them in lore; wasn’t sure if that one was real or invented.” “I’m impressed,” Maggie folded her wings to her sides, her mouth curling into a smile. “But we are very much real. There are not many of us. We breed slowly due to our long lifespans, and we do not like the company of humans, but we exist, Omir. If I might call you that.” “Omir’s fine,” Omir confirmed. He tilted his head. “For a species that doesn’t like the company of humans, why settle in Wrighton?” “Because I am too curious for my own good,” Maggie replied, her voice a mixture of annoyance and amusement, both directed at herself. “Even before I had my hotel, I liked watching this town. And now that I do have it, I enjoy running it too much to give it up.” She approached the riverbank, perching on the very edge as she examined him. “So now I’ve told you my secrets, what about you. What were you doing out here, in the middle of the river? Having a nice, relaxing swim?” “Well, ah…” He frowned, looking in the direction his scales went, long gone by now. “If only. Actually, if it were up to me, I’d be down there with my daughter right now. But there’s, ah... something I have to do. I…” He sighed, hunching his shoulder. “I was actually in the middle of it.” He swam towards shore. Maggie bowed her head. “Once again, I am sorry. Had I known you were busy, I would have went to a different spot,” she tilted her head slightly. “Your daughter is in the tunnels below Wrighton, is she not? So what was more important than accompanying her there, if you do not mind my prying?” Omir nodded to Maggie’s inquiry. “Yes, she’s… one of the Sixteen. Unfortunately, what I have to do is too important to delay. It’d be worse for her if I did…” He frowned. “I’d tell you, but it’s… not something everyone reacts to well. They feel like they need to do something about it, when we’re already doing the only thing we can.” He stared up at Maggie, taking in her form. “...Do you… happen to know what that’s like?” She gazed down at him impassively. “I cannot say I have ever had anybody treat me that way, but I have lived long enough to know the behaviour you are talking about. I’d say it’s a human desire, but it’s more accurate to say it is the desire of every creature with an ounce of compassion,” she adjusted her wings. “However, I am also wise enough to know when help is wanted and when it is not. So you can tell me, Omir. If you feel like you can trust me.” Omir stared at her, taking in her form. She mentioned having a long lifespan, having years of experience, and she seemed to understand… “...Alright. Just… promise me you won’t tell anyone.” Maggie gave a harsh laugh. “Don’t worry, I have kept the secret of many a supernatural before you,” she settled upon a sturdy root over the river and nodded to Omir, indicating she was listening. Omir nodded before scooting himself onto a rock, picking his knife out of his pack again. “Merfolk don’t… naturally transform into humans. The only reason my family can is because of my great-something grandmother, a long time ago. She loved to go to the surface to see the humans, and she fell in love. With the humans, their culture, their attitudes… And a particular lad to boot. She decided she wanted nothing more than to be human, to see surface life in person and then meet that particular lad.” He found himself staring out towards the river. “She searched far and wide for someone who could grant her her wish. There are… powerful beings, in the depths. Some regions are controlled by beings who hold those powers. Finally, she found a kingdom whose Sea Queen had great power, enough to grant her wish. But…” he frowned. “Merfolk frown upon abandoning their kind. And turning human and living a life above is almost considered treason. She refused, unless she promised something in return.” Maggie frowned. “Always a catch in these deals…” she gestured with her wing, allowing Omir to continue. “Yup.” Omir sighed. “The deal was, she would be granted the ability to turn to and from a human. That way she could go and explore the human world. But in return, she had to make tribute to the Sea Queen. For her… It was information. She wanted to know more about the world above, what went on up there. And especially anything that might affect their lives below. Any sort of knowledge.” He stared at his knife. “And my ancestor--ancestors--had to return to the ocean or any body of water connected to it to give her that information. She taught us a ritual to make it simpler. We wouldn’t need to go all the way back to her kingdom, just we would need to send a message from that body of water. Using the ritual, and… a part of us.” With that, he took his knife and scraped the side of his scales again. “We were told it would need blood, but then we learned that she only wanted some of ourselves that connected back to our mermaid traits. Someone eventually realized that scales would do just fine. Comes back after a transformation anyway if it’s not too much.” This elicited a chuckle from the sirin. “Of course. No point maiming yourself when you can just scrape a little bit off your skin,” she leaned in, watching Omir take the scales off. “So, your ancestor had to do this. What about you?” “Me, well…” Omir paused, as if pondering how to explain the next part. “That responsibility? Turned out it affected her descendents as well. Because every one of them had borrowed powers to turn into humans, and they had to pay for it just as well. Thankfully, it turned out that we don’t all need to report back; there’s some sort of math to it that I don’t think about. But if we ever skip a month and don’t report back with anything, however small…” He grimaced. “...We’ll lose our ability to turn into humans. And then the Sea Queen will send merfolk to take us back to the depths, where we’ll be forced to work for her until we’ve paid off our time as humans that the Sea Queen deemed worthless. For us...” He laughed hollowly. “That’s probably a few generations worth of living as humans.” Maggie’s lips pursed. Her feathers fluffed up a little before she forced them to smoothen down again. “I see,” she said quietly, bowing her head. “It is certainly quite a story. Much like what you have heard about my kind, I have only heard of merfolk and sea queens in legends. One would think she would warn your ancestor of such a thing but they never do. Not when it benefits them.” “Well, she was warned. Technically.” Omir sighed, setting down his knife and collecting his scales. “But she wasn’t quite told so much that it would affect her descendents. She thought it just affected her. If she decided to stop and return at the start, she’d only be paying a few months, a year. She almost did, when she was struggling aboveground and the lad she fancied wouldn’t even give her the time of day. She might’ve done it if she hadn’t come across some other lad who happened upon her transforming, and sparks flew between them.” This earned a chuckle from the sirin, which she did her best to hide with her wing. “Always how that happens, isn’t it?” her expression suddenly fell. “The best people are the ones who accept you, supernaturalness and all.” Omir nodded soberly. “Yeah. That’s... one good criteria.” He let out a laugh. “She didn’t even get a chance. She fell in love with the first guy because he always looked so happy and carefree. Turns out, he was happy and carefree because he was stuck in his own world and didn’t care about anyone else. Never found out what happened to him; she never cared to ask. At least… she found someone she could love.” He looked out towards the river. “I know this is probably not the best story for the mer. There’s probably better things in the kingdoms below, better Sea Queens. But I’ve only ever visited, so I don’t know. And Alexis…” He frowned. “...I’ve never taken her too deep. We didn’t think she was ready for it, or the dangers. But we’ve told her… most of what we know.” He sighed. “Anyway, you can probably see why I don’t tell anyone. People may come to arms against the Sea Queen, but what she wants isn’t too hard to do. We just find something she doesn’t know, nothing too major, and we do the ritual once a month. Besides, we have lives up here now. We don’t want to risk or abandon it. Our plan is to do what she wants until the mermaid in us is bred out. Some people in our extended family have already had children born with legs; no powers at all. Born free. ...And some have returned below before that could happen, but that’s their choice. The Sea Queen is more forgiving of those who outright return to the sea and end the contract for themselves.” “Of course she would be: it’s incentive for you to come back, to not be a drain on her anymore,” Maggie said, her voice bearing more than a hint of cynicism. When she turned back to Omir, however, she looked more sympathetic. “Given you never asked for this burden, it seems to me you are making the best of it. You and your family,” she gazed at the scales that he was holding, “So, today is the day of the tribute, isn’t it? I suppose I better not keep you. Although…” The sirin shifted on her perch. “I do quite like being around the company of other supernaturals: it is a rare treat for me. Not to mention I am quite curious what this ritual entails. So what I want to ask is: may I stay and watch you, Omir, as you give your tribute?” Omir gave Maggie a friendly smile. “Sure thing. The ritual itself isn’t dramatic or anything, but if you’d like to watch, you’re welcome to. Besides…” He smiled. “It’s kinda nice to have someone who understands around.” “I agree,” she nodded, smiling fondly. “So, what will you tell the Sea Queen about today, Omir? Do you have anything in mind?” she shifted her wings, a glint in her eye. “Or would you like to pick my brain for something? It is the least I can do, and given I haved lived for over a millennium, I probably know a thing or two she does not.” “Oh, we plan this well ahead of time, so I already have something to give. But next month, I’ll definitely be looking for more ideas. I’d been pondering telling her some of the strange things that happened in Wrighton, but… I’m not sure how much I should actually say. We don’t want to give the Queen too much information. So I’m going to tell her something more minor: 12 things you can do with tarragon.” “Of course; that is very important information,” Maggie laughed. “Keep things to the basics. We would not want to spoil her rotten. But alright. I can tell you something for the future when you are done. It would be nice to chat with somebody who is not fully human either.” She folded her legs and fluffed up her chest, settling comfortably on the branch. “Whenever you’re ready then, Omir.” Omir nodded and slid the scales he held into his bag. He carefully closed it just enough and swam out to the center, before repeating his tasks. He kept his eyes on the bag, careful to not let any scales get caught by the current too soon, his hand making quick gestures, occasionally speaking… Finally, Omir stopped, and the scales let out a satisfying gleam. He unleashed the bag’s contents and watched the shimmering scales get swept away by the river. He surfaced and began to swim back. “All done! Until the next time the moon’s in this phase. If you’re sure about telling me something for the future, though...” He reached the shore and climbed onto a rock again. “I’m all ears. I need to rest a bit and get ready before I can transform back anyway. It takes a lot of energy.” “Rest then, and I’ll tell you everything I know, or at least as much as I can,” Maggie told him, before something occurred to her. “Though I would appreciate it if you did not tell your Sea Queen that we sirins are real. I do not think I want her knowing that.” “No problem, your secret’s safe with me,” Omir said. “We don’t know if the Sea Queen is thinking more than just knowledge, so we try to be careful about that just to be safe.” He positioned himself so he was lying comfortably on the rock, ready to listen. “Let’s start with something very safe, and you can ask me about anything you are curious about,” Maggie cleared her throat. “I do my own accounts for my business, which includes calculating taxes. The main types of tax for a business like mine are corporate, income tax and…” The post where the Rit is explained!
So it involves mermaids and undersea kingdoms and super powerful people and one of them kind of being a jerk, but turns out they’re a very pertinent jerk. It involves a lot of ethical quandries, and yeah, you can probably guess why A&A didn’t want to bring it up during the reveal.
Maggie came by and encountered Omir by chance. They talk about themselves and their supernaturalness and bond.
(Source for Omir’s information: Fuzzbead.)
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Post by Shinko on Oct 18, 2017 17:06:28 GMT -5
Holly felt it- a sense of release, like a thousand pounds had suddenly been lifted off of her shoulders. She staggered a step backwards, inhaling sharply. She didn't know how she knew, but she did- it was gone. The beast was gone. She slowly walked over to the chair she had noticed earlier- the side leaning chair with no high back to it. She slumped into the seat, as she remembered S'siri doing countless times before her. It was over. Finally, after two-thousand years, the hellish nightmare that had ruined the lives of so many was over. Scip was speaking, she could hear him. Addressing the town- offering to let them fly with the ship again, if they wanted to. And the choice to assume their ancestor's former duties, or take on a new role. Holly was reeling. So much had happened since the morning. Too much. She'd been compartmentalizing all of it, but now that she had a moment of breathing space, all she really wanted to do was... be. Dunkin approached his master, putting a paw on her knee. She reached out, patting her dog, and wondering at everything about their lives that had changed in just a short four days. Beneath her own mind, she could feel S'siri's release of tensions thousands of years old. Yet... There were more tensions there. Regrets. Maybe if she could settle S'siri's memories, Holly would have a better idea of what she wanted to do. Holly just... sits. That's it. She sits. Girl needs it.
She isn't sure what she wants to do where the ship is concerned, and wonders if maybe resolving some of her ancestor's last regrets might help her make a decision about it. Anybody who wants to talk to Holly (and/or S'siri) hit me up and we can try to knock together a collab of feels.
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Post by Celestial on Oct 18, 2017 18:39:13 GMT -5
Fionn allowed Ayo to curl up next to him, putting a comforting flipper around them. They whispered to him, asking if Iki remembered that Oor'cha was afraid of being alone. This made the seal freeze. Did she know? Immediately, memories flashed into his head, of Iki comforting Oor'cha, of them talking about their greatest fears. How vulnerable Oor'cha sounded, and felt in her arms and tentacles, and how sad and sympathetic Iki felt... Emotions welled up in his gut, threatening to swallow him. The seal did the only thing he could think of: slammed his head into the floor of the pool. For a moment, his vision blurred, but the pain was enough of a distraction to let the memories slip back. He soon regained enough awareness to see Ayo stand up and call to him. "Please stay with me."The seal obliged, galumphing after them. It was quite tricky navigating the steps of the dias, and Fionn had to use his flippers to pull himself forward and his back fins to push. Whenever Ayo faltered, he looked up at them with the biggest puppy eyes he could muster, begging them not to turn back, to keep going, to be brave. Even if they scoffed, he wanted them to speak. They were the captain: they should say something. He gave them a tiny nod as they looked back at him, a seal of his approval. Then Ayo began to speak, addressing the crew. So far, so good. But then- "I hate this town. Every inch of it. And it hates me right back."Fionn's stomach dropped. He gave out a tiny bark of shock, staring up at Ayo with a mixture of confusion and fear. They seemed to have been okay when he had spoken to them. He thought they had come to see Wrighton in a new light. Fionn was about to pull himself forward, to wrap himself around Ayo's legs and snuggle them some more, but they continued, and something in Fionn told him to let them speak. Their next words were hardly encouraging, but when they began to speak about their dad...seals were incapable of crying, but if they could, Fionn would have cried. Indeed, he carefully flipped closer to Ayo, wrapping around them and nuzzling at their hand, trying to give them comfort, and moreover, sympathy. To let them know that, most likely, if he could hear, their dad would be very proud of them. Maybe his grandma would be proud of him too, if she could hear this. And then...something happened. Fionn was not sure, but he could feel a knot in his chest he was not even aware of unravel, as if it had been turned from coarse rope to water. He breathed a sigh of relief before taking a moment to recognise what he was feeling: the flood of relaxation that happens when a predator stops chasing you. It had worked! They had defeated the Beast!! The seal transformed back into a human and leapt up, punching the air. "WHOO!" he shouted and wrapped his arms around Ayo. "You did it! We all did it!" Scip appeared, projected up on to the Command Centre, forcing Fionn to cut his celebrations short. " "Now you have a choice. All of you. You must all decide whether you wish to continue the journey. The decision does not need to be unanimous, some may stay and others leave. The ship can fly as long as there is enough crew to run it. Those who wish to come may continue with the duties that their ancestors had, or they may choose new responsibilities. I can conduct interviews to determine job placement options."Interviews?" Fionn swallowed. All he knew about interviews was that they were gruelling things that were often associated with the "job" thing. But unlike the "job", where you were stuck in one place doing hard, repetitive work, travelling did sound appealing. He was, after all, a born selkie, a creature which existed out in the open sea, unbound by anything except its own will (and predators). The freedom to anywhere was the most prized thing in their culture, and he had been in one place for too long, too worried to go back to the sea in case the things he loved would be taken from him. He had grown too big for his coat that way. But if he could travel amongst the stars, amongst his human and not-so-human friends, to still enjoy what he loved, maybe, just maybe... He wanted to go. He did not know what he wanted to do on the ship, whether to take Iki's old job or find something new for himself. But that could be decided when the ship took off. Maybe he could even ask Scip what he could do. Right know, all Fionn knew was that he was not going to be stuck in Wrighton. Fionn is very much Ayo( Liou)'s therapy seal, giving them cuddles and encouragement when needed. He has a mini-heart attack when Ayo declares they hate the town but decides to listen it out. The resulting speech gives him all the feels. When the beast is defeated, he turns back into a human all for a celebratory shout and a hug. When Scip( Fraze) appears and declares that the ship could fly, Fionn at first is anxious about the prospect of a "job", but decides that this selkie has been landbound for too long and wants to go be free. One for the crew, Scip!
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Post by Killix on Oct 19, 2017 13:48:49 GMT -5
The rally continued on as many in the room took their turn to speak words straight from the heart. Velia listened, occasionally nodding in agreement or nervously tugging on her lanyard strap. Then, silently, a profound feeling of calm rippled throughout - as if the weight of fear itself had lifted from her very soul. The Beast is gone Velia thought almost automatically. There could be no mistake. This wacky adventure has finally come to an end. She smiled. ... Or had it? Scip announced that they now had a choice to continue the journey. It was a tempting offer, Velia had to admit. Simply skimming Renori's memories had shown her amazing places and fantastic creatures - things that Velia would absolutely love to see first hand. But was she really ready to leave the familiarity of Earth? Flying off into the stars and into new worlds wouldn't just be leaving her comfort zone, it would be setting it on fire and blasting it into atoms. What would she do with her website and web-shop while she was gone? Did the internet work in the infinite multiverse? Was the ship going to travel with the town? If not, who would take care of her house and garden? She could, at least, take her favourite potted spider plant with her. More importantly, how would she be able to keep up with Piximite news if she were frolicking around in deep space?? Well, she would have time to make that big decision at least. The ship will always return home. CONGLADURATIONS! YOU'RE WINNER!
Sixteen has rid Wrighton of the evil Beast and in doing so has gained the peace of which they are truely worthy! Is this Sixteen's only challange or will they be called upon again?
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Post by Gelquie on Oct 19, 2017 15:21:20 GMT -5
Alexis and Athene both knew it before Scip even said anything. They could tell when the fear, the longing, the anxiety—where had that anxiety come from—dissipated. When they suddenly felt... free-er. "Farewell," Scip said quietly.Alexis and Athene blinked, looking at each other, as if silently sharing what they both knew. Then Scip spoke up, telling everyone about their choice, and the options they had. Alexis and Athene took some time absorbing this. Then suddenly, Alexis burst out laughing. “It's gone, i-it's gone!” she cried out. “It really worked...” Athene murmured, awestruck. “We're... we're okay...” “Yeah...” Alexis went quiet. “...Amyn, we did it. We're okay now... We're safe, okay?” She knew she wouldn't get an answer, knew Amyn wouldn't hear her. They were over two-thousand years dead, after all. But a part of her irrationally hoped that they would anyway, somehow. Another moment of silence passed between them, then Athene looked to Scip. “...Well, you've already heard my answer,” Athene said. “I don't particularly want to leave. I have my place here. Unless I really have to go, if I trust that this ship will still run well after two-thousand-something years, but otherwise...” She let silence fill in her answer. “...And you've heard the deal with Alexis. She's too young for anything like this. Besides...” Alexis looked away. “Yeah, that. I, uh, even if I were old enough... I need to figure something out first. Or I won't be able to leave with the ship. Unless a trip takes less than a month...” “Not in space it won't,” Athene pointed out. “But maybe I'll figure something out by the time I'm 18?” Alexis posited. “Then I can come back!” “When you're ready,” Athene added, giving her an assenting nod. She looked to Scip. “...Thank you. For giving us the choice.” She paused. “But next time, maybe a little more warning about things that can kill us.” “Maybe he really couldn't,” Alexis said. “...And the memories, they... really helped. Even if they're kinda... big. But without Amyn, I couldn't help them, and I couldn't close the--” She paused. “The doors. Um. I should re-open those now, shouldn't I?” “If you want us to go home, yes,” Athene said dryly. “Uh, I'll go do that right quick. I didn't see anything down there; it's actually pretty empty except for cubicles and stuff. But uh...” She looked over to Fionn, who seemed to be helping Ayo. ...Well, on the one hand, she didn't want to interrupt, but at the same time, she could just ask... She called over to Fionn. “Fionn! I'm gonna go back down to open the doors, and maybe see what's at the bottom! Do you wanna come race me?” Victory! They briefly talk with Scip ( Fraze) about their plans; whether Scip responds or not is up to them, as they’re more just touching base. Alexis realizes ohwait, they should proooobably open the doors to the Command Center so that people can actually leave to go have their pizza parties/cake parties/booze parties. She calls Fionn ( Celestial) and asks if he wants to come along. (Does Dion ( Thorn) want to go?)
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Post by Thorn on Oct 19, 2017 15:59:10 GMT -5
Nothing particularly spectacular happened. There wasn't a wail, a clang, or even a very melodramatic explosion. But the tension lifted, Scip began to speak, and somehow she just knew the danger had passed. They'd crossed this right of passage. They were Officially All Grown Up. Dion clasped her hands together. "You did so well! So very, very well!" She looked from Fionn, to Hannah, to the other assembled Wrightonians. They'd defeated the beast...exactly how this had happened eluded her, but now was not the time for fixating! Now was the time for deep introspection- "soul-searching", as the Wrightonians might call it. She'd been away from home for far too long. And yet, what stories would come of an adventure through space! The ocean would always be home. But, as the people of Wrighton had concluded, home was somewhere you could always return to. But to make the most of life, she needed to venture beyond those metaphorical walls! With as much gravity as she could muster, Dion drew herself up to her full five-and-a-half feet and extended her hands towards Scip. "I would very much love to join you all on this voyage. I must deal to one other concern beforehand, but that shall not take any more than a fortnight." In which Dion essentially decides to become the companion to a multitude of recovering amnesiac Doctors (when I realised this, I grinned.)
I am assuming the ship will take a little bit to get in the air, hence Dion saying she wants to do something else first.
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Post by Shinko on Oct 19, 2017 22:05:39 GMT -5
Harper found it...difficult, to put it mildly, to focus on everything happening all at once. Qoeln’s memories weren’t overpowering, but they flickered at unexpected moments, snatching their attention away over and over again. And as if that weren’t enough - the Beast made itself known again, only this time it felt a lot stronger than the brief brush in the hallway, when it had been scared off by the cat bell. They actually felt their heart speed up with baseless anxiety - which of course triggered some more of Qoeln’s memories. Harper caught that there was a broadcast, something going out to the citizens of Wrighton. But in light of their current distractability, the fear drying out their mouth and clamming up their hands, and the effort of keeping back their “ancestor’s” memories of being on the verge of a panic attack, Harper opted not to say anything. It wasn’t often they were glad to only be a kid - this time probably made up for all those other times they hadn’t been grateful for that lack of responsibility. They could just lean back against their parents and watch, and wait. It was clear when it was over - the sickening churn of fear became an ache of longing - and then, everything settled, like an ocean calming after a storm. Even the memories were affected, easing back and somehow slotting into a place Harper hadn’t even realized had been there. The relief in the room was palpable. Harper took a long, deep breath, unaware until that moment how little air they’d been taking in. They straightened and looked around a little more - and when they looked back to the bridge, they saw Holly sitting in the chair that had definitely been S’siri’s. Dunkin joined her, but as good a dog as he was, Harper wondered if he was going to be enough to help the police officer out right now. “I’m gonna go talk to Holly,” Harper announced. “Or - uh - Officer O’Rourke?” “We might all be on first-name basis by now,” Radha said dryly; running her hands over her face to wipe away what Harper guessed was a nervous sweat. “But good idea - I’ll come, too. Akash?” “Let’s,” he agreed, a slow wave of pink pulsing over his frills. Holly glanced up as the Kulkarnis approached her, and gave a lopsided smile. “Sorry for just… taking the reins like that. I don’t know if everybody entirely appreciated my gal.” “Somebody had to do it,” Radha said. “By the feel of it, we didn’t have a lot of time to waltz around each other being polite.” “It was effective,” Akash agreed. “And for as many people who might not have appreciated you taking charge - I’m sure there are a lot more who are grateful you did.” “If I was able to make a difference in how things ended up, it was worth it,” Holly agreed. She glanced towards Harper, her head tilted. “How are you holding up? If S’siri’s memories are anything to go by, Qoeln was…” she paused, then finally settled on, “carrying a lot of weight in their memories.” It took Harper a second to process that the whistling Holly had made in the middle of her sentence was S’siri’s name in her native tongue - but the second they did, it seemed obvious, blatantly obvious. That was always how she’d said her name, after all. “I’m...okay,” Harper said. “I think they - Qoeln - tried to...repress it.” If Holly knew enough from S’siri to ask that question, then Harper had no doubt they both (all?) knew what Harper was referring to. “I don’t think I’ve really seen the memories of the uhm...the thing that started it yet.” Hoping to keep it that way and avoid triggering them to come to the surface, Harper quickly refocused and added, “The Beast wasn’t helping, though, so - I’m glad it’s gone.” They bit their lip. “I wish there was a way to like...tell the memories that. S’siri’s especially. It’s weird having another person in my head, but...not really another person. ...Uhm. If that makes sense.” Holly smiled sadly. “It’s not really them, but those memories are part of our minds now, so… in a vicarious way, they can know the things we do. Speaking of-” she flicked a wing in Harper’s direction, so that the outermost primary brushed against their shoulder. “She thought of Qoeln like a sibling, in a way. They were her best friend. She wanted more than anything for them to know how much they meant to her, and…” she blinked sharply. “How sorry she was for not saying goodbye.” Harper twitched a little in surprise - but then remembered, much more smoothly, much more gently, this time, something Qoeln had both seen and felt her do. The familiarity came in a rush, like taking the first taste in years of a favorite food. I remember - this is nice.There was one briefly grim memory - after S’siri had left, staring out into space and hoping even though they knew it was impossible that they’d hear the light click of talons and feel a feathery brush across their shoulder. “I think - no, I know they did, Qoeln felt the same way,” Harper said. “The crew was like a new family, the officers especially, and S’siri really especially. And I think...I think toward the end, especially, Qoeln was worried they hadn’t ever expressed it enough, how much they cared and how much it felt like…” A phrase wafted into their head, a way Qoeln had thought of it once - “like a second chance. Maybe it’s kind of late now, but...I’m pretty sure they’d still want me to say thank you to her as much as I can, for being their friend - or sibling. Sibling’s a good word for it.” Holly closed her eyes briefly against the wash of S’siri’s emotions in her mind. A lot of pain, but as the police officer had observed earlier, a very great deal of love as well. She opened her eyes again, rubbing her face. “She appreciates that- more than I can put into words. She has words, but they’re all in Chif’rrr and I don’t think I could say them right.” A pause. “Although there’s also… Parede chie suoy, I think that’s how you say it?” To Akash, she elaborated, “That’s an expression from the language they spoke on the ship- it roughly translates to ‘gratitude that shines brighter than the stars.’” Akash’s frills practically perked, and flickered with a bright teal. “It’s interesting what concepts a culture makes words for! It speaks so much about their values as a people; why make words for things that aren’t important, right?” Radha sighed. “Sweetheart - you’re butting in on the moment.” Harper, trying to pretend their dad was not the biggest nerd in the galaxy, said, “I remember that! ...Maybe we could learn the languages they knew - I know it doesn’t...y’know, bring them back, but...it would be kind of fitting, in a way; all the…” They hesitated, then gave it a shot, trying to whistle the name the way it was supposed to be done - “Chif’rrr history is passed down orally, right?” They remembered S’siri laughing at one of Qoeln’s attempts; they’d botched a pronunciation so badly it became a different word entirely. Holly didn’t laugh, though she did cover a smile with her hand. “I will have to work hard to try to speak either the Reton language or the Chif’rrr one correctly. At least you and Qoeln had the same sort of mouth- S’siri didn’t even use her mouth or tongue for spoken words. She had these… muscles in her throat that could mimic sounds. I remember it unnerved people seeing her talk without moving her mouth at all at first. I know how words are meant to sound but wrapping my mouth around them is going to take work. I’m willing to try if you are, though. Maybe by the next time your dad comes to town we can speak to each other like in a secret code.” Harper grinned. “Oh man - he’ll be so jealous we know an alien something he doesn’t. We’ve gotta do it for sure!” “I’m standing right here,” Akash said, exaggeratedly pained. Harper’s expression became thoughtful, their frills pulsing between different shades of blue-green. “Hmm. Qoeln was working on something that would like...make Chif’rrr noises mouths and throats like ours would have trouble with. So S’siri could maybe have more people to speak Chif’rrr with than the other two who were on board, eventually. I don’t think they ever got it to work, but...we’ve got two-thousand years of alien technology advancing and human technology, too. Maybe all of us together - including you, ‘cause who knows more about Chif’rrr noises than you? - could get it to work now?” “Huh,” Holly’s feathers bristled a bit with excitement. “That could be pretty neat if we could get it to work.” A thought seemed to occur to her, and she glanced around towards Scip before facing the Kulkarnis again. “Before we marry oureselves to it though, I think we need to address the elephant in the room, don’t we?” Harper followed Holly’s gaze, and nodded. “Yeah - we gotta pick if we’re staying here, or...going with the ship, right?” They looked around, seeing both the current occupants and the aliens who had occupied the space two thousand years ago. “I...I kinda always wanted to go to space,” they admitted. “Not permanently, just...y’know, to see what’s out there. It’s not really safe, though, for me especially - lots of people would get mad about a hybrid, I guess. But a ship with this many people on it…” Radha said, “Is still not going to have you on it until you’re old enough to drive an Earth car, Harper. To Earth college or trade school or not-high school.” “...But that,” Harper said, a little meekly. “What about you?” Holly was quiet for a moment, looking around the command center as she reached out to pet her dog again. Then she shook her head. “I want to see it too- space, other planets. I have all of these memories of things that S’siri saw, and they were… incredible. But my daughter is just four. If I went, I’d have to take her with me, and I want her at least old enough to have solid memories of earth before I take her off into space.” She winked in Harper’s direction. “Besides, I’m hardly going to go if my entire team is staying here. Where’s the fun in that?” Harper grinned. “Exactly! What if we run into more hellsquiggles? Or space-police who wanna keep us from going somewhere? It should only be a couple more years, anyway - I’ll be eighteen in three years - “ “Harper.” “In four years I’ll be totally done with high school.” “Harper.” “...And in five years I could’ve tried some college and see if I like it?” When their mother just hmphed in satisfaction, Harper breathed a quick sigh of relief, and said, “So, Esther would be like...nine by then. And the people who do go should have an elementary school set up by then.” Radha commented, “I wonder what the others in our party are going to do. I’m definitely not going now...we’ll see about in five years. But that leaves four more people.” “Cade I can see wanting to go,” Holly mused. “As attached as he’s been to everything. Alexis and Athene, if I had to wager a guess, are probably no for the same reason you and Harper are.” She glanced over towards her brother- who was, coincidentally enough, talking to Athene. “I don’t know what Jon wants. But I do know Wrighton’s… been a cage to him since we were small.” “Literally, too, apparently,” Radha said, rubbing the back of her head. “But if it’s been that figuratively, too...getting out of it could be good for him.” “Yeah,” Harper said, adding with a crooked grin, “Besides, he’s gotta loosen all the puzzles for us; it’d make sense if he went on ahead.” Holly snorted, giving the teenager a light punch on the shoulder. “It’s up to him in the end. But this crowd could use a guy who’s willing to tell it like it is and find the straightforward solution to a problem.” She gestured overhead, towards the city above the ship. “And like we all said- the town will still be here when folks decide they want to come home.” “Exactly,” Harper said. “And I mean, if my dad’s been able to come back all the times he has, I bet a ship even he couldn’t find can get back and forth, too.” “Speaking of,” Akash mused, “I should probably speak with someone, maybe Scip, before the ship goes. Maybe get you all some fresh maps, update the political situations, suggest some good routes out of this galaxy…” “You could go with them,” Radha pointed out. Akash blinked. “I...suppose. Hm.” The tips of his frills turned a muddled green. “...I don’t know; it’s like taking the bus when you’re used to a car. I like the freedom to pick my own course…” “And you owe Jon a ride in your spacepod first,” Harper reminded him. “True! I wouldn’t want to have to divert him from his duties here by dropping by once they’re out in space. ...Although. I could drop in and visit the crew every now and then even if I don’t join officially.” “I don’t think anyone would begrudge you,” Holly agreed. “If they did Jon would knock their blocks off, and if S’siri’s memories are anything to go on Scip would give them the judgiest of judging stares.” She chuckled. “First route you might want to give them is to some sort of service station though- Scip’s been repairing the ship with scrap metal and unprocessed ore for two thousand years after all.” “Ooh, you’re right - “ The area where a nose would have been on a human face wrinkled. “And I don’t even want to imagine what fluids are in this thing’s pipes and engine bits. They might have to go to a specialized station to get something compatible - though if they’re doing repairs, they may want to just retrofit things…” “Qoeln would be pretty unhappy about the ship being two-thousand years out of date,” Harper acknowledged. Holly grinned. “If I remember right, there would be much dramatic fake-lamenting and some not-fake stern insistence to the captain that adventures can wait until they’re certain goo isn’t going to start flooding out of the exhaust. Goddess knows how they’re going to afford any of this, but presumably they got money from somewhere once upon a time and that money is probably still sitting around in a vault somewhere. Might even be worth more now if the coins are some sort of antiques.” “That might be what you have to do,” Akash agreed. “Hopefully it’s all still on the ship, you’d have a hell of a time trying to get money from any sort of account system they set up. ...You know. You’re going to be the first humans voluntarily flying into populated space.” She looked around at her wings, dryly noting, “I don’t know if I completely count past this point. But… you’re still right. It’s crazy to think about. I wonder what the universe will make of it.” “A big deal,” Akash said with a smile. “But if you make alliances with the right species, you should be fairly safe. The kytreg will be very upset,” he added almost gleefully. Holly laughed. “Well then I suppose we’ll want to stay out of their way- hopefully your fellow kesterk will be more accommodating.” She shook her head. “But- I think that is all drama we can address tomorrow. Today has been well long enough, and I think we could all do with a breather.” “Yeeeah,” Harper agreed in a long sigh. “We took out a whole monster today, we can probably take the rest of the day off. ...I could use a nap.” “It only I’d known all I had to do to make you take a nap was haul you through the spaceship under the city when you were five,” Radha said. “But I agree...might be time to call it a day. And I know you have a little girl to get home to, Holly.” “I don’t even know how I’m going to begin to explain my new wings to her,” Holly mused. “Or my grandmother for that matter. But yes- I’m going to wait until Jon seems ready to leave, but if he takes too much longer I’m going to go drag him by the ear.” She stretched, her wings fanning out behind her. “You don’t have to wait for me- the beast is gone, so the ship should be safe to wander now. Though-” She looked towards Harper again. “Do you think you could remember where my apartment was?” “Huh?” Harper blinked, but thought a moment and nodded. “Yeah - yeah, I’m pretty sure I know where it is.” “Good,” she said. “Because all three of you are cordially invited to a much more casual dinner at my place tonight. To celebrate this mess finally being over.” She grinned. “I’ll make sure there’s cheeses. And no citrus.” “That would be amazing,” Radha said fervently. “God knows I don’t want to be up and cooking a whole meal tonight, and who knows what would be open for delivery. ...Need us to bring something? So you aren’t slaving in a kitchen all afternoon? With a brand new pair of wings?” “You don’t have to feel obligated,” Holly said with a dismissive hand wave. “Though if you wanted to pick up a cake or something Esther would probably love you forever.” “Ah, well, if you want to be on a spaceship with her in five years, Harper, you’d better get on curying favor,” Radha said, nudging Harper with her elbow. “ I’d love me forever if we picked up a cake, too,” Harper said, lightly batting their mother’s arm away. “We’ve probably got a bunch of ice cream, too. And thanks for no citrus,” they added. Akash leaned forward to add, “And thank you for the cheese!” The police woman laughed. “You’re very welcome! See you tonight around… six-thirty let’s say?” “Wouldn’t miss it!” Harper promised. Harper and the Kulkarnis react to the beast’s defeat and destruction. Harper notices Holly looking exhausted and goes to talk to her, their parents following along. The resolve unresolved feels from their ancestors, and they have a heart-to-heart about their plans where the ship and space adventures are concerned. It’s agreed that Harper will hold off about five years, until they’ve finished high school and at least have a few semesters of college under their belt, and that Holly will go when Harper does since by then Esther will be old enough. Then Holly invites the Kulknarnis over for dinner later, before Harper’s family leaves.
Holly is still sitting in her chair in the middle of the room if anyone else wants to talk to her.
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Post by Gelquie on Oct 19, 2017 22:29:56 GMT -5
((Collab with Shinko!)) Jon saw the Kulkarnis approach his sister, and while he was briefly tempted to join them, after a moment’s consideration he shook his head. He could talk to Holly later, in private. This was a conversation they’d need to have alone. Maybe with their grandmother too. But nobody outside the immediate family. It would be hard enough just that way. Instead, he found himself listing towards Athene again, hands in his still damp pockets. “Hey- how you holdin’ up?” Athene, who was looking over to Holly and the Kulkarnis after her daughter had dived below, looked over to Jon when he approached. “Oh, hey. I’m… alright, as least as much as I can be. With the memories of someone’s entire life slamming into our heads, my daughter showing herself, and everyone else… At least the Beast is down. I can say one thing, I’m going to be sleeping long and deep tonight.” She paused, giving him a concerned look. “...How about you, Jon?” He looked down at his hands, pensive. “I… I remember that Jasna and Artin were friends. And I like to think we’re friends too, after everything that’s happened. So d’you… mind if I ramble a little? ‘Bout some personal stuff.” Athene paused. “...After everything that happened down here, all that happened between us… I think we’re at that point, yeah. So... “ she gestured. “Go on ahead.” He sat down by the pool’s edge, looking up at Athene. “I told ya about the DUI. But well… there was more to it’n that. I… I ran a red light. Hit another car side-on. The other driver… didn’t make it.” Athene winced, her eyes going wide. “ Oh. ...That’s…” She paused a moment, looking Jon over, the guilt-ridden look in his eyes, the expression etched over his face… “...That’s when you stopped, wasn’t it? And… made the improvements you did.” “None of that brings back the person who died ‘cause of me,” he said softly. “And none of it erased the record that’ll hound me until the day I die of a mistake that ruined more lives than just mine. I’ve improved things yeah, but that was… god, seven or eight years ago? I’ve just been spinning my wheels for a long while. Trapped in a loop.” Athene frowned in sympathy, for a moment glancing out to the water, thinking of what to say, before returning her attention. “...Yeah, that’s… gods, Jon, I’m sorry… Improving won’t bring the person back… But I think it helps keep it from getting any worse. ...But that doesn’t help how you feel, does it? I…” She couldn’t even imagine it, if it had been her who’d accidentally killed someone, or if something bad happened to Alexis and she’d done nothing to help… She’d done all she could to ever keep that from happening, especially when it was her daughter, but what does one do when the damage is already done? ...She pushed the thought to the side for now. That didn’t help Jon. “From what I’ve been… thinking earlier,” Athene started slowly, thinking of Holly but deciding not to mention her. “The only way to really break a loop is to break bad habits and start anew. You’ve done it with one loop, with… how you were in the past. But… there’s more to do to distance yourself from it, isn’t there?” It was always harder--Athene thought--when the loop one’s trapped in is a mental one. He nodded. “I love my sister. But… I left this town once for a reason. It has too many painful memories, and I needed to go somewhere that I could breathe. But I was so busy wallowing in my own problems that I just pulled them with me.” He looked around, towards the distantly humming engine. “But I’ve been thinking…” Athene followed Jon’s gaze over to the engine. “...You helped with that, didn’t you?” She murmured. “...You’re thinking of going with the ship, aren’t you?” “Yes,” he agreed. “I remember all these things that Artin saw, and how his own tiny planet and all the pain he knew on it seemed so small and insignificant by comparison. The perspective helped him a lot. I wanna try to get that back. That… sense of just how wide the universe is. How much good it has to offer, to balance out the bad.” Athene looked thoughtful at this, and nodded. “I think… That makes a lot of sense. I think something like that help my daughter and her father too; they feel they need to get away, and see more of the world… Kind like what you said.” She looked to Jon. “It’s a good idea. And if you think that’s best for you, then I think you should do it.” He smiled. “Thanks- I appreciate hearing that I’m not just crazy.” “Of course; nothing crazy about doing something right for yourself.” She returned with a reassuring smile of her own. His eyes glimmered. “Hey- by the time your ragamuffin jumps on, I’ll be an old pro at this- I can show ‘er the ropes.” Athene let out a little laugh. “Good; she’ll need someone for that. And I’m glad to hear who she’ll have on her side for that.” Jon talks to Athene about Feelings.
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Post by Lizica on Oct 19, 2017 23:28:54 GMT -5
This is where the trip goes. The trip leads home.Hannah unbuckled her backpack with hands that felt grimy from using so many tissues. She swung the enormous bag around herself in an arc, swooshed it down upon the command center floor with a symphonic cacophony of jingles, clangs, thunks, and shuffling clatters--and then plunked down on it to sit. She closed her eyes, took in a long, rattling breath, and let it out. “Yeah,” she said, as something of a rather exhausted cheer. She limply fistpumped the air overhead with her tissue still in her hand. “ Yeah.” Their fearsome nightmarish stalker was gone--that now felt very evident. What was left? Some sense of release, some sense of rightness with the world, some sense of good job, you all did it. You did it.
Bek held one of her severed wings, was bandaged in three different places, and had something stuck to her left eye.
“That was an amazing expedition!” she exclaimed to the exploration greenhorn who was speedily rolling her on a gurney to the hospital.
“Was it?” they said anxiously--a different anxiety from when they had just set out a few hours ago.
“Absolutely!” Bek said. “It was all worth it. And you did a great job! If you’re not proud of yourself, I’ll do that for you.”
“But you got hurt. Wasn’t that bad?”
Bek waved her severed wing through the air dismissively. “Sure, but I’ll be okay, and that just means that something happened. If nothing happened, we wouldn’t have gotten to see what brilliance you’re all made of, right? And--” Trying to think of the phrase, she traced a small path in the air with her foreleg.
“What’s that mean?” the greenhorn asked, even though they were smiling bashfully when they both arrived at the hospital.
“It means you did good,” Bek said. “Now go rest up!”Hannah paused as she relaxed against her backpack, waiting for more of the memory, but it cut off there. Not because it had concluded, but because Bek’s memories felt very personally selective, somehow. ...Thanks? I’m kind of proud of all of them, too.“Now you have a choice. All of you.” Scip spoke across the command center, across the broadcast, across the relative quiet of relief and deep, lively breathing. He explained the possibilities for the journey’s next move, and who could come along. Numerous people spoke up, including Alexis and Dion, and Hannah struck her tissue-wielding, fistpumping arm into the air like she was both waiting to be called on and giving another cheer. She still had Wrightonian things to do and see, and tea to bring home to her parents, and a neighboring town to seize a photo-op in, but she would make time for all of it. “I want to come, too,” she said. And with a slight grin, she added, “I’ve never had travel buddies before.” GOOD JOB, TEEEEAM!! \ o /
Hannah removes her backpack, sits on it, and relaxes in triumph. Wooooo
Bek gives her a memory (which only seems random on the surface): a continuation of the previous memory involving the exploration newbie, where both they and Bek return to the ship, and Bek congratulates them on doing well.
Hannah listens to the others who address Scip and says that she wants to come along on the journey, too. ^^
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