twenty-eighth jump;

[ataraxites]

CHARACTERS: Any and all.
LOCATION: Gravity Couches and beyond.
WARNINGS: Maybe some swearing, or even some violence, and more than likely some implied (and possibly explicit) nakedness.
SUMMARY: Another month, another jump, another round of new faces.
NOTES: It could just be the standard sensation of air on wet skin, but if you bother to check, you might notice the steam rising from your body, barely there and gone within a minute. By the time you get to the showers, it will be clear that it's not just taking you time to adjust. The room is cold — colder than usual, but no worse than the last jump. While it's nothing dangerous, it's certainly motivation to hurry through the usual routine and get dressed quickly.



It's getting closer.




YOUR EYES ARE OPEN.

KEEP LOOKING.

You wake up in darkness.

There's a breathing tube jammed down your trachea, and you're suspended in a tube of clear blue fluid. Upon registering your level of consciousness, the gravity couch drains the fluid surrounding you and retracts the breathing apparatus; the doors in front of you open, and you're deposited on the floor of a stark, sterile medical bay.

You are not alone.
There are others who have come before you, others who are awakening beside you. Some may be familiar to you, perhaps even friends. Others have much less amiable plans. Some are merely alien and inexplicable, but there are always those who might mean you harm.

After you catch your breath and your vision returns, you notice a number on the inside of your forearm. Maybe it's a familiar number. Maybe it means something. Maybe it's just a number. But the number—completely unique to you—is a tattoo, and it does not come off.

If you enter the room adjacent to the medbay, you will find a small locker with your number on it, surrounded by rows upon rows of identical lockers. Inside, you will find a few of your personal items, a communications device, and a ship's uniform in your exact size. The comms device is fully powered and connects directly to the ship's network; it's your only means of communication beyond physical conversation. Upon turning the device on, a neutral, automated voice will say, "Please take the blue lift to the passenger quarters." Any other attempts at communicating with the rest of the network are met only with static.

This is your welcome party.

Comments

[twicequeen]

I see.

I suppose it would be selfish of me to expect anyone else to be here, Edward should remain home, for our people and our children. [But it's not an easy thought for Elizabeth, she has always hated when they were separated.]

I'm sorry, I don't believe I asked for your name, madam

[she remarks as she glances at Galadriel.]

[inafadingcrown]

[Galadriel's face instantly softens. She understands all too well- how many times has she said something similar?]

Selfish, perhaps, but natural enough. I cannot say that there have not been times when I wished for my own husband's company.

[But ah- names! How rude of her to have left it until now.] You must forgive me for not offering it sooner. [She gives a little dip of her head- somehow both formal and friendly.] I am called Galadriel.

[twicequeen]

You are parted from your own husband as well? I am so sorry.

[Elizabeth does feel a little less alone knowing she's not the only woman in such a position.]

There is nothing to forgive, it is a pleasure to meet you Galadriel. [Elizabeth gives her a warm, kind smile as she nods her head in greeting in return.] I am Elizabeth.

[inafadingcrown]

I am. [And it was something that troubled her, though she rarely spoke of it. She and Celeborn were seldom parted for long, after all.] But it is much as you said; it is best both for him and for our realm that he is not here.

[twicequeen]

We shall endure then, I am certain we will be able to. [It's easy to be strong for or with someone else than on her own, Elizabeth sounds more certain than she was a moment ago.]

[inafadingcrown]

Of course we will. [Galadriel sounds utterly certain. After all, she's been here for long enough to know.] But if you should have need of company, you must feel free to call upon me. [She imagines that it would be terribly lonely to arrive here with no one to greet you.]

[twicequeen]

I certainly shall. [Elizabeth appreciates the offer and no doubt will be seeking Galadriel out later.] You are most kind, I am very grateful to have found a friend even in a place such as this.

[inafadingcrown]

In such a place we have all the more reason to band together, do we not?

[twicequeen]

That is true, if we are all to be prisoners here together.

[inafadingcrown]

[A little nod] Precisely so. And there are dangers enough here to combat.

[twicequeen]

Is this truly such a dangerous place?

[inafadingcrown]

It is. This is likely the last you will see me unarmed, in fact.

[twicequeen]

[Elizabth can't help but glancing around then, uneasy. She doesn't consider herself helpless but she knows her own limitations.]

Then we can defend ourselves? That is a reassurance.

[inafadingcrown]

Of course we may defend ourselves. I do not mean to give you such a dire impression of this place; it is dangerous, but we are by no means doomed.

[twicequeen]

That is uplifting to know we are not doomed to a horrible fate. [She's still uneasy but for some reason, Galadriel's words do bring great comfort.]