ataraxites: (Default)
axmods. ([personal profile] ataraxites) wrote in [community profile] ataraxionlogs2015-01-08 12:01 am

thirty-ninth jump;

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: A feeling of deep dread greets you as you stumble out of the gravcouch, strong enough to hold you still for a long moment, searching your surroundings for the source of your wariness. Nothing becomes apparent, only your fellow passengers waking up. Eventually you gather the resolve to pick yourself up and start moving, the feeling fading slowly as you progress through routine.

New arrivals will find messages spraypainted across their lockers telling them not to follow their tattoo numbers, and instead to find a room on Floors 001-010.


----------------


YOU͘ ̨WAKE̢ ̧UP ́IN DA̛RKN̢E̕SS̶


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.

YÓU̴ ̧ĄRE NOT҉ ̷ALǪNE҉


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.

TH̀IS͜ ̶I͠S͡ ͘Y̵O͝UR ̕W͝E̛L̨C͡O͝M͏E P̛AR̴TY͜
sweetmotherofgod: (Our love is God)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-08 09:18 am (UTC)(link)
I don't know, bud. We just woke up after the jump and you weren't there anymore. It was - it was pretty rough. But - we should go find Netherlands. You mind if I carry you?

[Too bad she's doing it anyway, trying to text Netherlands with the kid still in her arms and trusting Hoi Hoi to follow.]

Listen, you should know - he looks a little bit different to last time you saw him. Not bad! But skinnier. He was really sick for a while. He's better now, getting better every day. I just don't want you to be too worried when you see him, okay?
throwsdown: (pic#4787011)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-08 09:50 am (UTC)(link)
[You know he never minds when you carry him; it's comfortable and secure, and he's still puny enough that it's easy. But when he looks back to her, the worry is palpable in his expression. You can't go fooling him, Heder, he knows how you try not to make him worry sometimes. Sorry, mama, he's gonna be worried.] He was sick? Why? Did the ship make him sick?

[Because that's always what happens. Always.]
sweetmotherofgod: (i have no control over myself)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-08 10:39 am (UTC)(link)
We're not sure. He had a pretty rough time, but -

[but this is the moment his voice hums out from her communicator, and she makes a little shh face at Takeshi before replying - by our lockers. Come quick, okay?]

- he's gonna feel so much better when he sees you.
handelaar: (oh fuck it's a hikikomori)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-08 07:46 pm (UTC)(link)
[So about that feeling much better when he sees them. That's not quite what happens.

No, he rounds the corner with his chicken caravan clucking along behind him, sees them, and stops so suddenly that the chickens all bang into the back of his knees - he doesn't even notice. Eyes wide and looking between the two, heart in his throat and somewhere between ready to flee and ready to launch himself toward them, right on the edge. He's here, his kid is here, and what if he doesn't remember and they have to start all over again and can he do that a second time oh fuck but his son is here and -

!!!!!!!]
throwsdown: (pic#4949211)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-09 09:14 am (UTC)(link)
[Takeshi hopes so. He doesn't want Mr. Ned to keep feeling bad. It'll be... like Roy all over again, and he doesn't want that. But then he sees his adoptive dad, and even though he worries and frets (like he really shouldn't at age six), he offers Netherlands a cautious little smile from where Heather's holding him.

Well, if he's just gonna stand there like a dummy, he'll just have to start a conversation.]


Hey... Dad!

Heder said you were sick! Are you okay now??
sweetmotherofgod: (i loved you!)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-09 09:26 am (UTC)(link)
[Oh no, that look. She hefts Takeshi a little, steps forward, not sure whether the delicacy of her footsteps is to avoid squashing chickens or startling Netherlands.]

It's him. And he knows us.

[Aaaaaand crying again.]
handelaar: (twelfth jump's a bitch)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-10 01:36 am (UTC)(link)
[Takeshi's chirped little dad, he thought he'd never get to hear that again - his breath leaves him in a rush, but he doesn't unstick until Heather takes the first step. Then, though. He basically flings himself their way with a strangled sound in the back of his throat, chickens completely forgotten.

Nothing comes out when he tries to speak so when he reaches them he just. Tugs them in, chest heaving, and buries his face in Takeshi's hair before pulling back. But only enough to look between the two of them, like he still can't quite believe it. He's a crying, half-naked shuddering wreck and he totally doesn't give a shit.]
throwsdown: <user name=bushyeyebrows> (My mother was a fifteen year old)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-10 11:40 am (UTC)(link)
[It actually kind of scares Takeshi at first, the way any tall, strong adult crying would worry him. It's even worse with grown-up men, he finds. There's a sort of rawness with them that makes it kind of even more alarming. He has no clue how to vocalize that, of course, but he does look with complete worry at Netherlands, letting him squish and prod him like Heather had done. And crush him. Crushing's okay.]

Don't cry — don't cry, it's okay! I didn't mean to leave, but it's alright. It's okay!

Don't make yourself sick! You're gonna throw up!
sweetmotherofgod: (so Heather gets the front page)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-10 08:50 pm (UTC)(link)
He's not gonna throw up.

[He might throw up. God knows she feels like she might throw up, because somehow Netherlands seeing Takeshi and responding makes it all real and that's wonderful, it's dazzling, it's better than she ever could have hoped for

but it's also slightly terrifying. With Netherlands clinging to Takeshi the way he is she unloops one arm to snake it around him, group hug style, rubs at his back. Don't panic, he needs us not to panic. The rest they can figure out as they go.]


handelaar: (moving along now)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-11 05:52 am (UTC)(link)
[He's not gonna throw up. (He might throw up.) But he swallows and nods - understood - takes one shaky hand to scrub at his face and attempt to wipe away everything that's got Takeshi worried and Heather subtly reassuring him where their kiddo can't see it. Tears: downgraded to leaking, for the moment.]

I'll - try.

[Not to cry or not to throw up it is a mystery. Meanwhile Lodewijk has joined Hoi Hoi and is attentively observing, for once.]
throwsdown: (maybe even slip me some prozac)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-11 11:17 pm (UTC)(link)
[Takeshi bites his lip, and if they had noticed his eyes are a bit glossy, well, he's not about to mention it. It's just — he's sad. Takeshi's sad, because he's made such a scene, made his family worry about him to the point of tears, and he can't even recollect how it all happened. It's hard for a five-year-old to grasp being here then being gone, even if he's aware of how topsy-turvy this place is with coming and going. He pats Netherland's shoulders, frowning.]

I didn't mean to make you and Heder cry. M'sorry...

[PLEASE JUST DON'T CRY ANYMORE, HE'LL BE GOOD AND STAY. ;A;]
sweetmotherofgod: (i have no control over myself)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-12 06:49 am (UTC)(link)
Hey, hey. It's not your fault. You have nothing to be sorry for.

[She jostles the kid slightly, a little jiggle that's meant to be reassuring and probably isn't because she is, it would seem, stereotypically less able to control her tears than the men in her life. But she looks between them - her kid, her precious son, and the love of her stinkin' life, and one thing's clear.

They should be doing this somewhere else.]


We should move. To someone's room.
handelaar: (hold up a sec)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-13 03:37 am (UTC)(link)
[DON'T PAT HIS SHOULDERS TAKESHI that nearly sets him off all over again. He covers it by wiping his face on his shoulder (gross) while giving a grunted agreement to what Heather says and then, after her jostling, by lightly placing his chin on Takeshi's head and tucking closer. It's not Takeshi's fault at all, but it's just like him to feel like it is.]

Whose.

[The question is muttered first, and only then does Netherlands pull back enough to look between the two. Pack up and move to someone's room - now that there's a task in the queue, it's much easier to reign all those sloppy emotions in.]

Have to put those up first.

[Thumb back to chickens.]
throwsdown: (pic#4949211)

1/2

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-13 07:00 am (UTC)(link)
We should go! We should rest... Did — Is my room still okay?

[He knows now he's been gone for a while... but...]
throwsdown: <user name=bushyeyebrows> (small but mighty)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-13 07:01 am (UTC)(link)
Whoa — !!

[EXCUSE ME MOM AND DAD, THERE ARE CHICKENS TO BE WITNESSED.]

Whoa, Mr. Ned, where'd all these come from?!
sweetmotherofgod: (I can be up for that)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-13 09:31 am (UTC)(link)
[Just gently (and reluctantly) lowering the kiddo to the floor, so he can greet the chickens if he wants. The motion comes with a shrug towards Netherlands over the pipsqueak's head - maybe they put chickens away together, since Takeshi seems so interested, and then hit somebody's room?]
handelaar: (hair down: oh)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-13 07:54 pm (UTC)(link)
It's - [what is it? For now it's a mystery, because Takeshi cuts him off and then everything is chickens. Ned's watching all the excitement with an unmistakably proud look on his face - blinks over at Heather's shrug. What does that shrug mean.]

Uh. [Whatever, chickens.] Eggs.

[He's not even trying to be funny. That's where they came from :|]
throwsdown: <user name=bushyeyebrows> (What did one shepherd say to the other?)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-15 09:48 am (UTC)(link)
[Takeshi looks up to Netherlands, beaming proudly at his spacedad's work.]

Do they peck people?!

[... Well, what. He hasn't actually felt like he's left, so the moment is totally ruined (or maybe saved?) by his eagerness to help with something like chicken-herding. Besides, other than Hoi Hoi over there (chewing on his paw), he isn't used to a lot of other animals being around.]
sweetmotherofgod: (I knew that loose was too noose)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-15 06:36 pm (UTC)(link)
[That's a very sensible question, considering that if Heather knows the kid at all his next move is going to be to try to pet one or all of them, but that doesn't stop her from giggling quietly to herself at the enthusiastic tone of the question. Like he's hoping they're attack chickens, or something.]

Maybe we can help get them home, and you can get to know 'em better that way.
handelaar: (moving along now)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-16 01:29 am (UTC)(link)
[Do they - uh. He rubs at his cheek with his fingertips while flicking his eyes over to Heather's giggles and back.]

Their, uh. Their feet are dangerous. [This feels. Really surreal. Takeshi asking questions upon questions like nothing's happened and meanwhile he feels - almost out of body, or whatever people call it.] Be faster if I put them up, today.

[Said with a significant look over to Heather. The idea sounds goddamned adorable, and good, but he needs to smoke about three cigarettes and get the freakout that's looming on the horizon out of the way, somewhere where he won't be upsetting Takeshi again. He's hoping she gets it, will be able to navigate Takeshi's questions about why not today.]
throwsdown: (we don't say the C word)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-17 08:35 pm (UTC)(link)
[He huffs, looking a bit disappointed.]

You know I'm strong! M'not scared of their feet...

[Parents, man. Always too worried. Still, the blanketed 'no' Netherlands gives seems to be caught pretty (surprisingly) easily by the boy, and he stretches, trying to get the kinks out from where he'd been floating in goop for however long.]

I wanna draw chickens, then! We can draw them, right??
sweetmotherofgod: (lick it up baby)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-17 09:29 pm (UTC)(link)
[She doesn't get the finer nuances of Ned's look but she does get that he wouldn't walk away from them now without damn good reason, so she watches him a beat before agreeing.]

Hell yeah we can draw chickens. We'll go to your room, get all set up, and Netherlands can come over when he's ready.
handelaar: (...this is an important matter)

[personal profile] handelaar 2015-01-17 09:55 pm (UTC)(link)
I know.

[Quiet agreement - he's still gonna worry about it, though. The kid's tiny, what if a chicken got pissed and took his eye out. Or something. /fret

Drawing chickens is a much better idea. Hell yeah they can draw chickens. The corner of his mouth quirks up for a moment and he sighs in relief, runs a hand through his hair before letting it fall with a nod - part determination and part silent thanks to Heather.]


Won't take long.

[Muttered as he leans in and brushes his lips on Heather's cheek, follows it up by crouching down and reaching out for Takeshi.]
throwsdown: (Default)

[personal profile] throwsdown 2015-01-19 08:55 am (UTC)(link)
[Takeshi jumps forward and gives Netherlands a smooch on the cheek, and then beams contentedly at himself. His family's so cool; it's the best family you could ever, ever have in space. With that thought in mind, he looks one last time toward the chickens and then toward Heather, eager to start drawing up some full-hearted attempts at chickens.]

Can you draw chickens good?
sweetmotherofgod: (I knew that loose was too noose)

[personal profile] sweetmotherofgod 2015-01-19 09:12 am (UTC)(link)
[It's the best fucking family. She returns Ned's cheek-kiss, watches as Takeshi throws himself forward for smoochin' and balls her hand into a fist - she's not going to start crying again, nuh-uh, nope. It takes her a moment and a deep breath with one hand on Netherlands' arm and one on Takeshi's hair before she believes that herself, but when it all evens out she beams at the kid.]

Nope. I don't think I ever drew a chicken before. I'm probably gonna need a lot of help.

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