ataraxionlogs | thirty-ninth jump;

Entry tags:

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.

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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.

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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.

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It's nice to see Kaylee happy. Sometimes Zoë forgets that she's allowed to be happy unless she gets reminders from both Wash and Kaylee. And with Wash upset as of late, Kaylee's arrival is a help.

"It's the truth, but glad to see you smiling again." How can she ask what she wants to know? It's not like it's a typical, run-of-the-mill question. Best to just do it and deal with the issues right away. No more secrets among the crew. And if Mal wasn't there, it falls to Zoë to keep them all together. "Kaylee, what was the last thing to happen back home before you got here?"

"Well, don't ever not take me long t'smile." Ookay, that was like, a triple negative or something, but Zoe knew what she meant.

What was the last thing Kaylee remembered? She paused, frowning just slightly. "Uhm, normal day. Last big important thing? Gorram. I think- Tracy?"

Zoë does, indeed, know what Kaylee means. After so many years together on Serenity, it was only a matter of time.

"Tracy?" That doesn't make Zoë happy at all. Kaylee'd been injured and Mal'd been forced to kill the boy. And it means that the girl's missing the most about the future and knows absolutely nothing about Wash's death. "Well, this should be interesting."

Now she sorta knows how Simon must've felt. And she's not sure she really knows how to tell her what's happened.

"Get dressed. We need to talk about something important."

"Yeah," she repeats, still remembering how she'd listened over and over again to his message. How he'd turned out to be alive. How he betrayed them all.

And then he was dead, just like that.

Really made ya think.

So did Zoe's response. "Okay... Is it bad?" She's already turning to her locker, pulling out familiar clothing and putting it on, so she calls over her shoulder. She doesn't mind Zoe seeing her naked, dropping her towel.

Tracy's betrayal had stung, yeah, but it had hit Mal the hardest. He carried the weight of everyone on his back, which is something Alliance never understood. The rest of their platoon that died at the Battle of Serenity Valley, Mal knew every name.

(Fact of the matter was that so did Zoë, but she didn't wear her heart on her sleeve the same way the captain did.)

"Could be. It's uncomfortable." She waits until the girl is dressed before talking again. "Gonna need a drink to talk about this again. Come with me. There's a bar not too far from here."

"They've got a bar?" Suddenly, she's even more attentive. She'll take anything alcoholic. "You'll have t'show me this place no questions asked." Even if it was going to be something difficult to talk about. But. Alcohol.

"What sorts'a drinks they got?"

"There's more than one bar on each level of residences." It took some getting used to to have alcohol so close and free. "Come on then. Let's go. And there're all sorts.

"Just...no Mudder's Milk."

"Let's go then!" Alcohol! "I'll take anything that isn't Mudder's Milk. Anythin' you want. Don't want'cha to have a hard time talkin' 'bout whatever this is." She's trying to be optimistic.

Well, it's okay. There's just some stuff that Zoë knows for sure she can't tell her crewmate. Talking about Wash's death is off the table. She's not sure she can actually talk about it without wanting to cry or shoot something.

As is, she just leads Kaylee to the nearest bar and steps behind to grab a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. She pours herself a healthy drink and one for her friend too before she speaks again.

"Alright, let's start with the easy part. Mal, Jayne, Inara, River and Shepherd Book aren't here. It's us, Simon and Wash right now. Wash's been here a year. Simon's going on six months and this is my third."

Kaylee takes a bit of time to make it to the table, trying to look at every inch of this place. Still, eventually, she knows she needs to sit down. The drink, as it were, helps get her to the bar.

She takes the glass of whiskey, and holds it, but doesn't drink. Not yet. When Zoe's done with the beginning, her eyes are wide. "Just the four'a us? For that long? You didn't all come at the same time?" How odd.

She takes a drink.

"Yes, it's just us from what I know. Simon told me that River's been here before." But she doesn't want to think about River walking around without Simon, honestly. Scary as fuck.

"And I can't tell why we didn't come at the same time. Of course, none of us notice that anyone's missing." She takes a sip of her own drink, not wanting to get drunk before this is over and done with. "Another thing. The incident with Tracy? That happened for me months before I even got here. It's even longer for Wash and Simon."

Don't make her spell it out, Kaylee. You're a smart girl.

Kaylee watches, Kaylee listens, and Kaylee drinks. Real, good liquor. It'd been... gorram, it'd really been never. Well, that one party, they'd had some real good wine and champagne.

When it's her turn, she speaks. "So- what you're sayin'... I'm from the past, before you? And your from my future?" Weird. Weeeeeird.

She's just gonna drink more.

Zoë talks, but she doesn't like it one bit. She'd rather be enjoying this damn fine whiskey she's found on this ship. "Gon beh." She takes a deeper drink before continuing.

"That's about the right of it. Haven't found any two people from the same world who come from the same time. Seems to be normal here." She shrugs a little, knowing the worst is something she can't share with her friend. "Not such a bad thing in the grand scheme of things. Met a few people who are supposed to be dead back where they're from."

Aaaand she drinks again.

"That's... gotta be awful confusin' for everyone. I'm from the farthest back of all of you, ain't I?" She'll pair that with more whiskey, because that's really what she needs right now. She's not the best at holding her liquor, but right now, she's doing a damn good job of it.

"Dead? And they came here instead?" Weird. Very weird.

Zoë can't fault you for that. This is really the first time she's sat down to drink anything since learning the truth from Simon. She's a little worried that if she does it alone, she won't stop.

"You are, but you're a sight for sore eyes. Don't let that deter you from trying to find a place here. I assure you that Wash and Simon'll be pleased to see you just fine." The doctor probably the most of them all.

"Yeah, this is a helluva afterlife, as far as I'm concerned. Not sure even the Shepherd could really have guessed that a place like this exists." Part of her wishes they were back there helping poor Nandi and her girls fight off men with over-inflated egos.

Kaylee blushes crimson at the mention of the good, handsome doctor. "Shucks- now you're just bein' real flatterin', Zoë. Don't have t'do that fer me." But she liked hearing it, all the same.

She shakes her head. "Me neither."

"Do I seem the type to go around flattering people, Kaylee?"

Kaylee raises her drink to that. "Y'got a point there, Zoë."

"Of course I do. Now, drink up and I'll take you to where Simon's hiding. Or my handsome husband, if you'd prefer a chaste hug first."

Well you don't need to tell her twice. She's drinking. "I think Simon'd only give me a chaste hug, too."

Zoë only smiles a bit. "Things change."

"We'll see." But, even smiling around her cup, she hopes they will.

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thirty-ninth jump;

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