ataraxionlogs | (no subject)

CHARACTERS: EVERYONE
LOCATION: MED BAY
WARNINGS: ... Partial nudity? It should be pretty tame, but let me know if I need to add anything.
SUMMARY: Side-effects of a jump may include disorientation and temporary memory loss. Fortunately, there are a handful of others who have been through this before.
NOTES: Yes, it's a rehashing of the game premise. Don't worry, you can personalize your own (re-)introduction!

You wake up, alone in the dark.

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.

Don't worry, 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. They will help you through your disorientation, even though they might suffer from it too.

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.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"This place," Nigel repeats somewhat skeptically, not sure if Natalie means quite literally the place itself or whatever Powers That Be were responsible for bringing them in here in the first place. But matters of 'place' dreg up thoughts of 'home' along with them, and Nigel finds himself thinking not only of the cold stone facades of the school and its grey as grey can be buildings, but also the warm wooden floorboards of his parents' house in the suburbs, his secret place hidden underneath, tucked in the crawlspace of the basement. "Perhaps it means for us to be comfortable. Reminders from home."

Slowly he begins to adjust his tie and go about the process of tying it neatly. There are plenty of knots that Nigel knows; many of them have become very useful as of late, what with the whole mess with Susan in the greenhouse of the girl's school. Neckties demand a different sort of knot altogether, though Nigel knows his fair share of those two. In the end, four-in-hand is his knot of choice and so his fingers and hands proceed without much hesitation or through, his chin tipping upwards as he lifts the collar of his shirt so as to make more room in which to work. "Might I ask where you're from, Natalie?" he eventually inquires. "I can't quite place your accent. America, is it?"

She knows that hesitating is just going to make her seem suspicious, so she goes with the truth. "From a starship, most recently. Not one like this, though." Because she wasn't born as much as she was activated and downloaded time and time again, it isn't a lie. She lived on Caprica and New Caprica both, but she didn't really consider either of them her home. Being on Gemenon had been nice, being a reformist had been nice as well -- but it had still felt like a lie.

"Comfortable. It's got a long way to go for me to consider myself comfortable here." For one thing, she'd need at least a few familiar faces -- and maybe some confirmation that she was here for something bigger. Maybe it was to help this poor human boy. Hm.

Nigel's expression changes as his hands pause and then promptly resume in the business of tying his tie. He's always had a head for academic studies, but only in the areas that held his personal interest: anatomy, zoology, history, religion. The physical sciences like chemistry and astronomy were oftentimes left sorely to the wayside, along with things like pop culture, and so his point of reference when it comes to space isn't very far off the ground (to pardon the pun).

He waits until he's done with his tie, smoothing it down the front of his shirt with both hands before moving to pull on his blazer. It makes Nigel look older, the slacks and tie, the formal black blazer and the shined dress shoes, and it's obvious when he finally straightens with a somewhat sigh, that he's used to being tidy and probably prefers it that way — at least where personal grooming is concerned. Only when he's finished does he give Natalie a look.

"A spaceship. Really."

The statement serves double portions of incredulity. Both in where she's from and where they are presently.

"That's quite a bit different from what I'd expected."

Edited 2012-01-16 14:56 (UTC)

She notices the way that he takes his time putting on each part of his clothing, notices the way that all his clothes look lean and neat -- and files that in the back of her mind for the moment, smiling softly at the image. He seems well-behaved so far, if a little -- eccentric, being a believer like her. It's atypical of most humans.

"Why?" She raises an eyebrow. It hasn't really occurred to her that this place might be in the midst of some sort of temporal disturbance, although the idea starts to blossom even as she asks why that would be strange.

"...is space travel atypical where you're from?"