Scene #9085: Syzygy: The Second

Owner	Pose
Dysnomia	It was strangely simple to keep track of time on the Syzygy--the internal lights of the ship automatically rose and dimmed and rose again. If asked, Dysnomia was free with why. "It's important to simulate an earth-standard day-night cycle...Or one close to it." She muttered, arm-deep into the ship. "One of the first problems the ITA had to solve for extraterrestial settlements...Hang on..." "Curfew has begun!" The ship intercom chirped. "Report to your chambers for required rest hours, or the captain will be infooo--" The sound trailed off to a low, deep drone as Dysnomia RIPPED some wires out of the wall. "I can't begin to tell you how long I've wanted to do that." She shut her eyes, let go of a giddy little laugh. "Pick your own schedule. Fuck curfew." She fought down a paranoid urge to peer over her shoulder. Several days passed, this time without ship computer powerlessly hounding the crew. The true purpose of all those small protrusions and ledges spread across the ship became clear in no time, when the crew saw Captain walking across little catwalks near the ceiling, climbing into little hidey holes, laying on a piece of mesh in front of a porthole to see outside. By and large, Captain quickly grew accostomed to the crew...Except for Rita, who she hid from whenever she entered a room, darting into another room, or under a table, or into a little hole in the wall, in tandem with a fear that Khosa or Echolalia, on reading Captain, could only describe as 'fleeing an apex predator.' Dysnomia had cleared out a little space in the cargo bay, shifting some esoteric pieces of tech--Meresankh might recognize as pieces of a warpgate--and a large pile of rations to the side in order to set up a table for a game of cards. Meanwhile, a holographic 'screen' was active in the kitchen/lounge, only a slight flicker, the discrepency in size...and the utter nonsensicality of its presence...evidence of its unreality. After it was finished with House of Flying Daggers--which Dysnomia must have put onto the ship--the ship found and flicked onto a Nine Moons Broadcast with a young man and woman in professional dress, sitting in front of a desk. ____________________________________________ \| WELLSPRING REPORT - WITH MEZZO AND TENOR \| \| WILL HRONN BRING THE MOONS TO TEARS?! \| "--But golly, it sure would be nice if it worked out." "But we can't bet our food supply on the constancy of a wyrm. A half-feral one, at that!" "Oh, I know you're right. But..." "Remember, if it sounds too good to the true, then it probably is." The reporter looked to the camera, seriously straightening some papers on the desk. "This is how they lure people onto their side...And it's a slippery slope from this to stellar worship." A sharp, performative gasp, hand clapping over her heart. "How dreadful!" "Our way of life is in danger. And YOU are all that stands in their way!" ...How has the rest of the crew been spending their days aboard?
Meresankh	Meresankh spends most of the first two days nervously tuning instruments in her quarters, looking for any register of Ran's psychic emissions on tools usually calibrated for measuring the chaotic energies of the Warp. Finding nothing of the sort here - no daemonic presences riding the solar winds, no rifts to nightmare dimensions hiding within the sun, nothing - is little comfort to the Cryptek. If there's nothing on the scanners, that just means whatever's REALLY there has learned to conceal itself, right? She repeatedly considers bringing her C'tan shard out of its hyperdimensional containment, but her fear that it might be able to operate beyond normal parameters under Ran's light proves stronger than her curiosity about what it might have to say about the psychic sun. Eventually, reluctantly, she gives up on trying to puzzle out what's 'wrong' with Ran from such distance, and resolves to try again when the Syzygy is closer to its destination. For now? She collapses in the lounge, slumped back on a bean-bag chair, lazily taking in "House of Flying Daggers" with slitted eyes. Her scarabs watch the rest of the common areas with unblinking sensor-orbs, their simple autonomous neural network learning to find spots that won't interfere with Captain's regular patrols of the ship. Meresankh (presumably) isn't tapped into the scarab network at all times, but the possibility that she could be perhaps works against Dysnomia's attempts at a casual, non-judgemental atmosphere. As the credits for "House of Flying Daggers" begin to roll, Meresankh speaks up for the first time since emerging from her quarters. "Where did they keep all of those knives on their person? I didn't think humans of that era had access to omnidimensional storage..." Her musings about the technologies available to Tang-dynasty rebels trail off as the news broadcast flickers to life. Meresankh's eyes slide to Echolalia at the mention of stellar worship. As skeptical as she is about supposed star-gods, she can't help but wonder if there's more to the faith of Ran than alien trickery. The idea that someone else's star-gods might be nicer than the Necrontyr's former pantheon irks her, so when she speaks it is with a somewhat accusatory tone. "Echo. If you didn't worship Ran, would you still possess your talents? Would your life be any different?"
Odette Raskins	The ambient noise in the Syzygy, combined with the steady shift from simulated day to night and back again, puts Odette more at ease than practically anything else she's encountered outside of her home and her work. Even though it's an unfamiliar ship in unfamiliar space, the recognizable patterns and ambient spaceyness truly puts her at ease, and the Elite 'crew' here isn't nearly as death prone as those she usually works with and has to put together. All things considered, this might as well be an impromptu vacation for her. "You should probably still take care of your sleep schedule, though..." She chides lightly, trying not to snicker too much at Dysnomia's open defiance of the curfew nor worry too much about whether or not they'll need a working intercom system later. Without the looming threat of people dying from basically anything that would normally happen on a space station, Odette's actually free to focus on her personal training for once. She's got her exercise routine from the Trideag Association to run through to make sure she doesn't lose what little edge she has, and she can be seen running through the halls in the early hours of the morning with a stopwatch ready to time herself. Other times, she can be found meditating in cargo bay, wooden training staff in hand with a book held in her lap. Even out in the depths of space, she's still working on learning how to channel magic like Lucius had taught her with Cecilia's tips to guide her. Every now and then, she even manages to create a small flicker or momentary lighter-like spark, but she's still got a ways to go. Seeing the news, meanwhile, has Odette wrinkling her nose slightly in mild concern. "They're not talking about.. Um. What we're bringing them, are they? I-I mean, most of us aren't even from this sector, and... N-nobody's really dumb enough to believe everything they hear on these broadcasts, right?"
Echolalia	Echolalia hasn't been inactive on the ship. She didn't seem to be particularly skilled at managing the ship's systems but she prepared meals for anyone who wanted them and has been occassionally trying to flirt with Dysnomia, admiring the stars, and performing various workouts, exercises, and martial training. Her own martial style looks like it could easily be converted into a dance judging from the way she is constantly and ryhthmically moving. She insists on doing this, indicating it's important she not get rusty. It's the little ways that Dysnomia shows that she cares that get Echolalia in a top tier mood, hair puffing into little flowering bursts of light as she watches the film, utterly enraptured. Echolalia knows that Rita is a badass, of course, but she doesn't know she's an apex predator flavored badass so she is utterly flummoxed by the creature fleeing Rita consistently. As a secret master, Echolalia is certain that Rita is at one with the natural world. But perhaps, she reasons to herself, it's a different natural world. She is still tearyeyed from the ending of House of Flying Daggers, "Mei... Oh Mei... Poor Mei... Caught between those two honorless jerks..." Then it catches a Nine Moons Broadcast... Echolalia blinks. ''WILL HRONN BRING THE MOON TO TEARS'' Echolalia wipes at her eyes and her face sobers up, somewhat, a lazy smile flickers upon her lips. "Ahaha," Echolalia laughs briefly. "I get it. That's quite the pun. They must've taken a little bit to figure that one out." She listens to the report, her expression unchanging from that lazy smile before flopping onto her back once it starts talking about ways of life and the like. "I'm grateful really. Hearing this stuff every day really toughened me up. Some would rather let themselves starve than allow two to receive a gift of food." She says it like a koan. She smiles at Rita. "Maybe one day I'll be as tough and sweet as you. They're not wrong that I can't be relied upon forever, but they forget I'm a botanist too sometimes. One day it won't need me to mantain it anymore if I'm smart about it. They call everyone who goes against the ITA feral, so perhaps I should be glad they only see me as half a beast? For my people's sake." ''Echo. If you didn't worship Ran, would you still possess your talents. Would your life be any different?'' Echolalia is surprised to get asked about this, but her smile broadens into something more honest. "Hey! I'm glad you expressed interest! Well, Ran doesn't actually... ''ask'' for worship, you know? The way we get our abilities actually doesn't really connect to our belief in Ran at all. I think all wyrms DO believe in her though, because--like--we exist ''thanks'' to her. But she's not fueled by prayers or anything. ... Well, maybe she heard ''mine'' but I was a bit of a strange kid." She turns her head back, looking at the ceiling. "We know she's our Mother. It's hard to imagine ''not'' knowing it. I'm sure my life would be different, but not because of Ran. I'd probably have an easier time if I just stuck to the Integration Church's line. But I feel bad. I worry she gets lonely, you know? So i'm really glad you talked to her." That last is accompanied with a glance back to Rita. "...The abilities I have--I'm certain it's because she knew I wanted to help save them and my family." She glances to Odette as well to add, "Nah, like I said. They just say this stuff about me all the time. It's gotta be a coincidence, though maybe me leaving is part of it."
Khosa	Khosa has never been on a spaceship in her life. She wasn't sure what she expected from it before it happened. This wasn't quite it. It was simultaneously boring and fascinating. Boring, because every day was pretty much like the last; fascinating, because everything in it was new. She went through the parts of the ship that weren't off-limits and tried to figure out what everything was; usually she failed but at least she tried. Khosa also spent some time in exercise and practice. She'd passed Odette in the halls running at least once and watches some of Echolalia's martial training before performing her own. Khosa's martial training is more direct, aggressive, and clearly lacks something when not working with a partner - she expects to get hit doing it, and alone, that doesn't happen. She also made friends with Captain, as best she could, or at least acquaintances. There were no psychic powers involved with that. Khosa understands predators, even little predators, and knew how to behave in a general way... even if she doesn't know cats so well. She never did figure out why Captain kept running from Rita, though. Khosa clearly approved of the movie. "There are some psychic disciplines that can do that," she says to Meresankh, "though don't ask me to show them off, because they're not ones I trained with. Could be they're wild talents even if they never had training..." She listens in, otherwise. "Some people think gifts aren't free, and they'd rather struggle without owing anybody. Though why they think that lets them pick for someone else, I don't know." Khosa considers Echolalia for a long moment, then says, "You don't seem that feral to me." On Ran, Khosa has her own thoughts. But she's still too far away for her to try opening herself up to contact (not that she really knows HOW to contact something that different, but never mind, that's its own problem).
Meresankh	I worry she gets lonely, you know? "Just be careful," Meresankh says with an artificial sigh. "When something's that much bigger than you, 'lonely' and 'hungry' aren't always far apart." "Some people think gifts aren't free, and they'd rather struggle without owing anybody." "Precisely! I-" "Though why they think that lets them pick for someone else, I don't know." Meresankh makes an unhappy sound. "Maybe they're just advising prudence. Some gifts really aren't free, and when the giver comes to collect they'll make you regret ever opening your doors to them. And at a certain point you have to stop advising and start protecting people from their own mistakes, right?" Wait, since when was Meresankh on the newscasters' side of this? "If you see someone about to step on a mine you stop them, you don't shrug and say 'well, it was their decision'."
Rita Ma	Rita pretends not to notice when Captain runs from her, after the first few times. But she does. Her face takes on a little guilty cast every time. Eventually she starts avoiding Captain almost as much as Captain avoids her: provoking that flinch just hurts to much. Whenever she cooks seafood for everyone, though- spicy brined crab! shrimp pasta! grilled tuna!- she leaves a little bit of meat in Captain's bowl. Maybe someday they can be friends. It becomes increasingly obvious as the days go on that Rita doesn't really know how to sit still. She cleans a lot, cooks to fancy up the rations, insists on being the one to do the dishes, and when she's run out of messes on the second day she starts applying her meager maintenance knowledge to make inconsequential repairs to the ship. It's a good thing the space whale calves show up on the third day, or she might start going crazy trying to care for Li'l Beetlo. They're a half-dozen big pale mouthless things, six-eyed and wedge-skulled, trailing tentacles behind, some almost as large as a bus... and Rita treats them like they're completely adorable, smooshing her face against the windows and waving at them eagerly when they show up. They seem happy to see her, too! One slow-blinks at the Rita window contentedly. Does the glowing space-stream nourish them somehow? They seem happy frolicking in it, forming a pod around the spaceship as if it were their mother. On the day of the broadcast, she's leaning against the wall with a little plate of the sashimi she made (but she called it 'hwareo-hoe') to peek over Mia and Echo's shoulders. "What's so bad about 'stellar worship'? They said it like it was dirty," she says after a chopstick-mouthful, a bit morosely. "I don't know a lot about spirituality, but... Ran is nice, isn't she?" Echolalia's praise gets to her; she's never quite sure how to take that. There's a moment of open-mouthed flushed embarrassment. Then she laughs, eyes brightly shut and shoulders drawn-in. "'As tough and sweet as me'... I think you're already tougher and sweeter than me, Ms. Echolalia! You're providing and caring for a whole world, aren't you?" (Rita sort of is, but it's not the same, she thinks.) 'Feral' puts her to thought for a while. "You mean, they're calling you 'like a monster'? How can they do that? I've never seen you be wild at all." And as for praise about contacting her: "Mmmm! I think I should be happy that she had the time to talk to me. A star must be pretty busy, right? Doing... star things. What did you pray for anyway?"
Rita Ma	"When something's that much bigger than you, 'lonely' and 'hungry' aren't always far apart." For some impossible-to-guess reason, Rita chokes on a piece of fish.
Odette Raskins	"Some would rather let themselves starve than allow two to receive a gift of food." "Some people think gifts aren't free, and they'd rather struggle without owing anybody." "Yeah... B-but it just seems kind of.. I dunno. If any one of you really wanted to mess with them, you wouldn't even need to bother with all of this, right?" Odette comments, looking from Dysnomia to Meresankh to Echolalia, and then to Rita and Khosa after another moment as her mind goes through all the possibilities there could be for any one of them to wreak havoc. "I-I mean, if any of you really tried, it'd just be... Um. Really one sided?" She concludes with an awkward chuckle and shiver, sighing lightly after a few moments. "It's like they're just... I dunno. Looking for excuses to starve, yes." "Ran is nice, isn't she?" "Ran did sound pretty cool when Miss Echolalia was telling me about her, yeah... But she's not the same as whoever they follow, right? So maybe that's... Er. I-is that really all it takes?"
Dysnomia	Meresankh's instruments just aren't built to take in the psychic atmosphere of Ran's emissions--they're built to record irregular spikes and chaotic churning, not a slow, steady, constant flow. It's like someone trying to use a geiger counter to measure...well...Sunlight. While Captain refused to poke her head out when Rita comes close, once she's a few more steps away, a paw slips out from the dark, pulling the piece of fish back in with her. However scared she is, she doesn't seem terrified enough to refuse food. "I'm grateful really. Hearing this stuff every day really toughened me up. Some would rather let themselves starve than allow two to receive a gift of food." "Some people think gifts aren't free, and they'd rather struggle without owing anybody. Though why they think that lets them pick for someone else, I don't know." "Maybe they're just advising prudence. Some gifts really aren't free, and when the giver comes to collect they'll make you regret ever opening your doors to them." "I can answer that. There's always been a lot of pressure from Bara to undercut Hronn, every chance we get..." At the uncomprehending looks, she adds "...They are the place where most food in the Moons is sourced from. And this..." She gestured disdainfully at the holoscreen. "...Is shot in part of the same territory. You throwing into the market means they have a share a piece of the pie. And stars know, we can't have THAT." She rolled her eyes, relishing the freedom to just fucking SAY it OUT LOUD. For once. "If you control where the food comes from, you control everyone who relies on it. You think they want to give that up?" "They're not talking about.. Um. What we're bringing them, are they? I-I mean, most of us aren't even from this sector, and... N-nobody's really dumb enough to believe everything they hear on these broadcasts, right?" "If they knew we were here--which they don't--they'd say worse. There's a reason we're being convert, Raskins." Dysnomia is lounging back on the sofa, drawing circles in the air with a finger that trails smoke behind it. "If you're from beyond a warpgate, you're a dangerous, soulless alien thing. Supposedly." Dysnomia seethed. "Not everyone believes them, no. Just enough." "I always hated this fucking channel." "We know she's our Mother. It's hard to imagine ''not'' knowing it. I'm sure my life would be different, but not because of Ran...The abilities I have--I'm certain it's because she knew I wanted to help save them and my family."" "It's possible our abilities are more a reflection of who we are, or where we were. Rather than a specific 'gift.'" Dysnomia spoke up. "Not everyone has abilities that worked out quite so...Cleanly." She looks at Meresankh. "We don't 'lose' these powers. They're part of who we are." "What's so bad about 'stellar worship'? They said it like it was dirty," "But she's not the same as whoever they follow, right? So maybe that's... Er. I-is that really all it takes?" "The Tears of Ran are designated by the Moons as a cult." Dysnomia said, matter-of-factly, before turning to Odette, staring at her as she talked. Nodded, slowly. "...Yes. That's all it takes."
Khosa	In the few bits of time when she wasn't occupied with something else, Khosa had pulled out some small tools - scrapers, knives, rasps, a few other less easily identifiable things - and a black horn. She'd started to etch the outline of a geometric pattern on it, though she hadn't ever finished what she was working on and tends to put it aside when she has other things to do. It's not around now. Khosa is unfamiliar with a lot of seafood but will eat whatever Rita cooks (or doesn't cook, in a few cases). "I'd make something if we had ingredients I was better with," she offers. "But if you wanna try gorak or something." By her description, a gorak is something like a clawed iguana with a frill, three or four feet long. Unsure of what a mine is, Khosa makes a best-guess assumption. "If someone was walking into danger, sure, I'd stop them. And if someone was hungry and I could feed them, I'd give them food. But if they don't eat it when I give it to them or they walk right in as soon as my back's turned, eventually there's not a lot I can do about it no matter how hard I try. Short of picking them up and taking them somewhere else, anyway - and people'll fight against that even if it's for a good reason, if they don't want to go." Khosa drums her fingers on her thigh for a moment. Dysnomia's explanation makes sense to her. "It's a bit the same at home. The major cities control most of the water - that's why they're the major cities." So she understands, at least. Even if newscasts like this are new. Doing star things... "What counts as a star thing, anyway? Mostly they just sit there and burn, as far as I know. Shine on."
Echolalia	''When something's that bigger than you, 'lonely' and 'hungry' aren't that far apart.'' "I've never heard that one before. But Ran already 'ate' me. My old form, if you think about it. Best thing to ever happen to me--" ''You don't seem that feral to me.'' "Heh...maybe I'm just good at pretending...!" She grins, with sharp teeth. "But nah, 'feral' is basically synonymous with not working for the Admiralty. Technically I've got a Minder like everryone else, but I have something that keeps me freer than most etherwyrms. Hench: Half feral." She doesn't immediately comment on people thinking gifts aren't free beyond an aggravated groan. Odds are she's had to deal with a lot of that in her life but when Meresankh continues on about it, Echolalia smiles at her--it's never DISHONEST--but there's a different quality to it, like it's in response to a challenge, like a grin that says 'I will never be defeated, look how sharp my teeth are'. There's this sense that she's someone who hears these sorts of things a lot and has learned to smile dangerously at it all. She likes a challenge. In this, she sees herself as roughly invincible. "Sure, maybe I'm plotting something sinister. It would be kind of cool, wouldn't it, if the scheming dragon had a sneaky scheme?" ''What's so bad about 'stellar worship'? They said it like it was dirty.'' ECholalia's smile relaxes as she dips her head to Rita. "Well, obviously I don't think anything wrong is with it at all, but there's this whole thing with the Collapse Variable and they probably figure worshipping Ran directly encourages people to 'Collapse'--ie, become etherwyrms--more readily. But some of it just comes down to control." Her eyes light up with joy. "She IS nice isn't she?? I'm so glad you understand, Rita...! Goshh I'm amazed you were able to reach out that far... You're so cool..." She remains, as ever, oblivious to Rita's discomfort(?) with the praise, just tracking it back to her being a sweetie pateety. ''You mean, they're calling you 'like a monster'?'' "Well my other form probably looks more monstery, but I don't think they're really thinking of my personality at all. Or they'd call me full-feral, Ha ha ha!!" Her cackle is at about .7 Nonons. But her laughter fades when Rita mentions Ran must be pretty busy. "Huh." She says. "Never thought about her ''workload'' before. I guess I figured she could do anything." And what did she pray for? "Well I wanted to be a dragon ever since I met Dysnomia, she was sooooo pretty. But when it finally happened..." She trails off. "...Well, I guess I wished we wouldn't starve. To 'Collapse' you have to nearly die, you know? Some people back home think we actually ''did'' die and end up abandoned by our families. But that's why I can't leave them behind. I was given this gift to help them, even if sometimes they make it difficult on me!" She glances to Rita. "I'm sure someone of your skill knows a bit about that! If I just left to enjoy it however I wanted, I'd be taking advantage of her love. I couldn't do that." ''If any one of you really wanted to mess with them, you wouldn't even need to bother with all of this, right?'' "Well, actually ... Yeah if I wanted to, I'd probably want to be sneaky. The ITA isn't just something we could walk all over." She is confused by Odette's last question. "Is that really all it takes for what?"
Echolalia	''Dysnomia complaining about capitalism.'' Echolalia says, "You're so fucking sweet, Mia. You're not wrong. But what am I gonna do? Let my people die? They'll have to find some other way to deal, you know? If they hadn't held off on aid during the famine, I wouldn't even be here so really its as much their fault as mine if you think about it." She winks, no doubt taking SOME joy out of taking some heat out of Bara, even if she's not going to say it out loud. ''Not everyone has abilities that worked out quite so...Cleanly.'' "TRUE. But I mean--I was a botanist before I was a wyrm. I always had a bit of a green thumb! That's still me, for sure." ''The Tears of Ran are designated by the Moons as a cult.'' "We're not a cult!" Echolalia says, loudly, exactly the same way she protests when Lilian or any other Elite says it. "How can we be a cult if Ran's RIGHT THERE..?"
Meresankh	"What's so bad about 'stellar worship'? They said it like it was dirty," Meresankh cuts in. "It-" Then a pause while she gathers a thought. "It can go bad. It did go bad, for me and mine. If you put faith in something, it's always possible for it to disappoint you." "Short of picking them up and taking them somewhere else, anyway - and people'll fight against that even if it's for a good reason, if they don't want to go." Meresankh nods. "You're right. Some people just won't accept what's good for them, or even recognize it. But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try to give it to them, does it?" She looks at her hand, turning it over as if inspecting fingernails that aren't there. "I can't help but feel responsible, when I see someone hurt themselves in a way I could've prevented." "What counts as a star thing, anyway? Mostly they just sit there and burn, as far as I know. Shine on." "I'd say, if it talks, like Ran does apparently, or the C'tan from my world, then it's a 'star thing'. Otherwise it's just a star." Sure, maybe I'm plotting something sinister. "It's not your schemes I'm worried about," says the Cryptek, "it's Ran's. If it ever decides you owe it something back- Well, you're a Paladin. I'll do what I can to help you. But I can't promise it'd be enough."
Odette Raskins	"If they knew we were here . . . Not everyone believes them, no. Just enough." Odette nods slowly at Dysnomia first, finally remembering to take a seat or, if there aren't enough, just plopping down on the floor and pulling her knees up to her chest. "Hard to deny free food showing up at your doorstep unless you're already expecting a trap, I guess. Maybe they'll ask questions, but if there's nobody to point the finger at..." She murmurs, eventually slumping a bit into herself. "Nn. Still feels kind of bad. But at least if we can get the ears of the ones that don't believe them..."" She stops, looks off to the side for a moment, then back up at the group. "Is it... Wait.Am I thinking too hard? I'm thikning too hard. That sort of thing would just give them more reasons to be suspicious, wouldn't it?" "The Tears of Ran are designated by the Moons as a cult." Fidgeting self-consciously as she notices Dysnomia staring at her, Odette's gaze slooowly drifts off to the side. Mia can sitll see her glancing over for a brief moment every now and then, like she's being intimidated merely by the act of being sared at or something. "O-oh. Then it's... Hh. It isn't too different from how lots of stuff needs Company approval to be above board, too. I never really looked into that stuff all too much, but..." She scratches her cheek lightly, then clutches her training staff a little more tightly against her side. "Guess I should be more careful about bringing this around once we're dropping things off, then. Don't wanna risk someone seeing that and really thinking we're doing cult stuff." She laughs uneasily, then- "Is that really all it takes for what?" "How can we be a cult if Ran's RIGHT THERE..?" -turns to Echolalia while gesturing vaguely at the screen. "Oh. Um. The... Thinking you and anyone else that follows Ran are cultists, just because Ran isn't..." Another pause. "Who do the Moon follow, anyway? I-is there some other big leader they center around, or is it like those old Earth pantheons with the.. Um. The spooky beings that took on human forms to sing and play video games?"
Rita Ma	"But if you wanna try gorak or something." "Oh! That sounds really good!" Rita says when Khosa describes it. She's less squeamish than you might guess. Then she imagines the heartbreaking future scenario of 'Khosa giving her food and her being unable to eat it', and backtracks: "Ah, but... I have to be careful with what I eat. Just talk to me about how it's prepared before you bring it over, okay?" - - - - "But Ran already 'ate' me." From behind Echo, Rita's eyebrows shoot up her forehead. When she pulls her metal chopsticks out of her mouth, one has a toothmark in it. "Ah, um, a 'minder'? Like someone who makes sure you're okay?" Her Praise Overheat Meter is quick to go up and slow to go down, so Echo pretty quickly caps her into flustering again when the praise resumes. Hand-to-chest, gently recoiling until her back bonks the wall. "I can't reach out that far! I mean, not normally! I'm pretty sure it was mostly her reaching out to me... and, it's not like 'reaching out' is something I worked hard at... but thank you." Eyes slide down with cheeks flushed. Tiiiiny pout. "Huh? Ms. Mia 'collapsed' before you?" That rouses her from her slump. She looks between the two of them, a little confused. "But you seem like the more experienced one, Echolalia. I mean, not that you're inexperienced, Ms. Mia! Just that if one of you was the mentor, or something..." "I was given this gift to help them, even if sometimes they make it difficult on me! I'm sure someone of your skill knows a bit about that!" That gets Rita in an unusual (for her interactions with Echo) mood. The red in her cheeks disappears, and she rubs her arm uncomfortably. "Yeah. I do know what that's like. Just because people won't like you for it... that's no reason to squander a power to help them. When you have to sacrifice 'being loved' for them, you do it. Right?" Politics! Yay! The emotional tone of the two subjects blends smoothly. "Oh. They want to keep people depending on their food, so your food scares them. That makes sense. Do you ever do smuggling?"
Dysnomia	"If they hadn't held off on aid during the famine, I wouldn't even be here so really its as much their fault as mine if you think about it." "And that. See that, right there?" Dysnomia points at Echolalia, looking around at the rest of the crew, for a moment actually allowing herself to smile. "That's why they're so set on killing her." She turns to look to Echo herself. "Never change." "It can go bad. It did go bad, for me and mine. If you put faith in something, it's always possible for it to disappoint you." Dysnomia steepled her hands. Paused, looking up at the ceiling. "If you're looking for those that'd betray those they lean on, you may be looking in the wrong place." "Oh. Um. The... Thinking you and anyone else that follows Ran are cultists, just because Ran isn't...Who do the Moon follow, anyway...?" "Oh, nothing so fantastic." Dysnomia shrugged. "Not in the mood for a full civic rundown, but...It's a democratic republic, where the..." A beat, while Dysnomia searches for the proper word. "Citizens...of the three territories elect their Admirals from the officer class. We call it the Admiralty. No need to complicate it." "Ah, um, a 'minder'? Like someone who makes sure you're okay?" "...Speaking of...Etherwyrms aren't citizens. We're considered too emotionally volatile and unstable to make our own decisions. We're assigned a minder, or handler...usually our CO. Or a family member." Or both. "And they make those decisions on our behalf. Where you work, how you serve, what your schedule is...An etherwyrm is 'feral' if they don't have--or listen to--a handler." There's a soft sound of scampering, as Captain crept across the ceiling, daring to jump down, lapping at her bowl, watching Rita, unblinking. "But you seem like the more experienced one, Echolalia. I mean, not that you're inexperienced, Ms. Mia! Just that if one of you was the mentor, or something..." "Ouch." Dysnomia sighed. "No, I was first. I was loaned out to repair some of the machines on Hronn for a few weeks. Stars, what was I...seventeen?" She shook her head. "You wouldn't believe how cripplingly shy she was, back then."
Khosa	"I try," Khosa replies, to Meresankh. "Sometimes you gotta be rough for people's own good. Doesn't mean it always works." Khosa hasn't quite figured out the details of Rita's dietary requirements, but by this point she is at least aware that she has them. "Will do," she agrees. "You'd probably like silt serpent too... it's a bit like that, the way I had it." She means the hwareo-hoe; it was raw, though seasoned. "Just harder to get in Tyr." Khosa's immediate opinion of sun worship is negative, because of some of the cults she has to deal with - at least one of them is worth completely wiping out as far as she's concerned. Odette's questions help her put things into context too. But Echolalia's cult isn't the same sort of thing. For one, they don't have the same ideas about dominance - "Speaking of...Etherwyrms aren't citizens. We're considered too emotionally volatile and unstable to make our own decisions. We're assigned a minder, or handler... and they make decisions on our behalf." Khosa's eyes narrow. "You know," she says, after a long moment, "that's how I was treated, too. Muls," she pronounces it 'mulls' and not 'mules', "were mostly slaves. Still are, in most of the city-states. Valuable ones with useful powers got some leeway. They're rewarded, they have privileges and even authority - but it's because nobody wants to waste an investment, not because they're citizens. So they might have a better life than someone struggling to get by - but they're still someone else's property." "So if that's what they mean by 'feral', I'm on your side, not theirs." And Dysnomia's reluctance to return makes a hell of a lot more sense to Khosa, too. Khosa laughs, after that. "Which I guess sounds funny, coming from me - I work for the state now, after all. But the difference is I chose to do that. I could've just walked. But like some people," and she nods at Echolalia, "I had things to do to make things better. Guess I couldn't leave things be after all, ha ha!" She did say to Meresankh that she wasn't just going to walk away...
Echolalia	"I think her plan is loooooving us too much," Echolalia says like she's teasing her own deity a little but her tone is warm. " Echollia frowns when she reveals her own past. "Oh gosh," She says with the tone of this being an alien concept to her, but not unsympathetic. "That sounds terrible. Gosh... I'm glad it worked out for us, but maybe it makes more sense that some people are leery about it. They shouldn't be, but..." She wrinkles her nose at the very idea that Ran can be SCHEMING. "If she says it's time to come home, it's time to come home. But she's not like that. She's just not." She crosses her arms, sits up, and turns a little to face Odette. "Oh, don't worry. We can't force a Collapse. You seemed interested in it a little before so... If you are, I'll do whatever I can to help you, okay? I bet you have a super cool form inside you there." Of course she's not sure it'd be as easy as she's making it sound but Odette always seeming stressed out probably means it's more likely to happen than less, right? She would be so thrilled if she could inspire someone just like Dysnomia inspired her...! ''Like someone who makes sure you're okay?'' "Yeah, mine complains a lot." Echolalia says. "But they can't stop me...! Eheheh..." She sways back and forth on her butt before remembering that this is the sort of thing Dysnomia's worried about a lot so she purses her lips together and frowns a little in a moment of thought. ''I can't reach out that far!'' "Oh my gosh...! That's even better..! That means she really really really wanted to meet you, Rita!! I guess she has the same kind of eye for cool people as I do, heh heh..." She rubs the bridge of her nose with an index finger as if she stole it directly from anime itself. She might have. She adores martial arts flicks of all types. "R..really? You think I was the more experienced one? Gosssssh... You're flattering me, Rita! But nah, Mia's older than me and gosh...seeing her flying around... She even warned us about the coming famine, we probably would've been even worse off if not for her She was ''my'' mentor, eheh..." She stretches her arms up above her head and then shakes out her hands in front of her, glancing back to Rita as her mood shifts. Her smile gets smaller, compressing the warmth into a smaller, denser area. Her hair shifts from the bright yellows to a quiet dark purple. Well, quiet for Echolalia. "Yeah, you get it. It took some time to kinda figure out my new reality. But I think if you're kind to others, people will see it eventually. Maybe not everyone, but enough to not be lonely." ''Do you ever do smuggling?'' "Daaaang... That'd be really badass. Maybe I should..." She hasn't really thought it through just yet.
Echolalia	''Never change.'' Now it's Echolalia's turn to flush brightly. Though her skin is green she doesn't blush green, it sort of looks like bright lights under a thin sheet of green paper. Red lights. She can't even be subtle about blushing. "Mia..." It's been amazing getting to go on this trip with her. This process distracts her for a moment. Mia usually complains! She doesn't say 'Never Change' much ahhh...! "I do listen sometimes. I mean, if it makes sense..." Echolalia says of her Minder. "And I don't want anybody to get in trouble because I was just rebellious just for the sake of being snippy but..." ''You wouldn't believe how cripplingly shy she was, back then.'' "Whaaaa--you remember!! And are spilling the beans to everyone! My dark secret...! Look what you've done to me, you turned me into an extrovert...!" She laughs and attempts to throw herself at Dysnomia and give her a big hug, risking--of course--planting her face in the floor if Dysnomia dodges unexpectedly. But either way, she kind of ends up looking back to Rita, looking like she's about to say one of Mia's secrets but stops herself at the last moment. "But you can kinda see why I look up to her so much, right? Right??" ''You know, that's how I was treated to'' Echolalia listens carefully before admitting, "Yeah, we're kind of like that." Echolalia says. "I think it's cool you returned to lend a hand of your own will. But sometimes you have to bounce. It's your only choice. They don't like, keep us in chains or anything, at least not literal ones. But there's other ways to keep us around."
Odette Raskins	"When you have to sacrifice 'being loved' for them, you do it. Right?" Odette inhales sharply as she hears Rita saying that, and she gets a awed gleam in her eyes as she stares right at her. "Based..." She blurts out quietly, realizes what she says, then hastily coughs and fumbles more words into her hand. "...ool! V-very cool!" "Citizens...of the three territories elect their Admirals from the officer class." "Oh... Oh! So it's because she wasn't elected by..." Odette taps on her chin softly, eventually nodding as things seem to start clicking in her mind. "I-I guess that kind of makes sense, if they already picked someone else. If people like Miss Echolalia are following Ran because they want to, though, I don't see why..." "We're assigned a minder, or handler... and they make decisions on our behalf." Another pause, and then she sighs softly as something else seems to click following Khosa's comments. "They want everyone under control. Following the same leaders, no... Different ways of thinking. N-nothing outside the box that might stretch out of what they can handle. Something like that?" "If you are, I'll do whatever I can to help you, okay? I bet you have a super cool form inside you there." Blinking a little more cluelessly at that, Odette quickly starts to recall her last conversation with Echolalia about that and sits up considerably straighter. "R-really? I mean... Wait, but isn't it super dangerous? I mean, if you think it really would be cool... Oh, but if it turns out to be super weird..." She lets out an anxiously conflicted noise, clearly considering the possibility instead of dismissing it outright. "Ehm... I-is it something that can just happen naturally? I mean, I guess it'd have to, if you can't force it to happen, but... Mmn. No, that might be... I-I dunno. It's... Can I think more about it first?" She ssks, forcing another smile while looking stressed out just from juggling around the possibilities in her mind.
Rita Ma	Cap'n beguiles Rita over, in the way that cats do. She approaches to juuust outside the usual startle radius, crouches down with hands-on-knees, and smiles gently. "Hi. It's okay," she thinks at her, and then remembers the cat can't hear her, because Rita never ate a cat. "...Speaking of...Etherwyrms aren't citizens." "Mm?" Rita doesn't seem surprised by that, looking back from her crouch. It might've been nice if I'd had a 'minder', she thinks. But then she reappraises Mia and Echolalia, lips pressed in uncomfortable thought, and glances at Khosa too. No. That's not right. They're nothing like I was, really. "I'm sorry. That's awful," she says, emptily, but sincerely. Then she bubbles over into a little laugh, turning back to look at Captain again. She waves at the cat to reassure. Echolalia? Shy? "I wouldn't believe it. I guess people have been really good to her to build her up!" When she looks back again, she's beaming: "But you can kinda see why I look up to her so much, right?" "Mmmm! Ms. Mia acts grumpy, but she cares about people a lot. I think she doesn't know how to stop caring, so she gets hurt sometimes, so she gets grumpier... but she's still really sweet." Jesus, Rita. Don't say all that while looking so innocent. You're lethal. Ran thinks she's cool? That can't possibly be true. "Ah- um- thank you, Echolalia, but I don't think so." Facing away, Echolalia can't see whether Rita's cheeks are pink, but she can see her rock back and forth on her heels in the crouch. "I think I just... did something she liked, once. That's all." "Based..." That finally makes Rita tear her eyes away from the cat. She looks up at Odette in soft blink-blinking surprise. Then she smiles in a cat-that-got-the-canary, nobody-will-believe-you way, while (she assumes) nobody but Odette can see her face. "Huh~? Based on what, Ms. Odette~?" So innocent.
Echolalia	''Jesus, Rita. Don't say all that while looking so innocent. You're lethal.'' Echolalia's eyes sparkle. "You get it... Ritaaaa...." Rita might very well be bound to get suddenly hugged too, like she had just found an oasis in the desert. "You're so gooood!" She's even forgotten to use something like 'Sifu' all day today. What does it mean...?? "You get it you get it you get it...!" She completely forgets about everything else as all else melts away instead of finally getting to hear someone ''else'' gush over Dysnomia. Hell yeah! Best day ever!! She's not a deluded stalker!!!
Odette Raskins	"Based on what, Ms. Odette~?" Odette nonchalantly slides her cap down over her face and makes an incoherently muffled noise. What little of her ears that poke out from under her mess of hair are still burning
Echolalia	''Can I think more about it first?'' "Well sure," Echolalia says. "I mean, it's not something you can really ask for, exactly. You can do stuff to make it easier. But if you want it enough, it could happen on its own, especially if you are stressed out." SHe seems utterly oblivious to Odette's anxieties.
Dysnomia	"Mmmm! Ms. Mia acts grumpy, but she cares about people a lot. I think she doesn't know how to stop caring, so she gets hurt sometimes, so she gets grumpier... but she's still really sweet." Dysnomia reeled as if punched, looking away. "Bullshit." Dysnomia breathed, crossing her arms. "Shut up. You don't know--" But looking away opened her to another lethal attack, as Echolalia pulled her into a hug, leaving her to make a sudden, sharp sound, expression pinching as though she'd swallowed a lemon as she went stiff and sullen. "You're terrible," she grumbled, powerless in the face of being known. The holovid switched over to the next multiversal wuxia film she put into the ship's library for Echolalia, as if to punctuate the point. "...Hate you..." The trip to the Moons was going to be very, very long.