[ USER NAME: blake ]

blake's dating service? anyone? ( she's not looking to kick it off again okay she's just curious as to how many people remember that shit storm ) for the people who avoided that little gem, little bits of advice/tips/etc. on surviving in a wild forest with things that want to kill us? might be helpful for people who aren't used to this.

i'll start: please please please always be careful about what you stick in your mouth. don't get me wrong i can't tell you how to live your life, but i don't feel like a repeat of a whole camp tripping on hallucinogenic nuts.

[Hello, fellow planetfall survivors. Today a rather reclusive individual is accessing the network for... well, probably the first time since the digital network was re-established by the resourceful group involved. Having his ear up against a whole bunch of human chatter was not something Algidus had been interested in; he'd, in fact, let his phone run dry and had to charge it at a hard line just for this occasion.

But it was an important one. Though Algidus didn't want to admit it, he was beginning to become worried--it had been a long time since he'd seen or heard from the one person who had actively agreed to help him in this place. And while mild discouragement normally wouldn't have been enough to keep him from using the bandwith-devouring video function of the phone, today he's opting for voice because he's having a hard time completely masking the concern in his expression. He doesn't want anyone to see even a trace of weakness.]

This is a... humble request for information. I--has anyone seen or heard from AJ recently? [And then, just in case a name doesn't ring any bells, he adds on:] ... Human. [Well, that probably goes without saying.] Woman. Tall, lanky, uh... long, dark hair. Sharp features. Often came into camp with me to make trades. [Then, just to attempt to mask the fact that he actually cares even a little for a human:] She and I were working together on something. Something important. If she's not here any more then I will need to... pursue other avenues.

[He pauses, tries to think of anything else to say, and finds himself not only coming up short but feeling an unfamiliar emotion welling up inside of himself. Rebelling against it takes up his focus, so for now, he's cutting his broadcast and waiting to hear from others.]

 [Mike has been less social that he would normally be — call it being too stunned to function. At least, as he had before. Between losing his friends, losing his fucking fingers, and then seeing monsters... this whole new event is just another drop in a pail that is chock full of rocks already. On a freaky planet, with freaky circumstances, full of freaky new imagery? Sure, thanks. 

Damn. 

But... Mike can't just keep to himself forever. So he clears his throat, trying to sound normal. Casual.

Problems? What problems? If he talks to you guys, he can ignore all the things that'd make him tear his hair out.]

So, you guys usually turn into blank-eyed turkeys standing out in the rain, or...?

Because — it was kind of The Twilight Zone around here for a few hours, when I woke up. 

I poked, flicked your ears, even made fun of your jumpsuits. Nada from you guys. Good to see you're not all living mannequins, though. 

[The rumpled wizard in the sliver of mirror, adjusting his glasses. He's standing near the shouting rock, which has a new boulder rolled up near it. On the surface of a the boulder, there's what looks like an enormous poster, black-and-white, the details hard to make out.]

Morning, everybody. I hope most of us are more-or-less unscathed from the bloody weird wind that blew through the other week, may Mr. Mendoza rest in peace.

Today, I'd like to present a map. [A beat.] Kind of.

Some of you remember Hermione. She and I put together a-- sort of a map. We photographed the terrain from the sky, as much as we could cover before the tether kicked in. The shots are now spelled together, so it's continuous, but you'll see that it's... animated. Like a movie on loop. [More sophisticated and less predictable than that, but it seems ludicrous to get bogged down in technical detail, so Harry doesn't.] Don't worry, it can't be used for spying-- everybody's too small to see, and it isn't realtime. [He knows y'all and your sundry paranoias. He has some, himself.]

[Harry angles the mirror to view the 'map^{[ooc link]}.' It stretches five feet up and across, is roughly circular, attached to the boulder's face with a sticking spell and proofed against the weather. Trees obscure loads of the detail, their tops reduced to a semblence of broccoli heads swaying slightly, but you can see where the river flows and how the canyon begins, protruding from underneath the Tranquility's nose. Trees bob far below. Some flocks moving by as well, too far below to make out in detail. It's a little funny— out of the edges of the circle, occasionally you'll see a foot or the front end of a broom swing in.]

I've also got a cat. [His face darkens slightly. Mostly, he looks sad.] Please inquire within.

OOC: For future note, will be needed to 'renew' the map! If left neglected, it will eventually fall apart into individual pieces, peel off the boulder, and suffer from wind and rain. Please PM me if you have other questions.

[Hello, Ataraxites. Today you are being treated to an unwitting broadcast by two intrepid explorers, who have taken it upon themselves to see if they could figure out where that massive stampede originated. The feed cuts on in the middle of a conversation, activated by the use of the keyword as one of the people brandishes a shard of mirror. The two speakers are for now off-screen as the mirror instead broadcasts an image of deep, unending jungle, but their voices are mannerisms are likely recognizable to the people that know them.]

--Network they set up is for situations just like this one.

[The retort comes quickly, from a harsh voice that sounds frustrated:] No, I don't need to rely on that! Besides, I fail to see how that could help; we're in the middle of the damn jungle with no landmarks, just leaves and trees as far as the eye can see!

[The voice of the initial broadcaster responds in a rather dry tone.] I think that might be exactly why we should be asking.

And I think we should have just stayed on the path that those beasts cut through the jungle. How did this even happen?!

If I recall correctly - and I do - I followed you. You tell me.

I have a better idea: how about you tell me something even vaguely useful? If you put half as much effort into paying attention to your surroundings as you do flapping those ugly pink lips we wouldn't be in this situation!! [It never seems to take that long for Algidus to get into a hissy fit with the heat of this planet bearing down on him, and with nothing going like it should. This was supposed to be such a simple excursion. Why the fuck did he decide to travel with a human, of all beings?]

I did tell you something useful. I told you to use the damn network.

And I told YOU I don't need the network! I--wait. Did you hear that?

I hear you.

Har har. I mean it. It sounded like a voice. Where is your device--your shard?!

[There's a pause as realization dawns, and then Roy snorts and holds it up.] You wanna say hello?

[The whole mirror network is treated to the shocked visage of a towering ice alien, who stares wide-eyed into the feed for a moment before glaring and then trying to grab for Roy's shard, attempting to shut it off.]

[ The image that appears on the mirror screen is not a person at all, but the ground. Specifically a patch of dirt, scraped smooth by the Tranquility's slide. There is a tin can half-embedded in the soil, and what looks like it might be a blanket in a lump beside it. ]

So, things are falling from the sky. Apparently? I assume I'm not the only one who noticed.

[ A hand, tanned and scabbed, enters the frame to gesture at the stuff, flicking a finger against the can. The noise it make sounds like someone flicking a tin can. (Dull in more ways than one. Also like it might hurt a little.) ]

Did anyone happen to see anything that might explain this? Did anybody find anything extra weird or interesting? I knew this planet thing was seeming too normal to be true.

[ jax is leaned back in one of the seats on the gunnery observation deck, twisting his heavy rings round his finger. the comm is propped ostensibly on his monitor while jax slouches back, ill at ease. ]

While we're chewing over Odessa's offer, I got something else to put on the table.

[ more like a heads up. jax's expression is serious, the twist of his rings a more clear show of anxiety than he's displayed on comms in his entire stretch on the ship. ]

Our rescuers've got us surrounded. Sensors are picking up a mess of ships out there. I figured that's about as worthy of discussion as everything else she and her new best friend are puttin' on the table.

[What you REALLY wanted to see on the screen in your confusion and fear is a skeleton in a black robe and a creepy voice that sorta appears in your head more then it comes through the ears. Don't worry we've got you covered. Dear support staff WHY.]


GREETINGS TO THE NEWCOMERS ON THIS SHIP THE TRANQUILITY. I AM DEATH, ONE OF THE TWO RESIDING HERE AND FOR THOSE WHO WORRY, NO WE ARE NOT ON DUTY OR REPRESENT THIS WORLDS MORTALITY. YOU ARE ALSO NOT DEAD. ....WE THOUGHT THAT SHOULD BE SPECIFIED.

I AM HOWEVER A PART OF THE SUPPORT STAFF HERE AND IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS I WILL DO MY BEST TO ANSWER THEM.

WE HAVE SOME COMMUNICATION THAT HAVE BEEN ATTACHED TO THE LINKS BELOW ABOUT RECENT EVENTS. I WOULD SUGGEST PAYING ATTENTION TO THE COMMUNICATORS FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE AS WE SEEM TO BE GOING THROUGH SOME RATHER ODD EVENTS LATELY. ALSO IF YOU ARE NEW I WOULD SUGGEST YOU GET A ROOM ON FLOORS 1 THROUGH 10 AS WE DO NOT HAVE THE PEOPLE TO SEND SECURITY ANY HIGHER.

[Text Attachment]

THE RUNDOWN » What happened, where you are, what to do.
SUPPORT DEPARTMENT INFO » Who we are and what we do.
REFERENCE* » Basic facts about the ship and solar system.
A TIMELINE OF EVENTS » This will take time to read thoroughly, but we strongly recommend it.
FAQ » Please read this before asking a question on the network.
SPACE TRAINING » If this is your first time aboard a space ship, please watch these helpful videos.
LOOKING FOR WORK? » If you have any questions about the departments, track down a chief officer or someone who operates within it about recruitment.
COMPLAINT BOX » Need to get something off your chest? Bring it here. We might just be able to do something about it.

Recent news
The first report
Communications from the locals

[The video opens dark, shaky as it turns, a dim orange glow visible down the far end of a dark corridor before it settles on Cora's face. Soot-streaked, sweating, she swallows dryly before trying to speak.]

There's a fire. On-- I was on floor nine.

[She doesn't know if she's still there. She hasn't known where she is for days.]

I don't know if there's a way to put it out. [The image crackles with static, and there's a distant sound, a voice calling Cora! She ignores it, doesn't look away from the camera, but further distress flickers in her expression before it steels again.] Just stay away.

[[ooc: backdated to May 30!]]

[A somber face on the video feed. When last he addressed the people on board, it was about loss, and how to cope with it here.

Irony was indeed a cruel mistress, was she not...?]

As... no doubt you will have seen. Seraphim, who was here-- a long time. She has departed us, by more natural means that disappearance, and less natural means than a gentle and faraway death.

She was surely too young for such a fate, and far too goodly. For those who grieve her, like I, I offer condolences.

[A deep breath here, to square himself to the reality, and to keep calm in this.]

But let her passing be not in vain.

Before passing, she left for me, a message. Part of which she hoped to share with all of you. I will read that part now, that perhaps someone here knows how better to make of it than I, and can look at it and know what she meant to impart to us all.

She said you all have to know. It was her final wish.

[And so, reading from a part of that transcript, that it is much too raw and painful, too personal, to simply post the entire message she wrote to him.]

There is an entire other side and it's white...

Deutsch was right.

Tell them it's SU(3) structure...

--rallel univer--it's a compact universe--side the Jump...

[There was the mathematical notation, too, but it was much too long for him to make sense of. The begging, and the emotions still to read on page; this, he would keep to himself. That was meant only for his eyes.]

That's all.

[ Samantha is very clearly frustrated and physically uncomfortable by the time the camera flicks on again, she shifts on her crutches as she gets back on her mark. Then she's in a perfect shot. Standing just a few feet back, slightly offset right from the camera that catches her upper half. ]

...take one-hundred-fucking-twenty-seven... [ Exaggeration. Hopefully. ]


Look. That Lab E that everyone is trippin' about? It's literally a Door to Nothing.

Hold up, I should— [ Panic. Is she going to have to retake? ] Back up.

I'm Samantha, you've probably seen me crutchin' around. Back at home, I had weird-ass dreams about shit like that void. Figured it shouldn't even exist. Nothing shouldn't exist. It's a freakin' paradox to what my— [ rewind. ] ...to what I can do. [ bad save. ] So yeah, of course I went to check it out.


Well. I really went full body contact. Except I remember shit-nothing. 'Bout to put my hand through, then I woke up on the ground. That's about it really. And if Rey hadn't been there to pull me out— [ Adjusts to the left. ] Above forbid, right? It's not worth the risk for what it is. What it isn't...?

[ Break for intermission, guys. ]


And I guess I'm also looking for the medical team people. Like, to set up an appointment. Don't know how that works. [ She seems thrilled. ] Thanks.

[ Annnnnd... Cut. ]

We're losing people.

[It's not a good opener. Tyke's in the SEC office, the central screen standing as backdrop behind her, but her expression doesn't seem as sharp as it usually is for these announcements. The slight pinch in her brow isn't unusual, but there's a slightly cloudy quality to her eyes that doesn't dissipate as she continues talking.]

There's less people at the jumps. Our overall population's getting smaller. You'd think we'd be getting bigger over time, not this.

[Her frown deepens for a moment, and she takes a breath. Seems to pull herself up straighter, words coming stronger.]

My name's Tyke, and I'm head of security. Anyone that hasn't heard it before: security's here for your safety. Things here are gonna try to kill you or fuck with your head. We wanna make sure that doesn't happen.

One way you're gonna help on that is by sticking together. Move down to the first ten floors. Join a department. They maintain the basic functions of the ship around you, and they're all fucking understaffed. Don't let any of this shit make you think we've gotta turn on each other.

[Pain twists her expression sharply, suddenly, has her leaning forward slightly, a thin trickle of blood running down from her nose. She wipes it almost immediately, red smearing on her face and the back of her hand. She glares at it, irritation and frustration palatable, snarling in her voice.]

Is anyone else getting these fucking headaches?