text | un: m.cabrera

[naloxone]

[ turns out? space doesn't give a single fuck about your circadian rhythm. or maybe insomnia is just that attached to her that even the absence of a sun dictating her internal clock doesn't faze it, like an old friend you wish would just forget you already.

one night (?) late into the early hours (???) marta finds herself drifting out of the room she's come to assume will be hers for the indefinite future, passing through stark white walls with all the sterility of a hospital, but none of its familiar chaos.

she's still getting used to the earpiece. still getting used to hearing other people's voices in her head. she doesn't mean to add another in the void, but one of her own thoughts blares out too vividly as she stares out into an actual void: ]

—but where are the stars?

Comments

[naloxone]

[ that actually puts a small smile to her lips. ]

It was just starting to be winter, back home.

[ which is to say, ]

I have a sweater, thank you.
I probably couldn't tell either. But somehow just knowing they're fake... suddenly I think I'm an expert.

[kovach]

You too, huh?

[ not the nurse part. murder solving. he's not sure how the hell those tie in together, but, well — he was off solving a murder too before he showed up here. ]

But this place could use a nurse.
Right now, we just got quack doctors bandaging up wounds with candy wrappers and thread.
Careful with the old man with the crazy brows.

[ too late. ]

And who said anything about parting with it? Meet me in the mess hall and I'll pour you a glass.

voice

[naloxone]

I'm Marta. A — nurse, but of the human kind, sorry.

[ the "sorry" really seems necessary, after hearing all that. ]

These missions... are they always so — [ otherworldly? but is everything otherworldly in this case? ] — much?

[bossily]

I'll grab my notebook and head to the sunlight room then. There's no time like the present to get acquainted.

[bindsthedead]

You know, everyone here has different skills, but I don't think anyone here has actually proven to be entirely useless? We all have different rolls to play, and we've all got different skills and we all try to learn from each other.

I've been learning how to cook and use a gun, and in exchange, I've taught others what I know.

[naloxone]

[ well. he keeps catching her, she might as well fess up to one: ]

It was mostly an accident. And a long story.

[ the kind befitting one of harlan's own novels. she still hasn't herself to laugh over the irony just yet. ]

Right.
Sorry.

[ the apology is reflexive; as was the assumption this wouldn't be a social thing. perhaps of all the things she would struggle to get used to, it's that — there are people here in more or less the same boat as her. for better or worse, they're in it together so... so it only makes sense to get to know them.

that being said— ]

You were joking about the candy wrappers, right?

Re: voice

[groupiedrifter]

Hey, no, don't apologize; we sure could use some nurses who know what they're doing. I've been a makeshift nurse here, and I gotta admit, my bedside manner isn't all that great. Just ask our resident doc, McCoy.

[Look! He's self-aware!]

The missions can be a lot, yeah, especially the first go, buuut you don't have to worry about a thing; we're all gonna be there to help you swim through it, little duckling.

...

Not gonna lie, though, the last one was super out there.

[attackbrows]

You won’t find any warzones here. Not here, not ever. Not even for the last droplet of milk.

[He takes on a semi-serious tone, ending the word milk with an extra click of his tongue.]>

Storage unit closet inside the lab. C’mon then Little Miss Frosted Flakes!

[naloxone]

[ it's always comforting to know if you'll be useful in situations like these, so his words do manage to bring a small smile to her lips. ]

If you're doing all you can to help, sometimes that can be enough. Besides, you can't be that bad — you're the encouraging voice, remember?

[ marta's bedside manner? impeccable. ]

The — sentient castle? It sounds like it.

[naloxone]

[ compared to cooking, marta's skills can probably rank just a level or two higher. but using a gun? apparently they're expected to be in situations that call for it. ]

What do you know? If you don't mind me asking.

[peasant]

it's nearly always winter, back in my country.
i figured some people might appreciate having a piece of home with them here, if we're going to be festive and all that.

oh. well, in that case, i said nothing. 😶
the stars are completely natural and real.

[bindsthedead]

Magic, mostly. [Sabriel says this in the same tone a normal person might use to say they're good with computers, or skilled at navigation.]

I'm decent with a sword, but that's not the easiest weapon to conceal.

[groupiedrifter]

[He seems to puff up his chest a bit at that, as if he's bolstered by her words. Careful, Marta, he's a plant that thrives well under the warmth of supportive words. Makes him all big-headed in the long run!]

You got it. My encouraging voice with my encouraging guitar strums!

[;)]

It was a pretty crazy time. I kind of jokingly asked for the castle's hand in marriage, but as it turns out, the castle had no clue what marriage even was. Then we were all, uh, falling asleep from some sickness? I spent way too much time rolling people and making sure they were hydrated properly before Iiii ended up sleeping too.

[He punctuates this with a deep yawn. Still kinda sleepy, honestly?]

[blackfire]

（ she gets an extremely succinct Summary of The Story So Far (very conspicuously not set to 'carry on my wayward son') that the writer, for reasons of their sanity, will not be describing here because they are not a perfectionist nerd like this asshole thank u.

notable information includes:
  the three missions up to this point, the basic conflicts, what was needed to get the orbs to cooperate
  what's known about said orbs, viveca, the station, etc.
  all the information he does share is publicly known, so there's nothing Spicy, alas.

this is absolutely not done out of the goodness of his heart, but with the coldly utilitarian view of one accustomed to military command — people cannot be useful in the field if they lack relevant information, and itachi is a pragmatic man.

then: ）

If the pattern holds, we will have a brief reprieve before the next mission. （ someone has not yet been told about christmas shenanigans. ） Any useful skills you may have, I would recommend ensuring they are sharp.

( text | un: jaguar )

[scarcastically]

Why're you looking for them?

--> ackshunnn

[naloxone]

[ the lab is one of the few places marta has yet to wander into. curiosity hadn't yet been strong enough to take her where she figured she would find her way there eventually, one day, anyway and — here she is. for popcorn, of all things.

her footsteps are quiet upon entering, and the panning glance she gives is drawn out so she can take the lab in its entirety. save for a few objects that look like they were pulled right out of a science fiction novel, and an odd hum that she can't pinpoint the source of, it all looks remarkably plain. almost eerily so.

she pads her way over to the storage closet, taking the time to give the door a knock before giving it a gentle push. ]

Doctor— [ what was his username again? ] ...Disco?

[naloxone]

[ sad about the like of Juicy Gossip but otherwise very impressed and grateful for the rundown.

even if her eyes kind of glaze over a few pieces of information, but that's more to do with aforementioned insomnia than itachi's delivery. she didn't even know people could think in bulletpoints... ]

I'm — a nurse. I have medical knowledge but that — would that even be useful here?

[ because it's thought to text, because she still hasn't got a handle on how to control it, her next words come out less delicately than she'd like: ]

How many of you are even human?

--> act shaun

[naloxone]

[ the sunlight room is one marta has only been to once before. it's beautiful, and calming, up until she starts to think on it too much, and then it becomes eerie and uncanny and overall unnerving. she's not one to usually think about malicious or ill intent, but somehow she hasn't yet been able to bring herself to accepting the one room on this station that reminds her the most of earth.

like somehow accepting it feels wrong... after agreeing to leave it behind for her own personal gain. ]

...Hello?

[ her voice echoes in the evening field unlike it would in the real openness of the outdoors, but she notices it only because she's looking for it. she tries to focus on the smoosh of the earth beneath her shoes instead, walking further and further into the field. ]

[naloxone]

[ magic. somehow marta is both surprised and not. ]

Does... Is magic common? Where you're from?

[naloxone]

[ he's a doctor of xenobiology and pretty damn good at peptalks; as far as marta is concerned, he's important here. so if giving him applause to his tinkerbell is what she needs to do to keep him going, then why not? ]

I haven't heard live music in a long time.

[ she. you know... is assuming he's Good. ]

...Was it just sleep?

[ no offense, newt, but compared to the other two missions he mentioned that doesn't sound so bad... ]

un: navigator

[droide]

Even if you could see them, they wouldn't be of any use.
We're far outside of any galaxy you may be familiar with.

[ Because that's why people look at stars, right? To plot navigational maps? That's why L3-37 looks at stars, anyway. ]

[naloxone]

You're fine. It's better I know the truth, right? Even if it isn't the easiest.

[ IS IT THOUGH? she's more trying to convince herself with that. ]

You mentioned sunshine as your expertise?
Is that what you did in your home?

[naloxone]

[ that— is a good question. it's actually one she hadn't considered herself. is she really looking for them? or is she just acutely aware they're not there, not where she thought they'd be, and that's suddenly why she's interested. ]

I thought they'd be there. But they're not — just some little dusting, like it's all too far away.
I guess just knowing they're gone makes me miss them.

[naloxone]

[ the pragmatic response combined with that username... it aligns, at least. ]

Is it a galaxy anyone is familiar with?
Someone has to be, right?

[ otherwise who is driving this ship???????

or. keeping it stationary, as it were. ]

[droide]

If anyone would be familiar, it would be Viveca and her Commander.
But we may well be outside of any galaxies altogether, in the endless expanse of empty space that makes up the universe at large.