(open) mission: hit the beach

[aithinkthereforeaiam]

Date & Time: July 18th-24th, Exsilium Time
Location: Sea Shore during the Late Cretaceous Period
Characters: All! Oh those pesky mandatory missions.
Summary: In lieu of the success of the space shuttle's test flight, all of the Transports have been sent back to the Cretaceous period to gather mineral supplies and volcanic rock, while doubling as a sort of 'vacation' and chance to get Transports out of the Initiative's hair. With well stocked supplies, camping gear, and more burlap sacks than anyone could possibly ever use, the Transports have been set under a protective dome and told to collect what they can... and to enjoy the sunshine.
Warnings: Shenanigans!

The overflow log can be found HERE!

It's almost surreal, the quality of color, of light, of oxygen saturation in the air once people arrive. It's so rich that the Initiative sent people back with respirators, to help ease the transition, and warned those who would listen about the effects of too much oxygen on a system.

What they don't warn for is the sheer alien familiarity of the landscape, the warmth, the roughness of the sand on the beaches. This is not the fine, sandy beaches out of vacation dreams, but a rougher, larger granule sort, with shells that might be recognizeable as ancestors to ones those from Earth would remember washing up on familiar beaches, millions of years later.

Most striking is the lack of abundant wildlife found among the fronds and leaves and foliage, or underneath the surface of the saltier, much warmer waters extending off the beach. While acting as a permeable membrane to oxygen and water, along with the sorts of phytoplankton that kept sea creatures alive, all the larger animals had been pushed out by the Initiative's installment of the safety dome. Along the transparent walls, curious creatures would come close, peer in, tap against the barrier and run off if frightened, but very few were found inside at any size larger than that of a house cat. It was for the better in the long run.

Too bad that the Initiative didn't have ultra-violet blocking technology in their shielding. For all the atmosphere is in much better shape millions of years in the past, the sun is as strong as ever, and the unwary will be burned through and through if they're not careful.

Comments

Re: Elizabeth | Open

[autocratic]

[ Around the time Elizabeth decides to go out for a swim, Saber can be found in her usual flashy vestments. The huge splash of red is hard to miss, but soon enough, she raises a hand, and with a snap of her fingers, her clothes are replaced with this tasteful two piece suit.

After stretching for a moment, she spots Elizabeth and greets the girl with a sunny smile. ]

Greetings! Taking a much needed break from that boring rock collecting?

[lambofcolumbia]

[Elizabeth hasn't gone out far, the water just about up to her waist, and she misses the clothing transformation in her distraction with the water itself. She turns around at the voice though, and offers the woman a smile...even if she's a tad embarrassed about the swimsuit the other is wearing. And she thought her one-piece was skimpy! Ah, victorian sensibilities...]

Oh yes. I mean, not that a lot of the things about those rocks aren't fascinating, but compared to this...!

[autocratic]

Mmm? Your words and expression suggest you may not ever have experienced a beach before.

[ Saber wades into the water as she talks casually with the girl. The water is warmed by the sun's rays, and the texture isn't as smooth as her Roman baths. Still, it is not wholly uncomfortable on her skin. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

[She looks a tad embarrassed.]

Is it so obvious? I mean, I fell into one once but I really doubt that counts...

[autocratic]

Hah! I would suppose there is a tale for that, but if you did not take in the warmth of the sand, feel the juxtaposition of hot, summer rays with the salty sea breeze of the ocean, or even participate in swimming in a beach's waters... no.

[ Saber's kinda passionate about swimming... or rather bathing, but, hey. Being in a body of water that's larger than she is counts on most fronts. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

[That's enough to get Elizabeth to laugh softly.]

You really enjoy the beach, then?

[autocratic]

Of course! The dreary setting of the island has become an irritating bore, and it has been quite a while since I had partaken in this sort of activity.

[ She splashes up some water before giving Elizabeth a pointed look. ]

And what is your opinion of your first visit to a true beach?

[lambofcolumbia]

It does get boring rather quickly, doesn't it? I'd never really been rained on before and at first it was amazing but...

[She shrugs, and then makes a happy sound as she splashes a bit in the water. Almost like a little kid.]

It's amazing!

[autocratic]

[ She lets out her own little chime at her reaction. ]

Enjoy it while it lasts, girl. I very much doubt we will be having this treat again anytime soon.

[lambofcolumbia]

Mmm. But there's no sense trying to worry about when this might go away while we're here, right?

Then we won't enjoy anything.

[autocratic]

Very true! However, I am not the least bit worried. I have enjoyed a far greater list of luxuries than most could ever hope for.

[ Because being emperor is being spoiled. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

[Elizabeth blinks.]

You mean here?

[All she'd seen was the beach...]

[autocratic]

I refer to a time outside of being a part of this war.

[ She makes a flippant hand gesture to move the conversation along. ]

It has been months for me here. What of you?

[lambofcolumbia]

Oh...[Well then.]</small. Ah...only a few weeks for me.

[autocratic]

Mmm! How fortunate that you came at a proper time when our "managers" would be so generous as to allow a mission like this.

[ She can tell when a conversation is about to take a turn for the awkward. She even gives a few nods. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

I suppose so! Everyone keeps saying everything else is worse, but so far it's been people going to the moon, and this...

I know it's probably going to be awful later on, but...

[autocratic]

Ah, that space flight? Truly, the scenery of space is breathtaking, but it was a droll, at best.

[ Yeah, Saber was one of the people on that test. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

You...weren't amazed? At being in space?

[WHAT.]

[autocratic]

What of it? If I could not touch the stars themselves, it was a relaxing ride at best. It is only natural, however, as stars are naturally distant from us. We were as close to them as most could ever hope to be, though!

[ Triumphant smirk here. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

Yes but...even beyond that, we were between the planets! You could look down and SEE the earth!

[She is just so confused right now.]

[autocratic]

I am sure, if the circumstances were handled much better, I would have appreciated looking down upon the earth no more than a blue, white, and green sphere.

[ Imperial sniff. To see the world from space, yes, it was a beautiful sight. It is more the people within it, though, that gave the planet worth in her eyes. ]

At the moment, my thoughts were... preoccupied.

[lambofcolumbia]

What could possibly be more distracting than being in space?

[autocratic]

Lack of toiletries.

[ Pretty serious about this. ]

[lambofcolumbia]

[Blink.]

We weren't up there that long!

[autocratic]

Tell that to the fools who forgot to go before even stepping on that ship!

[ She was mind connected to someone who wanted to go really badly. Thanks, Coby. ]