(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

[crossbearing]

( And suddenly, there's a Helena standing alongside him, watching the dinosaurs, and holding out a bottle of water. Hydrate thyself, child. )

The documentaries don't do them justice.

( Sorry, Walking with Dinosaurs. )

[khajidont]

[For the record? People from Gotham are totally ninjas. He's calling it now.

He glances over at her, the grin on his face serving as both a greeting and as an indication that hey, dinosaurs are awesome and accepts the water bottle with a word of thanks.]

No kidding. [He taps the tip of one finger against the boundary, honestly fascinated with the Initiative's technology as well as the dinosaurs. He can make force fields, but nothing of this magnitude, and certainly not something that can let oxygen and water alike through.

He watches as a smaller dinosaur scuttles past, almost close enough to touch if not for the boundary separating them. He ducks his head, watching it.]

This is maybe the coolest thing I've ever seen. Maybe this place has got its upsides.

[crossbearing]

Maybe? Is there anything that could actually rival this?

( Curious, and playful, almost, in her rather understated way. It gets worse the longer you know her, so Jaime has a lot to look forward to. )

You must've seen some sights.

( She's impressed that the dinosaurs only get a maybe for the coolest thing. )

[khajidont]

[Jaime tilts his head, as if he's seriously considering the fact, though the curl to his lip betrays that he knows the fact that there's not much competition. In fact, there's only one.]

Space. Space is definitely cool up until the point it starts sucking.

[Which was very, very quickly for Jaime - there's a good reason why he didn't sign up for the other mission this month. He may have a different view of being here without the safety dome, but as it is...]

This is better.

[crossbearing]

( She raises an eyebrow at that, smiling a bit despite herself. )

Number one, space? Really?

Number two, ( And she's holding up two fingers as she pulls off her sunglasses, ) I think most things tend to be termed good until they're bad,

( She's teasing, even if she sounds terribly serious, ) number three, why did space get so bad?

( Space? Surely he's a bit young for space. She's not sure how she feels about young ones in space. Who authorised this? Who does she need to kick in the face? )

[khajidont]

[Despite a perfectly pleasant dinner, Helena is still very imposing in her own undefinable way. He's starting to think that's just her default state of being.

It reminds him a little of Batman if he's completely honest, and his incredibly dry deliver of - well, of nearly everything he's heard him say. Maybe it's a Gotham thing.]

Well... it was my first day with the suit when I went up there and it ended up freaking out and turning me invisible. So I ended up being left up there.

[The distance of time makes it a lot easier to think about, the terror of that moment turned into a strange, abstract thing in the recesses of his memory. The levity with which he speaks about it is mostly genuine, though he won't deny the fact that he's not so big on the idea of going back up there.]

It's not something I recommend, just for the record.

[crossbearing]

( continued over here

also wow jaime let helena beat everyone up for you okay thanks )