exsiliumlogs | (no subject)

Date: November 1st
Location: The Observatory.
Characters: Everyone.
Summary: New Transports arrive and are shuffled into the Observatory after their initial briefings. The zombie plot will not spill over into this area, this area is safe and unaffected! To face zombies, characters must leave the area, and please move to the event log with those threads.
Warnings: None.

Your arrival here has been very unceremonious. One second you were somewhere else, and now, very suddenly, your feet hit the glowing white of the Transporter pad, and you're here. You aren't alone, either. There's a crowd of others around you, each seeming just as bewildered, angry, or confused as you might feel. At the head of the group is a woman in purple robes, solemn and taciturn. She hurries over a quick overview of your intended purpose here, and gives direct answers when asked for them, but to most things she simply shows you how to access the tablet you've just been given, or tells you that the DITR's greeters will explain everything. On the tablet, you can find the history of this place and a record of what your new cohorts have experienced — although it won't have Network access for another 8 hours. Someone stands on hand to give you a weapon, and though the armory is now greatly reduced, you should be able to find something to suit you.

You're shepherded down a walkway tunnel and into the Observatory, where you will find screens mounted on three sides of the wide room. It's night outside the great wide windows, and the lunar landscape isn't much to look at right now; the only lighting comes from dull red emergency lights, but there are… noises. Listen carefully. Over the voices of your fellow Transports, now and then you might catch the sound of a scrape, or a low and muffled cry. It doesn't sound human. Are there animals up here?

You're free to explore the base, visit and use any of the VR rooms, or discover your new room and roommates, but try not to step out of any airlocks if oxygen is a requirement for your system.

Welcome to the moon base, and to the remains of Exsilium.

[[ ooc; As a note for players of current characters: please keep your root comments confined to the various groups and organizations that set up root comments to greet new characters! We highly encourage tagging around here, but since it's a log meant for new characters specifically, we ask that they be the ones to set up root threads to the entry. Thank you, and happy playing! ]]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Did you - did you just get here?

[ she says it with a tentative smile and a tilt of her head, as though she's not quite sure. she's certainly never seen him before, but she's fairly certain that they've covered most of the new transports. still, it couldn't hurt to ask, and she offers him one of the first aid kits she's brought with her.

after all, if not everybody is going to come to the table, she's still got to make sure the job gets done. ]

Huh? Oh. Yeah. [ john confirms with a small smile. he crouches down to put his mug on the floor and accept the first aid kit from belle. like the weapon he picked from the sparse armoury, it feels like something he needs to take. ]

Err, sorry. I was just, uhmm... [ he pinches his lips as he searches for the right word. ] ... letting everything sink in.

Don't apologize. [ she leans her head in slightly, not exactly warning, but with a tone that suggests that, while this thing doesn't happen every day, there are some reactions that are just commonplace. and frankly, he's considerably calmer than some others that she's seen. ]

It's - it's overwhelming. Believe me, I know.

My name's Belle.

Yeah.

[ he chuckles shakily. when he told mrs. hudson he needed some time away from the flat, he didn't think that would be an invitation to fight in another war. especially not in one that drafted in teenagers, even if it was beyond their control. ]

John Watson. [ he smiles. ] You sound like you've done this before.

Once or twice, [ she admits with a shrug. she's not been here too terribly long on her own; going on four months, is it? maybe? the moon can really mess up one's sense of timing. ] It's my first time actually helping like this, but really, it seems like these things are scheduled.

Scheduled! [ he exclaims softly, sounding faintly bemused. ] Well, it makes sense how they were around to explain everything the second we arrived. I don't even— it was July where I came from and now...

[ john trails off with a small huff. ]

You're doing a good job, handing these out.

It's normal. [ she says with a tiny laugh, bewildered herself. it's about as normal as it can be. ] You all are disoriented enough as it is; there's no reason why you all should be alone. We - um. We want to make it as easy as possible.

[ her sentiment makes his spine stiffen. alone is what john has been dealing with for the past couple of weeks, avoiding the press who were trying to squeeze blood from the proverbial stone and write more slanderous headlines about his friend. ]

I appreciate it.

[ while strained, his voice is sincere. ]

[ it's the strain she catches, and she frowns, taking a step toward him. she understood the feelings, disorientation and panic and fright and more, all rolled up in one inner avalanche, but - ]

Are you alright?

[ he draws in a steadying breath, biding his time until he's absolutely certain his voice isn't governed by his emotions. it wasn't fair to belle, dealing with someone has been falling apart at the seams until very recently, and he feels shame rise up inside him. ]

Yeah, I'm fine.

[ okay, that doesn't sound very convincing. ]

Well... I will be, anyway. It'll just, uhm... take a bit of time.

It does get easier. [ she attempts to reassure him, because there's nothing wrong with what he's going through. she'd go so far as to say it's natural, and she shrugs. ] I know it doesn't seem like it, but - there are ways to make the best out of it.

You'll be fine.

I don't think I'm ever going to be bored here, that's for certain. [ he agrees readily with belle. fighting and making a difference... surely these were some components he needed to feel normal again. ]

This is one of the things, right? Making the best out of it.

You're correct. [ she probably shouldn't be sarcastic about it, as good natured as she is. the smile fades into something more relenting, and she nods with a slight sigh. ]

It's - it's easier to be welcomed, I think, and have an explanation before you're thrown into the thick of things.

[ sarcasm is a defense mechanism john often implements, so he doesn't think twice when belle is. and besides – she has already made a good first impression and she has a sweet face for him to overlook things. ]

Great. At this rate, I'll fit in perfectly.

And the easier you do, the quicker you'll get to go home. [ because really, that's the ultimate goal. they (she) will help out wherever possible, but it's all for the efficiency to win this thing and get sent back. ]

[ although he doesn't remark on it, john hums a strange note. his prospects weren't looking particularly bright for him back in london, but moping around here wasn't going to solve anything. ]

How long have they been at it? This time travelling, war preventing lark?

Since before I'd gotten here. [ she shakes her head, lets out a sigh, and briefly turns her attention to the stars outside the window. ] Years, to hear them talk of it. And you can read so far back on the network that it's - it's astounding.