(open) crash into me

[whatsupcroc]

Date & Time: Mid-afternoon Sunday, May 5th
Location: The Hold and Housing Complex
Characters: All who wish to be in the vicinity!
Summary: The Initiative asked for the Housing Complex to be evacuated starting early morning on 5/5, in preparation for the expected landing of the spaceship stolen from the United Earth. The landing goes horribly wrong when an undiscovered bomb detonates onboard the ship, causing partial engine failure. The ship proceeds to be crash landed into the Housing Complex; no lives, however, are lost.

Warnings: Spaceship crash landings it's all horrible!
Notes: Respond in action tags or prose, as you please!

The ship breaks cloud-cover as a spot of light in the dreary skies, leaving behind the beauty of sunlight above the broken cloud layer as it continues to descend. With the Initiative having instigated an evacuation of the area ahead of time, just in case, those watching in the light drizzle may find it an interesting sight to behold.

Doubtlessly, the United Earth, from its great distance, may have also found it interesting.

The first sign of something going wrong is an explosion visible from the ground. People who hear it might startle; the ship itself goes from a smooth, controlled flight path to one wobbly and filled with dark, flaming smoke. The whine of its remaining engine is slower to reach the ground, though the ship itself seems to pick up a spiraling speed, still controlled to those familiar with watching things that fly come crashing down to the ground.

The Initiative members on the ground are calling for people to get back and take cover. Inside the main Hold, one man at the transport pads hears his radio blast to life and swallows past his own fear, glancing at the active pad waiting to pull in another unlucky soul.

When the ship hits the Housing Complex, it demolishes the upper levels, though the force with which it hits doesn't seem to be the same as what it should be. Combined telekinetic buffering and excellent piloting from a former Guardian of the Universe Galaxy keeps damage to a catastrophic minimum.

Welcome to the fallout. What will you do from here?

Comments

[oncearanger]

"A woman shot you---I know it was an accident, but she shot you and you're thinking about her attractiveness? You're remarkably focused," Billy quipped then, shaking his head in wonder as he strained to reach another part. He eventually squeezed in and grasped it, but his short arms weren't helping very much.

"Or should I say you were distracted? Honestly, that would probably be the last thing on my mind."

[vaudevil]

Lee's chuckle echoed through the open area of the ship. He wanted to burst out laughing but instead he decided to play along to keep matters light. "You should have seen the woman I once dated. She used bazookas to get her point across. I seem to be attracted to the dangerous types; you know, the ones that enjoy their work a little too much, it seems."

The thought of Anna Williams crossing his mind always did funny things to him and this time was no exception. "I'll omit the name to protect the guilty but she was a knock-out, and in the literal sense as well."

Lee bent down to help Billy pull the part out. "It's not like it was kismet. She's not the type." He said in reference to Lara.

[oncearanger]

"So that's the kind of thrill you seek," Billy realized, wiping down this next part. It was an oily mess that was splattering on his clothes, but this beautiful door would definitely be needed to fix the ship.

"So have you been actively looking to date in between lab work?" he wondered.

[vaudevil]

Now it was time for Lee to burst out laughing. With a shake of his head and a wave, he dismisses the laugh and it was back to work.

"No. The mechanics of this place is a bit too fluid for any long term relationship to form other than perhaps a good working relationship or a friendship that demands a bit of attention. Otherwise, I don't wish to deal with the drama of losing someone again." His smile waned enough to be seen.

"It hurt the first time."

[oncearanger]

Billy's smile quickly faded too. He knew what loss was like---not necessarily of a lover, he'd never had one, but an intensely close companion. He scrambled back over to Lee's side, looking up at him worriedly, though he dared not offer physical support and spread grease.

"What happened?"

[vaudevil]

Lee leaned back on his heels and looked up at Billy. The older of the two, once vibrant and brilliant, now appeared a bit dull and lacking light. His smile is completely gone. Thinking about Ghost and much he came to love her was never easy to deal with and it was the first time he was telling anyone about his relationship with the now vanished mutant.

"She left. The Initiative felt that her services were no longer required and she vanished." He pulled out his multi-tool and began working the panel to see if anything inside needed repair.

"Ever since, I've been carrying her memory and hoped that she would return, but I suppose it was a futile gesture on my part. I shed my tears in the rain and now I must endure."

Setting the panel aside, he leaned back and sighed. "I was near asking for her hand."

[oncearanger]

Billy felt a fresh surge of pain in his heart. He didn't understand, not entirely, but he could try to relate. He leaned over the panel too, softly pointing out his observations as they worked out a solution together.

"I'm so sorry. I've...I haven't loved like that, but I had a best friend who meant the world to me. She was my sister in all but blood, and with the bond we shared we were inseparable. But I last saw her out in the universe far from here, and I doubt our paths will cross again."

He bowed his head, her face clear in his mind now. He knew she'd thwap him on the head if she ever caught him sulking like this, though, so he swallowed the pain.

"Can't imagine how much more that hurts."

[vaudevil]

Lee's face shown the years he hidden behind a mask of playfulness and carefree frivolity that seemed to have stripped away to reveal his true self. He squeezed the tool in his hand and a faint, but sincere smile graced his features.

"It's okay. She's back home where she belongs. While it may be true that I may never see her again, the fact remained that I did fall in love. Knowing that I can makes me feel better that the pain I feel now will strengthen me later. To know that love was a precious gift. Just because they leave us, doesn't mean that we shouldn't try. In fact, knowing what I know now forces me to try harder. Success never comes without failure."

Without thinking about his actions, he reaches up and places his hand on Billy's, "The stars may separate you, but remember her and she'll remember you."

[oncearanger]

Billy spares a faint smile for him. "When you've been through this, it's hard to open your heart again. And it might be impossible to reopen it fully...after all the loss, there's always doubt in my mind now."

He sighs. "I treasure the friends I have now, but I probably wouldn't try to date, you know? But that's easy for me to say when no one's caught my eye."