Remnants of the Earth

Oh gods oh gods oh gods...

"Um, no, they uh...they..."

Fuck, he didn't even know if they were alive.

Ari felt his lip tremble, and he bit it to try to stop it. But it didn't stop the hot tears that slipped free and rolled down his cheeks, which he was quick to dash away--but not quick enough. Like a dam that had gotten a hole in it, what started as a trickle soon burst into a choked sob, and Ari twisted away from Nike in embarrassment and pressed  the heels of his palms to his eyes.

Fuck...

Follow it, she did.

And unfortunately, she didn't even see the quick flash of shadow.

She was too busy being in sheer awe of the structure she was in, angling her flashlight so she could marvel at its architecture, and so the camera inside her helmet could capture some good images. But when she returned her focus to her scanner, she saw with puzzlement that...the point was moving?

But...that couldn't be possible.

Don't worry, it can't be aliens, she told herself, swallowing as she watched the point move. You're not reading any heat signals, or even any motion signals that could be triggered by organic life. It's just the point itself that's moving... And that point was probably, in actuality, completely stable. It was probably just the readings that were faulty, from the way the equipment interacted with the environment. This was new ground, after all.

And so she pushed onward, down the hall, slowly closing in on that beacon.

"Ah! Well, shit, that ain't that bad at all," Jewel said, and put away the last stray items from the box she was unpacking.

"So basically, we get to have a week long slumber party."

"Yeah?" Jewel said, and set the pack back down.

"Whatcha got in mind?"

Hey, there's always a first time for everything! 8D

Welcome to RotE! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to hit me up! I look forward to RPin' with ya.

"Pffft. Whatever, s'long as I get paid in the long run," Ari said with a dismissive wave of his hand, wanting to get off that particular subject fast. The topic of slavery was always an awkward one--and he didn't like Rhevi's subtle prodding, because it was hitting a little too close, and giving him the uncomfortable impression the bastard knew more than he let on. Why would your average pirate care one way or the other about liberating slaves, after all?

Maybe that was his own paranoia speaking on the matter, but dammit, there were some things he just didn't want getting out. Especially not among his crew.

That didn't mean he wasn't totally going to take the guy's advice, though.

Letting out a low sigh, Ari leaned his shoulder against the wall. "So, this is Sarah's crazy scheme, yeah? Did she ever happen to mention where, exactly, all these freed people are gonna go? I obviously ain't got space."

Ari may have been more shocked to meet Rhevi, if he hadn't met his share of interesting alien races in his (comparatively) short life. But for him, it was just another day on the job, and Rhevi's appearance illicited no more surprise than raised eyebrows and a curious, interested once over. Couldn't help it if he was a bit of a xenophile!

The little bunny-looking companion near him, though? Well, she was sure easier on the eyes. She saw him looking at her, though, and quickly scooted behind Rhevi, glaring at him.

What the fuck?

Whatever.

Ari beamed up at Rhevi and gave a casual shrug. "Gotta be comfy in my own home, eh?" he said as he took the touchscreen and swiped his finger over the screen, messily signing. "Besides, I don't work out not to show these abs off. Can't say ya don't like what ya see."

With a saucy wink at Rhevi, he passed the screen back to him and checked his wrist terminal when it blipped. "By the way, Sarah says somethin' 'bout puttin' important shit in the main body of emails, aaand..."

He looked around, brow furrowed, as though realizing only then that there were no packages, no boxes. Just Rhevi standing there.

...and the girl.

Uh.

"So, uh...where's this package I'm pickin' up?" And had signed for.

The utility closet was Arrow's old friend. She'd utilized it once, when she'd first arrived in the ATC, to escape from some bullies back when she'd been a nobody.

Er...not that she was a somebody, now.

She'd just figured, you know, that once she was no longer super fresh meat, maybe this wouldn't have to keep being a thing?

The shy ones were always easy targets, and bullies tended to be cowards, but knowing that didn't help her much. Oh, sure, she'd grown a backbone since coming here--the drills and training and new reality of her world did that. She'd learned to fight back, and to talk back. But a backbone didn't do much good when it was three on one and you were smaller.

Thank goodness she was also faster.

And that's how she found herself locked in a utility closet.

Yup. Locked.

Oh, she'd escaped the bullies, all right. She'd dashed away and hidden herself in the closet, which had worked awesomely several months back. But this time they were onto her, for it was hard to hide from a psychic. She'd braced herself for a fight, prepared for them to drag her out--

And instead, laughing, they'd locked the damned door.

Their voices had long since faded down the hall as they headed off to the cafeteria for a lunch it looked like she'd be missing. With a groan, Arrow leaned back against the wall and slid down until she was seated atop an upended bucket, cleaning supplies scattered at her feet and two mops competing for space and insisting on leaning on her no matter how she rearranged them.

She let out another sigh, chin resting on her hand.

Maybe she could kick the door out?

That would be pretty cool, busting on out of captivity like that. What wouldn't be so cool was being found here. How pathetic was that?

Arrow waited several minutes, just to be sure the hall was clear, and then pushed the bucket out of the way so she could sit on the dusty floor and brace against the wall. Pulling her knees to her chest, she kicked out as hard as she could and then cursed as the impact went right through her, and the door didn't budge.

Pearly buns? Well, she supposed it was better than Jeri. Or--shudder--Jericurl. Still, she jumped when she was pinched and shot him a mock glare, before she looked down at her own ass with a lifted brow.

Yeah, she was pretty damned pasty. Not even the hint of a tan line anywhere.

"It's not like there's much sun out here, you know," she grumbled as she shuffled along to the--heh--cockpit, wincing as the muscles of her thighs and ass and even her freakin' arm ached. Damn, she really was out of shape, which was no surprise, really, since she was allergic to the gym. She grabbed up her clothes and pulled them on, cleaning herself with a wipe before she put on her underwear and jeans, then gathered up Cal's stuff and trudged on back.

She dumped his jeans onto his head. "There you go, silky balls."

"Hah, sounds like a new party trick for the frat boys to break out," Jewel said with a snicker--before her eyes fell on the gummies.

Oh gods, sour gummies. No fucking way.

She snatched up a pack of them. "Oh my gods tell me one of these packs is mine."