OUTER SPACE > Solar System

Mind in a Can [Dragonsong]

(1/12) > >>

Daglobster:
High over Edanith, the OS-47 Pumping Station floated, shining metal contrasted by the planet's rusty red and green spots.. It was a vaguely cigar shaped station, with two bays with automated fuel umbilicals mounted on the side.  A squat ridge that ran along the top served as the top of the crew area while the bottom bulged with internal fuel tanks. The station was large enough to be crewed by about six (with automated support).

It also looked a little run-down, and well... it was off the regular grid, but that just made it more discreet! Discretion that had to have been valued by somebody, because soon enough there was a ship closing in. A small scout vessel, crew no more than ten, slipped in from the void and made for a quick docking procedure.

"Excellent," said Dr. Dawaski, standing in the vessel's cockpit and viewing the incoming station. Dawaski was a russet-haired dwarf with olive-colored skin, notably aged even for one of his kind. he wore a sturdy spacer's jumpsuit with a zipped-tight jacket with the words "Star Gazers" emblazoned on the back.

"While you're at it, get a message out to our buyer on Edanith. Tell him the expedition was a success and we've got his package and more, so he better get his fat wallet ready," he said, and returned to the crew compartment of the Blue Comet, which was the only other room save for the two bunk cabins tht gave the ship it's distinctive " T " Shape. The other members of the Archeoxenological expedition were mulling about, collecting data on what appeared to be a swirling black mass contained in a giant, man-sized crystal, held suspended by electromagnets. The room held other curiosities, old-earth artifacts and the like. Some old and some truly ancient.

Dawaski approached Dav, the scientist currently monitoring the apparatus, and was about to speak when the ship lurched just a bit as it docked with the station.

"How is it?"

"Stable, Dr. Dawaski. Activity levels have been steadily dropping ever since we took it away from Aedolis. A few more days like this and I'd definitely clear it as inactive," he said, and Dawaski smiled.

"Excellent. Nothing could go wrong now."

DragonSong:
"Docking port B is open for incoming ships, Captain."

Lynn looked up from what she was doing--which happened to be a bit of embroidery work on the black jacket she typically wore--and sat up straighter in the pilot's chair to look through the Wild Rose's viewport.

"Gotcha, Rosie. Thanks."

"Yes, Captain."

Lynn smirked to herself as she guided her ship in toward one of the two bays on the fuel station, flying the machine as easily as if she'd been doing it all her life. Which, considering how long that really was, would have been quite impressive, she supposed.

Captain. Ship AIs were just programmed to refer to their pilots that way, but she couldn't help being a little bit pleased by it. She'd spent some time as a real captain, back in the day, a ship captain; she liked the sea alright, but had ultimately decided a life on it wasn't really for her. This, though? The open vastness of space, distant glitters of stars and planets she wouldn't have even dreamed of reaching as a girl?

She could spend millennia sailing this.


The Wild Rose docked at the second bay and Lynn waited a few moments for the pressure to equalize before she moved to the external doors and scanned her iris so the ship would let her out. She practically bounced down the landing stairs, looking around at the station curiously.

It was just a fueling station, but it was somewhere she'd never been, and that was exciting in and of itself, as far as she was concerned.

Daglobster:
Fueling ships and cleaning engines wasn't exactly a lightning-fast process, so OS-47 had several amenities on-board, even if the place was meant for shady vessels that needed a refuel away from the official channels and watchful eyes. One of the few living crew manned a canteen in the common area and there were the kinds of things one could usually find in a more traditional fueling station. A collection of seats around holo-viewing terminals, a communications bay, even a couple of automated dispensers that sold things like scented CO2 filters and other less conventional merchandise such as mild narcotics or whatever other convenient item someone looking for a shady refuel could need.

Coming in from the other fueling bay, Dawaski and his beautiful elven assistant came walking in, alongside a decent number of the Star Gazer's crew. It had been a long, stressful trip to and from Adela and while the Old World ruins they pilfered through weren't exactly open for the public to explore, they were clear now and at this point, nobody could stop them.

"Yes, yes sir. Total success," he said to himself, holding a finger up to an earpiece.

"The artifacts are in the hold, of course. As soon as we get planetside we can transfer the containers..."

He breezed past Lynn, and his assistant gave Lynn a momentary glance of acknowledgement before following Dawaski to the station's canteen.

The other crew were just looking to stretch their legs for a moment, all except for Dav, who hesitated and even looked back towards the boarding tube. There was a thin film of sweat on his face and brow, as if something was severely bothering him. Still, he did his best to calm down, even buying himself a pack of cigarettes to try and calm his shaking hands, even if he'd never smoked before.

As he lit up, he glanced around the room, searching for something that wasn't really there, and shook his head one more time. The rest of the crew didn't seem to notice his plight, instead talking amongst themselves or kicking back while the ship refueled.

He couldn't stop thinking about what they had contained back there. Even when he did, the thoughts always managed to worm their way back in...

DragonSong:
Lynn spared the elven woman a quick nod and a smile, but she didn't exactly seem like she was interested in stopping to chat--and honestly Lynn wasn't either. She really just needed the quick refuel before she was on her way again.

Well, maybe she'd grab a bite herself. Shady places like this usually had the supplies she needed to make her own "fuel" in the Rose's on-board kitchen. Which was really more of a lab, when she used it...

The spacer suddenly paused, nostrils flaring suddenly before she screwed her nose up in distaste. Sweat. Fear. Tobacco. And...something else? Something she couldn't quite identify.

What the hells?

She knew her curiosity was really gonna get the best of her one of these days, but... She couldn't seem to stop herself from following the scent toward a stranger who seemed to be fumbling with a lighter and a cigarette. Yeah. Definitely the source of that smell.

"Hey there." Lynn flashed him a smile--not quite showing her teeth--and cocked her head at him in a way that she hoped conveyed friendly curiosity. "You alright, ser? Y'seem a bit out of sorts."

Daglobster:
"Huh? Oh..." Dav murmured, and he took a breath to steady himself as this... strangely attractive woman suddenly came to speak with him. He wasn't expecting anybody to really come up to him, and he nodded his head after composing himself.

"Just a bad case of Space. Void flight's never been kind to me," he said, although the hesitation to meet her eyes said that something remained hidden. Of curiosity were his eyes, which were bloodshot and wild, and his pupils couldn't quite sit still. It was like he was constantly on alert.

"Makes me sweat, makes me disoriented. Y'know, every day stuff." He combed his hair back with his fingers and took a drag. Finally, he focused on her. Actually, it was pretty easy to pay attention to her, now that his eyes had met hers.

"Shouldn't have taken this job..."

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page