Xanadu Weyr – Clearing
A wide clearing stretches from east to west, the ground packed hard although grass grows across most of it. Trees are strictly forbidden in this space, their danger to the constant draconic traffic reason enough to banish them to the forest that creates a border to the north. Where the ground is less trampled, tiny flowers poke their delicate heads out from their shaded hiding places.
The cliff looms imposingly on three sides, stretching upwards all the way up the side of the rock edifice where, high above on Xanadu's Star Stones, the ever-present watchdragon sits on the lonely peak. Directly south is the hatching arena, the large round complex taking up a large portion of the perimeter, a line of trees visible beyond it. Southeast are wide steps leading up to the caverns and eastwards is the large entrance to the Infirmary. Somewhat north of the infirmary is a human-sized archway that has a frequent quantity of traffic — it leads to the Wandering Wherry Tavern. Tucked neatly under the arch, to one side is a tiny wood-frame shop bearing the name 'Petals and Pots Garden Shop'. Southwest lies cliffs where windows for the administrative offices have been cut. Underneath them are the entrances to the crafters complex while north and west along the cliff's base, a broad path leads to the feeding grounds. Due north is the spacious trail that leads to the rest of the Weyr - the meadow, the forest beyond. At the far edge of the clearing, beside the trail leading to the forest sits a clocktower.
It's just after lunch on a crisp fall day in Xanadu and as promised, dragons are waiting in the clearing to carry aloft those folks wishing to join the Yokohama trip. The Weyrwoman is among them, dressed not for the office, but comfortably in body-hugging flight leathers. She's lounging against Seryth's shoulder, poised and relaxed, but the sparkle in her eyes tells of her pleasure in escaping the office for this little jaunt. People begin to trickle into the Clearing and are beckoned by riders - you'd think they were hucksters at a gather - to choose from the their browns, blues and greens present for a ride up. Beside each dragon - Seryth included - are a pile of jackets, goggles and gloves for those who do not have their own gear.
Mikal emerges from the direction of the barracks, a small duffel bag slung over a shoulder. He's changed out of his normal garb of shorts and shirt, switching to a longer sleeve tunic with a vest over that. Tunic is tugged into loose fitting pants which are in turn tucked into his normal boots. Also par for the course are his bright orange laces. He's all ready and excited for the trip!
Datsun comes walking from the direction of the Meadow, carrying a bag that a few might see as familiar: it's the same bag that Datsun carried when he first appeared at Xanadu. Though it's not as packed as it was on that day as it's only about a third filled. The Woodcrafter's put on warmer clothes with trousers and wearing a heavy leather jacket that's open at the front with wooden toggles along with his heavy custom boots and a knit cap on his head. The notice said to dress warmly, and so he has. The Woodcrafter joins the small crowd of people coming in, looking somewhat nervous.
Spaaace! Gotta go to space. Soriana's got a grin as she heads into the clearing, already wearing her scuffed but well-fitting riding gear and with her overnight bag over her shoulder. She is prepared for this. Ready… nay, eager! Here she is, and she grins and waves to others before heading toward one of the greens (you can't hardly see a scar!) and greeting the rider and dragon friendly-like.
Marel has ditched her usual dress in favour of trousers, a long shirt and sturdy boots, her jacket slung over one shoulder, bag over the other, and gloves sticking out of a pocket as she reaches the clearing and takes a moment to linger at the edge of the gathering and get an idea of what's going on. She rocks up onto tiptoe for a little bit, to try and get a better view, then tunes in to what the nearest rider is saying and submits herself to approaching them, beginning to shrug into her jacket. Pausing beside the rider's blue, she continues to button up her jacket, and slips her hands into her gloves, trying to stretch them out and coax them into fitting more snugly.
Garait is among those here, and seems to be having mixed feelings bout this 'adventure'. He has gathered his stuff together and was waiting for a moment before moving to get the riding gear that's provided. Calm and quiet he s, but a little sad as well. Maybe because this is his rest day an was told to come for the experience? Who knows, but he is here.
ka-el arrives in the clearing alongside his big, burly, brooding, and bearded Journeyman who looks less than ready to allow his apprentice to go flying up to the yonder of space, likely causin' trouble instead of keeping to his studies and practices. But well, he's letting him go, and the two exchange words (spoken by Kale, grunted by Orik). Learn somethin'! Read a book! Find out what metals were used in the makin' of that ship! There'll be a quiz, don't be lazy! …and did you pack a jacket? It may be cold up there.. Kale is sent off with a gruff pat on his shoulder, and crookedly grinning he shoulders his overnight duffle and heads on toward those dragons. Which does he choose? Seryth got them there nicely last time, but he's flagged down by the rider of the brown before he can get too near the familiar gold.
Space is present in all things, even down to the subatomic level. However, there are sparser regions, including the one refered to as 'outer' space. That is the one to which Jethaniel intends to make a visit today. He strides out of the caverns, only to cast a gaze around at all the gesturing riders. Ah. Surely they are functionally identical, yes?
Zahleizjah wanders in to the clearing, second generation jacket and goggles worn, but no gloves of A'dmar's fit snug enough on her feminine paws. She's got one bag of belongings, just enough for the overnight and another layer of clothing for the futile attempt to stay warm following the trip *between*. She's not far behind Mikal, coming up to the meeting place with a smile and wave "Hey guys.." she says to Mikal, Datsun and Soriana, excitement making play of her expressions. A nod is sent to Marel with a smile and a "Hello.." before waving to Garait and greeting him when he approaches, her own feelings obviously on par with his mixture. Oh space.. what fate do you hold for us Xanadians? A nod to Jethaniel and Kale and Zahl's waiting for further instruction.
Datsun looks up at the sky, the prospect of leaving the nice and solid ground that he's known his entire life is a bit daunting to him. As he gazes at the sky, wondering where the floating spaceship might be. After a moment, he's back to the ground and choosing a green dragon to ride, heading in that direction. Zah gets a nervous smiel and greeting in return, noticing people around him wearing gloves. "Shells. Forgot my gloves." Fortunately for him, there's a pair close to the green in the piles of clothes, which he borrows with thanks. Noticing Soriana, "Hey, Soriana. Came to see if your Frozen Boy story is true or not."
Darsce is bored enough to actually consider this little jaunt. Besides, she's seen the space-dudes return to Xanadu for change-of-shift in their hott flight suits, so this one's a no-brainer for her. She has her own custom-made flight gear, a tastefully-dyed muted-plum suede set tailored to her form with intricate stitching. Her feet are shod with cuffed, knee-high boots and dangling from her hand is a matching helmet and gloves and she's sashaying right on up to one of the browns to sweet-talk his rider while she tosses her silver-blonde hair, dons her helmet and wriggles her hands into her gloves.
"Mount up!" That's from Thea as the crowd doesn't seem to be getting any larger and time's a wastin'. Her time is limited and so if she can, she'll herd them aboard, offer once again to take a few and helps them aboard before scrambling up herself. That she's seen Marel in the group is evidenced in the smile she sends her daughter's way, but allows her to exercise her independence in choosing who to ride with.
Soriana grins to Kale, buuuuut says nothing, because Orik's there and she has no intention of drawing the smith journeyman's attention to herself! Zahleizjah gets another grin. "This'll be great, you'll see!" she says with enthusiasm, then glances back to Datsun and laughs. "You do that, then! Be sure to look around the rest of the place… while you're there and all." Mikal and Marel get waves of their own, and then… time to riiiide! "See you up there!" She turns, and swings up onto the green who'll be her ride today.
Zahleizjah wanders to that pile of extras, digging in and looking for a pair of small gloves, a search which ends in making her way through all of them only to find one black and one brown glove to do the trick. Time for conversation is short and she's nervous as anyone, though Soriana's reassurance really helps and she files in somewhere close to her Datsun, Garait and Mikal.
Well, the good thing about this trip for Garait is that his mom is taking him up on her green and as you look at them, you can tell the family resemblence. After making sure everything is worn right, Myrna, Garait's mom, helps him mount up, chuckling at her son.
Kale pulls a knitted cap upon his head, zips his jacket, and is ready to go! He has his gear, and he's already checked it twice, though he checks again juuuust ot make sure. Alerted by Thea's call, he hurries up the process, dubs everything as Good To Go, and clambers upon the brown. Oh yeah, there are friends on this brown! And friends nearby on other colors. "Hey!!" he calls to all in general, waving an arm. And to Darsce, who happens to be on the same brown, he grins. "Nice ensemble." Now he's ready!
Datsun nods at Soriana, giving the back of the green dragon a dubious look before sighing and resigning himself. He came and he might as well go. The Woodcrafter swings up onto the green's back, joining others atop her.
Fact checking is important. So is investigating facts for the first time. So… Jethaniel gaze falls on Darsce, and he pauses for a moment, watching her. This pause is not to last, because the bluerider nearby prods him to get his attention and drapes jacket over the Steward before bundling him aboard.
Marel darts a quick look between Thea and Darsce in the moments before she finishes getting everything sorted, and, suitably attired, clambers up onto the young blue at his rider's invitation, a quiet murmur of thanks given to the blue, along with a quick, gentle smoothing of hands against his hide. Again, her gaze seeks out her mother, then her sister, but makes herself look away and focus elsewhere as straps are dealt with and final checks made.
Nice ensemble? Well, close enough, Darsce will take it, preening just a bit and rewarding Kale with a sunny smile. "Thank you," she drawls and climbs nimbly aboard to settle into place between him and the rider. It's then that she sees Jethaniel is with the group and he's on another dragon. Sadness! She pouts, a teeny bit, disappointed she saw him too late to- oh well. There's a pleased gleam in her eyes that he's coming nonetheless.
Seryth
You are mounted upon Seryth's shoulders, feeling the powerful muscles across her back rippling beneath your legs. Under your hands her soft, warm hide shimmers - a pale sunrise curtained in golden mist; rain suspended in time and caught by Rukbat's dawnlight. A faint scent of jasmine reaches you from her oiled hide as wide wings lift, enclosing you in cloudy aureate light and trembling in anticipation of that first mighty downsweep that will carry you aloft.
Seryth spreads her mighty wings and leap into the air, surging upwards.
Xanadu Weyr - High Sky
It is easy to see why the settlers of Xanadu chose this exact spot to live out their lives. Here high above the Weyr one gets a good perspective on the landscape that drew the eye of that rider long ago that sought out the home for a new Weyr. Mountains loom protectively above this pristine little valley, while an energetic river races headlong down the northern side, in a hurry to reach the lake that rests peacefully to the east. Grove after grove of trees dot the land, creating endless shade for the human or dragon.
As well-placed as the natural aspects of the Weyr are, the founders worked hard to keep with the uncontrived rhythms of the valley while destroying as little of it as possible. All of Xanadu opens up below you, welcoming the odd visitor into its friendly arms, or calling a cheerful 'Welcome Home' to the rider and dragon after a visit away.
The Weyrwoman waits until all are aboard and buckled in, meanwhile she’s checking that her passengers' buckles are clipped in snugly, then gives the signal to rise. Of course the blues and greens zip aloft in nothing flat, while the browns are a touch slower to reach altitude. They fall into formation and await Seryth to join them and once the queen is at point, they all rise higher until Xanadu is spread out below, basking in the hazy fall sunshine with the backbone of mountains behind it to their left and the rich blue of the Sea of Azov smudging at the horizon on their right. Thea's arm lifts forming a fist which is pumped once and they all wink out *Between*.
Seryth suddenly disappears -=* BETWEEN *=-
Between
Darkness and cold like you can't imagine. Nothing to see, feel or hear, except the beating of your heart.
<LUB> <DUB>
<LUB> <DUB>
<LUB> <DUB>
Then, as suddenly as you entered the emptiness…
Seryth suddenly reappears from -=* BETWEEN *=-
Yokohama - Cargo Bay
Since the gravity units were restored and now are maintained in working order, the cargo deck of the Yokohama is constantly buzzing with activity. With research needing to be done, equipment to be moved, or a plethora of other tasks taking place people are always coming and going, either from the planet 'below' by dragon back, or meandering in and out from other places aboard the ship.
This area is well lit, the floors themselves have had space set aside specifically for 'betweening'. Three large marked off areas remain clutter-free of people, dragons and equipment. With these 'landing pads' clear, dragons avoid the danger of teleporting into an area of space already occupied and causing a tragedy. Several massive sun lamps have been set up over off to the left, in an effort to make the stay of dragon-kind more comfortable.
They all arrive together in the vast cargo bay, still in formation. Each dragon and rider knowing what to expect, remains utterly still, wings folded tightly to their sides and feet tucked as they float in weightlessness. Thea has kept the fact that the gravity system - at least here in the cargo bay - is offline for maintenance. Green eyes glimmer with mischief as she peers at the others to see how they will respond, while at the same time unclipping her passengers and giving them gentle shoves in different directions. "Make slow movements," she calls to the rest, “and push in the opposite direction you want to go."
Mikal is confident he's got this as he undoes the straps of the dragon he's boarded upon. However he doesn't /quite/ got it as much as he thinks he does for as soon as the restraining straps keeping him in place are removed he's floating away with a squeak of surprise. Elsie pops in from in between and chitters in a way that suggests Mikal's being laughed at by the fire lizard.
The quick-winged green means Soriana has a few moments in the air to appreciate the sight of the other dragons rising, and then the signal to go between is given and… they do! The black of between is probably something like the black of space, except when they actually get up to space, there's plenty to see on account of the Yokohama all around them. It might as well be a storage bay down on Pern, except… Soriana recognizes this floaty feeling. She starts undoing her straps while keeping a hold of them so she doesn't drift away, carefully gathering her legs under her into a crouch and then… boingy! Up to the ceiling she goes with what was definitely not a slow movement, but from the grin… was totally intentional.
Datsun, still atop the green dragon, immediately starts looking around to see what this famed spaceship looks like since this is his very first trip into space. The cold is noticed right away, but the pressure of the dragon's straps on himself isn't made aware until he's trying to unbuckle himself. Puzzling over this, it takes him a few moments to work the unfamiliar straps, tugging at it until he's suddenly free and slowly dismounting the green but not under his own accord. "What in the shells?!?" Alarm lights up the Woodcrafter's face, reaching out for something to grab and anchor himself to.
Flying is fun. Going up and up and up, leaving behind the trees and land and everything. And that splotch of a smith down there that's looking up. Kale grins and waves a hand at the Journeyman he's leaving behind before he pulls his cap down further upon his ears, knowing what's to come. But he enjoys the view of the weyr til then, clutching at seat holds and enjoying the breeze. And then…ah! Between! COLD DARK SILENCE SCARY! He squeezes his eyes shut at the biting sensation of colder than cold, shivering despite the layers of clothing and jacket that he wears. This is the worst part, but it's over before long and they reappear here in the cargo bay where the temperature feels warm in comparison. "Sh-shards. Never gonna get used to that," he shivers, eyes now open. When he's unbuckled, he's set to stand, but instead finds himself lifting up out of his seat, floating. Woah. Startled surprise writes itself on his face, replaced soon with glee in remembrance. "Yesss!" as he flaps his arms to go higher.
Darsce has been adragonback many, many times. She's been *Between* more times than she can count. This is old hat to her. But space? She… has never been here. He father has never taken her, for some odd reason. Free-fall is not something she was expecting and when they pop out into it, she freezes, then squeaks and squinches her eyes shut. They're going to DIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEE!
Too busy looking around to try and get a good look at her new surroundings, Marel starts when the rider of the blue grabs carefully at her right ankle and gives it a little tug to try and alert her that which she doesn't notice until that very second: even the little tug is enough to unbalance her a touch, resulting in a flail of arms and a startled look at her escort. At least the blue seems to find her reaction funny, a low rumble given as he looks round and up at her, eyes whirling a bright green. It's with a touch of hesitation that Marel unbuckles straps and accepts assistance with it all, and then she's floating up, up… and up, her push away from the blue too forceful. Limbs flail again as she tries to slow herself down, but it only makes her situation worse. How humiliating! When she eventually does slow to something like a stop, she's blushing furiously, trying to swallow down her embarrassment.
Zahleizjah trembles slightly, that frigid chill in her bones rattling the Starcrafter as they arrive from /between/. There's a strange feeling here, and Zahl is all out of sorts as the atmosphere pulls on her in pressurized ways. She'd caught a ride with some random bronze since A'dmar and Yaro couldn't make it for this leg. As the bronzerider assists with the unstrapping, sharing instructions and sending her off much like Thea did to her passengers, the Starcrafter instantly feels woozy "Woah.. umm.. what's happening?" She remembers to push the opposite direction, up for down, watching Soriana and following her lead. Slightly disoriented a few nervous glances are shot across the loading dock while she works on getting a hold of this weightlessness thing.
Despite the rational knowledge that between will end, Jethaniel cannot actually prevent the instinctual reaction that makes his hands tighten on the straps. He can, however, control it sufficiently as to give few outward signs beyond his frown. Once they actually get up into space, the frown fades to be replaced with keen interest for his surroundings and, after a moment, for the others flying by. He blinks. "Ah. This must…" The bluerider unfastens Jethaniel's straps without him noticing, and he floats up slowly as he continues. "…be a zero-G environment…"
Even though his mother is a dragonrider, Garait is not used to between and it shows. Straps are being removes slowly as he holds onto his mom, who whispers some advise about the weightlessness. He moves slowly, keeping near the dragon for support at first and then moves away, "I do not like this. I need feet on the ground." His unease and unhappiness with this is definitely showing.
Datsun's still floating around the cargo bay, arms and legs flailing as he tries to find something but each motion sends him in different directions until someone else more experienced with freefloating goes to retrieve him. After being brought to a place to anchor himself to the wall, the Journeyman's face is flushed with several different things: Embarassment, surprise, and the effort of trying to secure something. He holds on tightly to the side of the spaceship with both of his hands and as much of his feet as possible too. His eyes stare out at the floating people, watching and studying how they move.
"Aw, c'mon Garait!" calls arm flapping Kale. "It's fuuuun!" And to show just how fun it is, he stops his arms lurches forward, trying to do a midair somersault! He doesn't quite make it all the way around though and his flip slows when halfway completed. Hm. More thrust is needed next time! But for now he's content to hang upside down like that, grinning an upside down grin. He laughs upon seeing Soriana's antics and the random reactions of others. "Hey Marrreelll," he says as he floats on by her, "is this cool or what?"
Jethaniel's calm assessment causes Darsce to be able to crack an eyelid and peer at the world warily. If she doesn't have to watch death rush at her, she's okay with opening them fully and does so now. Her escort is chuckling, unsnapping her buckles for her. "Just don't-" he starts but too late! Darsce is tossing a long, slim leg over the dragon and arching her back to slide down. Her plan? To make a run for those lift doors she can see. Her plan goes awry as her movement sends her not sliding down the dragon but slowly cartwheeling end over end up and across the bay towards Jethaniel. Everyone will now be aware that Darsce has a good set of lungs underneath her pert bosom. She shrieks. And squeezes her eyes shut. NOW she's going to die, right?
"What are you — ?" Marel begins to ask as Kale floats on by her, reaching out as if to snag a light grip on one of his ankle or wrists, only to think better of that at the last minute, the simple move-not-move twisting her about in another embarrassing tangle. "/How/ are you doing that?" she asks, a note of despair edging into her voice. "Show meeee…!" That's as she tries to turn to face him too quickly and winds up spinning off in a direction she doesn't mean or want to go in. Whoops. Darsce's shriek makes her jump and stare wide-eyed after her sister, exclaiming, "Dar—!" and nothing more. She's hardly in a position be of any assistance herself.
Come on in, the air's great? Soriana grins wide, and then encounters the ceiling at not quite the angle she meant. "Ow," she says, and spins off again with less force this time before actually catching herself on a heat lamp's arm, her body stuck out at a crazy angle because, hey, no gravity. She gives her arm a shake (nope, not hurt, really!) before grinning again. "Pretend you're swimming in ice!" she call out helpfully. Because that's totally… possible.
Thea waits until everyone has dismounted, then she too pushes off of Seryth gently. The gold remains but the other dragons wink back out to return home, leaving the cavernous cargo bay echoingly empty. It might have something to do with Darsce's shriek that hastens them on their way too. With less to smack into, the Weyrwoman is going to encourage playtime. They all work hard, so R&R is a welcome respite. Her slow path brings her near enough to Marel that she intercepts and catches her daughter, twirling slowly in a new direction. With a smile she her asks, "Are you doing alright?"
Zahleizjah will eventually and slowly find her way towards the ground for a few moments, though taking some time until she's comfortable to a point where it is 'fun' as Kale says. The amber eyes gal will start to bounce around a bit, a little bit of fun floatyness. A few glances will be sent towards Garait and she'll gravitate his way with a smile "Once we get a hold of it.. s'kinda fun t'fly around.." she too isn't used to these feelings and does still take a good amount of time to recover from between. Eventually a round is slowly made towards Datsun, she'll perch next to him and say "This is the weirdest huh?" She'll giggle as Darsce shrieks, Kale's a natural and Marel aspires with despair.
"…though strictly speaking, this is only a microgravity environment," Jethaniel corrects himself. "Since-" The screaming brings his attention to the fact that Darsce is wheeling toward him. He blinks. His arms come up in an attempt to catch her, the move sufficiently balanced to only cause a small amount of spin. Her impact will be what brings his own weightless (but still massless) state to his awareness.
Mikal finally gets a bit more adjusted with no help from Elsie who's plastered against a window to enjoy the view of the world of Pern as seen from the windows. He's only spun head over heels a couple of times. Nothing too major! The shriek from Darsce though draws his attention and he feels inclined to call out. "Just move slowly and you'll get the hang of it!" he tries to sound encouraging.
"This is so not fun Kale," Garait responds. There are reasons he's a Beastcrafter and having both feet on the ground is definitely one of them. Just don't panic. Then he hears Darsce shriek and he closes his eyes tight, "I knew this wasn't a good idea. I knew it." Afraid of what he might see, the Beastcraft apprentice keeps his eyes closed.
"Ice?" Datsun echoes Soriana, staring at the thought of swimming in ice. No thanks. He'd rather not do that. Instead of freefloating like some people are or flailing wilding like others are, he chooses to stay to the wall instead, using anything and everything that can provide a grip for him to move around. For Zah, she gets, "I have absolutely no idea what to make of this. This is… this is…" Words fail him, unable to find anything to even describe what he's feeling. Being non-technology savvy as he is, he's using whatever he can grab and hold onto, be it a handle or a beam in the wall or protruding buttons or the like.
"You…hey!" Kale laughs as poor Marel goes spinning off before he can help fine tune the art of floating around. He cringes at that scream though, looking just in time to see poor Darsce tumble. Darsce, Ms. Always Put Together. Darsce, the queen of witty comebacks. Darsce … cartwheeling to her death! Or not death, as Jethaniel is there to save the day! Kale laughs, unable to keep it in which would likely be more polite. But it's funny! And so with Marel being caught by her mother and Garait sternly not enjoying himself, he laughs and pays the price by floating into a light fixture, bumping his head. But, oh, that's not going to keep him from laughing, and he grabs onto a pole to steady himself as he does so.
Darsce isn't moving SO fast, but perhaps faster than would be recommended in this place. She collides with something - it's not hard, cold metal, that's all she knows and so she clings with arms and legs. Her face is drained of color and she's hyperventilating, or close to it. The shriek abruptly stops but is replaced by a gasped, "Helpmehelpmehelpme. FARANTH help meeeeeeee!" Her eyes are still tightly shut. What hell has she entered?!
Trying to further slow herself so as not to crash into her mother, Marel attempts not to flail and entrusts herself to Thea's care for that moment when she's caught, murmuring grateful thanks, though her cheeks remain coloured an embarrassed (or is that slightly scared?) scarlet. "Yes," she tries to assure, not sounding quite so certain as she means to. "It's… interesting," she hazards, unable, right now, to be so bold as to brand it /fun/. Yet. "…I think Darsce's going to pass out…" Uttered in a hushed voice as she stares worriedly down at her, her paleness noted more than anything else.
An object in motion tends to remain in motion. Jethaniel is not a sufficient force to counter Darsce's. He catches her, all right - or was that she catches him? and then they're both moving, albeit more slowly than before. "Microgravity is not harmful to humans," he says. Reassuring, right? "At least, not without prolonged exposure." What may be harmful to humans is encountering walls. As… so. Thunk. "Ow. It appears inertia remains in effect."
The difficult part of this is getting down. Yup! Kale, recovering from his laughing fit, is stuck among the lights. Letting go has him floating aimlessly, but experimenting with alternating between grabbing what's available to be grabbed and pulling himself downward successfully has him lowering himself from the ceiling to closer to the ground. "This'll never get old.." he grins as he works his way down, arm flaps seen here and there. His eyes do shift to Darsce once more, sobering a bit upon spying her terror. Aw, it's not so bad, is it? Eyes seek Soriana next, though he finds himself near Garait after a while, and he gives the guy a poke. "Open your eyes. No one's dead or dyin'." Yet.
Thea can see the wall looming as she and Marel near it in her periphery and she's been here enough times to know they'll bump into it, so she puts out a hand without looking and grasps an I-beam (or whatever space ships call their support structures). "Good," she says and though Marel is her primary concern, she shoots a searching glance towards where she last heard a shriek. Dryly, "I think she'll be fine, Marel. See? Jethaniel has her." She tilts a chin to direct Marel's attention to the beam. "Grab that if you want and I'll let go. Then when you are ready, just push off in the direction you want to go. The lift is down there when you're ready." And after she points to it, she flashes a merry look at her daughter and pushes off in a different direction with a quiet giggle.
After a couple of moment and a comment from Kale, Garait slowly opens his eyes and all seems okay. He slowly tries moving towards the wall with limited success, "Kale, I'm glad you're having fun at least. I don't like this feeling myself." He makes a face then and sighs, "And they thought I'd enjoy this?" Well, maybee Zah is having a bteer time than him sine they are closer to the stars here.
It's just a hop, skip, and a jump to get down. Or at least, you could call them that, though really they're all just bounces of pushing off and catching herself again for Soriana to get back down to the 'floor' … not that it matters much with no gravity! She grins back to Kale, but for her part, she's near Datsun and Zahleizjah, and she grins to them, too. "Not gonna give it a try?"
Zahleizjah shakes her head with a chuckle towards Datsun, stating "Nothing like woodwork.. I've never.." Her legs start to get away from her, floating upwards in an attempt to flip her over as focus shifts. "Argghh.." Some breaths are taken and she works on getting herself under control, who woulda thought weightless locomotion would be so weird! A hand will be extended to Darsce as she floats by, hopefully it's helpful and she'll grab for the closed-eyed passerby. Hints and tips and observations are processed while getting a hang of this crazy feeling. Stars are a glimmer in mind, she knows that's what they're here for, one big hurdle to get over first. A smile is sent Garait's way, looking back to Soriana with a shrug as she offers "You first?"
One might think that Jethaniel's calm would help Darsce and knowing who she's latched onto might shake her out of her panic. Not so. "How do you know-" Iceblue eyes open mere inches from the techcrafter's and she blinks, "You! I-" Tongue-tied, how strange for her, as is the color that floods back into the milk-white cheeks of the Iernian. Still clinging, she dares a peek down - waaaaaay down and squeaks and instantly buries her face in Jethaniel's neck. Muffled, her moan is "Faranth, we're going to DIE!"
Marel follows Thea's gesture to the beam and inclines her head a little, reaching out with her right arm to grab the beam when her mother lets go. "Okay…" She'll get the hang of it eventually, even if she can't return a smile of her own. She hangs there - rather, drifts there - for while, having a quick look around at everyone else whilst she's as stationary as she's going to get before pushing into motion again. Attention roaming from Darsce and Jethaniel, she casts a look over in Kale and Garait's direction, then steels herself to push away from the beam and down towards the lift. She ends up almost upside down to manage it, trying to calculate the right angle and push needed, but, as awkward as it looks, she manages to get going in the correct direction without sending herself flying across the room. Success! For now.
Datsun just shakes his head at Zah, "No. /Nothing/ like woodwork." The Woodcrafter's still moving along the walls like a rock-climber does along a cliff except his lower half occasionally drifts off every now and then, forcing him to tense up and control himself better. As Thea points at the lift, it's in that direction that Datsun wall-climbs to, climbing across a panel that has a protruding button, pushing down on it then suddenly jerking his hand away as he stares at the panel. "Oh, shi…" He freezes, waiting for some kind of technological doom to come upon them all…
"They who?" questions Kale to Garait. "You didn't come up here on your own?" He smirks a bit and shakes his head. "Either way, don' worry. It's not like this all the time. Usually, you're walkin' around just like you would back on Xanadu." He smirks, "Unless someone accidentally turns off the gravity. Accidently, of course," he says in a conspiring tone. He wouldn't do such a thing, but he can't speak for all the Xanaduians that came up here. His eyes follow Thea as she floats on by, then zeroes in on Marel. He grins, beginning to point her way, but she looks busy heading to that lift and making good progress. He leaves her be, looking back to Garait. "If you don't wanna float, there's a game room here," he offers.
They're shedding kinetic energy, at least? There's atmosphere, which means air resistance is present - if rather negligible. Perhaps if Darsce spread her arms and legs wide? Unlikely to happen. Jethaniel's eyes meet hers, and for that moment, he too is wordless. They stare for a moment, and then as her head lowers, he finds his tongue once again. "Unlikely. Perhaps if we impact a pointed object, or sufficient blunt force trauma… most likely additive, given current velocities…"
Soriana grins to Zahleizjah, and grabs a handhold to keep herself from drifting off as she leans forward to start a slow midair somersault. Round and round and round and… round she goes, not bothering to stop herself from moving. "See? It's all good!" She gets glimpses of the room as she goes, watching Datsun creep along and various others fly… intentionally or no.
Mikal is content to slowly float around up here, a wide grin coloring his whole expression. He offers his advice to anyone near him, which is a simple. "It's easy once you get the hang of it!" so Mikal's not really the best choice for instructors up here. His gaze flickers from person to person as he watches how each person reacts to the lack of gravity in their own way.
Zahleizjah anchors Soriana and giggles as they handhold to somersaults "Wheee.. ok that looks pretty fun!" She'll hold on for support and eventually pull her back in before switching in an attempt to try something similar, albeit much less graceful than the dragonhealer. A shake of the head agrees with Datsun and once a few clumsy spins have been done a flick of the head goes from Soriana to the Woodcrafter headed for the lift. "Shall we?" A traverse across the wall with a few bouncy jumps will take her that direction.
Garait makes a face, "It was a couple of the Journeymen's idea for me to come since I wasn't scheduled for duties. They said I'll learn stuff." Right now all he's learned is that he doesn't like being weightless. He perks up at what Kale says next, "Game room? Not floating would be great!" He seems almost excited at the possibility of not floating.
Datsun heaves a sigh of relief as nothing bad seems to happen as a result of him accidentally pressing a button. "Lesson learned. Avoid buttons." is remarked to himself as a reminder until he quickly wall-climbs in speed, unable to control his lower body as it begins to drift away again, grabbing handles and I beams here and there with just his hands while the rest of his body floats along, making his way to the lift, reaching and grabbing ahold of the lift doors and pulling himself inside.
…dizzy now. Soriana wobbles as she finally catches hold again to stop her spinning. At least, she thinks she did. Why is the world still going around? Silly world. The spinny effects means she makes her way toward the lift carefully for once, with slow motions and small hops that even so have her missing her mark more than usual. WobblySori. But, hey, here's the lift! "The life support's not controlled from here," she says to Datsun helpfully.
Darsce has no witty comeback for pointed object, not this time. Perhaps it's the words 'impact' and 'blunt force trauma' (the rest are simply gibberish to her) that robs her of her usual arch replies. Muffled still because her face is still buried somewhere near Jethaniel’s clavicle, Darsce shudders and repeats, "We are going to die." Are they still moving? Because it feels like they are. At least she isn't still shrieking. But is that a sniffle? Darsce never cries in front of people.
Kale nods to Garait. "They're right. You will learn stuff. Like how to move when you're weightless. What rooms to avoid. Which are the best to visit. An' probably some relevant stuff to your craft, if you try." He points over to the lift. "That thing takes you to different levels. Can't remember how many levels there are, though. C'mon." He legs go of his leverage and begins to float on over towards the lift with the others.
Datsun's toe has found the light switch! It's a delayed effect with the lights - they must be on a timer. The cargo bay's lights wink out, leaving the room in utter blackness. From somewhere above where the Weyrwoman playfully floats, is a calm, "Okay nobody panic.
Zahleizjah hopes that no body dies.. that would really ruin their space trip, and so caution is taken when approaching the lift. That is, until that lightswitch is flipped "Arghh.. ahhh… " she's already floating through the blackness, knowing a wall is not far and possibly some other obstacles, hands are placed in front of face. "Somebody get the li-urrpmhh.." There's that wall by the lift! CRASH! "Ouch.."
"Life support? What's that? That sounds important…" Datsun asks and comments when Soriana mentions that part, abruptly deciding to stay very far away from anything to do with life-support. Here's someone who happens to be a klutz around technology and the whole spaceship is made of technology… Everybody will be lucky to escape alive at the end of this trip with him along! Blinking as the lights suddenly go out, flusterly calling out, "Sorry! I didn't mean to!"
If they were about to die, Jethaniel would probably still analyze the situation, so that's really no help so far as reassurance goes. He glances down at the top of Darsce's once-immaculate hair, and his mouth opens and closes silently a few times. He has no appropriate words here. Stopping. Stopping would be useful, and he looks about for a handhold, seeing one in a sturdy, bolted-down shelf. His hand reluctantly releases Darsce and reaches for it… just as the lights go out. In the darkness, his hand finds that grasp, and their bodies trace a slow, pendulum-like arc before nudging to a stop against the shelves, still at last. Jethaniel keeps holding on.
Garait does his best to follow Kale towards the lift and there's darness. So. Not. Fun. Hoping he'ss going in the right direction now, the beastcrafter continues to move forward because no trouble comes from moving aroundd weightless in the dark, right?
Uh oh, pitchblackness in the middle of floating to a lift equals Kale going wide-eyed with limbs outstretched. "Hey!" He keeps his arms in front of him, hopefully to keep himself from running into a wall or pole or something equally as ouchworthy. And he does collide with something! Luckiy it's a slow collision, but it's a slow crash of body to body. But just whose body is this? His hands flap and grasp (flail?) at the person, trying to untangle, but not quite sure just which way is up. Or back for that matter.. "Sorry! Is this…ack, that's my eye!" Poor Zah.
Mikal is happily floating and watching the others. In fact he's slowly floating towards Zah when the lights go out suddenly. In a moment of panic he flails his arms wildly in an attempt to grab hold of something. In the dark he grabs /someone/ arm..or maybe leg, but it's hard to tell whose!
Darsce stiffens as one of those arms - scanty security though they were - leaves her. But they stop, oh blessed lack of motion and she lifts her head wide eyes seeking Jethaniel's. Tears tremble at the edges of her lashes, "Thank-" Sudden darkness! She doesn't shriek this time, nope. With a gasp, she just freezes. She knew they were going to die! She KNEW it! Next the cargo doors will open and they'll all get sucked out into space to orbit Rukbat forever, won't they? Or something horrible will happen and…!
Hearing Kale's voice just in from of him, Garait tries to slow down enough to not run into him. Is seems to work…mostly as we barely taps Kale in the dark, "Umm, hi." Yes, this is so much better. "When will the lights come back on?"
Zahleizjah is stuck between a Kale and a hard place, shoulder first to collide with wall, slow enough to be only slightly jarring but good enough to hurt a bit as limbs and Candidates tangle in the cumbersome weightlessness of the dark. "Oh ahh! Kale? Y'alright?" She asks after extended hand, and specifically index finger poke the Smith right in the eye during the debacle. If Garait was following.. and Mikal, that probably means they're not to far behind.. oh no! The thought hits her… everyone was headed for the lift at about the same time weren't they? The Starcrafter braces.
It's dark in the cargo bay, but there's a little bit of light coming through the open lift doors. The Weyrwoman points those wishing to leave that way, floating by where Jethaniel and Darsce are, she manages to grasp the shelves and murmur something to the distraught young woman, hopefully calming her and offering to help Jethaniel get her to the lift if he needs it. He can loose himself in the thrall of analyzing things later, which no doubt he'll do. Thea herself remains floating with the rest of the group that decides to stay and play as shortly the lights are restored by one of the technicians.
Poor Zah! First squished by a smith, and soon to be squished by a smith squished by a healer squished by a beastcrafter! But Kale does his best to not suffocate poor Zah, even though one of his eyes is now squinted closed and somewhat watery. He presses his palm against the wall on side of her, and his opposite hand is pressed to the oth- oh wait. That's her face. "Sorry!" He moves it further out and presses it against the wall. There. Now braced, he attempts to keep the pressure off of her as Mikal bumps into him. Garait slowed down in time enough to not crash. Go him! "Phew. … Hey look, the lift's open. Let's go!" Go to the liiiight.
Datsun was fortunate that he reached the lift in time before the darkness happened but the light is still on in the lift. Wincing as he hears people smashing into each other, walls, and other various objects, the Woodcrafter tries to help by standing in the doorway. Waving his hands in the light and calling out, "There's light here!" One hand holds onto a handle while the other reaches out in an offer to pull anyone who reaches into the lift.
Garait slowly makes his way towards the lift, trying not to run into anyone along the way. "So, what's to do around here?" He hears Datsun and can see his hand vaguely and seems a little relieved.
Zahleizjah grrummppffhhhs as poked in the eye Smith's hand squissshes her face. It's not that it's particularly painful, the lack of gravity making their collision some uncanny symphony. "Oh geeze.." She's half enveloped by and half spring-boarded off by Kale and cannot help but chuckle as the two of them brace for any other incoming traffic. Seems as though the others find their way through the darkness better than bruised shoulders and face prodders running in to the walls over here. "Uhh.." what else can she say? Slowly slipping away towards Datsun in a swimming like manner as the light offered by the lift is sought. "Thanks Datsun.." She'll make her way in to the lift and say "Explore!" To Garait with a big grin.
After unintentionally beating up Zah and receiving blows back in the dark, Kale fiiinally gets untangled enough to follow along into the lift. What's a poked eye? Pfft, nothing! It's already opened again and ready to see what new things there are to discover up here on Yokohama!
Mikal bumps into Kale then Zah and whomever else up here before he too finally manages to float along in Kale's wake to end up in the lift with a 'whew!'.