Xanadu Weyr - Weyrling Beach
With a gentler slope to the water from the main beach and the way it is cut in like a cove, this is the most sheltered spot for bathing. The sand is the same white hue, there are just as many — or perhaps more — scattered shells. From here, one has a beautiful view across the lake, a scene more often tranquil than not.
It's early morning, the sun is just rising, the Weyr is a-stir with activity already. Oddly enough the Weyrling beach is empty today. On said beach is one bored weyrwoman and an equally bored Seryth. The queen is stretched out upon the sand and Thea sits beside her absently breaking twigs into little pieces. It's the picture of tranquility, no?
A loud "Oi!" is heard just before Morlanol comes crashing through the forest to the beach, preceeded by Agate and Bloodstone, each carrying a large chunk of meat. Thinking that Seryth's bulk might be a protective element, they duck behind it to enjoy their feast. Morlanol continues to run after them until he notices the Weyrwoman. He stops before her, panting heavily, "Sorry ma'am-Thea, they stole their food 'fore I coul' finish cuttin' it up." The boy is breathing hard and clearly hoping he's not about to get in touble. Heck, he called her ma'am.
Cenlia apparently has the day off, the girl having headed to the beach, though the dirt smears on her clothing suggesting that she's already been at work in the gardens today. She's wandered a bit further than usual, perhaps having spied the dragon. For, as she ventures toward the weyrling beach, the girl waves and calls a, "Hey!" in greeting. Apparently, she's not guilty of anything at the moment, as she doesn't seem to be looking for an escape route, but rather is walking nearer. Morlanol's arrival is greeted with a giggle frim the gardener girl, her four firelizards trilling from somewhere behind her, the flits having been playing on the beach. Charmer, of course, swoops right over, heading toward Thea with a crooon. Though it's perhaps not until he lands that it becomes apparent that his actual target of attention is the dragon. He croons and does his usual waggley-tailed posing. Cenlia just eyes the flit as she approaches, giving Seryth a wary look; after all, the last time the girl saw the dragon up close, she was nearly eaten. Sort of.
A-stir with activity, indeed. Why, Sigam's already been up, boiled three pots of syringes, checked on the nearest needlethorn crops, and numbed half his arm thanks to a flippy little firelizard. Taking a well-deserved break, he decided to take a spin around the weyr just in time to see a recently-made friend, Morlanol, give chase to his flits. Intrigued, the Dragonhealer gives pursuit, following the candidate through the brambles. Naturally, he got lost, but the crashing of waves soon lead him to the weyrling beach. Looking rather worse for wear, though generally pleased with himself, Sigam glances around, seeking Morlanol… and find him. And Cenlia. And a gold, with rider in tow. "Fantastic," he mutters under his breath, hands vainly flattening his clothes; he realizes it's too late to turn back now. Instead, he strides on over, all smiles. "Mornin'." He totally hasn't had enough klah for this.
Thea's head turns at that 'Oi' and she gives Morlanol a shrug and a casual, "No need to apologize, they're not bothering us." Indeed, she's looking like any distraction right now would be a good one. Seryth, for her part appears to want one too, for her great head lifts, then lowers to whuff at Charmer. Hopefully he isn't inhaled. Thea lifts a hand to wave at Cenlia, then lifts a curious brow at Sigam. She greets this unusual parade with her customary wordiness, "Morning." There's wheels turning in her head, however, which may account for her lack of verbosity. She begins in an almost off-hand manner, "You know, they make me take a day off when everyone else is working. So boring." There's a pause, then, "I want to go see something, will you guys come with? I'd rather not go alone."
Morlanol gives a harsh whistles as his 'lizards finish their repast and they both look up, then fly to his shoulders with littler chirrups, eyeing Charmer with a tidge of jealousy. Then, he gives a impish grin to Thea, "Thanks, tha's good t' know." He runs his fingers through his hair, allowing it to resettle in a less mussed condition before answering Thea's question with a happy, "That'd be fun an' I don' have chores this mornin'."
Cenlia spies the worse-for-wear Sigam, and raises an eyebrow, saying, "Hey," and then grinning, "You still fightin' with m' brother?" She gives Seryth's whuffing a concerned glance, but Charmer seems absolutely delisghted, flapping his wings so as not to get inhaled, and then streetching his neck out, as if trying to nuzzle that big golden nose. He croons cheekily, looking, if anything, absolutely smitten. Cenlia just looks wary. She turns back to Thea, tilting her head, "Day off?" But the girl grins, saying, "Glad you ain't workin' to death too." But there's a flicker of something in her expression that isn't all light and joking. Is that concern? It is quickly replaced by curiosity, however, as Cen nods in agreement to Morlanol, "Me either. Where you heading?"
Cue Instant Skepticism. It's Sigam's turn to lift one eyebrow; 'go see something' was so deliciously ambiguous after all… But who was he to refuse an invitation from a goldrider? "Cenlia," Sigam returns her greeting, a small smile quirking up his lips. "Nah. El gave up on me after I cheated his probability game. He didn't like that too much, yanno?" He gives a quick wink before returning his attention to Thea. "Sure, why not. I'm game."
Thea pulls her legs under her and rises from the sand with a fluid movement. She gives Morlanol a look of approval. "You've got them trained to come at least." But not to steal food, apparently. The ice-green of her eyes twinkle mischief at Cenlia, "You'll see." Her tone is light suddenly. At Sigam's expression, her eyes take on a bit of dare to them and a slight smirk quirks her lips. He accepts and she stifles a bit of a snicker. "Okie, follow me up." She turns to grab the riding straps on Seryth's harness, giving them a tug to see if they're secure, then scrambles up, clipping herself into the harness while the others climb up.
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 leaps into the air, surging upwards.
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.
Morlanol coughs as he emerges from the nothingness, shivering as he catches his breath and mostly glad that he didn't soil his pants. Then he gives a little shriek as his body begins to float from Seryth's back, held down only by the riding straps.
Cenlia wrinkles her nose and smirks at Sigam, "Bet he didn't like bein' called El, either." She follows Thea, giving Seryth a wary look but scrambling up nonetheless. Charmer sees his human departing, and with another croon, flies to Cen's shoulder. The other three flits remain behind, though Rogue gives an unhappy trill when the dragon goes *between* and Cenlia herself isabitpale when they emerge in their destination. The girl blinks. And floats. She grabs hold of the riding straps, though she is buckled down. And she makes a noise in her throat. Charmer nuzzles her neck, but there's little other response from either of them as girl and flit stare around.
Sigam can only laugh as he follows Cenlia up onto Seryth's back, head shaking. "Not at all, but I didn't exactly leave him any room to insert his opinion on the matter. El was better than the alternative, besides - Ellie." He's all grins again, but something about Thea's challenging expression has puzzled him, keeping him quiet on through the stillness of between. Though far less discomforted by the trip than the candidates it seems, he reacts no better to sudden weightlessness, fingers quickly grabbing at teathers for blind reassurance. After a second's panic, he looks around, and is the first to speak. "No /way/." A man of many words, our Sigam.
Seryth for her part remains floating, but unmoving for the time being. Thea, her hair a dark halo about her head, unclips herself from the straps, one finger working the ear Morlanol shrieked in, but she is far from irritated. Rather amused with her surprise, she reaches back to unsnap the others, giving each of them an impish glance as she does so. "Just relax a little and push off Seryth towards the lift over there. I've only been here once, so… If I'm clumsy…" She doesn't finish, rather points to the doors not too far away and demonstrates with a gentle push on the golden hide. She floats in a slow tumble towards the lift, an arm reaching for the handles. Her fingers curl about the grip, her head turns to see how the others fare.
Morlanol slowly unstraps himself, clinging to the straps for dear life as he maneuvers himself to push off towards the lift. Agate and Bloodstone continue to cling to Seryth's neckridges, immediatly regretting their choice to come along. Unfortunately, Morl kicks off too hard and rebounds off the wall near the lift, ending up against the cieling. "Um… guys…?"
Cenlia gives Thea a wary look when she's unstrapped, though Charmer croons at the weyrwoman as he hangs on to Cenlia's shirt with his claws. Cen looks absolutely horrified, however, when Thea launches off, even Charmer going quiet for the time being. Cen is a gardener. She likes the ground. And she's looking more than a little unnerved. But. It alllmost looks like fun? There's a wince when Morlanol rebounds off the wall, but it turns into a snerk, which then becomes a slightly nervous giggle. Very carefully, Cenlia attempts to copy Thea, though there's little more success, as her movement has Charmer trilling eagerly and flapping in her face. Not enough to make her miss the handles, but enough to have her feet flailing wildly as she flips around, whapping the wall a bit.
Sigam looks no less green around the gills, but doesn't move to stop Thea from unclipping his straps. "You do realize that I'm a healer, not a spaceman," he says in a thin voice, watching the goldrider go. He doesn't budge as both Morl and Cen float (and flail) through the air, but instead glances around, looking for any alternative to this madness. Nada. So, muttering something about wherryheads under his breath, he bunches his legs and pushes off of Seryth, arms stretched out as if he's about to make a miraculous swan dive… and naturally overcompensates, sending him head over heels towards the doors, which he eventually bumps into with a magnificent thump. A quick stretch and grab keeps him from richocheting back from sheer momentum, but his left eye has a bit of a tic to it as he glances up at Thea. "Ow."
Yokohama - Main Lift
Manufactured from a lightweight composite of Terran materials this lift supports a "microfoamed" cylindrical cab to house personnel as they travel from one part of the Yokohama to another. Three linear induction motors, mounted longitudinally on the cab's exterior, provide the force to move the cab. Electromagnetic conduits lining the shaft power the motors. The lift reaches an approximate maximum speed of ten meters per second under this system. Inertial dampeners mounted on the cab's base counteracts the acceleration effects. The interior display shows the ship's directory to assist in achieving the correct destination.
The lift is lined with brilliant tubes shining brighter than a hundred glows each, at least. The floor is thinly carpeted in a depressing industrial gray, and the walls are painted an unassuming tan. The doors are quite thick, and bear a small silver plate with the title 'Emergency procedures in case of Hull Breach…' but the rest makes little sense.
Thea laughs quietly at Morlanol, "Just push in the opposite direction you want to go. But not so hard." Cenlia's arrival is greeted with a smirk and a "Welcome to space." She merely waits for Morlanol to float back their way, ignoring her own wild-looking hair for the moment. Sigam's collision with the lift elicits a snicker which she is unsuccessful at choking down. "I landed upside down my first time here." If that's any consolation to the three of them. Her finger pushes the lift door button and they open with a hiss. The goldie pushes off to float inside, bumping off the back wall. She reaches out with one finger and nudges herself into a slow twirl throwing the others a mischievous grin.
Morlanol rotates again, giving Thea a dark look, "No' fair, y've done this b'fore." He lines himself up on the door and pushes off more gently. He still doesn't quite hit his target, but he's close enough to send himself spinning against the back wall of the lift.
Cenlia uses her arms to fling herself into the lift, losing momentum halfway, and then going into a slow tumble as Charmer helfully flaps his wings. A look of momentary panic, accompanied by more flailing, is replaced by a sheepish grin as the girl's hand catches hold of the railing. She manages to right herself, and looks only slightly nauseous.
"Thanks for the reassurance," Sigam drawls in response to Thea's 'reassurance,' twisting himself about and finally maneuvering himself into the lift. In a move that could be classified as Spiderman-esque (if he knew what that was), he braces himself against the wall, palms flat and face smushed against it. In his mind, that's better than spinning circles. Eventually finds the rail and clings to it, hard. "Right. So." He eyes the console dubiously. "Eenie meenie miney mo?"
Thea presses the button for Floor: 17. There is a momentary pause as the lights flash at the entryway.
As the doors hiss shut, gravity is gradually restored to the lift. After a momentary pause, waiting for everyone to take hold of the hand rails, the capsule bobs and then rockets to its next destination.
The lift comes to a halt at Floor: 17 and the doors open.
Yokohama - Bridge of Operations
From the lift, the main viewscreen dominates the wall seen directly across the way from it. Set above is an enormous observation window, which affords an amazing view of space and the planet below. There are many control consoles and chairs on the deck set before them, as well as a large open area just in front of the viewscreen. Centrally located in this expansive area is the Commanding Officer's chair. Three sets of steps ascend to the platform, which is set several meters above the deck. Other important stations line the upper platform, which extends both the port and starboard, each side ending a few meters short of the viewscreen.
Thea grabs the railing when the lights flash. She knows what's coming. "Well, Morlanol, I was all over the place when I came up last time, too." She merely smiles sweetly to Sigam's thanks as if it were genuine, then braces as the lift races to the Bridge. When the doors hiss open once more, she exits and steps aside for the others to have the first look at the wondrous sight before them out the viewing window. She doesn't move towards it, however. Instead she remains by the lift, her eyes reflecting some inner thought, the sparkle for the moment gone from them and her lips sad.
Morlanol grips the handles for dear life as the lift rockets upwards, managing to hold in the scream this time. When the doors his open his eyes open wide and he staggers towards the viewing window, for once truly silent in awe.
Cenlia hands onto the railing, and Charmer hands onto her, though the flit seems much less concerned than the gardener, as he chirps at the others in the lift. But then the doors open. Whatever anxiety Cenlia may have had, it's replaced by curiosity as she gawks at the bridge. And girl sees the window. And the planet. Pern. She gibbers.
Sigam is less quick to leave the lift, when it finally comes to a stop; he saw the floor she pressed, and he knows the legends. Sure, the carpeting's been redone, surfaces cleaned and possibly reinstalled by crafters, but he can't quell the sick feeling that niggles in the back of his mind. It doesn't stop him from feeling complete and utter awe at the sight of Pern, as he finally wills himself onto the bridge, however. His jaw drops open unflatteringly, and though he doesn't quite gibber, he can't help but murmur, "This has to be one of the single most beautiful things I've ever seen." After a shuddering sigh and a long moment, he tears his gaze away from the spectacle and glances at Thea, brow crinkling ever so slightly, though the world is still reflecting in his eyes. "You coming to see?"
Thea isn't really watching the reactions of the others. Her eyes are out in the furthest reaches of the stars - or what she can see of them from over by the lift, the expression wistful rather than wondering. She's oblivious to the sounds Cenlia's making in the lift, vaguely aware that Morlanol and Sigam are at the window in awe, but that's about it. The question pulls her back to the here and now, "Hmm?" She blinks at Sigam and gives a quick shake of her head, a small rueful smile tugs at unwilling lips. "I've seen, you enjoy." She finally peeks back at Cenlia, "You alright?"
Morlanol continues to stumble forward until he reaches the window itself, staring out at the surface of Pern with wide eyes. In a somewhat dull, awed voice he says, "By Faranth, it's full of stars…" He stares blankly for a few more minutes before his usual jovial smile returns, "I can see the hatching grounds from here!"
Cenlia glances sideways at Thea and makes a noise - it might be words? Then again, it might not. Either way, she's not moving. Though she eyes Morlanol with widened eyes. Seems something's finally got the gardener girl speechless, and it doesn't even have big teeth!
"Stars, planets…," Sigam agrees, nodding at Morlanol. "It all seems so /silly/, the talk of other races and places… it seems so mundane and stupid until you see it like this. Shards, if this exists, anything must be possible." A grin blossoms on his face. "No wonder dragons can move whatever they want, s'long as they believe it." The man sighs whimsically, but stops talking, as if he realizes how much he's chattering. Let's just say he's overwhelmed. This doesn't prevent him from noticing Thea's sudden changes, but he certainly doesn't know the weyrwoman enough to ask. Instead, he shrugs and smiles politely at her decline, returning to his leaning position at the window, nose nearly pressed against the glass. "Gonna live, Cenlia?," he calls as an afterthought.
Thea snorts a soft whoosh through her nose at Morlanol's claim. She shakes her head at Cenlia, giving her friend a faint smile, "You can't fall, you know," before her head turns back towards that window. She's not really looking -out- of it, but at the spot in front of it when she muses aloud, "I found a star up here, but then I lost it." Her eyes have a sheen to them and she's blinking something from them suddenly. She turns and heads off towards another exit, waving a hand towards the Bridge in general, "Have a look around. I'll be with Seryth when you're ready to leave."
Finally, Cenlia manages to find her tongue. "Wish Kire was here… could show me which one's my star," Cenlia mumbles weakly as she clings to the railing. Is she babbling? She doesn't respond to either Sigam or Thea's words, though the girl does move toward the window. Slowly. Charmer, on her shoulder, is silent, peering at it with almost equal awe.
Morlanol sighs softly, almost wistfully to himself as he turns away from the window after staring out of it for innumerable minutes. He follows Thea to the lift, so lost in his own thoughts that the thought of exploring the rest of the ship doesn't even register with him, he simply walks, contemplating the facts of life… or what's for dinner… sometimes it's hard to be sure with him.
Sigam just… stares. That's all he can do, eyes wide, face slowly lighting up like a child's at Christmas, or whatever the Pernese would call Complete Enrapturement. Thousands of fleeting thoughts are scooting through his mind, but apparently, he's done voicing them. Instead, he stands beside Morlanol and Cenlia, then just Cenlia, as the boy moves back to the lift. Then, finally, it's just him. Him, the great wide universe, and silence, with the exception of the whirr of air moving through the vents. "It must be so quiet out there…," he finally speaks aloud, and to no one in particular. With the lazy slowness of a lover pulling away after a long night, Sigam steps back from the window, eyes only leaving it when his view is obscured by the change in angle. Finally, he turns to explore the rest of the bridge, sober, but in a daze, and deliriously happy for no reason at all, except that he's humbled by his own insignificance.