Yokohama - Recreation Deck
Tables line the walls of this place, each holding a variety of games for the leisure of the personnel and staff that resides within this station. Computers are set up upon the center in rows, offering a variety of games as well to those willing to tap away at the keys or handle the mice and joysticks attached for education and amusement not required for work. Books are also available here, too, both in the form of stories and reference materials for those wishing to take up a hobby or merely escape to somewhere else for a time while it's allowed between their long days and colder nights of duties here in the Yokohama. No matter where one would like to go, plenty of cushioned seating is here for rest and conversation.
Meanwhile, dominating the room is a large window that overlooks Pern, showing much of the planet as the station orbits overhead.
What time is it? Who knows on a spaceship right?? After a day spent learning and the light Idrissa is settled upon one of the comfy chairs, seeming half asleep from the looks of it. There is a book on her lap open to some page, and Willow is curled up upon her shoulder, the little green nestled into her neck and hair. A faint mumble escapes her escapes her as she is dreaming about something that involves..runners! Surprize! Poor girl, she really needs to stop hanging around runner so darn much.
The doors of the lift open and close, and out walks ka-el and a couple others. It's break time, and most of them have had their eyes set on the recreational floor since arrival! Many candidates /are/ teenagers, afterall, and games and goofing off are a part of life. What usually /isn't/ a part of life is having a firelizard who doesn't want to
leave your sight. Ever. A firelizard who doesn't want to be more than a foot away. Ever. "C'mon Alloy, it's alright. It was an accident, an' I don' blame you for anything. Promise. Really.." All is said as he tries to pluck the lizard from his shoulders, only to be met by resistance. Ouchy gripping claws resistance! "Ugh. Fine. Stay there," Kale relents, saving his shoulders from further damage. Someone giggles and the word 'cute' is heard, though Kale only grumps and
departs from the little congregation to one of the seats. And it's occupied! By none other than Idrissa. Smirking now, he pokes her shoulder. Poke. Poke Poke. Then he pokes her cheek. Pokepoke. "Hey. Hey get up all the runners have gotten loose from the stables."
Indeed many of the candidates are teenagers, and all that is true for goofing off and having funz. Idrissa shifts, a slight yawn escapes her, perhaps she is gonna wake up? Well not quickly at least and she is rubbing at her eyes once she is poked. A eeee! escapes her and she jumps up, book falling to the floor, Willow nearly following after the book but the lizard clings to her shoulder with the o'mighty sharp talons! "Where.. what.. how.. WHO let them…" Out… Rissa blinks and looks around, her cheeks flushing red as there are others staring at her, and then they start laughing and pointing. A soft ah escapes her and she leans down picking up her book. A faint glower is sent towards Kale as she catches sight of him.
Oh, haha! Kale doesn't laugh, but he sure does grin in a mighty large way at Idrissa's broken speech. "Space runners.." he says to her. "Runnin' out in space. Floatin' away. You'd better go catch'm." He begins to crouch to retrieve her book, though she beats him to it. So instead, he plops down to sit on the arm of her chair. "Y'can't waste your time takin' naps up here. You can sleep when it's evenin'.." A glance is given to a viewing window. Morning? Evening? All he can see is the black vastness of space and stars and Pern! "Mmm…whenever that is. But it's not now, m'sure. I'd feel it in my bones. Ah..I'm sorrier an' sorrier that I didn't pack a time piece. I /just/ fixed one before we left."
The doors of the lift open.
Idrissa frowns as she eyes Kale a few moments. "I hate you.." Well not really but let him think that! She sits back down, stilly blushing away as she nears a few of the other sniggering about runners in space. She frowns a moment and tucks her book to her. "Well I sorta sleep when I'm tired.. You know like a /normal/ person does." She points out with a roll of her eyes. "You without a time piece? Oh no, what ever shall we do now?!" This questioned with a grin.
Mikal stomps in off the lift. Why? Because stomping is fun! "Hey!" he glares at Idrissa, hearing her words. "You can't hate my friend, Kale!" he glowers. It's a glower glare.
"Sure you do," replies Kale, not sounding too worried about that being anything close to true. He leans back on his perch on the chair's arm, smirking at a few who are amused by his joke. "A normal person," he replies, looking back to Idrissa now, "wouldn't be sleepin' at a time like this. A normal person would only sleep when they force us to sleep. I haven't slept at all!" he gloats, though pauses, thinking it over. "Well… I did, but it was more've a nap than anything else. I don't want to miss a thing. Oh! Have you seen.." he begins but stops, blue eyes darting to another voice. Mikal's angry words inspire a laugh, and he waves a hand to him. "Hey Mikal! Don' worry. Idrissa doesn' really hate me. How could she, as amazing as I am, eh?"
Idrissa blinks as she hears Mikal and peers over at him with a unsure look across her face. She is about to say something before Willow is there bouncing around and trills out. "Ow.. Shards!.. Willow /stop/.."
Her shoulder is getting turned into swiss cheese here. "It was a nap you know.. Some people do take naps!" She says with a shake of her head. As for the whole thing dealing with Mikal she doesn't even comment. She don't have ta!
Mikal relaxes instantly at Kale's words. "Oh? Well good then!" he still stomps closer which draws a protest from Elsie which happens to be why he stops such stomping around. "I've not slept either!" he says quickly. "Sleep is for weak and I don't want to miss a minute out here!" which means he'll most likely sleep for a full day upon their return.
Alloy spreads his wings upon spotting his clutchmate's antics, but…nope, he doesn't go anywhere and soon settles down again, perched where he's been for quite a while now. On Kale's shoulders. "Ah look, Mikal has the right've it," he says, extending a fist towards him for a fistbump. "Sleep is for the weak! We'll not miss a single second of this, will we?" He grins then glances to the both of them, lowering his voice. "Have the lot of you been down to the third level? The infirmary?"
Idrissa sighs once she is able to pull Willow free from her shoulder, which has a few new talon punctures in it. "I'm cutting your claws when we go home Willow." As for Mikal she doesn't even pay attention to him. If he is gonna get all yelly at her she'll just be quiet! A glance is offered to Kale at the talk of the infirmary. "Ah.. no.. Why?" She questions curiously.
Mikal fistbumps his candidate bro. "Too true!" he says excitedly. "Oh no, i've not seen the infirmary yet. Just a few other level's that M'bob ( AWLM) took me down. He doesn't even notice yet Idrissa not talking to him! How silly."
Kale nods to them both. Good! They haven't been. That means /he/ gets to be be bearer of spooky news. "Your groups'll probably go down soon. At first, it's not so interesting. They tell ya how it used to be a holdin' place for the Terran people in their capsules. An' they'll show ya supplies and stuff. Stuff we already read an' know about. But then…" He glances left and right, then leans closer to the two. "You'll hear about the Terran kid whose capsule thing never opened up, an' so he never got off … an' he's still in there. Frozen. Stuck."
Idrissa just peers at Kale a few moments. "What… Have you been reading and filling your head with?" She questions with a shake of her head and soft chuckle escapes her. She doesn't believe him it would seem! "I don't believe any of that." Is grumbled out while she rubs at her shoulder a few times before she snuggles back into that comfy chair she is upon. Nice chair!
Mikal looks excited at the prospect of checking out the infirmary stuff. "That sounds great…wha?" he looks disbelieving. "A frozen kid?"
"Y'don't believe me?" says Kale, raising his brows as he looks to Idrissa. "I wouldn't lie .. about this. It's real," he continues, looking to Mikal after. "It's a boy. About…your age I think they said, Mikal. His pod malfunctioned or somethin'. Doors wouldn't open, so they couldn't get'm out. All the oher life support things still worked…an' still work today," he adds in ominous tones. "He's still down there, alive..in a way. You'll see. They have a chamber where they keep his pod. They wouldn't bring us back there to see it, but I know he's in there."
Idrissa eyes Kale a moment and chuckles. "Nope.. I don't believe you on this at all." She says with an amused tone. No she is not going on this path. "Ya I'm sure his there.. Just waiting for little kids to get too close so he can steal their souls."
Mikal's eyes widen, clearly believing every word Kale says. "Really??" if his eyes get any larger they'll pop out. "Ooooh." To Idrissa he shakes his head. "I heard rumors about this in class once." maybe not but his overactive imagine is running wild now. "It's true. We should go try to find that pod!"
Kale half glares at the non believer Idrissa, but he's not giving up on it yet. "I don't know about stealin' souls…but I wouldn't put it past him. I dunno how it is to be .. cyro-whatever, but what if his brain is still workin'? And he can't move. Can't talk. Can't do anything but stay there an' be kept alive for hundred an' hundreds of years?" He stands up now, nodding to Mikal. "I agree. Y'don't believe me? I'll show you." A couple of curious candidates exploring the infirmary can't be too odd of a sight, right?
Idrissa doesn't offer any comment back on the two while they are still talking about the pod ghost or what not. A soft huff escapes her and she opens her book to go back to reading. "Ya.. you two just keep at it.." There is a pause and she peers over at Kale watching him. "You’re gona go looking for it?"
Mikal now has a new hero to worship. Clearly this older lad who's got 3 turns on him is soo much wiser than Idrissa or Soriana put together! "Let's go!" he wants to go look. "Oh to be alive all these turns and can't speak but…oh do you think he watches? He'll see us!" that idea kinda creeps him out.
"Yes," Kale replies to Idrissa. "I know where it is. Er…where it's supposed to be. There was a door in the infirmary, but they kept us from it. That's probably where the pod is kept." And if it's back there, he definitely wants to see it, especially now so that he can prove Idrissa wrong. There is a zombie on board! Maybe. "I dunno, Mikal," he answers honestly. "..Only one way to find out eh? You're in?" He grins, loking to Idrissa. "An' you?
Mikal nods eagerly. Oh yeah. He's all for the zomebie hunt. Elsie gives an excited chirp from his shoulder. If he's excited then so is she. When she's not hungry or sleeping that is.
Idrissa is quiet for a moment while just peering at the two, she ponders before closing the book and stands up. "Fine.. Let's go." She states with a smirk while eyeing Kale. "But.. If you’re wrong you so owe me another debt to pay.."
Yes! Everyone's on board. Kale grins, nodding to them both. "An' when I'm proven right" he says to Idrissa, looking at her smugly. "You owe me somethin' big. Don' ask me what. I like to keep you wonderin'." That or he hasn't thought of anything at the moment. He waves to them, ushering them along to the lift where he presses the button. In a moment, it arrives and doors open. "Third level, Mikal," he says, letting the youngest of them get them to their destination. Zombie, here they come!
Zombie! Mikal follows along, ready to get them to their destination!
Yokohama - Infirmary
What once held cryogenic capsules housing countless Terran souls has been partially converted to tend to their descendants. The walls here are brilliantly white, stretching out to form a seamless corridor with a wide walkway for the traversing of patients and visitors. Four sections of bed directly across from the lifts are broken only by electronic doors leading to three sanitary operating rooms or by privacy partitions in way of curtains suspended by rings from the 'ceiling' that can be drawn around each individual pallet. At the center is the forth pie-shaped room with a large panel of glass for viewing. Through it, one can see a meager line of isolates undoubtably meant for newborns. Presently the room is dark, quite cold and lonely. Off to one side are several cabinets holding varies medical supplies, some under lock and key.
Idrissa follows along after the others out onto the floor, a curious glance offered over the room. The lights are off, and it seems there is only the kids there.. "Woah.. what fun.." She smirks.
It would've been nice to have had a plan, right? Right. Some sort of blueprint of 'this is what we're going to do!' But as it is when it comes to on the spur of the moment ideas…there is no plan! Seems like the three of them are going to have to wing it, but Kale is in for a lucky surprise when the lift opens. It's dark. No healers about. No tours of candidates, for those have already come and gone. "…Awesome," he says with a grin, stepping off. "Shut it, Idrissa. You'll be eatin' your words here in a minute…jus' gotta remember…where that door was…"
Mikal keeps close to Kale..as close as he can without looking scared or anything. Cause he's totally not. "Kinda dark. Anyone know where the lights are?"
Idrissa rolls her eyes while she looks around and moves on over to where the light switch is and flicks it on. "Still waiting." She offers with an amused tone while she glances around curiously.
"No no!" says Kale in a hushed whisper. "No lights. I bet they like…recordin' devices here anyway. If we turn on a light, they'll see us." Blue eyes glance up, looking, peering…but no. He sees nothing that looks like a camera. But isn't that the point? "No!" The light! It's on! Hiiiiisss! Spying Idrissa, he hurries over and flicks the switch down, shutting them in darkness that looks even darker now! "Jus' stay close. I saw the door, so…" He grasps Idrissa's hand and then reaches over to clamp a hand down on Mikal's shoulder to guide them both. He shuffles forward, eyes slowly adjusting again. Across the room, to another electrnic doorway. "Right through here.."
Mikal's eyes were /just/ adjusting to the dark when suddenly he's dazzled by light. "Auee." and hissss. Then it's dark and he breathes a sigh of relief. Being guided he moves slowly, as if worried the zombie boy would just pop out before them. "You sure this is the right way?" he asks worriedly.
Idrissa paues as she hears Kale and blinks as he scurries over like a buggy to set the light off. She blinks and ahs softly while scratching at her neck a moment. "Alright.." Is offered as she slowly follows along after the two towards the door..
"Yes. Pretty sure. About … maybe seventy seven percent sure," Kale answers as they reach the door. Now what? A key code? Hand scanner? … Apparently not. What need would this place have for extra security? They're in .. outer space! The door opens automatically and, with a grin to the both of them, he steps bravely in. Heh.. brave!
Yokohama - Cryosleep
There is an unsettling darkness here as nothing but the faint
flicker of auxiliary power lights small consoles spread throughout
what is left of the Cryosleep Chamber. In turn, small sections of cold
and uncaring steel are cast in an eerie blue glow, and somewhere in
the above exposed wiring something electrical can be heard buzzing
occasionally. Many vessels are empty and left shut down to conserve
energy and to provide further power to more heavily trafficked areas.
Stairs descend from the doorway down onto a grated metal walkway that
spans across the length of the room with more darkened vessels lining
down the sides. The heating elements here have been disabled, leaving
noses and fingertips numb with cold as they inspect this historic area
as well as the final vessel at the far end.
Left closed and sealed due to malfunction, this ancient and solitary
pod ultimately prevents those that wish to open it from doing so.
Shadows conceal the contents, even while lights of green and a single
red beside a read out screen displays vitals.
Idrissa follows along a bit further and peers down the steps curiously. "I really don't think we're supposed to be here." This said softly. Well duh, no there not! Willow chitters out, her eyes a swirl of worry and unsureness it seems. An she clings onto Rissa's shoulder a bit tighter..
The lift doors open just as Kale is slipping into the next room, and Soriana is framed in that light as she blinks at the darkness - but what's this? It catches the heels of someone retreating deeper into the infirmary. Her eyes get closed for a moment, asking the night-piercing eyes of the firelizard on her shoulder for assistance, and she steps out into the infirmary to follow, slipping after the other three quietly. Just what do they think they're doing, hmmm?
Only the swirling eyes of Elsie can be seen from the direction of Mikal. The slowly swirling orange reflects his growing unease at all of this. He's not feeling so brave as he steps in but he's gone this far so he can't back down now! "Where is it?" he asks in a hushed whisper.
It’s dark here too, but the glow of something ahead of them can be seen. A console. A screen with readouts. A lone, abandoned looking, frosted over…tomb? For all intents and purposes, a tomb hundreds upon hundreds of years old. If the feeling Kale feels creeping through his veins is dread, he speaks nothing of it as he guides his two friends closer to the capsule, to that screen that shows oh so chilling vitals. Green means…good? Good health. Good vitals. Everything was a go for this fourteen year old to have continued on with his life, if not for that technical malfunction. A technical malfunction that truncated his life…but not really. Isn’t he still living now? Vitals are green. Health is green.
Inside the pod is impossible to see with the amount of frost and ice that obscures the viewing porthole, and no matter how close the trio of silent and curious teens get, they see nothing but that awful message that keeps flashing and has been flashing for centuries upon centuries. Millennia. Door Malfunction. Do Not Attempt Reanimation. This kid, forever trapped in a frozen sleep. Never to be … ‘reanimated’.
It’s creepy, and it’s no wonder that when the door opens again, all three of them jump. But it’s merely another friend. Soriana, who is guided to the sordid scene to view as well. Eventually, the four of them leave, not wanting to press their luck and get caught down here. And thus colonist number 072. Stefan Michaels is left to his eternal slumber, while the teens depart, no doubt wondering what if. What if they had been born in a different time? Born on a near forgotten planet far far away, tasked to brave the endlessness of space for a new home. What if it was one of them that was issued that pod. What if they were colonist 072? What if..
This is the read out screen on the only active cryogenic pod left
aboard the Yokohama. The same information repeats across it over and
over as lights blink on and off to the left.
Colonist Number: 072
Name: Stefen Michaels
Gender: Male
Age: Fourteen
Health: Green
Vitals: Green
Status: Active
~*WARNING*~
DOOR MALFUNCTION
Advisory Precaution Protocol 12
DO NOT ATTEMPT REANIMATION
Please contact a technician immediately
…END TRANSMISSION.