[IC] GODSPEED

[MagicPocket]

Operation: ALPHA CENTAURI
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JULY 19, 296905:14

Shafts of early morning light illuminated the dust motes swirling lazily in the rather dim room. The man stood in front of his mirror, wall of glass to his left, setting his face faintly aglow and giving him no need to call for a light. He was dressed in formal whites, crisp, clean edges, tailored to his measurements to give a tidy appearance.


The ceremony wasn't for several hours; however he was ready, at least in his attire. He was a man, no longer a kid on the streets, no longer a screw-up teenager. He was an adult. It didn't seem like very long since he graduated preparatory school and entered the Academy. No matter how he reasoned, he couldn't help but feel slightly cheated. He couldn't help but think about the inevitable future. He couldn't help but doubt and question everything he had trained for the last six years. In the next several hours he would be making goodbyes with people he probably wouldn't see again. Risk and failure seemed to outweigh everything else.


No one knew for sure what they would find or if they would find anything at all.


But would he go?


Hell fucking yes. In next 24 hours he would be promoted to Lieutenant-Commander and he would be flown into orbit to the United Republic of Earth's space station. Their company was the first to be chosen. They would be famous for trying and immortalized if it was a success. Age of course played a major role to his understanding. But all the individuals chosen for their operation were nothing short of accomplished, intelligent, and professional. A handful of them he had worked with during the trials and would be promoted with today, the rest he had trained with at the least. The committee first put them all together little more than a year ago to begin their training specific to the mission. They carried out missions in the Wilds and practiced drills flying around the Solar System for months on end. He knew he could work with them, he knew he could trust them. 


There couldn't be a more capable group of people he'd rather hurtle into the unknown with. 



JULY 20, 2969

14:26
 

Inside the URE Space Station's second largest hangar the last of the remaining cargo was loaded onto the USS Monarch. The containers were completely strapped down and each item was being accounted for. Their project had the massive hangar all to themselves, the opposite wall was a gaping hole looking out into space. The technology was still in its developmental stages but it was still striking to be able to see so much of space, and occasionally Earth or the moon as the Space Station oriented itself throughout orbit. Only upon closer inspection would you notice the glimmer like a heatwave as the forcefield passed continuously over the entrance as wide and tall as the hangar.


The was a commotion at the back followed by a echoing string of curses that carried to Cameron Sixcto's ears as he stood supervising cargo. He glanced over and determined the issue was because of the DDP which, mind you it flew more than a dozen of the crew members to the Station at 05:00 hours earlier that day and offered no vice, now barely agreed to start up. Before any machinery was to be loaded each engaged in the last of several pre-flight tests, the F-C78s had performed flawlessly. The DDP on the other hand, well Cameron had witnessed that act of god. He wouldn't have minded rolling up his sleeves and taking up that task for the day but he had other duties, he was no longer just an engineer anymore. It was a reoccurring theme, once the mechanics would fix something like the hydraulics something else in the electricals would go awry and so on. They had it working for the last several hours, but by the feat of foul language coming from the DDP's direction it was safe to assume it was down again. It couldn't have happened at more inconvenient time with thirty four minutes until departure. They had been contracted for a different, more reliable, state of the art drop ship but several days prior they had been notified it was damaged during a mission, they were told that the damage was irreparable and were told nothing more. Consequently it was substituted for the DDP, no one's first choice.


Cameron pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "Sec?"


The Superior paused and lifted his head from the his tablet, a paper-thin glowing slate of light, in acknowledgment. His current task was taking precise inventory, a task that required the patience and charm of a perfectionist android like Sec.


"Call Cavridge and McSwann down to loading bay to assist with repairs. That DDP needs the caress and sweet nothings of engineers that actually know what their doing." He glanced down at his wrist as he spoke. The last container was strapped down. Cameron began to ascend the ramp into the ship. "We depart in thirty three minutes, if nothing else I want whatever's left strapped in and the cargo bay locked down. When you're finished here, take attendance, then report to Bridge."


"Of course, sir." Sec nodded, his face blank with determination, a common expression. The android spoke into his collar, relaying the message.


Sixcto was walking into the ship but paused before he was too far away. "Oh, and Sec?"


"Yes, Lieutenant-Commander?"


"Would it kill you to smile?"


His eyebrows raised as if procuring the sudden thought. "Would it, sir? Though there is no evidence to prove such a thing, smiling, it seems, is linked to the release of--"


"A joke, Mr. Sec." Cameron replied getting a chuckle out of it, "Just a saying." With a smile of his own he watched as the android practiced a tightlipped grin.


Cameron walked back through the ship, he would return to the bay later to double check on the progress.


The project had been in motion for years, every detail had been thought of and carefully and mindfully accounted for. The crew had a couple of months to get familiar to the ship, to learn it inside and out, to learn drills, etc. They'd been preparing the ship for weeks and weeks. That part was reassuring, and when it came time for departure day, Sixcto just had to make sure everyone was at their station and that everything was flowing flawlessly, and with the exception of the drop ship, everything was. Their departure wouldn't be the last; rather, in a few hours they would stop at the Heliosphere Space Station that orbited just past Pluto. They were told there would be a ceremony of some sort  then they would be off into the Interstellar Medium, into deep space. And then they would be on their own.

 

[Goaty Love]

JULY 19, 2969

08:17
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Jack absolutely hated goodbyes and preferred to just disappear usually, but this time he couldn't do that, not with something this big. The day before his family threw a big party with tons of friends to wish him a good journey and all the luck in the world. So many faces he said sincere goodbyes to not knowing if he would ever see them again in his life. He would miss his siblings most of all, they were always looking up to their big brother and he admired the pride in their eyes that their big brother would go on the first manned expedition outside of the solar system. Heck, most likely they've been bragging about it everywhere they went. Tears were shed when he said his final goodbyes before getting a lift to the home of a friend who lived close to the spaceport he had to be at for his launch the next day.


That day was today. He was staring at his cybernetic hand as he opened and shut his fingers continuously. Thoughts raced through his mind about the risks that were involved with the mission and the more he thought about it the more he was getting scared. His friend Alice stirred beside him and yawned causing him to break out of his thought cycle. He looked around the place from the bed and didn't know whether to chuckle or groan. There were bottles everywhere, the place was a mess and their clothes were strewn about the place as well. He saw that they at least left his carrier pack alone in their drunken stupor. He slowly got up and rubbed his temples before looking at the clock. "08:22?! Shit!" He cursed to himself as he quite clearly overslept.


"What is it?" Alice mumbled sleepily as she turned around in the bed.


"My flight is at 10:00!" Jack responded as he gathered his underwear and put them on.


"Relax Jack, I'll get up, make some breakfast and get you there in no time, you'll be checking in at security around 9:30." She responded as she got up as well and got dressed.


"I wanted to take a shower before I got there." He said before her hand on his shoulder calmed him down.


"Jack, you know these people for more than a year, I don't think they will explode over you not showering before showing up." She said before walking to her fridge and pulling some ingredients out for sandwiches.


"Yeah, you're right, they won't kill me for it and I have to go through an extensive check up anyway before they set me loose on the mission." Jack replied as he put on his boots and watched her make sandwiches. "How am I going to cope up there without you Alice?"


"Now hold on there mister McSwann." Alice said laughingly as she handed him a set of sandwiches. "You've survived most of your life without me and you most likely will have to anyway. Besides, one of your college buddies is on the team too right? Cling to her you big baby." She said with a big grin before opening the door. "Now let's get you to your flight."


JULY 20, 2969

14:21
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Jack was reading a book by Argensky about the Ascension Principle, a good read he hoped to finish before the mission but didn't get to it since training took more time than he anticipated and he spent more time socializing with Lily than he had planned. He couldn't wish for a better engineer although he still had to get used to the official difference in rank. He looked up from his book when his earpiece sent through a message from Sec at 14:28 asking for him and Lily to look at the DDP. 'Why didn't they postpone the launch so they could get a better functioning dropship in tow?' He thought to himself as he put his book in his satchel and made his way down to the DDP. Whilst walking he sent a message to Lily. "Shiny, I'm on my way to the DDP, see you there." He knew she didn't like the nickname but he kept calling her that anyway. He looked at the clock. 'Thirty or less minutes to launch, I hope the command crew believes in miracles.' He thought to himself before walking through the last door to the DDP.


In a certain way he liked the DDP, it looked cool in its own way and was capable of doing quite some strong feats but they tended to just be so maintenance heavy and prone to malfunctions, a deathtrap in the hands of the inexperienced. He looked at the technicians and heard their cursing which made him frown, people can make mistakes when frustrated. He walked over to them. "Guys, take a breather and let me look at it." He said causing them to put down their tools and take a few steps back so Jack could check it out. Jack peered at the systems of the DDP and felt the urge to slam his head against the DDP. 'No, calm down, we can fix this.' He though to himself as he took another look and sent another message to Lily whom he hoped was almost there. "Shiny, I'm looking at a bunch of minor stuff we can do in-flight but there appears to be coolant leaking somewhere in the upper engine block and we might want to replace a capacitor or two before takeoff." He said over the comm-link before opening up the upper block to find the cause of the leak. He found the leak quickly, there was just a burst coolant pipe which wouldn't take too much effort to fix. For the capacitors he had to wait for Lily because she had to make the call on replacing things that aren't exactly broken yet.


@magicalpride

 

[magicalpride]

JULY 19, 2969


07:35


Finger tapped against her metal leg. Lily was ignoring her adopted mother, Roslyn Briarwood. Roslyn, the woman who tore her world apart when she was just a child. Roslyn didn't often visit Lily these days, keeping as much distance as she could manage. She didn't even ask Lily to change her last name when she adopted her. Lily might have despised her if she had. Even if she did officially adopt Lily after the death of her parents and Lily had not protested this, Lily never saw this woman as her mother in any way. She did what she did out of guilt mainly. Nothing Lily wanted. 


"Your parents would be so proud of you," Roslyn said, breaking the near silence. Lily did not look at her, hand clenching up. What did she know about that? Roslyn wasn't wrong though. Lily's parents had been proud of her when she wanted to follow in their steps and started to learn as much as she could. She had gone to that fancy school in order to get on the right path. Her parents would be in tears, wishing their child the best. Knowing she was going to be something more than they were. It would have been a touching departure, Lily was sure. Now though it was just an awkward and tense breakfast before she left all this behind. "I'm sorry Lillian. Don't-"


Her chair squeaked as she suddenly stood. She couldn't be here now. Her flight wasn't for another couple hours, but she had to leave. She wasn't going to do this. Not today. Not anymore.


"I'm sorry too."


JULY 20, 2969


14:25


They hadn't even left yet and already Lily was being paged to do repairs. Lily sighed, running a hand through her hair. As she made her way towards the DDP, she went over what she knew about the ship. She ignored the first message from Jack she got. Well it was good that she wouldn't be tackling this alone. It would go faster with another pair of hands and at least she trusted him to know what he was going. She sighed again at the 'Shiny'. She knew he knew that she hated that nickname but it didn't stop him. She wondered, vaguely, if he kept calling her that to get a rise out of her. Whatever. Lily had tried her own share of nicknames but none stuck and even worse now seemed to have the desired effect on her friend. So she had stopped trying long ago. 


"Wait for me to get there before we decide anything. I want to see it first." It wouldn't be good to make a decision now before she saw the damage. If it could be repaired that would be faster and less expensive than replacing the parts. Lily considered that it might be better to get new capacitor just to be extra safe, but she hated getting new parts if it was unnecessary. "I'm almost there."


It only took a few more minutes before Lily arrived and glanced up at the DDP. She gave it a firm once look over, before locating Jack inside of the ship. She moved over beside him,  not saying anything at first as she peered over the damage, taking everything in. Something had gone really wrong. It looked worse than it really was, but if it wasn't taken cared of at this moment, it would definitely become a bigger problem later. But Lily was sure she could fix it without needing to order in a new part now that she was able to analyzing the situation. She'd have to start working right this moment or else they weren't going to be able to leave on schedule. Lily didn't wanted to be chewed out if that happened. 


"Well shit. No I don't think we need a new one. Let me work on this. If I'm wrong feel free to toss me out into space," she told him. She had to go back to get her things, feeling better about doing repairs with her own tools than someone else's. It was a weird but no one stopped her. Lily was good at her job, so she was allowed some quirks. Once she was ready, she looked back at Jack. "What do you think it says that we're already working before we leave? I feel like this is a sign."

 

[Goaty Love]

JULY 20, 2969

14:32
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Jack listened to Lily's words and waited for her to grab her tools when she asked a question.  "What do you think it says that we're already working before we leave?" It made him think about it whilst he gave the upper engine block a good looking over. "Well, I would be worried about it if our ship was made by the same people who made the DDP." He replied as discovered another leak. "Christ, did they drop the engine in a ravine or something?" He said mostly to himself as he got to work and continued answering Lily's question. "Good luck for us it isn't, so I try not to think about this like it is supposed to be a sign."


He fixed the second leak and continued to check the systems. "Let's just hope we don't get more uptime than we already have scheduled for the routine maintenance checks." He said as he removed the coolant fluid from the engine parts. "Although on the other hand that gives us more chances to see cool things out of a window or something whilst the others are asleep." He said as he put his tools back into his toolbelt. "Everything looks okay up here now, you need help down there Shiny?" He asked as he leaned down to see what she was doing. He always knew her as a good engineer and was always interested when she had a different look on how to deal with a malfunction than him.


@magicalpride

 

[Rainzen]

JULY 19, 2969
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09:00
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This was the last week, now the last day, that she would have Danial, possibly forever. Who was she kidding, there was no 'possibly' about it. She had broken the news to the ten year old last night, which was, in hindsight, a relatively poor decision, in a long list of poor parenting decisions. He had known about the mission, of course, and had a pretty good idea of what it meant, even briefly met some of the other crew members. He just hadn't realized that today was the day. Today she flew out, tomorrow they launched. 


Needless to say, the getting ready for school process had been difficult. He had spent most of the morning in a fit, refused to come out of his room for much of it, and then when he did come out, he clung to his mother like a barnacle. Beck wasn't even at the airport yet and her energy reserves for the day were already spent. Matthew had offered to stay over and help out this morning, and she was starting to regret not taking him up on it. Pride could be a nasty thing, particularly between Beck and her ex-husband who, for the most part got along better now than they had since their teenage years.


"But when are you going to come back? Will you be old? Will I be old? Maybe you'll be young and I'll be older than you!" She smiled to herself. Her son watched too much science fiction. She couldn't tell him the probability that she would never come back, or that he would be long dead by the time she did. "Maybe any of those things, isn't that kind of exciting?" She answered with feigned enthusiasm. 


When all was said and done, getting the little boy out of the car in the schools parking lot wasn't all that difficult, letting go of that last crushing embrace he wrapped her in was though. "I'll message you whenever I can, ok? I love you." He mumbled something unintelligible against her shoulder, before he turned tail and ran into the school.


She was glad and sorry that she wouldn't be there when the implications of the mission really, solidly sunk into his mind, and hers. 


 



JULY 20, 2969



14:32


As soon as Beck had arrived in the hanger, she headed straight for the infirmary. She had reverted to mission mode as soon as she had entered the space station, even though she wasn't technically on duty yet. Everything had been double and triple checked by the androids by now, this simply wasn't the sort of mission where there was any margin for error after all. One neglected box and the entire thing could go sideways. That was likely an exaggeration, but it could pay off to be paranoid when you were in a tin can barreling through space. 


When she walked through the doors the infirmary was buzzing with androids, which should come as a relief. Androids statistically made significantly fewer mistakes in this sort of thing than humans did, but Beck was a hands on person. She wouldn't trust that everything was properly in order until she could examine it herself, one more check wouldn't hurt anything. She stopped a superior class android bustling by. "have you done diagnostics on these machines?" 


"Final diagnostic checks were completed 12 hours ago, Doctor Bradley. All machines in the infirmary were found running at 100% efficiency, and have not wavered." She nodded. Some things, it seemed, just didn't require a humans touch anymore. The thought irked her to no end, but she had to admit that she didn't know her way around some of these things nearly as well as the androids did. 


"Is everything loaded and accounted for?" 


"Everything has been brought aboard the ship, a final inventory account is currently being facilitated and will be finished in approximately five minutes." So it seemed there wasn't a whole lot that she could do here. 


"Right. Carry on then... thanks..." She was never really sure how to talk to the superior class androids. Did she talk like she was addressing the computer on voice command? Or were social niceties necessary? Were they lost on the androids or not? She'd give herself a headache thinking about it too much.


"Of course, Doctor Bradley" It replied, and went on it's way. 


Deciding that today was definitely not the day to give herself a headache over the politics of robots, she left the infirmary to go greet the rest of the crew.

 

[MagicPocket]

JULY 20, 2969


14:40


Lily leaned in further. If only she could just reach a bit more. "Not so much a ravine, more like they decided to play bumper cars..." Hmm. That gave her an idea. Her arm snaked into the engine, she didn't have a visual but she knew what she was looking for. She hooked a knee up on one of the components so she could get a better angle. Lily laughed at his comment and said jokingly, "Definitely wouldn't want to miss the show. 'On the right you can see some black with stars, and on the left you can see some stars surrounded by black.'"  Though the engineer still couldn't see what she was doing her fingers knew exactly what was going on as they deftly moved over the parts. She then said a bit more seriously, "I mean, what would there be to miss?"


From across the hangar the two engineers could hear a new commotion. "Look, just let me put my tools away, alright? I know where things ought to be stored, ya damn hunk of steel. Not like you know what the hell I'm gonna be doing with this stuff anyway." A young man snapped, yanking a box away from an android and heaved the bulky box on a cargo container. He gracelessly ripped the box open and began surveying the contents. The ship didn't have quite the amount of room he wanted for a proper lab--more appropriately, the kind of lab he was used to--but he knew that he had to make due with what he had and what he had was his own equipment. Besides, anything was better than being stuck on the damn Space Station saluting everyone and their brother instead of getting real work done. He was ready to get off this floating hunk of junk and get out of there.



"Sir, I have orders. They say to put the equipment away. Please let me continue with them." The android, Qan, replied, trying in vain to grab the box of which the male had thrown the lid shut and began lugging along again.


"I told you. I am superseding you on this, Qan. Now make yourself useful and go get the other box for me. We're leaving before too long and I don't want to have to scramble to find my shit before I really need them." He snapped and jabbed his thumb over his shoulder in the direction they'd just come from (from inside the Monarch's cargo hold). The android superior began to wander to find the box's counterpart. The man sighed and turned to stare back at the box in his arms. "This better just be the pre-flight check thing they're doing. I don't think I could handle it if I had droid just hovering there, trying to take my fuckin' shit all the time." He muttered to himself.


As it was completely impossibly not to hear the loud-mouthed crew member as he crossed the hanger, the two young engineers couldn't help but overhear. Lily even removed herself from being entangled inside the machine to get a look at the guy who was making such a racket. What she saw was Mona Lisa.


Mona Lisa was the popular nickname for Dr. Aliksandr Sothan, the crew's science director. He was about 5'8, 23 years old, and had the kind of eyebrows that often became the subject for much humor for his crewmates. "You're really gonna be in some deep shit. You know that right? They strapped the rest of those boxes down for a reason." Cavridge said, planting her hands on her hips. Behind Mona, Qan was wandering around, now holding a random container, neither looked anything remotely like the container Mona what lugging, and waiting for her to move so that it could talk to the Science Director. They were briefly interrupted as a voice spoke.

"McSwann, Cavridge, what's your status?" The Lieutenant-Commander's sounded clear as day from their collar pieces, as if he were standing behind the two. 


--


"Gotta say, I love my job, I really do. But I am ready for some downtime." The Captain had left her office and was set on a path for the Bridge where the Monarch's crew was currently assembling as the individuals completed their pre-flight tasks. She was to coordinate it all. Occasionally she would have an android check in with her, their voice coming over the comm in her collar then disappearing just as abruptly. Arn, who was the Helmsman as well as her personal Android Superior, had a glowing tablet poised in his hand as followed after Captain Gradient as she swept out of the room. That was when she nodded a dismissal to Arn and fell into step next to Doctor Bradley who had just exited the infirmary.


"I feel as though I haven't gotten a full night's sleep since we completed our last mission as a squad, before they even briefed us on any of this." She waved a hand, gesturing to the ship. "Nonstop. Always something to do, people to talk to, arrangements to be made. That must be especially strenuous with a family, I couldn't imagine. How did the morning treat you, Doctor?"


Gradient looked at the woman, they were close in age, both successful for their youth. She liked to think that the two of them had a friendship outside of rank. Ozra Gradient often thought into situations, whether present or fictional, a bit too much and somewhat awkward when it came to socializing. Between the two it made it more difficult to maintain relationships with some of her crew members on a personal level. As a leader she worked very diligently to gain respect and trust from her peers, that seemed easy in comparison. She wasn't quite sure but the Doctor seemed tense and as a friend she wanted to know if she was okay.


@Goaty Goat @Rainzen @Cuppa Magic @magicalpride

 

[Rainzen]

Beck didn't even bother to hide her groan in response to that. Of course Ozra had to go ahead and bring up family. She had a bit of a problem with tact. Meaning that if it had been a long day, she had none of it. Everyone in the vicinity knew what a grumpy Beck was thinking, superior officer or not. This particular facet of her personality had proved incurable even through copious military training, and had come very close to getting her passed up for the role due to perceived risk of insubordination. 


"Tell me about it captain. Some of those emergency medical simulations were insane. Things like, this man broke his collar bone and something utterly unrealistic happened to the ship so all you have to fix it are a monkey wrench and a flare. I swear, who comes up with these things, If something like that happens we're dead anyway." She answered, hoping the subject change and slightly dark humor would take off the edge that this conversation had started with. It was the same with the piloting sims too. Beck could handle the dropship if she had to, everyone of the crew had to have some amount of piloting skill in case of emergencies, but she was a doctor, and if it came to Beck at the helm, well, the situation was probably bad enough that there was no recovery anyway. While the paranoid side of her was glad that they covered every little thing that could go wrong, the captain was right. It had made for an incredibly intense training schedule, mostly full of things that seemed pretty pointless, although rather than having a more hectic schedule dealing with family matters on top of things, she had used the training as an excuse to distance herself before leaving for good. She couldn't decide whether she regretted that or not, and wasn't about to lend it more thought than strictly necessary.  


"You know, in med school I would joke about wishing I could sleep for months at a time. The irony doesn't go unappreciated."

 

[MagicPocket]

JULY 20, 2969


14:42


The fact that Bradley had chosen not to mention her family did not escape the Captain. In fact, it spoke enough of an answer for her, enough to fill in the lines at least. Her strength in the matter was to be admired. It wasn't hard to imagine how difficult it would be to leave family including her son on Earth. It was also a decision one did not carry lightly in the heart as was apparent so the Captain did not press herself on the matter. It was, however, encouraging to hear her cracking jokes. "I know that guy! Breton Wilkinson from Internal Affairs, to be honest I think he just got bored after a while coming up with all those scenarios. Hey, and if there were anyone that could remove an appendix with nothing but a paperclip and the parts from a coffee grinder it would be you! I think my favorite scenario thus far was the one where the plants in the Green Room came alive and started attacking. Completely unrealistic but no one could seriously take that one seriously. " Gradient laughed as they walked along the corridor.


"And if you're ever feeling nostalgic for your Med school days feel free to take an uptime shift! Oh, reminds me, we have yet to determine who will volunteer for the first slot. As much as I love our androids, we have to have a human stay up when everyone's down. If no one else, I will. Either way I'll finally be able to get some good sleep the good ol' natural way. But you have to promise me you'll tell me what happens after everyone gets out of dreamscape."

 

[Rainzen]

Doctor Bradley laughed at the idea. "Honestly it's a good thing we're heading out today or I would get that man fired for all he's put us through. 'This man caught his foot in a meat grinder' honestly? There are no meat grinders in space. I almost broke down laughing and ruined the sim in the plants one." This was why Beck liked Ozra. She just kept on talking, and always seemed to have something clever to add. "Poor guy was probably an English major with high hopes once."


Although she could hardly agree on the loving androids front, but nodded anyway. They had personalities, but no emotions, and the entire concept weirded her out more than she tended to admit. As medical officer, she had quite a few of them under her direct jurisdiction, for all the insane sims they put the crew through, maybe an android management class would have been more helpful. For now she could just be glad that she didn't have to do inventory and diagnostics herself.


"You can shedule me for the first shift if you need someone. Not excited to stare at the black through the veiwscreen I take it?" She asked. 

 

[Widget]

JULY 19,  2969
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06 : 07
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As a child, Finch had spent countless hours imagining the moment in which he would finally embark into space, accompanied by an adept crew of brave astronauts. But now, as he stood gazing out the window of his modern, but simplistic apartment, he found himself questioning the decision that he once would have given up anything for.


Leaning against the wall of glass, Finch pressed his forehead upon its cool surface, and scanned the view in front of him. Tall buildings glistened dimly as the sun began to rise over the horizon, still new and pristine. The light thrum of construction work could already be heard, and he could see the giant crane across from him begin to lift materials up to the neighboring building. The machines had been nothing like this at home; he recalled scaling structures with nothing but a harness, continuously carrying supplies to the top while attempting to evade the occasional hornet nest that sat tucked in the crevices of old buildings. His brother would always prod at them with a tool, seeing just how far he could go before quickly lowering himself to safety.


Finch huffed out a breath through his nose, and pushed himself away from the glass. Erik was always toeing the boundary, pushing, testing; Finch was an idiot for not noticing when Erik had finally gone too far. Really, it had only been a matter of time. Somewhat violently, Finch finished snapping up the buttons of his uniform, straightening his collar with uncharacteristic roughness. He had made the mistake of getting too caught up in his own fantasies to realize the increasing bitterness of his brother's temperament, doing and knowing nothing when Erik finally left to the streets. And now what was Finch doing now? Leaving. He'd be kidding himself by believing nothing would happen to Erik while he was gone; gang life was typically short-lived. He had a decision to make, and, zipping up the rest of his luggage, he already knew which that was. There was no backing down now.

JULY 20, 2969
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14 : 28
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The moment Finch set eyes on the USS Monarch, he was in love. He walked through the halls in disbelief, in awe of the geometric nature of the layout. How many hours of planning had gone into to this? What kind of expertise was required to ensure the completion of this project? Never had he felt more out of depth, like ogling school boy, rather than a man, who, in short time, would officially be named commander of an unprecedented experiment. Finch took a deep breath, straightening his posture. Enough of this; he was a grown man, older than the majority of his comrades. He had gone through the same rigorous training programs as the rest them - he was as qualified as any. And if he were to be occasionally struck dumb by the sheer genius of the ship, that was plenty acceptable.


As Finch made his rounds about the ship, checking the statuses of various crewmembers with only a mildly dreamy expression on his face, he caught sight of the towering - at least in his opinion - frame of Cameron Sixcto. Smiling warmly, Finch approached the man. "Lieutenant Commander," Finch greeted lightly, clasping his hands behind his back as he fell in step with Sixcto. "I was informed that the "Dodo" was acting up; why they insisted to include that piece of trash-" He bit his tongue as a harried looking engineer rushed by, "is beyond me, especially when the rest of the ship is..." Finch trailed off, gesturing at the rest of the ship to conclude his point. "There must be other options available," He waved a dismissive hand. "Regardless, I am sure we will make it work."

 

[MagicPocket]

JULY 20, 2969


14 : 30


"Sec, go check in with Dr. Sothan and his progress--" Lieutenant-Commander Sixcto was saying into his collar when he was joined by James. Sixcto smiled warmly and clapped the man on the shoulder. "Commander Finch! Keeping busy I hope?" With the sheer size of the ship the crew typically ended up not being in the same room at the same time when it came to their individual duties. Granted, there were rooms like the Mess, the rec room, or training rooms that crew were more likely than not to run into each other. He hadn't seen the Commander since their last briefing the morning before. "Yeah. The Captain honestly tried to get us a new apparatus to replace it, as unreliable as they are. I heard someone say that we'd probably end up not using it anyway and rather using the Canaries. I've got two problems with that. One--as much as I love fixing stuff there's really only so much you can do before that Dodo just loses the will to live. Two--if we are expected to do expeditions the FC-78s weren't built to be mules and the Monarch really shouldn't descend beyond a low orbit. Seriously, what were they thinking."


14 : 45


"Oh no, no, no. I wouldn't want to get that guy fired. At a certain point you run out of shit to do and you have to fill a quota. Granted Internal should have found something different to challenge us and make better use of our resources. They spared no expense on any of this. We needed to be sure we were mentally and physically prepared for a mission of this nature." The Captain began grinning. "Unending black void? What would make you think I lack anything but excitement at the prospect. No, no, I couldn't let you do that...buuuut if I can't dissuade you then I guess that would be okay. Forewarning, some of the other crew members would probably fight you for that coveted position. On a more serious note, if you are ever in that position and need to be relieved, you can always end my sequence and I can take over for you or join you. You know more about the effects of downtime so I'm not really sure how that would affect whatever is going on or the process or what have you. No matter what you or any of the crew can pull me out of a sequence." 

 

[Zylvia]

JULY 19, 2969
​

 
​

01 : 39
​

 
​

Florence stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling, tracing imaginary constellations across a star-speckled sky. Ever since she'd been handpicked to be a pioneer for the human race, sleep had been elusive. Like a thief in the night, she found her precious hours of rest stolen away by thoughts of her mission, by memories of her family and most of all, by the endless possibilities stretching out before her like an impending storm. It would reshape her world and upend everything she'd ever known. Every second that ticked by had her oscillating between exhilaration and melancholy. Her future had never been so uncertain. She had never felt more alive.


Resigned against the fact that this penultimate night would be yet another sleepless one, she rose from the bed, shivering at the sensation of cool air slithering against her skin. Even in the semi-gloom, her sister's presence adorned every inch of the room. From the flowery bed-sheets to the glow-in-the-dark starts scattered like jewels on the walls, her little Pattie had kept her youthful sunshine and playful innocence. In a way, she had been the lifeline they'd all clung to in the dark recesses of despair following her father's accident. Oh, Pattie, I'm going to miss you so much. Softly, she plucked a pin from the wall, letting the photo flutter soundlessly into her palm. She thumbed over the familiar faces of her family, letting the nostalgia bring a smile to her lips. Nobody was smiling; nobody was looking at the camera, but it was the most accurate representation of them she'd ever seen. It was them - the Lores in all their glorious imperfection.


The soft tinkle of laughter drew her attention. Sniggering, followed by hissed whispers for quiet. Frowning, Florence wandered into the kitchen, barefoot and wraith-like in her pearly nightdress. Six pairs of startled eyes fixed on her. Six mouths in various states of gaping and, in between them all, a half-formed cake that more closely resembled a blob than whatever it was originally intended to be. "Wha--?" she started, but a cacophony of voices cut her off, no longer even trying to keep the volume down.


"I told you she was a light sleeper!"


"I'm not the one who was sniggering like some sort of malfunctioning android!"


"Guys, shut up!"


"Now what?"


Amidst all the chaos, a small, chubby figure approached. Patricia Lore, 10 years old and the angel of the family. Her smile, gap-toothed and beaming, was effervescent. "We were going to surprise you with a cake, Lorey. But it didn't turn out so well." The young girl faltered, gesturing back towards their failed attempt. "It was supposed to be a spaceship, but ... It still tastes delicious though!"


Florence laughed and took the young girl's hand, leading her towards the grinning faces of her siblings and mother. Despite Jackson and Wesley having moved out of their mother's house long ago, the news of her departure had brought them running back to see their Lorey off. Patricia had graciously given up her room for her and every consideration had been taken for her return. She'd been away for years, locked behind walls in the endless pursuit of excellence and science, but she melded back in the folds of her family as if she'd never left. She hadn't known how good it would feel. She hadn't known how much she'd missed it.


That night, they joked and laughed. They reminisced about past mistakes and tender memories of their father. They wasted away the hours eating cake and telling stories. That night, they told each other how much they loved them.


That night, she was told to make history, to make them proud.


That morning, she sat on a plane with only a folded photo for company. She thumbed over the beards penned in marker over her brothers' faces and knew she'd given up a part of her heart forever.

 
​

JULY 20, 2969
​

 
​

14 : 47
​

 
​

She ducked into the laboratory, taking in the sleek futuristic feel of it. Even now, standing in the space that would soon be home, everything felt surreal. Florence ran a hand over the counter, letting the physical sensation tether her to reality. It was real. It was happening.


"Is everything I requested for here?" she asked, turning to the Superior android whirling in the corner of the room. Of course, there was nothing to be done if it wasn't. With only half an hour until launch, anything she lacked would have to be improvised. She felt a little foolish for asking, but the reassurance from the machine helped.


"Everything is in place according to your specifications, Ms. Lore. Although your request for 'sexy eye-candy' was denied. It is my understanding that your physical body would not be in want of anything during downtime, so--"


She sighed, letting a smile grace her fair features. "Don't worry about it, Sec. Think of it as a prank."


The android cocked his head, blinking in understanding. "Pranks are meant to be funny. Right." He pulled his lips into a semblance of a smile, imitating hers. "Ha ha."


"Well done, buddy," she chuckled, caressing a microscope lovingly. "How are affairs in the other labs? Is everything in order?"


"Yes, all labs are fully functional and equipped with the requested inventory. All operations are currently at 100% and estimated to remain so. Replacement parts and spares have been stored as emergency backup."


Florence grinned, feeling a knot in her stomach tighten. Everything was in place. In a few short minutes, she would be hurtling into deep space with minds like hers, delving into places she'd only ever had the courage to hold in her dreams. The prospect was daunting. She carried a heavy weight on her shoulders, but at least Sothan shared it with her. The thought of her colleague left her wincing. They got along, for the most part. There was no doubt that he was a lot to handle, but when it came to research, she could think of no one better. She supposed only time would tell how tolerable they would be of one another in a confined space hurtling through an abyss.


"I wonder which of us is going try to blow the other up first," she mused quietly, ducking out of the lab in search of the moody man to address any concerns he might have.

 

[Goaty Love]

JULY 20, 2969



14:42


Jack McSwann


"Could be we miss some stunning visas along the way, I mean, we'll be seeing things other on Earth haven't seen before. Heck, I promised my family I'd send back some photos and videos if I could." He said in response to Lily when Mona Lisa made his ruckus. What was going on in that man's head? Jack climbed from the engine block and was actually surprised to see Lily get up as well and even confront the scientist when he heard the Lieutenant-Commander on the comm. He wiped his hand off on his engine rag before answering the Lieutenant-Commander.


"Sir, McSwann here, the DDP is about done and won't be a reason for delay or extra cargo. Another thing sir, we happen to have Doctor Sothan here who is violating pre-flight safety precautions by removing secured cargo crates from their positions in the cargo hold, over." Jack said over the comms before turning his attention to Dr Sothan.


"Doctor Sothan, you must be well aware that any material intended for personal or laboratory use had to be requested to be unpacked before 12:00 if you wanted it to be in place prior to launch or you had wait until after launch and the all-clear has been given to request your stuff from the cargo bay." Jack said to Dr Sothan in a standard manner as anybody would say during a standard briefing. "I would suggest you return those boxes to their right position and secure them again prior to launch since you are currently creating a potential safety hazard which could impede the mission." He didn't want to come off like a stern person but he was more concerned with safety issues than whether dr Sothan likes him or not.


"Lily, we done with the DDP for now?" He asked Lily since he didn't want to be down in the hangar when they launched. He wanted to be near a window and see Earth for probably the last time in his life. The prospect was frightening to say the least, he led a good life back on Earth with his family and friends who supported him even when he had his cybernetic implants. Now he was leaving all that behind to be part of something great, an expedition to find a world suitable for long term colonization to help mankind Ascend into the stars from their cradle. He didn't have much time to socialize with the team as he had to prepare as both a pilot and an engineer for the mission ahead but he had some good vibes about some of them and of course there was Lily. Lily, or Shiny as he calls her when it is just the two of them, was the only one he knew from before the mission and its training camps. It was good to have a buddy on board so he had somebody to fall back to and of course it was great to work with her again since college, they had a knack for working together without getting in each others way. Maybe he should tell her once they had a private moment again why he calls her Shiny, just to make sure the name doesn't sting.


@MagicPocket

 

[Rainzen]

Beck shook her head, grinning. She might just take the captain up on the offer. "It is though. And anyway, " Rebecca Bradley loved space, and always had, if anyone could enjoy staring out a window at blackness, it was her. "Besides, if I have first shift then I can monitor everyone pretty closely and catch any potential anomalies before they become a problem since I know what to look for." Not that they were expecting anything, but if something were to go wrong with downtime, it would likely occur early in the mission. They had all experienced the downtime before for testing, but they could only go for so long in training. Space was so monumental. If working with geologic timescales made you feel your own mortality, space was another level entirely, and it was a concept that thrilled her right down to her bones. "How long do we have until launch? Are you ready?" That was probably a stupid question, but it seemed like the sort of thing a friend would ask, and she liked to tentatively think of the captain as a friend, when rank wasn't involved at least. She had really respected Ozra since she had very first met her, and that was an achievement. 

 

[MagicPocket]

JULY 20, 2969


14:42


Cameron Sixcto pinched the bridge of his nose and rolled his eyes after listening to the report and shared a glance with Finch. "It's Aliksandr again. We should make a stop in the bay before joining the others in the war room. If the man wasn't such a brilliant scientist he'd have been discharged for insubordination about a hundred times over already...and he knows it." He said to the Commander. "Copy, McSwann. Sec is on the way down to provide assistance in the meantime." 


14:45


Lily folded her arms and stood by her friend having said her part, "Can you believe this guy?" She whispered to him. It took a special person to warm up to a guy like Dr. Sothan. Meanwhile the Doctor's eyes narrowed and he stood his ground and squared off with the intimidating pilot.


"I beg your pardon? I answer to Dr. Lore, not you Mr. McSwann. You think I didn't put in a request? I've had prior engagements that I've had to attend to that I don't care to enlighten you with. My lackluster assistants failure to accomplish this simple task can be partially excused by our busy agenda." From his pocket he pulled up a square of glass from his pocket, the display double the size and light up to life. Sothan's eyes rapidly scanned through lines of text on the screen. "Eh. I'll fix this. Just..." His mind was working rapidly. He needed that equipment and wouldn't have access to it until after they cleared the Heliosphere. And as much as he liked getting out of work, he'd be pretty bored for at least two or three days until he could get it all sorted out in order to work on his daily assignments. "Give me a sec."


"Yes?" Said Sec as he exited from the cargo hold into the hanger.


"Not what I meant. Just hold on."


--


Ozra tipped her head to one side. "Granted, that does take importance. Buuut, I might just say up with you. You know, just to make sure everything is squared away. Captain-ly duties and all that." She glanced at her watch for the time. "We don't have too much longer. All the crew members should be ready to meet in the war room by ten 'til. We will decide departure once we debrief all departments and unanimously determine we are ready for launch."


@Goaty Goat @Rainzen @Cuppa Magic @Zylvia

 

[Goaty Love]

JULY 20, 2969



14:45


Jack McSwann


"It's guys like him that get people killed eventually..." Jack whispered in return to Lily with an annoyed undertone before speaking with the same tone to Dr. Sothan. "Dr. Sothan, this isn't about who is your CO, this is about safety protocols that we stick to for the SAFETY of the mission which you are VIOLATING and once you violate the safety protocols you potentially ENDANGER the lives of your fellow crew members." Jack had to stay calm even though he wanted to let the doctor meet the sole of his boot for his behaviour. "Now I'll just leave it to Sec to deal with you otherwise Lily and I won't be in time for the pre-launch debriefing thanks to you." He said before he turned to Lily. "Speaking of which, we should probably go now if we want to be in time."

 

[Rainzen]

Beck raised an eyebrow. She hardly knew all that "captianly duties" entailed, but she doubted it involved staying up when someone was on shift. She was hardly going to press the issue though, the captain might very well have official things to do, and if not, well, that was hardly any of her business anyway. A high pitched "ping!" sounded off as she received the notification that the infirmary android, Cal, at least she thought that's what he was called, sent her the notification that all inventory had been accounted for in their final count and all machines were functioning at 100% efficiency. Maybe the androids were good for something after all. "Good. I'm anxious to get up there." If she were a younger, more expressive person, she would likely be bouncing on the balls of her feet right now, practically vibrating. Fortunately she did have an ounce of professionalism. "And at any rate, it will be nice to have someone besides Cal to talk to" she added with a smile.

 

[MagicPocket]

JULY 20, 2969


14:50


Lily nodded. She'd run into guys like Sothan all her life, granted the personality type was more popular with the meatheads in infantry than the more intellectual side of the Solar Navy. Doctor or no, it didn't change her opinion of someone like Sothan. "I'm just glad he's not in command, could you imagine the kind of shit that would hit the fan with that guy? I'd go awol before following that guy." She walked away with McSwann shaking her head. She really wasn't looking for a fight before they even took flight and she wouldn't get herself caught up in one if she could help it no matter how much she wanted to. "Ugh, he reminds me of that guy in the Academy. Do you remember? He was across the hall from us in the dorms our first year. Dumb as a box of rocks but as charming as a snake. I still don't know how he got those freshmen to jump out the second story window. Thank god he moved into that co-op not long after. Funny thing with guys like that, they never seem to get in trouble." As they walked to the Council Chambers they passed an android carrying a large container in the direction the two engineers had just come. Lily turned, her eyebrowed furrowed in curiosity. 


"Zan?"


The android halted and turned to look at the two. "Yes, ma'am?"


"Just where exactly are you taking that box?" She asked.


"By request of Dr. Sothan I was to retrieve this box from R & D and am to take it to the cargo bay where I am to replace it with another container of the 29.48 kilos exactly. Is there a issue in the cargo bay?"


"Ah, no." She paused, mulling it over in her head. "Carry on I suppose." The android nodded and continued down the corridor. It seemed that Dr. Sothan was generating the orders on his tablet earlier. At least he had some kind of plan in place. She shrugged. Whatever. She'd let command take care of him. 


JULY 20, 2969


14:55


Ozra rounded the corner and strode to the front of the room where James Finch and Cameron Sixcto was waiting. Sixcto was fidgeting with the displays. He looked up and they nodded to each other in acknowledgement. Behind her the crew filed into Council Chamber taking their seats, both breathing crew members and android superiors from their respective departments. "Pull up the main display," she requested of the Lieutenant-Commander. Behind her a model of Monarch flicked to life. At the back of the room Dr. Sothan slunk in and took his seat.


"All aspects appear to be accounted for, Captain." Sixcto replied, scrolling through the three-dimensional blue print of the ship and corresponding areas highlighted in green. 


"I'm glad to see that we are on schedule. In one day's time we will be at the Heliosphere International Space Station. I've been told there will be some kind briefing before final departure. Once clear of the Solar System warp will be activated and the real journey will begin. We will be able to enter cryosleep. As all of you know Alpha Centauri is 4.37 light-years away. With our current level of technology we will able to make that distance in five years and two months. We are working on an uptime schedule based on need, up-time cycles will be six months in length and no more. Under no circumstances are any human members of the crew to exceed the length of your up-time cycle. That being said you may also not join the cryosleep process until you believe your reliever is fully capable of taking over. Any of you have permission to wake me at any time." It was common knowledge that cryosleep was a relatively new technology, the longest it had tested was two years which, incidentally, was when it was first developed. Research was still underway but the fact that they very well were facing the unknown sat at the back of everyone's mind. Gradient thought back to what Beck had said, they didn't know the repercussions of interrupting a programed cryosleep cycle. These thoughts she did not voice. "And for the Heads of departments, anything to report on? Engineering? Science? Medical? Astrophysics-navigation?"


@Goaty Goat @Zylvia @Rainzen

 

[Rainzen]

JULY 20, 2969



14:55


Beck felt a thrill go through her at the mention of the trip ahead of them. It was the trip of a lifetime. It was a long road ahead, and the excitement would likely dull very quickly, but the doctor couldn't help feeling almost giddy, despite the long, terrifying, life-threatening nature of their mission. Cryosleep was a delicate and new technology, and she was very glad that she had the opportunity to opt into the first shift. Her experience in research of the effects that the machines could have was the main thing that had qualified her for this mission over younger applicants. Unfortunately, that also meant that she knew everything that had ever gone wrong with the process. It was an advantage, but one that most definitely did not make stepping into that pod easy. Beck had accepted the risk, it was well worth it, but that didn't mean she had to like the idea. 


"Medical is good to go. All inventory is accounted for and all machines are working at 100% capacity." Beck answered dutifully, only having come to that conclusion herself after interrogating one of her medical androids about his margin of error, and then double checking the readouts herself. The android seemed to take quite a bit of offense, but maybe that was just her imagination. Statistically, androids had a significantly lower probability of messing something up than she did, but that didn't mean that things didn't need a human touch sometimes. With robots as her only staff, this might be a long trip after all. Hopefully, Ozra would keep to her word from earlier and spend a bit of uptime with her.