elytra
a beetle may or may not be inferior to a man
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It all started when the planets were abandoned.
No, that isn’t right. It actually all started when the universe was created, when matter and dark matter balanced out, when the elements were made and meshed together to build worlds. It started when the first organisms fled the waters and took to the land and to the sky, and, eventually, to the space surrounding them. It started when life went from simply being to thriving, to taking a hold of their destiny and driving it forward to the stars, meeting other species who had run a similar gauntlet. It started when the worlds that were created and evolved began to interact with each other, sometimes helping, sometimes harming, sometimes finding themselves somewhere in between. It started when people rooted themselves in the universe, made themselves heard, letting it be known that they weren’t just beings that would be wiped off the slate through the waves of history.
It ended when the planets were abandoned.
All that's left of the universe’s population is now on ships, going from place to place, never landing on a planet for more than a day if they can help it. The practice is rooted within the hope for safety, to avoid the varying dangers of different planets, as well as the mutated creatures that remain as their only inhabitants. For some, however, the practice is also founded on superstition; what happened to create such an empty expanse is a mystery, and has been for years. Some say it's a curse. Others, a god. More lean towards a more scientific explanation, like disease. Others choose to leave the mystery a mystery, rather than wonder about it, thinking its best to just leave it alone.
Some things, however, never work out the way one wants them to.
The Greenfly isn't special, for a scavenger ship. It has only some people that consistently walk its halls day to day, and others that just board for an easy ride from market to market. The halls are rusted, as is the machinery, but it works well enough. The weapons are nearly destroyed, and the steady thrum of the hyper drive, ready to go at a moments notice, is the only reassuring thing about the place. For all it's faults, it is a fast ship, though the cost of such speed in a world where repairs can quite literally cost an arm, a leg, and maybe a life are yet to be discovered. Currently, this ship is headed to the Thetis Sector Lighthouse. It's been given the important job of restocking the old place, a payment for the keeper for making sure the beacon continues to work, before continuing on it's way to scavenging on more planets, and trying it's best to keep surviving.
Possibly the most important station in the Thetis sector, the lighthouse stands strong, though covered in dust. The large middle orb, comprised completely of glass with a circular platform in the middle, surrounding the beacon, looks out into the inky blackness of the area surrounding it, often seeing no ship but the one sent every few months to restock it's supplies. The technology, like most, is outdated, but still functioning, instructions etched into the metal sides, the only message left by whoever built it. It's been so long that, like many lighthouses, it's history is forgotten, and it's builder is unknown. Currently, this lighthouse awaits it's next delivery supplies, as the pantry has been running low.
Ilston Market, like most merchant ships, bustles with activity on the daily. Unlike the rest of the universe, these ships are large, and carry hundreds of people, with generation ships the only things able to be compared to them. This market in particular is well maintained, but rusted; the elevators creak when used, and there's always the rattling of metal somewhere. Walking these halls holds the danger of being pick-pocketed, or convinced into a deal that is better off refused. This market, for the moment, is at the height of activity. There is more noise than anyone in this world should be used to, which is either welcomed by those around, or hated.
The Saint Antonia is fast, the perfect predator for taking down scavenger ships. The weapons are in pristine condition, and the ship is currently prospering in regards to supplies. However, more is better, as any good pirate knows, and with this sort of fortune, it's only natural to take your chances and take things to the next level. Go big or go home, as goes the old saying. So, this particular ship is gearing up for a particularly risky venture: Attacking and pillaging a marketplace, specthe Ilston Market.
Location: The Greenfly
Interacting With: N/A
Markus Gray didn't really prefer being a scavenger. He actually would've preferred the cushioned life of a passenger on a generation ship, but those were difficult to get onto if you weren't born into the role. The next best option was light-house keeper, but he knew nothing about the mechanics of a beacon. Then came merchant, which was crossed out due to his horrid sales skills, and pirate was off the list due to his morals.
That left scavenger, which left him in the care of the Greenfly.
It wasn't a bad ship. It could've been worse. He could've been left on a planet, without any resources. Instead, he had a home, no matter how....dysfunctional and ever-changing it was. Currently, he sat in the small, cramped control deck, watching out the window as the ship sped along towards the lighthouse they were scheduled to resupply. They could just take it all and run, but then the Greenfly's reputation would be tainted, and it was likely the beacon would go down, at least for a while, until someone got notice that it still needed supplies. So, it made sense to just do what was asked of them. It was just the wait that was difficult.
Character: Polaroid
Location: Ilston Market
Interacting With: N/A
Ilston Market was nothing short of chaotic, and Polaroid had no problem with that. As captain of the ship, they probably should've been, but it was that sort of energy that they loved about the place. You couldn't find it anywhere else, not with the state of the universe as it was. It was an experience, that's how they viewed it, and trying to tame that would be a damn shame. So, they just didn't try.
In fact, they did the opposite. They reveled in it. They stood out in the hall, leaning against the metal wall, hood up and mask on, staff sticking out of their bag. They had no where to be at the moment; the ship was staying in the sector for a while longer, letting the business filter in and out, until another merchant ship came along. So, they would join and enjoy the hustle and bustle of the marketplace.
Character: Annie Penchant
Location: The Saint Antonia
Interacting With: N/A
Being a pirate was rather exciting. Annie enjoyed it for the adventure it brought, because it was enjoyable to board ships, meet new people, possibly injure those new people, and then get all their things. She rather loved free things. Now, the people she took from weren't necessarily happy in the end, and it was understandable, but she liked to think they would get over it in the end. After all, everyone needed those things, and pirates....just had a different way of doing things. It was the circle of life, in a way. A progression.
Other people didn't see it that way.
She sat in the kitchen area of the ship, tail flicking back and forth as she tinkered with some new parts they had stolen from a recent ship. Maybe she should've been bothered, but she couldn't find it in herself to be. Things were good on the ship, and she'd never see those people again.