returnjourneylogs | SET SAIL: FIRST IMPRESSIONS

SET SAIL: FIRST IMPRESSIONS

January 1, 2022 – January 7, 2022
Welcome to the new year and the Return Journey's opening event! We're starting with something light to get everyone acclimated and so no one feels they've missed too much if they app after the holiday season. We'd like to make it easy for any new players to jump in right away.

If you have any questions about the event, please ask here.

1. What? My name is who? My name is—

Salutations! Now that everyone's respective warden and inmate orientations are out of the way, you've been given a helpful, mandatory name tag. It instantly appears on your shirt and can't be taken off, though where it appears on your shirt is a bit more unpredictable; it's an imperfect science, so it's just as likely to pop up on the back of your shirt as the front. If you try to remove your clothes, the tag appears on your skin; they're waterproof, so a quick shower won't get rid of it, either. What can we say — it's mandatory.

While the tags all follow the standard "HELLO my name is" format and have your name or most common alias, they also include some other information. For wardens, it features a space that declares "I LIKE" and one or two of your most choices hobbies. For inmates, it features these hobbies and "I have killed [x] people" (this may be a specific number or something akin to "a lot of" or "no"). Fun icebreaker, right?

2. Twenty Questions

Speaking of icebreakers, a brief announcement summons everyone to the observatory. Again, yes, it's mandatory; wardens must retrieve absent inmates before any more information is revealed. Better hop to it!

Upon arrival, passengers will discover that the Peregrine's resident bot force has reconfigured the observatory with small, portable cubicles, each with a transparent wall that retains a lovely view of the observatory's massive window. Each inmate is assigned their own cubicle and, upon entering, cannot leave without a warden's say so; the door only unlocks with a warden's CommLink.

Wardens are tasked with interviewing at least one inmate, to get a feel for their prospective charges. They can have as much time as they need to formulate what questions they want to ask, but that might leave some inmates waiting. Maybe that's on purpose, though. In any case, the exercise is over once an inmate is asked five questions and a warden receives five answers.

Archimedes will collect name tags after the interviews for incineration. The robotic owl is, notably, the only one who can remove them.

3. Polite Picnic

The greenhouse doesn't always have enough fresh produce to go around (and often what is collected is frozen and preserved), but given the circumstances — a new mission and new passengers — everyone can reap the rewards this month...if they share. A bot stationed in the mess hall mechanically tells anyone who crosses into range (whether they mean to visit the produce table or not) that they aren't to take more than three fruits and/or vegetables. If you choose not to abide by the rules...well, that depends if you're caught and by who.

The produce available are as follows:

Adalfane: Tastes like cocaine, but very nutritious, especially when eaten raw.
Tuadath: Smells awful, but very hearty when cooked, tasting a little like steak.
Tsanyi: Pure, sugary sweetness. Can be made into a refreshing drink, eaten raw, or sprinkled over a desert.

There are notably fewer tsanyi than adalfane or tuadath. But if everyone's nice and cooperates, each person can get exactly one.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"Of course," Claire agrees. The catch being the work and effort, she hopes. She nods to his name tag.

"Inmate, I take it." It's not a question. "Alex. I'm Claire."

"I'd say it's nice to meet you, but that might be a lie. We'll see." Alex said with only a hint of his usual sarcastic bite.

"Skepticism is healthy," she says with a shrug, doing her best not to take offense. It's been a while since someone's not met her with open arms. "I do hope we get along. It'd make things easier for everyone."

"So far I've got no reason not to." Alex replied, piercing blue eyes studying her from under his hood. "I don't make friends easily though. So please don't expect that."

"Wouldn't dare." He's not eager, clearly, but not hostile. She considers that good. "I don't really know what to expect of anyone here."

Alex has no reason to be hostile yet. "Careful, that attitude might get you hurt or worse." Had she really come into this blind? Checking for her nametag, trying to determine her status. If she was a warden and really didn't know what she was getting into...Oh boy.

"I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. But don't take that as me disregarding the fact that inmates are inmates for a reason, here."

She's been around the block a few times. Lack of expectations doesn't mean lack of caution.

That brought a soft amused sound from him, and a hint of smile. "Glad to hear it. You seem nice." Not that nice was a good thing per se.

"I remain nice as long as it's warranted."

Which brings her attention back to the produce. She nods to them.

"Have you tried any?"

"Not yet." Alex confessed, not sorry or concerned at all. "I'm not particularly hungry after smelling the one, and I'm still interested to see what I can use as a bargaining chip. Besides the really sweet-smelling one."

"Maybe one of us will be brave enough to try the one that smells... questionable," she offers.

It won't be her.

"I mean, I've smelled worse. Some of the more questionable scents would come over from Jersey every now and then." Alex retorted.

"Jersey? Like... New Jersey?"

She'd expected more strange things.

"Yeah." Oh good, she was familiar with it. "Should I be asking when and where are you from?"

That's where it gets a little complicated. Claire pauses, wetting her lips as she decides on how she'll be answering that simple question.

"I lived in Boston, in the 1960s." Easy enough.

Huh.

"New York City. 2009." It seemed simple enough really.

Her eyebrows lift up considerably. She can't help but do the math--Bree would be 61. It's not something Claire can easily fathom.

"Well after my time. I can't imagine how far the world would have come by then."

"Anything in particular you wanted to know about it?" Seemed a simple enough way to have a neutral and pleasant conversation. That and it'd reveal things she cared about, which Alex could potentially use later.

They probably don't have time for all she'd like to know, so Claire puts the ball back in his court.

"What's something you think is worth knowing about your time?"

Lots of things he could think of that were worth knowing, so narrowing down to one would be hard. Then again, he could also think of one thing that would encapsulate a lot of information in one example.

"Phones can be cordless and wireless now, small enough to carry in our pockets, almost everyone has their own individually, and they're often as powerful as a basic computer from the 60s."

"Like the CommLinks they gave us. I don't know if that makes this more or less of a shock, the technology here," Claire muses aloud. It's all beyond what she recognizes, of course--but maybe not for everyone else.

"Very similar, yes." Alex confirmed. "The commlinks both are and are not advanced compared to what I've seen, tech wise, from my world."

"Good to know that some things can still seem advanced even for someone from the future," Claire tries to joke.

"Trust me, a lot of this is more 'advanced' than I'm used to. In a way, I'm counting on that." Like them putting him back, if he earns this redemption thing.

That's curious.

"How so?" Claire asks.

(no subject)

lessandmorethanhuman - 2022-01-14 06:34 (UTC) - Expand