Jan. 21st, 2022 at 10:39 AM
SQUALL: TURBULENCE

Have you ever seen someone caught in a lie? Some people capitulate immediately, dishing out apologies with the truth. Some people get embarrassed, flush red, stumble over their words to correct themselves. Some people get defensive. Some people try to bargain.
Some people get angry.
Now might be one of those times.
For the week of Jan 21st to Jan 28th, passengers on the ship may feel anger when caught lying or when lied to. A lie may not be obvious — maybe it's subtle, maybe they don't know the other well enough to know it's a lie, maybe it's a lie of omission. But regardless of what it is, they'll still feel some form of anger, however that might manifest. Snippiness? Lectures? A fistfight? Outright violence?
Time to find out.
If you have any questions about the event, please ask here.
1. Rumblings
The day after the Navarch's announcement, the Peregrine passes through the asteroid field, as promised.
The observatory has a spectacular view; rock clusters suspended in space as far as the eye can see, from nuggets the size of a golf-ball to hulking pieces as large as a mini-van. The Peregrine's shields hug tight to the ship's body, a mere shimmer like the ripple of heat above hot pavement, until an asteroid bumps into it, lighting up the surface bright white for an instant. The asteroids burn up in little flashes, one less of thousands. The sound is almost like music, an irregular finger banging on a steel drum. The ship trembles occasionally, a great mechanical shiver that might send passengers veering a half-step to the side.
The observatory's narrator lists off facts about the passing phenomena. Asteroid orbits continue to be appreciably perturbed whenever their period of revolution about this system's sun forms an orbital resonance with Torieric, the largest planet in this system... Over 200 asteroids are known to be larger than 100 km, but we navigate around them to avoid collisions...
2. Ship Breach
It's not too hard to find out where the breach in side of the ship occurred — there's a flurry of maintenance bot activity in the storage complex, the usual freight activities diverted so that materials can be moved around and things repaired. (It takes a hell of a long time to walk to that side of the facility, though!)
At the site itself, several wall panels have been removed to make the needed repairs to the circuitry and inner mechanisms. It's a sprawling mess of multicolored cables and geometric metal components. Some sort of expanding foam has been sprayed into what used to be an asteroid's entranceway. Small bots crawl like spiders over it all, touching and prodding here and there with their legs, sparks on their toes.
The remains of the asteroid are scattered on the ground, pulverized into black dust. Linger too long and you might find a bot nudging a dust pan or tool in your direction.
3. Power Flickers
Around the Peregrine, there may be momentary disruptions as power is diverted to the shield. Lights may flash for an instant, doors may resist closing or opening. A cow in a storage container may suddenly blink, twitch an ear. Cleaning bots may go off their usual courses. The SIRE may put out low-resolution simulations. The fans in the bunk beds may briefly be out of service. (No one fart.)
You get the idea — it's not quite just another day in space. A delay in getting your breakfast is less endearing than the beautiful sights, of course, but some well-timed mischief can find plenty to gain in a power flicker.