Event | Turtle Dive | January 16 - 19 | Everything's better down where it's wetter~

[hazelwood]

Characters: Any and all PCs, plus an offering of Lieuen
Date: January 16th - 19th
Location: All Sectors
Situation: Tu Vishan begins to dive to the ocean floor and the city of Keeliai seems unbothered by the process. Bonfire funtimes are made available to all!
Warnings/Rating: Underwater situations; to be updated as noted

>See the comments of this post for various situations and areas available for tagging.
>Each header will be set for a date and/or area.
>A unique thread under the bonfires is available for discussions with Lieuen, should there be interested parties.
>Feel free to start your own header for specific situations.
>Refer to the two OOC posts for further details. 01 | 02

Comments

[suoxi]

[ Inara is used to enclosed, semi-dark spaces. Serenity had lost power before - it was an experience she had never cared to repeat – and space itself was cold. Dark. Terrifying.

When the turtle dove, Inara had been…understandably concerned, along with everyone else. The only reason she did not panic was because the moment she felt the shift, she’d secured her few things and gone outside and asked around. Assured that they weren’t all going to die, Inara did the best she could to prep for what would probably be one of the creepiest experiences of her life.

Now, everything was cold and dark – just like space – and she has to admit that this might just be a little bit worse.

Hands wrapped around a hot cider, she shivered and took what heat she could from the bonfires, and moved through the crowds looking for familiar faces, checking on those she ‘knew’.

When she found Logan, she immediately pressed the cider into his hands and guided him to sit by the fire – far enough so as not to get singed by the crackling and snapping wood that spat embers into the air, but close enough to still feel the heat and be guided by its light. ]

Here. Drink this. [ it’s warm, sweet and spicy – good for the soul. ]

[thetyrant]

[Logan twitched when someone touched him, and suddenly dearly regretted going unarmed. He hadn't felt a need to carry his gun or sword so far, and suddenly felt passionately that he was a fool for this, because he was desperate for them and felt naked without.]

[But Inara's hand was gentle and warm and when he saw her face, he relaxed, noting in an absent way that the console didn't do her beauty justice. He's feeling a little silly, now. If he had been carrying a weapon he would have grabbed it, even if he'd probably have noticed what he was doing before it was drawn. Probably for the best that didn't happen.]

Thank you. [I-something...] Inara.

[suoxi]

[ she keeps her touch light and careful – she’d noticed when he first arrived that he’d seemed…fidgety, Antsy. A bit like he is now. Understanding that, Inara remains on the edge of his personal space, not pushing too close, but lingering as a presence because sometimes, that is all a person needs. ]

You’re welcome. I find that sometimes a warm drink is just what I need to soothe any worries that I might be carrying.

[thetyrant]

[He sips carefully. It's cooled just enough not to burn him, but still warm enough to work its magic from the inside. He shivers a little as the warmth spreads through him like a wave, chasing a chill on its wake.]

We have cider in Albion, but I have never drunk it warm. [He takes another sip. Obviously, it's delicious. He's still a little fidgety and maybe overly alert, glancing around a lot. But he seems calm enough for now.]

[suoxi]

[ she sits with him, watching at least some of his tension roll away with each sip he takes. ]

What is Albion like? You mentioned it previously, but we became distracted with talk of flippers and oversized turtles.

[thetyrant]

So I recall. [He chuckles a little, about the closest he ever gets to laughing these days, and straightens up a little. It makes him colder, but between the fire and the cider he's still okay, and it makes him feel better to be drawn up to his full height.]

Albion is the name of the country where I am king. It was hardly a country at all, more a continent with a common language, until my mother. She united all the disparate villages and cities and regions under her rule.

[suoxi]

[ she is completely familiar with the feeling. even now as she sits next to him, she is straight-backed, shoulders relaxed but never hunched. Always, always, always the picture of elegance.

...even when she's pissed. but that's neither here nor there. ]

That sounds like quite the accomplishment. [ and damn similar to the alliance. ] Is it a large place, or small?

[thetyrant]

It seemed large when I was a boy, but smaller than most. [He takes a sip, organizing his thoughts for a moment. They do seem to become disorganized so easily these days.] Most people of Albion never travel far from where they're born, with the exceptions of traders and adventurers. Other lands are known, at least, and I've visited some. Most of them were much larger than Albion.

[suoxi]

I suppose any land mass would be large to a young man.

[ she smiles; he's easing up eeeeever so slightly. Not completely, though it seemed that would never be the case, but at least a little bit. ]

I've been to many places outside my home. It's new, fresh - but never quite like coming home.

[thetyrant]

[He can do that, you know. Sometimes. Sometimes those awful thoughts leave him alone for a few minutes. You never really escape the Crawler, though, no matter how far you get.]

I've had little chance to leave Albion, in more recent years. [He's grown more solemn now, with that mention, and his left hand keeps tightening rhythmically on the cup like he wants to clench.] The crown comes with duties. Little time to be gallivanting about the known world. [And there commences an inner battle against black thoughts that speak with the Crawler's voice, but he focuses on the fire and tries to stay here, in the present.]

[suoxi]

[ Inara is anything but psychic, but even she can tell when something is troubling a person. She just doesn't know exactly what it is. ]

Responsibilities often take precedence over pleasures. [ she smiles. ] It's preferred, but rare when both are combined.

[thetyrant]

Mm. [He doesn't appear to have a lot of patience for or interest in such empty words, at least not at the moment. He's as good at politics as anyone else, most of the time, spinning pretty words easily, but that doesn't mean he likes it. All Inara has done is elegantly state the painfully obvious.] Have you traveled much, yourself?

[suoxi]

I have, actually. I have seen quite a few core planets and many of the outer ones as well. [ she smiles lightly. ]

I rented a shuttle on a transport vessel. It allowed me a wide variety of places to visit.

[thetyrant]

[Oh dear. You're getting quite ahead of him again.] Planets?

[suoxi]

[ oops. ]

Yes. Space travel is..quite popular, where I am from. And, sometimes very necessary.

[thetyrant]

[He can't seem to decide whether this is really cool or making him ill.] I...see.

I can safely say that except for the occasional hovering device, my people's feet remain on the ground.

[suoxi]

It's been like this for quite some time. When Earth That Was dried up and became too populated, humans bonded together and left. That was a very long time ago, far before my time.

[ she lets her hands rest in her lap, and glanced upwards. There is no sky to see, just pitch black. ]

I never thought I would say it, but I miss space. [ she misses the crew, and Serenity herself. ]

[thetyrant]

[Logan starts to glance up, then remembers it's going to be pitch black if he does, so he only nods and looks at the fire.] I suppose current events would be especially claustrophobic for you.

[suoxi]

Yes. As closed in as I was on Serenity, this is...

[ she fixes her eyes back onto the fire, and carefully clasps her hands together, knuckles subtly white. ]

A bit different. Far more closed in than I ever felt previously.

[thetyrant]

[Logan nods.] I would imagine so.

[suoxi]

[ she's quiet for the span of several moments. ]

How long do you think this will last?

[thetyrant]

Hopefully not long. [With a dry, rueful tone:] I can safely say I have never been riding on the back of a giant turtle when it decided to dive under the sea.

[Yeah, this whole thing is not going easy on him, and his hand tightens on his cider cup again.]

[suoxi]

[ Inara chuckles lightly. ]

That is something I can agree with. It's...a new experience, certainly. One that I'd prefer not to repeat. [ unfortunately if it happens again and she's stuck here, well then. ]

Would you like more? [ she gestures to the cup he's about to break, brow raised. ]

[thetyrant]

[He looks down at the cup and only then seems to notice his hand. He wants to force it to relax, but that doesn't seem to be happening. There's too much about this situation that traps him in anxiety.]

No, thank you. [He at least managed to put it down, then quietly withdraws his hand to inside the blanket he has, where it can clench in peace.] I suppose you must forgive my state of dress; it seems I've neglected to acquire a coat, so far.

[suoxi]

[ she watches him carefully, but doesn't try and dig any information out of him. ]

Only if you forgive mine.

[ Inara is impeccably dressed, as always, but it does show signs of wear. ]

A teaset I've acquired, but clothing, as of yet, isn't something I can afford. Not until I decide what to do about income.