2023-08-23: A Lot
- Log: A Lot
- Cast: Trevor Teach, Eight York
- Where: Ra Mari II, Cafeteria
- OOC - IC Date: 0097 08 23 (Forward-dated a little for timeline purposes)
- Summary: After they're both out of the medical bay, Eight York comes to check up on Trevor Teach. They talk about some important things.
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
Not a few days ago, Trevor Teach was staring death in the white-hot glowing face. Shortly thereafter, he overextended his psychic abilities helping to claw open a nascent singularity so that one half of its contents could return to reality. After that, surviving Gryps-2 and an engagement with one of the most potent Mobile Armors ever devised with a torn open cockpit hatch, he was laid up in medical for... quite a bit. At least a few days, just to make sure that he wasn't going to collapse from mental exhaustion-- and that he wasn't irredeemably fried from exposure to radiation and space magic both.
Fortunately, this Coordinator was built tough. Those Zentraedi genes are pulling their own weight. And now, he's just... Normal tired. He's floating in that liminal space that comes after a great and indisputible triumph, pinned against a moment of profound uncertainty for both the Earth Sphere and the colonies far beyond, all without a specific direction guiding him. He's a little dazed, a little exhausted, and a little hungry.
And so he's in the cafeteria, munching on a fried chicken thigh while contemplating the contents of the light fixtures. A lot of people are probably doing similar, at least to some degree.
But that just means the seats nearby are open. There are slightly more former Sleeves in the pirate's general proximity, but that's par for the course. Not necessarily a sign of friction as it was before, but just-- people with shared experiences talking to each other about What Happens Next.
It's definitely an open question. The contents of Laplace's box Changed... a lot. Who ever would have guessed that a pirate from the ass end of the Asteroid Belt would play a role in upending the very foundations of global society...?
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
Eight York, of course, makes herself aware of who's stuck in the medbay... not least because she was stuck in the medbay for a day herself after that sequence of events. Eight, too, stared death in the face. And now...
Well, and now she has things to do. She may not be in command at the moment, but the crew remains her concern. Including one part-Zentradi Coordinator!
so Eight looks around, entering this cafeteria, dressed in red with nice, pale-brown boots. She is very pregnant, that hasn't stopped being the case, but fine to walk around on her own again, which she does as she spots Trevor there. She takes a detour to get a cup of tea and then movs to sit down in one of those nearby eats near him.
She nods to the former Sleeves members around as she does, but if anyone starts to move or get up or otherwise show Official regard at the moment, she shakes her head. She's not in uniform, after all.
"Hey," she says. "It's good to see you up and about."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
To their credit, some of the Sleeves do in fact go to offer salutes. It's hard not to salute the very pregnant lady who captained the ship through something as absolutely insane as they just went through. A couple of them even wonder in hushed tones about when the baby might be due and whether they should be doing anything more to take stress of her shoulders.
Trevor was of course present in the medbay the entire time Eight was checked in-- and for a little while longer, in fact. Exposure, even in a flight suit, is serious business.
He blinks as he's acknowledged and responds with a smile. "Aye, a few pain killers and some dark room therapy helped a lot. The headaches are basically over with now, at least!" He chuckles and takes a swig of water. "Good to see you pretty much back on your feet, too. Hopefully the doctors didn't give you too much of an earful, eh?"
"Everything going alright?" Trevor gestures vaguely at the ceiling, swirling his cup in its general upward direction. "You know. After all of That."
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
Eight does smile at those who try to salute. ...The rumor mill will tell them; she theoretically has a couple months to go. So not that long at all, as these things go. Though she hasn't announced when her wedding is going to be yet...
"That's great," Eight says of the headaches. "That was enough to help me, too. I'm definitely not one for bright lights." Very serious business. Then she laughs a little. "Oh, they did. That's why I'm not walking around too much. They aren't quite insisting on bedrest, but I feel like if I keep up the pace I've been going at they might..."
But she trusts Kamille, especially, and his team.
"Yes," she says. moving to sip her tea. Tea is nice. And they do stock non-caffeinated blends around the various cafeterias, not just for Eight. "It was a lot. I didn't expect to be on the bridge in the middle of some sort of time warp..."
She looks into the distance for a moment, "It was a lot," she repeats. "But everyone's healthy and good, they tell me. And I feel like we might have a chance to relax for a little while. Maybe. I don't quite believe it yet."
"What about you? Even before this, you've been through a lot. You and the others who stayed with us."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
It's those damn Zentraedi genes. They grow 'em up fast and strong! Even before they're even supposed to be... doing either of those things, really.
The Protoculture did a hell of a job.
"He seems to know a thing or two about managing psychic braincare," Trevor laughs a little. He has no idea just how much personal experience Doctor Bidan actually has with that sort of thing. Or why he's so passionate about it in particular. "I know what you mean. Don't blame 'em, though. I'd keep me laid up for a good while too, just to make sure I didn't get cosmic ray exposure or summat."
Tea is nice. Trevor is quite a fan himself, even though they really just got the worst kind of swill back out home. Today, though, is a water day. Hydration is important, when you're wrestling headaches. "I don't think anyone really expected what Frontal put us all through," Trevor admits, frowning. "Not just Axis, but the war with Neo Zeon, and the Zentraedi War..." He shakes his head, "...I'm not sure if it achieved what he wanted, though. I feel bad for the guy, honestly. It's like all he could see was the darkness in it all. And nobody really knew at all..."
Psychic powers are... perhaps more of a burden than a blessing, sometimes.
"It was a lot," he agrees with a tired sigh. "Truthfully, probably the Most I've been through, personally. Same goes for a lot of us. But considering I got into all this by signing up on contract to help find the Box, it's a little more than I expected to get thrown into."
Like, three miracles all in a row? Who expects that?
"I'm... doing alright, I think. Got a message from back home asking what the hell happened. Apparently they got Mineva's speech all the way out there, and plenty of folks out in the Belt are political refugees from some of the Federation's colonial excesses, so there's plenty of interest. Plenty of fear, too. It's a whole new world, and nobody's sure how that's going to shake out for the Belt. They've got no idea what really happened, though, so it'll take some explaining. 'Course, that just means I get to embellish a little."
Only in good ways. Probably.
"Otherwise, though... I dunno, cap'n. It feels a little... weird. Like we've been running on fumes for weeks and now that it's all over, I'm sitting here wondering how much of it really happened. And where it's all going next. Like, we won and I'm pleased as peaches about that, but there was just... A lot to process."
SCENESYS: Marina Ismail has posted scene #405, 'Disorder Begets Duty', at 19:00 ET on 08/26.
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
Eight is learning all about those special genes. She's going to learn more, soon! She's curious about a lot of things regarding her children-to-be.
"He does," Eight agrees, without outing Kamille's personal experiences. "He's very good. And he's been great at managing my... needs, since I haven't been able to be on the old meds." As a Cyber-Newtype, that is. "But for sure. You were at heavy risk out there."
Eight prefers coffee, but she can't get in the habit of decaf, and too much caffeine is bad for baby, they say. "I don't think there was any way to expect it," she admits. "It was... strange. Very strange. But it reminded me what we're fighting for." Feeling bad for Full Frontal... "That's very compassionate," she says, perhaps a little diplomatically. "Being unable to see anything else... It's a dark fate."
But the Most, huh? "Fair enough. We did find the Box, though. That's true."
"Oh, I'm glad you were able to get contact. Amazing that it went so far..." Interest, but fear. That sounds right to Eight, the blonde setting down her teacup and nodding along as she thinks about it. His talk of embellishment gets a little grin.
"It's hard to say how it'll shake out for any of us. Even us in the Alliance--we rebelled against the Federation in part because of this very thing. If they can actually shape up..." She shakes her head. "It's all maybes and who knows for now."
"I don't know either," she admits. "We're going to go together whereever that is, though."
"...I say that," she says, "And I believe it, but I don't really know what's next, either. It's a waiting game, for sure. And I have a feeling our strength will be needed for a while yet."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
"That's good. That's the most important thing," Trevor nods, on the subject of Kamille and his expertise. It's a rare thing to find a Newtype Doctor who isn't, you know, at least one foot over the line of Human Experimentation or Child Mulching. To have a skilled one is even more of a rarity. "Yeah, well... I think we were all at heavy risk, all things considered. Having a cockpit that wasn't shot to hell wouldn't have stopped Gryps-2, right?"
If anything, it'd just make certain death slightly more instantaneous.
Is it compassionate? Maybe so. Trevor shrugs. "...Yeah. I don't know. The guy was always distant even when he was the boss. But apparently, according to Rita, he's a victim too. Whoever he used to be was overwritten to create Full Frontal, or something along those lines. So I can't-- not feel bad for him, at least a little bit?"
At least he's in a better place, now.
...
Whether that's Dead or In Angelo Sauper's Care is somewhat of an open question.
"I'd only heard about most of what we saw as hand-me-down stories and rumor," Trevor explains. "Even Axis and the Neo Zeon conflict-- the most we ever felt out in the Belt was heightened security but also more opportunity for salvage. And of course, the Cap'n is a veteran of Space War One, so I had lots of stories growing up about all of that. But they were never really... personal for me. So it was an interesting experience, but I can't imagine what it'd be like to have it all burning in your brain all the time."
"It's kind of wild, isn't it?" Trevor says of the Signal, "I guess that's just what happens when Miracles are going off left, right and center." The Unicorn stopped Gryps with the power of the Psycho Field-- it's somehow not a tremendous surprise that something like a signal boost could have happened too.
Eight says that they'll all be needed sooner rather than later-- but also that they'd all be doing it together. Trevor's expression softens a little at that, "Well. I'm glad y'all aren't too fed up with mine and Izzy's antics just yet. I don't think I'm nearly ready to pack up and go back home just yet, either. Not when there's still so much for me to see here. And besides..."
"All this," he says, wistfully, "Full Frontal and Rita, and even Banagher, Marida and you. What happened to you all makes me wonder about my story, too. So, I'm sticking around until then, at least."
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
"We were," Eight agrees. "Nothing we had could've, if not for everything everyone brought to bear. All the tricks and ideas, and all the Psychoframe we could muster."
But Trevor... Hmmm. "I guess that's fair. I... have more trouble, thinking to feel bad for him, after everything. But it's important to remember that those who hurt us can be victims themselves. That's why it's important to change the conditions of the world, not just 'take out the bad guy'. If we thought in such shallow terms... We'd have a lot fewer friends."
Eight doesn't ask that question.
"That makes sense," she says to Trevor's story of war out in the Belt. "I don't... entirely remember everything, about the conflicts I was involved in when I was younger. So these wars are the ones that are really standing out for me." The ones they're in.
"It's pretty wild, all right."
Then she smiles, at that softened expression. "Not at all. I'm glad to have you, and your friends who stayed. And Isadore, too. ...There sure is a lot more to see. I hope, one day, I can get out to the Belt, or farther."
But all this...
"A lot about your story you don't know," she remembers. "...Well, I'm interested, too. Count me in for finding out." A nod. "Besides, I'm hoping when my little ones grow up enough, you'll be around to give them enough stories to fill their little heads with adventures."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
"I still can't believe they'd think to fire that thing just to cover up the Box. Or maybe they saw the Unicorn and the rest of us as problems to eliminate too, so they thought they'd deal with us in one fell swoop." Trevor shakes his head. He's, by his own admission, not as familiar as he aught to be with the cruelties of the Federation except from what he'd heard from comrades within the Sleeves. It's another thing to experience it first hand, though.
And they probably haven't heard the last of it all, either. The powers that be within the Federation are unlikely to go quietly, even after the Box's true contents have been revealed. "Well, might have a couple issues if we ever go back to working for 'em. I'm not exactly 'documented', heh."
"Compared to the little skirmishes we'd get into back home, this has all been something else," Trevor laughs in spite of the gravity of it all. "Now if we beat up the Jovians and secure Mars, we'll be maybe halfway towards solving all the problems in space. And by then there'll be a dozen more things to do, ahaha~"
But they have to do everything that they can. As much as they can. Trevor nods. "If we ever go out there... Well, I won't say Vesta can give us the warmest welcome, considering resources and all, but I guarantee if I put the word in, the Ra Mari and the rest of the Alliance will be treated well. We ain't got the best equipment, but if we need repairs while we're out there, I think you'd be surprised how far we can go with as little as we've got."
"Aye, well, thanks to Rita, I know a little more than I did when I first jumped into all this, but there's still plenty I don't. And I mean to find out one way or another, so, I'm glad to have the company. It'll be an adventure." To where, exactly, though...?
As for the little ones--
"Ahahaha, of course! Just leave it to Uncle Trevor, I've got plenty of--"
Beat.
"Wait." He squints ever so slightly. 'Little oneS?' With an S? Are you expecting, uh..." His voice hushes, "Twins?"
(Has he been told and just forgot? Is he just misunderstanding?? Has pushing the Newtype Powers fried Trevor's brain a little more than he thought!??!)
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
"I can," Eight says grimly. "Because I imagine that's exactly what they were thinking. We're a major thorn in their side--we managed to fight off their flagship more than once, now." Though the second time was really just the Unicorn... but it'll count to the Federation.
"Well, don't expect me to hand in my stripes anytime soon. If the Federation can get better, it'll be the work of years, and I'm not ready to assume they'll do it just because I ask nicely. ...Though I know someone who can help you with the documentation if you need it. Mine's fake, after all. Or it used to be, until I met Grandmother."
"Heh. So not soon, but maybe one day?" she says of fixing the problems of Space.
"Well, the Ra Mari II is meant to be self-sufficient, so we won't be a hardship on their resources. ...I think I'd believe how far you an go. I'm glad to hear we'd be welcomed."
Rita... Eight nods. "Well, adventure is good. And maybe..." She shakes her head. "Well, maybe you can help Rita see more of what we see in humanity as it is. I hope so, anyway. I don't want to influence you, but I worry about her sometimes."
Then she grins. "I never get tired of that reaction. Maybe that's why I haven't worried about spreading the rumors farther..."
"I mean, I do intend to have more than one anyway. ...But yes. I'm expecting twins. It's why I'm so big already!" She laughs as she gestures with her hands.
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
"I guess they couldn't stand the black eye we gave 'em after the ambush during the whole... You know, that debacle." No need to call it a 'mutiny' among present company, even though that is basically exactly what it was. "I guess rich and powerful people don't like being taken down a few pegs. Especially when there's a genuine threat to 'em floating around."
And they're... entrenched. If Eight ever decides to rejoin the Federation, it will probably take a long while to even get close to that point. "Ahahaha, might not be a bad idea actually. But then again, there are benefits to being outside the system too. Maybe we save it until you need someone to sneak in somewhere that he doesn't belong, eh? After all, if I get myself registered now, it'll only look suspicious if I turn up somewhere I'm not supposed to be down the road, whereas we can make up whatever story we need when it comes up."
"I'm sure the Cap'n would be interested in hearing all about you and Lavhi too. He's a sucker for that sort of thing," Trevor chuckles softly, but then--
Rita.
Trevor sighs and nods. "Yeah, I know. Her perspective is... Different. It's a lot like Frontal's, except she's pointed at what I think is a more 'beneficial' ending. And she's got a lot more faith in what kind of change the living can make in the present now, too. It's just... yeah. I understand." But he did make a promise to her to fight on her behalf when she could not. How long is he going to hold himself to that...?
And-- will she ever be able to pull herself back from that liminal space her soul dwells in? Is it even possible?
"That's great news!" Trevor chirps, "Wow, not just a handful but a double handful." And here Trevor just thought it was all because Giant Zentraedi Baby Genes or something crazy like that. Like, was Lavhi a Commander Type on one side, or something? But no, this makes a lot more sense. And is a lot more sensible. "Have you decided on names for them yet?"
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
"Even back when I was with them," she says, "I knew they hated that." The debacle. That's good enough, frankly; she remembers it. It's good enough.
"That's true," Eight says. "Might as well. It's not like you need to be 'official' to stay on with us." It's a good strategy!
Eight smiles at the matter of the Cap'n though. "I'd be more than happy to tell him about it."
Rita, though... "I know you're in her corner," Eight says. "And that's fine. It's good, even. But I worry all the same. I think she's forgotten what it's like to be human. ...of course, I'm not saying anything I'm asking you to keep from her, either. Maybe you can remind her, where I don't think I can."
But the good news--"Haha," Eight laughs, "That's right. I'm glad I have so many people around who want to help. I'm going to need it. Especially with as much of a handful as half-Zent kids tend to be..." From what she's heard, anyway. "The names are a secret for now. But I've put a lot into thinking about it... Since they have two cultures, and all."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
"I hear Zent kids are sturdy enough that you can lob 'em around as long as they've got a soft landing waiting for 'em," Trevor jokes. HE'S JOKING RIGHT!? "Hah, though I'd still smack anyone who went and tried. Kids are kids, Zentraedi or otherwise. Back home, we'd have the occasional kid come along, and most everyone ended up chipping in at some point. Even I've done a couple stints as Designated Babysitter once or twice, heh."
But-- reminding Rita of her humanity. Trevor turns thoughtful, propping his head up on an arm. "...Yeah. I want to at least... Show her things that she's missed. Even if they are just my memories and how I remember them. I can at least give her snow that's cold and good tasting food. What'll come of it, I don't know, but I hope it'll remind her even a little bit of what it's like to be human. The only problem is-- when you can see beyond time, how do you go back to looking at just the world what's right in front of you...?"
<Pose Tracker> Eight York has posed.
"That's what I hear," Eight says dubiously, "But I'd definitely smack anyone who tried. Maybe it means I can worry a little less when they get old enough to play rougher, though." Everyone chipped in... Eight smiles. "That's pretty nice," she says. "I don't want to impose... But I'll definitely need the help, I think. I worry sometimes about... their growing up on a battleship. But I like to think it can still be a home. We'll find out in a few months."
Rita, though... "That's good," she says. "I hope you can do just that."
She says, "She'll have to want to, in the end. But maybe you can give her reasons to want to. That's all that it comes to, I think."
"Regardless. I support you, in your hopes for her."
"...I'm glad you stayed with us, though. I really am."
<Pose Tracker> Trevor Teach has posed.
<poem> "Ahh it's no imposition," Trevor says with a smile of his own. "Heck, I'd wager that a battleship like this one is a better place to raise kids than most. And if we could bring up decent folks on Vesta, it's definitely possible aboard this ship." There's actually halfway decent gravity here! And regular meals!! "It's just a matter of growing up with a bigger family than most kids. Ain't nothing wrong with that."
It takes a village to raise a child. And this is one heck of a big village.
As for Rita...
"...Yeah, I cerainly hope so," he says, breathing a long sigh. A reason to want to come back, huh...?
...
"Thanks, Captain," Trevor says, at last, "I mean it. For the support, and for keeping us both aboard. A pirate's strange company to keep around, but I hope I can properly repay the kindness and welcome you've all given us. So, truly, it's a pleasure to be aboard."