nysalogs | the sky was made of amethyst ( & open )

[ Look, all Jim's potential topics for the past few weeks are 'I think something horrible is lurking out in space and the Natha are desperately hiding us from it' or 'I got laid a bunch in Khalo'. ]

Poor kid, [ he says, sounding sincere. Jim's ANCIENT AGE of thirty-one whole years is possibly not old enough to be calling anyone kid, but it's the way she talks about him. The protectiveness shines through. (Once in a blue moon, Jim seems older than he is, having Seen Some Shit, but not anything like cable TV prestige drama shit, sooooo.) ] It's good he's got you looking after him.

This whole clinic, I think, is a great thing.

[Claire smiles softly, looking down at her drink. She's heard that a lot, lately. That Theon is lucky to have her looking after him, that it's good she's there for him. She doesn't doubt that he'd be worse off if she wasn't around, but she'll always wonder if there's not more she could be doing.

But she had always wondered that with Bree, too.]

Thank you. When we first got here, I put my all into working at the Sanctuary. It reminded me of a charity hospital I used to work at, in Paris. It was... remarkable. Run by nuns, and one of the true places in the city where the less fortunate were treated like people and not left to die on the streets. I don't think I could ever manage anything that grand, but I do feel better knowing that this place will be around if the Sanctuary should shut its doors again.

Besides. I've spent too long being upset about it and not actually doing anything about it.

[ Nothing ever feels like enough, when you can't just perform a miracle and fix everything. Jim would understand, if she expressed that feeling. ]

'Charity'. [ His smile is a little sad. ] That concept is something I only hear about in history books or on other worlds. And yet it's the... spirit, I guess, of what rebuilt the Earth.

[ A little bleak? A little hopeful, too. He hopes. (Hah.) ]

Doing something is always preferable, in my experience.

What do you mean, about charity? [She's not sure if he's joking or not.] Did it go the way of the dinosaurs or something in your world?

I guess it did. The way we live-- we don't have money. No currency at all, the economy doesn't run like that. Shelter, food, medical care, education, necessities for daily life, those are all things everyone is entitled to, and given.

[ He takes a drink. ]

Every planet in the Federation is that way. It's a requirement for membership. I mean, there's no such thing as Utopia. People still struggle and fuck up. Being here is just... [ Jim trails off, shakes his head. ] It's surreal.

[One day, he's going to make her eyebrows fly straight up off her forehead. She mumbles a Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ under her breath before taking a drink herself, needing the help of the alcohol to imagine such a world.]

Surreal? More like barbaric, I bet.

[ He can't help but laugh quietly at her reaction. ]

There's definitely been a learning curve. [ Explains more why he's uncomfortable with the idea of anyone charging for his basic bitch cadet chemistry, probably. ]

I understand. So that's why you were so eager to pay off anyone who could understand that formula, if they didn't want to be a good samaritan. You're making more sense, Captain.

[There's a fondness in the words. What a world he must have lived in, to travel to different planets, and to theoretically not encounter corpses on the streets.]

It may not be that impressive of a gesture, [ he admits. ] Money doesn't hold any significance to me. I understand the basic mathematical requirement of it to function, but besides the necessities I don't really spend any. It just sits there so.. [ an absent gesture. ] I dunno. Just trying to help, I guess.

You are helping.

[Even if it's just helping her empty the bottle. It's more than that. Claire motions upwards with her cup as she speaks.]

How are things upstairs?

Mm. [ Another drink from his cup, quick enough that his voice veers on hoarse when he says, ] Now there's a question.

[ If that's not implying yikes, who knows what would. ]

Still quiet. I've just about got a hold on things, but who knows how long it'll last unless the Natha return, or if things go to shit down here. If we end up having to evacuate, I'm not sure the low-power mode it's in will be able to comfortably sustain everyone for too long.

[Claire, being the helper that she is, leans down to pick up the bottle and top off his drink. He probably needs it, given that response.]

So, if we have an angry dragon on our hands... it's not looking good for us. Or, if we're forced to flee, we're going to be out in the wilderness instead of anywhere with central air.

[ He gives her a lopsided smile at the refill. Thanks. ]

It'd be alright, possibly for months, or longer. It's a huge facility and it's engineered well. But you never know with sudden stresses - the safety of the people in stasis is a priority.

[ Jim's not going to tell her why it's in low-power mode. Not yet. It's one of those details he and the others who've been working on the repairs and overall mystery have mutually decided not to let out for as long as they can stall it, in case of panic. ]

But we also have a moral conundrum about it.

Moral conundrum?

[She asks, but she has a feeling she knows. Claire frowns as she adds a bit more to her own drink, the glass bottle clinking gently on the floor when she sets it down.]

[ Jim spreads his hands. ] If something truly horrific happens down here, necessitating the use of Thesa as a sanctuary, do we leave the natives to die?

[ Probably, she saw that one coming. But still. It's something they have to think about, in the harshest terms. ]

Us or them.

[She figured, but it's still not any easier to hear. Claire sighs, crossing one leg over the other so she can rest her elbow on her knee as she hunches over some in thought.]

There's so many people here that... even if Thesa was in good shape, it'd be difficult, wouldn't it?

It would. [ While this is only an island chain's worth of people, it's still dwarfing the residential capacity of Thesa; maybe they could get a sizable portion of people, but maybe not. And if they power the whole thing up, what about the unknown variable that's lurking out there, spooking the Natha themselves..? ]

The logistics alone would be a nightmare. No one knows of its existence, they think we're all backwater weirdos from some far-off village, not extra-dimensional visitors whose home base is high-tech space station masquerading as their moon. And yet abandoning them is unthinkable.

So, if the station isn't an option, we have to look on the ground. There's a whole world out there.

[Maaaaaybe not one free from a dragon, but perhaps their scaly, potentially furious friend would be content with this side of it.]

Not that moving that number of people anywhere would be easy. There are always those that simply refuse to leave their homes.

It'll be an option. Just not for everyone.

[ Telling all the refugees not to go to Thesa isn't going to fly any more than exposing all the natives to the truth. ]

I'm hoping that this is an eventuality we won't ever face. I feel optimistic about it, since everyone seems - motivated, I guess, I can't say competent because I don't know all of them. Halfway competent, I suppose.

[ 76 at least appears to know what he's doing. ]

Deciding who gets to go where won't be easy, if it comes to it.

[Just the thought makes her uneasy, and she shifts her weight again, switching which leg is crossed on top of the other.]

I hear people want to... try talking to this dragon, hopefully, before any damage occurs. I don't know how that will go, but if it avoids us having to come to these bridges, well. I'm all for it.

Oh. [ Seeming to think of something, Jim balances the glass on the bend of his knee - which looks somewhat alarming, even though he manages it with the well-practiced skill of a serial multitasker - so that he can dig out his phone. Network device. Universal jamjar thingy. Whatever. He pulls up a photo and shows it to her: text from a book, the end of a story about a dragon. The key highlighted passage is, allegedly, the last words of Ysverai.

Specifically, that closing line, 'Your hearts will fill with greed and malice the moment my own stops beating. Take care in the Eye of the Storm. Find strength in one another, before it is too late.' ]

The people in Khalo Village fully believe the dragon was a sentient, noble figure whose death was a deliberate sacrifice versus a defeat in battle.

It also mentions the Storm, which is pretty weird.

[At least if he drops his drink there's nothing to be lost, really. The place is still in need of a good scrub. Some alcohol on the floor might be a help, actually...

Any concern over a spill is replaced with curiosity as he shows her that photo of text. Claire reaches out to take it--her eyesight isn't great, thanks--and softly reads the words aloud. No need to worry about her accidentally swiping through his pictures, because she's handing it back the moment she's done, frowning.]

Storms and floods are common imagery, I'd say, but it's a bit too much of a coincidence considering our situation. Do you give this story much credit?

I sincerely hope, [ he says as he slips the device back into a pocket and takes hold of his cup before it goes flying, ] that every word is true.

[ Sounds a little too convenient, though, suggests his tone. ]

This was an old volume in the library in Khalo, I spent.. I dunno, too much time in there, probably. [ Like, days. It was pleasant and he was stoned as fuck. ] The newer ones were partially about refugees, and mostly fictitious. Like tabloid gossip accounts, with the occasional strange, accurate detail. What do you think? You've been here longer than I have.

[Needless to say, because of her constant watch over Theon, she missed the trip to Khalo and likely won't be straying far from Olympia anytime soon. And now, with her own clinic? There will have to be a very good reason for her to stray.]

I think it'd be nice if this dragon was willing to listen to reason and not wipe us off the bloody map. And I suppose that means we'll have to do some listening, too.

[Time for another drink.]

Hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

[ Please bail if a dragon destroys Olympia, Claire. ]

I'd rather listen than fight it. Surely we've got somebody stashed in the refugee pool who knows how to talk to dragons, we've got everything else.

the sky was made of amethyst ( & open )

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