IC contact for lastvoyages

[cactusy]

[If I don't have an active post up, feel free to use this post to have your character call, videochat, text, or knock on Shaw's door.]

Comments

[hippie_ninja]

I'll be there.

And in less than five minutes he's there, armed underneath his leather duster but really banking on this being a quiet evening.

[cactusy]

He'll hear no complaint from Shaw; she's always armed as a matter of course. She jogs up a minute or so after he arrives, giving him a nod.

"Hey. You good?"

[hippie_ninja]

"Yeah," he smiles at her, nods. "Let's start with the Greenhouse, work our way room by room."

He likes the plants, likes to set his day around green things, but also it's just right there.

"How are you holding up?"

audio, shortly after meeting James and Peter

[empathicfault]

Hi, Shaw. Can I get you to let me in the Enclosure?

[ His voice is croaky, almost a low growl. It's not something he usually asks her for, either- he'll get Malcolm to do it, or he'll catch a warden passing by. But this can't wait today. ]

audio

[cactusy]

Yeah. You sound like crap, though; what's up?

Re: audio

[empathicfault]

[ Yeah, he knows. ]

New warden. James. There's an inmate here who's from his world. Peter. He popped out of the vents to yell at us, and was treating James like his possession. It was...familiar.

He didn't attack, or I would've contacted you earlier. But I need to let off some steam.

audio

[cactusy]

Yeah, I heard about it, though. New guy was impressed by you.

You want solo time letting off steam, or company?

Re: audio

[empathicfault]

He talked to you already, huh...

In the Enclosure? If you want. I'm going to be a wolf, if that changes things.

audio

[cactusy]

"Do you want solo time or company" isn't a yes or no question. What do you want?

Re: audio

[empathicfault]

I don't-

[ He lets out a grunt of frustration. Thinking is tough and getting tougher. ]

...solo time.

audio

[cactusy]

Okay.

Take however long you want. But I wanna talk when you're done; deal?

Re: audio

[empathicfault]

Yeah. Deal, that's a good idea.

I'm already on the Deck.

audio -> action

[cactusy]

Be there in a few.

[She shows up a couple minutes later, coming at a half-jog with both Bear and Jet along for the ride (Bear trotting next to her, Jet bounding on ahead when he sees Will). ]

When I'm not doing so hot--

[She says, as she unlocks the catwalk to the upper deck for them.]

-- and when there's not an emergency that I have to be present for, I hate it when people ask me questions about what I want, because making choices is exhausting. I thought you might want to run with the dogs, though.

[empathicfault]

[ Will has found a spot to lean near the railing. He's pale and his eyes are wild, darting various places. It looks like he's been grinding his teeth, his jaw is so tense. Everything relaxes a little as he sees Jet bound up.

He doesn't immediately crouch. Rather, he sits on the floor and puts his arms out. Apparently, Jet remembers, because he speeds up, doing a circle in the space Will has made until Will closes his arms in and hugs him. He leans his cheek on Jet's head and his shoulders droop a little. ]

I'm not...going running.

[ If he was, he'd have called Malcolm. His face is half-buried in Jet's fur as he continues. ]

They can't come with me. But...thank you.

[cactusy]

"You think I'll have another answer if you phrase the question slightly differently?" Shaw asks, raising an eyebrow. "Seriously, I have three of these; I should be used to them, right?"

[cactusy]

[God, he looks even worse than he sounds. She'll wait until he's done with Jet before heading up the spiral staircase - but when she goes, she goes backwards, studying him thoughtfully.]

I'll stick to the deal of not making you talk until you're done with... whatever you want to do in there. But dude, what do you want to do in there?

[empathicfault]

[ His body language is one of someone trying to make himself smaller, as he pulls himself back up and follows Shaw. He takes in a deep breath and heaves it out before replying. ]

The wolf equivalent of ripping up the couch cushions and shaking all the stuffing out.

I've made up a program for this. I just- need time. To settle.

[cactusy]

Okay. What is the wolf equivalent of that?

[empathicfault]

...tearing mushroom zombies to pieces.

[cactusy]

Okay.

Does it ruin it if I watch but don't interfere?

[empathicfault]

[ Will wraps his arms around himself, pausing to think. ]

No. That's fine.

[cactusy]

[She gives him a quick, definitive nod, and without another word, strides over to the Enclosure and unlocks it for them. Have at it, Will.]

[empathicfault]

[ Will looks slightly relieved as he brushes past her and to the console, asking for the program 'Graham 21B'. He's almost down the steps before it's done creating it for him, and he's already pulling his shirt and undershirt off.

The entrance leads to a bit of the forest next to that breach version of Seattle. Decrepit buildings loom in the background and there's a small but idyllic-looking pond nearby, not too far from the Wall. Will drops his clothes here and immediately changes. The bone-cracking noises tend to bother most people, but they don't last long. And Will has found comfort in the sharp, short pain of transformation.

He immediately runs, barking and growling to garner attention. For all the care that has been put into accurately reproducing the background here, the couple of Infected that are visible through the trees don't seem particularly accurate. They're not smart, they're not just unfortunates being taken over. These are monsters, and the fungus growing over them misshapes their silhouettes.

Will growls more loudly and immediately starts charging them. ]

[hippie_ninja]

"Is it a thing you ever get used to?" He wonders. "It's so...bizarre. I can handle all the random violence that goes on around here, but the comas weird me out."

[cactusy]

[True to her word, Shaw does her best not to interfere. She knows that it's probably impossible to manage that completely - if nothing else, he'll know she's there - but minimizing herself isn't something that's difficult for her. She stands by the door, quiet and still as she watches him, forcing all her attention outwards: the way she used to during stakeouts for the ISA, times when the job had required her to crouch in the same position for hours on end without any regard for her own physical needs. Will isn't someone she's getting ready to shoot, but he's a target of a different sort - and just as she'd learned not to notice hunger pangs and bladder pressure and muscle cramps, her discomfort with the Enclosure melts away in the face of that singular focus.]