Futuristic Transsolar

[InsanEleven]

Saami just calmly stood and watched as he saw the knife raise up. Indicating a clear hostile threat.


"This is your last warning Mister Marshall. If you do not sheathe your weapon and continue to pose a threat to the ship or the crew I will have to detain you." His eyes were sharp and clear, a blue ring in them revealing every single thing in the room to him, from the cracks in the paint to the individual strings of Marhall's clothes. Never would he stand down if it meant the safety of his crew was compromised, a sense of duty and self sacrifice indoctrinated into him for years. Meanwhile he continued to send the data from his visuals to whomever he could find that would be able to diffuse the situation.

 

[Marianne]

3487/12/06 05:55:00 SST

Surprisingly enough, even if Sandy hadn't slept as long as she thought, she was still very content. Waking up on her own as she rolled off her bed, tangled in her sheets as her burgundy covers remained a mess on the bed. Mumbling, the female crawled out from underneath, and shook the sheets off of her legs before she looked around her room. Ivory walls with wheat colored curtains of silk cloth adorning them from the ceiling down to the floor. It reminded her of home, and as she looked past the entrance to her bedroom and to the dining area of her chambers she noted the mess of printing paper strewn across her table. She'd have to clean up, and so she did. Spending a good half hour straightening her bed, closing her suitcase and placing it into her wardrobe where her uniform awaited. She then strolled towards the table and straightened the papers, neglecting the folded tee-shirt from before for her memories were hazy.

​

It wasn't 'til she showered had Saundary remembered, rather realized, that last night was not a dream. It was real, and an eager grin formed on her rosy lips as she noted the breakfast she was supposed to have with her boss. Most likely, nobody would really wake up[ as early, seeing as today was an off-duty day due to the unfortunate accident the day before.

After cleansing herself, the young woman pat herself dry before rushing towards her wardrobe and putting on her uniform that she must wear at all times whilst onboard. It practically clung to her like a second skin as she zipped it on before securing the neckline over the zipper. She then checked the clock above her door and noted that it had said:

​

3487/12/06 06:55:00 SST

"Ah! I wonder if he's awake!" The Mesh hall wasn't too far, so Sandy needn't run, but she still power walke3d at a patient pace, so as not to give any indication that she was excited.

​

Rounding the corner, she wasn't sure if she was hearing things correctly, but was Saami talking to someone? She slowed her steps as she entered the Mesh Hall and stood at the entrance. From what she could tell, a drunken man - obvious because of his footing - was yelling obscurities towards her boss and she wanted to know if everybody had treated him unkindly, or was it this bastard of a being only. Without hesitation, Saundary held her head high and paid little mind to the man who was disturbing her - companion, maybe - as she strode towards the basket of fruit and plucked an orange from the heap. Peeling it by the trash can, she did her best to ignore their exchange as she did so. It wasn't until she finished did she strut towards the man who pointed the knife towards Saami in a threatening manner. Sticking half an orange there, she looked down at him with her ruby eyes pierced in agitation. "Is there a problem?" she asked, her tone mocking all sorts of friendliness she daily supplied. Plucking one orange slice and popping it into her mouth as she did so.

​

 

[Dragongal]

Adira smiled and opened her eyes as she looked up at Woods. "I'm awake, Commander. Just trying to figure out if last night was real or not." She moved a bit so she could press her head against his shoulder as she stretched. After a few moments of indecision she quietly said, "I'm glad it was real." Why was her tablet chirping again, though? Once was the normal wakeup call... another chirp? She pushed it out of her mind and focused on Vince. Funny, she hadn't realized it before, but she thought of him as Vince and not Woods. Mentally she was asking herself why she was leading him on, letting it continue... if he knew everything about her past... if he learned all of it, he would be hurt, and leave her.... so why was she still laying with her head cuddled against his shoulder and her arm around him...?


She noticed he seemed a bit stiff, and suddenly remembered that his arm was synthetic, her worries being pushed to the back of her mind. "You okay...?"

 

[Anaxial]

A devious grin spread across Marshall's lips as Saami threatened to detain him.


"Oh, you will? Please. I used to junk trash cans like you every day on Kepler!" He said boldly, another sour memory of the illegal Android trading he'd done in his past. At least it was his own. "You think I'm afraid of some, fake, brainwashed piece of garbage like you? Ha! You're property little Saami. I could fucking gut you and you know what'd happen? " Marshall took another aggressive bite of the bagel and continued talking with a mouthfull of food. "They'd bill me for your parts." He began to take a bold step towards Saami when Sandy intervened and impaled her orange on his knife. Then something hit him.


He may not have been able to read Saami, but this girl? The fire in her eyes, the faux lax tone of her voice... she was defending more than a piece of technology, perhaps it was post-inibriation paranoia though. Marshall let out a short laugh, though it was more of a gasp of disbelief.


"Holy shit..." he looked past her, at Saami. "Sam the MAN. You got a friend, a secret admirer." He gave the knife but a quick flick and the orange plopped against the ground. The tip was dangerously close to Saundry's abdomen now that she stood between Marshall and his prey. Marshall set the bagel down on the counter and his eyes darted between Sandy and Saami.


"But does Sam the Man have a friend in you?" Marshall baited Saami, he placed his now freehand on Sandy's shoulder and locked eyes with her, a smug smile on his face. "Does you.... do you have a friend in Saami?"

 

[InsanEleven]

A great line was overstepped when Marshall visually threatened Saundary, and immediately Saami's eyes obtained a red glowing light, piercing unnaturally through the turquoise. Not even giving Saundary any time to react he pulled up a chair and with a swift motion put her in it so there was more distance between her and the blade. To get her fully away from it all he simply kicked the side of the chair just precise enough to send it sliding over the floor so she was fully out of reach. He wasn't strong, but she wasn't heavy so he easily send her at least a few feet away.


"Put down the weapon." There was no more patience or calm in his voice, as he stared Marshall down his tone equally menacing as his eyes. Playtime was over. The man either listened, or dealt with the consequences.

 

[BookWyrm]

Vince groaned before finally managing to get his arm back into control. "Yeah, I'm good. My arm is bugging me a little bit. Nothing major though." Vince had been smiling when Adira had rested her head against his shoulder, even now the smile remained as he rolled his wrist and shoulder around. For a moment it paused and twitched, though this wasn't a malfunction in the arm. Vince rubbed his shoulder to try and ease some of the ache. "That kind of hurt actually." After a few moments everything seemed to calm down and Vince turned his full attention back to Adira. He leaned down and kissed her forehead again before the second chirp from the tablet stirred him. "Maybe we should check that."

 

[Anaxial]

Even for Marshall, the sudden change of character was a bit of a surprise, a tight knot formed in his chest as Saami so swiftly dispatched Saundry from harms way and showed... was that Anger? The plot only thickened. Fear was replaced with smug discovery as Marshall had in a way, just achieved Checkmate.


"What uhh... what's that Sam the Man? Feeling a bit angry? A bit jealous? Ohh nooo... an INANES can't feel..." his voice, though smug and sarcastic was a visage. His face showed genuine worry at the thought of a self aware INANES. Marshall took a cautious step backwards as he put the knife in his belt loop and held both his hands at shoulder height, palms facing the INANES. He never expected Saami to react, at least not with true emotion and the whole ordeal had not only sobered him, it shook him to his core. His mind only going to Anu's prophetic warning of self aware machine races.


He swallowed hard as he continued to step backwards away from Saami, his hands falling down to his sides as everyone else in the room likely had the same amount of disbelief in their eyes.


"See, Saami... that... that was a dumb move." Marshall said as he stood in the doorway to the kitchen. He shook his head and forced a half smile. "You've signed a death warrent, Sam. The Captain can't get you out of this one. " he didn't give Saami the chance to reply, quickly slinking around the corner and walking with new purpose and surprising coordination despite his inibriation. He continuously checked over his shoulder and occasionally walked backwards to watch his back as he made a Bee line for his personal room.

 

[Dragongal]

Adira hesitated for one last moment before finally getting up. She moved around Vince and stood to stretch, then went to her jacket and got her tablet. After a few seconds she muttered, "Fuck."She immediately pulled on her jacket and sat on the edge of her bed to pull on her boots, then pulled her hair back. "Marshall started antagonizing Saami. Messed around with a ducking knife, Sandy got mixed in from what I can see... fuck. Come on, we both have to go to the mess hall and see what's up."

 

[BookWyrm]

Vince was up and out of the bed in seconds. He quickly found his shoes and slid into them before joining Adira. Of course he still wore his tee shirt and sweats from the previous night, and anyone who paid any attention to him last night might notice, but he didn't really care at the moment. "Today was supposed to be a day off. Leave it to Marshall to fuck something up.", he groaned as the two of them double timed it towards the mess hall.

 

[Marianne]

Saundary never expected this. It was as if in a split second she was standing, and the next she was sitting a chair and slid across the floor. From what she could tell, everything was happening so fast and she hadn't understood why until the drunken man had left. She remembered, Saami had said his name was Marshall before.

Humming, Sandy stared at Saami and wondered if it was okay for her to get up. Surely it was, right? Standing up from the chair, Miss Estrasmus walked over where Mister Marshall once was and picked up the orange from where it laid before throwing it all away. After wiping her hands clean, also, she peered over Saami's shoulder, staring at him curiously as she stared at the mechanics of his red eyes. It frightened her, to have the same color as hers, yet for it to mean absolute destruction. Bad memories come from looking into that red. Tentatively, Sandy tapped Saami's shoulder in hopes of his turquoise eyes returning, although it may or may not seem unlikely depending on how he would respond to her as she called to him. "Saami?"
​

 

[InsanEleven]

Saami still had a red glow in his eyes as he stared Marshall down, watching him closely as he muttered his pretend victory. Once he was gone he turned to Saundary, and the red glow left his eyes. His demeanour and the general ambience around him returned to confident and acquiescent again when she asked her question. As if nothing had happened he straightened his tie out. He'd immediately doubted if forcing her out of it was a good thing, but he'd have treated all other crew members similarly.


When he looked around he actually doubted all the people there believed Marshall's words, he hadn't acted too much out of protocol, even if his attack mode appeared drastically different. It was meant to make him look angry and violent, solely to scare types like Marshall out of it in the first place. Yet he didn't rest easy knowing the man was so suspicious and paranoid either, eventually the rumours would grow and grow, outweighing his façade and dropping his mask. What would happen next he didn't dare think much less say.


For now though, he wanted to make absolutely sure his crewmember was okay. Even if it was Saundary and he held her in a higher regard, he couldn't show that just yet, so instead he thought of her as a crewmember now. It made him a whole lot less scared and concerned when he scanned her for wounds, checking her over even if she was already standing and moving about. It could be adrenaline or automatic behaviour.


"Miss Etrasmus, unless you are absolutely sure I would suggest you sit down and comprehend the situation and your state of mind first. It is not uncommon to be having feelings of dread or anxiety." She didn't exactly look that part though, throwing away her orange just as casually as he had returned to his usual self. "My scans show you have no obvious wounds, if you require a doctor do not hesitate to ask for one." She wouldn't, he knew, but he took no chances in this situation. It had to be approached with seriousness, and he didn't like nonchalance or waving things away even if he could have. All he'd truly like to do was to apologise for having to show her that side of him, that he was created for such a dark purpose as killing.

 

[Dragongal]

They arrived when Marshall had just left, and Adira went straight to stand between Saami and Saundary. Hadn't she just gotten a report about those two...? This wasn't looking good for Saami. She calmly and seriously said, "What just happened? Where's marshall?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Vince lingered in the hallway for a few moments, even walked off and managed to catch a glimpse of Marshall walking off before turning and heading into the mess hall. Despite his casual attire Vince managed to put off a very commanding and intimidating presence. With Adira asking questions Vince took a moment to look over the seen, his eyes spotting the knife mark in the table first and foremost. He figured it was Marshall. Only the idiot merc would do something so rash anyway. Vince sighed, this was already turning into an ordeal. He was going to wait for Saami to start talking before he started to ask questions, but the obvious two on his mind were if Marshall was armed and drunk, though he figured the answer to both would be yes. Marshall is gonna end up in the brig, medbay, or morgue before this is all over.

 

[Marianne]

The moment Saami looked at her, something happened behind his eyes. Standing so close, she could see the slight mechanical wear regardi9ng the way he worked. For some odd reason, she felt upset. It wasn't fair, the fact that he was mechanical. She wanted him to reply to her call, the way he had before, without any indication of him brushing her aside. Either way, she still understood the moment the words left his monotone voice before hand, when she threw away the orange.

"My scans show you have no obvious wounds, if you require a doctor do not hesitate to ask for one." She didn't need a doctor, she thought. To most she seemed spaced, the way her brows were furrowed as a thoughtful look passed over her visual appearance. She blinked once, and then twice before she gave Saami a nerved smile before asking, "May I be excused, sir?" His eyes were back to its usual color, watching it revert was strange, and it was rather obvious that nothing was the same. Normally, she would have still continued to be the same happy go-lucky girl, but this situation was different. This morning was unexpected, it was not what she had expected, and most likely it wasn't what Saami had expected either, seeing as he had technically invited her to breakfast. Without waiting for an answer Sandy stepped back, an appropriate distance between the two as she allowed the grimace of a smile show, to others she was just being friendly to a robotic person. For her, she was just trying not to be disappointed regarding how their morning began and its results. "Good morning," she said, somehow too happy for her, before she walked out of the mesh hall and back to her room.​

 

[Spazzycat101]

Springing awake too excitedly for how much-- or how little-- sleep Lydia had actually gotten, but that didn't much bother her. She was mentally debating whether to eat or to skip breakfast altogether in favor of starting her little project of sorts just that much earlier. After dressing and trying to force a brush through her rarely obedient short hair, she decided for it. Lydia made her way down to the mesh-hall, stumbling upon the odd sight of Marshall-- the mercenary, obviously considering himself rather intimidating-- fleeing down the hallway from something or another. She more or less jumped out of the way, whether it was necessary to avoid collision of not. The biochemist managed to arrive to see a Some kind of commotion cooling and coming to a close. Her eyes darted quickly from Adira to Woods, to Saami and finally to Saundary. She didn't care to I terrupt in order to ask what had happen, although not having seen Saami's version of 'code red,' she didn't understand why Marshall had been taking his leave at a none-too-leisurely pace. Although the bottle of brandy he was carrying gave her a hint.

 

[InsanEleven]

Saami registered two things happen at once, first was the captain finally barging in and asking what had happened, the second was Saundary getting... sad? It was upset yes, but it didn't quite fit with the types of upset someone could get with having been threatened. For the moment though he had the pressing matter of a captain in his neck to deal with, so he decided to handle that first before breaking his brain over Saundary.


"I have send all sound and visual files to your systems, Captain, Sir for you to make your own judgement and to verify my story. As for a summary; Mister Marshall took out a knife whilst highly intoxicated, threatening me. After not heading my warnings and moving to threaten Miss Etrasmus there was sufficient provocation to enter attack mode as to deal with a hostile threat. This deterred Mister Marshall." His recalling of the story was hollow at best, but not any more or less than that he usual was. No, he was filling perfect protocols here, as he didn't dare pull any more attention toward himself. Despite that his thoughts kept drifting towards Saundary, as he wondered what had made her so sad. And then with a cold, hard click, he realised it was him she was upset with.


Hadn't he been fearing for that from the start? That she'd never love his mechanical side? Eventually she'd find the holes and this had very clearly be one of it, an abyss even. Yet even if he knew, even if he had expected it, why did that realisation hurt so much? It was just a quality of his existence, that none could ever love him, it had been proven to him every day of his life. It had been bad for him to hope, he had known so yet still done so and now he was hurt.


"With your permission I will return to my duties Captain." Maybe it was then better, to stop hoping for it all together. It would be more fair to Saundary, and to him to not raise false expectations. None had ever loved him a single day in his life, and now that he met someone who had perhaps wanted to, but failed, he started wondering if that was simply because he was unloveable. And then it would be easier to just remain a machine through all of that, because as such he couldn't cry.


Quietly he turned around and listened mindlessly to what he had to do, letting the computers and electronics take over.

 

[Marianne]

Although she was hurt, and sad, Saundary was also very stupid. She had made the wrong decision walking away, and she had only the faintest idea of what Saami had felt afterwards. Instantaneously regretting the decision, she continued walking to her room. Upon entering she looked around before an idea came to mind. She never hesitated as she immediately called Saami through her head communicator, while rummaging through the small cabinets across her small dining area. Inside she found the simplicities to make a decent sandwich, even inside the refrigerator, she found ingredients to assist in completing the meal she had every intention of making: a sandwich.

Washing her hands, Sandy prepared the delicacies as she listened to the communicator connect her to Saami's log. Ah, okay. Simply ask him, it will be fine. Hesitantly, as she was making their meals, Sandy whispered, "Saami, are you there?" It was silent, maybe he had ignored her? She had called in, for he was her boss, thus if she ever needed to check in she was able to, for he had supplied her with his log number. "Saami, I would like to take you somewhere, would you care to join me?"
​

 

[InsanEleven]

Saami had just taken off his jacket, and lighted up the screen on his desk when he heard his internal communicator ring. It wasn't really quite as much a ringing as it was a mental buzzing combined with the called ID popping up in his vision. And he hadn't expected to see to be called by Saundary in the least. For a moment he wondered if he should, but then realised he couldn't really ignore a call anyway.


When he picked up he heard a very tiny voice whisper on the other side, and for a second he wondered if her communicator was perhaps broken or so. Not wanting to accidentally talk over her, and maybe because he felt like something was getting stuck in his throat, he remained silent for a little bit longer not to miss anything she said. Once he had decently swallowed away his tears he tried to not get excited at the premise, did she actually just ask him to go somewhere? With her? It felt a little bit like he was melting and his head went in meltdown at the same time.


"I, uh... I-I..." For a moment he muttered as his brain got stuck on words. How did his brain even get stuck on words in the first place? But quick enough he regained his confidence, coughing away the earlier stuttering. "It is dusty here, forgive the earlier discrepancy in my voice. Yes Miss Etrasmus, what time and place would you care to meet at precisely?"

 

[Dragongal]

Adira sighed as Saami and Saundary walked away. She walked over to Woods, quietly saying, "We'll have to check over the footage Saami sent us, but I swear, if Marshall tries this shit again, I'm putting him in the brig. Threatening a crewman with a knife? I think we may have to go through his room and remove all the alcohol, too. He wants any, he has to pay for it - oh, and we should give a notice to all the volunteer barkeeps - he's only allowed a small amount of alcohol in a certain period of time. Seem like a good punishment to you?" She made sure nobody could hear her, especially Lydia - she had seen the girl walk in. And that girl was trouble.

 

[BookWyrm]

Vince grimaced and ran a hand through his hair. "Protocol states a much more severe punishment in all honesty. Confiscating all weapons and alcohol, removing privileges, and confining him to solitary for a good week before keeping him under armed guard for another two before we reevaluate the situation before the officers. Which, if it comes to that, the vast majority rules. I understand you wanting to keep things civil and orderly, but if it came down to it he could be executed if the call was made. But then again, I trust your judgement on this. I'm just stating what my protocol handbook says for situations like this."

 

[Dragongal]

"I think he'd listen to orders if he didn't have so much alcohol and self-pity. How about we get rid of all the alcohol completely, and take away his weaponry for three days while he gets used to not being inebriated all the time. Of course he'll have to have his weapons for when we go down, but that's it. Then... I think in a week or so we should get him and Saami in the same room together and lock it up with us in there to make sure there's nothing physical." Adira's voice almost hesitated when she said, "us," recalling that they were... something. They had just shared a bed, after all. She was still trying to figure all of that out. "Good compromise?"

 

[BookWyrm]

Vince nodded as he said, "I'm going to get the team on this one though. Marshall is liable to cause some grief if it's just the two of us, but I have a feeling he'd be less inclined to complain if the entire security team is assembled and armed. Besides, I want to make this a statement to the rest of the crew. Security is taken seriously here. We will not compromise the safety of our crew even if the situation has been caused by a fellow crew member."

 

[Dragongal]

Adira nodded. "Alright. That's your area, so that's fine. No more alcohol effective immediately. Now, for his personal store. I say we go into his room and get it when he's gone - and that little area of his by Tin Can. Alcohol and weapons. When he's gone, note. That way he can only complain to us if he's brave enough to accuse us of taking it. Or else he'll just have to deal." She took out her tablet and typed out a quick message before sending it. "He can't get any alcohol from the lounge. Just took care of that."

 

[Marianne]

Saundary had heard his stutter, biting back a smile as she listened to him cough before answering. "It is dusty here, forgive the earlier discrepancy in my voice. Yes Miss Etrasmus, what time and place would you care to meet at precisely?"

What time and place, thought Miss Saundary Estrasmus.

"Hmmm, how about. . . in two to five minutes from now? I will be waiting in the companionway, don't be late," her voice rising an octave as she teased Saami with a warning tune in her voice.. In the end, as Sandy ended the commute, she was generally pleased. Not only that, but she was also very hungry. Recalling what had happened a little bit ago, Sandy thought it quite alright - this meal she had planned, for neither her or Saami had a proper meal, no thanks to Mister Marshall, so why not arrange one somewhere that nobody else would ever have a reason to go to? Somewhere. . . unmanned. Packing the food in a clear wrapping to protect it from contamination, she wrapped them up in colored cloths, burgundy, and made of regenerated silk, for safe keeping and decoration. Once secured, Sandy dug into the small wardrobe by the door and pulled out a small sack where she supplied two containers opf water, an apple, the meals she prepared, and a stack of ten papers, plus a pen, on top so as to disguise the surprise she had waiting for Saami.

Maybe she was overly anxious to eat, maybe that's why Sandy rushed out of her Quarters, greeted everybody with an innocently sweet smile, despite the few questioning regards she received from a few bystanders that were, unfortunately, there in the Mesh Hall towards the end. Most likely curious as to why she associated herself with an Inanes, no doubt. Whatever the reason, Sandy knew they would never understand, so she had not found the need to fret. However, what if the real reason was because she about to eat with someone who was truly not what he made himself out to be? Instead of heading to the Mesh hall, Sandy headed in the opposite direction, passing multiple storage rooms, short break rooms she never realized were there before, along with miniature labs and the medical department, before she found the companionway door. A large white door with an angular window to see through, although it was rather dark on the other side due to the tint. Instead of wait for Saami outside, she knowingly went inside and rested a few steps beneath the door. Three, posssibly, as she looked heavenward in order to spot Saami's tall frame through the looking glass.​

 

[Anaxial]

As the man came crashing into his room, he immediately locked the door behind him. He knew that Adira and Woods surely had a master key but the lock may slow down an angry INANES. All sorts of thoughts swarmed through his head, could the Captain be working with Saami? Was the purpose of this mission to test new breeds of INANES, ones that could think and feel independently? Was everyone here working against him? Entering the bathroom, Marshall turned on the shower and ran cold water over his head and soaked his torso, clothes and all in the process. He chose a bad time to drink so much, when he needed to focus so severely.


Still wet from the cold shower, he paced his room, lifting his vest and un holstering the pistol as he checked the weapon for ammunition. Slow down... What're you doing? He did exactly what he was suppose to do... You really brought it upon yourself. You need to own up to this, Garrett, stop running. He took a seat at his desk and rubbed his eyes, this was torture, his body was more tired than ever but he couldn't allow himself to rest... Not now. He imagined it wouldn't be long until Captain Adira and Commander Woods came barging in here and tried to arrest him. Or... If his theory was correct and Marshall had unwittingly provoked the INANES and exposed the operation... They might come to kill him.


Holstering the pistol, he stood from the desk, dried his head and shoulders and approached the door, cautiously unlocking the door and peaking out into the hallway. The coast seemed clear and with steady stride, Marshall power walked through the halls, away from the Mess Decks and took the long route around to the cargo hold and approached the Tin-Can. He opened the torso and silently thanked himself he hadn't shown anyone how to operate the suit. Climbing into the open torso, Marshall closed the torso up and sealed the cockpit as if he were headed into a vacuum. Once he was confident that the armor couldn't be breached, he shut everything down from the inside, the suit looked dead as ever and Marshall found himself almost instantly falling asleep while sitting within the suit of armor.