[semi-open] we got to get up and organize

[not_the_last]

Who: Team Mutiny (including infiltrators, double agents, and those attempting to play both sides)
When: Early February
Where: Cabin 159
What: The second semi-official meeting of mutinous malcontents (say hi, mutinous malcontents!)
Warnings: Game-typical angst; other warnings to be added in reply headers as needed

---

She's passed the word quietly, asked others to do the same. Been as careful as possible not to let the word spread any further. With no other good options presenting themselves, she's asked Lieutenant Tayrey to host the meeting in her cabin.

It's been just over a month since they last met on the subject. Time and past to reconvene.

[See headers below!]

Comments

[not_the_last]

"Before we begin," Cassandra says as everyone settles down. "Two important points I'd like to raise.

"The first: This was called as a closed meeting. I would like to recommend this step to try to keep us secure. Each of us check the people to our left, right, before and behind. If you don't know them well enough to trust, and nobody else you do know that well can vouch for them, they'll be asked to leave. If anyone objects to that measure, please speak up."

[neverleave]

"Peter Smith asked to join this meeting and hear our side." Natsuno already warned them beforehand, but a reminder can't hurt. "If there's anything you absolutely don't want him to hear you say, do it before he arrives."

[hellonspectacles]

"I would like to recommend we ward the door," Palamedes says before the meeting can move much further along. "That will ensure that no one new will be able to come in once we have begun our discussion in earnest." He seeks out Ari and meets her gaze. "I can remove them once we are done. If you will allow it, Lieutenant?"

[astrogator]

[Ari Tayrey's heart had sunk when Cassandra had told her there was nobody else able to host the meeting, but she wouldn't have made the offer if she wasn't willing. It makes sense. Her cabin is private, secure. That matters more than her discomfort, the breach of cultural rules. If nothing else, Ari knows how to put the mission first.

When the others arrive, they'll find an unusual setup. Ari's bed (and her food stores, determined prepper that she is) are hidden behind a folding screen. The rest of the room, the visible part, is set up more like an office. The walls are covered in hand-drawn star charts and technical drawings - plus Peter Smith's sketch of Ari! An enormous crystal stands in one corner, her prize from the Price is Right game. She has provided tea and coffee, and set up as many chairs as will fit in the space. Otherwise, the cabin is very minimalist. Everything stored away neatly.

When everyone has arrived, Ari speaks up too.]

I have a request. I know this is a... very emotive topic, and debate is to be expected. Encouraged. But we're a lot of people in a relatively confined space. Keep it civil, please? Or if you can't - take it outside.' [She gestures towards the door. Ari won't be surprised if people want to yell at each other or fight over this - she understands it, she just doesn't want it in her cabin.] Hear one another out. You're in here under peaceable contract.

[not_the_last]

"The second point," Cassandra says once the first has been resolved. "I have no doubt that many of us already know most of this, but I want to put it into perspective. Two of us who were here last time, Steve Harrington and Eddie Munson, have since vanished from the ship. A third, Rich Goranski, has also vanished -- and while he was not with us last time, I spoke to him and he expressed interest in joining us. He would be here tonight, if he were still here and able to."

She looks around at everyone. "This is not, to my mind, anything like sufficient evidence that we are being targeted, and I hesitate to even suggest it. Nonetheless, I felt I would be remiss to not point it out before it reached the stage where it might be. I will not judge, and I will recommend in strongest possible terms that no one else judge either, if anyone feels that being here puts them in danger and wishes to leave."

"And now to business."

[not_the_last]

[Further discussion to go here, or begin a new subthread below.]

what we know, what we might know, what we think we know

[prince_of_beasts]

Dimitri has brought the notebooks he used during the possessions. He lays them out on the table, flipping to clean pages in each.

"We discussed clarifying our knowledge last time. We may doubt the information we've previously received from Skulduggery, but I have cause to believe at least some of it is true, and not all of our information comes from him."

He separates a page into two columns, the one to the left narrower.

"I move we revisit what we've learned, or been told, thus far -- but make sure this time to record the source of the information, and on what it's based."

[not_the_last]

"Agreed," says Cassandra firmly. "Shall we begin with anything we've observed firsthand?"

[prince_of_beasts]

There's a small chance of experiencing a "time skip", in which a passenger acquires new memories and physical traits, as if they had been returned home for a time, and then brought back to the moment they'd left. At home, they have no knowledge of their time on the ship, but those memories return when they do. Skulduggery experienced one shortly before my arrival, which he told me of.

[astrogator]

[Ari is extremely pleased by the suggestion, and gives Dimitri an approving nod. When she has the opportunity, she makes her own small contribution.]

There was an expedition to investigate the truth of the so-called 'infinite' store. While I can't prove conclusively that it's actually infinite, I can say for sure that you can walk into it for three days without finding an end, and that the displays begin... looping, in a way that's congruent with it extending infinitely. Any damage is automatically repaired.

I have detailed observational notes and measurements from the expedition. I also have data on the night sky dating back several months, which indicates that the stars act erratically. We are not on a planet, moving through an ocean. It's all... backdrop. I have been told the same by an expert in meteorology who has collected similar data on weather, again over a period of months.

The same is true of the ship itself. There is... nothing beneath the surface when you examine it. No water pipes. No wiring or conduits. I haven't been able to determine how the ship replenishes its supply of fuel or food. [And that last part troubles her deeply.]

here to hear them out | ota

[be_seeing_you]

Number 6 arrives purposefully late. He anticipates that Natsuno will give them forewarning and they may want some private discussion beforehand. Ten minutes ought to be enough, he hopes.

"It's Peter," he announces, waiting to be let in. Once he is, he steps to the center of the room to give them an address he's prepared in advance.

"I'm sure many of you are suspicious of my coming here. That's reasonable and I do understand your concern. I don't expect any of you to accept me easily. That said, I come here in good faith. I have heard the arguments made by Skulduggery and his closest friends and associates. You are all, I'm sure, aware of my relationship with Ava Starr and her close association with Skulduggery. I do sympathize with them. However, I am less convinced. After what happened in December, I feel I have good reason to doubt. Even if their plan were to succeed, it's too slow. And we continue to lose good people to that void of nothingness. I cannot tolerate it. I cannot. So, I am here to see what insights you have to offer. I shall be frank: my aim is not to kill the Captain. My goal is to escape from him and to free the rest of those souls who have been taken by him already. That is, to my mind, the most important thing. I will achieve that by whatever means necessary. If that aligns with your own goals, then I could be an asset to you."

Once he's finished with that speech, he will wait, ready to answer any questions or replies they have for him.

[not_the_last]

Cassandra doesn't respond at once; she wants to hear what others have to say first. But she's studying Peter's face, to see how he reacts to those others.

[hellonspectacles]

Palamedes watches Peter as the man lays out his case for being here, his expression closed-off and gaze scrutinizing. “Skulduggery claims that his relationship with the Captain has improved life aboard the ship. He’s a clever man in many ways, but in this matter I believe him to be incredibly short-sighted. Now, a gilded cage is still a cage, in my mind, but his assessment is wrong on the merits, too. People still vanish without warning; the Captain is still willing to reap our souls and consign up to nothingness in order to fuel his powers. Were our friends to cease disappearing, I might consider the Captain changed. But I’m not holding my breath.” He smiles grimly. “How often do people willingly give up power once it is in their grasp?”

“But onto my question: since you say you are sympathetic to Skulduggery points, do you believe the Captain is ‘improving’? And in what way, exactly?”

[glassaxolotl]

Dedue waits for a lull in the conversation before he stands up to make an announcement.

“I would like to be here, but I must let you all know now: I have offered my protection to Darcy and Skullduggery if a confrontation does occur that involves them. That protection does not extend to the Captain. However, if anyone is not comfortable with my presence at this meeting, I will leave.”

[prince_of_beasts]

Dimitri adopts a 'speak up, I dare you' scowl. "I trust Dedue with my life and more. If anyone objects to his presence, I'll depart as well. There's nothing I know that he does not, and I will not keep secrets from him."

[pinballer]

Vance stays quieter than usual. With Steve, Eddie, and Rich gone he can't help but feel like something's missing. When they were all together he felt passionate about what they were doing, but with each friend he loses a little bit more of his anger turns to despair. Which is, all things considered, more dangerous.

"I think we need to shit or get off the pot," he says, because he can't think of a less crass metaphor right now. "The longer we talk it over the more people go missing. If we want to take the Captain down we need to make a plan and go for it."

[not_the_last]

"I feel the same way," says Cassandra. "Even if it's a coincidence that the recent cluster of losses was from among our own ranks ... I don't consider anyone's disappearance acceptable."

A deep breath. "But. For the same reason ... I feel very strongly that we cannot afford to commit to a desperate plan that doesn't have a very high chance of working. Because I think it's very likely that if we move directly against the Captain and fail --" Stressing the last two words, looking around at everyone and then back to Vance -- "we will doom not just ourselves but everyone else aboard. Because he won't differentiate between us."

Time to spill some tea

[neverleave]

Natsuno is still a little sick after messing with mysterious magical vials, but he wouldn't miss this meeting. Don't mind the feverish sheen in his eyes or the new white streak in his hair, it's fine.

"Some of you already know I've been trying to figure out what kind of creature the captain is. I think I have a pretty good idea now."

His closest friends already know, but he doesn't disclose it to the room yet.

"But first I want to make something clear. I'm against using this information to find a way to bind him again. Not because I have any sympathy for him, but because I believe it'll only make things worse."

[glassaxolotl]

“I agree,” Dedue responds.
“I am strongly against the idea of forcing him into a state of captivity.”

[not_the_last]

Cassandra, for obvious reasons, can hardly help but notice the new white streak in his hair. She hasn't commented on it and she doesn't now, but her eyes flick up to it when she responds to him.

"I'd be interested to hear why you believe it will make things worse."

[not_the_last]

"In all of this discussion," Cassandra says to Natsuno when most of it has died down, "I don't think we've circled back to your original point. You said you think you've a pretty good idea of what the Captain is."

[before the bomb drop]

[prince_of_beasts]

Unfortunately, Dimitri is a chronic worrier and too nosy for his own good. During a lull in the meeting, he shuffles over to Natsuno, lowers his voice, and asks, "Are you alright? Pardon the intrusion, but you don't look well."

[hellonspectacles]

“I want to turn our attention to the matter of escaping the Serena Eterna and returning home,” says Palamedes when an appropriate lull falls over the room. “I believe everyone is aware that the Captain claims that we cannot return to our lives. There is a possibility that he is lying. There is a possibility that he is right. There is even a possibility that the Captain believes that to be true, but is incorrect. For now, I’m acting on the assumption that we need further evidence.”



He straightens his shoulders. “I believe I may know a way for our souls to travel cross-dimensionally and reunite with our original bodies. We call it the River where I come from. It is terribly dangerous, but if we can access it, it may serve as a conduit to anywhere in the multiverse.”

[glassaxolotl]

This catches Dedue’s attention.

“How does it work, and what are the risks involved?”

meeting minutes

[skaikru]

For her part, Clarke's here. Not uncharacteristically quiet, but seemingly content situated beside the curtain Ari has erected to quarter off her bed when not otherwise gravitating around Natsuno and Palamedes like they're miniature planets. And, much like last time, she's got a composition book open and is taking notes.

Super, super useful notes. No attempt to hide them, come glance over her elbow at your leisure and witness:

— beef tartar, chicken strips?, bolognese sauce
— colloquialism: singing in the garden rushes
— baby food: alabaster incarnate muffin
— garter gauze buffalo chicken "wings" trajectory sum "dictionary of chicken and waffles"

cream of wheat: ||||||
garden salad: |||
water cup: ||
banana bread: |||
spaghetti: SudafedPM

Well, all of that certainly looks like word soup. Except if you squint just right at that last point, the word spaghetti does a little wibbly wobbly realignment and may even take on the shape of the word escape. Coded meeting notes, she's taking coded meeting notes. In part, it's an homage to the second to last time Clarke had spoken with Steve Harrington, before he'd disappeared; mostly it just feels practical, especially as the conversations begin heating up. No one ask how and no one mind the bandaid on the pointer finger that's gripping the pen.