come_sailaway | AUGUST EVENT: DRAGSTRIP RIOT

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AUGUST EVENT: DRAGSTRIP RIOT

[it begins with a PA announcement on the morning of the 12th, Friday’s voice coming through clear and cheerful.]

Any passengers that wish to debark to our latest port of call can exit the ship through the metal detectors on deck zero! Please be advised that all alcohol will be confiscated prior to your exit!

[and whoever heads down to the lowest deck will find that what she said was true: there is a metal detector set up there, with Friday manning it. after placing all metal objects (including weapons, and all your weapons) onto the tray, she gestures for the passenger to step through the metal detector.

they exit in an entirely different location. suffering from a splitting headache, and wearing an entirely different outfit than they had put on this morning, but unscathed. they even got their weapons back!

the interior of the diner is essentially your average jonathan rockets establishment. the narrow lane between booths and counter is manned by an entirely mute Friday clone, who cheerily takes orders and serves up food (cooked??? somewhere???) with an almost unnatural talent for roller blading. there is a jukebox in the corner that can be fed with quarters passengers will inexplicably find on their person. the available songs range from the 50s to the 80s, with a particularly wide selection of songs from the platters.

outside, the diner is a great chrome boxcar, circled by a small parking lot. a large neon sign proclaims it to be GIL’S; it buzzes and flickers on and off often. passengers who have regained vehicles will find these vehicles parked outside. there are also a handful of midcentury American cars; none of them seem to require keys, and the gas tank seems set at full.

past the parking lot is a seemingly endless expanse of desert sand and scrubland, bisecting by the empty highway that the diner abuts. a few miles down this highway, the road forks into a smaller one, which winds its way up a steep, ragged mountain until plateauing into another parking lot, with only a small, old wooden fence between the cars and the edge of the cliff.

should they wish to return to the ship, passengers can leave at any time the same way they entered: walking through a doorway that now claims to be a mop closet. passing through will leave them on deck zero, again with a splitting headache. it’s probably fine.]

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"Why thank you." He will graciously accept all compliments because while he knows he looks good, it's nice to have that confirmed. Even though he suspects Fio would tell him the same no matter what he was wearing.

"Ah, you do not have automobiles in your world." He shakes his head sadly, how do people live without cars? A travesty. "They're called cars. All of these are versions of them, except the one with the flat part in the back, that's a truck. And they're used for transportation much like a carriage, but far faster and easier."

Folding the cloth he'd been using as a polishing rag he tucks it in his pocket. "Would you like to go for a ride? I can't guarantee there's much to see out in the desert, but you can see more of it without having to walk."

Of course she would compliment him no matter what. Or she would just opt to say nothing at all. She doesn't want to hurt his feelings...

Her gaze darts around at the rest of the vehicles parked out front. Automobiles, cars, and trucks. Fio lets out a soft drawn-out 'oh' after he explains. It's easy enough for her to follow along. She just keeps on learning something new from Max!

"Uh..." And some shy fidgeting before answering. This is not the jewel-studded carriages with princesses in picture books or the ones she would watch the nobility ride in past her small town. But Fio's sure viewing it like one... the car's shiny, sleek, and very expensive-looking. She would have never been allowed to ride something like this!

Trying not to bounce too much on her heels now. "I would love to go for a ride!"

"Excellent." He sounds pleased because that means he gets to show his car off and he loves doing that. Maybe there's a small shred of him that wants to see how Fio will react to her first car-ride. Humans can be fascinating and she's definitely one of the most interesting.

Like the world's most elaborate chauffer he will open the door for her, "Madame," he'll even help her into the seat and with the seat belt so that she doesn't go flying if some other idiot crashes into them. He's been keeping an eye on all these people learning to drive, and he's not been impressed.

Once back behind the wheel himself he pushes a button and the car purrs to life with a gentle hum. It softly rises a few inches off the ground, the wheels hovering just over the road making the ride extremely smooth and allowing him to drive wherever he likes without worrying about rocks or uneven terrain.

And they're off!

"...Hee hee. Thank you." Way to make her feel more like some kind of little princess, Max. Fio giggles as she's guided in and all buckled up.

Inside, she sits prim and proper with her hands folded in her lap. On her best behavior, as if she's afraid any kind of movement she makes might ruin the interior of this expensive car. It's not until the car starts moving that she turns her head to look out the window in awe, as she watches the desert pass and the diner grow smaller in the distance. For others, a desert's probably dull when it comes to scenery, but she's never really seen one outside of her dreams until now...

The ride's smooth and fast, far unlike the unsteadiness of the wooden wagons she used to ride on short trips. Eventually, she allows her childish excitement to leak out. "This is way nicer than any old wagon or carriage! You must've traveled to all sorts of places in this!"

"I have indeed. But I rarely get to drive for the sake of simply enjoying it." He sighs, the downside of being a billionaire wanted terrorist is that he was always living with the threat of being murdered or kidnapped. He rarely went anywhere without a fleet of guards to prevent anything from happening. Which didn't lend itself well to sightseeing.

"Admittedly I've never been in a wagon, there aren't many horses in my world. Or well, they're not used as beasts of burden any longer. Is that's what people in your world use for travelling? Horses and carriages?"

"Oh. Is it 'cause you had to go to work and stuff, right?" Omnics have to do important grownup things too, right? Fio's gaze lingers towards the window. Mostly sand and a variety of different shaped shrubs for her to observe. Unsurprising. But she keeps watching to see if she might spot anything different...

"Uh-huh. Merchants used wagons... and the Nobles had these big, fancy carriages, sometimes with sparkling jewels on them. I've only rode in a wagon a few times. I mostly walked to get where I needed to be..." School, fetching the rations, or to make a short trip to the outskirts of town where she can spend time playing in her secret playground of a rundown building.

Max, for all his negotiation tactics and business acumen, is not actually a very convincing liar. Probably some residual programming where machines shouldn't be able to lie at all. But what he is good at is half truths, and sidestepping answers, which is what he does now.

"Ah, yes. Something like that. And the town where I do most of my business is rather closed in. It's on an island, quite old and historic, and the roads are narrow which does not make for a relaxing driving experience."

Generally because he's usually being chased and has a full escort of hired goons around to keep him safe.

"I see. I hadn't realized you were from a place that had travelling merchants and carriages." She didn't exactly dress like a medieval peasant so he has no idea what he actually expected - mostly that he didn't give much thought to her background.

The only time she's dressed in a way that reflects her former lowly status is during her first day on the ship and perhaps only Jade and Friday are aware of it. Talk of her background is a subject that she tends to avoid, but telling him of how transportation felt harmless enough. She doesn't feel inclined to comment any further unless he asks. So she focuses more on Max.

"What did you do on your vacations? ...Did you have vacation days?"

An island sounds nice to her. Not for the narrow roads, but that must mean there's beaches to visit! Then again, she knows he can't go near water. Getting sand on his expensive suit would be a problem too...

"Yes occasionally." His tone softer than normal, because well, he doesn't actually mention properties he owns normally because they're supposed to be secret so he doesn't have Overwatch at his door trying to arrest him when he's just trying to live and relax.

"I have a chalet in France. A small cabin I suppose, nothing more than a bedroom and a sitting area. But one wall is entirely glass and it overlooks a mountainscape down into a valley. It's beautiful when it's covered in snow - everything glistens and there's these bushes that have bright red berries. Almost the only thing with any color out there."

A place where he can sit and simply be. No plans and machinations, no avoiding the authorities or making negotiations. Slow nothingness where he can do the Omnic equivalent of unwinding.

"Ohhh, a chalet..." Yet another new vocabulary word for her, which she repeats quietly to herself in wonderment. "That does sound really pretty!"

A snowy landscape is much more familiar to her than the expanse of desert sand, so she can sort of imagine the scenery with her mind. She wonders if they'll be able to experience the winter season. Or at least see some snow on another excursion. She misses playing in the snow.

"Did you spend your vacation with anyone?" A beat, then she asks, "...Do you have any brothers? Or sisters?"

Hopefully Max is able to deal with a lot of questions from a curious little girl during this car ride.

"It is lovely." He's been thinking about being back in his world the entire time he's been on this cursed ship. But he hasn't really been homesick in the same way that others were, though he's approaching that now for the first time.

"No, I prefer to be alone. And well, that's complicated. There's hundreds like me, only a few the same model, but we're all similar from the same factory. Omnic's don't have familial relationships in the same way humans do. Because we're not born, we're made - so it's simply... different."

He's pretty sure it's better, but he can't claim that with any authority since he's never experienced or seen the alternative. He'd prefer to choose who he keeps company with, not that he's been able to here where he's shoved together with plenty of people he would avoid at all costs normally, but maybe there's something to the family concept. Humans have been living in family groups for millennia so there must be a benefit.

"And you?"

It's when he starts talking about hundreds of models being manufactured in a factory that she becomes lost in his explanation. It is complicated. Although, she feels she might have dreamed of someone of a similar background, long ago. For now, she doesn't comment any further and simply accepts the reason for his situation being 'different'...

And the subject of her family is always a difficult one. With her heart healing through the bonds formed with others on the ship, it's not as painful to talk about now. At least not to Max, knowing that he's a close friend of Skulduggery. Still, there's a stretch of silence as she watches more shrubs and cacti through the window before Fio can properly form words to answer.

"I had a mommy and daddy, back home. But they went away after... everything became too much to handle." Her voice becomes soft, calm and collected, with a noticeable lack of her usual cheerfulness, "The people here treat me far better than they ever did."

If he understood more about humans and their family connections and how they view things, he might assume that 'went away' was a metaphor for them having died. But he doesn't quite have the capacity to read between the lines of personal things, so he simply thinks they abandoned her. Which is odd, considering how most people in his world acted about their children.

He's not sure what to say either, should he show sympathy? He probably doesn't want to say she's better off here because that also doesn't seem right. Hm.

"Well, I am glad that those here have been good companions to you. I'm finding out that it's difficult to be thrown into a new place without any network. Forming all those connections is... difficult. Especially with how different all our worlds are." He turns the car before they would get to the barrier that looped them back through to the other side - he's not a fan of the disorienting feeling of suddenly being in a different place. "My world doesn't have magic, so everything that happens here seems wrong in a way. Because it's hard to parse things that defy understanding."

He asked about it, so she answered. She's not sure what kind of answer she wants to hear or expect from him. Honestly, she isn't really expecting anything at all. The subject is something she wants to move on from quickly. And she doesn't want to look so dismal right now either...

"Hee hee. You're a good companion, Max! Thank you for driving me around today." Back to beaming happily as she turns away from the window.

Then she leans back more comfortably in her seat. "Do you wanna go back to your own world?"

Magic isn't something that's part of the norm in her own world, as far as she knows, while confined to a small stagnant town. But she's no stranger to all sorts of supernatural happenings especially within her dreams. Much of it which she never bothered to question. She usually took such strange occurrences with stride...

"Well thank you, and of course. You should get to see more of this world while it's here. I'm certain that like the forest around the camp, it'll only be here for a short while." Normally he might push back about being a good companion because, he's pretty sure he isn't? But since she bundled it with mentioning driving around he will let it pass. Who knew negotiations with Max could be won by complimenting his car?

"Yes I think so. There's, of course, things I don't miss about it, but it's also where I have the most leverage and resources. Here I have nothing, and it's not a feeling I enjoy. And everyone else's worlds don't sound more appealing. Though admittedly most people only bring up the negatives."

Sometimes Max strings together a bunch of words together into sentences that Fio doesn't quite understand. Which she doesn't mind at all. Then there's other times where she's able to pick up and understand new, more complicated terms from him. Max is a good companion! And... teacher? She can't wait to use the fancy new vocabulary word 'automobile' in front of Skulduggery later...

"I'm sorry you don't like it here..."

True, she can mostly think of the negatives whenever asked about her own world. Far too little good things that she can think of. She should probably tell him that she hopes that he could go back someday, but the thought about others going away also makes her sad.

"Hm. You've got your car now. It's a really nice car!" Yes, she will dish out more compliments for the car. "So that's something."

He drums his fingers on the steering wheel, thinking. "I'm not sure I like it at home in my world either. But it's familiar, and it's what I expect. I'm not sure exactly how to parse that, but being here means being under the Captain's purview and I assuredly do not enjoy that."

But he brightens up because yes! His car is very nice and he likes it so much. "It is, and it's been a welcome change of pace to drive it around."

Now that they've made a wide circle around the perimeter of the area he starts to head back to the diner.

"I'd be happy to take you for a drive whenever you wish."

"Yeah, I don't enjoy being under the Captain's per-vyu either!" ...Fio has absolutely no idea what that word means. All she knows is that when she hears about the Captain, she just thinks of scary things. As much as she enjoys the amenities on the ship, she still thinks about living in a more peaceful world, in a house, with a family. She wants to go to school again and make friends closer to her age. Just live a very ordinary life. Nothing fancy.

As the car loops back around, Fio sits up straight to watch the window with interest. Somehow it's entertaining to wait expectantly for the diner to come back to view, even though it's not like it's going to be the first time she's seen the building.

"Thanks, Max." She grins. Well, she knows what a desert looks like now. "Maybe next time we'll drive through a place with lots of green! And flowers! Or a big ol' city with all sorts of buildings!"

He chuckles but doesn't correct her pronunciation. He's never had a conversation with a child before other than her, and he doesn't really know he's supposed to talk to them any different than an adult. Max might not be able to use smaller words if his life depended on it.

"Of course. I'm trying to drive as much as possible in case this place vanishes like the camping area. Once back on the ship I don't have access to my car." He sounds disappointed because he's not allowed in the garage even though all he would do is wash his car daily.

"I think a city might be nice, that's more like where I'm from - and I strangely miss buildings. Which is an odd thing to be nostalgic about, and yet I wouldn't mind a nice cityscape with a sunset behind it. The sound of traffic, people talking, the bustle of city life." Max is a city boy through and through. He may enjoy vacationing to the country, but his home is downtown.

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AUGUST EVENT: DRAGSTRIP RIOT

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