video ||

[axeyou]

[Johanna flicks on the video with a glare. The room around her is dark; the screen lights her face from below. When she speaks, her voice is a little rough and hoarse, like she's been shouting a lot, very recently. (She has.)]

Hi, friends. [She bites out the word.] Just a little message for you all. You've all gotten really comfortable on this hunk of junk you're calling a ship--or what's passing as a ship-- [And she manages a little smirk at that--] --which, come on, it's crap. But I get it, it's not yours. You're all just prisoners here, it did some horrible things to you... yeah.

And that's where this comes in.

[She holds up her arm, where her tattoo is clearly stamped out, fresh and new.]

See this thing? This isn't a fashion accessory. This is bullshit. The last time someone shoved something in my arm and told me to smile and get on with my life, I didn't put up with it. I'm getting this thing out of myself, and if any of you have any sense--you'll do the same. You wonder how they get to you? It's things like this. But I'll bet you already knew that.

Well, fuck that. Fuck all of it. I'm not doing that again.

You want us to join up and help you run this ship? --Or resist this ship, or fight whatever you think is here? Here's my offer. First person that tells me how to get this thing out of my arm without dying, I'll join whatever they're running. And you want me on your side.

[JOHANNA OUT.]

Comments

video;

[suddenlycaptain]

Counter offer.

[ Carolyn's got grease on her cheek just under her eye, upward in a slash; it gives an effect like warpaint. ]

The nanites are bullshit. Unfortunately, they're the only thing that lets you back into medical so you don't die next time the ship jumps through space. It's happened before; there's not even a body left by the time the jump ends. Just gore.

But I run the flight crew. The shuttles are, for the moment, the only way off this deathtrap we have if it decides to fuck us over for good. You come down, work there; you can sleep there if you want, I don't give a shit. You learn how to fix one, how to fly one, and you learn how to get the hell out of here and survive if it comes down to it.

video;

[axeyou]

You know, that gore and death thing, that really doesn't surprise me. Pretty standard stuff for a big controlling faceless thing, just another way to keep us in line. What does surprise me is that no one's worked out a way around that yet. Come on. Why do revolutions move so slow?

[...but the offer of having a guaranteed way of getting out of here is pretty tempting. Despite what comes with it.]

Nice suggestion. I like the part where I get to leave, even if I don't need your help on surviving. Is this how people do interviews around here?

[voice]

[jurisimpudent]

Ma'am, as has been stated, that mark is crucial to accessing certain necessary services aboard the ship. There is no way to remove it; even if there were, it would be unwise to do so.

[voice]

[axeyou]

Because of the threat of death. Yeah. I've heard that one before.

Do you have anything else you want to just spew back at me before I shut this thing off?

text, auggielocked;

[altercate]

Cut it off.

[ this is 110% sarcasm AND YET ]

text, auggielocked;

[axeyou]

[And yet such a good answer.]

The whole arm?

[slipperysoul]

If you take it out, can I watch?

[ that's what she said ]

[axeyou]

[a m u s e d , but:]

No.

And do you want to know why? Because this isn't about you getting off on watching someone do a little self-mutilation.

anonymous text;

[seidhr]

have you tried burning it?

regular texts back

[axeyou]

Burning the ink off? It's still in my arm. Unless I just roast my whole arm.

[coffeeking]

Theoretically, we could remove the nanites. We could possibly figure out how they tick and how to get them out without damage. Before that though, we'd have to figure out how to re-route power through the doors so we could still access the necessary parts of the ship without the nanites.

The single biggest complication to both of these things is that the ship is watching us. It knows what we're doing, and will directly act against our efforts. It's done so in the past. So step number one has to be figuring out how to undermine its control, which is messy and complicated and probably not the easy answer you wanted to hear.

And no, cutting your arm off won't work. They're not just in your arm.

[axeyou]

Finally, good information. It's so good, I'm not even going to be mad at you. Maimed is a really stupid look.

[But she stares briefly at her arm, like she can see the path from the tattoo to-- wherever else they go. Filing that away for later.]

I don't want an easy answer. I just want these things out of my arm, and I want it to happen now. Or as soon as you can get around to it, if it's no trouble, and blah blah blah blah. Please, and thank you. Blah blah.

[--And then, immediately, she makes a noise of frustration, totally belying that please and thank you.]

What's it done against you? People have tried this, right? Or is it really all theories and guesses, because I have to say, you're all just totally lazy, if that's your best answer.

[expect]

Uh, well, it's probably possible… ( with an air of 'what am i saying.' but it's not like he's much more comfortable with his new tattoo either. )

[axeyou]

Anything is possible.

Do you like yours?

video;

[jondrette]

A knife. Don't cut too deep, just enough to slice off the top of your flesh.

[Hello, have a morbid thought from Eponine.]

video;

[axeyou]

[not bad, but--]

Too bad they bury them deep, otherwise that might have been a decent suggestion. Keep trying.

voice;

[20mentholkools]

Last guy that said he could do it left before he got useful.

voice;

[axeyou]

Yeah, yeah. He got it out, no one knows how, which is a shame, because that's the only part of that little story I care about--then he got sick, and then he was gone. He sounds like a really great guy. I bet everyone misses him.

If that's how you get to go back where you came from, maybe I don't want to cut it out.

video.

[striking]

I'll cut your arm off for you.

[ true friendship. ]

video.

[axeyou]

[best friends.]

Aww. I didn't know you cared. But aren't you more of a bow and arrow kind of girl?

text;

[dogbane]

If you do wind up chopping anything off your person Id recommend saving it. Then you could bring it into medical for reattachment if you change your mind.

The whole things utter balls though. Im with you there.

text;

[axeyou]

If I change my mind, which I wouldn't, I'm not letting anyone in medical near me. Like I'd need their help. If I take something off, it's off to stay.

Maybe I'll wear it around my neck on a chain instead. Turn it into a real fashion accessory.

[loveordeath]

And if you can't?

[axeyou]

I can.

But cutting off my arm is sounding better and better.

video;

[unmothered]

Yes. We're all sitting here passively putting up with it. It's like the luxury cruise we never knew we wanted.

[Can you hear how little patience Regina has with these insinuations? Spoilers it is none at all.]

What are you planning on trying? Cutting your arm off?

video;

[axeyou]

I could cut yours off instead. Then it'd really be like a cruise.

[totally cheerful! for now.]

Oh, wait. It wouldn't. But at least we'd know what happens.

[Video]

[alldamned]

Now, now, let's not be gettin' ahead of ourselves. Not everyone here's exactly comfortable.

[He's all for speaking out against the place; he might be new himself, and he might still be learning about what it means to be trapped here, but that doesn't mean he's got any naive preconceived notions about it. Even in one month, he's already seen enough to have him missing a certain forest.]

Short of loppin' the whole thing off, haven't heard of any solution yet, but doesn't mean there ain't one to be found. You said this kinda thing happened to you before? Well, what'd you do that time, huh? Seems like as good a place as any to start.

[He might sound mellow, but he's all for Operation: GTFO.]

[Video]

[axeyou]

Then you're really good at pretending like you are. Because if it was me, and I was here for longer than a few days? I'd be tearing down the fucking walls, not just getting on with my shitty life.

[So there, how's that for speaking out!]

And I cut it out of someone's arm, last time. With a knife. They gave me that knife in my locker, really thoughtful of them. Want to see if I can get yours out with it? Maybe we'll have some luck.

anon text;

[endureandsurvive]

why would taking the nanites even matter
ud still be on the ship

regular text back 4ever

[axeyou]

I don't like surveillance. It makes me itchy.

And when it comes time to get off of this ship, who do you think gets to leave easier? The people they're tracking or the people that aren't on their radar? Come on. Even an idiot can answer that one.