text;

[technologist]

[ Home vs. the Tranquility is an obvious choice for most people. For the ones from somewhere particularly awful, the ship's the better option; and for some, there isn't much of an option at all.

Fitz had spent several months thinking he was part of the latter group. He'd thought home meant certain death, so he should appreciate cheating it while he had the chance. Since that had been proven wrong, home had resumed being the obvious choice, despite all its complications — but now Jemma's here, and things are somehow better than they'd been back at the Playground. Add to that a friendly research team offering help to the passengers of the TQ, and the end result is dwelling on questions he probably shouldn't be.

And a broad question for the network, minus much context. ]

Whenever the ship's docked somewhere, it's been too dangerous to stay. But if it wasn't, or if you could get off the ship without going home, would you? If it were possible to go somewhere safe. Different, and not home, but safe.

Comments

[tongueamok]

Into people's heads? How so?

[technologist]

With the monsters, for one. Last month they were creatures people knew from home, I think? And once the halls went all— what's the name of that artist who draws the stairs.

[tongueamok]

I wasn't aware there was an artist who's known for drawing stairs. Any stairs in particular?

[technologist]

The one where they're all inside out. With the perspective all weird. [ But right, different worlds. Could be a useless reference. ] The hallways get funny, sometimes, so when you walk through one door you end up coming out of one on the entirely wrong end of the ship. That's happened, but with... memories, sort of. Or just information, personal things.

[tongueamok]

So they make you go mad. Is that what you're saying?

[technologist]

[ Wow, rude. He sounds a little offended. ]

None of us are mad. Or— yeah, maybe some of us are, but that's not all because of the ship. Whatever it does, it's not just in our imagination. It affects the tech, as well.

[tongueamok]

[He catches that tone, and lets out a quiet, indignant huff for himself. Maybe it's time to drift from that line of questioning toward another.]

Tech?

[technologist]

Technology. The mapping systems, and the comms— the signals always drop out, and the cameras can never record anything properly.

That and other people see it, as well. So unless they're shared hallucinations, they've got to be real on some level.

[tongueamok]

Oh, right.

[Yeah, he knew that. He totally knew what technology meant. He is well aware of all these newfangled doodads, yep.]

So if it's the ship doing all that, is it alive? Enchanted?

[technologist]

[ Ah, key words. ]

Have you got magic? In your world, I mean.

[tongueamok]

Er, yes. Though the way you ask that makes it sound like not everyone does. Not 'have magic,' I mean, but even have the capacity for it where they come from.

[technologist]

That's because they haven't got it. We didn't have it, where I'm from. Or not yet, anyway— there was science that looked a lot like magic, but actual magic's something else entirely, yeah?

We think the ship's a mix of both, for what it's worth. Science and magic. That means it could be enchanted, actually.

[tongueamok]

I'd assumed there had to be magic of some kind involved since it spirited us here.

[technologist]

You'd be surprised. Science has fairly good explanations for that, it's just got to do with dimensions and timelines. Alternate universes, that sort of thing.

[tongueamok]

I tend to leave the science to the alchemists and machinists. I don't know a great deal about it myself. Not really my field of study.

[Though he's not sure alchemists and machinists study alternate universes, to be honest.]

[technologist]

What is your field of study?

[tongueamok]

Primarily clerical. I'm trained in somatic and gestural healing, as well as glyphcrafting.

[technologist]

[ what and what. ]

So magic.

[tongueamok]

Well, yes, to put it simply. But not all schools of it.

[technologist]

You should speak to some of the other magic users. You could compare notes.

[tongueamok]

Are there many others here?