ataraxion | 001. video; Public Service Announcement

001. video; Public Service Announcement

Guessing everyone's feeling a little closer to compos mentis now. Great, that's gonna make this a whole lot easier.

My name is Nathan Petrelli. I'm Senator for New York, elected representative of the people, and recently made Head of Homeland Security by the President himself. It's my job to do what's in the best interests of the people, and in this case I figure that's gonna be easier said than done.

I don't want any of you to worry. Once I get up to speed on the details of what's going on here, I intend to get to the bottom of how we got here, why we were brought here, and how to go about getting back. And I mean how and why, not the bullshit they've been feeding you about jumping and wormholes and the ship needing a crew. There's a malicious intent here I'm gonna address, and then I'm getting everyone back where we belong.

I realise we're not all Americans here, and maybe you think I have no jurisdiction, but I earned the right to intervene the moment I woke up with a tube shoved down my throat, just like everyone else. I want to speak to people who know the most about this place, or be directed toward them. Captain Kirk: you're on my list for starters, but I'd rather speak to the real Captain, rather than some washed up wannabe.

Oh, and before I wrap this up, there's one other thing. A few of you will have spoken to my brother, Peter; he got here during the 'jump' previous to this one, and as I understand it he's been pretty liberal with his imagination ever since. Some time ago my brother convinced himself that he could fly. He stood on top of a twelve story building one day, called me up and told me he was going to show me he could do it. He jumped, and he fell - fortunately only as far as the fire escape - and a couple days later woke up in the hospital with minor injuries. It wasn't long after my father's death, right in the middle of my run for Congress, and I guess he was desperate for attention.

What I'm trying to say is that he's had brushes with depression before - it runs in the family - and he's not exactly stable right now. All of this doesn't make it any easier. If everyone could please be delicate with him, take what he says with a grain of salt, and inform me if it sounds like he's planning to do something that might hurt himself or others. I appreciate it.

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[ It's taken Raven a good while to get up the nerve to even say anything to this man, let alone while in her true form, but. Here she is. She sounds nervous, maybe even a little like she's rehearsed this, but her eyes are looking directly into the camera. But instead of sounding angry, she sounds ..earnest. ]

You're calling your brother unstable, but he made the same assumptions as you when he first arrived. That there's "malicious intent" here, when there's no proof beyond the fact that we had no control in our arrival. You can't-- You can't just come on here and say these things, when you don't know anything for sure. Everything about us back home, our lives, our titles, they don't mean anything here unless you prove yourself first. This isn't proving anything except that you have no idea what you're getting yourself into.

Please, just- Take a second to look around you. This is very much real, and so is the fact that there are people who are much different than you in this world. Fighting us isn't going to make anything better.

Oh, and Captain Kirk is our real captain, and he's fully earned that title, Senator. Show him some respect.

[ She's... A terrifying looking woman, but also beautiful in an exotic, undeniable kind of way, and so he cuts off his first response quickly:]

You'll forgive me, but all this about Kirk? He's not-- [ He shakes his head. ] No, forget it.

[ For a moment he just drops his head into his hands, exhaling hard, but the tension doesn't leave his shoulders even though his voice calms, and when he looks back up there's just this sadness in his eyes because he honest to god wanted to help.

He just combined it with covering his ass, and messed everything up. ]

All I want to do is find out how to get us home. We don't belong here. We shouldn't be... We should be at home, dealing with this however the hell we were going to deal with it, not stuck up here with the sword of Damocles hanging over us, dangling from a single thread.

[ She's a little taken aback by his response, but in a good way. Yeah. Definitely an okay way, at least. She throws an encryption on their discussion, to be safe. ]

We all want to get home, it's not-- Yeah, we've gotten used to being here, some of us have been here for months now, but it's true, about the wormhole thing. It has to be. I mean, I'm from 1962, and I've met people from the year 2258. It's not like we just got tossed into some van and have to find our way out.

[ But that's not the point, she knows. Her voice is a lot quieter now, like she isn't sure if saying this is the right thing, but she feels like she has to;]

Your intentions aren't why I decided to say anything. It's just. This place is full of people that aren't normal humans, we're mutants, and we can do things that... might be scary, sure, but we're not a threat to anyone, not here. Not if you don't threaten us first. And this? Calling your brother unstable because he's like us? Is threatening.

[ She's just thinking about Erik now, what he can do. He killed Shaw, she knows that now. And he deserved it, but. Erik's killed. That's the focus. And now she's worried this man has made an enemy of him. ]

Everyone might not get along here, but we're tolerant of each other, accepting. If you really want to figure out how to get us home, you're going to need everyone's help. That includes us, and that means you can't just write us off like we're not just as real as you are.

[ Then she sits back a little, sheepish. ]

And yeah, I'm protective of my friends, and Kirk is one of them. He's done more for us than the supposed "real" captain has. You want him on your side, trust me.

[ He can tell this is private, but he's not even sure how, he just knows he's relieved, that he can finally say all the things he hasn't said to anyone, even if it's not even remotely a good idea. Even if he doesn't know her. He just needs to right now. ]

I called him unstable because he did jump off a building. He's... He had a dream he could fly, and he jumped, and he would have died if I hadn't caught him.

[ It's out before he can actually check it, and then he sighs, shakes his head. He really shouldn't have brought it up, not only because of the response but because the more he thinks about it the more it hurts. The more he remembers how he had cared back then, how he'd flown out in the middle of his campaign to spring Peter from a jail in the back of beyond. And now what does he have of his relationship with his brother? Snark and bitterness. It hurts more than he would ever admit out loud, but it comes across in his words whether he wants it to or not. ]

You call that stable? Jumping off a building because you had a dream? What if I hadn't been there? He thrives on attention, and if you let him he'll run away with it, and you won't be able to bring him back. The wrong person can turn him into a monster, and there's nothing anyone can do if they just let it.

He may be your friend, but he's my brother, and I know what's best for him even if he doesn't.

[ He finally emerges from behind his hands, looking if anything more shaken, more pleading. ]

I can fly. [ He seems almost shocked that he said it out loud, and he looks away again. ] It's not the point. I'm not one of you because I'm taking responsibility for all the bad things we're done and all the bad things we will do, and that's all that matters to anyone looking on from the outside.

I'm sorry I insulted your captain, it was an honest mistake. I was thinking of someone else.

[ She hates to admit this, because she sees this man talking to Havok, Alex, about locking mutants away because of them being a danger to society, but- He sounds like Charles, in a way. Wanting to protect his brother, not even realizing that he sounds so damn harsh about it. That it's likely more destructive than it is helpful, but he's so sure of himself... He's a mutant too, but- What? What makes him so concerned about what things look like on the outside? She'll never understand politics.

Still learning that he has abilities does make her relax some, like maybe she can actually get through to him, on some level. Maybe. ]

I've talked to Peter before, I know what he can do. His abilities. It worked with me, a little bit, but all of our powers are kinda dulled here, unfortunately. But none of us are a danger to anyone here, this isn't like home. We aren't singled out and targeted, we have nobody t fight, and we don't have to hide. You don't have to hide. Because you are one of us, even if that might scare you.

[ Her eyes are bright with hope until he starts talking about taking responsibility, 'bad things we will do', and she's really starting to wonder if the Petrelli's are from her future. Fears it. ]

My older brother is a mutant too. A special. And I can tell you first hand that you trying to make him hide, saying that it's for his own protection? It's not going to save him from anything. It's just going to make him resent you.

And the dream thing... It is strange, but maybe that's how he was meant to learn about his abilities. You can't hold that against him, and you can't think for one second that locking him, or us away is going to keep anyone, human or mutant, safe from what we can do.

[ not to mention the fact that he just won't be able to get away with that here, it's not even a viable threat. so. she kinda just hopes he stops insisting on it so she doesn't have to worry about Erik or anyone else going after him. heh? ]

It doesn't scare me.

[ Defensively. But the truth is that flight has ruined his life. Flying caused his wife's paralysis, flying caused all this mess with Peter in the first place, flying meant he had to be the one to save the world, and flying was what had gotten him kidnapped by Primatech. It wasn't that he wanted the power taken away from him, so he wasn't afraid of it, but did he resent it? Of course he did. Did he want it to stay a secret? Definitely.

He exhaled slowly, looked back up. ]

First thing Pete did when I got here was punch me in the face. I don't think I gotta do anything special to make him resent me any more than he does. And at home? The fact that my own brother is so blinded by his altruism that he doesn't see how complicated the world is? It's a problem. I never wanted him out there stirring things up, getting himself shot at. I wanted him to be safe.

But what I'm doing at home doesn't matter, and I'm sure as hell not gonna try and do it here, if that's what you're afraid of. What would be the point?

[ Raven keeps quiet on how he may or may not feel about his abilities, because alright, yes, she was just working off of her own experiences, the ones of the other X-Men. Whether it was a lack of control or just not being able to accept how different their mutation made them, it all resulted in a kind of fear. She winces a little when he talks more about his relationship with Peter, and some part of her wants to try and comfort him, but maybe not just yet. Instead; ]

If you truly realize that things are different here, then... Just be careful, okay? I'm sure you know how to handle different people, judging by your position and all, but I'm- I'm friends with most of the people that you need to be careful around. [ This is so strange, trying to warn someone against Erik. But really its for everyone's sake; the last thing the ship needs is a true rivalry between its passengers. She'll do whatever it takes to keep things calm. ] And I know that certain things, certain subjects about mutants, specials, and how they fit into society... it's like a trigger for animosity. Just a bad idea, you know?

Where we're from, a group of us just put a stop to World War III, we did it, hand in hand with the government, but as soon as things were done with, they turned their weapons on us just because they saw just how powerful our abilities made us. Even after we used them to do good, after we put our lives on the line for the huma-- the world. [ a small sigh. ]

I'm only telling you this because I hope you understand when I say that you have to be careful. I'm not trying to tell you what to do or what to think, but trust me when I say that yes, there are people here that are afraid someone might come along and try to lock us up here. And that fear translates to anger very quickly in some. I'm just trying to avoid conflict, that's all.

[ He listens intently, because it sounds just like something that could have happened in his world. The fact that he's the one leading that offensive is the only thing that makes it different, because he has powers of his own. He nods after a moment, understanding. ]

I hear what you're saying.

I think the moment you end up with people with powers, all kinds of questions come up. Who's gonna take responsibility when people get hurt, what's the law gonna do, how's anyone gonna keep any measure of control when people can phase their way right out of a net. There's fear on both sides, that's what it's most important to remember.

I can't promise to back down on what I was trying to achieve back at home. I believe in it, otherwise I wouldn't have taken it to the President in the first place. I own it, and I'm not gonna do a U-turn or make excuses for myself.

But I do understand, and the last thing I want to do it start a fight when we got other things to worry about.

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001. video; Public Service Announcement

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