The Spaceship (Story / RP)

[Sunlight123]

I guess I was procrastinating this part tbh.

The Spaceship

  Bea stoops down and picks up a flashlight. Pointing it towards the floor, she presses the button to test if it works. It does. Satisfied, she toggles it off. As nice as sitting around with the QM could be, Bea decides she's got to learn her job, it wasn't really a choice though. She felt she would go stir crazy if she wasn't doing anything for an entire work day.

Beatrix Montgomery:
  "Alright let's go." She motions for Dai to enter the maintenance tunnel first.

  As they both step through, the sound of their steps on grates echo through the long metal tunnel. Bea tries to minimize her sound and finds that stepping on areas are louder to step on than others. There are tables of junk strewn about. A screwdriver here, a crowbar there, many items Bea cannot immediately recognize. There are also lockers and metal crates—most empty.
  There's a myriad of airlocks on each side, some with wires or pipes visibly going into them. As they reach the end of the hallway, they begin to head through one door and into another maintenance room. In that room they reach a junction and turn right through another airlock. In that room they go through the left door. And so on, and so on, until eventually Bea feels completely lost.

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "I don't know the exact path to take," she confessed, "I'm just heading diagonally in the vague direction they were. As long as they aren't dead quiet we'll be able to hear them when we're close by." She accidentally steps on a rat's tail. It must have been nibbling on crumbs, since its head is inside a crumbled up potato chip bag. It crawls out with its fur raised, hissing at the two of them, before running off. Dai does not mind.

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "I haven't been back here since the last big switch around. You see, the ship is currently docked in orbit around the planet you saw out there. So for now we're basically just a space station. When the ship is actually functioning as a ship, coasting through space, it picks up more rooms from space if you can believe it. It's hard to understand since you haven't seen the ship from the outside, but it's just a giant series of cubes attached together. It's all modular."

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "Throughout the galaxies are rooms, compatible with this ship, and all other UnionTransen ships. The reason why there are rooms randomly floating around in space is because other vessels have ejected them. They shed them. Maybe the rooms were too heavy, or maybe they took up too much power, or maybe the vessels they were a part of were destroyed." She wrongly enters a room, a dead end housing an electric power controller, and backtracks a bit. "Worst case scenario is a room that was spaced because it was damned. Some exotic alien predator or some genetically engineered monstrosity was there, and now that its part of our ship, now it's our problem. That's why you usually bring a radio, and a friend with you before doing anything professional. We won't be doing anything like that today."

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "Part of our job description is opening up new rooms that the ship has picked up. We see if there's anything valuable in them we can resell, reuse, or rework. We handle all goods coming in, and they're just another good. Eventually our ship will meet a friendly Returner Ship. Their job is to take the empty rooms back to a local headquarters. So basically, we get rooms, gut them, and then shed them off. They probably get recycled in the end."

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "All of this is to say, the layout of maints is always changing. And there are always rooms we haven't seen. Don't know how much sense that makes, but you'll get it sometime. We aren't exploring any new rooms today. We're just familiarizing ourselves and exploring."

  After she finishes her explanation, Dai just goes quiet for a bit while walking. She whistles to break the silence. Eventually, they end up walking into a room filled with people. Bea recognizes Sonny as one of them. She also spots two others wearing cargo uniforms, a woman with shocks of curly hair, and a blonde young man. They all appear wordless.

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "Hey, I thought you guys would be yapping each other's ears off. We’re lucky we ran into you, otherwise we could've gotten lost," she shifts with an annoyed sway, hand on hip, "What gives?"

Other Cargo Lady:
  She gulps. "We... Found this." She holds up a red handheld electronic device. "This PDA was over there..." She aims her flashlight to a metal chair in the middle of the room. Underneath it is a large pile of ash.

  Bea scans the room over with her light. It is a small square room, with no furnishings and nothing else lying around, except for other small piles of ash, and a broken purple-painted canister-drum on its side. Most of the room is black, as if it has been burnt badly. Dai walks over and handles the red PDA herself, powering it on. Basic information on the screen displays.

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "Security Cadet?" She pauses in a ponderous pose, "Was there any ID here?"

Other Cargo Lady:
  "There was nothing else here. It's... Worrying... To find this. You don't think the ashes are? Well, you know?"

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  Evaluating the scene, she asks, "Did you call anyone?"

Other Cargo Young Man:
  "We haven't called anyone yet. Should we?"

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  Dai presses a button on her headset and says, "We need a detective to our location. We found personal property of a security cadet in a... Suspicious scene."

  Bea can see the message being sent to the [general communications] tab on her headset's virtual text-chat. After what feels like an eternity of awkward silence, a reply message sent from a detective is received:

General Communications:
 
  ...

  Salvager - Dyani Dancer:
    "We need a detective to our location. We found personal property of a security cadet in a... Suspicious scene."

  Detective - Jethro Bruno:
    "I'll be there PDQ."

  The atmosphere seems generally uncomfortable.

To be Continued

[concertsrule]

Bea's face twists with confusion, she turns to Dai, opening her mouth to speak but decides against it. She grips her chin with her free hand. 'Did someone burn to death here?' she thinks, she usually wouldn't jump to that conclusion but with everything in front of her and the tense feeling in the air she figures this must be the answer.
Bea leans over looking at the PDA in Dai's hand she feels herself reach to take it from her hand but quickly corrects herself and puts her arm back to her side. From where she is she does her best to inspect the PDA.

She leans away from Dai, she stares at the piles of ash with her brows knitted. She falls deep into thought her eyes occasionally flicking across the floor to the chair to the walls back to the ash. She has the idea to feel the ash but discards it seeing as she wouldn't know what to feel for and would just get her hands dirty and possibly a stern talking to for disturbing a crime scene. The four other people in the tunnels could be talking but she wouldn't know she's completely focused on the scene. Suddenly she feels a hand on her shoulder gently shaking her. She jumps slightly.
"wha- huh?" she whips her head towards Dai who shook her. Bea's face flushes slightly, clearly embarrassed about the situation.

[Sunlight123]

I'm slow at responding.

The Spaceship

  Bea's face twists with confusion, she turns to Dai, opening her mouth to speak but decides against it. She grips her chin with her free hand. 'Did someone burn to death here?' she thinks, she usually wouldn't jump to that conclusion, but with everything in front of her... And the tense feeling in the air.. She figures this must be the answer.

  Bea leans over looking at the PDA in Dai's hand. She feels herself reach to take it from her hand, but quickly corrects herself and puts her arm back to her side. From where she is, she does her best to inspect the PDA. She has never seen one so far. It was a small rectangular device, with a large screen and a slide-out keyboard for input. The screen was still on, but it only had some basic details.

  On the screen a large logo of handcuffs was present. Below that looked to be some basic details. Perhaps the time and date up top. Below that were three lines of text—Likely ID card information—'Name', 'Job', 'Station'—But Bea could not make out the name from here. 'Job' looked like it did in fact read "Security Cadet" like what was said. 'Stationed' looked either the same or similar to hers and everyone else's IDs.

  She leans away from Dai, staring at the piles of ash with her brows knitted. She falls deep into thought, her eyes occasionally flicking across the floor, to the chair, to the walls, and back to the ash. She has the idea to feel the ash, but discards that thought. She wouldn't know what to feel for and would just get her hands dirty along with a stern talking to for disturbing a crime scene. The four other people in the tunnels could be talking, but she wouldn't know, she's completely focused on the scene.

Beatrix Montgomery:
  Suddenly she feels a hand on her shoulder gently shaking her. She jumps slightly. "Wha- Huh?" She whips her head towards Dai who shook her. Bea's face flushes slightly, clearly embarrassed about the situation.

Cargo Salvager Lady - Dai:
  "You didn't hear us? We were talking things over. Lommy wanted to introduce herself over there," she says pointing to their female coworker.

  Lommy waves hello awkwardly. Her hair is white, hopefully dyed, because she is quite young, and very curly and massy, as if she had been electrocuted recently. She has eyebags. Bea can't tell if it is because she simply looks tired, but she seems anxious. The other coworker is a blonde man about the same age and build as Sonny. They just seem to be in conversation with each other silently.

  Metal footsteps come from outside the room, and in comes, what can only be assumed are two officers of the ship's law. One is in a brown trenchcoat and a matching fedora. The other is in a navy blue police uniform. Bizarrely enough, they are a lizardman, with reddish or pinkish scales. That one seems to be holding the cargo boss, QM Jakub Jones, in handcuffs.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  The detective’s hands were buried deep in his trenchcoat pockets. He raises a hand to say, "Alright, nobody move an inch. Everyone, quiet. You, Salvager Dyani. You called me, right?"

Cargo Coworker - Blonde Guy:
  "Hey! What's the deal? Why's our boss in cuffs?"

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "I wasn't talking to you—kid," he turns to Dai again, "Again, you called me, right?" He plucks the PDA gently out of her hands, overlooks it, then passes it to his scaly co-officer who does the same. He paces back and forth, examining the scene.

Cargo Salvager - Dai:
  "I did. We thought something suspicious happened here and it was best to call you."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "And who found this first?"

Sonny Sunlight:
  "We all did. As a group. They were showing me around and we stumbled in here by accident. Well, except Bea and Dai came in later. We were here first."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Hmm... So you guys found it first, yet, Dyani was the first to actually report it?" He looks everyone over real careful-like. Nobody looks too happy about the comment. "I'm just trying to get the facts straight. Not accusing anyone of anything—yet."

Cargo Coworker - Blonde Guy:
  "Then why's our boss in handcuffs?"

  QM Jakub Jones doesn't say a word. He's just quiet underneath his cowboy hat. The lizard officer holding him looks annoyed.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  The detective halts his pacing. "You talk an awful lot for someone who just stumbled onto a murder scene, Roland. How about you come with me to interrogation?”

Cargo Coworker - Lommy:
  "We’re calling this a murder already?!?" she yells out shocked.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  ”Calm down, Lommy. Look, now that I’m looking this whole group over, how about everyone comes with us? I see two people I don't recognize here. Five people total. I figure at least one of you has to have something interesting to tell me."

Cargo Coworker - Blonde Guy - "Roland":
  "I'm not moving an inch until you tell me an answer."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  The detective audibly breathes through his teeth. When he does, Bea can smell the scent of alcohol and pineapples on his breath. "Your boss had an illegal gun on him. Well, actually, he still has it on him, on his hip here," he lifts up the QM's denim jacket to reveal a gun holster with what looks like a revolver in it, "Of course, he can't use it while he's cuffed. I would hope none of you have the same. If any of you do, it's best to tell us now."

  Nobody says anything.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Now with that settled, it's best we go." The detective whips out his own PDA, a similar kind. He scans the airlock quickly, once scanning simply, and once scanning all over the door. "Don't make us fight you guys. Come along and we'll all have a talk at security."

  Dai nods at Bea and the rest of the gang that they should follow. Roland, the blonde coworker, shakes his head no to Sonny, but Sonny seems to ignore and follows Dai and the detective. Roland caves and comes anyway.

Cargo Salvager - Dai:
  Dai whispers into Bea's ears, "Jethro's usually a pretty nice guy. Just tell him the truth with whatever he asks," she puts her hands on her hips and sighs, "It's a long walk. Is there anything you want to know before we get there? Anything on your mind?"

To be Continued

[concertsrule]

Bea locks eyes with Lommy and nods at her.

As Detective Bruno talks to the group Bea looks him over, noting that he could be hiding some serious fire power under his trench coat. She's thankful she was born with enough common sense to not mess with the ashes, a tern talking to might've been the least of her worries.
Bea grimaces at the stink of alcohol and the handling of her boss. She realizes making an ugly face at someone that possibly carries guns and is possible intoxicated is most likely not the best idea. She straightens her face back out but can't help but look at QM Jones with a sympathetic look.

Still carrying her flashlight, Bea puts her hands behind her back clasping her free hand around her wrist. She has questions but is too nervous to ask around someone she deems a threat. She is of course also too prideful to let her nerves make it past her face. Her being quiet doesn't seem to disturb anyone as she's already displayed she's a "strong silent type" The jury is still out on the strong part but her expression being so stern so much of the time people would likely assume she isn't someone to mess with. She walks like this all the way to security where she files in with the rest of the group. While in the security office she looks around taking in what she can before she is escorted to a private room to be interviewed.

[Sunlight123]

The Spaceship

Bea locks eyes with Lommy and nods at her.

  As Detective Bruno talks to the group Bea looks him over, noting that he could be hiding some serious firepower under his trench coat. She's thankful she was born with enough common sense to not mess with the ashes, a stern talking to might've been the least of her worries.

  Bea grimaces at the stink of alcohol and the handling of her boss. She realizes making an ugly face at someone that possibly carries guns and is possibly intoxicated is most likely not the best idea. She straightens her face back out but can't help but look at QM Jones with a sympathetic look.

  As they walk into the halls and towards security the detective seems to be on his headset talking at great length, though it is all hushed whispers. None of it is showing up on comms, so he must be talking on a private channel.

  The lizard keeps looking back to check that everyone is following. The QM seems to be looking towards Roland a lot, who in turn seems shifty. The lizard knows to keep the two of them apart. Dyani is just striding, albeit slightly uncomfortable. Lommy is nervous, sometimes is a self-hug posture, though she puts her hands down whenever she's spotted.

  Eventually they all arrive at security. The front desk is empty. All of security is empty. There's waiting benches in the long foyer that everyone was forced to be seated at by the detective. From those benches they can see jail cells, as well as some bullet-proof windows and a doorway into deeper security.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Throw me his gun if you would, ace." The lizardman unholsters the revolver-like firearm and tosses it. The detective catches it with one hand. "Huh, I didn't expect you to be the laser gun type Jonesy. Thought you'd be more a fan of real bullets. Gonna have to store this in the armory, just so you know. I figure you two can handle his booking. I'll take care of the gang here."

  The detective goes off behind a door presumably to store the gun. The lizardman and QM presumably go off to a jail cell just out of sight. All of you are left alone for a bit. Roland looks like he considers escaping, until he realizes that there's airlocks on all sides. You all had to come through a security-guarded airlock just to get in. Bea can see the interrogation room door on the far right wall. It looks disproportionally more brutalist. A one-piece plain steel door and no windows.

  Jethro struts into the room, hands in his pockets, with his face looking like it was washed in a rush. He announced to everyone tersely, "Alright. Everyone is getting interviewed. The two new faces I want to see before anybody else, and you know what they say—ladies first. That means you tall dame." he leads the way, not into interrogation, but into deeper security. Bea follows. "Also, last is first. You came out of the pod last, even after Sonny-boy did." He leads them to a room that has a blue plague that reads DETD with a magnifying glass symbol.

  Inside is a mess. A classy mess or a tacky mess depending on who you ask. Faux venetian columns adorn the room. A whiskey bar table is off to the side of the room. The back wall hangs a giant portrait of Jethro shooting at a lady whose entire body seems to be robotic. There is a long desk between you two, overrun with a myriad of paperwork and cassette tapes. His computer and keyboard takes up a sizable portion of his L-shaped desk. He pushes a papers aside to make elbow space for Bea.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Please, sit. To your left is a cooler. It has ice and a few soft drinks and water bottles in it. Help yourself. If you're worried I spit in them, I can drink one first. You choose which one I drink."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Alright, here's the situation we're looking at." On the left of the room, on the wall above the desk is a giant corkboard. All it has right now is a picture of one security cadet on it. "This is Ravi Patel. My friend. He went missing about a week ago. It didn't surprise anyone. In fact, I figured he was dead. Just not like this." he pulls a shot glass from under his table. It's full of ice and... What one hopes... Is water. He takes some swigs, swirling the ice. "Security right now is on that planet down there. The one they call lavaland. They're fighting big, dumb, ugly, four-legged, alien monsters and robbing the planet of its ore. They've been doing that for a while. After everyone gets my message, I'm sure we're halting the mining."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Ravi was down there, on that planet. It's big, and dangerous, and communication's bad. He could've been killed by some hyper-predator. Or he could've gotten lost, or stuck behind a cliff or lava flow and had to take a week-long trek. That's what everyone was hoping for. But apparently, according to this whole ordeal, he must have come back onto the station. Maybe to return some ore. Maybe forced to at gunpoint. Then he went into a room. Now he's a pile of ashes."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  He leans back in his chair. Bea gets a good look at him while he is deep in contemplation. He loves his mud-colored noir clothes. His skin is olive and Mediterranean. He has got a short beard and mustache and a short afro to match. "You haven't been here long enough to do anything even if you wanted to. We both know that. You are completely innocent of this crime. So is your friend out there Sonny."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "The station has been up and running for 2 years. In that time, no serious crimes have been committed. Now, all of a sudden, things change. Odd timing for all of it. And in my experience, it will only get worse. Since you haven't been here long, let me inform you, we have the technology to bring people back from the dead. Just not when they're ashes. So the culprit wanted no witnesses. The culprit also has access to security, on the account of Javi's ID card missing. Don't worry—I've already searched the place clean."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "This puts you in an interesting position. You are one of the only people who has an air-tight alibi. And that’s why I want to use you for intel. You know nothing right now—sure. But after a few days, you might find something. Because you are new, people won't mind you bumbling around and poking your noses in people's businesses. I need you to help solve this case for me. You do that, I can even grant you a gun later on—as a little reward. Or a promotion. Or whatever else your carrot is. Everybody’s got one."

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Of course, I can't force you to say yes. And I don't like forcing people to do a thing. I'm not asking anything specific neither. All I'm saying is, pay attention to people, take mental notes, and then from time to time. I ask you if you've seen anything suspect. If you do, I follow up. If you don't, nothing happens. And for the record, I don't like being on a leash myself. That's why I'm a dick, not a cop. In fact, about your QM boss. He's going to spend a day in the slammer. Just because of a little handgun contraband. Personally, I would have just let him keep it. I think he's innocent enough. It's just that the officer was with me, and if he reports back to our boss that I let your boss go, then, well, I'd be a drifter and my next stop would be off this ship." He takes another sip of his nice cold... Hopefully ice-water.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "I'm going to be saying the same thing to Sonny too if that matters. Just eh, don't blab about this to any of the others before I bring them in. I don't want our conversation polluting their narratives if you know what I mean." He grabs his door remote and hits the door. A clicking sound like an unlock rings out. "If you're sick of my tired old mug, the door’s open. I'll drag the next guy in as soon as you head back out. Anything you want before we part ways? I’m happy to chit-chit for as long as possible. It looks like shift end for all of us soon anyways."

To be Continued

[concertsrule]

Bea sits crossing her arms over her chest, slightly tense but trying to put on an air of confidence.
"Please, sit. To your left is a cooler. It has ice and a few soft drinks and water bottles in it. Help yourself. If you're worried I spit in them, I can drink one first. You choose which one I drink." the man across from her says. She smirks slightly, thinking he's joking. She looks over the contents but decides she's not thirsty. She shifts her attention back to Jethro.

Beatrix listens intently to the situation the Detective is laying out.
"But apparently, according to this whole ordeal, he must have come back onto the station." At this Bea's eyes flash with recognition, she remembers the screaming from behind the door. She thinks about whether to bring it up or not, she worries that she would be penalized for not helping but decides Jethro's smart enough to know that she didn't mean any harm by it. She waits for him to finish talking before talking herself.
As Jethro describes what he wants her to do for him she runs through a handful of emotions. Intrigue, Worry and a little bit of Confusion. Of course her curiosity outweighs her nerves so she decides to take him up on it. She wouldn't know what she would want out of it, she feels a strange headache coming on but she'll worry about that later she feels its unrelated to the task at hand.

"Well," she pauses to adjust her sitting position "I think I'll take you up on that offer." Her eyes flick to the newly unlocked door and then back to Jethro. She leans in almost conspiratorially, resting her arms on the Detectives desk.
"Listen when I was out in the hall for the first time" She says just above a whisper "I heard some screaming from the maintenance tunnels" She swallows some saliva "I, uh, didn't do anything about it at the time but with what you've told me I thought there's a possibility it could've been that Ravi guy.." She searches Jethro's face for something but gives up.
She leans back to a normal sitting position, she reaches into one of her jumpsuit pockets in a practiced way. Muscle memory. She is of course confused by her own actions and just decides that this interaction is over.

Bea stands up and grabs the brim of her cap tipping it down slightly towards Jethro. She opens the door and walks herself back to the waiting room sitting in an empty chair.

[Sunlight123]

Busy week for me.

The Spaceship

  Bea sits crossing her arms over her chest, slightly tense, but trying to put on an air of confidence. She smirks slightly, thinking he's joking about the spitting in drinks bit. She looks over the contents of the cooler, but decides she's not thirsty. Her attention is back to Jethro.

  Beatrix listens intently to the situation the Detective is laying out. At this Bea's eyes flash with recognition, she remembers the screaming from behind the door shortly after she first awoke. She thinks about whether to bring it up or not, she worries that she would be penalized for not helping but decides Jethro's smart enough to know that she didn't mean any harm by it. She waits for him to finish talking before talking herself.

  As Jethro describes what he wants, she runs through a handful of emotions. Intrigue, worry, and a little bit of confusion. Of course, her curiosity outweighs her nerves so she decides to take him up on it. She wouldn't know what she would want out of it, she feels a strange headache coming on, but she'll worry about that later she feels it's unrelated to the task at hand.

Beatrix Montgomery:
  "Well," she pauses to adjust her sitting position "I think I'll take you up on that offer." Her eyes flick to the newly unlocked door and then back to Jethro. She leans in almost conspiratorially, resting her arms on the Detective's desk. "Listen, when I was out in the hall for the first time.." She says just barely louder than a whisper, "I heard some screaming from the maintenance tunnels." She swallows some saliva "I.. uh.. Didn't do anything about it at the time, but with what you've told me, I think there's a possibility—It could've been that Ravi guy." She searches Jethro's face. He visibly mulls it over, conceding nothing else with his expressions.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Could be related. Could be unrelated," he looks off to the side, "I will look into this personally. After these interviews are over anyways."

  She leans back to a normal sitting position, she reaches into one of her jumpsuit pockets in a practiced way. Muscle memory. She is, of course, confused by her own actions and just decides that this interaction is over. Her interview is over—Time for the others.

  Bea stands up and grabs the brim of her cap, tipping it down slightly towards Jethro. She opens the door and walks herself back to the waiting room sitting in an empty chair. Sonny is up next, Jethro points out. The lizardman security officer is watching over everyone.

Red Lizard:
  "No ssspeaking anyone. Protocol sssaysss do not ssspeak."

And so nobody speaks, instead they all just sit there, each waiting their turn. Lommy twiddles her fingers and plays counting games on her hand. After Sonny emerged, Dai went in. After she was done, it was Roland’s turn.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Roland Dough, you're up next."

Roland Dough:
  "Oh, we're going to the dick room are we? Not interrogation?"

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Don't be a smartass."

  And the last to go was Lommy. After that, Jethro came out, declaring everyone was free to go.

Detective Jethro Bruno:
  "Alright, you've all been here long enough. Zaxo here will hold the door open for you all. Get some sleep. Me, I've got some work to do," he says looking over his notepad. He shoves it back into his trench coat pocket.

  The cargo gang left as a mass through the open security door being held open by the red lizardman. As they set out, Bea notices that the hallways are darker than they were previously. They have been dimmed to appear more like it were dusk. The ship comes with its own artificial circadian lighting program it seems. As they walk by, Bea can see some of the holding cells for prisoners. Bea notices her boss Jakub the QM in one of the jail cells. He appears to be already well asleep on the lower rung of some dismal bunkbed.

Lommy:
  "I... Didn't really have much to say, really. I just want you guys to know that."

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "I'm sure that whatever you said was fine. I don't like wasting my time being interrogated, but if it's to catch a murderer then it's worth our time... Even if it does cut into our sleeping hours a bit."

Roland Dough:
  "Yeah well, if we sleep on the job tomorrow, who's going to know? Our boss won’t be there will he?"

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "I didn't bother to ask how long QM is in for."

  Bea takes a glance at everyone and they all seem pretty exhausted. Sonny especially. Even herself she could notice feeling a bit drowsy. Technically, this is her first time ever experiencing drowsiness, with the memory loss and all, though she certainly knows how to handle it. She's just following the group at this point.

  They make their way back to the main intersection of the 4 main hallways, where there's a statue of a man depicted atop a water fountain. Bea remembers being here. At the spot where they're standing, on one wall is the archway to the bar and cafeteria, and on the other wall is... Apparently a wide doorway into a recreational area. They go inside that big room. There are easels for painting, board games for distraction, and some books to read. Tables and chairs, yet they are all empty. Past that is, what appears to be, a mass shared bedroom.

  There are beds everywhere, each with a set of flimsy wall separators. All of the beds are canopy beds, with some cheap cloth to give some basic privacy. They are all quite plain rather than ornate, with white and grey modern aesthetics. Looking around, one could see people wearing all colors and kinds of jumpsuits and jumpskirts and pajamas. Some are sleeping, others about to, others are chit chatting in hushed tones. The room gives off a sort of military barracks vibe.

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "This is our sleeping arrangement here. There are pajamas you can slip into, but the changing rooms usually have a line. I mostly just sleep in these, unless it was a particularly sweaty shift. In the morning we get to slap on a new suit after a shower, so you don’t have to worry too much."

  Dai points out where the bathroom is, in case Bea or Sonny wishes to brush their teeth or shower. She points out the changing rooms too. She points out the cafeteria, if either Bea or Sonny want to eat before bed. Roland has already left to prepare himself. Lommy is sitting on hers watching Dai instruct the two of them.

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "These clusters of beds here are what we consider Cargo's. Technically, anybody can claim any empty bed, so it's just a kind of convention to all sleep together. That one's Roland's, and of course there is Lommy, and this one is mine," she says, sitting upon her bed, "you can have a sea too if you'd like. Oh, and here, a gift for both of you." She grabs underneath her bed and into a cardboard box to reveal two notebooks, with pens attached to them. "They're diaries—or journals if you prefer. I used to rustle, unable to sleep when I first got here. I found that writing a log of the day's events helped me sleep better. I always do, and I will especially mark today's." She pulls her own out from under her pillow and starts scrawling while lying prone.

Lommy:
  "I mostly just sketch in mine when I'm feeling creative." She smiles weakly. "Feel free to claim any of the beds near us, or if you'd prefer, you can sleep next to anyone. And you don't have to sleep in the same bed every night, you can do sleepovers."

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "Yeah," Dai agrees, "Almost everyone sleeps out here so it’s a nice time to meet with friends. The higher-ups do get their own rooms, so we hardly ever see them. Also, sec gets to sleep over there." She points to a far end of the wall, where there are bedrooms behind airlocks. "Sec sleep close to us all in case anything goes wrong, but they get extra privacy behind those walls so nobody messes with them or their gear... But anyone other than sec or command is probably somewhere here. If you want to say hi to someone—you can." She pauses to write something in her log, "Sorry, I'm distracted. I have to finish writing this so I can sleep. You guys do you."

  Bea looks over and sees that Sonny has chosen his bed nearby and is already half-asleep. Apparently he plans to sleep before even brushing his teeth. Or maybe he's too tired to plan anything.

  She thinks over her own plan for the night.

To be Continued

[concertsrule]

Bea surveys the empty beds and chooses one near the rest of the cargo crew, she sits down placing the notebook on her legs and looks at it for a moment while thinking about what to do next.

She places the notebook on her bed and walks to the bathroom, standing in front of a sink she examines her reflection. Her face is slim with prominent cheekbones, her face is marked with wrinkles the most noticeable ones being her nasolabial fold and her frown lines from presumed years of furrowing her brows as well as her lip lines which are slightly more subtle than the other wrinkles. She notices her hair is still a bit disheveled from her freak out earlier and decides to just take her braid down for the night and put it back up tomorrow. She runs her hands through her hair for a few moments trying to de-tangle any knots that may be there.
Bea turns on the sink and washes her hands before running some water over her index finger and rubbing it against her teeth since she doesn't have a toothbrush or any toothpaste. She didn't look for those items anyway.

Returning to her bed Bea grabs the pajamas left there, she feels the fabric. It feels more comfortable than her jumpsuit. She looks over to the changing rooms and sees the line, she sighs softly and judges the thickness of the canopy on her bed. She decides it should be opaque enough if she's quick with changing. Climbing onto the bed she starts undoing her jumpsuit but pauses making sure the canopy is closed, then she returns to undressing. After taking off her jumpsuit she's left in bog standard undergarments, a nondescript bra and pair of boyshorts, not lingering she pulls the pajamas on and tosses the jumpsuit out of the bed and onto the floor. She scoots back over the the edge of the bed and opens the notebook.

Clicking the pen she begins to write, 'Dear Diary, Today was the day to end all days as some would say'... She writes until she feels her eyelids grow heavy thankfully she was basically done with that she wanted to write she signs off with '-Beatrix' and closes the notebook slipping it under the pillow. She pulls back the blanket and lies down and quickly drifts off.

(lets agree to forget she was naked in the pod and didnt have anytime to get underwear! nope no plot holes here!)

[Sunlight123]

I was gonna say maybe they don't have underwear, but I don't wanna erase your writing.
Maybe the underwear is like built into the suits and detaches when you put it on or something.

(I'm sure the further along I go the more small oddities will pile up tbh. I feel like most writers just retcon before they publish.)

The Spaceship

  Bea surveys the empty beds and chooses one near the rest of the cargo crew. She sits down, placing the notebook on her legs. She looks at it for a moment, thinking about what to do next.

  She places the notebook on her bed and walks to the bathroom. Standing in front of a sink, she examines her reflection. Her face is slim with prominent cheekbones, her face is marked with wrinkles the most noticeable ones being her nasolabial fold. She has frown lines from presumed years of furrowing her brows. Her lip lines are slightly more subtle than the other wrinkles. She notices her hair is still a bit disheveled from her freak out earlier and decides to take her braid down for the night. She may put it back up tomorrow. She runs her hands through her hair for a few moments trying to de-tangle any knots that may be there.

  Bea turns on the sink and washes her hands before running some water over her index finger and rubbing it against her teeth since she doesn't have a toothbrush or any toothpaste. She didn't look for those items anyway.

  Returning to her bed, Bea grabs the pajamas left there. She feels the fabric. It feels more comfortable than her jumpsuit. She looks over to the changing rooms and sees the line, she sighs softly and judges the thickness of the canopy on her bed. She decides it should be opaque enough if she's quick with changing. Climbing onto the bed she starts undoing her jumpsuit, but pauses, making sure the canopy is closed, then she returns to undressing. After taking off her jumpsuit she's left in bog standard undergarments, a nondescript bra and pair of boyshorts. Not lingering, she pulls the pajamas on and tosses the jumpsuit out of the bed and onto the floor. She scoots back over the edge of the bed and opens the notebook.

  Clicking the pen, she begins to write, 'Dear Diary, Today was the day to end all days as some would say'... She writes until she feels her eyelids grow heavy. Thankfully, she was basically done. She signs off with '-Beatrix' and closes the notebook, slipping it under the pillow. She pulls back the blanket and lies down and quickly drifts off.

  In her dreams she sees the endless dark of space. Starlight shines on her like a spotlight as she stands upright on a single cratered space rock, no bigger than a river stone. The lava planet is in the distance. She turns around to see another view, where she can see the earth, with moving clouds and bright blue seas. Its moon orbits right next to her and scares her briefly, almost bumping into her, until she realizes that she's fine and she was overreacting. She is weightless and floating and a part of these galaxies, this universe, where she belongs, and a sense of ease blankets her. She can see the earth's sun, but it's far, far away. It's so far away that she realizes that she's cold. It's so cold. That's when she realizes she's naked. White fog obscures her view of the firmament. Various jumpsuits float before her, phasing in and out of the mists, before she reaches out and grasps one set. She covers herself with it. But before the humiliation ends, the rock she's stood upon grows in size, rumbles, and drops, causing her to fall—it is an earthquake. The top layers of rock turn to sand and she slides down onto a desert. On the horizon, massive bug-like creatures are pounding at a wall of air. The air cracks. They are trying to shatter it. She opens her eyes.

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "Hey—wakey wakey," she shakes Bea's shoulders back and forth. Bea is clutching onto her blanket, but she is beginning to come to. "I didn't want to wake you, but you'll miss breakfast if you stay much longer. Everyone else is already up. They say you sleep the hardest the first night after cryo. I let you get the most sleep, even more than Sonny."

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "The cafeteria is basically empty right now, except for Sonny eating and some people at the bar. I went to get cargo clothes for everyone, so everything you need is here at the side of your bed. Towels are in the showers, you'll see them. Oh, also I left a toiletry bag for you here on the side of your bed. It's small enough to fit in your pocket, but you can leave it here if you want. It has some personal soap, toothbrushes, toothpastes, and all that. Ship doesn't give us perfume or make-up unless we spend our personal credits on it."

Dyani "Dai" Dancer:
  "Everyone else is already either at Cargo or exploring maints. Our boss is still serving time, so today we get to explore maints on our own. I'll let you get ready. After that we'll eat with Sonny. And then after that, we can start our workday. I hope you don't mind me supervising you. Boss tends to trust me the most anyways," She grins and flexes her muscles with her arms at her hips.

  Behind Dai, in the distant hallway, Bea glimpses a figure watching them. It is a woman with blonde bangs. She is in a navy blue outfit—the outfit of a security officer. When this woman notices that Bea can see her, she calmly walks out of view.

To be Continued