abraxaslogs | january catch-all

[ While the "vacation" they'd all been taken on the month before had come with a stipend that covered all of their costs, now that they've returned to their respective factions it's back to earning a living wage. Steve's never been against putting hard work in, though, and when word comes of a larger caravan that wants to make the trip out to Aquila, he's quick to accept the job.

Thankfully he'll only be taking the group of wagons half the way, through the more dangerous and bandit-infested parts of the trip. It means he won't be away from Cadens for too long, though he's confident that Sam can hold down the fort anyway.

He's told that they've hired two people onto this job, which doesn't bother him or rub him the wrong way. He could probably handle things on his own, sure, but he understands the desire for extra security given the sheer number of people and supplies that are involved.

Maybe he shouldn't be that shocked that his partner on this job is another Summoned. Most of them have backgrounds as soldiers or other combatants, it seems like, and they're also all in need of work. Steve hasn't spoken to this guy before, but he definitely saw him in passing on the ship last month.

They've been on the road for a few hours without incident. Steve's ridden solo until now, remaining focused on the possibility of an ambush as they leave Cadens. They've hit a quiet moment, and he finally decides to direct his horse over to fall in line with Altaïr's. ]

Used to riding? [ He nods down to Altaïr's mount. ] You seem as comfortable as if we were walking. [ Steve's managing well enough himself, but he definitely isn't used to long rides like this. The only other time was when he'd made that supply run with Sephiroth, which was months ago now. ]

Edited 2023-01-12 00:56 (UTC)

[Altaïr has become a jack of several trades since arriving in the Free Cities. Security, messenger services, whatever has been necessary. Theft, occasionally. It's different from his life back home, where he'd often been alone but had resources provided to him by the brotherhood.

It's fine. It all comes down to survival in the end, and he's good at that. This latest job is a simple one, although the ease of it remains to be seen, and that's been welcome. It's given him time to think as he rides, settled onto his mount and into his thoughts about all that's happened lately — although his gaze is never less than alert as he keeps an eye on their surroundings.

His partner, if that's what the other Summoned is, seems an amiable sort. He hasn't chattered for the sake of hearing his own voice, which Altaïr appreciates. It's not that he dislikes conversation; he simply prefers to speak when he has something to say.

Steve has something he wants to say now, apparently. Altaïr nods at him as he approaches, guarded but not unfriendly.]

It's the common way to travel longer distances where I'm from. [The corners of his mouth twitch in a half-smile.] I was surprised by how many of the Summoned haven't ridden. It seems unnecessarily limiting.

[ Steve is perfectly content with going for long stretches of time without making conversation, but when it comes down to it, he knows it's important to get a sense of who he's working with, on the off chance that something does happen on this trip. Their very presence may be enough to dissuade any potential bandits from attacking the wagons, but that's not a guarantee by any means.

So, he'd like an idea of who this guy is and what experience he has with this sort of work, to know how much he can expect him to have his back if things go south. ]

Well, a lot of us come from places where there are cars or motorcycles, which are... a lot faster, and a little more predictable.

[ He glances down at his horse, which gives a little toss of its head and snorts, as if proving his very point. Cars and motorbikes don't spook or stop listening. ]

... But if the primary way of traveling where you're from is horseback, I'm gonna guess you don't have a clue what I'm talking about.

[ Similar to Claude and his friends, in terms of the level of technology he's familiar with. He didn't make any mention of wyverns, though... ]

[He half-lifts a hand in the air and waggles in it a gesture that can be universally read as 'ehhhh.' Some communication transcends time, space and language.]

Perhaps a small clue. I've heard a few things, and visited the gasoline station in the Horizon, so I can try to visualize it.

[He'd kind of like to try drawing what he imagine a car might be like and show it to someone who knows them to learn how inaccurate it is, but that will probably depend on whether he's willing to take the substantial risk of looking very foolish.]

That doesn't mean it's an accurate mental image. Have you been riding long?

[The man clearly isn't a novice, but he doesn't have the look of someone who's spent their life in the saddle.]

[ A gas station in the Horizon? Steve hasn't been there himself, which is probably a sign that he needs to wander around in there some more. He knows it's his own hang-ups that make him wary of the Horizon overall. A gas station is certainly a choice, though, when it comes to domains. ]

A motorcycle is kind of like a mechanical horse, but with less animal features. You sit on it the same way, but it's a lot lower to the ground.

[ Steve could draw a few pictures himself to give Altaïr a better sense of it, but nothing is going to beat seeing the real deal (or something close to it) in the Horizon.

At the question, Steve shakes his head. ] I hadn't really ridden horses until I got here, but then I realized I needed to learn quick. I'm definitely not an expert, but I also don't really get sore from this kind of thing, so...

[ He's a cheater and has an unfair advantage compared to others from the modern world. ]

[Altaïr tries to imagine a horse made of metal with no face and gives up shortly thereafter. This picture in his mind definitely isn't accurate.]

Then you're doing well. The first few rides can easily be a pain in one's backside.

[He can remember well the complaints he and his peers had made when first learning to ride. Of course, they'd been much younger than this man.

Semi-turning away, he takes the time to scan the horizon rather than get too caught up in conversation. They'd be poor providers of security if caught unawares.]

Have you made this journey before?

[ Steve lets out a low chuckle at that and nods. He's pretty sure if it weren't for the serum he would have felt every ride that he'd made on horseback in the morning. He's well aware that the benefits of the serum outweigh the downsides at this point and he tries not to rub people's faces in it.

However, Altaïr is quick to shift the subject back to the task at hand, not that Steve minds. They're working, after all, and he'd rather not get too distracted either.

Right now all that's around them are sand dunes, but some of them are massive enough that they could easily hide a group of bandits lying in wait on the other side. They'll need to stay sharp. ]

No, actually. [ He readjusts on the saddle, not wanting to end up stiff. ] I rode to the Solvunn border for the supply run, but not toward Aquila. You?

No. It's one of the reason I accepted this job. I want to be familiar with as much of the land as possible.

[This isn't his home, but he wants to treat it as such. He hadn't known every rock, every bush, every twist and turn in every path of the Holy Land, but he'd known as many as possible. Even if his real work meant knowing and blending in with every corner of the cities, it had been important, and doubtless saved his life more than once.]

And it's work worth doing. I'd rather protect the people than take up arms on their behalf.

[Given the amount of weaponry he's carrying right now, one could argue that the two prospects are much the same. Altaïr would not agree.]

[ Steve nods, understanding that desire to map out as much of this world as they feasibly can. They have a lot more space to move around here when compared to the Summoned in Thorne, and why not take advantage of it? It means that if things really start to go south, they'll know more about their surroundings and where to usher civilians in the event of an emergency.

It's also just nice to have the chance to stretch his legs, when he can.

Despite Altaïr's second statement, Steve doesn't seem to blink at how he's armed, though he's definitely clocked it. The desert is not a safe place and they're here as bodyguards, so it makes sense to be ready for anything. ]

Yeah, I don't think most of us are that interested in being drafted, but it's not like I don't want to help where I can.

[ He's just not interested in fighting wars that are about little more than territory. Well, that and deciding what to do with the Singularity, which is far too close to a weapon of mass destruction for his liking. ]

What did you do, back home?

[ Altaïr's clearly got combat experience, he knows how to ride a horse, and he's comfortable serving as an escort. It's got Steve curious. ]

The difference lies in having free choice.

[Not entirely true. There's also a difference in potential violence on behalf of others and being a soldier — but choice is where it starts.

Altaïr considers for a moment before answering. He's more or less settled o a particular stated occupation, but he has a sense that "mapmaker" won't be so easily accepted by this man.]

I made and sold maps in my homeland, but it wasn't my only trade. It couldn't be, once war came. I did some work similar to this at times.

[The rest of the time he'd spent studying, training and taking the lives of men who deserved it, but he doesn't need to get into that.]

And you?

Edited 2023-02-19 02:17 (UTC)

[ The sea air in Aquila has a strange smell to it today, and probably will until the giant jellyfish that's washed up on on the shores of the bay has been safely deposited back in the ocean. The smell gets even stronger the closer that Steve gets to the beach.

There isn't much time to see the sights in a different city despite it being his first time here, and Steve can't say he likes this pattern of only visiting places when something has gone wrong there. At least he did get to visit Libertas before it was attacked. Granted, the market here in Aquila is still in full swing, with some people even monopolizing on the current situation to sell jellyfish-themed goods. Huh.

That's neither here nor there, as Steve makes his way down to the sand and gets his first glimpse of the massive, multi-colored jellyfish. There are already of plenty people out here taking stock of the situation, as well as a few tables set up where anyone who's here to help can be briefed on what to do and grab any necessary supplies — including buckets to fill with sea water, gloves to protect against electric shocks from the massive creature, or canvas to slide it onto.

Steve glances around at the people gathered here and spots a few familiar faces. Ciri, Claude, Hilda — but it's Garrus who's currently looking like the lone wolf, off to the side and listening to the briefing from a distance. Steve nods to him, then starts walking over. ]

You ever done anything like this before?

[ Steve's fought giant monsters, like the leviathans of the Chitauri army, but helping one safely back into its natural habitat? Not so much. Granted, it's nice to not have to solve the problem with violence for once. ]

Edited 2023-01-13 18:20 (UTC)

[It's probably wrong to have the phrase "it's a big stupid jellyfish" running through his brain on loop. That's disrespectful somehow, right? These things... they're important. They're not just random sea creatures. No matter how much this one looked like some kind of mutant hanar.]

[Which it really, really does.]

[He'd been drawn out here to try and assist - because sitting on his ass in another crisis just isn't in his blood. Thankfully, this isn't pulling broken people out of their broken homes. It feels high-stakes all the same. After all, this thing should be back in the water, shouldn't it? That's where they all float around.]

[He's half expecting it to talk for a minute. This one would like to swim again, or this one gives itself to the Enkindlers, and so on. But nothing like that happens. It just lays there, occasionally pulsing. His attention turns back to the briefing, to accepting heavy gloves and staring at them ruefully. Yeah, human-shaped hand protection is going to work great for turian fingers.]

Me? [He looks up from the morose moment to spot Steve approaching, and shakes his head in answer.] Generally, where I'm from, these things float and preach.

First time I've seen one this size, not trying to sell me the word of "the Enkindlers".

[... the air quotes don't work as well when you only have three fingers on each hand to work with.]

You?

Preach?

[ The word spills out of his mouth before Steve can think better of it, but the concept of a jellyfish preaching any sort of word is definitely foreign to him. Garrus speaks of it like it's completely normal, which grants Steve another small glimpse into the wider universe and what sort of strange things it contains.

They're both used to jellyfish being much smaller, and that's where the comparisons between their experiences stop, it seems. ]

Also never seen a jellyfish this size. The ones on Earth definitely don't preach, though. In fact, most of them don't even have brains.

[ He steps up to the nearby table to retrieve a pair of gloves for himself, a silent indication that he'd like to accompany Garrus on carrying out the monumental task ahead of them. ]

I've fought other creatures this big, though. Or bigger.

[ It seems the worst this jellyfish can do is shock them, though. He isn't afraid of little pinpricks of pain like that, and the gloves should help. He pulls them on one after the other, then sends Garrus a brief sympathetic look. Yeah, these weren't really made with his kind in mind, were they. ]

Preach. They're sentient, worship an extinct species, and they want to make sure you know all about it.

[Some things are universal. Like the eyeroll Garrus just pulls off right there. It's been a long time since C-Sec, but you never forget having to chase hanar missionaries off of private property. Not fun. Way too many tentacles. There were always too many tentacles.]

Consider me jealous. If the hanar didn't have brains, we'd have a lot fewer headaches.

[He thinks maybe he can rig the gloves up to work okay. The extra fingers sort of flop around, the tips of the ones he's wearing are stretched around his talons, but if he tightens up the wrist straps... yeah. That'll work out. It'll have to.]

Think we'll really get this thing back in the water?

[ As far as things to worship go, there's probably stranger, but Steve still raises an eyebrow. He almost feels like Garrus is pulling his leg, but if that's the case he has one hell of a poker face. Meaning he's probably being one hundred percent serious.

That, and the eyeroll feels a little too genuine to all be an act. So, sentient religious jellyfish are a thing in some universe. Steve is just going to have to internalize that. ]

I bet. Do they sting?

[ It looks like Garrus has the glove situation figured out, at least, so Steve gets to work pulling his own on and then starts across the sand toward the massive sea creature. It's bigger even than giant squids are purported to be, and if nothing else, he's glad he got the chance to see something like this with his own eyes. ]

Sounds like we're gonna have to. I heard it plays some important role in the ocean's ecosystem, so if we don't, it's gonna have lasting effects.

[ Besides, he doesn't want to see something like this die needlessly. ]

No, they don't have stingers. They're... squishy.

[Not realizing what exactly Steve means by 'sting' in terms of jellyfish. He knows there's a Blasto line that has to do with jellyfish stinging, but he figured that was some cultural thing that didn't translate well. Besides, Blasto was all fiction, anyway.]

[Once again, he wishes there were a way to show people images from home. If only to corroborate the stories he has to tell. Or better explain things. So many other members of the crew would have been able to explain things better - except maybe Javik.]

All right then. Let's... [Garrus trails off, his mandibles tapping against his jaw as he surveys the extent of the creature. Damn, it looks bigger up close.] ... Get pushing. Too bad we can't just excavate the area under it. Get the ocean to do the job.

[ Steve could clarify that he was wondering if their tentacles had stinging properties, but it doesn't ultimately matter. Right now they need to deal with what's right in front of them, and it's possible that Garrus will learn what he means firsthand soon enough.

After walking right up to the sea creature, though, Steve also can't help be in awe over the size of it, head craning up to stare at its bulbous, multicolored mass. He's pretty sure if something like this happened on Earth, the entire area would have been cordoned off to prevent random people from wandering up. Instead, they've been asked to help.

Then again, the Summoned can't exactly be classified as "random people." ]

Yeah, I guess they don't want to completely tear up the beach if they can help it. [ Which means they need to try and shove it back into the water themselves, inch by inch. The canvas has already been spread out around the jellyfish's massive bulk, and so without further ado Steve approaches a section of long, wriggling tentacles and begins to heave them up and slide them over, armful by armful.

He glances over his shoulder at Garrus. ] Be careful. I'm pretty sure they gave us these gloves for a reason.

[Jellyfish biology can happen later. If at all. There is a part of Garrus that almost misses discussing weird things between species - old elevator conversations. Mostly, he'd been teasing (read: harassing) Tali about it, but, in hindsight, it had been eye-opening for his younger self.]

[More important things at hand.]

[Like figuring out just how in the hell pushing and shoving is going to get a bag of water, jelly and tentacles into the surf. Ugh - hopefully they won't have to swim.]

Probably harder to repair than it seems like. Can't just dump more sand back in place or something. [Which seems like a solution to him. Scoop out the sand, and the jellyfish, dump more back in.]

[A deep breath, and, trusting the makeshift glove solution, he starts joining in on the tentacle shifting. He's not as strong as some, but long arms have to count for something. A good reach - he doesn't have to move as much to haul the tentacles from one place to another.]

You don't think they're just to make us look sharp? [His mandibles cant in a way that's meant to be a grin.] Damn, I was just thinking I should get a pair in my shape.

[ It's not like Steve knows enough about how to get a giant sea monster back into the ocean to argue with the people organizing this whole endeavor. Maybe Garrus is right and there is a better way, but they at least know this will do the trick. It's just going to take a while. On the other hand, there's a lot of people out here, so maybe it will be faster than expected.

Especially if some people are relying on magic to get the job done, rather than brute strength. (Cheaters.)

While he hasn't yet figured out how to read Turian expressions, Steve can hear the joking tone in Garrus' voice. ] Hey, I'm not here to judge. If you wanna wear them around Cadens—

[ He cuts off with a hiss when one of the tentacles he's heaving lets out a small shock, one that manages to penetrate through the gloves and send a spark of pain up his arm. It's not too bothersome, and startles him more than anything else.

He frowns, setting the tentacles carefully down onto the canvas. ]

I wonder if it realizes that we're trying to help it.

[His head snaps around, concern flexing the plates of his face, drawing mandibles off his teeth.]

You okay?

[The answer is probably 'yes', given how Steve starts back working again almost immediately. He has to ask - it's out before his brain pieces together the probable cause. Right. The jellyfish shocks.]

[Time to be even more careful, he supposes. One at a time, more quickly than before, but still careful. Speed instead of quantity. Does it know they're trying to help? For a moment, he pauses, studying the thing. It's an animal. Isn't it? How the hell is it supposed to understand? It's not a hanar, or anything like that.]

[So he shrugs.]

Do these things have brains? It doesn't look like it's got much of a head...

Yeah, I'll live.

[ To say the least. Steve's been through much, much worse, and if a warning shock like that is all that he needs to worry about here, then this should be an easy (if long and tedious) process. Still, Garrus' genuine concern is noted and responded to with a twist at one side of his mouth, a crooked smile. ]

A lot of jellyfish don't, but... we're on a whole other planet, so it's not like I can expect anything to be like it was back home.

[ For all they know, this creature is highly intelligent and simply doesn't feel like communicating with them. Either way, it does seem to be revered and Steve can understand why. If nothing else, it's magnificent to look at.

He continues to work on shifting over the tentacles armful by armful, reflecting on just how strange his life has become. Then again, that process started a long time ago. ]

Great - hate to think a pile of goo took you out.

[It's said with a grin, or, rather, the turian version. But there's enough amusement in the words to translate. There's something familiar in that little bit of teasing. Like old times. Like the people he remembers so well at his back.]

Right. Whole new world full of weird new experiences. And giant jellyfish with electric shocks.

[Liara would probably think it was incredible. Grunt or Wrex would try and eat it. More old memories. Sprung up by the suddenly easy camaraderie here. How used to working on mixed species teams he's gotten. Maybe this would be a lot harder if he weren't.]

[No reason to dwell on that. Every reason to keep transferring the tentacles to where they need to go.]

[ Steve's slowly picking up on what Turian expressions are like, taking the tone of voice and then extrapolating from there. Like any soldier who's seen too much, Garrus has a streak of dark humor in him that Steve finds familiar.

He quirks a smile of his own. ] When it comes to ways to die, that's gotta be pretty low on the list.

[ Going out in a blaze of glory; that's how most people imagine it. Steve tries not to give his impending death too much thought, mainly because he already did the whole self-sacrifice thing and somehow came out on the other end. So, when it happens, it happens.

(Sam already told him how it goes. But with different timelines, with the multiverse, who knows?) ]

I guess you've been to enough planets that you're used to this, right? Having to start over and learn how things work in a new place.

[ They're getting into an easy rhythm with this now and Steve continues to shift down the massive creature's bulk to work at another area. ]

I could list off a few more, if you ever want to feel better about the goo.

[He's joking. No one wants to think about worse ways to die than jellyfish goo. No one wants to think about ways to die in general. Not even people who deal with death and violence every day.]

[There's something familiar about heavy work like this. Finding a back and forth rhythm. Just a physical task that doesn't require too much thought. Not much beyond where to put your hands and how to haul the next tentacle. No worrying about your situation. This weird world. And how to get out of it again.]

[He shrugs, shaking his head.] I wish. By my time, the galaxy's pretty mingled. Anyone who has to learn that kind of thing is a colonist.

And I am definitely not the colony type.

Think I'll pass.

[ Steve also finds there to be something oddly therapeutic about mundane physical labor like this. Granted, most people wouldn't consider hauling around a giant jellyfish mundane, but at the end of the day there isn't that much to it.

It makes it easy to chat, at least, and Garrus has been good company. ]

Huh. So, all of that's just common knowledge? It's hard to imagine having to keep track of that much information. About different planets, different species...

[ It just seems like so much. But Garrus is almost cavalier about it. ]

january catch-all

— altaïr

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— garrus (january quest)

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