revivalproject | Open Log

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Open Log

Who: Thrawn and You
What: Exploring and scavenging
When: Right after his arrival
Where The square, around the settlement, the forest
Warnings: None anticipated

The square

Thrawn was dressed in ceremonial white mixed with a makeshift bow strapped across his back, an equally makeshift canteen hanging from one shoulder, and a wicked-looking though also makeshift spear. All of that is juxtaposed with blue skin and glowing red eyes. He had not cut the sleeves off of his jacket yet but if the climate stayed humid he may be forced to.

At the moment that canteen strap was still hanging off one shoulder but instead, Thrawn held it as he bent over the fountain refilling it. It seemed to be the only source of water right now, so the first task would be finding another. Preferably one that wasn't also a common landmark. He also intended to find fruit in the forest and by its nature, it was more likely to be near a water source.

Around the settlement

Thrawn stopped to consider a sign with arrows pointing in many directions with symbols etched into it. Obviously, they are meant to be markers of some sort. But for what? They have arrived recently around the settlement so they are meant to aid. But who put them here and why such a varied group has been brought here in the first place is still mysterious to him. It's a good thing Thrawn enjoys solving mysteries.

Eventually, Thrawn left off puzzling over the sign and crossed what appeared to be a lot that was adjacent to an overgrown storefront. There had been several useful things inside of abandoned stores like these so Thrawn intended to look in all of them.

The forest

Focusing on the fruits and tubers that had been offered in the initial buffet proved to be a tall order. There was a great deal of vegetation - which helped to indicate local weather patterns - but the bag Altair had made only had a few of the rootlike vegetables in it. The sun was setting, but Thrawn seemed to be having no difficulty with the lengthening shadows.

He was charmed by plants that became more luminous as night fell. Some were glowing in different colors but the ones shaded a vibrant blue drew his attention. Following a tendril that was reaching up a different wide stem to where the tendril began and the plant it started with, led to some sort of natural well. Unfortunately, it was so choked with plants it wasn't accessible. But the glowing plant did lead to another plant with several hanging fruits, some ripe enough to pick.

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Loki was doing a bit of scavenging of his own--particularly looking for metal of suitable quality that he might be able to melt it down and reforge it into a half-decent weapon. Which would also require a forge, but one thing at a time. No need to build a forge if there was nothing worth making.

From around the corner of one of the shops, he spotted this new man regarding the sign and felt a strange moment of dizzying, absolute horror. Blue skin. Red eyes. Small for a Jotun, but so was Loki. Smooth-faced and ugly by Jotun standards, but again, so was Loki.

He found himself in a defensive crouch without realizing it, fingers trying to pull forth a dagger he did not actually have. He'd spent years coming to terms with the truth of himself and the unwise things he'd done upon discovery of it, but what were a few years to someone who'd already lived a thousand and spent most of it hating the Jotun? What were a few years of trying to be good in that particular way for someone else's sake when that person wasn't here and Loki was back to considering his own survival as paramount?

A slight shift in the breeze was what allowed his more rational mind to reassert itself. Because this strange, nightmarish man didn't smell like a Jotun. There was nothing of winter or frozen blod or frost-shattered rock. And the more visceral sensation of smell kicked another thought to the surface: he certainly wasn't dressed anything like a Jotun, either. White was much too fussy of a color for one of them.

Loki made himself take a deep, quiet breath and let it out slowly. He silently counted the first twenty prime numbers from zero. And then, outwardly calmed, he straightened up without bothering to be quiet and walked toward the newcomer. He'd rather face potential nightmares head-on now, before they could take root.

"Is there anything particularly you're looking for?" He called, just in case he hadn't been noisy enough. Cheerful. Helpful. Definitely not recovering from an unpleasant shock.

Usually there were too many other sounds contending with it to make heartbeats audible. It was quiet enough now that Thrawn was able to hear his own heartbeat and another that was coming closer. It was similar enough that it belonged to someone close by and that someone was most certainly a humanoid. It only caught his attention because the rate suddenly sped up as if in excitement or fear.

So it was with absolutely no surprise that Thrawn turned toward Loki, A humanoid as anticipated, adult male, his clothing was new but with scuffing from fairly recent combat. With an expression of utter passivity Thrawn answered the question.

"I do not have a particular object in mind. Instead I find whatever there may be that still has any use inside of these abandoned structures."

Edited 2019-09-15 21:59 (UTC)

Not a Jotun, Loki reminds himself firmly. At least the man doesn't sound anything like one either. "Good luck to you then. It's all very... picked over." He snorts. "Though If you spot anything bathtub-like, do let me know. I'm working on a project with a... friend."

He can almost feel Vision's crogglement from here. What a relaxing thought.

Thrawn raised a slightly puzzled eyebrow.

"It is my understanding that any actual bathtubs I might find would be attached to the wall they are tiled into."

He had always thought of bathtubs as frivolous or just plain wasteful of water anyway.

He laughs. "I am sorry to hear the bathing technology in your universe is so sadly lacking."

The true signs of civilization as far as he's concerned: Books, sufficiently advanced mathematics, and decent bathing facilities. "It would certainly be more communally pleasant if everyone smelled a bit less... natural... anyway."

Thrawn didn't comment on that. Bathing technology did not necessarily include a bathtub. Though Loki and Thrawn agree on two out of three still. As long as the books were digital that is.

"Perhaps it is. Have you been here long?"

Thrawn did not clarify if he meant here in this particular area or here as in the world they were on since he was curious to know what Loki might say.

"Barely the blink of an eye." Time is a relative thing, after all. "A pleasant enough few days...though the days are long, haven't you found?"

Then Loki has been on the planet for a few days which is much the same for Thrawn. Curious that there would be humanoids and near-human species grouped together though.

"Yes, followed by longer night cycles. It indicates that we are on a larger planetoid."

It could be a moon after all. Though in Thrawn's experience if a gas giant had such a large sattelite they would most likely be able to see it periodically.

"But now I must pose the same question to you; what is it you are particularly looking for?"

"Though the gravity doesn't seem to be bothering anyone," Loki remarks. Slow rotational period, most likely. Or they're in a physics-defying realm like Asgard and that's just how things happen to be. He makes a mental note to go about measuring the curvature of the planet (assuming it has one) when he's next bored.

"Metal." No reason to hide it, even if he isn't necessarily going to be one hundred percent frank as to what he'll be doing with it. "Of a suitable grade to be melted and reforged into more useful tools. Though ideally, I hope to find some of those tools already made and not rusted out. Sewing needles in particular would be fine, as we all seem to have arrived with but one set of clothes and I have now become acquainted with the resident tailor."

You know, blue skin and red eyes is a lot less alarming when you have multiple people who fall under that category back in your home world. And a shape-shifting friend who could be that one command. So really, Tommy isn't bothered when he comes to the square with a large cup leaf, intending to fill it in the fountain, only to find this particular stranger.

In fact, his entire focus is on one thing in the blue-man's possession.

"Oh man, a bow? Better not let Hawkass see you with that, he'd want it so bad. Especially if you've made arrows."

Thrawn would have continued to ignore Tommy and focused on simply refilling his canteen, but doing so would have been the height of rudeness which by itself would be enough to make Thrawn respond. He raised one eyebrow in Tommy's direction instead.

"A bow would be rather pointless without also having arrows to use with it."

Who was Hawkass?

"Not like we're exactly rolling in arrows here, which is probably for the best," Tommy admits, considering the blue man and really not blinking twice. "You any good with that? He's like, the best archer ever."

And that could bring food, right? Meat. But Tommy doesn't have the stomach to hunt, sooooo. He is happy anyone might do it.

"I certainly can not claim proficiency with it at that level."

It was used primarily for defense since Thrawn did not care to go hand-to-hand with some things. He preferred to stay with fruits and vegetables for eating.

"Do you intend to stay near the fountain?"

Thrawn gestured toward the leaf-cup.

"Uh this?"

Tommy had forgotten he'd been holding this. He frowns at it and then looks back at Thrawn, with a shrug.

"I mean, I meant to do it as long as was needed to fill the leaf. So, like, a second and then go back to water things."

Curious but taking care not to show his interest had been piqued, Thrawn tilted his head just a little.

"They must be close by if you are using that to water plants. Where then are you taking it?"

"Greenhouse," Tommy answers, tilting his head toward the building. It's in walking distance, and it's clearly the glass thing. Makes sense, right?

Since one of Thrawn's first tasks was finding food he was very interested in the possibility of a greenhouse.

"I see. Well, you will find yourself making many trips to the fountain. Allow me to use this instead."

Thrawn held up the canteen by its strap.

Tommy considers the canteen and then his leaf. The thing can almost hold as much water as the volume of his head.

"I don't know, I mean, unless that's like a canteen of holding, I think I've got this with my leaf. And Katara waterbends stuff there a lot. Though if you know how to repair plumbing..."

That would be super useful.

...most of that made no sense to Thrawn. He tried to focus on the word that did.

"In what way is it broken?"

Thrawn certainly wasn't a plumber, but the mechanics of pipeworks were certainly no mystery to him. If there was already an irrigation system in place it would so much easier to repair and use it. All of this meant he was going to have to be a plumber for a while.

Oh man, if Tommy knew that then he'd know enough about plumbing to make it work. So he shrugs.

"Sorry, I'm not smart with stuff like that. It just doesn't work. It's supposed to be automated or something. It doesn't run at all."

Could it be that there was FINALLY someone who could fix the irrigation? Tommy couldn't help how excited he was getting.

"I meant is there an obvious place where the pipe is cracked is it wet in the wrong place and dry where it should not be?"

Thrawn was certainly not a plumber but one of the first tasks (which is really a chore and a filthy one at that) he was given to 'oversee' was the cleaning and inspection of the latrine pipes on the Blood Crow. He was not aware it was the end result of xenophobia run rampant through the Empire until Eli was outraged on his behalf because of it. It wasn't difficult to find the blueprints for the ship and locate the problem areas then fix them. Water flow for things like cooking and washing was part of that task, so he had at least a nominal understanding of pipeworks.

"Does the water come out as a trickle when it's first turned on or does it not come at all?"

Oh yeah, it was totally xenophobia. Because the Empire is racist pricks. But Tommy doesn't know that and can't comment.

"Doesn't come out at all, so far as I've noticed," Tommy admits with a brief shrug. "I mean, I know the day is super fucking insanely long, but I've been so busy working with the plants and carrying water that it's hard to say where the problem is. There's only certain sections we can manage, so..."

He doesn't know if the problem is in another section.

"I shall need to see where the irrigation pipes run, then. If you would please show me?"

Thrawn looped the strap of the canteen over one shoulder again and gestured for Tommy to lead.

(( OOC: Since this now directly relates to this I'm not sure what to do? ))

((OOC: We could handwave Tommy handing him over to Garak or something?))

((OOC: I would be down for that. Just tell Garak's mun to pm me))

Eli had been out in the forest forging for edible vegetation. He hoped the knowledge he gained serving the Empire or just from his home planet in Lysteria would be handy here. Having made a make shift bag, he carefully began pulling away various roots and greens, and some berries. He had made sure to wear his gloves as well, just in case. There were many plants he was uncertain of and steered clear away from them. While the glowing plants were pretty, he was wary of studying them any further.

Glancing up from adjusting his bag, he was surprised to see Grand Admiral Thrawn near by. At first he thought it might have been a trick, but after another glance he realized it wasn't. He made sure to rustle the leaves to gain the other's attention.

"Sir, I wasn't expecting to see you here as well." Eli greeted.

Thrawn certainly hadn't expected to hear a voice this far from the settlement, nevermind it being that voice. He couldn't help the pleased feeling that seeing Eli elicited, so much so that Thrawn actually had a small smile at seeing Eli as he turned around.

"Then that sentiment is mutual. Greetings, lieutenant Vanto."

It was proper to use Eli's new rank with the Ascendancy, after all.

He couldn't help but grin and briefly puffed out his chest a bit, pleased by Thrawn's recognition about his title. Had this been at home with the Ascendancy he would have had to becareful of showing such emotion. It was rare to receive a compliment from the Chiss. His open recognition of his title said a lot.

"I haven't seen anyone of the Seventh Fleet or of the Ascendancy since my arrival. This doesn't mean we might not find others at some point. I had been gathering various vegetation and was going to bring it back to the hotel where a lot of the folk seemed to have gathered." Eli commented as he revealed to Thrawn the food he had collected.

Considering it a demotion in rank, it might not seem to be thought of as a compliment, but it is a rank that has been earned fairly through Eli's own work and not with political favoritism.

Thrawn glanced at the collected vegetables that Eli had his bag. Thrawn likewise had collected vegetables but since he had found fruit at the moment he had that too.

"I must admit to a level of anti-social behavior. I have not been staying at the hotel since I was uncomfortable with so many unknown beings near.

Edited (wayward word) 2019-09-20 21:19 (UTC)

The fact that he had earned it himself was what was important. Nor did he have anything blocking him from earning the rank. While it had hurt to a degree to be demoted, he was thankful it wasn't all the way back to the Ensign title he had for such a long time.

Some how, Eli wasn't surprised by Thrawn's statement. "I've stayed there the first time upon arrival, but afterward I chose to camp elsewhere. I particularly didn't trust the hotel. I just know that people tend to be there and could use some edible food that won't have any side effects."

"You are a better man than I am."

Said with wry amusement and perhaps a touch of self-effacing humor. Thrawn certainly couldn't see himself choosing to sleep around so many unknowns or be so selfless as to work to feed those same unknowns.

"I was looking for another source of water as I am not pleased with the idea of using a common landmark to refill a canteen."

"Back at Lysteria, we would always help out those who needed help. It was the way we were able to survive. No one else would look out for us, so we had to make due by relying on our neighbors." Eli responded with a wistful tone as he thought about home.

"What ever our purpose here, I believe we need to believe in the same thought. It might take others to warm up to the idea, but once they see they are being helped they may be willing to provide something valuable in return."

Thrawn didn't say anything for a long moment. The idea of 'home' obviously meant a lot to Eli but more than that it also seemed as though for him it was more about the connections with others that it stood for. Thrawn did not have that same frame of reference to draw from and his concept of a connection to others always ended up framed by a military hierarchy. The idea of relying on anyone outside of that was so foreign to him that he didn't even consider it.

"I would think that would be something of a risk. After all, others may be willing to benefit but ultimately unwilling to contribute."

Thrawn turned toward the settlement and started to walk that way. He took care to stay just a little bit in the lead as the sky darkened.

"After a time you may be carrying the weight of many by yourself."

"You're just dealing with human nature there. It's going to happen with anything and it's a risk that I'm willing to take. There are people out there that don't know what it's like to have help or know what to do to help out in return. Such an action has to start somewhere.

I also understand as well that there are people out there that would refuse help based on principle. One can only try. I joined the military looking for a simple career path, but now that path had changed I'm going to do what I can to help others out. Isn't that something you and I had been doing from the start?"

Eli responded as he followed Thrawn toward the settlement. He wanted to do something and he was going to do his best to help regardless if Thrawn felt it was too much or not going to go anywhere.

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Open Log

Around the Settlement

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The Square

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The Forest

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