revivalproject | New Face in Town

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New Face in Town

WHO: Cobb Vanth and Whomever
WHERE: Hangar
WHAT: New arrival just hanging out watching the sunrise
WHEN: 2/8 early morning
WARNINGS: None.

Cobb watched the sunrise from the side of the hangar where he leant casually. He had his hands tucked under his arms to keep them warm. The temperatures here were a lot colder than he was used to. Back home, the first sun would've already been up making this pleasant for a few brief moments before the second one rose. There weren't many people out and about yet but he figured if he waited long enough he'd get a good look at a few.

This place was still new even though he had a better idea of situation. It wasn't a situation he liked much but well, he'd adjust. He wanted to walk around the town proper later to really get a feel for the layout. Right now, he felt pretty comfortable with the ships where he knew at least a few people.

He still hadn't figured out what exactly he'd do in this place. There didn't seem to be any real organization besides the ships themselves and who they'd let on. Weird little security measure that. He scratched at his chin a moment. Yeah, definitely a weird little place he had found himself in.

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There's a whoosh as the doors to one of the ships opens. At first it might seem like no one is there. Then a tiny green figure comes toddling out. He makes his way over to the fountain, climbing up on the edge. He's about to dip one hand into the water when he notices a familiar face. Looking up, he smiles and waves.

This was the first time Cobb had seen the little guy without Mando. He chuckles and waves back before making his way over. That fountain looks like trouble for a little guy like the kid.

"Mornin' kiddo." He gently ruffles the little guy's ears. "You gettin' into something you shouldn't right now?"

Cobb would just keep an eye on him until Mando appeared. How much trouble could the little guy get into in that time?

Hey! Careful with the ears, man. And, please, he's always getting into trouble. He blows a raspberry at Cobb, tilting his head. Did you just get here?

He chuckles at the raspberry and holds up his hands. "Oh, excuse me. I didn't mean to offend."

But he's a smart enough man not to leave the kid alone. He remembers the trouble other kids got into in the compound he grew up in. The trouble he got into.

Cobb invites himself to sit down on the edge of fountain. "You like this place?" he asks because Cobb likes to hear himself talk. "Not sure I'm enjoyin' it just yet. Little cold and... strange."

He giggles, amused that Cobb is at least trying to understand him. It's definitely better than some adults around here.

He watches the Marshall before reaching down to splash at the water a little. No fish... that's disappointing. He shifts and sits down next to Cobb. It's strange, yeah, but at least nothing's tried to kill him since he got here. He looks up at him, making a small noise and raising his ears. It's not so bad once you get used to it.

Cobb will try his best to understand. He's not an expert in green alien child language.

"I guess you must like it a little bit. You got your dad. That's a bit of good luck for both of us, huh?" It would be a lot more unsettling to be on this strange planet without a familiar face. Cobb got two. Probably a lucky thing around here.

No, but he gets an A for effort.

He nods a little. He doesn't think he'd do well in this place without Din around. Sure there are others here who like to help take care of him, but none of them are his Dad.

Cobb nodded along. Yeah, it was good the little guy had Mando around and that Mando had him. Otherwise, he imagined both parties would be in a mess without the other for a long time.

"Still gonna be awhile for me to settle in like you two have, I think. Don't much like getting taken somewhere against my will." That happened too much in his past for him to feel real comfortable with this.

Really, who liked being taken somewhere like that? Of course, that kind of happened to Grogu all the time but he really had no way to argue or tell anyone what his will actually was. Also he didn't mind that much, since Din usually took them to some pretty exciting places.

His ears raised and he made a noise at Cobb. He understood what he meant. Grogu and Din were lucky to have each other. And Din had been there before, that definitely made a difference, too.

One of these days, the kid would figure out words and then he'd really tell people what for.

Cobb figured that was a little understanding there. Someone had taken the kid from his people before he found his way to Mando. He sighs.

"You know the worst part, kiddo?" Cobb looks at him a smile slowly spreading across his lips. "It's cold."

Too true. SOMEDAY. But today was not that day.

Cobb was pretty intuitive for a non-Jedi. It was no wonder Grogu liked him. He smiled up at him and pat his arm. Yeah, it was a lot colder than Tatooine. Hey! He could talk to Obi-Wan! Obi-Wan was living there, so he'd understand!

Cobb's a people person. For the most part. He's pretty good at reading body language. The kid is pretty expressive too.

He'll get it wrong eventually.

Mando had told him there were other people from their galaxy around here but Cobb hadn't met them yet. Mostly just other people from far of places he's never heard of. "Gonna have to find something warm. Or ask around and see if anyone's got something to spare."

Grogu made a burbling noise and gestured towards the ships. There are plenty of blankets in there! He knows, he made a nest out of some of them in the Star Duck.

"I don't think I like the ships as much as you, kid." They're cramped and cold in Cobb's opinion. He's started to miss his home in Mos Pelgo which while small was more than enough space for just him.

He stretches his legs out in front of him. "My bed's a little short for me."

... That wasn't not what he said, Cobb. Work on your listening skills! He frowned. making a displeased noise. Oh, well. He didn't have that problem. He could fit anywhere! He looked around. There were other places where people could stay, right?

"What?" He heard that noise and the frown is pretty easy to spot. He has no idea what's bothering the kid right now. Could be any number of things. Maybe he's upset about the short crack?

"I figure as long as you and your dad are here I don't have it too bad. Always got someone to watch my back." Even if none of them are on the same ship. He can trust at least a handful of folks.

He's not wrong, there. And, hey, Grogu is portable. He can stay anywhere with anyone! Nodding, he makes a noise in agreement. Yes! He'll have your back, Cobb.

And the small size made him as cute as a baby loth cat. It's pretty impressive just how adorable those big brown eyes are.

Cobb chuckles and rubs one of the kid's ears affectionately. "Yeah, I knew I could count on you. Knew you had a lot of spunk when I saw you climb out of the bag Mando had you in on your own."

Back when the kid and Mando first came to Mos Pelgo. The kid had attitude, no denying it.

Cobb's got the right idea. He's damn cute and spunky. So why is Din still surprised when he sneaks off on his own? The galaxy may never know. Speaking of, where the heck is Din? Ah, well. He'll turn up eventually.

Grogu smiles, making a happy noise at the ear rub. Yes good. You can stay, friend.

The hangar is not a place Jon tends to frequent. On any regular day he liked to pretend the ships don't exist. That they aren't sitting up there and waiting for whenever Temba's involuntary inhabitants were forced back out into space to- Do whatever, really.

It's that very possibility that remains the only reason the Archivist wanders up to the ships from time to time to make sure each of them has access to some basic first aid supplies. And yet the last time he has done so has been months ago. Before they were called out to rescue the Agrii. Before the ships crashed back onto Agra 10 in the middle of an energy storm...

They really had timed that dreadfully, hadn't they.

Though that as well has been at least months in the past and while Jon frowns up at the sight of the hangar itself, he has no doubt that the more technically adept people of their group have already finished fixing their odd assortment of space ships. What's more curious is spotting an unfamiliar face in the doorway and it's beyond Jon to manage hiding his wonder and curiosity. "Oh, hello? I- I don't think I have seen you around?" At least the question is genuine wonder rather than compulsion.

"Nope, been here just a little while." Cobb looks the stranger up and down a moment before he stands up straight and holds out a hand. "Cobb Vanth, recent kidnapping victim."

This guy seemed normal enough at first place. Honestly, he looks a little out of place in Cobb's opinion. Kind of uneasy which is interesting.

"Pleasure to meet ya." And it's somewhat is. Cobb figures the more people he knows around here the easier it'll get to find a place in this strange world.

"Jonathan Sims." Jon answers, accepting the offered hand, always happy to encounter basic politeness. "I have been here- A while? But I see you are already informed about your situation." He looks apologetic before adding, "The Agrii don't mean us any harm, they are just... Dreadful at communicating." And in all seriousness, they are.

He gives a short nod into the hangar where the ships are standing. "Have you been staying with the ships this entire time?" A careful question, nothing the other man couldn't simply refuse to answer.

Cobb hums a little. "Kinda hard to believe that when they've taken us from our homes and the people that need us."

He isn't angry about it but wary. Any beings powerful enough to grab all these people up were something to be wary about. There were different types of harm out there.

"I've done a little exploring but this has been home for now." Cobb isn't sure he'll stay on the ship but for now it feels safe. Well, safe as rather junky ship can.

And being wary is a reasonable approach. Jon sighs lightly and his attention drifts in the general direction of the tower that now has gone dark and dead and barely notable at this distance. Not that his current lack of glasses helps any.

“It’s actually.... More complicated than just that. It may not even be the Agrii anymore that bring us here. Another alien species called the Atroma appear to be using them. The ship the Agrii are stranded on was given to them by the Atroma. And the technology they used to bring us here was taken from them the moment they promised to bring us back.” He lets out a short, humorless laugh. “Christ, we nearly blew up all of the Agrii when we headed out to rescue them!”

Shaking his head, Jon makes to step past Cobb and into the hangar itself, frowning at the once again stranded ships. “That was the one time I have seen these ships actually being used. It’s.... A mess.”

No one had told Cobb that part yet. His eyebrows jump up in surprise. There was a lot more going on behind the scenes than he had really considered. Another alien species might be actually controlling everything. He rubs a hand over his mouth. Great.

"Well, good news it doesn't have to be pretty to work," he says with a little smile. "Anyone ever try to lead this little commune?"

And he means more than just the aliens that grabbed them. Maybe if someone was in charge things might go smoother. It could also end up a disaster. "Things might go smoother with someone steering the ship."

“Not that I’m aware of, no.” Jon answers plainly. “Even though we apparently had emperors here. Kings and queens and I believe one introduced himself to be a mythological god. A lot of those here are actual super heroes, which traditionally may be.... Tricky to try and lead? Steve actually has been the leader of a few of them in their own world, but he doesn’t appear to have any inclination to pick up that mantle here...”

And by that time, Jon has drifted into musing. There are quite a few people he could name as good potential leaders, And yet no one has shown any such ambitions.

Which may or may not be for the best...

"That's some hubris." It made sense though. The little pockets of development and rebuilding meant groups of people had found each other and come together. Organizing that was... not easy. He might just have to wait on trying to get people working together until he knew them all better.

"What do you do around here?" he asks, a little unsure if Jonathan's even listening to him. The guy seemed to be staring in the middle distance. Maybe not as normal as Cobb first thought. "I met Cayde who's got himself his bar. There are some farms and such. Gotta keep yourself busy, ya know?"

“Me?” The question has Jon’s attention jump back to Cobb, a single brow shifting up before he answers.

“There is... Was a library here at some point. Filled with small versions of those data points by the look of it. All of them shattered. I.... Cleared the place out. And try to collect what information there is on this place, planet, the Agrii.” It may not be much, but even these things help feed the Eye’s endless curiosity.

Those data points were another thing that made Cobb a little wary. Stuff just getting shoved in his brain didn't sit well with him. He still hadn't touched one.

"Reading ain't one of my stronger talents so I'll leave that to you." But it's good to know where to find this man if Cobb wants to. Jonathan's knowledge might be useful in the future.

"I've heard a lot about these storms and weird things happening. That frequent?" There's just so much to learn around here.

In direct contrast Jon will touch literally any data point out of pure curiosity. He just dislikes that he can only remember one of the expertise data points at a time. Losing knowledge just is the worst for him.

He blinks once at the comment about Cobb being unable to read, but then offers a smile. “Well, actually there are only two books around. Most of my records exist on tape. You can simply listen to them.” A few of them may be a little unsettling, however.

“About those storms...” Jon pauses. Then shakes his head. “We may or may not have found what has caused them. And possibly disabled it. But that’s not certain at the moment. All we can do is... Well. Wait. And see if another storm hits eventually.”

"I might take you up on that later." Information is good to have and how much more unsettling could it be. Right now, he's pretty content with asking questions to whomever happened to be friendly enough for a chat.

There's a part of Cobb that's a little disappointed he won't get to see a storm. He's never experienced rain of any kind. The storms sounded a little strange but to see rain well that would be something.

"That's reassuring," he says dryly. "I guess I should just be ready for anything in this place."

And Jon will be happy to share what he has gathered. That’s what a library should be for anyway.

“Oh. Being prepared for anything is advisable. Vanishing people, waking up on other planets, being chased by your worst fears, finding yourself in the dreams of another person....” Jon trails off for a moment, then adds with a sigh, “Or the city being invaded by giant spiders.” He really would love to forget about that. But then again, he got a new scar to remember the event by.

The Archivist then takes a moment to consider the man again, inclining his head a little. “Your home world. It doesn’t happen to be Earth, does it.”

Oh, he was maybe going to hate it here.

He'd gotten used to the relative peace of Mos Pelgo. A whole bunch of trouble in one place just... didn't hold that much appeal. But he'd adjust, like always.

"No," he shakes his head. The name doesn't ring any bells either but his knowledge of the larger galaxy is a little spotty. "From Tatooine. It's a desert hellhole in case you're curious. Earth is your home?"

He doesn't want to assume but it feels pretty obvious.

Luckily Cobb has just narrowly avoided getting tossed into that spider invasion.

A nod from Jon. So this man isn't from Earth - Or a version of it, apparently. Which in general is always good to know to avoid needless misunderstandings.

"I don't believe Tatooine is represented on this planet so far. At least I don't recall anyone mention it yet. Earth tends to be more represented in those brought here - Though not necessarily my Earth." Which may be for the best, really. "It just... I am left amazed by how far the reach of their technology keeps proving itself. Different galaxies, dimensions, even times... They are capable to bring in people you thought long dead. It's... Daunting."

"Yeah, haven't met anyone from my stretch of desert. Did meet someone I know." Two someones if he counted the kid. They weren't native to Tatooine though. "But so far everyone I've met has been pretty decent."

The one asshole he had on his ship was the exception. That guy... Cobb was going to struggle with.

Daunting was one word for it. Terrifying is the one that comes to Cobb's mind. These things that had them were powerful and could make their lives hell. Cobb knew his past was tainting his view but, well, that thinking had kept him alive this long.

"Most of those brought here are quite agreeable in my experience." And he say s that despite having had his quarrels with a few of them himself. Even Tony. Heck, especially Tony! The way he has just shown up and inserted himself into Jon's life and decided it to be his rightful place. Which, Jon will have to admit, it has become.

But this is neither time nor place for these lamentations, so Jon takes a moment and takes a breath and then nods.

"I- I mean. Just let me know if there is anything I can help you with. Or if there are any further questions I might be able to answer."

"You seem to know a lot about those data points." Cobb shoves his hands in the pockets of his pants. "I haven't touched one yet. Don't like the idea of things poking around in my brain."

But they seemed to be useful, maybe a little necessary around here. He's considered touching one just to see what the hell it does. Kind of like he used to do with the Mandalorian armor.

"You got any idea if they take something from your brain to do it?" He doesn't want the aliens to know all his secrets. He's not exactly ashamed of his past, not fully or... it's complicated but he likes his privacy.

Fair enough. Not many actually approve of such intrusions.

Jon shrugs. “They erase the knowledge of your chosen expertise data point if you pick a new one. They don’t make you forget other things and-“ He pauses, frowning slightly. “The data points are not connected to things that happen during the storms, I’m afraid. Even those that refuse to touch any suffer the same hallucinations as those that touched several.”

Whoever is keeping them there, Atroma or Agrii or whoever, doesn’t use the data points to read anyone’s mind.

Well, that is something. These people can just poke around in his head, great. Cobb doesn't like that idea at all but like the rest of this situation there's not much he can do about it except grit his teeth and get through it.

"Alright, that's very helpful to know." Not reassuring at all like Cobb hoped but it's more than he knew before. Every little bit of information helps, he supposed.

"Might bother you with questions again in the future if you don't mind. You seem to know a lot about this place." Cobb wouldn't keep Jon much longer. The man probably had his own business to get to.

The Archivist nods. "Sure. I can be found at the former library most of the time, I suppose. Just- Be careful of the mothcat that has decided to live there as well. She can be a bit of a surprise when she decides to suddenly drop down on you." Jon prefers warning people to have anyone accidentally shoot the animal.

He gives the small bag he carries a short pat, then nods towards the ships. "I will just drop something off for the ship supplies. It will only be a moment."

Mothcat? Surely the man meant loth cat. Although, he'd seen some weird creatures around here. Maybe he really did mean something called a mothcat.

Well, that'll be fun to discover later.

"I ain't in charge around here. Do what ya need to." Cobb gave him a friendly nod and then went back to leaning against the hangar. There was still some early morning left to enjoy.

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New Face in Town

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