thefinaljedi | 19th Transmission: A Poor Imitation [Voice/Action] (May 20-23rd)

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19th Transmission: A Poor Imitation [Voice/Action] (May 20-23rd)

[Taking up the maintenance work had been just the thing Luke had needed. Reeling from the loss of Obi-Wan, he'd just wanted to be away from everyone and everything, friends and girlfriend included. A note for Ami was all he'd really left, promising to be back when he felt up to facing the future after the ridiculousness that was...well...that last shift. And he had to admit that even though it was only low orbit it had been nice to see space again. Being so long cooped up on a single planet was strange to someone who was just used to flying, and it'd done wonders to relieve pressure.

And given him an itch.

For the first day after he returns or so, Luke can be found at the farm, taking care of maintenance after the planting had been finished, while in the afternoon he's busy programming something rather complex on the Battle Dome computer. And of course, he'll be resuming his evening shifts at the Clinic and spending some quiet time at House 46.

However by the 22nd he's finished his project and on 23rd he sends out a generalized broadcast.]

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Hello Luceti.

This is Luke Skywalker. It occurs to me that I've not done one of these in some time, so allow me to extend a greeting to the New Feathers from this cycle. I manage the farmland and could always use some volunteers to help maintain it. It's meant to supplement the food supplies granted to us by the Malnosso in the event of an emergency, so it's a rather hefty project that could always use more hands.

Also, I've been working on a little side project at the Battle Dome. If anyone is interested, I've managed to program some training and historical dogfight simulations from my homeworld. Flight simulations, for both X-Wings and Y-Wings, the two kinds of snubfighters I've had the most experience with. I'd appreciate any help testing them for bugs, and if anyone would like to add to them they're more than welcome to do so. If you've ever wanted to fly, it might be a good chance, and it's a skill might be useful if another draft occurs in space.

On an unrelated note, I've apparently missed my own birthday. I'm 31 now, and this is my second in Luceti. It's a little strange, having been on a single planet for so long. For those of you who do remain stationary, how do you manage it? I admit it's got me rather restless.

Thank you for listening, and may the Force be with you.

[Luke will be at the Battle Dome for anyone who wants to try his simulations, and he's got quite a few to choose from...]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's that domed structure south of the village, right? I'm not doing anything, can I drop in now?

[It's definitely going to be something. Something positive, of course. Elizabeth isn't a pilot by any means, nor does she have many positive memories of her in the air. But the chance to even simulate being in space is too amazing to wait on.]

Absolutely. I'd be happy to show you what I've got finished, and you're more than welcome to be one of my first tests.

And it'll be fun.

Yes! I'll-- I'll be right there, Mr. Sky-- Luke!

[Someone's excited.]

[And this is actually someone's first time in the Battle Dome's facilities, too. As Elizabeth arrives, she's looking at everything, wondering what she should be looking for. Was there a specific room she should be looking for...?]

[She'll find him waiting for her, leaning against the command console, arms folded. He hops down and walks over, offering a hand in greeting.]

Hey there. Elizabeth, right?

[Her attention is drawn when Luke comes towards her, and she smiles after looking just a hint startled.]

Yes, that's me. [She takes his hand.] I suppose it was a little obvious, right? I haven't been in here before. [Everything is certainly more high-tech, as it were. Lights and buttons, fewer levers... Elizabeth's trying to take it all in without appearing too much like a gawking tourist.]

Just a bit, but nothing wrong with that.

[Luke's handshake is firm. Almost...robotic!] And it's a good place, once you figure things out. It takes some time, sure, but once you've got down how to work it, it's actually kind of nice.

[He gestures over towards that console.]

Like this thing controls all the simulations you can access or create. Look, I'll show you.

[He'll take a minute to demonstrate some of the basics if Elizabeth wants, and call up the X-Wing simulation...]

[Elizabeth follows Luke over to the console, trying to figure out what each thing does while he shows her the basics. It's a fascinating thing to someone who came from a year where films didn't even have audio. But something that responds to how she interacts with it is absolutely fascinating.]

How long does it take to learn how to create one of these? [She's already practically chomping at the bit to build something of her own.]

[Luke can definitely see that, and he appreciates the reaction. It's nice, compared to the blase way so many people are with the Battle Dome. Himself included.]

That depends on how complicated you want to make it. Here.

[He presses a button to start a fresh sim, just a blank room.]

There, nothing but a big white room. Try pushing some of these...[He points] and see what it adds. It's more a matter of patience and learning what goes where.

[Elizabeth looks at the blank room in wonder, then at the buttons. This is like painting, only it has the potential to move and she can interact with it. Absolutely amazing...]

[She picks a button and presses it, generating a rainforest in the room. Startled, she pulls back a little in surprise but then leans forward to examine what she's done. So many types of foliage she's only read about, in colors she'd only painted with before. She's automatically addicted to this and starts pushing more buttons and turning more dials. Once she's done, it's an absolute mess--underwater rainforest populated by kittens with divers' helmets on, swimming against a very intense current. She laughs, knowing that what she's created is akin to throwing buckets of paint at a canvas.]

I can see what you mean-- Show me your simulation! It's better than this, right? [She raises an eyebrow and gestures to her own bizarre creation.]

Better than? Well, I don't know if it's as entertaining as this but it's certainly a bit more organized. [Forgive him, he can't help but tease. Luke does fiddle with some buttons though, calling up his own.]

Alright, let's see. Would you rather fly something that's a bomber, or something with a bit more speed?

Thank goodness for that, it's a flight simulator after all, right? [Elizabeth can at least laugh along with him. Though the kittens with helmets were kind of cute...]

[She puts a finger to her lips, thinking.] Speed, definitely speed. [She grins, thinking of sliding along on a rail with her sky hook. In a way, she sort of missed that feeling of flying.]

Speed? A girl after my own heart.

[His fingers fly along the keys, and in the simulation chamber there's suddenly a pair of X-Wings, the standard Rebellion starfighter.]

Come on, Elizabeth. Let's get you in a ship and start flight school.

As long as I'm not falling through the air again, I'll take speed over firepower any day. [Elizabeth grins and watches in fascination as the fighters appear in the room. They look so light and nimble compared to the gunships and zeppelins she's seen before. How do they even fly?]

[She nods and hops down from the controls, making a beeline for the ships. She wants a minute to walk around one of them and look before Luke helps her in.]

And you programmed these to look exactly like the ones you've flown in?

Exactly so. I know them inside and out and they're based on specs stored in Artoo. But I could bore you with the technical details for hours, so we don't we just get you flying.

[Luke pulls over a ladder for her, gesturing.]

Hop in and strap yourself in.

They'd be fascinating to hear about-- [Elizabeth hops over to the ladder and starts climbing up, grinning from ear-to-ear.] --But I really do want to fly as soon as possible.

Of course, lets get you situated.

[He jumps up, landing nimbly on top of the ship where the astromech would normally go and points to a pair of stick-like controls and an array of buttons.]

The stick steers, and those buttons control acceleration, ignition, and weapons systems. We'll start with the simple one. Ignition. Once you're strapped in, flip that.

[Elizabeth cranes her neck as Luke jumps up onto the ship, trying to follow his movements and listen.]

[Strap in... strap in... Acceleration, ignition, weapons...]

Strap in? [She looks up lamely at Luke with an apologetic smile.]

Buckle up. Take the harness and fasten it across your chest, and the belt should click together around your waist.

[Right, not everyone knows that turn of phrase. Oh well.]

Oh! [Elizabeth looks around and eventually finds the harness and buckles it without too much trouble. Though she has to wonder why it's necessary...]

Right, okay. 'Strapped in'. [She reaches out and flips the ignition switch.]

[The engine flairs to life slowly, a rumble coming from the back of the ship. Luke leans down, but he's ready to hop down and get into his own.]

Good, good. Now, give it a moment to warm up. The start-up process takes a few minutes usually. When I'm in my own ship, I'll give you the go-ahead to hit the thrusters. [He points out the "go" button.]

Remember the stick steers, and you pull down on it to go up, and push forward to go down. The thruster alone is how you go forward.

[~~Ah, inverted. Beautiful.~~]

[Elizabeth nods, taking note of the button for the thrusters, the stick, and so on. It looks complicated, but really she only has to be concerned with the button and the stick at the moment. Easy enough, even for someone from 1912 sitting in a spaceship.]

I think I've got it... [She tests to make sure she can reach the button, hovers her hand over the stick for a moment.] What happens if I make a mistake? [Elizabeth gives Luke a hesitant and sheepish smile. She by no means thinks she's an absolute genius at everything.]

Nothing happens. It's a simulation, you won't get hurt. And you'll be flying in space, not here, so there won't be anything for you to hit except me. You'll get the hang of it, and it's better this way than the Malnosso tossing you into something you've never done before.

Just relax, take a breath, and give it a go.

[Good, good. Though frankly Elizabeth doesn't want to think about running into Luke, but it was a part of the learning process, right? Sometimes you tried things... and a car nearly came out of the tear and hit you. Basic stuff.]

Alright, I can do that. Better to learn here than when it's really important.

Do the Malnosso really put us in those sorts of situations, though? [Not that she'd put it past them, they didn't really seem to care what happened to their 'subjects'. But it seems a little counter-intuitive to put someone in a spaceship when they had no idea how to fly one.]

They have in the past.

[He starts up his own ship as he speaks.]

But they also send children and ponys on drafts as well. They don't seem to really care much about our survival rates.

...Ponies? [The children part is terrible, of course. But ponies seems slightly arbitrary.]

It sort of makes you wonder why we're all here. If we're that expendable, there must be a common thread between all of us. If one subject is just as good as another. [As terrifying and horrible Elizabeth's situation was, at least she wasn't treated like she was expendable.]

19th Transmission: A Poor Imitation [Voice/Action] (May 20-23rd)

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[Action] Aaaaagh so sorry for slow! ;A;

[Action] Perfectly fine, I'm going to be mostly hiatused till Monday night myself.

[Action] Roger that! /o/

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