sanctuaryrpg | And the station opens...

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And the station opens...

There were no flashing lights, no alarms. The doors to the quarantine chambers simply opened, the whoosh of seals breaking was the only fanfare.

Quarantine was on a quiet level of the station, a gently pulsing light set into the wall leading the chamber's temporary residents out into the station proper. Outside, station officials wandered by but paid no particular attention to the newcomers; new arrivals were nothing new to them, just a fact of life on Sanctuary. New people arrived in the chambers, station staff logged them, and the computers arranged everything else. So they went about their business, eyes glued to the screens they held.

Of course the newcomers weren't aware of any of this. Anyone who called out to the station staff was greeted with a wan smile and directed toward one of the many terminal screens lining the walls of the large open space between the central tower and the rest of the station.

The terminal screens asked for a fingerprint before offering any additional information. Their names flashed up with a map to their new home in the living quarters and some basic information on the currency contained in the chip in their hand and what it might buy them. A brief explanation of the silver communication unit followed, and then the news of the past twenty-four hours played. War on planets in a neighbouring system, the weather on a vacation world, sports scores for a game that seems a cross between lacrosse, hockey, and quidditch. Nothing of use, of course, nothing that could get them off the planet.

The quiet entrance to the living quarters was on one side of the atrium, and the sounds of a bustling marketplace that could not be contained came from a much wider opening on the other. People of all shapes, colours, and species walked through the space along with station officials and technicians using their tablet like screens, dark uniformed security officers chatting as they strolled their patrols.

The station carried on obliviously while the newcomers watched, each with only their credit chip, a place to live, and a basic outfit. Clearly that was all the welcome they were to expect; what happened next would be up to them.

[[Gathering post and opening of Sanctuary RPG. Put in your characters coming out their quarantine]]

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"I'm not sure where Leicester is, but according to the information in there," Maggie stated with a thumb over her shoulder to indicate the quarantine rooms, "we're in a place called Sanctuary and it appears to be a spaceport, but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're asking."

Since he appeared warm, Maggie called up a light breeze to cool his skin and tried to decide if she should find a cloth or something to wipe down the moisture there.

"It feels, and acts, a lot like where I came from; a town that exists out of time and place."

“Leicester’s in England…” He trailed off, wondering why he was bothering to explain that when he was imagining this whole thing. The Irish lilt was comforting though, maybe he was channelling a little bit of Joel into his surroundings. The problem was that he was starting to wonder if it was true that this was a dream. This whole thing was definitely going on too long, and the pain in his stomach was starting to twinge. Normally a sign he was starting to panic slightly. Running his hand through his hair, he murmured, “A spaceport,” before he sighed.

“How exactly does something exist outside of time anyway?” Finn’s hand was shaking slightly more again at his side, but he was thinking too deeply to notice it.

"England I've heard of, so that helps me at least place where you were from before here. I'm told my ancestors were from Ireland before they decided to start messing about with isolationism and magic," she said with a half shrug. "Which brings me to your other question. I don't know exactly how other than one of my grandfathers decided to protect his town from all comers, whether they intended evil or good, and performed the spell a bit too well. The town was pulled into another dimension, for lack of a better word. We advanced along with the world we were once connected to."

Maggie smiled softly at his expression. "It doesn't sound any less strange the more I tell that story."

Finn listened to her wide eyed and somewhat baffled, attempting to follow a conversation that would, in his usual company, be considered nonsensical. It sounded like something in one of Floss' bedtime stories. Magic? "Magic?" He repeated aloud. Part of him wanted childishly to yell 'prove it', but he could remember the fire.

He could feel his heart starting to pound a little heavier. Thankfully panic attacks were not something he dealt with, but he took a few deep stablising breaths against the churning in his stomach. "Say... say for one ridiculous moment I believed all this. And I'm -" Finn swallowed, trying to counteract the dryness in his mouth, "I'm on a Spaceport. How? And why?"

"Aye, magic," Maggie nodded, as if she was confirming that they were breathing air. "I'm afraid, though, that I can't help much with the how or the why. I never knew how people were pulled to my town, or where they went when they disappeared, and I have even less knowledge of how I left the Folly for the first time in my whole life to come here."

Her hands were itching to be busy and she rubbed them together to at least give them something to do. "Usually this is the point I offer coffee, or tea, but without any place to make it, or any idea how to do so here, all I can do is introduce myself."

She held one of her hands out. "I'm Maggie. Maggie Donnelly."

Sucking in a deep breath, Finn momentarily held the air in his lungs – hoping the intervening time would have allowed his mind to supply some sort of reply. But he drew a blank. Unlike the woman stood opposite him, this was not something he had any prior experience with. Or had even heard of happening to anyone. He let the breath he’d been holding out slowly. Noting her outstretched hand, Finn quickly rubbed his palm on the side of the scrub blue trousers he was now wearing as subtly as possible. His hand was probably still a little clammy as he shook hers quickly, “Finley Murphy. But everyone calls me Finn.

“I think this kind of situation requires something a little stronger than coffee.” Finn wasn’t a huge drinker usually. But he’d welcome a bottle of tequila right now.

Maggie kept her hand cool as it met his, giving it a firm shake before releasing it. "Good to meet you, Finn, and I think you might be on to something there. I could do with a shot of whisky myself. Though maybe we should try and find our way to where we're supposed to be living first?"

"... Sure." Finn replied, ignoring the word 'living'. He might be starting to accept this wasn't a dream. But he hadn't given up hope that this was an extreme prank or some form of reality show he accidentally signed up for. Either way, going along with it seemed easier than giving himself time to slip into a PTSD attack. "Where did it say where we - is that a fingerprint machine?" His eyes were drawn to where a few people seemed to be pressing their fingers to terminal screens.

"It appears to be, yes. Though they didn't tell me much. Just a seemingly endless loop of the same message about where we were, that we'd be provided for with money and a place to live and these highly horrible clothes," Maggie commented, plucking at the plain cotton-ish fabric, already hating the feel of it on her legs.

"Should we go over and see if we can get any more information there?"

In all honesty Finn hadn't thought a great deal about the clothing other than earlier when it begun to stick to his skin during the panic. Although now looking around, other people seemed to have the exact same outfit, just in a variety of colours. His own a horrible blue like the ones he'd seen on every hospital visit. "The film said we'd get our clothes back later?" The words the first indicator that he'd paid any attention to what the looked message had said. Although it didn't exactly sound like he'd be given his full wardrobe - just before all this he'd only gone to sleep in a pair of boxers and threadbare t-shirt.

Behind them just seemed to be a line of more rooms, and Finn didn't really want to go back in there. "Maybe it'll explain something." Although he could feel the apprehension again.

Maggie put a hand on his arm and squeezed slightly. "Finn. Just a moment. Are you sure you're all right? I mean, I know this can be disconcerting, and believe me, I'm not thrilled to be the one pulled from my home and tossed into this one, but you seem a bit more on edge than most I've seen."

He was pretty glad he'd seen her move before he felt her touch his arm. Prepared for the action. The truth was that normally he was ok now, as long as no one grabbed him from behind. But... Finn was obviously twitchy after this, of course she had noticed instant;y. Part of him was surprised people weren't staring in their direction.

His eyes dropped to the ground. A small smile, sad in nature but genuine formed, "As the saying goes 'this too shall pass'." With a small sigh, he looked back at her, "It's happened before - it'll probably happen again. But I'll survive." Finn wished he had his PTSD diary though. Just for something that he recognised.

"All right then," Maggie nodded and released her hand from his arm. "I didn't want to rush you as I'm used to this sort of thing. Granted, not from '"this side of the equation before, but it's still not as odd to me as it would be to someone who'd never been around it before."

She looked up with a wide grin. "How about we find that drink and maybe smooth out a few edges?"

Finn hoped he hadn't come across as too abrasive to Maggie. After all, alienating the first person he met would hardly be a good move. But he couldn't understand quite how unperturbed everyone seemed to be. Or at least not visibly freaking out. "I guess I'm hoping they might give us some answers."

Like how he was going to get home... if this was all real. What would everyone at home think when they found he was missing. Just disappeared off the face of the planet with no explanation, all his belongings still in the flat - "A drink definitely sounds like a good idea. If they sell that kind of stuff on a spacesport."

"If they don't, I'm going to be severely disappointed that all of the space cantinas I've read about in books for years, filled with aliens drinking strange concoctions, is just a literary trope," Maggie replied with an easy smile, meant to hopefully calm him a bit more.

Finn couldn't help a small huff of amusement at the thought of a bar that looked something like a sci-fi film. "Guess you never know. Maybe 'aliens' have other exciting ways of intoxicating themselves. But here's hoping they know a good drink."

Maggie's eyes widened as a few of the stranger aliens walked by them, at least one with no discernable mouth on what she assumed was it's head. "Well. Clearly, they'd have to, wouldn't they?"

She turned back to Finn and laughed, a little shakily. "And I hope they do because I'm starting to feel like I really need one. Or three."

As much as she wasn't a stranger to traveling between dimensions, this was the first time she'd been the traveler. And it was seriously disconcerting. "I might not be coping as well as I'd originally thought."

He followed where her gaze went and felt his eyes widen at the sight. Everyone had looked pretty human until that moment, which probably had made it somewhat easier to process. Even if he had been told they weren't all exactly from Earth. "That is definitely new. Yeah. Hmm..." Finn trailed off.

Hearing the slight wobble in her words, he tried to think of something comforting to say. But the truth was that there weren't any simple words to make it better. "I think given what's apparently happening right now, you've been coping pretty well." It wasn't like when Floss scrapped her knee and a plaster could make everything better. There wasn't a plan to right things easily. "But it's completely fine to not be ok."

"Did you want to go through the terminal?"

"Thank you for that. I suppose I'm just not used to being looked after, I'm usually the one looking after others. The feeling is more than a little disconcerting."

Maggie looked at the others as they began to mill around. "No time like the present, hmm?"

"I'm sorry I didn't have something a little more comforting to say," he replied with a small smile. "Now if you'd scraped your knee falling off a see-saw or something. Whole other story."

"Yeah. Let's do this." With a comically false smile he stepped over to one of the machines and pressed the relevant finger to the screen. Finn tried not to be too weirded out when the screen flashed up Finley Jacob Murphy followed by several random facts and the information Level K North, Room 55.

Since she didn't have the heart to tell him that she rarely fell because the air would catch her before she could, Maggie merely nodded. "You're plenty comforting, Finn. And I appreciate it."

Maggie watched as he used the terminal then used one adjacent to it and received her own lodging information, Level J North, Room 7. "Well, according to the map we're close to each other, if not on the same floor. That's something. Feel like taking a walk over? See what the rooms look like?"

Finn tried to resist but couldn't help a small grin - at least he wasn't completely useless. "Well, I can promise that I always try."

As much as he was glad to know he was at least somewhat near someone, the sudden realisation that this was where he would be living hit unpleasantly. He already missed his room in his flat. A space he'd been adjusting for years. "Sure," he responded, although there was limited enthusiasm to his words. "Looks like your floor is nearer."

Maggie shot him a soft smile and started walking. She took in what she could of the station as they made their way to the living quarters and felt a thrill of excitement when she noticed a coffee shop nearby.

"Hmm. I wonder if they're hiring?" She asked, apropos of nothing.

It was like nothing he'd ever seen. There were numbers of things that were just like at home, but then the tech... it was like nothing he'd ever seen before. And he'd been to Japan which always seemed a step ahead of the rest of the planet. Noticing her pause outside a coffee shop, he tried to resist wrinkling his nose at the interior appearance. "Guess you'll have to ask the owner, if you're planning on staying around."

He didn't even want to think about trying to find a job. Mostly because he had to hope his stay was only short term. But also what possible skills could he offer to a spaceport? Travel blog writers slash photographers probably weren't in demand here. "Did... you want to go in?"

"Planning on staying around? I'm not sure that's up to us, but I know one thing for sure. If I'm idle for more than a few days or a week at most, I will probably go crazy. I'm used to having a lot to do, maybe even too much to do. You don't just shut that off, you know?"

Maggie looked up at the housing area and took a deep breath, half apprehension and half excitement. "No time like the present, right?"

And the station opens...

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