thememesyne | TDM 02

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TDM 02

TDM 02

WAKING UP
WARNING
WARNING

cryo bay malfunction
cryo bed error

loading

emergency override accepted
It's nothing like it was in training, waking up from cryo sleep. The sterile, cold quiet you were conditioned to expect is shattered. Alarms blare violently, ricocheting off the walls of your pod as if they're trying to crawl into your skull. Red lights pulse like a failing heartbeat, and for a moment, your entire body refuses to obey you - can't breathe, can't move, can't think.

...and then, with an almost violent shudder, force rips through your diaphragm. A brutal jolt, like being kicked from the inside out. You cough, heaving for air as the cryo pod's systems drag you unwillingly out of torpor. There is no slow, gentle awakening - this is an emergency.

Your vision is blurred and swimming in the red strobes. Emergency. The word itself seems lodged in the air, floating around your fractured mind like some distorted mantra. Something's wrong. Very wrong.

When you stumble out of the pod, your muscles heavy with the dull ache of cryo-stasis. It takes more effort than it should to move; even in the low gravity of the massive cryo bay, it's like you're fighting against the weight of your own body. Your hands tremble as you grab the tether, using it to pull yourself forward, toward the revival room. Everything feels too slow. Every movement, every thought, is tangled in webs of lethargy and confusion. Your brain is... wrong. It feels like it's leaking memories - images flickering and fading, like you’re seeing through a sieve full of holes.

This is not the start of your 5-year shift. No, this is something far, far worse.

A voice comes through from a speaker, disturbingly calm, cutting through the chaos around you.

hello, [crew member]
there is an issue
please join your crewmates
L3TH3 sounds unbothered by the alarms that blare around you. The AI has likely been running diagnostics for hours, while your body and mind were frozen in time.

The doors to the revival room slide open with a soft hiss, revealing dim, sterile lighting and the harsh stench of disinfectant. What awaits you are not only crew members as confused and groggy as you are, but others also arrive at the room from outside, ready to greet you. Do you ask them what’s going on, if they feel the same gnawing wrongness clawing at their brains? Or do you just grab your gear and get ready to go, trusting the training that suddenly feels so irrelevant in the face of whatever's happening here?

One thing is clear - something's definitely off about this wakeup call.

A BIT OF TURBULENCE
Thanks to the combined efforts of the crew, the engine is back on! L3TH3 is quick to continue in the direction the navigators had planned - before they were sanitized. The Mnemosyne moves through space easily, barely a sound as the purple nebula and distant stars light up the unknown galaxy the ship has ended up in. It's eerie but beautiful, the cosmic canvas shifting and swirling with colors that seem almost alive.

The tranquility shatters on the day after the new crew wakes up - the ship enters an asteroid field. The shields power up with a pronounced whir as the hard-light protection activates, creating a shimmering barrier to block the floating space rocks. While it's strong enough to protect the hull from taking damage, there's now a lot of turbulence. Each collision of small asteroids against the shield sends vibrations rattling through the ship, making it feel as though the very bones of the Mnemosyne are protesting against the chaos outside.

Quickly, furniture is magnetized to not fly around and a notice flashes on the CL-10, urging everyone to secure any smaller loose objects. As the asteroid field closes in, the crew can see the rocks tumbling in the void, some as large as small moons, spinning through the dark with an unsettling grace. The ship lurches to the side, casting shadows that dance like specters against the walls.

Outside, the view is still breathtaking - asteroids whizzing by, some glittering with minerals, others shrouded in dust and shadow. In the midst of the chaos, the beauty of the galaxy remains.

FLOATING AWAY
As the Mnemosyne continues to brave the asteroid field, L3TH3 suggests that the crew move to the holodecks for their safety. The AI reasons that it'll minimize the risk of injury, and the gravity will be turned off in there to stop the turbulence from shaking people around. It will allow the crew to float weightlessly for a while, free from the jolts that have become their new unwelcome companions.

If the crew make their way to the holodecks, the air is different inside, tinged with the scent of fresh grass and ocean salt as holographic projections spring to life around them.

In one holodeck, the program flickers to life, revealing a stunning landscape of lush green meadows dotted with vibrant wildflowers. The sun hangs low in a blue sky, casting a warm glow across the scenery. Gentle breezes rustle through the tall grass, creating a soft, soothing sound that is a stark contrast to the metallic whir of the ship. When the gravity turns off, it's like flying over the beautiful summer setting.

In the adjacent holodeck, another program unfolds - a breathtaking underwater scene. The crew members can see themselves swimming through the crystal-clear water, surrounded by colorful coral reefs teeming with life. Schools of fish dart between the corals, their scales shimmering in shades of blue, orange, and yellow. The tranquility of the ocean envelops everything, each breath a reminder of the freedom you can have within this artificial paradise.

For a moment, the crew can forget the peril of the asteroid field and the unpredictability of space travel. Here, in this floaty sanctuary, everyone can find a bit of solace.

Welcome to our TDM! Please direct any questions about the game to our FAQ and check out our AU WORKSHOP. If you have questions about the prompts, you can ask below.

PLAYLIST

THIS TDM IS A GAME-CANON EVENT, SO CURRENT CREW CAN TOPLEVEL AS WELL.
ANY CHARACTERS THAT DO NOT END UP IN THE GAME HAVE GONE BACK TO CRYO SLEEP.

RESERVES OPEN THE 1ST.
APPLICATIONS OPEN THE 3RD.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

"You're bound to be doing shit outside of the job description. There's only about ten, maybe twelve of us, not a full thirty person shift." He grunted and shook his head. "but nobody's making you work on something you'll break before you fix. that's for damned sure, so good news there at least."

High-five for mutual anger management problems. That scar on the right side of his face hadn't been earned by a winning personality.

"The docs have the symptoms on file. It's been cleansed in the accessible sections completely. Nobody's showing symptoms, so we should be safe. stay away from the bridge." but yeah, shit luck is shit luck. "I've seen at least an 8 out of 10 already. Could've been worse, but we're not sure. If people start acting weirdly, keep an eye out."

"Just so long as no one asks me to clean up," she sniffed. Madison Montgomery wasn't anyone's maid. Even if she had played one on a time or two. "But that's good, I fully intend to announce that I have no nerd skills on file. Just kicking ass, which is what I signed up for," she said with an almost absurd smile.

High-five back, any for being a walking disaster?

"Oh thank fuck. I hate being sick! And believe me, that was the plan. Granted, everything would run smoothly if people simply listened to me, but I'm not betting on that happening anytime soon," she said with a shrug. Such was her life. Tragic, really. "Weirdly? Define 'weird,' I used to work as an actress, saw every kind of weird there was. I wanna know exactly what to keep an eye on."

"If I had to put a finger on the pulse of it... people who are so stressed it's affecting their work in ways that don't just look fucking dog tired. That's easy to understand. But they get twitchy... or worse they start talking like they've got a plan." He growled at the latter. "I don't mean, 'I think I figured out a plan to up the shield output by 50 god-damned percent so we don't feel the next impact."

The ship gave a small Shudder. Prove his point, would you.

"I mean, plans like 'I know how to get us all out of this.'" His head shook and his lips thinned. "Truth is, none of us fuckers do. If we actually had that plan, we'd be doing it already. A real plan involves lots of little plans by tired people to make it all work. One big save us all plan will probably kill us all."

"Twitchy? Possible delusions of grandeur," Madison snorted. "That sounds like three fourths of the directors and producers I ever had to work with." Damnit. Looked like her hopes of being around normal people were going to be dashed on the rocks of bullshitery. "And why would anyone actually work to make things better, especially since you said only one engineer is up and working! Ugh."

And she felt that shudder. It took a fair amount of acting that it didn't bother her, she almost convinced herself it didn't.

"Again, delusions of grandeur. With a side of being a dumbfuck," she stated plainly. She wasn't the type to try and sugarcoat things she knew were messed up, for good or for bad. "Gotta admit, that's gonna be a big change. I'm used to people who think they know everything telling the rest of us peons how things were gonna be. Hated it back home, will do everything I can think of to keep it from happening here. Little plans, those sound doable," she said with more confidence than she actually felt. At least she was telling the truth about the big plan people.

"Being completely fair... less delusions of grandeur, more paranoid delusions and just plain stir crazy. Woke up to a bunch of dead bodies, a captain nobody can reach cause of the plague and a ship on the fritz. The stress's gotten to at least one of the fuckers." But he was in Ops. Zaeed was certain Ops could be spared right now a little bit. "But we've got plenty of delusions of grandeur to go around." Especially in the medical field.

"We'll figure it out. Least you're not alone in security. We can split the shifts up better with four of us."

"Well, they sound fun," Madison said with fake cheer. "And that's just great that no one can reach the captain. I just love putting my life in the hands of someone who might've gone batshit." Probably had. From the sound of things, there would be all kinds of reasons to lose one's grasp on reality. But she'd be damned before she'd let herself be one of them.

"Four of us," Madison asked, her brow knitting in genuine concern. "How many people have woken up in general?"

"So... good news is we've talked to him. briefly. Doesn't seem batshit." Pause. "Bad news is we're not entirely sure if the AI is batshit yet." They were definitely not sure if the AI had lost it.

"Eight before you lot started coming to. I haven't done a current headcount. And yes, three of them are from fucking security, and two from Medical." And the one guy from Ops was currently in the damned brig for trying to kill the captain. Yay.

"Small victories, I guess," she said with a shrug. "And of course we're not. On a level of C3PO to Hal, how batshit are we talking about?" Old nerd movies, but she'd at least heard enough about them to toss them out in casual conversation.

"Eight? How many people are still in their pods, or is that where all the dead bodies came from?" Medical was also a nerd thing. Sure, they were important but they were also boring.

Give him a second. His brain was a jumble and he was trying to go back through old movies, old films to decide. For some reason, in the middle of that, he remembered something something about wanting to feed something called a Salarian their own aasshole over a claw machine, and that made no god-damned sense. Why was he remembering some shitty old kid's game at a time like... That didn't even seem pertinent.

Even if, oh god were those memories close to AI bullshit, know it or not.

Finally, he grunted and shook his head. "Nobody's going to be singing Daisy, Daisy in the next week. It hasn't tried to kill us, so let's go half-way between." Ahem. "Let's see, you're nine... so, that would leave us, about two hundred and sixty-one crew members on ice right now. Twenty-nine accounted for and dead. Then the captain. Colonists are sealed where nobody can get to them."

Madison wouldn't be able to help with that. She knew they had aliens on board but since she wasn't one of them, who cared? Not her. She only really cared about things when they directly affected her. Though, she'd be the first to say that weird memories would surface at the strangest time, usually when they were most inconvenient. Like her memories of early days on a soundstage.

"Well, thank fuck for small favors. No colonists getting in the way, thinking they know better than anyone else. That kind of bullshit really sticks, it's like they don't get that we're the professionals and they're the side-characters in our drama," Madison said with a roll of the eyes. She had no time for side-characters when the real stars were the ones doing all the work.

"They get to be the main characters when we start terraforming. Right now? Unless one of them desperately has the skills we need, we need the crew awake, not them." That was definitely his version of an agreement with her sentiment. "We'll see what else manages to come out of the woodwork, but I have a sneaking suspicion it's going to be more of the same. Apparently the Engineers' pods are working better."

...

"Normally, that would be a damned good thing."

"Yeah, and that's gonna happen when? When everything's not FUBAR? I'll believe it when I see it." And Madison heaved a resigned sigh. "Of course the Engineers are all nice and cozy. It's not like we need them or anything. What a load. At least we have a...medical person. Right," and the tone clearly stated that it had better be right. Or her wrath would reach heights previously unknown to sentient life.

"Three of them, actually. Just saw a third wake up the other day." So they were stacking the deck on that at the moment. "Different specialties too, so someone's around to keep us alive one way or another. Small fucking miracles."

"Well, thank fuck. At least something didn't get screwed up. What about the people who are supposed to, uh, figure out where we're supposed to go and then get us there. I honestly forgot what their division is called 'cause it sounds like nerd central." Which is not entirely true, Madison knew damn well what they were called, but she wanted a second opinion before she solidified her own.

"Science? It's not unstaffed, but the people I've met aren't specialists in physics or navigation. Thankfully, as long as L3TH3 works, it should be able to handle the calculations." ... He frowned. "That's a big assumption right now. But my calculus is rusty, so don't ask me. We'll find Andromeda before we find the Milky Way."

"So like botany or one of those baby sciences models go to for college so they seem deep? Great." Madison frowned back. "I don't like assumptions of any kind, that's daring fate to do something really fucked up. But, Andromeda...a whole galaxy been me and my shitty parents. That's going to be nice."

"Oh, you met the botanist that just woke up?" He laughed softly, shaking his head. "Aeroponics will be running again at least. We might need that for food if something goes wrong, so fuck if I'm going to complain about that. I'm a lot of things, but farmer isn't one of them."

"Who knows? Maybe we're not even in the local group? Could be about to see Ton 618 when we escape the nebula, get a real light show." Yeah, because seeing one of the biggest super-massive blackholes in the entire universe was such a great idea. The photosphere alone would probably fry them.

"Nah, just figured it would be something along those lines 'cause who else is gonna keep us fed," she said with a shrug. Madison loved being right. "And asking me to farm? Ew. Not happening." She had a horrifying mental picture of the ancient American Gothic painting with herself as the plain, pinched-mouth female and shuddered.

"...where have I heard that name before? I guess it'll come to me someday, but I do like light shows." Shh, don't mention practicality to her, she's busy fantasizing about something pretty.

"Just something I heard in a lecture. I'm sure it'll be beautiful." He chuckled to himself. You know, for the microseconds before they fried. Thankfully they probably weren't there. Probably.

"Take the time to look at the Nebula though. It's at least weirdly pretty if that's your kind of thing. We're not getting out of it anytime soon, far as I can tell." He had no clue how long it would take.

"It should be," Madison stated decisively. "Granted, most places I lived had so much light pollution I could barely see the moon, but sometimes they'd have us film somewhere we could see the stars and they were pretty. Something to aspire to." She'd let him decide if it meant actually going to the stars or being on on Earth. Or both.

But that made her nod thoughtfully. "Saw pictures of those. Never really thought I'd get to see one myself, but hey, life's full of surprises." But she'd been wistful (no she hadn't!) long enough. Time to go back to practicality. "Can I get a basic run-down of what your typical day in the life is like?"

He nodded while they talked, figuring she'd see the nebula soon enough. It'd be ... well probably fascinating for a while, until she realized the dust had killer amoeba in it. Yay. "Never figured I'd be in the middle of one."

"Patrols. I take a shift at the brig thanks to one asshole being in it for now. Follow up with scheduled patrols around the ship. Divided with the others. Check for obvious security flaws. When I've got an hour or two to spare, I do basic work for engineering. Soddering. Nothing fancy. Work outs, food, it's all a bit unstructured. Not sure how I feel about that, but it's hard to really keep a damned schedule right now."

The news about amoeba would be taken with an eye-roll and a "well, that figures. G-d forbid something just exist and be pretty" with the sort of jaded resignation one gains after a lifetime as a child star.

Madison winced slightly at the lack of structure. "Well, I guess at least I'm someone new to divide patrols with, so bonus? And are we talking about physical security flaws, tech security flaws, or a little of both? But count me out of all of the Engineering stuff, just 'cause I've spent a lot of time with set electricians doesn't mean a damn that I actually know how it all works." People went to college or had apprenticeships for those kinds of jobs. Acting was something which couldn't be taught, it was or it wasn't. Hard to get around that.

"Not turning down the extra hands under the circumstances. And it's a little bit of both. Even if you don't do the electrical work, you can keep your eyes peeled for obvious ways someone could get access where they shouldn't." Not because he trusted the local AI. Far from it. It was just perilous for all of them if they willy-nilly tried anything.

"How you feeling? Want the ten-cent tour?"

"Sounds doable. We don't need anyone messing around with things which shouldn't be messed with. I don't know about everyone else, but I kinda like being able to breathe." And she had no doubt that some assholes would try something shitty just because they were assholes.

"I'm feeling just peachy and yes, I'd love the tour. I need to know important things like where I sleep and if it has an en suite."

He grunted. "I like breathing. Makes cussing easier." That brought a laugh to his throat and he shook his head. At least in this particular case, the asshole had 'thought' he was helping.

Motioning for her to come with, he snorted and gave her a look. "Oh you damned well know you're not getting an en suite. At least you get a room, right?"

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