thisavrou | ( video )

[ Bruce greets the camera with a cordial smile, there and gone, replaced with a somewhat tired and worried look. ]

Hi, Moira. Bruce Banner, for those of you who don't know me, and I'm the Chief Science Officer on board. In light of our current situation, I've been working on a number of devices to be placed on the surface of the planet, that once activated will link together and create a barrier around the planet. It will work as a kind of shield that would effectively make it impossible for any ship to dock on the planet, or for anyone to go down to the surface.

I've talked to the captains about this, and we're going ahead with the project. Needless to say that this is incredibly time-sensitive, and while so far everything's going smoothly and the results are promising, I could use as many people with the necessary knowledge involved in this as possible. Science officers on board are working exclusively on this right now, and I'm contacting a few people that I know have the knowledge necessary to help, but if anyone else thinks they have what it takes to join in, drop me a line.

This is a serious request. Don't waste my or anyone else's time, please.

[ Not that he thinks anyone would, but just covering his bases, in case there's some prankster or smartass on board. ]

I'll also need people to place the devices down on the surface of the planet. It's a fairly simple process so no need to have any kind of knowledge about how the machines were built or how they work, so long as you can handle the weight with relative care.

Another note— [ He pauses, presses his lips for a moment. ] Along with a holographic map of our journey, I've been putting together an information file about our current situation, to be delivered to all the new arrivals as they come in. Things I'd like to cover include: where we are, how or why we're here, who here can help them with certain fundamental needs, a rough overview of varying timelines and parallel universes, as well as a general overview of what's happened so far. I'm also planning to include the information regarding the Space 101 lesson that's held after each wave of new arrivals, to those that might need it. There's no guarantee everyone will read it, of course, but it might cut down on the number of people asking similar questions time and again.

Furthermore, I've put together a file about my condition. At this point about half the ship already knows about it, but I'm posting it on public domain and making it available for anyone to consult at any time. This document will also be attached to the main information file when sent to all the new arrivals. For anyone interested in reading it now, follow the link.

[ Attached to the message, follows said link. ]

If anyone wants to suggest any information they think important to add to the main information file, let me know here. As for my personal file, I wrote it because I don't think keeping it a secret is feasible anymore, and even if it were I think it's safer for everyone here to know what they're dealing with, and avoid potentially dangerous situations. I'm not going to write files on everyone on board or anything like that, don't worry.

[ He takes a deep breath, silent, shoulders lowering. ] That's it. Let me know if you have any questions about any of this.

[ And the feed cuts off. ]

(( ooc: details about the machines, how they work or how they're built will be handwaved on my end, since it's all technical gibberish and I don't have the necessary knowledge or the time/patience to go googling about it right now. SORRY. ))

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Except the lab is his safe space and Wanda imagines Bruce wouldn't be comfortable with the idea of her just showing up when he doesn't want her here to begin with. But of course she can't say that.]

I would have been in the way.

[Fortunately she's become very good at pretending she doesn't notice when her presence makes people uneasy or afraid. Honestly, Wanda's planning to keep talking to a minimum - fewer chances to make Bruce hate her even more than he does already.]

[ Well, he did tell her to drop by, didn't he? And it's a good thing she doesn't say that, he'd probably find it laughable after knowing that she basically invaded his head. ]

There's plenty of room.

[ And plenty of people dropping by. A second's pause, then he turns, gesturing vaguely for her to follow as he leads the way to where the devices are being worked on. Some have cables hooked onto them, connected to the computers, a few people with their heads and hands shoved into the shell as they put them together. Bruce makes his way to the two that seem more or less finished, walking around them and checking them to make sure they're somewhat stable first. ]

Want to try and lift it off the ground a little?

[She's trying to be better now, even if it's always too little too late.

Wanda follows silently, glancing around at the organized chaos. Labs usually make her a little uneasy, but this one is clean and bright and different enough to not put her on edge.]

All right.

[If Bruce was hoping she wouldn't be able to do it, he's about to be disappointed. Wanda gestures and the first one rises into the air and hovers three inches off the ground like it's nothing.]

[ He wasn't, actually. If anything he was hoping she'd be able to lift the weight in a steady enough way, and when she does so surely, he's actually kind of relieved. As uncomfortable as the sight of the scarlet energy might make him right now. ]

That's good. [ Eyes on the device, he gestures at the empty space on the other side of a couple of tables. ]

Can you lift it higher, and set it down here? Gently. [ He looks at her as he says that. ] Once it's active, you'll have to be careful about not letting it drop or tip over. If anything breaks down there, I won't be able to fix it.

I think so.

[There's no reason she shouldn't be able to, really. Wanda directs it up and over, taking a few slow steps to mimic what actually taking it out there will be like.

She sets it down carefully, glances back to Bruce.]

It should be all right. And the hunters don't know what we're planning, yes?

[ He watches in silence, the device moving seamlessly through the air, and setting back down on the floor as if it weights next to nothing at all. Only then does he look to Wanda, his stance and expression guarded but not hostile. ]

They don't, no. Hopefully they won't know until the barrier's put up, just to avoid any unnecessary conflicts, or even them trying to sabotage the plan.

[ Now they just need to figure out a way to get them off the planet before activating that barrier.

There's a moment of silence, and it may or may not be clear that Bruce has a question he wants to ask. It just takes him a moment to figure out how to ask it. ]

Can you... communicate with the creatures?

It looks like it could be a box of anything.

[Which is good - Wanda imagines it would be difficult to keep everyone alive and not drop the device too roughly if there was a fight. Hopefully they've been loading and unloading enough cargo during their stay that no one will take a second look.]

I understand them. [The MID is catching up, but her powers are enough to supplement. Understanding is simple - the trouble's in getting the full meaning of her own words across without resorting to...things Bruce wouldn't like, even if it's not hurting anyone. This time.] Their minds are not so different from ours.

[ Actually, the means that Bruce doesn't like much are exactly the ones he's thinking of right now. Not just invade their minds for nefarious purposes, but it would still be getting into their minds, in a way. He thinks— Bruce isn't entirely sure how her powers work, in that regard. ]

I meant more in the way of them understanding you. [ He pauses, thinking of how to explain. ] Someone mentioned building some kind of shutdown system linked to the devices, something that the creatures could use to bring down the barrier some day, if they ever need to. They're not like us, but they're still sentient, so they should have the chance to welcome other people into their planet in the future, or even leave if there's that possibility. But I don't— they'd need to understand why we're putting up this barrier, how it's keeping them safe, and how they can shut it off if they ever want to.

[ She can probably connect the dots and see why Bruce would ask her about communicating with the creatures now. ]

[...ah. Wanda suspected it might be something along those lines, though it's still really strange to hear Bruce suggesting that.]

I can try if you show me how it works. They are smarter than the hunters think, but it will be best if it's simple. I can't find all of them.

[There's no government or central authority figure Wanda can discern, so really this is going to be a word of mouth - song? - operation.]

I know. I've been working on a simple enough mechanism for them, but not so simple that one of them could activate it accidentally.

[ Seeing as they communicate amongst themselves, Bruce imagines the information will spread through word of mouth— so to speak. The important thing here is they know why they're setting up these devices, and that they can shut them off later on. Or now, even, if they don't want that added protection; it's their choice to make. ]

I don't know how the shutdown system will work yet, but I can explain you now how to activate the grapples. We can go over everything else later on, once it's all ready to take down to the planet.

( video )

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