Themis-Skoll Cockpit
Viewscreens and heads-up displays provide the pilot of this titan with a full 360-degree view, which can be confusing if you aren't sure which screen is forward, back, up and down. Most of the flight controls are built into the pilot's chair, including a helmet that picks up commands for the fighting machine's limbs directly from the pilot's brain. Dual joysticks are covered in controls and triggers, and multi-axis pedals give even more control. Non-critical controls are on a subconsole that swings down into the pilot's lap. A second chair is behind the first, with its own set of monitors and controls for auxiliary weapons and countermeasures, along with flight engineering control.

Tasha has lost all track of time. She can't even recall exactly how many simulations she's been through. At least some of the scores have gone up, even if she isn't sure what they measure. And this last time through, she didn't get blown up – but she did run out of fuel and crash. It was the longest simulation yet, and the half-Vartan is feeling the exhaustion and stress fully now. She's even having trouble focusing on the numbers that appear on the screens.

I 'ave to prove myself worthy, Tasha mantras in her head, feeling the weight of failure all too strongly now. Exhaustion has distorted her view, paired with her worry about the Karnors, her confusion about Layth, and the mind-boggling revelations she has seen and heard. The world feels unreal, and all too easily broken. What's more, it seems like she's seen herself countless times, and it worries her. Are the goddess, Nora, and the Themis-Skoll all ment to be mirrors of herself? Are they lessons, or are they marks of her failures through time? I will no' fail, she promises herself, reaching a shaking hand to begin the simulation again.

A head pops into Tasha's field of view to interrupt her. "Tasha!" Aaron says. "You're still awake? It's been nearly twelve hours, and… " here the buck pauses to pinch his nostrils closed with one hand. "And… you need a bath. Your fur looks a mess too."

"I … I 'ave to keep trying," Tasha murmurs, sounding tired and worn out. Her hand pauses in the air, and then she simply falls back in her chair and breathes a ragged sigh. "Don' worry abou' me, Aaron. I'm s'posed to be the leader. I 'ave to keep workin'," she insists.

"Ah, no, you have to remain clear headed and rested," Aaron argues. "Can you even get up out of that chair on your own?"

Apparently, the challenge of standing is enough to touch on the Vartan's inner struggle. She glances back, and very delibrately removes the helmet and begins to unbuckle herself. "O'course I can." It sounds defiant, even a bit defensive. When she's free, she wobbles to her feet, blinking blearily.

Aaron reaches out to give Tasha a little extra support, even letting go of his nose. "Uh, well… you didn't stick to the chair at least! Let's get you out of here and work some of your actual muscles," the Lapi says, and tries to steer Tasha to the hatchway.

Despite all her protests, Tasha's easy to pull along. She doesn't even look entirely awake, eyes half lided, and ears flat as if they had no energy to remain upright. "My score wen' up," she says, sounding a little proud. "S'no' enough, bu' I'll keep workin' on it. I'm no' goin' to fail the Themis-Skoll." She almost whacks her head on the ceiling, but dodges it when it touches her hair and causes her to flinch.

Aaron keeps a close watch as the hybrid tackles the ladder-way out to the main hatch. "It's just a machine, Tasha," he says gently. "You can't impress it, or disappoint it, you know."

Tasha just shakes her head at that. "It's no' jus' a machine," she replies. "Me mum said to me once, "everythin' 'as a spirit," an' I always though' tha' was the Vartan in 'er bein' afraid o' magic. Bu', now I'm no' so sure." She hops off the ladder, reaching to brace herself a moment. "The Themis-Skoll 'as a soul, li' a ship, or a nation. Like The Rake. Maybe it doesn' feel, or know, bu' it stands for somethin', an' I know when I let tha' somethin' down. You can be unworthy o' a legacy, can't you?" She takes a deep breath, then exhales as she leans over and braces her head against the Titan wall. "Titan's a god withou' a mind, an' I'm a mind withou' divinity." A pause, and she laughs quietly. "Now I'm jus' ramblin'."

"Well, are you hungry?" the Lapi asks, letting Tasha rest a moment. "Everyone is asleep. The local Guardians were taken back to the Hall a little while ago, but we've got fresh supplies. No meat though, I'm afraid. And I don't know how good 6000-year-old rations are."

"I could use a bite, aye," Tasha agrees. She pushes off, then begins walking towards the hangar door. "Where's the supplies, anyway? An, why don' I know tha'?"

"Know what? You've been cooped up in that Titan and everyone was afraid to check on you because of the noise," Aaron says. "The food is in the galley. Don't ask me to cook anything though – I don't know how the kitchen works, if it still does at all."

"I'll cook," Tasha offers. "Le's go to the galley, then." The clip-clop of her hooves on the ancient metal floor echoes, and when she reaches the great metal door she pauses to look back over her shoulder, at the Titan. She stares at it a long moment, looking pensive, before she exists in to the hall. "'Ow's everyone doin'?"

"Layth was pretty tired, but he stayed up a long time waiting in case you came out," Aaron reports. "The Kerebos folks are sleeping too, except for Doreen. She's on guard down at the entry door. I had a nap, and tried to read some of the manuals in Nora's room. Couldn't make out most of it though."

"Bu' you un'erstood some o' it?" Tasha glances at the Lapi, brows raised and wilted ears trying to perk with interest. "I've been thinkin', I ought an' try an' learn abou' all this. Nora said I might learn if I fin' this 'Expedition' or, wha' was it, the 'Terrans.' T'be 'onest with you, I looked at Nora an' saw meself, an' I wonder wha' I could 'ave been – wha' I coul' be." Tasha bites her lip, then shakes her head. "Poor Nora."

In the galley, Aaron shows Tasha the baskets of bread, cheese and dried veggies that the locals brought. There's also a wrapped up bundle of fish jerky, 'donated' by the Vykarins. "I found out how some of the stuff in her room works too. I'll definitely have to show you, since you need to clean up."

"It still works, even after all this time?" Tasha sorts through the assorted food, pulling out some bread here, cheese there, and a lot of dried fish jerky. "The ancients mus' 'ave really been somethin'. To think, we all came from the stars, tha' somewhere out there is where we originated from. Well, where our originators originated." She begins pulling a loaf of bread apart, so that it's split in to two halves lengthwise. Then, she begins hacking off slices of cheese, placing them in rows on one slice of bread.

"Who knows how old this ship really is?" Aaron says. "It could have been ancient before it even got stuck here. But then, it's not like it could wear out over the millennia with nobody actually using anything."

"It came from somethin' called a mothership, which mus' 'ave been where it was born. Rephidim Temple, Babel, and Naga City … tha's where the motherships are. Rephidim Temple is 'uge, can you picture it, flyin' through the air?" Tasha begins stacking slices of fish on her sandwich, creating neat lines of meat over the cheese.

"Not really," Aaron admits, trying to imagine it. "But crashing… that I've seen. Not the Temple of course, but other things. He picks up a piece of cheese to nibble on, having already eaten earlier. "How did the simulations go with just one person? Did it conjure up a copilot for you?"

"I'd like to see their world, Aaron. I'd like to visit this Terra an' see where we all came from," Tasha says quietly as she puts the top on her sandwich. Sitting down, she stares at the sandwich, but she seems focused on somewhere beyond – or inside. "Tasha goes to 'eaven. I bet tha'd make sense to the Amazonians." She laughs a little, sounding tired. "Bu', tha's jus' a dream. Right now, wha' I wan' to do it protect these people – all 'o 'em. I never 'ad anyone believe in me before. No one ever trusted me to lead. Now, they think I'm a goddess, an' I'm afraid to prove 'em wrong." She glances over at the Lapi, frowning at him a moment. "No copilot. It was jus' me an' the Themis-Skoll, jus' a voice an' some automation."

"I thought there must be some sort of replacement," Aaron says, and then asks, "When the Terrans wake up, I doubt they'll think you're a divine messenger you know."

Tasha nods a little at that. She returns her gaze to her sandwich, staring at it. Her stomach grows, but she doesn't pick it up. "I'm kind'o glad. Don' get me wrong, bein' a divine messenger 'as a lot o' perks. People think I'm great jus' because I'm there, becaue I mus' be. They think I know, 'ave courage, an' leadership. It's like bein' someone else for a while. Bu', I know I didn' earn it. I'm jus' Tasha. Me mother's a tavern wench an' me father left me. I worked on an airship. Jus' Tasha." She clicks her nails along the table, then smiles a little. "Bu' Nora made me think I coul' be more." She glances at the Lapi again, and tilts her head. "Is it weird I wan' to look out for them, the Terrans? S'not like they need someone like me, bu' I feel like I ought to, an' I no' sure why."

"They're 6000 years away from anything they've known, and have probably never actually been on the surface of Sinai," Aaron points out. "It's a dangerous place, so of course they'll need you to guide and protect them. We have to get them to some life magic, remember? They're totally dependant. Whether they act like it is another matter. They may look at us… well, the way I sometimes look at the Amazonians. Clever, dangerous and backward."

"They migh' at that," Tasha agrees, turning back to her sandwich. She seems about to spend another long moment staring at it when her stomach growls again, and she grimaces. "Fine, fine," she tells her complaining belly, poking at it before picking up the sandwich. Like Tasha, the sandwich is big, meaty, and overdone. It could feed two people, made from a whoile bread loaf. She takes a large chunk out of it, and beings talking again. "Maybe I'm the one tha' looks up to them," she admits. "Look wha' they've done, an' where they came from. Jus' look aroun'. They're like livin' relics, like a statue in the Temple, or this ship. An', they seem like their life don' matter to them. 'Ow could a life like theris no' matter?"

"Well… nobody came to rescue them," Aaron notes. "And there's only three left. I imagine the captain will be… well, disappointed and probably pretty bummed out. So, try not to act glum around him, okay?"

Tasha pauses, staring at Aaron again with that uncharacteristc contemplative look. "Aye," she agrees after a moment, "'e's got it 'arder than me, 'arder than any o' us. It's up to me to see they don' regret wakin' up. Tha's my burden to bear, like Layth warned me it woul' be. I'll try an' help him appreciate his secon' chance."

The Lapi's ears perk up, and he has to ask, with a bit of a sly grin, "How do you plan to help him 'appreciate' it, exactly?" He props his elbows on the table and leans forward to hear the answer.

Tasha blinks at Aaron's question, then her ears perk, and go red! "Wha' … ?" It takes her a moment to recover in her tired state, leaving her staring at the Lapi with her mouth agape and a bit of cheese on one of her whiskers.

"Oi, Aaron, you 'ave a one track min' sometimes," the Vartan says, sighing. She pointedly looks elsewhere, staring off at the ceiling. "I was thinkin' of using the way me mum taught me: by cookin'. I'm sure 'e doesn't wan' to 'ave woken up from six thousan' years to eat a bunch o' cold vegetables an' some dry meat."

"I was just teasing you to try and get you out of your funk," Aaron says. "Well, some of your funk. The rest will be up to the shower. And you'd better not offer to cook me up for the Captain, either!"

Tasha chuckles at Aaron's protest, reaching out to rub his head. "I wan' 'im to stay aroun', no' jump back in the medical room with a stomach ache." After ruffling the Lapi's head a bit, she slings the arm around his shoulder. "You know, you're all righ', Aaron. You've been wit' us since Rephidim, an' you've put up with a lot to 'elp us. Wha'ever 'appens, I wan' you to know I'm grateful for your 'elp."

The Lapi smiles, a bit embarrassed. "Well… It's a bad habit of mine. I'm at that age, and don't have any children, so I guess my paternal instincts leak out in other ways."

"You ought an' find a wife, settle down an' raise children somewhere safe. Followin' people like me migh' get you killed," Tasha warns, although she grins. Then, she pulls the Lapi over to her, leans forward, and just when Aaron thinks he might be getting a big Vartan kiss Tasha dips his head and kisses him smack on the forehead. When she lets him go, she wags, and asks inoccently, "So which one o' the Lapi do you think woul' taste bes'?"

"Aisha, but she didn't come with us," Aaron claims, managing to keep a straight face. "The rest of us are too stringy and lean. There might be some Rughrats out there though. I don't think this cheese was made from Lapi milk. Although… I've been wrong about that before… "

Chuckling again, Tasha nods. "Aye, Aisha'd be it. It's a shame I don' 'ave me bow 'ere, or I'd try my 'and at 'untin'. I'll jus' 'ave to make good with wha' we 'ave aroun' 'ere." The talk of food must have made Tasha hungry, because she picks her sandwich up again and cleaves a large bite out of it.

Aaron rubs at his nose, and sniffs his own arm. "Hmmmm. Think I'll use the 'fresher' myself. I'm pretty sure that's what it's called."

"The fresher? You wan' to show me?" Tasha picks up her sandwich, then stands. "I'm interested in wha' you discovered. I'm goin' to try an' learn all I can about this ship befoe we 'ave to leave. I don' think Nora'd mind me stayin' in 'er room, either. From wha' she said, I'm 'Nora Argentine' now."

"Okay!" Aaron says, hopping up. He actually seems a bit excited to share his discovery, and leads Tasha back to Nora's room. There, opens up a little cubby next to the wardrobe closet. "This is the clothes fresher. I think it works okay on our fabrics… not sure about the leather though," he says. He removes his shirt, and holds it up to Tasha's nose. "Does it smell funky?"

"A bi'," Tasha answers, sniffing at the shirt. "Bu' I'm used to men smellin' funky – I grew up on an airship." She leans back, then glances at the chamber. "It's 'ard to believe all o' this isn' magic. It's machinery. All o' it. Jus' cogs an' wheels an' gears."

"I don't know if there are any of those involved at all," the Lapi admits and tosses the shirt into the cubby. After a moment of hesitation, he tosses in the rest of his clothes as well, while keeping his back to Tasha. "Want to toss in your stuff too, or see if it works first?" he asks over his shoulder.

"I better wait. I wouldn' do much for confidence if the 'Erald an' leader went abou' naked, lookin' for new clothes," Tasha answers. She takes a step back, watching expectantly.

Aaron blinks at the possibility of the clothes being destroyed, but dares to close the cabinet. A little amber light appears next to the latch. "I think that means it's working," the Lapi notes. "I can hear… stuff happening."

"As long as it isn' like the stuff tha' 'appened to the seat in that metal Vykarin," Tasha remarks. "I'd 'ave loved to see this ship when it was in its prime."

The Lapi scratches at a particularly nasty looking scar on his rump, and taps a foot while he waits. Finally, the little light goes off, the entire process only having taken a few minute. He opens the door and takes out his pants, which she gives a good sniff. "It works!" he reports. "I think the fresher in the bathroom uses the same technique, but on people."

Tasha's eyes widen at the results, and she looks impressed. "Oi 'Ow abou' tha'! If only I coul' stuff The Rake an' the crew in there … " She shakes her head, then begins removing her armor and clothing. "Eyes forward," she warns. She quickly changes her mind on remaining, though, and glances towards the bathroom. "Come to think o' it, I'm goin' to try the people-fresher. You keep your eyes forward until I'm inside, an' 'ere's me clothes."

Aaron takes his own clothes out of the cubby, and carries them to the bed… completely ignoring the eyes forward command. "We could go in together!" he offers. "I'm not putting my clothes on until I'm cleaned up too."

Giving Aaron a appraising look, Tasha raises an eyebrow. "Jus' don' be gettin' grabby," she warns. "I trus' you enough to no' get frisky wit' me." She then jerks her head towards the stall, indicating the Lapi should follow. As she walks, she remarks, "I won'er when I started carrin' abou' things like this."

"You shouldn't be worrying about it," Aaron says. "It's not like you're fat or anything." Inside the bathroom is a larger stall with a glass partition to close it off. The walls, floor and ceiling of it seem to be perforated with thousands of tiny holes. "Think we'd both fit?" the Lapi asks, after looking the stall over for a moment.

"Well fin' out," replies the woman. "An' it's no' me body I'm worried abou'." The Vartan enters first, opening the glass and then squeezing inside, pushing her wings up against the wall. "Six thousan' years ago, Nora Argentine use this fresher. It's a ghost ship with livin' ghosts an' memories tha' talk."

"I hope she doesn't pinch me then," Aaron says as he squeezes in. "I guess we just close the sliding glass part to start it?"

"You're the expert," Tasha teases, pulling the Lapi inside. "Bu' some day, it's goin' to be me. Tasha, the artificer-captain."

Aaron grins at the title, and slides the partition shut. Once it clicks into place, jets of air start blowing from all directions. And not just any air: it feels like the air during a storm. The static in it makes ones fur stand up, in fact.

Tasha, who now has a hairdo resembling the one she wore when she first entered the Temple of Abaddon as the Herald, widens her eyes. "I feel like we're flyin' through a thun'er storm!" She reaches to push her fur down, which promptly springs right back upa again. "You look like a fuzzball!"

"At least it doesn't itch," Aaron notes. Then the air changes, feeling… heavier… and blowing harder. The Lapi jerks a little at the change. "Okay… not used to feeling wind-blown in certain areas," he comments.

"Jus' so lon' as you don' start whistlin'," Tasha warns. She lifts her arms to the ceiling, letting them blow out. After a moment, she says, "I've been thinkin' of 'ow to 'andle the matter o' this ship. It's too special to jus' let the Amazonians take apart, even if it is safe to do so. Wha'ever it may be, it's a real, true, legacy. The mothership became the Temple of Rephidim, so why no' 'ave this the Temple of Fenris? 'O knows, some day, maybe there'll be a need for the Themis-Skoll to rise again, an' some 'ero will come an' awaken it. In the mean time, Amazonians can come 'ere an' honor the people of the Fenris, since they owe 'em for their starmetal. They ought an' know the wonders o' the ancients, an' see wha' 'ard work an' artifice can create. Is the Themis-Skoll no' the very image of artifice an' war?"

"Well, not of war," Aaron says. "It's like a giant idol though." The air in the stall begins to vibrate, as some sort of standing ultrasonic wave attacks anything clinging to the fur. "Frankly, the locals are afraid of the place. They're glad to have their people back, but aren't keen on visiting. They just want to keep mining the bits of hull they find in the rock."

"Then tha's 'ow it will be. When we depart, I'm goin' to seal the door up again, an' I'll pass the knowledge on to the Temple o' Abaddon, in case they ever need it. Maybe some day we'll 'ave to come back, too. I wouldn' mind seein; the place again, some day." Tasha clicks her teeth, feeling them vibrate. "I 'ope we're still in one piece after this, I'm thinkin' my 'eart's goin' to fall out me ear."

"You can feel the air too?" Aaron says, but then the sensation passes and the blowing air changes character again. This time, it neutralizes the original charge to let fur and hair settle back into place. On the whole, the process gets rid of oils and odors, and leaves one feeling fluffy and clean, but isn't quite the same as a good shower or bath. Aaron risks poking a finger towards Tasha to see if there's a spark… but there isn't.

"No spark between us," the Lapi laments. "If it was Layth, there'd probably be a bolt of lightning!" he adds with a grin.

"I feel like my teeth's goin' to vibrate out o' me head." Wghen she's poked, Tasha raises an eyebrow, but chuckles instead of hits. "Aye, Layth an' I get along, don' we? 'Tween you an' me, I'm no' sure 'ow long tha'll las'. Layth never 'ad anyone, an' I never 'ad anyone care. Bu' we're different people, an' 'e deserves a family – somethin' I can' give 'em. 'Sides, it's gettin' clear to me I'm in for a long road an' a hard one at tha', s'not fair to 'im to get dragged aroun' the world, an' others."

When the air jets stop, Aaron opens the door and steps out. He gives a shiver to reseat his fur, and then asks, "How are your feathers after that? And I'm sure Layth will be okay, whatever happens."

Tasha steps out as well, shaking herself out in a move that's more Jupani than Vartan. "Lemme check," she replies, looking over her shoulder. "An' I think you're righ'. Layth's a tough man, an with me, 'e won' 'ave to worry abou' bein' lonely, even if we're no together. I'll 'elp 'im find someone, if it comes to tha'."

"Oh? Even if it's Aisha?" Aaron asks, heading back into the cabin itself and picking up his clothes.

Tasha follows, but instead of dressing tosses her clothes in the clothes fresher. "Even Aisha. I' done wit' bein' jealous." She doesn't sound quite, done with being jealous, as there's a hint of a growl in her voice, but at least she sounds like she's trying. "Aisha can give Layth a good life. All I'd give 'em is a life on the road, an' at this rate, travelin' the world. I've seen too much to jus' settle down, now. I'm goin' to follow me god an' these mysteries, an' I'm goin' to protect the Karnors. At leas', I can be an angel in tha'." She peers at the control panel, trying to figure it out.

The clothes-fresher seems to work like the big one – just toss things in and close the door. "Well… I think I'm going to go see if Euphrosyne is still in a cuddly mood," Aaron says. "You'll be sleeping here, right, so we know where to find you?"

"Aye," Tasha answers as she leans back. Closing the door, she sets the machine to running. "These are my quarters, after all."

Aaron just nods to that, and then tilts his head to one side to consider Tasha. "I just realized. None of those Karnors had any scars. They really are from a different world, aren't they?"

"They really are," Tasha answers, looking back at the Lapi. "From far away, across the Sea of Stars."

"Well, I hope they survive our little corner of the universe okay," Aaron says as he heads for the door. "It hasn't been all that kind to them so far."

"We'll do wha' we can to 'elp them, Aaron. I'm no' goin' to let leave them to the mercy of our world. I'll take them to Abaddon. I'd take 'em 'ome, if I could. An' if I can', then I'll show them wha's to like in our world." Tasha gives a yawn, revealing her rows of teeth that mark her as a omnivore among herabvores, and then pats her muzzle. "I'm goin' to get some sleep. Wake me if anythin' changes wit' the Karnors, or in an emergency."