Submarine Shenanigans | Telepathy/Action

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July 9 - Telepathy

[Things in the base have calmed down by now. Nobody's inexplicably trying to drown themselves anymore, and the lull means Donatello has been able to think about an idea that's been coalescing in his mind for months now.]

You know what we don't have, yet? A submarine. URSULA has blueprints; I've seen them when I went through the lab databases. [His mental voice is way too excited for his own good.] I think we should give our base's tech a little upgrade. Who's with me?

[If you are, feel free to speak up! If you anticipate some horrible disaster... well, it wouldn't be the first time.]

Throughout the Month - Action

[Thanks to URSULA's help, the Shell Sub mk. II has begun construction!

The project springs to life as a dry dock near the lab's technological rooms, courtesy of a small entourage of drones. Don's easily found nearby, going over plans on his wrist computer, occasionally adding to the blueprints he's making. Feel free to suggest additions or changes! This sub will be the entire base's new toy, after all. Tech-savvy characters might get Don's attention better than someone who just wants to add random spikes or something, though.

As work continues, the submarine's systems begin to take form. Drones occasionally drift in and out of the room, possibly annoying any characters who just want to use the labs in peace. Don's elbow-deep in machine parts, welding metal to metal, spraying sealant over anything needing waterproofing, weighting ballast tanks... he's right in the action. Someone should probably get him to rest at some point. Or maybe they'd just want to stop and stare at the Turtle making a submarine? (Is that monstrosity really a submarine, though.)

Once the submarine's main body has been completed, the weaponry will require development. URSULA suggested torpedoes. If nobody convinces Don otherwise, he is one-hundred-percent installing torpedoes. Maybe your character would have something to say about that?

The submarine will probably be finished construction by July 31st depending on how many people lend a hand, though there's still the matter of decorating it and finding a good place to tether it for the long term. Bring on the terrible paint jobs.]

July 19 - Action

[Your character might catch Don in a quiet moment, maybe even nursing coffee (real coffee, he missed it so much, shell) or tucking into a Red Roll and sashimi meal at the work bench near the dry dock. He's looking over the Shell Sub, a wistful sort of smile on his face as he swirls the remaining coffee in the cup. He talks to himself, in a way that suggests he might be expecting someone else to listen.]

Even with all the construction work, this base is way too quiet. It's just not home without all that city noise.

[If he notices your character, maybe he'll ask a follow-up question:]

Is there anything you find yourself missing, even if you didn't expect to?

Comments

19th

[splinten]

[Dirk has of course been helping, because what is life without taking on five hundred projects? However, Dave has always been insistent that if Dirk is going to constantly throw himself into things, he also needs to take food and sleep breaks. That is why he has currently paused with Don to snack on... an orange.

It's always an orange now.]

Not really. There aren't many differences between this base and where I grew up.

[A pause.]

I do miss the Doritos my Bro left me. We're lacking in terms of truly unhealthy food.

[bonomial]

[Somehow, it feels absolutely right for Dirk to be eating an orange.

That mention of chips, though...]

Sheesh, tell me about it. I sometimes catch myself dreaming about Chinese food or chips. [His brother would be going nuts here.] I've thought about drying out seaweed... that might approach chip-levels of food texture. But it's not gonna be the same.

[Sigh. How are teenagers supposed to be unhealthy in these conditions?]

[splinten]

[That reminds him.] Pizza. I always wanted to try pizza.

[Dirk is reasonably confident in his pop culture memory that a Ninja Turtle will appreciate the desire for pizza.]

[bonomial]

[Aw man, pizza. Don's mouth waters a little just remembering it.]

Melted cheese, tomato sauce, pepperoni and dough all cooked to perfection... man, I miss New York cuisine.

[Wait.] ... I heard from Roxy that things were... [How do you talk about an apocalypse casually?] Bad, at home. I guess pizza's one of the things that didn't make it.

[splinten]

You mean she told you we're both from long after the rest of humanity wiped out. [Blunt. The same tone as ever, not particularly emotional about any of it. It's something they are used to, as unpleasant as it was.] Pizza doesn't last four centuries well. I'm sure my Bro would have left some if it did.

[He'd thought about it sometimes. Eating pizza with family was something he'd seen in so many shows.] We don't have all the ingredients yet, but tomatoes are a start. Wheat will probably be easiest to acquire but milk might be a problem.

[Yes he is trying to figure out how to make pizza here. HE HAS A DREAM.]

19th!

[mythbuster]

[ Loki doesn't know much about submarines or heavy weaponry, so he doesn't even attempt to offer suggestions for the Shell Sub. Every so often, he just happens to drop by and loiter curiously while Don goes about his work. It's interesting to see the project take shape, even if it's all nonsense to him. More dangerous, explosive nonsense... Just what this base needed.

He hums vague agreement with the city noise comment. While the silence around base doesn't get to him, he does miss the gentle buzz of peaceful city life. ]

"Missing" is a strong word, but I've begun to feel a lack of history. Old buildings, monuments, shrines, that sort of thing. Everything here is so new that it feels cold or in such ill repair that nature is already reclaiming it.

[bonomial]

[That's an interesting thing to say, and Don immediately brings his attention over to Loki. The surprisingly-old-seeming child has some kind of hidden depth to him, that's for sure.]

It's weird to think that the structures on Iniidae are pretty much entirely modern, huh? Though everyone's from different worlds, almost all of us have had to adapt to technology that's from a kind of future. Even my world wasn't this advanced, though I'm kinda used to this sort of thing. [Aliens everywhere and all.]

[mythbuster]

It’s like we’ve been dropped into a sci-fi story dropped into an aquatic jungle. Absurd, isn’t it?

[ His head tilts a notch, and his gaze shifts in thought. ]

Though it isn’t a terrible thing, being disconnected from society at large. It's an uncomplicated life we live. Almost like an extended camping trip.

[ Underwater, With history's most advanced tent. ]

[bonomial]

It's weird, but not much more than my life's ever been. Being on Iniidae... is almost normal. [Except it's missing his family. He knows they'd all go stir-crazy in their own ways; even he has a little too much alone-time here. But he can't help but want them back sometimes.]

The difference with a camping trip is that you get to go back. [He stares out at the ocean again.]

[mythbuster]

[ Ah, staring out windows. Loki knows all about that. He's had more than his fair share of melancholic moods. ]

I'm curious to know. Do you believe in fate, Donatello?

19th

[showybusiness]

[ Oh, it's the strange turtle monster! Mettaton invites himself to shimmy right up and look curiously at what he's eating and drinking. ]

I can't eat or drink. It seems like a lot of work, honestly. Does that even TASTE good?

[ Yeah, he ignored the question, because he wasn't paying attention. ]

Of course, you require my attention! I'm Mettaton, after all. Lonely, are we? Homesick? Don't worry - just take in my gorgeous visage and you'll be all better.

[bonomial]

[Ah, Mettaton. You're... at least good at taking Don's mind off of depressing realities. How do you explain eating to a robot that's never had to do it?]

Eating does take time, but it's pretty enjoyable when the food is good. What I'm eating isn't all that different from my favourite meals back where I'm from. [The tastes and textures are a little off, but if Don doesn't focus on the different springiness of the flesh, it's not too different from the sushi that Master Splinter would have served him.] I'm mostly missing rice... and junk food like pizza.

Didn't have any friends that had to eat before? [Or maybe eating is different for monsters.]

[showybusiness]

[ Oh, he has eaten before, but that's a secret. He doesn't seem like he's really paying attention. ]

Of course I do! My sound mixer is a ghost, so they only eat ghost food, naturally, but the person who built my sexy visage here? She only seemed to eat nasty instant noodles and rice. And her own self-loathing.

[bonomial]

[Ghost food.

Well, sure. Okay. Don can accept that. He's too busy being distracted by what Mettaton said just now:]

You were built by one person? Whoa. Your world's technology must be incredible!

[Spoilers for Don: it's all human junk. Just like his!]

[showybusiness]

Correction: I'M incredible. The rest of the tech is patched together from the human world.

[ He quirked a brow, hands on his curvy hips. ]

She's a good friend. My best friend. Made me exactly how I wanted to be.

sub building action!

[splasher]

[it really is kind of bizarre to see a turtle at work. makoto had to stop for a moment to make sure he was seeing things correctly. it's not-- it's not that it's scary, so much as it's odd. with what and whom he's seen in the base since his arrival, he's not that surprised anymore.]

[but he sure hasn't run into donatello to form a proper criteria on the--turtleguy.]

[makoto's been hearing welding and building noises coming from here for a while now, so, it's with purpose that he says;]

Hey, I brought some water.

[he's helpful okay!]

[bonomial]

[Don looks up from the latest connection he's wiring together on what will eventually be the steering column on the side of the submarine he's on. Ah, a friendly new face (?), awesome! And one who has water.]

Thanks. Mind leaving it on the table over there? I'll be up in a sec, just let me finish this...

[Whereupon he turns back to his wiring, obviously totally engrossed in it. WHAT DO YOU DO, MAKOTO.]

[splasher]

Sure!

[and he does as he's asked, then turning back and noticing that don has returned to his work.]

[curiously, makoto steps closer and then gets down on his haunches to have a look. his awe comes off in a short, quiet vocalisation of 'ooh']

You've been building this all on your own?

[bonomial]

[Don shakes his head.] Not on my own - I've got a couple of people helping me out, and URSULA whipped up a team of drones for this project, but the Shell Sub's mostly my baby. [He affectionately pats the submarine's half-constructed hull.] Wouldn't be the first time I've rigged up a vehicle on my own, but I have to say it's pretty sweet to have others helping out.

[The Turtle sits back a bit to look at Makoto better.] First time seeing a submarine being built?

[splasher]

[makoto can at the very least agree with the notion that it's nice that people, here, seem very open about helping each other out, in whatever way possible.]

[he glances from donatello to the in progress submarine, and then back at donatello.]

Yeah, actually... I've seen fishing boats getting built from scratch, and ever yachts being repaired, but I don't think I've actually even seen a submarine in person, to be honest.

[makoto quirks a smile]

It's pretty cool.

19th

[inject]

[ They'd been working. It didn't take a genius to know that Donatello didn't like or feel comfortable around her, but it didn't stop them from working. From a practical standpoint, Valentine thought it was too early to be plumbing the depths of the ocean. However, her desire for knowledge won out, and since this side of things was at least adhering to the scientific method of finding it out, she was happy to work on it.

Surely his words weren't meant for her - she was standing some way away with her own coffee, staring at the far wall with an inward sort of expression.

But she answered anyway. ]

Dark chocolate.

[ Her fingers curled around the mug. She gave herself a small chuckle. ]

I thought I was above those types of cravings, but here we are.

[bonomial]

[Slowly, Don is coming to realize that Valentine is not quite the vicious, cold, empty person that he expected from her behaviour and demeanour. He still doesn't trust her, not by any means, but he's tried his best to be reasonably friendly.

It's so weird thinking of her as a person who likes dark chocolate. He never knew whether Bishop liked chocolate.]

It figures that we'd all be missing junk food, huh? [A half-smile from the Turtle.] Sadly, I don't think we've come across any alien cocoa plants.

[There's a cocoa plant somewhere on the base now though! They just need to nurture it...]

[inject]

[ She missed not smelling like seaweed too, but she could put vanity aside. Cravings, though, those were a different beast. ]

If I didn't want to figure out how to let even the most civilian of divers take down a Reaper, I would spend my days hunting for alien cocoa plants.

[ That's not true. She'd been hunting for more theonic energy and power, since there wasn't a big killer in the way of that.

But shh. ]

[bonomial]

Considering we've been finding good approximations for other kinds of food so far, I hope we'll find some way to make the junk food we all crave. I'm just dying for a slice of good ol' pizza, or maybe some greasy Chinese food... [The Turtle sighs a little as he prods at his Red Roll leftovers.] Sushi's one of my faves, but a Turtle gets a little tired of eating it pretty much daily, y'know?

[He half-smiles.] I guess it's better than having to worry about having food, though. It really feels like this base is getting to be more of a home for everyone, rather than just a place to live.

[But it won't ever be exactly like home. That's what's tripping Don up. Even if he could have pizza on Iniidae, he can't ever share it with his brothers...]

[inject]

[ Home was The Last Hope. She'd never get them back. If she knew what Don was feeling about his brothers, she'd be surprised at how similar her thoughts ran. ]

Seafood is incredibly good for you, but too much of anything is bad for a person.

[ Sushi touched her little weeb heart enough for her not to be entirely sick of it right now, but she was getting there. ]

Knowing our luck, you'd get sushi pizza if any showed up.