Pairings 001

[navarch]

[At precisely 7 A.M. on the Peregrine's standard time, both CommLink screens and wardens' cabin control panels flicker to life with a live video stream.

The Navarch herself sits primly at a glossy black desk. She is, by Earth standards, a senior citizen, but her crisp voice and sharp eye places her nowhere near retirement. She folds her hands in front of her.]

Good morning, passengers. I trust you have settled in over the past two weeks, but now your work begins in earnest. I have arranged the first pairing assignments. For the next thirty days, wardens will be the primary point of contact for their assigned inmate, and responsible for the inmate's moral development and well-being. Inmates are also permitted to live adjacent to their warden's quarters for the duration of the pairing, if the warden deems it appropriate.

Unpaired wardens are responsible for assisting paired wardens, and should be prepared to manage any new incoming inmates.

Without further ado, here are the pairings for this month.

[She picks up her tablet off the desk and puts on her reading glasses; this is a much longer pause than it needs to be. Then she reads:]

Warden Agrias Oaks, paired with inmate Alex Mercer.
Warden Claire Frasier, paired with inmate Joshua Volkhov.
Warden James Barnes, paired with inmate Silco.
Warden Loki Odinson, paired with inmate Jinx.
Warden William Temple, paired with inmate Rhys Strongfork.

[She removes her reading glasses, folding them before stowing them away meticulously in the desk.]

As always, I will be available to wardens for questions and concerns by appointment.

Comments

text (un: jvolkhov)

[saklas]

👑😘🌠SIGNS THAT YOU'RE IN A CULT🌠😘😳

1. Leader proclaims special or supernatural powers

2. Pressure to make a quick decision about becoming involved in an intensive activity or organization

3. An inner circle surrounding the leader that maintains a lot of secrecy and asks that you follow the leader without question. The outer circle will usually also be isolated, and you'll be encouraged not to talk to anyone outside of it. Or, in this case, completely prevented because we are LOCKED INTO THE FUCKING BUILDING

4. Organized programs of thought reform according to group doctrine or morality

5. Exploitation of members financially, psychologically, or sexually. Nobody's exploited me sexually yet, I'm just letting you know that these are the facts.

6. Threats to those considering leaving

7. Where, how, and with whom you live and associate with is controlled

8. Information is withheld. Lies are told. Access to non-approved sources of information like TV or internet is restricted.

9. The group requires members to internalize the group's doctrine as truth, to change their identity and how they think of themselves, use loaded language and clichés and tropes to reduce complexities down to parroted buzz words and short-circuit critical thinking.

10. Emotions and needs the group doesn't approve of are branded as evil, wrong, and selfish, so that your problems are always your fault, never the group's fault.

11. The group portrays itself as the only ones with the one true solution and pathway to being a good person. Like it's fucking easy. Like the problem was that we're too stupid to do it on our own.

I am going to keep doing this. Shut up or fucking kill me.

(un: jvolkhov)

[saklas]

Great earrings, though, actually. I had that first part pre-written but I am serious about the earrings and it's important that you know that I respect the look and that we can agree on some things.

text (un: navarch)

[navarch]

Warden Fraser, if you could please assuage inmate Volkhov that he can register a complaint with a warden or Archimedes if he is subject to exploitation of any kind. It will be addressed.

And thank you, Mr. Volkhov. I am quite picky about my jewelry.

Good day.

SYSTEM MESSAGE: There will be no further responses to this line of inquiry.

text (un: jvolkhov)

[saklas]

Oh, that's fine, I can start a new line of inquiry.

How much does it cost to run this place? If we're really in space, that is. Food, water, oxygen, fuel, repairs, power for the little roombas... And please tell me you're getting paid well. A woman in your position, managing this crowd? There's no way they're not being competitive with your salary, they wouldn't dare. Please tell me it's worth it. Pearls don't just pay for themselves.

text | c.fraser

[nineteenfortyfive]

[She can't say she's thrilled (neither is he, apparently), but Claire is here to do her best.]

Let's not be so eager to get killed this early in the morning, shall we?

text | jvolkhov (cw sorry about the suicidal ideation jokes)

[saklas]

Her owl told me that if I dropped out of this imprisonment they'd execute me and so far it seems like she's just leading me on.

[nineteenfortyfive]

Don't sound so disappointed.

I do remember you wanted out of the dormitory. I assume that hasn't changed?

text | jvolkhov | private until stated otherwise

[saklas]

Ugh, yes.

Are you ready to try pairing permanently? As far as I care, the distinction is meaningless, I just need a room and your inmate cabin isn't occupied.

[nineteenfortyfive]

It's not that simple. I do think it would be beneficial for you to have the room, so it will be yours for the next month.

As to whether this becomes a permanent pairing, we'll have to wait and see. I'd like for us to get to know one another and see how well we get on. That's fair, isn't it?

Rhy$.$trongfork

[smugreport]

Sounds like your average corporate culture to me

[ Wait a minute. ]

text | jvolkhov

[saklas]

lol

I mean ... they don't do #11 I guess.

And you can always leave and join a competitor ... that'll be, like, exactly the same, I guess.

Ugh. Wow.

Why are you doing this! Why are you screwing with my head, isn't being kidnapped by a real cult that ISN'T PAYING ME enough? I don't need this.

2/2

[saklas]

[Wait, also:]

Did you put bling in your cult email address? That's so funny. I should see if I can change mine and add a 420 or a hashtag.

[He's going to fiddle with it and find out that he cannot.]

Rhy$.$trongfork

[smugreport]

First of all, I don't know what companies you've worked for but the one I was at last definitely did #11 and you weren't leaving unless you count getting airlocked...So yeah I guess if you were enough of a chump to buy into Hyperion's doctrine you were in the cult.

[ Not him though! He's built different. ]

Second, my username's not meant to be funny it's meant to be cool and symbolic.

[saklas]

Symbolic of what? That an S looks like a dollar sign?

[He types part of his resume here: Currently at Sunshine, previously developed shows for Pinwheel and OBC, interned at OBC Feature and Kalligan...

Wait a fucking second. He deletes it.]

Logical fallacy. Tu quoque. Believe me, I know - I work for the guy who invented the industry I'm in, and everyone thinks Sunshine is what comes out of his ass every morning. But don't fight me on behalf of the people who kidnapped both of us.

[smugreport]

Uh, yeah. Duh? The dollar sign, the intergalactic symbol of wealth and success.

[ Obviously?? ]

Hey, I want to get out of here and back to my non-cult company just as badly as you do. But how's pointing out the obvious going to help either off us?

text (un: auditore)

[hiddenblade]

And what specifically is the doctrine of this place, in your mind?

text | jvolkhov

[saklas]

That whoever brought us here has the right to say definitively who is or isn't a good person. What are they, a god? Does an-y-bo-dy care? Even judges don't decide right and wrong, they just rule on whether or not a law was broken and every twitter dumbass knows laws can be corrupt. Except you people.

Then, you also claim that your leader can and should have the right to decide for them that what's best is that people be captured?! until they fit a standard of goodness that's obviously unimpeachably perfect?! And that it makes sense that if you want to leave they'll kill you?? because obviously the leaders call on these things is aaalways right and it wouldn't fuck things up horrifically if she was only wrong ONE time and did this to ONE innocent person, never mind more than one.

That anybody can figure out what's good and what isn't just like that? Like, ugh, do you know how much space has been wasted in libraries on books written JUST about some old dead orc thorn trying to decide a definite philosophy of ethics? And then it's cool to make the call to put us in a reprogramming camp without even speaking to us or asking our permission or hearing from us at all. I didn't consent to this, if it's between being a "bad" person and not being free I'd rather just stay bad. How much does she even know about me? Or about anybody? If she pulled people at complete random, would she even tell you that?

Also the stupid stuff. We are dead and in space? When I'm clearly not dead and, like, why in the fuck would we be in space? There is NO reason for any of this to be happening in space, like thematically. If you want to isolate us an island is way more plausible, or somewhere underground, and if you're trying to impress us with impossible technology you really missed the mark. There's fucking gravity in here, come on the sinks flow down when you turn them on. I'm on the ground typing this. Princes.

audio | auditore

[hiddenblade]

[Ezio types approximately three words and then deletes them. Fuck text, it's so tedious. Audio it is! He speaks with a deep Italian accent, calm and firm.]

It is apparent that many inmates are not given the choice in coming here, no. It is also apparent that there are forces working above us that we cannot understand.

But it is equally apparent that it is a fool's errand to focus more on the injustices one cannot do anything about than the problems directly under one's nose. Were I in your shoes, I would be answering questions for myself rather than demanding them of others. Who gives a shit which way the water flows? Think on what is good and what is evil in you for two weeks –– it will get you further than two weeks of finding fault in everything but yourself.

text | jvolkhov

[saklas]

Wait, I know you.

[Volk stays on text. One of his favorite hobbies at home is challenging entire subreddits to fights. Mostly he loses, but the point is that he's primarily a writer, not a talker.]

What in the hell do you mean problems we can't do anything about - girl, I'm not asking you to stop predatory economic practices, YOU'RE LOCKING ME IN A BUILDING AND TELLING ME I'M A BAD PERSON. You could stop doing this at ANY TIME.

Re: text | jvolkhov

[hiddenblade]

[Guess who is annoyed at being called a girl. The fuck is that about?]

I keep hearing "you".

william.temple

[omniavincit]

What have you tried?

text | jvolkhov

[saklas]

Like which maladaptive coping mechanisms I'm developing or did you mean did I already try the fucking cell phone and the doors?

[omniavincit]

[ There's that clinical language again. It puts him on edge. ] Which path to being a good person?

[saklas]

One time I thought about donating to charity but then I remembered I'm still in crippling college debt. Charities should be donating to me. Can you please go dig a hole and lie down in it or something, I'm trying to be a suppressive person over here.

[omniavincit]

I know what you're doing 🦶💥🎊🐝🐝🐝

Is it that you think this is bullshit, or being a good person is?