ICRP Thread IV: Back to Business

Archive 33AR
#101

Obviously confused by all the unfamiliar terms, #13 still appears to be concentrating intently and hanging of every word.

“I must apologise my friend, I have never heard of this Atlantis before now. I do not doubt your words, you have never lied to me nor mislead me in the past. Hmmm, would you be offended if I were to offer to investigate more into this matter with you? Greater evidence from more sources is usually deemed to hold an increased sense of reliability amongst you humans after all. I think my aid might also help with what appears to be your own doubts. I trust you Jane, you are my friend. Let me be your friend in this and allow me to aid you?”

A very sincere tone of belief, faith, trust and warmth emanates throughout . It fairly glows from #13’s eyes, noticeable if Jane were to even glance at him.

#102

Jane’s smile returns, as if it never left. “Well other people are studying it who are better qualified than me. You should talk to them, all I can tell you is what I’ve seen in Hell. Though me and Lewy have an idea for some experiments which might have some interesting results. We can’t go ahead with them until February though because Lewy is busy and distracted and I’m horribly time displaced a lot of the time.” Jane looks confused for a moment “Time displaced a lot of the… um… time displaced sometim… no er, time displaced often these days. That sentence isn’t going to work is it?”

#103

Smiles back, laughter bubbling under the surface

“Not this time perhaps. As for the remainder, maybe you might introduce me? To this Lewy as well perhaps? I would, of course, be most interested in participation.”

As the reach the airship and the crates being unloaded, a crewman indicates several to #13, who in turn gestures towards two of them.

“So. Correspondence. Personal or Camp first?”

#104

“Oh sure, I can introduce you. I was hoping to see Lewy on the way here, but I guess I missed him.” Jane looks around and shrugs. “He’ll show up. You know, I haven’t done a delivery run for a quite a while, personal timeline-wise” she quickly clarifies “I don’t know how long it’s been by normal standards. Probably a few months.” Jane regards the crates “Duty first I guess. Do you need help carrying them? Or do you have a velocipede to transport them with?”

#105

“Duty it is then. Ummm, no, no velocithingy sorry.”

Grabs paperwork off the crate, handing them to Jane.

“You’ll know better than me where we take these to. From memory there is correspondence to various individuals, a delivery to the medics, packages for The Company, etc etc. If you let this nice chap here indicates the earlier crew man again know where abouts, he’s agreed to take your personal delivery to your rooms. I should probably also find somewhere to doss down as well.”

#106

“I have a tent. There are a lots of rooms around camp though so getting a room shouldn’t be hard. I think people just claim one. Theyere might be paperwork but i don’t know anything about it, so you’d need to talk to Leo. Or #74, #74 knows everything about paperwork” Jane flicks through the pile and tucks it into her mail bag “whereas I know these people and can find them. It’s simple in Hanover, you hang around the bar and they come to you” then stares with undisguised curiosity and the other package. “Who’s the personal delivery from?”

#107

13’s face go suddenly blank and expressionless at the mention of both #74 and personal deliveries. Starts awake again.

“Oh. Right. You mean yours.”

Smirks

“That would be beyond my capacity to say. There is a message I am to deliver before you open it however.”

#108

Jane is clearly dying of curiosity “I should get this medical delivery to Dr Dahlia…but… Lewy isn’t here so there’s no point in waiting for him and I can carry that package there that is for me back to the camp and open it right after I give this medical delivery to Dr Dahlia. Then I can introduce you to the camp commander and the Gypsies and #74 so no-one shoots you. And that’s duty covered while I get to open my mail as soon as possible. I don’t want to open it here because it’s kind of exposed and exposed places makes it hard not to feel nervous. Also I did say I would do my job before I opened my own mail and I would feel bad if I changed my mind just because I’m really curious about what I got.”

Jane stopped talking abruptly, having spoken about two or three sentences more than she meant to. She yanked on the braids of her hat, pulling it down over her face. “Sorry.” she said, slightly muffled “Sometimes I forget to shut my mouth while I’m following a train of thought. What do you need to do now?”

#109

Dahlia’s ears perk up and she looks away from her book. She heard her own name and in the distance could see Jane with the newcomer. Squinting, she could see something she had been waiting on. “Aha, the new supplies” she smiled. Wanting to take that off of Jane’s hands as soon as possible, she hurried over

Dahlia cleared her throat to announce her arrival. “Sorry to bother you Jane but I couldn’t help but notice you have something for me” she said as she nodded towards the crate of medical supplies. She avoided eye contact with the unknown man to avoid any spark in to why she might recognize him, just in case it was a bad thing, pleading he would stay focused on Jane’s hat like so many do.

#110

“Hello! #13 this is Dr Dahlia, she’s in charge of the Infirmary, Dr Dahlia this is my friend #13, he’s the longest surviving Long Range Robin ever! He gave me this hat.” she added, with obvious pride.

#111

Dahlia nodded towards the man “góður dagur” she smiled politely. “And was the hat with or without the assortment of items when you got it?” the doctor said with a small laugh, looking up at the hat.

#112

“It is actually, and to you as well Doctor bows, hat over heart, avoiding eye contact. It wasn’t all me, The Hat was a gift from several of us. As I have long suspected though, it appears to be organic in nature and is developing and growing in it’s own way. Never plain, I must confess that The Hat was … simpler, back then.”

Smiles with obvious delight and encouragement at Jane

#113

[quote=“Lokisson”]“It is actually, and to you as well Doctor bows, hat over heart, avoiding eye contact. It wasn’t all me, The Hat was a gift from several of us. As I have long suspected though, it appears to be organic in nature and is developing and growing in it’s own way. Never plain, I must confess that The Hat was … simpler, back then.”

Smiles with obvious delight and encouragement at Jane[/quote]

A small smile found it’s way on Dahlia’s face as someone understood what she said for once. “Perhaps I should examine the hat at another time to find out whether the hat is indeed alive and growing” the doctor laughed.

“Well I suppose I better take this off your hands” she said, crouching down and picking up the heavy crate “Ó það er þungur!” she groaned, lifting it up.

“See to it that any paperwork for this is put on my chair for me to go over” she smiled as she left to two to talk

#114

“I added things when I needed to remember important things.” Jane informs the Dr’s back as she walks away “Though I haven’t added anything in a while” Jane suddenly looks confused “Because… it didn’t seem… because I… why…?” she blinks and her face clears back into a smile. “Because I haven’t spent much time anywhere where I need to remember anything. It’s good” she informed #13 happily “because people get upset when you take the time to gather up little items when you’re making a run for it, or take up limited storage space with non-essentials, but no-one objects to you putting on a hat. Unless it’s been thrown somewhere by a demon and I abandon the group to retrieve it. But that only happened once.”

#115

muttered under his breathe as Dahlia walks away “interesting”. Looking back to Jane, he raises an eyebrow in surprise at the comment of the hat and the demon.

“You’re lucky it didn’t try to hold it for ransom Jane! Hmmm, memories are important. If that’s what you need to keep them, then I think it’s marvelous. The hat looks better this way if you ask me.” Smiles warmly

Glancing at the paperwork

“Ok, there are a few bits and pieces to be handed out, bunch of stuff for the Company, official notices and some weird mechanical doodads. Shall we get them handed out, then go open yours over a drink? Or would you prefer privacy?”

#116

“Well I’m on leave, because Belinda and August yelled at the infernonaught assignment manager. Technically if you are here you are on ‘working leave’ I guess, they must think you’ve been overworking recently. Let’s go hand them out and get a drink! I’ll have tea.”

#117

“Tea sounds good, at this stage I’d even settle for some of that coffee stuff.”

Starts collecting packages, indicating to the crewman that he’d be back for the rest soon and starts walking.

“Over worked? I don’t understand. There are lives to save, mail to deliver and we are short handed. How can I be over worked?”

Genuine confusion

#118

“I don’t know!” Said Jane, clearly sharing the confusion. “I mean I get it if someone is injured I understand them being put on sorting duty so that they can recover, and I can understand needing a break from Hell… we don’t want another McLaren after all, but I could still deliver letters while not being in Hell.” She sigh’s “but you don’t seem injured, and you haven’t been to Hell… maybe this is a reward break for good work? You do work very hard.” Jane’s expression makes it clear what a dubious reward she considers being trapped on Skye is. “I like coffee. But I shouldn’t have it, it makes me act strangely.” The little Christmas ornament on her hat swings around as she walks.

#119

“Oh I’m definitely uninjured. At least as much as normal anyways. I received a message a few months back stating that a Coach Guard presence was requested here by the leading Post Lady. I asked around and discovered it was you. After that I simply volounteered for the posting, after finishing a few short errands first.”

Considers

“Of course, the Company are still annoyed at me and some mention was made of that … again. Hmmm. You don’t think the Robins are angry at me for something do you?”

Slightly wide eyed concern

#120

“I do beg for a Coach Guard every time I’m assigned here. They always told me I was being paranoid!” Jane looks pretty pleased. “I don’t think anyone is mad at you” she assures #13 “but I’m terrible at telling when people are angry, also I’m a bit out of the gossip loop. Sometimes I get to a bunker, sleep, go back to hell, no talking to anyone except the psychiatrist. The rest of the time I go right to the lab to help Lewy. Why is the company annoyed at you?”