| A Message Delivered |
| Summary: | Demos delivers Robin's message to Karthasi. Options are outlined. |
| Date: | Date |
| Related Logs: | One Bright Spark |
| Players: |
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| Chapel — Deck 9 - Battlestar Cerberus |
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| Post Holocaust Day: #22 |
| The hatchway opens into a dimly lit corridor, stark grey walls now and again painted with some mural appropriate to the religious season, stretching from floor to ceiling and then sloping down away from the ceiling in two triangular forms that bracket off the tiered seating areas to either side. Straight ahead, in the center of an open space, stands a simple rectangular altar, the emblems of the Lords thereupon arrayed to receive sacrifice in the tall room when the altar isn't decked for some more specific use. Hestia, who is not vouchsafed her own emblem on the altar, is etched in relief on one side of the altar itself, shown tending the hearth in her usual fashion. |
| In the wall behind the open area are three evenly spaced hatchways which can only be opened and closed from the inside. The small cubicles behind each hatchway are each furnished with a small altar against the back wall, upon which sometimes the dark shape of a sacred object can be discerned even from the tiered seating for visiting on the sacral days. The hatches can be closed to block out profane eyes from rites they were not meant to see. The walls between each little cubicle can be retracted to create a larger space for more well-attended mysteries. |
| Condition Level: 3 - All Clear |
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Karthasi is down here, back to the wall, one book on the step next to her, the other perched on an upturned knee. She looks up as her aide comes in with a note that came in at the offices for her, looking at it for a moment and then nodding. "Thank you." And closing the book on her knee, setting it aside and bending her back to begin to stand.
Stepping into the chapel, Demos edges forward, slipping out of the way of the aide. She inclines her head just a little, then moves farther in. "Sister?" The aide gestures toward the steps and Demos nods, "Oh, thank you." Angling that way, the MP walks toward the standing woman, "Excuse me, Sister. Do you have a moment?"
Karthasi bends to gather her books from the step, back hunching in a frail-looking manner and crackling a little as she stands again. "Ah. Phaedra," she shows the woman the note she'd just received. "I was just about to go and look for you." The note is, of course, from Phaedra. "How may I be of service?"
Demos licks a bit of moisture to her lips, then clasps her hands behind her back, "Oh, thank you. I do not want to take up too much of your time, Sister, but… If I were to tell you that I have seen Robin and she asked me to relay the message that she is sorry that she could not talk to you before, but will be able to do so soon… would you think I was losing my sanity?"
That's… not exactly what Greje was expecting to hear, but she seems to take the news more or less in stride, tucking her books underneath one arm. "No. Not at all. Did she say anything about… when? Or where? Or if she needs any help?" she goes on to ask.
Demos draws in a slow, deep breath and holds it for a moment, then releases it again. Not the reply she expected either. A faint smile begins though it fades before it goes too far. "No. Only soon. I asked if she needed anything, but she said she did not at present." The smile returns more slowly, but lingers, "She is happy, Sister. And that matters a great deal."
"I wonder how many others she's appeared to?" Greje muses quietly, looking back toward the altar. "I… must say, this is all quite strange. But it's not just you, Phaedra, so don't be concerned on that score. She has… as she remarked to you… appeared to me, but been unable to speak. She's also appeared to Tisiphone. Where did she appear to you? And was it just now?" she wonders.
You say, "She mentioned the Ensign." Her gaze sidles a little to the side, the faintest mue of distaste touching her lips. The look fades almost instantly and the woman's eyes refocus on you, "She asked me to give her the same message." Looking back over her shoulder, she inclines her head back toward the chapel's entrance, "Not long ago. I found a small chair and table on one of the maintenance stairway platforms. It is quiet there this time of night, so sometimes I will go there when I cannot sleep. Just to think."
Karthasi lifts her free hand to her mouth and covers her lips in thought. "We should call for an Engineering squad to come do a sweep of the area and see if there are any… odd… energy sources around," she finally suggests, brow furrowed. "This phenomenon seems to me to be unprecedented but for in Scripture and story. We should endeavor to somehow document the facts of the matter." Mind whirling. "Would you consent to being taken to Sickbay? Just to let them give you a once-over?"
Demos inhales again, though this time it is sharply and her gaze turns wary. "What would we tell engineering? That the ghost of a dead woman appeared to me and we want to see if we can identify any otherworldly energy?" Shaking her head, she nibbles her lower lip, gaze once more shifting to one side, then lowering. "I cannot afford to be labeled a mental case, Sister. But, if I can be seen by Lieutenant Stavrian, and if you come with me, Sister; I would consent."
"It's not an insanity if more than one person saw it," Greje points out. "And if it's a gas leak or an electronic frequency that isn't being properly insulated, they're the ones who'll be able to figure it out," she goes on. "You won't be alone, Phaedra. For my part, I'll be giving offerings to her spirit in the next few days to see if we'll be able thus to bolster her in some manner. Perhaps it is mad so to do— but it won't hurt, if she's not really here, and if she is really here, then perhaps it'll help. I don't mind chancing getting egg on my face for the possibility of aiding one of our lost."
Demos does not raise her eyes for a long moment, though she nods in agreement, "Indeed. If there is a chemical or physical danger, it should be found and repaired." The practicalities finished, she looks up, "I would do anything to help her, Sister. She… Well, she said that she is working to being able to return to us. Or, implied it, anyway. Do you think that is possible?"
"No," Greje replies. "But a good many things I didn't think would ever be possible have happened, of recent, and thus I am willing to keep an open mind," she goes on to mitigate her answer. "Like I said. This all may be something completely other than what it appears, and we all may look silly for having gone along with it, in the end. But we owe it to her memory to at the very least— try. And we also owe it to the crew to make certain the ship is safe, which is why we ought to report the apparitions to Engineering to investigate. And to medical."
Demos shifts slightly, disappointment underscoring her tone, "Ah. I was afraid of that. But, as you say, a great deal has happened in the last few months that should not have." Squaring her shoulders, her smile once more returns, "But, if it can, Robin is the sort who would figure out how. Or was. Is?" Shaking her head, she abandons the tense question for now, "And you are right. If we are suffering from something dangerous… Well, we will just get it sorted." Her nod is sort of decisive, though she adds, "Is the ChEng still in sickbay? It might make reporting all of this easier."
Karthasi almost drops her books. "Ohmygods Captain Gabrieli," she recalls the ChEng to mind, bringing her free hand to her mouth again. "Um. No, I… shouldn't think he is. I'll go down to Engineering and request a crew. Why don't you go to sickbay… if there's anything they can catch, it might be gone soon," she notes gently. "We'll figure it out, Phaedra. Don't worry. You're not mad," she moves that hand toward Phaedra's upper arm, if she'll take a little touch of support.
Demos tilts her head just a little, "Are you alright, Sister?" Concern tinges her tone at the sudden distress evident in the other woman. She reaches out to steady the books, or to catch them, should they fall. When they do not and the touch of support is offered, she willingly accepts. Her hands slip back behind her lower back and she nods, distress returning but only vaguely, "Very well. I shall go to medical. Though I will need to let the Ensign know as well. Truth or not, I owe her memory that much. And who knows? Perhaps the Ensign will be comforted to know that she is not alone in this." Unspoken, the distaste returns and this time she does not try to hide it, though she does keep it muted.
"I'm fine. I was just… I was preparing to go and visit with Captain Gabrieli in Sickbay when I was… accosted by the vision. In the aftermath I completely lost my head, and neglected to go. I will have to apologize to him for my behavior when I see him," Greje explains her alarm, then, squinting at Phaedra. "You and Tisiphone don't get on? Perhaps you should talk to her, yes. You both were very close to Robin. I'm sure she'll be glad to have someone with whom to talk."
Demos nods, "Ah, I see. I am sure he will understand. He seemed very considerate the last time I saw him in action, so to speak." She begins to turn, then shakes her head, "Not particularly, no. She said that she almost punched a Marine after hearing about the deaths of civilians at Picon." Her voice softens to nearly a murmur, "I explained that difficult decisions come with the territory when you are a Marine. Though I also said that our enemies do not always come neatly wrapped in metal ships. Perhaps I was not as considerate as I could have been." Tossing the Priestling a rueful smile, the MP nods, "I shall talk to her. Perhaps we are not as different as it initially seemed." A wave is lifted and she turns again for the exit, "Luck in Engineering, Sister. I will let you know what Medical says."